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Show HN: Stringmark – Chrome extension that makes online research easier

108 points by johanznsdn 5y ago

johanznsdn 5y ago
Stringmark maker here! I developed Stringmark based on my own needs: I sometimes have to do research very intensively and in a very short period of time. Often then, I have a lot of tabs open and every time I come across a sentence/paragraph that interests me, I add the webpage to my Bookmarks or to my Reading List to be able to go deeper later. But more than 30 bookmarks later, I don't remember why I saved a specific webpage, which sentence or paragraph interests me and I end up losing productivity and time. Yes, after doing some research I saw some extensions that offers similar features, but all of them have either a complicated user interface, or too many useless features (personal opinion) AND most of them require login… In my opinion, it should be as simple as using the default Bookmark and Reading List features of the browser. That's why I developed Stringmark, a small and easy-to-use Chrome Extension that allows you to save a piece of text and the URL from any webpage. And thanks to Chrome Text Fragment feature, your selected text is highlighted when you click on any link from Stringmark. I already plan to add new useful features and I am of course open for feedback. Please check it out and let me know what you think (no login required)!
agilob 5y ago
Decent, will there be Firefox version?
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  I don't know if you'll see this comment... but the Firefox is now out! https://www.stringmark.com/download https://www.stringmark.com/download
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Thanks! I'll try to make a version for Firefox very soon!
techload 5y ago
I'ld love to use this, but there is no Firefox version...
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  I don't know if you'll see this comment... but the Firefox is now out! https://www.stringmark.com/download https://www.stringmark.com/download
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Yes... I'll try to make a Firefox version ASAP! (Chrome extensions are compatible with Opera/Edge...)
  - cute_boi 5y ago
    most of the chrome extensions should work easily with firefox. Because chrome=browser in manifest v2 at firefox (I don't think manifest v3 has arrived in firefox) However what I can tell is making extension in firefox is more fun than chrome in manifest v2.
  - kome 5y ago
    Awesome, please yes. It would be great to have a Firefox version.
ezekg 5y ago
Looks cool. I’d love to see a mobile version of this. That’s when I typically make these types of notes, sitting on the couch at the end of the day. I currently either text myself the quote and link, or keep track of the same using the Notes app or GitHub issues if it’s related to a project.
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Thanks ezekg! Great idea, I'll think about making a mobile version, thanks :)
pvg 5y ago
Could you say a bit about how the sync happens and how/where the data is stored? Unrelated, you probably don't want to be selling 'lifetime premium' anything, even when it's not clear what that means at an early stage. It's a small and low-priced thing as it is, painting yourself into a 'lifetime' corner with potential customers is not worth the certain future hassle and misunderstandings.
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Thanks for your feedback pvg! The data is stored using 'chrome.storage'. So it's either stored locally if you aren't signed in to Chrome Browser or stored in the Google servers if you are signed in. So the sync happens using your Google account. (https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/storage/ https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/stora...) Concerning the 'lifetime' word, I get your point. I just wanted to highlight the fact that you only pay once for the premium features and that it's not a 'subscription business model'.
  - pvg 5y ago
    Isn't storage.sync limited to something tiny like 100 Kb? Or has that changed?
    - johanznsdn 5y ago
      You're totally right. "In my opinion, it’s a pain to have recurring cost for small extensions/apps like Stringmark. But as @razemio said, it’s (most of the time) necessary when the service uses a backend. As I said, I want to avoid recurring cost and that’s why I decided to use chrome.storage. Also, as another comment and @razemio said here, the sync storage of Chrome is limited in size: ~100kb which is roughly 370 highlights in Stringmark because the text you are able to save is limited in size (~120 characters). Also, the local storage of Chrome is unlimited in size. It means that you can have ~370 highlights that are synced through your devices. Honestly, I think that it is enough but you guys are right I should precise it in my website, I’ll update it ASAP! @bruth that is the reason why the product will never go away since I don’t have backend costs! In order to attenuate this sync storage size limitation I plan to add these features: Limit the number of highlights per list; Let the users decide to save a specific list locally or using chrome sync; Export lists by email and/or in various file format in order to free up space; Import lists easily The other solution is to add another premium plan with a recurring cost and where I would use a database backend for these users so that they can really have ‘unlimited’ highlights synced. Tell me what you guys think about these solutions!"
karencarits 5y ago
Looks great! But as mentioned in another comment; where are my data stored? Also, the free version seems pretty useless if there is no way for me to export my data and it only shows the three first lines of an annotation Since you ask for feedback, here are some ideas: * Group highlights from the same url * Save all open tabs as a list * Reader mode * Archive the urls in my lists in some way; preferably as a single html file
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Thanks for your feedback. Concerning the free version, I get your point I'll think about it! Concerning the data : "The data is stored using 'chrome.storage'. So it's either stored locally if you aren't signed in to Chrome Browser or stored in the Google servers if you are signed in. So the sync happens using your Google account. (https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/storage/ https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/stora...)" Thank you so much for the ideas :)
