7 ms·

Show HN: I created an app to make my online reading experience easier

61 points by k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago

k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
Hey HN! Long term lurker here - hoping to share my side project, Q. Like most people reading this, I normally start my day off by going through the first few pages of HN, finding articles I'd like to read. If your experience has been anything like mine, you probably also open up a bunch of tabs, read a few, and eventually close the rest (especially if Chrome is eating up all your memory!). It's pretty much the same process with other websites I visit as well. I built Q(ueue... heh) to make my online reading life easier. I wanted a simple way to add and read articles while on my computer, so I made a browser extension that lets you do things with just keyboard shortcuts (Pressing "Ctrl+Shift+Space" adds my current page, while "Ctrl+Shift+Right Arrow" fetches the next article in my queue - I can also right click add, which I find helpful when browsing HN). In order to pick up where I left off with my phone, I created an app (on iOS only for now) that makes it really easy to add (via the share thingy) and read articles. You can even set it to open up articles in reader mode which I find gets rid of a lot of visual clutter on most pages (and annoying ads). I've been using it for a few months now and have been quite happy so wanted to share Q with the community as well. At the end of the day, this is really just an extremely minimal bookmarking app fine-tuned to how I personally wished they worked. I really hope you find Q useful as well! I collect the bare minimum to create an account (username, email, and password) but I understand people might not want to create an account. Here is an account you can use if you want to try it out first: email: hackernews-demo-user@gmail.com password: hackernews Would love any feedback or suggestions on things to improve! You can also reach me at mimicrylabs@gmail.com as well. Website: https://q.mimicrylabs.com/ https://q.mimicrylabs.com/ Firefox extension: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/q-by-mimicry-labs/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/q-by-mimicry-... Chrome extension: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/q-by-mimicry-labs/bppjlkjoahabfamjpgehiakajpbegefl https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/q-by-mimicry-labs/... iOS app: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/q-by-mimicry-labs/id1552578757 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/q-by-mimicry-labs/id1552578757 Privacy policy at: https://q.mimicrylabs.com/privacy https://q.mimicrylabs.com/privacy
- oarsinsync 6y ago
  Looks good! Thanks for sharing. > I collect the bare minimum to create an account (username, email, and password) but I understand people might not want to create an account. Note that HN doesn’t require an email. You don’t strictly need one either. I understand why you’ve probably gone with one anyway. What’s your plan for monetisation? It’s not ads, apparently, so what’s going to pay the hosting bills?
  - k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
    > You don’t strictly need one either. I understand why you’ve probably gone with one anyway. Yup, I agree - it was really just for resetting the account password. I don't really bother validating the email at the moment, so it shouldn't be too hard to just make it optional like HN does. > What’s your plan for monetisation? It really depends on how many people start using the app. If they can all fit on a single server including myself, probably not going to monetize it because I plan on using it myself. My original plan was to create a "pro" version that adds functionality for power users (like having offline reader mode). I'm not really interested in going down the ads route, so that seems like the most likely prospect at the moment.
- DarwinMailApp 6y ago
  I love your app logo and the burgundy colour. I also had a quick look at your privacy policy, and agree with what oarsinsync mentioned. If you could skip asking users for their details, but still allow them access to the tool, you would probably have a lot more users sign up. Before they sign up, you could store their bookmarks locally. Then perhaps later on, you could ask them to sign in to save their bookmarks to the server to be accessed on other devices. However, this all depends on what way you plan to monetise the app/extensions? Can I also ask what framework are you using for the mobile app? It isn't React Native by any chance is it? I ask because I'd love to know how you got on with building the app for the App store. I hope to publish iOS & Android apps for DarwinMail[1] in the coming weeks. Also, it would be absolutely amazing if you built the Chrome extension with React Native and had some tips. PS: The site is down ATM, probably because of the influx in all the lovely visitors from HN :) [1] https://www.darwinmail.app https://www.darwinmail.app
gnicholas 6y ago
How do you see this differing from services like Instapaper/Pocket? I have used both and definitely think there are areas available for improvement, but I'm just wondering what you're targeting. Congratulations on what you've built, and good luck! BTW, I found the layout of the website to be a bit confusing. Perhaps in the side-by-side portion, there should be some sort of divider? Or better yet, one column with a simple tab/toggle above the mobile/desktop segment so that someone can see how it works on one or the other? Also, thanks for thinking of user privacy here. It definitely makes me more likely to use the services, and I think it was very clever of you to create a dummy account that HNers can use.
- jamil7 6y ago
  Anything in particular you miss? One of my side projects is something similar to Instapaper/Pocket, it doesn't see as much love as it probably should but brings in a little money.
  - dominotw 6y ago
    I use pocket on my ereader. I see a lot of ghosting and slowness sometimes. Not sure if there can be an low power eink version.
  - k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
    What's your side project (if you don't mind sharing)? Would love to see other projects in this space!
  - gnicholas 6y ago
    I think Pocket used to remember my place when I was reading an article, and I find that it no longer does. This is a big problem for long articles. Also, the margins in their web app are enormous, and look ridiculous on iPhone. I've talked with their support about this, but here we are years later and it hasn't been fixed. Instapaper is definitely coasting right now, and as far as I can tell they haven't made any substantive improvements in half a decade. The reader aspect doesn't necessarily need to change in that timeframe, but the web has changed, and they should be integrating with new/different things to stay current.
jraby3 6y ago
This looks great. I just downloaded the iOS app. I always end up with multiple windows open in safari and then eventually lose some of them, so this seems to fit my needs perfectly. Loved the layout design. Looking forward to trying it.
- k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
  It sounds like the app crashed a little while after you downloaded it (I was asleep so didn't notice). Please try it again when you have a moment! Hoping you find it useful as well.
kossTKR 6y ago
Your site has not worked for a few hours?
Cypher 6y ago
It don't work
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
  Sorry! Just brought it up back. Had some issues with the load earlier earlier. Please check out it out again when you have a chance!
bonestamp2 6y ago
No offense, I just wanted to provide some feedback. The black text on the pinkish background of your site was too hard on my eyes and I had to close your site. I don't have any vision disabilities that I'm aware of and my monitor has been color calibrated.
- k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
  Ah, sorry about that! Was trying to keep it on the dark mode side, but I may have gone too far in that direction ha - let me see if I can change the color scheme really quickly to be at least white for the text!
- k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
  Changed the text color to be white now, so hopefully it is a little easier to read. Let me know if you have any issues or feedback!
Darmody 6y ago
I don't really like Pocket but this is great. No more pinned tabs with stuff I want to read later.

