3 ms·

Is Ben scrolling TikTok right now?

17 points by GavinAnderegg 2y ago

wavemode 2y ago
I need this for Hacker News.
efilife 2y ago
> Think of it as a last-ditch effort, a sort of public confessional as therapeutic tool aimed at defusing the intense compulsion I feel every day to endlessly scroll the world’s most popular video app. I think I found a great solution to the problem. The uninstall button may help
- bengrosser 2y ago
  I tried that. Someone keeps reinstalling it.
  - kirth_gersen 2y ago
    Hey, I hope this helps you reach your goal. You are doubtless a wonderful person either way. This is the most creative self help, I've ever seen.
  - toomuchtodo 2y ago
    I bet that if you start taking a GLP-1 agonist (semaglutide or similar), it’ll break your habit. It patches malfunctioning reward centers in the brain. Something to potentially consider. https://recursiveadaptation.com/p/the-growing-scientific-case-for-using https://recursiveadaptation.com/p/the-growing-scientific-cas...
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
positr0n 2y ago
I'm interested in what APIs he used to build this.
- learningmore 2y ago
  Agreed. There seems to be an “Research API” for TikTok that is available[1]. I’d like to find an API to query to track my youtube consumption. [1] https://developers.tiktok.com/doc/research-api-get-started https://developers.tiktok.com/doc/research-api-get-started
- captn3m0 2y ago
  I’m guessing just the DNS lookups for TikTok app might be unique enough.
- bengrosser 2y ago
  Hey, it's pretty simple. I use a shortcut on my iPhone that gets the contents of different firebase URLs when I open and when I close TikTok. I have a function on firebase that processes those URL visits, setting the values of a status node (isScrolling, platform, and a timestamp) and logging each request. Then each change to the firebase updates any clients loaded from https://stuckinthescroll.com https://stuckinthescroll.com. The time elapsed is counted up on page load from the log entries. It's turned out to be quite robust so far. The only quirks happen when: 1) I forget to close TikTok before turning off the screen on my phone (which incorrectly leaves a log entry that doesn't get closed until the next entry), and 2) if I go into picture-in-picture mode (which incorrectly--IMO--triggers the app closed shortcut). For now I'm avoiding PiP, so that's not a big deal. As for unclosed log entries, I've gotten good about closing the app before turning off the screen, but there's a few entries in the data from before I trained myself (those are adding a small bit of slop to the total).
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
kxjdndn 2y ago
[flagged]
rgovostes 2y ago
Is it accurate? It currently averages to 4 hours per day, or approximately 25% of waking hours spent scrolling TikTok—even while the creator is consciously trying to cut back. I am sure I don’t want to know the cumulative time I’ve wasted on similar sites, but this strains believability. (Aside: I’ve never regretted the times I’ve spontaneously deleted my account on sites that sucked way too much of my time. In every case I should have done it years sooner.)
- elaus 2y ago
  I don't do Tiktok but my personal time tracking says this month I took about 4 hours a day browsing the web (HN, Reddit, news, ...) and watching Youtube videos. I think the number is (sadly) totally believable, especially if one has a longer commute (by train) or if one scrolls Tiktok while doing other things.
- bengrosser 2y ago
  Yes, it's accurate. Sadly. I will say that my TikTok viewing is often multitasked, so that total isn't me only staring at (that) screen. Sometimes I'm watching (or listening to) TikTok and watching another screen too!
diimdeep 2y ago
This project seems out of place among other author works which are counter-endless [1], I would expect it to not just count hours but for example nuke profile or erase app from phone after 100 hours of scrolling. [1] https://bengrosser.com/projects/ https://bengrosser.com/projects/

17 points by GavinAnderegg 2y ago

I need this for Hacker News.

> Think of it as a last-ditch effort, a sort of public confessional as therapeutic tool aimed at defusing the intense compulsion I feel every day to endlessly scroll the world’s most popular video app. I think I found a great solution to the problem. The uninstall button may help

bengrosser 2y ago
I tried that. Someone keeps reinstalling it.
- kirth_gersen 2y ago
  Hey, I hope this helps you reach your goal. You are doubtless a wonderful person either way. This is the most creative self help, I've ever seen.
- toomuchtodo 2y ago
  I bet that if you start taking a GLP-1 agonist (semaglutide or similar), it’ll break your habit. It patches malfunctioning reward centers in the brain. Something to potentially consider. https://recursiveadaptation.com/p/the-growing-scientific-case-for-using https://recursiveadaptation.com/p/the-growing-scientific-cas...

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

positr0n 2y ago

I'm interested in what APIs he used to build this.

learningmore 2y ago
Agreed. There seems to be an “Research API” for TikTok that is available[1]. I’d like to find an API to query to track my youtube consumption. [1] https://developers.tiktok.com/doc/research-api-get-started https://developers.tiktok.com/doc/research-api-get-started
captn3m0 2y ago
I’m guessing just the DNS lookups for TikTok app might be unique enough.
bengrosser 2y ago
Hey, it's pretty simple. I use a shortcut on my iPhone that gets the contents of different firebase URLs when I open and when I close TikTok. I have a function on firebase that processes those URL visits, setting the values of a status node (isScrolling, platform, and a timestamp) and logging each request. Then each change to the firebase updates any clients loaded from https://stuckinthescroll.com https://stuckinthescroll.com. The time elapsed is counted up on page load from the log entries. It's turned out to be quite robust so far. The only quirks happen when: 1) I forget to close TikTok before turning off the screen on my phone (which incorrectly leaves a log entry that doesn't get closed until the next entry), and 2) if I go into picture-in-picture mode (which incorrectly--IMO--triggers the app closed shortcut). For now I'm avoiding PiP, so that's not a big deal. As for unclosed log entries, I've gotten good about closing the app before turning off the screen, but there's a few entries in the data from before I trained myself (those are adding a small bit of slop to the total).
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]

kxjdndn 2y ago

[flagged]

rgovostes 2y ago

Is it accurate? It currently averages to 4 hours per day, or approximately 25% of waking hours spent scrolling TikTok—even while the creator is consciously trying to cut back. I am sure I don’t want to know the cumulative time I’ve wasted on similar sites, but this strains believability. (Aside: I’ve never regretted the times I’ve spontaneously deleted my account on sites that sucked way too much of my time. In every case I should have done it years sooner.)

elaus 2y ago
I don't do Tiktok but my personal time tracking says this month I took about 4 hours a day browsing the web (HN, Reddit, news, ...) and watching Youtube videos. I think the number is (sadly) totally believable, especially if one has a longer commute (by train) or if one scrolls Tiktok while doing other things.
bengrosser 2y ago
Yes, it's accurate. Sadly. I will say that my TikTok viewing is often multitasked, so that total isn't me only staring at (that) screen. Sometimes I'm watching (or listening to) TikTok and watching another screen too!

diimdeep 2y ago

This project seems out of place among other author works which are counter-endless [1], I would expect it to not just count hours but for example nuke profile or erase app from phone after 100 hours of scrolling. [1] https://bengrosser.com/projects/ https://bengrosser.com/projects/