- zigzag312 5y ago
  Another idea: show on Stringmark's icon, if I have anything saved from the current page.
greenie_beans 5y ago
Cool. This looks nice - can’t wait to try it out. I made something like this but it’s a bad prototype that I never took the time to improve. Based on one of your comments, sorry if you ended up trying to use it!
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Oh thanks! What is your prototype?
robsalasco 5y ago
I'm currently using LINER and I would love to test your app if a Safari extension is released
abraxas 5y ago
Is it similar to furl? Anyone still remember furl? It allowed for saving the content of your bookmarks as well as allowing you to search within their content.
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Can you send a link? I think I'm too young to know furl lol :)
  - abraxas 5y ago
    It's defunct now. It was a service that popped up during the web 2.0 wave so circa 2004.
bruth 5y ago
Why is it 3.99 for a lifetime payment? My cynical self tells me the product won't improve or your intention is generate enough hype to make a quick exit and the product will go away. You should make this is a recurring cost.
- Fogest 5y ago
  What? I think it makes much more sense for this to be a one-time payment. I am actually surprised to see anybody advocating for a subscription over a one-time payment. Plenty of products I have used have had one time payments and it has worked out fine. Sometimes in the future they switch to a subscription model or add other paid features but that usually doesn't happen until they start to have investors and have pressure to generate more revenue. Pocketcasts is an example of this. They had a one time fee for each platform you bought their product on. Eventually many years later they switched to a subscription model but allowed people who had the original one-time fee to keep it forever which was nice.
  - razemio 5y ago
    For me it depends on the service. Since this (should) store data and use a backend, I am very skeptical about having the option for a lifetime license. Most of these services shutdown sooner or later and your "lifetime license" is gone. OP already explained that it uses Google sync to store the data across devices which is a totally different problem, there are very strict storage size limitations.
    - johanznsdn 5y ago
      In my opinion, it’s a pain to have recurring cost for small extensions/apps like Stringmark. But as @razemio said, it’s (most of the time) necessary when the service uses a backend. As I said, I want to avoid recurring cost and that’s why I decided to use chrome.storage. Also, as another comment and @razemio said here, the sync storage of Chrome is limited in size: ~100kb which is roughly 370 highlights in Stringmark because the text you are able to save is limited in size (~120 characters). Also, the local storage of Chrome is unlimited in size. It means that you can have ~370 highlights that are synced through your devices. Honestly, I think that it is enough but you guys are right I should precise it in my website, I’ll update it ASAP! @bruth that is the reason why the product will never go away since I don’t have backend costs! In order to attenuate this sync storage size limitation I plan to add these features: Limit the number of highlights per list; Let the users decide to save a specific list locally or using chrome sync; Export lists by email and/or in various file format in order to free up space; Import lists easily The other solution is to add another premium plan with a recurring cost and where I would use a database backend for these users so that they can really have ‘unlimited’ highlights synced. Tell me what you guys think about these solutions!
2Gkashmiri 5y ago
How do you handle payments?
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  I'm using Stripe!
  - 2Gkashmiri 5y ago
    directly? how do you make sure paid users get more functionality?
justinlloyd 5y ago
Purchased inside of 2 minutes. Nice and simple. Wish I'd thought of it. Looking forward to the Firefox version.
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  I don't know if you'll see this comment... but the Firefox is now out! https://www.stringmark.com/download https://www.stringmark.com/download
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Wow thank you so much :)
solarkraft 5y ago
Looks cool! I’ve been waiting for a better bookmark feature and something for making highlights on pages for a while, but the solutions I’ve found all fall a bit short. > No login required, no useless features. Does this mean there’s also no dependency on an external server? That’d be super refreshing. Can’t wait for the Firefox version.
- johanznsdn 5y ago
  Thank you :) No dependency on an external server indeed. I'm only using an external small server to check if a user has a premium or free plan!
johanznsdn 5y ago
Hey guys! I apologize for the lack of precision concerning where the data is saved. I'll just copy paste one of my comment here: "In my opinion, it’s a pain to have recurring cost for small extensions/apps like Stringmark. But as @razemio said, it’s (most of the time) necessary when the service uses a backend. As I said, I want to avoid recurring cost and that’s why I decided to use chrome.storage. Also, as another comment and @razemio said here, the sync storage of Chrome is limited in size: ~100kb which is roughly 370 highlights in Stringmark because the text you are able to save is limited in size (~120 characters). Also, the local storage of Chrome is unlimited in size. It means that you can have ~370 highlights that are synced through your devices. Honestly, I think that it is enough but you guys are right I should precise it in my website, I’ll update it ASAP! @bruth that is the reason why the product will never go away since I don’t have backend costs! In order to attenuate this sync storage size limitation I plan to add these features: Limit the number of highlights per list; Let the users decide to save a specific list locally or using chrome sync; Export lists by email and/or in various file format in order to free up space; Import lists easily The other solution is to add another premium plan with a recurring cost and where I would use a database backend for these users so that they can really have ‘unlimited’ highlights synced. Tell me what you guys think about these solutions!"
nextaccountic 5y ago
What are the open source alternatives to this kind of thing?

