7 ms·

Show HN: GF likes texts. I’m bad at texting. App for that? Nope. So I made one

8 points by binkHN 5y ago

binkHN 5y ago
Hello hackers. I wrote the app and I hope it can help others like me. My girlfriend likes little text messages here and there, and I’m not good at sending them. So “there’s an app for that,” right? No, there actually wasn’t. So I made one. I define the app as a smart device automation tool for SMS text messages, calls and email that’ll help you stay in touch. The story on how the app got started, my eureka moments, repeated failures and a little technical detail is at https://medium.com/@mtc.dev/my-first-android-app-story-331c98270ec4?source=friends_link&sk=d01250707057ed71f2c7af8ed4ac9eea https://medium.com/@mtc.dev/my-first-android-app-story-331c9.... I’d love some feedback. Cheers.
arkitaip 5y ago
Link is dead.
- binkHN 5y ago
  I'm sorry, but the app is currently in beta and limited to 70 countries/regions to better support this. Please let me know what country you are in so that I may rectify this.
  - vort3 5y ago
    I'm not the one who originally asked, but can it be made available in Kazakhstan? I want to at least see what it looks like and what it does, because I don't understand what it's about from title and I'm just curious.
    - binkHN 5y ago
      Done! Unfortunately the change will take several hours to be effective.
      - vort3 5y ago
        Thanks, that looks awesome (and funny), definitely something I need. Any chance to make it work with anything other than SMS? Whatsapp/Telegram? I know «whatsapp bad», but let's not discuss it for now (many older people use it and I have to talk to them sometimes).
        binkHN 5y ago
        As a first stab I went with SMS text messages because the functionality is built into the device and the app can easily access the SMS messaging history on the device to make better decisions. I plan to review support for WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and friends in the future. Thanks for the feedback!
mathhulk 5y ago
I think this is hilarious. My girlfriend is the same way, so I would definitely try it if I didn’t have an iPhone! The only downside I see is that this follows the trend of faking interactions over the Internet, which is something you see on social media platforms and the like and I think this could definitely be detrimental to social interactions and communication between a couple. Of course, that’s not criticism for you but just for how people act including myself. Love the idea!
- binkHN 5y ago
  There are definitely people on both sides of the fence with regard to this. In my case, it's beneficial and my girlfriend appreciates it. In my initial comment, I posted my story with regard to the app and it goes into this in a little more detail. Thank you for the feedback!
ad404b8a372f2b9 5y ago
I find the concept repulsive. I'd put it in a nicer way but I can't think of a lighter word that'd fit if I found out one of my friends or loved one was doing that to me. It seems your girlfriend took it well and it brought you closer to your dad so I'm glad it's worked out well and I can certainly see the appeal as someone who spends a lot of time at work and has trouble keeping up with people. But I think it should require some human interaction, as in either automate notifications telling the user to message one of his contacts, or automate messages but make it so the user has to press send. That's the minimum amount of interaction that I personally feel is necessary to not cheat on the emotional/societal contract that a message to a friend/lover represents.
- binkHN 5y ago
  I respect your opinion. By default, the app will not take any action and largely act as a helpful reminder, and I highly recommend this type of use.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- galfarragem 5y ago
  To corroborate your opinion I _despise_ automated birthday greetings. I believe many feel the same.
noduerme 5y ago
Funny, I found this both repulsive and hilarious; and then I read the top two battling comments. I have a GF who loves to text random shit exactly when I'm in the middle of solving the Hardest Problem Ever™ The thing is, I've learned how to moderate it by just ignoring the texts, and so should most people, so you'd have to be sort of a d*ck to use a bot to answer for you in anything more than a rudimentary regard; let alone one to shout out reassurances on a regular basis. I mean, it's funny as hell because we all know people who thrive on feeling connected 24/7 through texts. And also it would definitely lead to Larry David level embarrassment when you inevitably get outed. So in a way it's a karmic circle where anyone who uses it deserves what they get. How much data do you collect on those contacts and texting habits? Because for data mining this makes lots of sense. You could even steal other people's talkative girlfriends. You just need a voice bot to simulate you on the phone.
- binkHN 5y ago
  The app doesn’t answer for you in any way. Even OpenAI's GPT-3 and related have many limitations and would only get you in trouble with close interpersonal relationships. I simply use the app to help me provide little bids for affection for my girlfriend, but also use it as a conversation starter for friends and family at more opportune times. As for data collection, the app purposefully does not store any text messages, but it does use existing text messaging and call log heuristics when making decisions regarding those you add to the app. It also has a limited history that it maintains, and displays in a tab, and uses this history to make better decisions and display more helpful information in notifications.
kinduff 5y ago
Made a snapshot here in case anyone not part of the country list wants to take a peak https://web.archive.org/web/20210613093216/https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dev.mtc.ga&referrer=utm_source%3Dmedium https://web.archive.org/web/20210613093216/https://play.goog...
mutant 5y ago
/r/polyamory needs to see this.

