35 ms·

Show HN: An app store just for installable web apps

484 points by presson 3y ago

mouse_ 3y ago
What a tragedy that what used to be called "installing" is now mocked by the industry lobby as "sideloading", and what used to just be "visiting a web page" has taken its rightful place. I have not and probably will not ever "install" a "web app". This is literally just a list of web sites. It's no more useful than Yahoo circa 1998 but now the bookmarks are on your desktop or homescreen rather than in your browser, where you're going to be taken anyways if you open one of them. Call me a cynical boomer.
- presson 3y ago
  You're a cynical boomer :-P But really, I think you'll change your mind at some point. There's some pretty cool stuff coming.
  - mouse_ 3y ago
    Anything I wouldn't be able to do by just going to the website? :/
    - presson 3y ago
      Off the top of my head for ios - push notifications, offline use, optimized storage options (local storage not cleared after 7 days of no use), app-like ux (no browser controls), home screen icon for easy access, background audio (sound while app is closed). The real advantage is for devs who can build an app that feels like a native app, but with one codebase for distribution across OSs/devices, not having to pay the apple/google tax, and not dealing with app review.
      - _hzw 3y ago
        I made my web app into a PWA and even went so far as to polish the home screen icon and splash screen to make it look nice once installed. However, in the end, I use the browser much more frequently, simply because I can access the URL of the page and share it elsewhere.
        presson 3y ago
        The beauty of the browser is that you can choose your own adventure. Being able to use or test apps in a browser tab is awesome, and it's up to the dev to choose a ux that showcases / informs the user of additional capabilities unlocked after adding to home screen. We're at the very early days of exploring what this ux can unlock.
      - aragonite 3y ago
        Also, on a desktop, some websites are just more naturally run in their own separate window than as a browser tab because you frequently need to switch to/from them: e.g. ChatGPT, Gmail, Google Voice/Keep, MDN docs, dictionaries. And you can put the PWAs in full sceen mode, whereas full-screen mode in a regular browser is almost always pointless ever since they took away tab indicators.
  - thekingshorses 3y ago
    I m that cynical boomer. I use mostly apps like Whatsapp, and garage door opener. Can't use banks apps as you can only login to one account. Everything I do is on the browser. https://hn.premii.com https://hn.premii.com & https://reddit.premii.com https://reddit.premii.com - almost 10 years old, it still works. No need to update the framework or need someone's approval.
- bko 3y ago
  I like the idea of "installing" a web app that basically creates a bookmark to a webpage, because the alternative is installing an actual app. It's nice to have things all basically browser based as it gives the developer more control of the product and creates a single reasonable platform. I hate going to linkedin or Reddit or similar websites on mobile and them forcing me to use their app. It also breaks the dominance of centralized app stores like android and apple
  - JohnFen 3y ago
    > It's nice to have things all basically browser based as it gives the developer more control of the product and creates a single reasonable platform. I get that. But as a user, I really hate browser-based applications and avoid them entirely unless I have no other option.
    - bko 3y ago
      What do you prefer? Native apps?
      - JohnFen 3y ago
        Yes. Although this depends a lot on the quality of the software, native apps tend to be much better in terms of UI and performance, and they tend to use less system resources -- sometimes a lot less.
        holoduke 3y ago
        Nowadays i would argue that the css rendering speed is faster than the Android UI renderer which suffers from extreme complexity. Ios might be still faster, but also much more limited. A good SPA is indistinguishable from a native app.
        coder543 3y ago
        > A good SPA is indistinguishable from a native app. Exactly. It’s like CGI in movies. People always talk about how bad CGI is, without realizing just how much good CGI they never notice. https://youtu.be/bL6hp8BKB24 https://youtu.be/bL6hp8BKB24
- tamimio 3y ago
  Your average person now think of anything as an “app” or it should have one, even if it was just a wrapper for a browser, they would still install the app (1), so I think OP is in the right direction, nothing will change from the user side but much better for the developer one. (1) Reminds me of this :) https://files.catbox.moe/36o4jr.jpeg https://files.catbox.moe/36o4jr.jpeg
  - presson 3y ago
    This is our hope. If we can help smooth out the messaging / install process, once a PWA is installed most apps will feel identical to a native app for most users. We used to say "web apps are apps" but now we just say "apps are apps" :-P
- seabass-labrax 3y ago
  There is one VERY big difference between PWAs and Yahoo circa 1998: you can use PWAs without a network connection, with full interactivity. This is really important for me, and probably for anyone who travels frequently, is on a metered internet connection, or just lives in a location with poor infrastructure. Yahoo did and still does require you to be connected to the internet, and whether that's on a 2400 baud dial-up connection or a 5G wireless link, it will still cost money and be less reliable in places.
jollyllama 3y ago
Where can I learn about making these, specifically for offline use?
- spacec0wb0y 3y ago
  https://web.dev/progressive-web-apps/ https://web.dev/progressive-web-apps/
xnx 3y ago
Darn. Was really hoping this was something like a more universal version of the "Deploy to Heroku" buttons (https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/heroku-button https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/heroku-button)
SparkyMcUnicorn 3y ago
How are you sourcing the current listings? I see there's a "list your app" (which means I can't submit an app that isn't mine, right?), but there are some high quality installable PWAs that are missing. Hoppscotch is a good example. Not expecting you to index the entire internet and filter out all the spam. Just curious how the current list was built.
- presson 3y ago
  That's correct, at the moment you can only add an app that you can claim ownership of (vis dns). The current list was manually added by us + by devs who have listed their apps on our site, but we'll be rolling out a more scalable solution soon, along with some better curation. I think that's a good idea to allow users to recommend listings - we'll look into adding that soon. Would love for you to create an account so we can keep you posted on this feature / other progress :-)
  - dylan604 3y ago
    maybe a "suggestion box" method for people that know of good sites so that you might contact the dev directly about being listed?
    - presson 3y ago
      I like it! Ping me at support@store.app if you want to stay tuned and provide feedback on this feature after launch.
tacoship 3y ago
Sweet domain! Was it expensive? Feedback: The home page's horizontal carousels/reels lack trackpad scrolling functionality. Interaction is limited to the arrow buttons on the side. To enhance user experience, it would be beneficial to make them scrollable via trackpad, similar to the Apple Store website.[0] [0] https://www.apple.com/store https://www.apple.com/store
- bgoldste 3y ago
  Asking the important questions.
  - dylan604 3y ago
    I'm going through this very thing now. I'm focused on getting the backend features working, but getting pressure to make the tiny tweaks to the UI. Once you open the UI to actual users, priorities quickly get rearranged. The UI complaints are the punch in the "everyone has a game plan until they get punched in the face" phrase.
    - presson 3y ago
      All part of the process, though! Brick by brick...
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you! It was pricey, but not as bad as it could've been. I pre-ordered it a month before .app became available as a TLD, and bought it on the first day of availability (May 2018!). I've been planning on building this for some time :-P Re carousel feedback - thank you! We've talked about this but have been prioritizing some other features ahead of it. That said, your feedback helps us prioritize higher. Keep the feedback coming, the more the better! Also if you want to connect offline, lmk.
  - dylan604 3y ago
    Just to 2nd it. I came to the comments first, but after visiting the site, it does feel unnatural. Also to pile on, having to multi-click the next button one at a time per app feels tedious. Seeing how you are at this stage though, color me very impressed. I've just never paid attention to PWAs, so seeing them available like this gave me a totally different (positive) consideration for them. I would love to see numbers of use just to see how widely used PWAs are. This isn't an idea for the UI for popularity per app, but just for PWA in general. Just in terms of if this is something I should be considering. Great job and good luck!
explain 3y ago
This UI is so hot.
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you! :-)
coder543 3y ago
I like the concept a lot, but I also think it should filter to only installable apps by default. If you detect a user is on a mobile device, it would probably also make sense to enable the mobile filter by default too. It would also be nice if there was an offline-capable filter as well, but maybe I missed it? I also notice the Developer tab is not part of the PWA, which kicks you out of the PWA experience on iOS, even though it seems like that marketing page could be contained within the tab? It might also be nice to link to resources for getting started on developing a high quality PWA, if any resources like that exist. Now that PWAs on iOS can finally show notifications (if the user wants), I hope more developers will take them seriously. I trust browser isolation more than I trust native app isolation, and a lot of the native apps that I use would work perfectly as a PWA.
- matsz 3y ago
  > PWAs on iOS can finally show notifications This has been such a great addition, once it was officially added I've quickly built a small web app that can now distribute notifications to all my devices effortlessly, with a single codebase and with no need to pay the dreaded $99/yr subscription. Haven't released that publicly but I might at some point once I clean up the mess that inevitably resulted from me writing it in around 2 hours.
  - kyleee 3y ago
    Did you use a framework or anything? I’ve been working on a small vite/vue/nuxt PWA and I’ve been wondering about other options
    - matsz 3y ago
      Just React and fastify. I have my own authentication library that makes things easier but it's not production ready yet.
  - danielskogly 3y ago
    Not sure if it's entirely similar, but there's also this for those who don't want to build it themselves: https://ntfy.sh/ https://ntfy.sh/
collaborative 3y ago