108 points by johanznsdn 5y ago

Stringmark maker here! I developed Stringmark based on my own needs: I sometimes have to do research very intensively and in a very short period of time. Often then, I have a lot of tabs open and every time I come across a sentence/paragraph that interests me, I add the webpage to my Bookmarks or to my Reading List to be able to go deeper later. But more than 30 bookmarks later, I don't remember why I saved a specific webpage, which sentence or paragraph interests me and I end up losing productivity and time. Yes, after doing some research I saw some extensions that offers similar features, but all of them have either a complicated user interface, or too many useless features (personal opinion) AND most of them require login… In my opinion, it should be as simple as using the default Bookmark and Reading List features of the browser. That's why I developed Stringmark, a small and easy-to-use Chrome Extension that allows you to save a piece of text and the URL from any webpage. And thanks to Chrome Text Fragment feature, your selected text is highlighted when you click on any link from Stringmark. I already plan to add new useful features and I am of course open for feedback. Please check it out and let me know what you think (no login required)!

agilob 5y ago

Decent, will there be Firefox version?

johanznsdn 5y ago
I don't know if you'll see this comment... but the Firefox is now out! https://www.stringmark.com/download https://www.stringmark.com/download
johanznsdn 5y ago
Thanks! I'll try to make a version for Firefox very soon!

techload 5y ago

I'ld love to use this, but there is no Firefox version...

johanznsdn 5y ago
I don't know if you'll see this comment... but the Firefox is now out! https://www.stringmark.com/download https://www.stringmark.com/download
johanznsdn 5y ago
Yes... I'll try to make a Firefox version ASAP! (Chrome extensions are compatible with Opera/Edge...)
- cute_boi 5y ago
  most of the chrome extensions should work easily with firefox. Because chrome=browser in manifest v2 at firefox (I don't think manifest v3 has arrived in firefox) However what I can tell is making extension in firefox is more fun than chrome in manifest v2.
- kome 5y ago
  Awesome, please yes. It would be great to have a Firefox version.

ezekg 5y ago

Looks cool. I’d love to see a mobile version of this. That’s when I typically make these types of notes, sitting on the couch at the end of the day. I currently either text myself the quote and link, or keep track of the same using the Notes app or GitHub issues if it’s related to a project.