61 points by k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago

Hey HN! Long term lurker here - hoping to share my side project, Q. Like most people reading this, I normally start my day off by going through the first few pages of HN, finding articles I'd like to read. If your experience has been anything like mine, you probably also open up a bunch of tabs, read a few, and eventually close the rest (especially if Chrome is eating up all your memory!). It's pretty much the same process with other websites I visit as well. I built Q(ueue... heh) to make my online reading life easier. I wanted a simple way to add and read articles while on my computer, so I made a browser extension that lets you do things with just keyboard shortcuts (Pressing "Ctrl+Shift+Space" adds my current page, while "Ctrl+Shift+Right Arrow" fetches the next article in my queue - I can also right click add, which I find helpful when browsing HN). In order to pick up where I left off with my phone, I created an app (on iOS only for now) that makes it really easy to add (via the share thingy) and read articles. You can even set it to open up articles in reader mode which I find gets rid of a lot of visual clutter on most pages (and annoying ads). I've been using it for a few months now and have been quite happy so wanted to share Q with the community as well. At the end of the day, this is really just an extremely minimal bookmarking app fine-tuned to how I personally wished they worked. I really hope you find Q useful as well! I collect the bare minimum to create an account (username, email, and password) but I understand people might not want to create an account. Here is an account you can use if you want to try it out first: email: hackernews-demo-user@gmail.com password: hackernews Would love any feedback or suggestions on things to improve! You can also reach me at mimicrylabs@gmail.com as well. Website: https://q.mimicrylabs.com/ https://q.mimicrylabs.com/ Firefox extension: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/q-by-mimicry-labs/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/q-by-mimicry-... Chrome extension: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/q-by-mimicry-labs/bppjlkjoahabfamjpgehiakajpbegefl https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/q-by-mimicry-labs/... iOS app: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/q-by-mimicry-labs/id1552578757 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/q-by-mimicry-labs/id1552578757 Privacy policy at: https://q.mimicrylabs.com/privacy https://q.mimicrylabs.com/privacy