I really hope your store takes off. I will say a prayer or two to this end. May your good character flourish and may you avoid all temptations that come with gatekeeping Apple and Google's app stores are death. They motivated me to re-code my c and java-based iOS and Android apps in js+wasm (SPA/PWA) from scratch. For a long time, I announced it with its proper name ("PWA"). I became very frustrated every time I interacted with users who asked "what does that mean?". So now it's simply "Web Version"
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you! We have a very strong ethos around democratizing distribution and we plan to be careful not to go down a path to becoming what we hate. We're here to serve developers and users, and we'll look for guidance from our user base constantly. Re "PWA" I can empathize - I've found that for the majority of people, "installable web app" seems to register more effectively, but hoping that "PWA" becomes more broadly understood. Thanks again for the comment, and we look forward to serving you :-)
raybb 3y ago
I love it! Please consider adding openlibrary.org which has a PWA already.
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you! Added to our backlog - will be added soon!
- presson 3y ago
  Listing is now live! :-)
simonbarker87 3y ago
Very nice, one issue is that (on Safari iOS 16) when I navigate back to the list my scroll position is forgotten, I could understand when using my browser back button but I used the one in the UI so I’d expect it to remember the scroll position. Beyond that nitpick though this is excellent, well done.
- presson 3y ago
  Noted! Thank you for the feedback and the kind words! :-)
matsz 3y ago
Really good idea, what I'd suggest would be a separate Open Source category/tag. And a dark theme (based on prefers-color-scheme). Also, submitted a developer application; have released a few PWAs myself - hope to post them there too!
- presson 3y ago
  Awesome, thanks for the feedback! That's a great idea - I've posted it in our internal channel. Also, you should have been approved for a dev account - we're excited to have you onboard! Please feel free to let us know how we can help - our mission is to help web devs grow their business.
  - matsz 3y ago
    Thanks, works well - just one small bit of feedback there: wish there were some hints on aspect ratios for the screenshots (or they should be displayed at the image's aspect ratio). Currently the sides get cut off: https://store.app/drop-lol https://store.app/drop-lol Also, would be nice to have a "more by this developer" section. (Or any other "similar to" recommendation section.)
    - tanayg 3y ago
      Hi, I'm an engineer at Store.app. Thanks so much for the feedback, love the listings (and nice lighthouse score!). We're definitely planning to surface more developer information on the listings, this is a great idea. Your profile page does currently highlight the apps you own with some of their metrics and a feature of our verified plan is you get an "About the developer" card on your listing that links to your profile. More on the way!
jsf01 3y ago
This is such a great idea. Excellent design, too. I second the requests for dark mode or at least following the user’s prefers-color-scheme setting. Do you have ambitions to monetize this, or go the open source route? Where do you go from here?
thekingshorses 3y ago
PiHole blocks the email verification link/domain.
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you for posting this! Have noted for our team to look into.
matsemann 3y ago
I'm surprised by how much easier and faster this is than installing an app from Google Play. No ads above what I really searched for. Installation is basically instantaneous.
tamimio 3y ago
I love it, maybe finally developers will no longer be under the mercy of apple/google store! Probably the only thing PWA fails to do now that anything needs access to the hardware say wifi/Bluetooth scanner and such, and big games too, the rest of the apps, I don’t see why it needs to be installed from app/play store.
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you! That's our hope. The open web is making some major strides, so the next few years will certainly be interesting :-)
- JanSt 3y ago
  Chrome offers bluetooth support, doesn’t it?
  - hunter2_ 3y ago
    It's in this list [0], indeed. [0] https://permission.site https://permission.site
- zapt02 3y ago
  Finally developers can be under the mercy of some random dude who owns the store.app domain and charges for instead, joy!
  - tamimio 3y ago
    I see your point, but are they under this site mercy? This site is like a directory rather than a policy maker like app stores, it wont take % of any subscription for starter plus all the pros of lower development costs and what not. Say this site suddenly decided to remove your app? So what, your users can still go to your site and have the PWA, now if Apple decided to do the same to your app, good luck getting anyone to use it. Now is PWA the ultimate replacement? Certainly not, access to hardware, performance wise, games, you will still need them, but other than that, I think it’s a step forward.
soperj 3y ago
Nice! I attempted adding my webapp. Do you have a template that I could add to my site (ie: add our app)?
- presson 3y ago
  Awesome! Were you able to add it successfully? We have a widget that you'll find under your claimed app to showcase your listing states, and we have a few more things that you can use on your app coming in about a week. If you're interested in early access, shoot me a message at support@store.app and we can show you what's coming.
matthewhartmans 3y ago
This is sick! Congratulations on the launch!
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you!!! This means the world to us :-)
willsmith72 3y ago
This is awesome, as PWAs get better I really REALLY hope they'll challenge the big app stores. So far no one I know outside of tech knows or cares that this is even possible, but I hope sites like this will gradually change that and also change people's perceptions of what has to be a "native" app. I don't see any reason why in 10 years we should still be paying the 30% tax (+ the $100/year) just to get something with notifications and offline on the home screen. Sadly there's literally hundreds of billions on the table, so there's going to continue to be huge resistance.
- hunter2_ 3y ago
  When I install something from those stores, I feel like there is some level of vetting against malware, or at least the ability for the store to pull it if it becomes known-malicious after I installed it. 30% might be too much of a fee, but some payment for that service makes sense, I think. Are PWAs somehow immune to this concern by virtue of running on the way stricter feature set that a browser offers? If they can prompt the user for access to all of these APIs [0], and the user allows it, and then it later becomes malicious while able to run a service worker in the background, that seems a bit more concerning than regular non-PWA browsing that can't continue to run after the tab is closed. [0] https://permission.site https://permission.site
  - willsmith72 3y ago
    I totally agree, the security issue is the biggest thing app stores have going for them. I think 2 things. 1. if momentum goes PWA's way, smart people will work on these problems. I'm not saying I have the answers, but if I can root for either 2 megacorps or the open web, I'm going open web every time. (again, not saying we're there yet with PWAs) 2. If an app store's only function is vetting software, we can have an open market for marketplaces. Anyone can build their own app store and, with enough reputation, become trusted in the eyes of consumer's, just like we trust Apple The difference is in a free market, that 30% and $100 drop dramatically, I would wager to something more like 5% and $0. At those rates, having an app store where people feel the software is secure, can trust reviews/ratings etc seems reasonable to me. PWA doesn't have to mean otherwise
tomaszs 3y ago
Congrats. That is a project of the future!
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you! :-)
donmcronald 3y ago
How do PWAs hold up when it comes to updates or getting a new phone? Will they get re-installed when I set up a new phone?
- hunter2_ 3y ago
  I've had them go missing just by doing an OTA update of my phone, and I don't think it was even a major Android version. Or maybe it was a Play store update of the Chrome app, I forget exactly. But it was one of those things that's not expected to eliminate data, yet it did. I think it was this: https://support.google.com/android/thread/120942877/all-my-web-shortcuts-have-disappeared-from-android-phone-home-screen-how-do-i-get-them-back https://support.google.com/android/thread/120942877/all-my-w...
CranberryDefuse 3y ago
Really nice idea and superb website, thank you. I wish we could submit without register though.
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you for the kind words, that means a lot to us! We're adding this feature, stay tuned.
hbcondo714 3y ago
> List your app in under 2 minutes How? I would like to list my finance PWA[1] but I had to create a regular account first and now wait for approval on a developer account to submit an app. [1] https://github.com/hbcondo/revenut-app https://github.com/hbcondo/revenut-app
- presson 3y ago
  Hi! You should've been approved for a developer account. I suppose the delay could go past two minutes. We'll be speeding up this process soon. Hopefully in aggregate it only took you less than two mins :-) If you have any issues, ping me at support@store.app!
  - hbcondo714 3y ago
    Thanks! I got downvoted for my comment but your response was worth it. I got approved in 15 minutes, but I'm not counting! It wasn't mentioned DNS verification is required for app submissions but that is good you are doing that. Now I need to go through the Google Domains / Squarespace transition: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36346454 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36346454
    - presson 3y ago
      I promise I didn't downvote you! In fact, I upvoted you :-) Same re google domains, ugh. Time to transfer.
hanniabu 3y ago
What are the security concerns with something like this? Can PWAs contain malicious code? If yes, what can they do?
- pietervdvn 3y ago
  A PWA is nothing more then a glorified web site, which opens full screen. Security-wise, they cannot do anything worse then a website can. In other words, this is _less_ then a native app can do.
- DANmode 3y ago
  Anything your browser can normally do with permissions allowed to domains by you.
ledbettj 3y ago
Pretty cool! I tried to list my app but the screenshot upload doesn't seem to work -- it won't accept any files I've tried via drag/drop in Chrome or Firefox. I've been able to upload files to other sites without any issue (running Linux).
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you for the feedback, we're looking into this. In the meantime, you should be able to upload from your files if the images have the correct aspect ratio. If you continue to have issues, ping me at support@store.app and we'll make sure everything gets sorted out.
  - ledbettj 3y ago