johanznsdn 5y ago
Thanks ezekg! Great idea, I'll think about making a mobile version, thanks :)

pvg 5y ago

Could you say a bit about how the sync happens and how/where the data is stored? Unrelated, you probably don't want to be selling 'lifetime premium' anything, even when it's not clear what that means at an early stage. It's a small and low-priced thing as it is, painting yourself into a 'lifetime' corner with potential customers is not worth the certain future hassle and misunderstandings.

johanznsdn 5y ago
Thanks for your feedback pvg! The data is stored using 'chrome.storage'. So it's either stored locally if you aren't signed in to Chrome Browser or stored in the Google servers if you are signed in. So the sync happens using your Google account. (https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/storage/ https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/stora...) Concerning the 'lifetime' word, I get your point. I just wanted to highlight the fact that you only pay once for the premium features and that it's not a 'subscription business model'.
- pvg 5y ago
  Isn't storage.sync limited to something tiny like 100 Kb? Or has that changed?
  - johanznsdn 5y ago
    You're totally right. "In my opinion, it’s a pain to have recurring cost for small extensions/apps like Stringmark. But as @razemio said, it’s (most of the time) necessary when the service uses a backend. As I said, I want to avoid recurring cost and that’s why I decided to use chrome.storage. Also, as another comment and @razemio said here, the sync storage of Chrome is limited in size: ~100kb which is roughly 370 highlights in Stringmark because the text you are able to save is limited in size (~120 characters). Also, the local storage of Chrome is unlimited in size. It means that you can have ~370 highlights that are synced through your devices. Honestly, I think that it is enough but you guys are right I should precise it in my website, I’ll update it ASAP! @bruth that is the reason why the product will never go away since I don’t have backend costs! In order to attenuate this sync storage size limitation I plan to add these features: Limit the number of highlights per list; Let the users decide to save a specific list locally or using chrome sync; Export lists by email and/or in various file format in order to free up space; Import lists easily The other solution is to add another premium plan with a recurring cost and where I would use a database backend for these users so that they can really have ‘unlimited’ highlights synced. Tell me what you guys think about these solutions!"

karencarits 5y ago

Looks great! But as mentioned in another comment; where are my data stored? Also, the free version seems pretty useless if there is no way for me to export my data and it only shows the three first lines of an annotation Since you ask for feedback, here are some ideas: * Group highlights from the same url * Save all open tabs as a list * Reader mode * Archive the urls in my lists in some way; preferably as a single html file

johanznsdn 5y ago
Thanks for your feedback. Concerning the free version, I get your point I'll think about it! Concerning the data : "The data is stored using 'chrome.storage'. So it's either stored locally if you aren't signed in to Chrome Browser or stored in the Google servers if you are signed in. So the sync happens using your Google account. (https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/storage/ https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/stora...)" Thank you so much for the ideas :)
zigzag312 5y ago
Another idea: show on Stringmark's icon, if I have anything saved from the current page.

greenie_beans 5y ago

Cool. This looks nice - can’t wait to try it out. I made something like this but it’s a bad prototype that I never took the time to improve. Based on one of your comments, sorry if you ended up trying to use it!

johanznsdn 5y ago
Oh thanks! What is your prototype?

robsalasco 5y ago

I'm currently using LINER and I would love to test your app if a Safari extension is released

abraxas 5y ago

Is it similar to furl? Anyone still remember furl? It allowed for saving the content of your bookmarks as well as allowing you to search within their content.

johanznsdn 5y ago
Can you send a link? I think I'm too young to know furl lol :)
- abraxas 5y ago
  It's defunct now. It was a service that popped up during the web 2.0 wave so circa 2004.

bruth 5y ago

Why is it 3.99 for a lifetime payment? My cynical self tells me the product won't improve or your intention is generate enough hype to make a quick exit and the product will go away. You should make this is a recurring cost.