oarsinsync 6y ago
Looks good! Thanks for sharing. > I collect the bare minimum to create an account (username, email, and password) but I understand people might not want to create an account. Note that HN doesn’t require an email. You don’t strictly need one either. I understand why you’ve probably gone with one anyway. What’s your plan for monetisation? It’s not ads, apparently, so what’s going to pay the hosting bills?
- k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
  > You don’t strictly need one either. I understand why you’ve probably gone with one anyway. Yup, I agree - it was really just for resetting the account password. I don't really bother validating the email at the moment, so it shouldn't be too hard to just make it optional like HN does. > What’s your plan for monetisation? It really depends on how many people start using the app. If they can all fit on a single server including myself, probably not going to monetize it because I plan on using it myself. My original plan was to create a "pro" version that adds functionality for power users (like having offline reader mode). I'm not really interested in going down the ads route, so that seems like the most likely prospect at the moment.
DarwinMailApp 6y ago
I love your app logo and the burgundy colour. I also had a quick look at your privacy policy, and agree with what oarsinsync mentioned. If you could skip asking users for their details, but still allow them access to the tool, you would probably have a lot more users sign up. Before they sign up, you could store their bookmarks locally. Then perhaps later on, you could ask them to sign in to save their bookmarks to the server to be accessed on other devices. However, this all depends on what way you plan to monetise the app/extensions? Can I also ask what framework are you using for the mobile app? It isn't React Native by any chance is it? I ask because I'd love to know how you got on with building the app for the App store. I hope to publish iOS & Android apps for DarwinMail[1] in the coming weeks. Also, it would be absolutely amazing if you built the Chrome extension with React Native and had some tips. PS: The site is down ATM, probably because of the influx in all the lovely visitors from HN :) [1] https://www.darwinmail.app https://www.darwinmail.app

gnicholas 6y ago

How do you see this differing from services like Instapaper/Pocket? I have used both and definitely think there are areas available for improvement, but I'm just wondering what you're targeting. Congratulations on what you've built, and good luck! BTW, I found the layout of the website to be a bit confusing. Perhaps in the side-by-side portion, there should be some sort of divider? Or better yet, one column with a simple tab/toggle above the mobile/desktop segment so that someone can see how it works on one or the other? Also, thanks for thinking of user privacy here. It definitely makes me more likely to use the services, and I think it was very clever of you to create a dummy account that HNers can use.

jamil7 6y ago
Anything in particular you miss? One of my side projects is something similar to Instapaper/Pocket, it doesn't see as much love as it probably should but brings in a little money.
- dominotw 6y ago
  I use pocket on my ereader. I see a lot of ghosting and slowness sometimes. Not sure if there can be an low power eink version.
- k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
  What's your side project (if you don't mind sharing)? Would love to see other projects in this space!
- gnicholas 6y ago
  I think Pocket used to remember my place when I was reading an article, and I find that it no longer does. This is a big problem for long articles. Also, the margins in their web app are enormous, and look ridiculous on iPhone. I've talked with their support about this, but here we are years later and it hasn't been fixed. Instapaper is definitely coasting right now, and as far as I can tell they haven't made any substantive improvements in half a decade. The reader aspect doesn't necessarily need to change in that timeframe, but the web has changed, and they should be integrating with new/different things to stay current.

jraby3 6y ago

This looks great. I just downloaded the iOS app. I always end up with multiple windows open in safari and then eventually lose some of them, so this seems to fit my needs perfectly. Loved the layout design. Looking forward to trying it.

k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
It sounds like the app crashed a little while after you downloaded it (I was asleep so didn't notice). Please try it again when you have a moment! Hoping you find it useful as well.

kossTKR 6y ago

Your site has not worked for a few hours?

Cypher 6y ago

It don't work

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
Sorry! Just brought it up back. Had some issues with the load earlier earlier. Please check out it out again when you have a chance!

bonestamp2 6y ago

No offense, I just wanted to provide some feedback. The black text on the pinkish background of your site was too hard on my eyes and I had to close your site. I don't have any vision disabilities that I'm aware of and my monitor has been color calibrated.

k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
Ah, sorry about that! Was trying to keep it on the dark mode side, but I may have gone too far in that direction ha - let me see if I can change the color scheme really quickly to be at least white for the text!
k-i-r-t-h-i 6y ago
Changed the text color to be white now, so hopefully it is a little easier to read. Let me know if you have any issues or feedback!

Darmody 6y ago

I don't really like Pocket but this is great. No more pinned tabs with stuff I want to read later.