    Actually, it's my own fault -- I assumed the area in the preview that said I hadn't uploaded any images yet was the drop target, but it's not, that's over in the sidebar. Cheers!
    - presson 3y ago
      Ohhh gotcha - that's still good feedback, though - we will try to make that more intuitive!
jshchnz 3y ago
this is real cool, and nice domain
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you! :-)
rexreed 3y ago
Any advice for PWA developers who are trying to make use of possibly attached hardware? I'm looking to build a POS app that needs to connect to a receipt printer and scanner, but having trouble finding support for the printer bit. Trying to avoid any pop-up dialogue that requires user confirmation.
- KRAKRISMOTT 3y ago
  If you don't need iOS, WebUSB should do the trick.
  - jwells89 3y ago
    Keep in mind that WebUSB is exclusive to Chromium-based browsers — it won’t work on Firefox or Safari, and given how Google disregarded Mozilla’s and Apple’s feedback on the spec that’s unlikely to change. https://caniuse.com/?search=WebUSB https://caniuse.com/?search=WebUSB
    - lib-dev 3y ago
      What was apple/mozilla’s feedback?
      - jwells89 3y ago
        Roughly, that they had privacy and security concerns with the way Google wanted to implement it, if I recall correctly.
  - rexreed 3y ago
    Cool - will check it out - want to make sure it will allow printing without any user prompting.
- presson 3y ago
  Join our discord and there are likely some people who can help https://discord.gg/tFquNjuK https://discord.gg/tFquNjuK
- 3y ago
pietervdvn 3y ago
Hey @presson, I signed up as dev to get my webapp listed. I stumbled upon your priced plans, and was wondering what a 'direct download link' is and why I would pay $10/month for it.
- presson 3y ago
  Hi! That was something experimental that we've deprecated. $10 / month gets you verified reviews and a verified badge on your developer profile. There's also some other cool stuff coming very soon. Ping me at support@store.app if you want to learn more. I can also give you a coupon if you want to take it for a test spin.
  - pietervdvn 3y ago
    Ok! I'm now waiting for my web-app to ve verified. Is there a mailing list I can subscribe to for new features?
    - presson 3y ago
      We'll email you about new features if you have an account, otherwise you can also follow us on twitter! :-) https://twitter.com/Storedotapp https://twitter.com/Storedotapp Did your app get verified? We'd love if you could us know if you have any issues or feedback at support@store.app.
smusamashah 3y ago
I am on phone so it may be different for desktop but the button to show only installable apps can be improved to make it clear when it is pressed and when it's not. I don't just want installable apps, I want installable apps to be offline or at least offline first too with optional login. I won't even consider it installable if it needs Internet to be of any use. Please add a way to filter these too. Great domain and it looks it can become a defacto web store for apps.
- presson 3y ago
  Great feedback - thank you! :-)
- thepra 3y ago
  Yep, I listed mine which is offline capable but there's no way to tell people that it does have it other than trying beforehand.
OJFord 3y ago
Wow what did you pay for store.app? That was either clever & lucky or very expensive, surely?
- presson 3y ago
  I pre ordered it before .app was available as a TLD and bought it on day one of availability. I've wanted to build this for a looooooong time :-)
trollercoasters 3y ago
Based
m3kw9 3y ago
Nice idea but probably way ahead of its time, native app still rules if you want top experience for the foreseeable future
- presson 3y ago
  Need to start somewhere :-P and I think you'll be surprised looking back in a few years from now.
  - m3kw9 3y ago
    Yeah I will be surprised, but stick with it when I first saw it I thought this is a good idea. Plus the domain name is just perfect
- bigiain 3y ago
  /me looks sideways at the Slack, Signal, Teams, and VSCode "native app" windows I have open here. It'd be nice to not have 5 complete instances of Chrome using up all my compute.
esprehn 3y ago
This is great, hopefully it takes off! One piece of feedback is that it doesn't restore the scroll position when going from list page -> detail and then pressing back. That breaks browsing scenarios where you're looking at the details of apps as you scroll down. In general PWAs often get this wrong. I wish more of them were testing back navigation.
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you for the kind words! And your feedback has been noted with our team, keep it coming! :-)
pentagrama 3y ago
I like the idea and execution. Is good spread the PWA feature of the web to battle the duopoly of native app stores, even if PWA has their disadvantages. Feedback: I'm browsing the site on Firefox desktop, sadly it doesn't support install PWA yet. You may want to add some banner for Firefox users alerting about that.
- presson 3y ago
  That's great feedback. It is indeed unfortunate that Firefox has shied away from supporting modern browser features. We will be showing relevant feedback based on your browser when you launch an app - is that sufficient for you? Seems like that's the right CTA to advice a user to switch browsers, but curious if you think it's imperative to have this info at the beginning of your discovery journey.
  - pentagrama 3y ago
    That seems ok! Not sure about encourage the user to switch, but maybe mention that in x browsers works. Also have in mind that on Firefox mobile app, PWAs _have_ install capabilities, so the alert should _only_ be targeted to Firefox desktop.
- parasti 3y ago
  FWIW, Firefox had PWA support on desktop and removed it.
  - gsuuon 3y ago
    Really unfortunate, the only reason I switched back to chrome.
LeoPanthera 3y ago
On Safari, the drop-down list of categories is blank below "Food and Drink".
meatjuice 3y ago
I've been looking for something like this to happen, and it's great! By the way, is it ok to list PWAs that I don't own?
- presson 3y ago
  Thanks!!! We don't have a submission form for non-owned PWAs, but post here + tag me and I can add them!
j1elo 3y ago
Nothing that can be blamed to the (web)app store, but I found it curious the overall very poor first impression experience that these small niche (or not so small) websites tend to offer... some have the feeling of just being an excuse prototype to be a quick grab for money / user accounts. I guess that not too unlike actual installable mobile apps, to be fair. My experience has been: I tried the Linear app, but couldn't see anything more than a pretty landing page before an account was required. Next. Replit. Wanted to get a feeling of how it works, but again, just a landing page and a button that says "Start creating" but instead it should say "Log in". Next. OpenDream: "Create original art in seconds with AI". Cool -I say to myself-, let's create a couple of crazy pictures just for fun. Oh, well, these at least don't pretend to be fancy, the login prompt appears first thing right in your face. Next. Replika. An AI companion, so curious. But the website's only purpose is to show a "Get the app" that brings me to Play Store. Wouldn't call it a webapp. So next, I guess? Let's have some fun with some silly phrases in VoiceMaker! But after trying it out with "Casper, Male", I just wanted a second try with "Patricia, Female", and it already prompted me and didn't let me play anything any more. Bummer. Next. Funnily enough, the best initial experience of these webapps, by a wide margin, has been Tower Game. It just does what it promises. It's a tower game. It runs straight out, and lets you play. No fuss. 10/10, best webapp of the ones I tested! (PS.: PromptPerfect, "Your IDE for professional prompt engineering". Wow, it's crazy that we got to need such things, the world of LLMs is running too fast for me)
- presson 3y ago
  This is great feedback. There are some modifications coming that will enhance the discovery process. It's very early in our journey, so I'd encourage you (I'm biased, of course) to create an account and stay tuned for updates. We believe the web is in the early stages of a renaissance of some sort.
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
  - kunley 3y ago
    It's quite hilarious that the commenter didn't want to create accounts in all the apps he described, still the crux of your proposal is .. creating another account.
ddxv 3y ago
PWA button doesn't do anything? Is it supposed to install or save something somewhere? On Firefox Mobile.
- presson 3y ago
  PWA button filters down to only web apps with a manifest + service worker. Unfortunately, Firefox is a bit behind in adding some of the features that make PWAs, well, progressive. If you're on iOS, try Safari or Chrome.
fartasanelk 3y ago
I am on desktop. There is a button that says 'Get'. When I click on it, I get prompted to 'Install the app on your device'. Which just sends me to the home page? I just check on mobile, same thing. How is visiting a website's homepage 'installing the app on my device?' I think some people might be turned off by the word Installing, when you're just visiting a website? The word Get seems misleading, because you are not 'getting' anything. If anything Visit might be more appropriate. What am I missing?
- presson 3y ago
  There's better functionality coming, but for at the moment, users need to jump over to the apps domain to install. "Getting" or "Installing" means adding to home screen. The flow isn't ideal at the moment, and some web apps aren't installable (e.g. don't have a manifest/service worker), but it's early in the movement. You're not really missing anything, other than the fact that we have to start somewhere :-P
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
- rahimnathwani 3y ago
  If you visit a PWA on Chrome for Android, you can install the app by tapping the three dots and scrolling down to 'Install app'. OP has a filter for only installable apps, but it's off by default. So you might be taken to an app that's not installable.
  - presson 3y ago
    We've been getting feedback to keep the "installable" filter on by default, which I think is a good idea. We'll implement tomorrow. Eventually this'll evolve quite a bit, but we're taking a measure approach. Stay tuned! :-)
    - auggierose 3y ago
      It's the same for me, but I have already filtered for installable. I guess this doesn't work on desktop, Safari 16.1?
mceoin 3y ago
Nice domain name.
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you!
t3e 3y ago
Cool concept! I'd like to list an app but I can't seem to scroll all the way down to the bottom of the terms.
- fauigerzigerk 3y ago
  On iPad, I can’t scroll to the bottom of any page. There’s no way to tap the “get” button on the bottom row of apps.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
brundolf 3y ago
Curious about the backing org. Is it nonprofit/open-source, or a startup? And if the latter, what's the business model?
- presson 3y ago
  Startup. Our business model is a small subscription fee for extra features for PWA devs. This will likely evolve over time, but we will be careful not to become what dislike. Our goal is to help web devs grow their business and crack distribution on mobile.