8 points by binkHN 5y ago

Hello hackers. I wrote the app and I hope it can help others like me. My girlfriend likes little text messages here and there, and I’m not good at sending them. So “there’s an app for that,” right? No, there actually wasn’t. So I made one. I define the app as a smart device automation tool for SMS text messages, calls and email that’ll help you stay in touch. The story on how the app got started, my eureka moments, repeated failures and a little technical detail is at https://medium.com/@mtc.dev/my-first-android-app-story-331c98270ec4?source=friends_link&sk=d01250707057ed71f2c7af8ed4ac9eea https://medium.com/@mtc.dev/my-first-android-app-story-331c9.... I’d love some feedback. Cheers.

arkitaip 5y ago

Link is dead.

binkHN 5y ago
I'm sorry, but the app is currently in beta and limited to 70 countries/regions to better support this. Please let me know what country you are in so that I may rectify this.
- vort3 5y ago
  I'm not the one who originally asked, but can it be made available in Kazakhstan? I want to at least see what it looks like and what it does, because I don't understand what it's about from title and I'm just curious.
  - binkHN 5y ago
    Done! Unfortunately the change will take several hours to be effective.
    - vort3 5y ago
      Thanks, that looks awesome (and funny), definitely something I need. Any chance to make it work with anything other than SMS? Whatsapp/Telegram? I know «whatsapp bad», but let's not discuss it for now (many older people use it and I have to talk to them sometimes).
      - binkHN 5y ago
        As a first stab I went with SMS text messages because the functionality is built into the device and the app can easily access the SMS messaging history on the device to make better decisions. I plan to review support for WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and friends in the future. Thanks for the feedback!

mathhulk 5y ago

I think this is hilarious. My girlfriend is the same way, so I would definitely try it if I didn’t have an iPhone! The only downside I see is that this follows the trend of faking interactions over the Internet, which is something you see on social media platforms and the like and I think this could definitely be detrimental to social interactions and communication between a couple. Of course, that’s not criticism for you but just for how people act including myself. Love the idea!

binkHN 5y ago
There are definitely people on both sides of the fence with regard to this. In my case, it's beneficial and my girlfriend appreciates it. In my initial comment, I posted my story with regard to the app and it goes into this in a little more detail. Thank you for the feedback!

ad404b8a372f2b9 5y ago

I find the concept repulsive. I'd put it in a nicer way but I can't think of a lighter word that'd fit if I found out one of my friends or loved one was doing that to me. It seems your girlfriend took it well and it brought you closer to your dad so I'm glad it's worked out well and I can certainly see the appeal as someone who spends a lot of time at work and has trouble keeping up with people. But I think it should require some human interaction, as in either automate notifications telling the user to message one of his contacts, or automate messages but make it so the user has to press send. That's the minimum amount of interaction that I personally feel is necessary to not cheat on the emotional/societal contract that a message to a friend/lover represents.

binkHN 5y ago
I respect your opinion. By default, the app will not take any action and largely act as a helpful reminder, and I highly recommend this type of use.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
galfarragem 5y ago
To corroborate your opinion I _despise_ automated birthday greetings. I believe many feel the same.

noduerme 5y ago

Funny, I found this both repulsive and hilarious; and then I read the top two battling comments. I have a GF who loves to text random shit exactly when I'm in the middle of solving the Hardest Problem Ever™ The thing is, I've learned how to moderate it by just ignoring the texts, and so should most people, so you'd have to be sort of a d*ck to use a bot to answer for you in anything more than a rudimentary regard; let alone one to shout out reassurances on a regular basis. I mean, it's funny as hell because we all know people who thrive on feeling connected 24/7 through texts. And also it would definitely lead to Larry David level embarrassment when you inevitably get outed. So in a way it's a karmic circle where anyone who uses it deserves what they get. How much data do you collect on those contacts and texting habits? Because for data mining this makes lots of sense. You could even steal other people's talkative girlfriends. You just need a voice bot to simulate you on the phone.

binkHN 5y ago
The app doesn’t answer for you in any way. Even OpenAI's GPT-3 and related have many limitations and would only get you in trouble with close interpersonal relationships. I simply use the app to help me provide little bids for affection for my girlfriend, but also use it as a conversation starter for friends and family at more opportune times. As for data collection, the app purposefully does not store any text messages, but it does use existing text messaging and call log heuristics when making decisions regarding those you add to the app. It also has a limited history that it maintains, and displays in a tab, and uses this history to make better decisions and display more helpful information in notifications.

kinduff 5y ago

Made a snapshot here in case anyone not part of the country list wants to take a peak https://web.archive.org/web/20210613093216/https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dev.mtc.ga&referrer=utm_source%3Dmedium https://web.archive.org/web/20210613093216/https://play.goog...

mutant 5y ago

/r/polyamory needs to see this.