3 ms·
Show HN: Spin Lab
Hey HN, I built Spin Lab: a browser-based interactive explainer for table-tennis spin. It visualizes topspin/backspin, spin rate, ball trajectory, bounce behavior, and why the opponent’s return reacts the way it does. I built it because spin is central to table tennis, but most explanations are either too hand-wavy or too static.
Thanks Fable, we miss you
- swiftcoder 4mo agoI know very little about table tennis, but this visualisation is excellent
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoHey HN, I built Spin Lab: a browser-based interactive explainer for table-tennis spin. It visualizes topspin/backspin, spin rate, ball trajectory, bounce behavior, and why the opponent’s return reacts the way it does. I built it because spin is central to table tennis, but most explanations are either too hand-wavy or too static. I wanted something you can scrub, slow down, and experiment with.
- lunchbucket 4mo agoYou might consider emailing hn@ycombinator.com and asking about the standing of your account.
- gnabgib 4mo ago[flagged]
- N_Lens 4mo agoAccusations of being an LLM are par
- pixel_popping 4mo agoIt's the new NPC insult.
- shaewest 4mo agoTheir post/comment was dead when I first saw the comments
- deleted 4mo ago[deleted]
- lunchbucket 4mo agoThis is what we call a "time of check/time of use" issue.
- threatripper 4mo agoAre you using flight trajectories with simulated drag and lift from Magnus effect?
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoYes! it does do the math for Magnus effect. Source code is all client side you can take a look at it. But early on when I started this, I prompted the LLMs strongly to focus on having accurate real world physics baked in.
- gus_massa 4mo agoNice! Why I can only select the angle in multiples of 5°? I expected to be able to rotate the blade just a little. For "Back Spin" I used: angle = open 50°, Brush = -20° down, Speed = 13 km/h and I got a success "Lands - Smash Food". Do you have a table of the possible classification?
- altmanaltman 4mo agoI opened it on mobile, the first window shows up and the text cannot be scrolled through. Also absolutely horrible UI and seems like you just put up whatever Fable shat out without checking or any thought. I am only saying this because you shared it for public feedback
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoFair feedback. I've got zero UI skills - I just did put up whatever Fable gave out. That's true. I put tons of time explaining spin physics to Fable - that was some effort on my part and that's it. the UI feedback, I'll pass it Fable when its back :D And yep it doesn't look good on mobile devices - try it on a desktop screen if you can, much better there.
- threatripper 4mo agoIt would be great if we could use it for training with live measured data.
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoYeah no idea but I've seen devices that are able to measure spin in real time.
- N_Lens 4mo agoWhat really sent me for a spin is how long I wasted on this demo.
- jeidoban 4mo agoSame here
- vladsiu 4mo ago[dead]
- kenaan 4mo agoi feel like it would be better if it didn't have text that's clearly ai generated
- dyauspitr 4mo agoWhy? It all makes sense. That being said on my cell phone, I can’t make heads or tails of this. Nothing really works.
- E-Reverance 4mo agoI don't think the issue is that they used ai behind the scenes, but there is an implicit proof of work from forcing it beyond the style you'd expect. I for one roll my eyes whenever I see that specific kind of rounded corner, frosted glass ui and layout choices. It looks like someone trying to superficially/ham-fistedly trying to replicate "good taste" without actually having a good model of taste, its quite uncanny/bootleg.
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoAesthetic fatigue from AI :D I understand, I feel it too. But yeah I've got zero UI skills - I just wanted to showcase the spin dynamics somehow, so shared it anyway.
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoYeah sorry about that. Doesn't look that good on the phone. Try it out once on your laptop/desktop - much better there. And actually it should all work - just looks cramped on phone.
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoGot it, I can edit that bit, thanks for the feedback.
- syl5x 4mo ago120 rev/s on backspin = professional loop :D I feel like the topic just scratches the surface; there are many more things that are way more interesting to talk about here. For example: air density actually matters. Professional players sometimes struggle to make shots in different parts of the world. The balls are not the same either. Comparing DHS with Nittaku, for example, they have different properties and a different bounce. In my part of the world, DHS is the preferred ball, compared to the US, where, at least where I’ve been, they prefer Nittaku balls. Now about the content: The Bounce: This could have shown all three balls at the same time, instead of showing them one after another. That would make the effect clearer. The Answer: This feels a bit odd, and I think something in the calculation is wrong because the usual push always goes over the table on backspin. Overall, I get that this is a very simple representation of what table tennis is, but it gives me “I did it in 5 minutes with AI” vibes.
- srijanshukla18 4mo agoFor sure yeah just scratches the surface for now About the bounce and the answer: great feedback, thank you! When fable is back I'll incorporate these. But no did not take just 5 minutes :D I was working on this since early Opus days and the output was consistently absolutely horrible. Fable was the first model to produce something okay - then I prompted it for hours explaining exactly what I want to demonstrate and had to even tell it explicitly a lot about how spin works - from my experience
- StahlGuo 4mo agoWow,that sounds gread for the sport Thanks Fable, we miss you
- conor_robertson 4mo agoI know nothing about table tennis, but love it visually! Awesome job