Brajeshwar 3y ago
Is it just me that I like websites with URLs on the browser while trying to avoid Apps wherever possible, especially on the desktop? Please don’t take me the wrong way; I was the one developing apps for Pocket PC devices in the early 2000s. For instance, “Twitter” is the first featured “app” I see here at Store.App. However, when I use Twitter, I tend to click away on links and read/browse them. How are people using websites these days? I may be missing something, and I’m eager to be enlightened. P.S. Best wishes to Store.App and hope it succeeds for those who need it.
- crossroadsguy 3y ago
  You definitely are not alone. Even on mobile, not only desktop, if I can do away without an app I'd really do that. We have a movie booking app in our country BookMyShow (the less said about this company and practices is better) and I just book it on its mobile website mostly (though I try to book in the theatre and almost always I have to make a scene to get a print ticket when I refuse to share my number fearing certain spamming). Twitter, Reddit - as you might know there are no non-official apps and their mobile websites, which are bad, are much better than the apps.
  - felixg3 3y ago
    A lot of services are unfortunately forcing you to use the app instead of the web. And a lot of the apps in your country are available in the AppStore India only which is extremely annoying for me as a German in India who has to switch between local and foreign Apple IDs frequently.
- rrrrrrrrrrrryan 3y ago
  Yeah Twitter is an awful use case. Any app that has lots of external links or that you want to spawn new tabs is better just staying in the browser. The ones that work better as installed apps are things that you kinda just leave open in their own window: instant messaging apps, email, music streaming, etc. There's no reason for these to have a URL bar at the top, and "installing" the things often unlocks global hotkeys and other bits.
- 3y ago
iansinnott 3y ago
There is still no way to trigger an "install on homepage" dialogue from javascript, right? This seems to be the biggest limiting factor to me—The need for PWAs to include _instructions on how_ to install the app rather than a button to make it so.
- presson 3y ago
  Not on iOS, but you can trigger native install prompts on android and chromium browsers (Chrome and Edge).
  - presson 3y ago
    Edit: Not on iOS...yet.
    - iansinnott 3y ago
      Oh, didn't know that about Android. That's a definite improvement. > yet Is there supposed planned support for this on iOS? Seems like it would be counter to Apple's incentives, but I'd love to see it happen.
- Velc 3y ago
  You can check the browser user agent is running safari + !standaloneMode and show a popup modal. This is how I handle it in react. Surprisingly it actually converts to "Installs" incredibly well. Better than some native apps I own. I think user friction is actually quite low - no 'web app > app store > mobile app' flow - just two buttons and its on the home screen, no need to login w/ apple id etc.
0x6461188A 3y ago
I like the site, but installable apps already have an app store. Why not target a much more underserved market—the uninstallable apps. Basically an app store for web apps that work on mobile. You could charge users for the apps and then send 70% of the revenue to the app creators.
- mgraczyk 3y ago
  This is an app store for web apps, most of which work on mobile.
nektro 3y ago
would never install a web app
- presson 3y ago
  Remind me of this in 5 years :-P
franciscop 3y ago
Ah this is perfect! Once few years ago I had https://web-app.store/ https://web-app.store/ (I no longer own that) and attempted to do exactly the same thing as you did, @presson. Funny how, besides your high-quality TLDN, it's basically the same name/TLD but reversed. For posterity sake, here is what it looked like: https://i.imgur.com/hQospzk.png https://i.imgur.com/hQospzk.png
- presson 3y ago
  That's amazing! We definitely stand on the shoulders of giants. Hoping that now is finally the right time for the web to make the jump. LMK if you ever want to connect and talk shop!
- merelysounds 3y ago
  For comparison, I chose a very different route. On my personal website I maintain a small directory of web games that have good UX on both desktop and mobile. Link: https://merely.xyz/games https://merely.xyz/games It's extremely low tech; just a static website, no reviews, no concept of apps. The scope is much smaller — and it won't grow beyond what I can test. But I guess the goal is similar, promoting user friendly web content.
LauraMedia 3y ago
I really enjoy the platform and while I understand that you want a more curated experience for now, writing "List your app in under 2 minutes" on the dev page only to be met by an application form was a bit of a bummer.
gardenhedge 3y ago
My phone shows installed pwas as an icon but it's overlaid with a Firefox icon. That's really annoying
sgt 3y ago
Nice as an option but as a mobile I user my first choice is always going to be a proper native app. Faster, better integrated and not just some web page pretending to be an app. PWA's are very useful however when there is a lack of an app, and certainly there are use cases.
- thepra 3y ago
  Indeed, the good point is not relying on any store to bring able to "install" or use right away, so Android and iPhone users aren't blocked from sharing the same experience.
thepra 3y ago
It's quite quick! I listed my web app and got it verified in Leeds than an hour :)
ammarhalees 3y ago
Awesome awesome concept
- presson 3y ago
  Thank you!
perilunar 3y ago
The terms of service prohibits deep linking. Here's me breaking it: https://store.app/terms https://store.app/terms Seriously though, WTF? So much for "the web always wins".
- _Algernon_ 3y ago
  Seems very unenforceable. The fact that it is included speaks volumes about the creator of the site though. Wouldn't want to use such a service.
- notpushkin 3y ago
  Looks like generic boilerplate ToS to me. It's still bad, but I think this is unintentional.
  - Philip-J-Fry 3y ago
    He's not talking about the contents of the ToS. Click the back button on the page, it takes you back here. You'd expect it to take you back to the homepage of the site. If you deeplink to that page then there's no way out other than editing the URL.
    - notpushkin 3y ago
      I'm pretty sure he does. “The terms of service prohibits deep linking” is a pretty unambiguous phrase, and it is prohibited indeed: > Additionally, you agree not to, and will not assist, encourage, or enable others to: [...] Deep-link to any portion of the Services any purpose without our express written permission The fact that the back link is broken on that very page adds yet another level of irony here though.
      - tuxone 3y ago
        > The fact that the back link is broken on that very page adds yet another level of irony here though. The original Privacy and Terms links do open in a new tab so the back button is broken on the website but works when deep linked.
asim 3y ago
Very cool, working on something similar here - https://mu.app https://mu.app - more of a super app. It's great to see such a positive response to an app store for web apps. There's definitely a need for evolution away from the current app store model, which is heavily taxed with 30% fees plus $100/year dev fees. I think we'll see more things like this appear in the near future.
kybernetikos 3y ago
It'd be nice to have filters for: * Can be used without creating an account * Requires a free account * Has a paid account option * Requires a paid account
danpalmer 3y ago
There are apps on here that are native-only installs. The data quality seems low, but the whole product is the data quality.
baudaux 3y ago
Great idea ! I am doing the same with https://exaequos.com https://exaequos.com , a Unix-like operating system running in a web browser
pxoe 3y ago
when cookies are disabled (cookie whitelisting), the website doesn't show anything at all. could have a 'enable cookies/site data storage pls' message at least
brap 3y ago
We have now gone full circle back to web directories. If I remember correctly they had these "app stores" back in the 90s. https://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/1403968/yahoo-1995.0.png https://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/1403968/y...
PaulHoule 3y ago
Why?
- qainsights 3y ago
  Same here. If I want to install the site as an app, there are options available in the browser itself.
  - PaulHoule 3y ago
    At least on mobile I struggle to find anything in the app collection, it just seems like all the icons look the same, particularly on iOS where instead of the same gear everybody else has for settings I keep wanting to skip that thing that looks like a movie poster for The Golden Compass. On the other hand, I just type "1" into safari and it autocompletes the URL for my RSS reader, I type "n" and It autocomples Hacker News. It's so much easier that figuring out which one of 5 stylized "N"s or 3 stylized "H"s is the one I want. (I don't know what it is but on the desktop I find icons easy to scan, yet I still find pressing the Windows key and typing 1-3 letters is almost always faster than any other way of finding applications) The thundering herd seems to think the mobile home screen is valuable real estate but I am aggressive to delete apps not only because they are 95% "crapps" but also to make it easy to find the two or three that really are valuable. (e.g. Why do I need a Walgreens app when there is a perfectly good Walgreens web site?)
guillohm 3y ago
I'm the developer behind merrysky.net. Just submitted my app: https://store.app/merrysky-net https://store.app/merrysky-net Great UI at store.app. thx!
- guillohm 3y ago
  I'm getting duplicate emails about my app being verified. Might want to check that on your side. 5 emails with subject "Your domain has been verified"
  - presson 3y ago
    Yikes, thank you for flagging! We're looking into this now. Thanks for joining us :-)
codepoet80 3y ago
I have been waiting for someone to do this. Thank you. Submitting my apps soon!
- presson 3y ago
  Yay! Can't wait to see your apps on our platform! :-)
gsuuon 3y ago
I left a comment wondering aloud if this exact thing existed two weeks ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37601222 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37601222. Awesome to see!
- presson 3y ago
  That's awesome :-)
mmcnl 3y ago
Is there any web app that implements badge notifications correctly? I'm not a fan of notifications in general, but the badge counter is something I value. I've never seen a web app that implements badge counters. Is there some difficulty with this functionality?
elendee 3y ago
Maybe I'm being selfish, but I'd love an ELI5 section. I've actually installed my own web apps as PWA's, as well as reddit and others, but I still have a shaky understanding of the best way to do it. Would be nice if the best practices were laid out in no uncertain terms.
Aerbil313 3y ago
I must say this is an actual market gap. I can't believe how I didn't see this gap before.
lakomen 3y ago
I have a beta quality dating PWA. How can I add it to the list?