Fogest 5y ago
What? I think it makes much more sense for this to be a one-time payment. I am actually surprised to see anybody advocating for a subscription over a one-time payment. Plenty of products I have used have had one time payments and it has worked out fine. Sometimes in the future they switch to a subscription model or add other paid features but that usually doesn't happen until they start to have investors and have pressure to generate more revenue. Pocketcasts is an example of this. They had a one time fee for each platform you bought their product on. Eventually many years later they switched to a subscription model but allowed people who had the original one-time fee to keep it forever which was nice.
- razemio 5y ago
  For me it depends on the service. Since this (should) store data and use a backend, I am very skeptical about having the option for a lifetime license. Most of these services shutdown sooner or later and your "lifetime license" is gone. OP already explained that it uses Google sync to store the data across devices which is a totally different problem, there are very strict storage size limitations.
  - johanznsdn 5y ago
    In my opinion, it’s a pain to have recurring cost for small extensions/apps like Stringmark. But as @razemio said, it’s (most of the time) necessary when the service uses a backend. As I said, I want to avoid recurring cost and that’s why I decided to use chrome.storage. Also, as another comment and @razemio said here, the sync storage of Chrome is limited in size: ~100kb which is roughly 370 highlights in Stringmark because the text you are able to save is limited in size (~120 characters). Also, the local storage of Chrome is unlimited in size. It means that you can have ~370 highlights that are synced through your devices. Honestly, I think that it is enough but you guys are right I should precise it in my website, I’ll update it ASAP! @bruth that is the reason why the product will never go away since I don’t have backend costs! In order to attenuate this sync storage size limitation I plan to add these features: Limit the number of highlights per list; Let the users decide to save a specific list locally or using chrome sync; Export lists by email and/or in various file format in order to free up space; Import lists easily The other solution is to add another premium plan with a recurring cost and where I would use a database backend for these users so that they can really have ‘unlimited’ highlights synced. Tell me what you guys think about these solutions!

2Gkashmiri 5y ago

How do you handle payments?

johanznsdn 5y ago
I'm using Stripe!
- 2Gkashmiri 5y ago
  directly? how do you make sure paid users get more functionality?

justinlloyd 5y ago

Purchased inside of 2 minutes. Nice and simple. Wish I'd thought of it. Looking forward to the Firefox version.

johanznsdn 5y ago
I don't know if you'll see this comment... but the Firefox is now out! https://www.stringmark.com/download https://www.stringmark.com/download
johanznsdn 5y ago
Wow thank you so much :)

solarkraft 5y ago

Looks cool! I’ve been waiting for a better bookmark feature and something for making highlights on pages for a while, but the solutions I’ve found all fall a bit short. > No login required, no useless features. Does this mean there’s also no dependency on an external server? That’d be super refreshing. Can’t wait for the Firefox version.

johanznsdn 5y ago
Thank you :) No dependency on an external server indeed. I'm only using an external small server to check if a user has a premium or free plan!

johanznsdn 5y ago

Hey guys! I apologize for the lack of precision concerning where the data is saved. I'll just copy paste one of my comment here: "In my opinion, it’s a pain to have recurring cost for small extensions/apps like Stringmark. But as @razemio said, it’s (most of the time) necessary when the service uses a backend. As I said, I want to avoid recurring cost and that’s why I decided to use chrome.storage. Also, as another comment and @razemio said here, the sync storage of Chrome is limited in size: ~100kb which is roughly 370 highlights in Stringmark because the text you are able to save is limited in size (~120 characters). Also, the local storage of Chrome is unlimited in size. It means that you can have ~370 highlights that are synced through your devices. Honestly, I think that it is enough but you guys are right I should precise it in my website, I’ll update it ASAP! @bruth that is the reason why the product will never go away since I don’t have backend costs! In order to attenuate this sync storage size limitation I plan to add these features: Limit the number of highlights per list; Let the users decide to save a specific list locally or using chrome sync; Export lists by email and/or in various file format in order to free up space; Import lists easily The other solution is to add another premium plan with a recurring cost and where I would use a database backend for these users so that they can really have ‘unlimited’ highlights synced. Tell me what you guys think about these solutions!"

nextaccountic 5y ago

What are the open source alternatives to this kind of thing?