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Feedback on Tool I Created?
Hey- I've been working on a minimalist tool called QuickPoint — it’s a minimal tool for quick text-first creation and sharing structured thoughts
https://quickpoint.me
But rather than push a vision, I’m here to learn what people actually need. I built a rough prototype and are watching closely how (or if) people use it.
I’d love your honest feedback: Please feel free to tinker about- and say whatever comes to mind. If you need to structure your feedback - I put some questions below. However- I'd rather just hear anything you have to say.
Does it feel like it solves anything you’d do in real life?
What’s your first instinct about what this tool is for?
What’s good and what's missing or broken in the concept itself?
Not trying to pitch- just trying to listen. Thanks in advance for any thoughts!
- deadeye 1y agoWho is this for?
- kevinisherenow 1y agoYou tell me! haha! That's why I posted it here- in the hopes that someone might have some insight into how it could be used- if it had value for teachers, programmers, etc.. It's a text-first tool for creating structured, shareable content-presentations, walkthroughs, even lightweight docs—using a Markdown-like syntax. But unlike most markdown tools, you can also embed images, audio, logic, and interaction, so it’s supposed to be more expressive/quicker. I could immediately just go the presentation iAPresenter type root, but I'm trying to see if some of it's features/uses have a different application. To put it simply- when it comes to how it could be used- I don't know what I don't know. Thoughts?
- rallyvite 1y agoLove the approach of asking for brutally honest feedback, no other way to PMF.
- kevinisherenow 1y agoCheers! It feels like the best thing to do. I'm basically asking people to tear it apart. Critique is so valuable, especially when it's constructive. I'm getting great stuff from the comment section - even people being completely confused is good in a way - I'll make it clearer. Any thoughts on it yourself?
- shav123 1y agoCan you explain briefly what it should do? I Can't understand from the website either
- kevinisherenow 1y agoHi! You can take the tutorial at the homepage, or else sign in (you can just sign up with Google), and then mess around- text to create, present, add sounds, images, etc. There are instructions on the right side of the page (shortcuts, syntax, etc.). I mean, if you mess around with it for a little bit you'll get an idea quickly. Essentially, it's a text-first tool for creating structured, shareable content-presentations, walkthroughs, even lightweight docs—using a Markdown-like syntax. But unlike most markdown tools, you can also embed images, audio, logic, and interaction, so it’s supposed to be more expressive/quicker. It's broad right now. I'm trying to figure out wwhat people might actually use it for.. what features they like.. and what they hate.
- KomoD 1y agoYou could have posted this as a Show HN, would've fit perfectly there. > Does it feel like it solves anything you’d do in real life? Nope, because I have no clue what it is. Powerpoint alternative?
- kevinisherenow 1y agoHey- thats actually a great suggestion- I'll do that! Well, the reason I posted it here was in the hopes of getting some feedback like- "I could use it for X, but it's not good for Y. I like X feature, etc) Of course, if your problem is that you want to create and work quickly-(text-first creation + sharing), then it could solve that issue! It's not really a powerpoint alternative, no. It's supposed to be a text-first tool for creating structured, shareable content—presentations, walkthroughs, even lightweight docs—using a Markdown-like syntax. But unlike most markdown tools, you can also embed images, audio, logic, and interaction, so it’s more expressive and flexible. That's where I'm at with it so far. For example- in honing in- I could basically cut some stuff and leave the valuable features that people like. WDYT?
- gus_massa 1y agoI tried the demo, but it's actually a tutorial. I got bored and pressed the X. (This happens most of the times. In many sites I had to look for the tutorial and take it later.) In this case, if I close the tutorial the page goes back to the login screen. I'd like to play with the tool for a while, perhaps disable save of close it after 5 minutes or use other restriction.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- gus_massa 1y agoI tried the demo, but it's actually a tutorial. I got bored and pressed the X. (This happens most of the times. In many sites I had to look for the tutorial and take it later.) In this case, if I close the tutorial the page goes back to the login screen. I'd like to play with the tool for a while, perhaps disable save of close it after 5 minutes or use other restriction. Fake edit: I can try it! Just one part. Just don't click the X. I still don't like that clicking the X close the whole project. Perhaps add a confirmation.
- kevinisherenow 1y agoHey- cheers for the feedback. So aren't tutorials and demos very similar. Would you prefer a video, less interactive, or something else? OK- so like. Would it be better if we just scrap the demo and just have users sign in and join (for free, of course). Did you end up messing around with it?
- gus_massa 1y agoI prefer demos. Just press buttons randomly and hope the best. As I said, many times I have to go back to the tutorial. I don't like creating accounts just to try it. I prefer a free demo, perhaps with some restriction like no saving. > Did you end up messing around with it? Sorry, not enough time. I'll try to spare some time in the weekend.
- textmoms 1y agoThe initial colors threw me off - not super accessible. I'm also not sure what the purpose of the tool is. Who is your target audience?
- kevinisherenow 1y agoHey! Do you mean in the demo or when you sign in and start using it? Was it certain colours in particular that were off putting? The idea is that- instead of just picking an audience (i.e. people who need text-first presentation/creation tools, like iAPresenter), to actually see if there was a set of features QP has that serves a specific niche use- I could then then develop the product accordingly. For example, I could say it's for coding engineers, completely missing that there are parts of it that are actually much more suited to graphic designers or something. What do you think?
- aosaigh 1y agoI don’t understand what it is at first glance. “Frictionless context switching” doesn’t really mean anything to me. Spending a bit of time filling in the blanks, it appears it’s a presentation tool where you write slides via code? You’re up against much more polished Markdown-based competition like iAPresenter, so you need to make the case for why markdown isn’t enough and a more expressive language is needed.
- kevinisherenow 1y agoHey-thanks for your response. I can use all this info in shaping it! You're absolutely right that the site doesn’t explain much up front- and neither did I in the introduction. That was a conscious choice early on. I’ve been trying to understand what people think it’s for, what they try to do with it, and where it loses them. Kind of like: Here's a ball- what do you think you should do with it? (kick, throw, eat?)- that's a loose analogy. But yeah, if people find a use for it or think a specific part of it's use is very useful- I can shape it that way. At its core, QuickPoint is a text-first tool for creating structured, shareable content—presentations, walkthroughs, even lightweight docs—using a Markdown-like syntax. But unlike most markdown tools, you can also embed images, audio, logic, and interaction, so it’s more expressive and flexible. You’re spot on comparing it to something like iAPresenter. That’s probably the closest mental model. I'm just wondering is there something outside of that box. But the main difference is that QuickPoint aims to go beyond slides-it’s designed for anyone who wants to write content once and present it dynamically, especially with branching or reactive elements. Still very early days, and I appreciate you taking the time to explore and share honest feedback. Happy to hear any more thoughts!