484 points by presson 3y ago

What a tragedy that what used to be called "installing" is now mocked by the industry lobby as "sideloading", and what used to just be "visiting a web page" has taken its rightful place. I have not and probably will not ever "install" a "web app". This is literally just a list of web sites. It's no more useful than Yahoo circa 1998 but now the bookmarks are on your desktop or homescreen rather than in your browser, where you're going to be taken anyways if you open one of them. Call me a cynical boomer.

presson 3y ago
You're a cynical boomer :-P But really, I think you'll change your mind at some point. There's some pretty cool stuff coming.
- mouse_ 3y ago
  Anything I wouldn't be able to do by just going to the website? :/
  - presson 3y ago
    Off the top of my head for ios - push notifications, offline use, optimized storage options (local storage not cleared after 7 days of no use), app-like ux (no browser controls), home screen icon for easy access, background audio (sound while app is closed). The real advantage is for devs who can build an app that feels like a native app, but with one codebase for distribution across OSs/devices, not having to pay the apple/google tax, and not dealing with app review.
    - _hzw 3y ago
      I made my web app into a PWA and even went so far as to polish the home screen icon and splash screen to make it look nice once installed. However, in the end, I use the browser much more frequently, simply because I can access the URL of the page and share it elsewhere.
      - presson 3y ago
        The beauty of the browser is that you can choose your own adventure. Being able to use or test apps in a browser tab is awesome, and it's up to the dev to choose a ux that showcases / informs the user of additional capabilities unlocked after adding to home screen. We're at the very early days of exploring what this ux can unlock.
    - aragonite 3y ago
      Also, on a desktop, some websites are just more naturally run in their own separate window than as a browser tab because you frequently need to switch to/from them: e.g. ChatGPT, Gmail, Google Voice/Keep, MDN docs, dictionaries. And you can put the PWAs in full sceen mode, whereas full-screen mode in a regular browser is almost always pointless ever since they took away tab indicators.
- thekingshorses 3y ago
  I m that cynical boomer. I use mostly apps like Whatsapp, and garage door opener. Can't use banks apps as you can only login to one account. Everything I do is on the browser. https://hn.premii.com https://hn.premii.com & https://reddit.premii.com https://reddit.premii.com - almost 10 years old, it still works. No need to update the framework or need someone's approval.
bko 3y ago
I like the idea of "installing" a web app that basically creates a bookmark to a webpage, because the alternative is installing an actual app. It's nice to have things all basically browser based as it gives the developer more control of the product and creates a single reasonable platform. I hate going to linkedin or Reddit or similar websites on mobile and them forcing me to use their app. It also breaks the dominance of centralized app stores like android and apple
- JohnFen 3y ago
  > It's nice to have things all basically browser based as it gives the developer more control of the product and creates a single reasonable platform. I get that. But as a user, I really hate browser-based applications and avoid them entirely unless I have no other option.
  - bko 3y ago
    What do you prefer? Native apps?
    - JohnFen 3y ago
      Yes. Although this depends a lot on the quality of the software, native apps tend to be much better in terms of UI and performance, and they tend to use less system resources -- sometimes a lot less.
      - holoduke 3y ago
        Nowadays i would argue that the css rendering speed is faster than the Android UI renderer which suffers from extreme complexity. Ios might be still faster, but also much more limited. A good SPA is indistinguishable from a native app.
        coder543 3y ago
        > A good SPA is indistinguishable from a native app. Exactly. It’s like CGI in movies. People always talk about how bad CGI is, without realizing just how much good CGI they never notice. https://youtu.be/bL6hp8BKB24 https://youtu.be/bL6hp8BKB24
tamimio 3y ago
Your average person now think of anything as an “app” or it should have one, even if it was just a wrapper for a browser, they would still install the app (1), so I think OP is in the right direction, nothing will change from the user side but much better for the developer one. (1) Reminds me of this :) https://files.catbox.moe/36o4jr.jpeg https://files.catbox.moe/36o4jr.jpeg
- presson 3y ago
  This is our hope. If we can help smooth out the messaging / install process, once a PWA is installed most apps will feel identical to a native app for most users. We used to say "web apps are apps" but now we just say "apps are apps" :-P
seabass-labrax 3y ago
There is one VERY big difference between PWAs and Yahoo circa 1998: you can use PWAs without a network connection, with full interactivity. This is really important for me, and probably for anyone who travels frequently, is on a metered internet connection, or just lives in a location with poor infrastructure. Yahoo did and still does require you to be connected to the internet, and whether that's on a 2400 baud dial-up connection or a 5G wireless link, it will still cost money and be less reliable in places.

jollyllama 3y ago

Where can I learn about making these, specifically for offline use?

spacec0wb0y 3y ago
https://web.dev/progressive-web-apps/ https://web.dev/progressive-web-apps/

xnx 3y ago

Darn. Was really hoping this was something like a more universal version of the "Deploy to Heroku" buttons (https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/heroku-button https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/heroku-button)

SparkyMcUnicorn 3y ago

How are you sourcing the current listings? I see there's a "list your app" (which means I can't submit an app that isn't mine, right?), but there are some high quality installable PWAs that are missing. Hoppscotch is a good example. Not expecting you to index the entire internet and filter out all the spam. Just curious how the current list was built.

presson 3y ago
That's correct, at the moment you can only add an app that you can claim ownership of (vis dns). The current list was manually added by us + by devs who have listed their apps on our site, but we'll be rolling out a more scalable solution soon, along with some better curation. I think that's a good idea to allow users to recommend listings - we'll look into adding that soon. Would love for you to create an account so we can keep you posted on this feature / other progress :-)
- dylan604 3y ago
  maybe a "suggestion box" method for people that know of good sites so that you might contact the dev directly about being listed?
  - presson 3y ago
    I like it! Ping me at support@store.app if you want to stay tuned and provide feedback on this feature after launch.

tacoship 3y ago

Sweet domain! Was it expensive? Feedback: The home page's horizontal carousels/reels lack trackpad scrolling functionality. Interaction is limited to the arrow buttons on the side. To enhance user experience, it would be beneficial to make them scrollable via trackpad, similar to the Apple Store website.[0] [0] https://www.apple.com/store https://www.apple.com/store

bgoldste 3y ago
Asking the important questions.
- dylan604 3y ago
  I'm going through this very thing now. I'm focused on getting the backend features working, but getting pressure to make the tiny tweaks to the UI. Once you open the UI to actual users, priorities quickly get rearranged. The UI complaints are the punch in the "everyone has a game plan until they get punched in the face" phrase.
  - presson 3y ago
    All part of the process, though! Brick by brick...
presson 3y ago
Thank you! It was pricey, but not as bad as it could've been. I pre-ordered it a month before .app became available as a TLD, and bought it on the first day of availability (May 2018!). I've been planning on building this for some time :-P Re carousel feedback - thank you! We've talked about this but have been prioritizing some other features ahead of it. That said, your feedback helps us prioritize higher. Keep the feedback coming, the more the better! Also if you want to connect offline, lmk.
- dylan604 3y ago
  Just to 2nd it. I came to the comments first, but after visiting the site, it does feel unnatural. Also to pile on, having to multi-click the next button one at a time per app feels tedious. Seeing how you are at this stage though, color me very impressed. I've just never paid attention to PWAs, so seeing them available like this gave me a totally different (positive) consideration for them. I would love to see numbers of use just to see how widely used PWAs are. This isn't an idea for the UI for popularity per app, but just for PWA in general. Just in terms of if this is something I should be considering. Great job and good luck!

explain 3y ago

This UI is so hot.

presson 3y ago
Thank you! :-)

coder543 3y ago

I like the concept a lot, but I also think it should filter to only installable apps by default. If you detect a user is on a mobile device, it would probably also make sense to enable the mobile filter by default too. It would also be nice if there was an offline-capable filter as well, but maybe I missed it? I also notice the Developer tab is not part of the PWA, which kicks you out of the PWA experience on iOS, even though it seems like that marketing page could be contained within the tab? It might also be nice to link to resources for getting started on developing a high quality PWA, if any resources like that exist. Now that PWAs on iOS can finally show notifications (if the user wants), I hope more developers will take them seriously. I trust browser isolation more than I trust native app isolation, and a lot of the native apps that I use would work perfectly as a PWA.

matsz 3y ago
> PWAs on iOS can finally show notifications This has been such a great addition, once it was officially added I've quickly built a small web app that can now distribute notifications to all my devices effortlessly, with a single codebase and with no need to pay the dreaded $99/yr subscription. Haven't released that publicly but I might at some point once I clean up the mess that inevitably resulted from me writing it in around 2 hours.
- kyleee 3y ago
  Did you use a framework or anything? I’ve been working on a small vite/vue/nuxt PWA and I’ve been wondering about other options
  - matsz 3y ago
    Just React and fastify. I have my own authentication library that makes things easier but it's not production ready yet.
- danielskogly 3y ago
  Not sure if it's entirely similar, but there's also this for those who don't want to build it themselves: https://ntfy.sh/ https://ntfy.sh/

collaborative 3y ago

I really hope your store takes off. I will say a prayer or two to this end. May your good character flourish and may you avoid all temptations that come with gatekeeping Apple and Google's app stores are death. They motivated me to re-code my c and java-based iOS and Android apps in js+wasm (SPA/PWA) from scratch. For a long time, I announced it with its proper name ("PWA"). I became very frustrated every time I interacted with users who asked "what does that mean?". So now it's simply "Web Version"

presson 3y ago
Thank you! We have a very strong ethos around democratizing distribution and we plan to be careful not to go down a path to becoming what we hate. We're here to serve developers and users, and we'll look for guidance from our user base constantly. Re "PWA" I can empathize - I've found that for the majority of people, "installable web app" seems to register more effectively, but hoping that "PWA" becomes more broadly understood. Thanks again for the comment, and we look forward to serving you :-)

raybb 3y ago

I love it! Please consider adding openlibrary.org which has a PWA already.

presson 3y ago
Thank you! Added to our backlog - will be added soon!
presson 3y ago
Listing is now live! :-)

simonbarker87 3y ago

Very nice, one issue is that (on Safari iOS 16) when I navigate back to the list my scroll position is forgotten, I could understand when using my browser back button but I used the one in the UI so I’d expect it to remember the scroll position. Beyond that nitpick though this is excellent, well done.

presson 3y ago
Noted! Thank you for the feedback and the kind words! :-)

matsz 3y ago

Really good idea, what I'd suggest would be a separate Open Source category/tag. And a dark theme (based on prefers-color-scheme). Also, submitted a developer application; have released a few PWAs myself - hope to post them there too!

presson 3y ago
Awesome, thanks for the feedback! That's a great idea - I've posted it in our internal channel. Also, you should have been approved for a dev account - we're excited to have you onboard! Please feel free to let us know how we can help - our mission is to help web devs grow their business.
- matsz 3y ago
  Thanks, works well - just one small bit of feedback there: wish there were some hints on aspect ratios for the screenshots (or they should be displayed at the image's aspect ratio). Currently the sides get cut off: https://store.app/drop-lol https://store.app/drop-lol Also, would be nice to have a "more by this developer" section. (Or any other "similar to" recommendation section.)
  - tanayg 3y ago
    Hi, I'm an engineer at Store.app. Thanks so much for the feedback, love the listings (and nice lighthouse score!). We're definitely planning to surface more developer information on the listings, this is a great idea. Your profile page does currently highlight the apps you own with some of their metrics and a feature of our verified plan is you get an "About the developer" card on your listing that links to your profile. More on the way!

jsf01 3y ago

This is such a great idea. Excellent design, too. I second the requests for dark mode or at least following the user’s prefers-color-scheme setting. Do you have ambitions to monetize this, or go the open source route? Where do you go from here?

thekingshorses 3y ago

PiHole blocks the email verification link/domain.

presson 3y ago
Thank you for posting this! Have noted for our team to look into.

matsemann 3y ago

I'm surprised by how much easier and faster this is than installing an app from Google Play. No ads above what I really searched for. Installation is basically instantaneous.

tamimio 3y ago

I love it, maybe finally developers will no longer be under the mercy of apple/google store! Probably the only thing PWA fails to do now that anything needs access to the hardware say wifi/Bluetooth scanner and such, and big games too, the rest of the apps, I don’t see why it needs to be installed from app/play store.

presson 3y ago
Thank you! That's our hope. The open web is making some major strides, so the next few years will certainly be interesting :-)
JanSt 3y ago
Chrome offers bluetooth support, doesn’t it?
- hunter2_ 3y ago
  It's in this list [0], indeed. [0] https://permission.site https://permission.site
zapt02 3y ago
Finally developers can be under the mercy of some random dude who owns the store.app domain and charges for instead, joy!
- tamimio 3y ago
  I see your point, but are they under this site mercy? This site is like a directory rather than a policy maker like app stores, it wont take % of any subscription for starter plus all the pros of lower development costs and what not. Say this site suddenly decided to remove your app? So what, your users can still go to your site and have the PWA, now if Apple decided to do the same to your app, good luck getting anyone to use it. Now is PWA the ultimate replacement? Certainly not, access to hardware, performance wise, games, you will still need them, but other than that, I think it’s a step forward.

soperj 3y ago

Nice! I attempted adding my webapp. Do you have a template that I could add to my site (ie: add our app)?

presson 3y ago
Awesome! Were you able to add it successfully? We have a widget that you'll find under your claimed app to showcase your listing states, and we have a few more things that you can use on your app coming in about a week. If you're interested in early access, shoot me a message at support@store.app and we can show you what's coming.

matthewhartmans 3y ago

This is sick! Congratulations on the launch!

presson 3y ago
Thank you!!! This means the world to us :-)

willsmith72 3y ago

This is awesome, as PWAs get better I really REALLY hope they'll challenge the big app stores. So far no one I know outside of tech knows or cares that this is even possible, but I hope sites like this will gradually change that and also change people's perceptions of what has to be a "native" app. I don't see any reason why in 10 years we should still be paying the 30% tax (+ the $100/year) just to get something with notifications and offline on the home screen. Sadly there's literally hundreds of billions on the table, so there's going to continue to be huge resistance.

hunter2_ 3y ago
When I install something from those stores, I feel like there is some level of vetting against malware, or at least the ability for the store to pull it if it becomes known-malicious after I installed it. 30% might be too much of a fee, but some payment for that service makes sense, I think. Are PWAs somehow immune to this concern by virtue of running on the way stricter feature set that a browser offers? If they can prompt the user for access to all of these APIs [0], and the user allows it, and then it later becomes malicious while able to run a service worker in the background, that seems a bit more concerning than regular non-PWA browsing that can't continue to run after the tab is closed. [0] https://permission.site https://permission.site
- willsmith72 3y ago
  I totally agree, the security issue is the biggest thing app stores have going for them. I think 2 things. 1. if momentum goes PWA's way, smart people will work on these problems. I'm not saying I have the answers, but if I can root for either 2 megacorps or the open web, I'm going open web every time. (again, not saying we're there yet with PWAs) 2. If an app store's only function is vetting software, we can have an open market for marketplaces. Anyone can build their own app store and, with enough reputation, become trusted in the eyes of consumer's, just like we trust Apple The difference is in a free market, that 30% and $100 drop dramatically, I would wager to something more like 5% and $0. At those rates, having an app store where people feel the software is secure, can trust reviews/ratings etc seems reasonable to me. PWA doesn't have to mean otherwise

tomaszs 3y ago

Congrats. That is a project of the future!

presson 3y ago
Thank you! :-)

donmcronald 3y ago

How do PWAs hold up when it comes to updates or getting a new phone? Will they get re-installed when I set up a new phone?

hunter2_ 3y ago
I've had them go missing just by doing an OTA update of my phone, and I don't think it was even a major Android version. Or maybe it was a Play store update of the Chrome app, I forget exactly. But it was one of those things that's not expected to eliminate data, yet it did. I think it was this: https://support.google.com/android/thread/120942877/all-my-web-shortcuts-have-disappeared-from-android-phone-home-screen-how-do-i-get-them-back https://support.google.com/android/thread/120942877/all-my-w...

CranberryDefuse 3y ago

Really nice idea and superb website, thank you. I wish we could submit without register though.

presson 3y ago
Thank you for the kind words, that means a lot to us! We're adding this feature, stay tuned.

hbcondo714 3y ago

> List your app in under 2 minutes How? I would like to list my finance PWA[1] but I had to create a regular account first and now wait for approval on a developer account to submit an app. [1] https://github.com/hbcondo/revenut-app https://github.com/hbcondo/revenut-app

presson 3y ago
Hi! You should've been approved for a developer account. I suppose the delay could go past two minutes. We'll be speeding up this process soon. Hopefully in aggregate it only took you less than two mins :-) If you have any issues, ping me at support@store.app!
- hbcondo714 3y ago
  Thanks! I got downvoted for my comment but your response was worth it. I got approved in 15 minutes, but I'm not counting! It wasn't mentioned DNS verification is required for app submissions but that is good you are doing that. Now I need to go through the Google Domains / Squarespace transition: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36346454 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36346454
  - presson 3y ago
    I promise I didn't downvote you! In fact, I upvoted you :-) Same re google domains, ugh. Time to transfer.

hanniabu 3y ago

What are the security concerns with something like this? Can PWAs contain malicious code? If yes, what can they do?

pietervdvn 3y ago
A PWA is nothing more then a glorified web site, which opens full screen. Security-wise, they cannot do anything worse then a website can. In other words, this is _less_ then a native app can do.
DANmode 3y ago
Anything your browser can normally do with permissions allowed to domains by you.

ledbettj 3y ago

Pretty cool! I tried to list my app but the screenshot upload doesn't seem to work -- it won't accept any files I've tried via drag/drop in Chrome or Firefox. I've been able to upload files to other sites without any issue (running Linux).

presson 3y ago
Thank you for the feedback, we're looking into this. In the meantime, you should be able to upload from your files if the images have the correct aspect ratio. If you continue to have issues, ping me at support@store.app and we'll make sure everything gets sorted out.
- ledbettj 3y ago
  Actually, it's my own fault -- I assumed the area in the preview that said I hadn't uploaded any images yet was the drop target, but it's not, that's over in the sidebar. Cheers!
  - presson 3y ago
    Ohhh gotcha - that's still good feedback, though - we will try to make that more intuitive!

jshchnz 3y ago

this is real cool, and nice domain

presson 3y ago
Thank you! :-)

rexreed 3y ago

Any advice for PWA developers who are trying to make use of possibly attached hardware? I'm looking to build a POS app that needs to connect to a receipt printer and scanner, but having trouble finding support for the printer bit. Trying to avoid any pop-up dialogue that requires user confirmation.

KRAKRISMOTT 3y ago
If you don't need iOS, WebUSB should do the trick.
- jwells89 3y ago
  Keep in mind that WebUSB is exclusive to Chromium-based browsers — it won’t work on Firefox or Safari, and given how Google disregarded Mozilla’s and Apple’s feedback on the spec that’s unlikely to change. https://caniuse.com/?search=WebUSB https://caniuse.com/?search=WebUSB
  - lib-dev 3y ago
    What was apple/mozilla’s feedback?
    - jwells89 3y ago
      Roughly, that they had privacy and security concerns with the way Google wanted to implement it, if I recall correctly.
- rexreed 3y ago
  Cool - will check it out - want to make sure it will allow printing without any user prompting.
presson 3y ago
Join our discord and there are likely some people who can help https://discord.gg/tFquNjuK https://discord.gg/tFquNjuK
3y ago

pietervdvn 3y ago

Hey @presson, I signed up as dev to get my webapp listed. I stumbled upon your priced plans, and was wondering what a 'direct download link' is and why I would pay $10/month for it.

presson 3y ago
Hi! That was something experimental that we've deprecated. $10 / month gets you verified reviews and a verified badge on your developer profile. There's also some other cool stuff coming very soon. Ping me at support@store.app if you want to learn more. I can also give you a coupon if you want to take it for a test spin.
- pietervdvn 3y ago
  Ok! I'm now waiting for my web-app to ve verified. Is there a mailing list I can subscribe to for new features?
  - presson 3y ago
    We'll email you about new features if you have an account, otherwise you can also follow us on twitter! :-) https://twitter.com/Storedotapp https://twitter.com/Storedotapp Did your app get verified? We'd love if you could us know if you have any issues or feedback at support@store.app.

smusamashah 3y ago

I am on phone so it may be different for desktop but the button to show only installable apps can be improved to make it clear when it is pressed and when it's not. I don't just want installable apps, I want installable apps to be offline or at least offline first too with optional login. I won't even consider it installable if it needs Internet to be of any use. Please add a way to filter these too. Great domain and it looks it can become a defacto web store for apps.

presson 3y ago
Great feedback - thank you! :-)
thepra 3y ago
Yep, I listed mine which is offline capable but there's no way to tell people that it does have it other than trying beforehand.

OJFord 3y ago

Wow what did you pay for store.app? That was either clever & lucky or very expensive, surely?

presson 3y ago
I pre ordered it before .app was available as a TLD and bought it on day one of availability. I've wanted to build this for a looooooong time :-)

trollercoasters 3y ago

Based

m3kw9 3y ago

Nice idea but probably way ahead of its time, native app still rules if you want top experience for the foreseeable future

presson 3y ago
Need to start somewhere :-P and I think you'll be surprised looking back in a few years from now.
- m3kw9 3y ago
  Yeah I will be surprised, but stick with it when I first saw it I thought this is a good idea. Plus the domain name is just perfect
bigiain 3y ago
/me looks sideways at the Slack, Signal, Teams, and VSCode "native app" windows I have open here. It'd be nice to not have 5 complete instances of Chrome using up all my compute.

esprehn 3y ago

This is great, hopefully it takes off! One piece of feedback is that it doesn't restore the scroll position when going from list page -> detail and then pressing back. That breaks browsing scenarios where you're looking at the details of apps as you scroll down. In general PWAs often get this wrong. I wish more of them were testing back navigation.

presson 3y ago
Thank you for the kind words! And your feedback has been noted with our team, keep it coming! :-)

pentagrama 3y ago

I like the idea and execution. Is good spread the PWA feature of the web to battle the duopoly of native app stores, even if PWA has their disadvantages. Feedback: I'm browsing the site on Firefox desktop, sadly it doesn't support install PWA yet. You may want to add some banner for Firefox users alerting about that.

presson 3y ago
That's great feedback. It is indeed unfortunate that Firefox has shied away from supporting modern browser features. We will be showing relevant feedback based on your browser when you launch an app - is that sufficient for you? Seems like that's the right CTA to advice a user to switch browsers, but curious if you think it's imperative to have this info at the beginning of your discovery journey.
- pentagrama 3y ago
  That seems ok! Not sure about encourage the user to switch, but maybe mention that in x browsers works. Also have in mind that on Firefox mobile app, PWAs _have_ install capabilities, so the alert should _only_ be targeted to Firefox desktop.
parasti 3y ago
FWIW, Firefox had PWA support on desktop and removed it.
- gsuuon 3y ago
  Really unfortunate, the only reason I switched back to chrome.

LeoPanthera 3y ago

On Safari, the drop-down list of categories is blank below "Food and Drink".

meatjuice 3y ago

I've been looking for something like this to happen, and it's great! By the way, is it ok to list PWAs that I don't own?

presson 3y ago
Thanks!!! We don't have a submission form for non-owned PWAs, but post here + tag me and I can add them!

j1elo 3y ago

Nothing that can be blamed to the (web)app store, but I found it curious the overall very poor first impression experience that these small niche (or not so small) websites tend to offer... some have the feeling of just being an excuse prototype to be a quick grab for money / user accounts. I guess that not too unlike actual installable mobile apps, to be fair. My experience has been: I tried the Linear app, but couldn't see anything more than a pretty landing page before an account was required. Next. Replit. Wanted to get a feeling of how it works, but again, just a landing page and a button that says "Start creating" but instead it should say "Log in". Next. OpenDream: "Create original art in seconds with AI". Cool -I say to myself-, let's create a couple of crazy pictures just for fun. Oh, well, these at least don't pretend to be fancy, the login prompt appears first thing right in your face. Next. Replika. An AI companion, so curious. But the website's only purpose is to show a "Get the app" that brings me to Play Store. Wouldn't call it a webapp. So next, I guess? Let's have some fun with some silly phrases in VoiceMaker! But after trying it out with "Casper, Male", I just wanted a second try with "Patricia, Female", and it already prompted me and didn't let me play anything any more. Bummer. Next. Funnily enough, the best initial experience of these webapps, by a wide margin, has been Tower Game. It just does what it promises. It's a tower game. It runs straight out, and lets you play. No fuss. 10/10, best webapp of the ones I tested! (PS.: PromptPerfect, "Your IDE for professional prompt engineering". Wow, it's crazy that we got to need such things, the world of LLMs is running too fast for me)

presson 3y ago
This is great feedback. There are some modifications coming that will enhance the discovery process. It's very early in our journey, so I'd encourage you (I'm biased, of course) to create an account and stay tuned for updates. We believe the web is in the early stages of a renaissance of some sort.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- kunley 3y ago
  It's quite hilarious that the commenter didn't want to create accounts in all the apps he described, still the crux of your proposal is .. creating another account.

ddxv 3y ago

PWA button doesn't do anything? Is it supposed to install or save something somewhere? On Firefox Mobile.

presson 3y ago
PWA button filters down to only web apps with a manifest + service worker. Unfortunately, Firefox is a bit behind in adding some of the features that make PWAs, well, progressive. If you're on iOS, try Safari or Chrome.

fartasanelk 3y ago

I am on desktop. There is a button that says 'Get'. When I click on it, I get prompted to 'Install the app on your device'. Which just sends me to the home page? I just check on mobile, same thing. How is visiting a website's homepage 'installing the app on my device?' I think some people might be turned off by the word Installing, when you're just visiting a website? The word Get seems misleading, because you are not 'getting' anything. If anything Visit might be more appropriate. What am I missing?

presson 3y ago
There's better functionality coming, but for at the moment, users need to jump over to the apps domain to install. "Getting" or "Installing" means adding to home screen. The flow isn't ideal at the moment, and some web apps aren't installable (e.g. don't have a manifest/service worker), but it's early in the movement. You're not really missing anything, other than the fact that we have to start somewhere :-P
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
rahimnathwani 3y ago
If you visit a PWA on Chrome for Android, you can install the app by tapping the three dots and scrolling down to 'Install app'. OP has a filter for only installable apps, but it's off by default. So you might be taken to an app that's not installable.
- presson 3y ago
  We've been getting feedback to keep the "installable" filter on by default, which I think is a good idea. We'll implement tomorrow. Eventually this'll evolve quite a bit, but we're taking a measure approach. Stay tuned! :-)
  - auggierose 3y ago
    It's the same for me, but I have already filtered for installable. I guess this doesn't work on desktop, Safari 16.1?

mceoin 3y ago

Nice domain name.

presson 3y ago
Thank you!

t3e 3y ago

Cool concept! I'd like to list an app but I can't seem to scroll all the way down to the bottom of the terms.

fauigerzigerk 3y ago
On iPad, I can’t scroll to the bottom of any page. There’s no way to tap the “get” button on the bottom row of apps.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

brundolf 3y ago

Curious about the backing org. Is it nonprofit/open-source, or a startup? And if the latter, what's the business model?

presson 3y ago
Startup. Our business model is a small subscription fee for extra features for PWA devs. This will likely evolve over time, but we will be careful not to become what dislike. Our goal is to help web devs grow their business and crack distribution on mobile.

Brajeshwar 3y ago

Is it just me that I like websites with URLs on the browser while trying to avoid Apps wherever possible, especially on the desktop? Please don’t take me the wrong way; I was the one developing apps for Pocket PC devices in the early 2000s. For instance, “Twitter” is the first featured “app” I see here at Store.App. However, when I use Twitter, I tend to click away on links and read/browse them. How are people using websites these days? I may be missing something, and I’m eager to be enlightened. P.S. Best wishes to Store.App and hope it succeeds for those who need it.

crossroadsguy 3y ago
You definitely are not alone. Even on mobile, not only desktop, if I can do away without an app I'd really do that. We have a movie booking app in our country BookMyShow (the less said about this company and practices is better) and I just book it on its mobile website mostly (though I try to book in the theatre and almost always I have to make a scene to get a print ticket when I refuse to share my number fearing certain spamming). Twitter, Reddit - as you might know there are no non-official apps and their mobile websites, which are bad, are much better than the apps.
- felixg3 3y ago
  A lot of services are unfortunately forcing you to use the app instead of the web. And a lot of the apps in your country are available in the AppStore India only which is extremely annoying for me as a German in India who has to switch between local and foreign Apple IDs frequently.
rrrrrrrrrrrryan 3y ago
Yeah Twitter is an awful use case. Any app that has lots of external links or that you want to spawn new tabs is better just staying in the browser. The ones that work better as installed apps are things that you kinda just leave open in their own window: instant messaging apps, email, music streaming, etc. There's no reason for these to have a URL bar at the top, and "installing" the things often unlocks global hotkeys and other bits.
3y ago

iansinnott 3y ago

There is still no way to trigger an "install on homepage" dialogue from javascript, right? This seems to be the biggest limiting factor to me—The need for PWAs to include _instructions on how_ to install the app rather than a button to make it so.

presson 3y ago
Not on iOS, but you can trigger native install prompts on android and chromium browsers (Chrome and Edge).
- presson 3y ago
  Edit: Not on iOS...yet.
  - iansinnott 3y ago
    Oh, didn't know that about Android. That's a definite improvement. > yet Is there supposed planned support for this on iOS? Seems like it would be counter to Apple's incentives, but I'd love to see it happen.
Velc 3y ago
You can check the browser user agent is running safari + !standaloneMode and show a popup modal. This is how I handle it in react. Surprisingly it actually converts to "Installs" incredibly well. Better than some native apps I own. I think user friction is actually quite low - no 'web app > app store > mobile app' flow - just two buttons and its on the home screen, no need to login w/ apple id etc.

0x6461188A 3y ago

I like the site, but installable apps already have an app store. Why not target a much more underserved market—the uninstallable apps. Basically an app store for web apps that work on mobile. You could charge users for the apps and then send 70% of the revenue to the app creators.

mgraczyk 3y ago
This is an app store for web apps, most of which work on mobile.

nektro 3y ago

would never install a web app

presson 3y ago
Remind me of this in 5 years :-P

franciscop 3y ago

Ah this is perfect! Once few years ago I had https://web-app.store/ https://web-app.store/ (I no longer own that) and attempted to do exactly the same thing as you did, @presson. Funny how, besides your high-quality TLDN, it's basically the same name/TLD but reversed. For posterity sake, here is what it looked like: https://i.imgur.com/hQospzk.png https://i.imgur.com/hQospzk.png

presson 3y ago
That's amazing! We definitely stand on the shoulders of giants. Hoping that now is finally the right time for the web to make the jump. LMK if you ever want to connect and talk shop!
merelysounds 3y ago
For comparison, I chose a very different route. On my personal website I maintain a small directory of web games that have good UX on both desktop and mobile. Link: https://merely.xyz/games https://merely.xyz/games It's extremely low tech; just a static website, no reviews, no concept of apps. The scope is much smaller — and it won't grow beyond what I can test. But I guess the goal is similar, promoting user friendly web content.

LauraMedia 3y ago

I really enjoy the platform and while I understand that you want a more curated experience for now, writing "List your app in under 2 minutes" on the dev page only to be met by an application form was a bit of a bummer.

gardenhedge 3y ago

My phone shows installed pwas as an icon but it's overlaid with a Firefox icon. That's really annoying

sgt 3y ago

Nice as an option but as a mobile I user my first choice is always going to be a proper native app. Faster, better integrated and not just some web page pretending to be an app. PWA's are very useful however when there is a lack of an app, and certainly there are use cases.

thepra 3y ago
Indeed, the good point is not relying on any store to bring able to "install" or use right away, so Android and iPhone users aren't blocked from sharing the same experience.

thepra 3y ago

It's quite quick! I listed my web app and got it verified in Leeds than an hour :)

ammarhalees 3y ago

Awesome awesome concept

presson 3y ago
Thank you!

perilunar 3y ago

The terms of service prohibits deep linking. Here's me breaking it: https://store.app/terms https://store.app/terms Seriously though, WTF? So much for "the web always wins".

_Algernon_ 3y ago
Seems very unenforceable. The fact that it is included speaks volumes about the creator of the site though. Wouldn't want to use such a service.
notpushkin 3y ago
Looks like generic boilerplate ToS to me. It's still bad, but I think this is unintentional.
- Philip-J-Fry 3y ago
  He's not talking about the contents of the ToS. Click the back button on the page, it takes you back here. You'd expect it to take you back to the homepage of the site. If you deeplink to that page then there's no way out other than editing the URL.
  - notpushkin 3y ago
    I'm pretty sure he does. “The terms of service prohibits deep linking” is a pretty unambiguous phrase, and it is prohibited indeed: > Additionally, you agree not to, and will not assist, encourage, or enable others to: [...] Deep-link to any portion of the Services any purpose without our express written permission The fact that the back link is broken on that very page adds yet another level of irony here though.
    - tuxone 3y ago
      > The fact that the back link is broken on that very page adds yet another level of irony here though. The original Privacy and Terms links do open in a new tab so the back button is broken on the website but works when deep linked.

asim 3y ago

Very cool, working on something similar here - https://mu.app https://mu.app - more of a super app. It's great to see such a positive response to an app store for web apps. There's definitely a need for evolution away from the current app store model, which is heavily taxed with 30% fees plus $100/year dev fees. I think we'll see more things like this appear in the near future.

kybernetikos 3y ago

It'd be nice to have filters for: * Can be used without creating an account * Requires a free account * Has a paid account option * Requires a paid account

danpalmer 3y ago

There are apps on here that are native-only installs. The data quality seems low, but the whole product is the data quality.

baudaux 3y ago

Great idea ! I am doing the same with https://exaequos.com https://exaequos.com , a Unix-like operating system running in a web browser

pxoe 3y ago

when cookies are disabled (cookie whitelisting), the website doesn't show anything at all. could have a 'enable cookies/site data storage pls' message at least

brap 3y ago

We have now gone full circle back to web directories. If I remember correctly they had these "app stores" back in the 90s. https://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/1403968/yahoo-1995.0.png https://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/1403968/y...

PaulHoule 3y ago

Why?

qainsights 3y ago
Same here. If I want to install the site as an app, there are options available in the browser itself.
- PaulHoule 3y ago
  At least on mobile I struggle to find anything in the app collection, it just seems like all the icons look the same, particularly on iOS where instead of the same gear everybody else has for settings I keep wanting to skip that thing that looks like a movie poster for The Golden Compass. On the other hand, I just type "1" into safari and it autocompletes the URL for my RSS reader, I type "n" and It autocomples Hacker News. It's so much easier that figuring out which one of 5 stylized "N"s or 3 stylized "H"s is the one I want. (I don't know what it is but on the desktop I find icons easy to scan, yet I still find pressing the Windows key and typing 1-3 letters is almost always faster than any other way of finding applications) The thundering herd seems to think the mobile home screen is valuable real estate but I am aggressive to delete apps not only because they are 95% "crapps" but also to make it easy to find the two or three that really are valuable. (e.g. Why do I need a Walgreens app when there is a perfectly good Walgreens web site?)

guillohm 3y ago

I'm the developer behind merrysky.net. Just submitted my app: https://store.app/merrysky-net https://store.app/merrysky-net Great UI at store.app. thx!

guillohm 3y ago
I'm getting duplicate emails about my app being verified. Might want to check that on your side. 5 emails with subject "Your domain has been verified"
- presson 3y ago
  Yikes, thank you for flagging! We're looking into this now. Thanks for joining us :-)

codepoet80 3y ago

I have been waiting for someone to do this. Thank you. Submitting my apps soon!

presson 3y ago
Yay! Can't wait to see your apps on our platform! :-)

gsuuon 3y ago

I left a comment wondering aloud if this exact thing existed two weeks ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37601222 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37601222. Awesome to see!

presson 3y ago
That's awesome :-)

mmcnl 3y ago

Is there any web app that implements badge notifications correctly? I'm not a fan of notifications in general, but the badge counter is something I value. I've never seen a web app that implements badge counters. Is there some difficulty with this functionality?

elendee 3y ago

Maybe I'm being selfish, but I'd love an ELI5 section. I've actually installed my own web apps as PWA's, as well as reddit and others, but I still have a shaky understanding of the best way to do it. Would be nice if the best practices were laid out in no uncertain terms.

Aerbil313 3y ago

I must say this is an actual market gap. I can't believe how I didn't see this gap before.

lakomen 3y ago

I have a beta quality dating PWA. How can I add it to the list?