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Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

yournote.app

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Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#21

Post by alphakappa »

aviaryan wrote: post #12
hknd wrote: post #6

The landing page doesn't show me anything about this product, and just forces me to login with 'blockstack'. Guess I'll close the tab ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Oops, the info about the product is at the bottom. And I should have added a screenshot or illustration too. I added one in the background now. Here is how the app looks. https://i.imgur.com/T3ZVj35.png

That should be the first thing a visitor sees on the home page. Users don't owe you a click on 'learn more'. Explain the product, and maybe even allow them to use it without creating an account, and only ask them to sign up/sign-in when absolutely necessary (like, if they try to save a note, or if they are leaving with some unsaved work)

Also, why would your average user care about 'blockstack'? That's an implementation detail that might be cool to you, but it's an irrelevant thing to put front and center. Even most nerds would be unaware of what this is.

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#22

Post by aviaryan »

trulyrandom wrote: post #15

The site is a little light on details, but I assume my notes will be stored in a distributed way? What are some key advantages of this over something like Standard Notes ( https://standardnotes.org ), which allows backing up notes to multiple different cloud storage providers.

It's not distributed. Your data will be stored on a storage provider of your choice and it will only be accessible to you (or others with whom you share).

More here: https://github.com/blockstack/gaia#user-control-how-is-gaia-...

I haven't used Standard Notes before but from what I see now, it looks close to what we plan to make. I wonder how they store the data and what happens with data in case they disappear. I will look more into it.

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#23

Post by aviaryan »

canadaduane wrote: post #18
aviaryan wrote: post #2

Hi HN, The founder of YourNote here. YourNote is a user-first note-taking app. By user-first, we mean that user's personal data (which are the notes) are guaranteed to be secure and private if you use YourNote. This is achieved by using Blockstack and Gaia for user authentication and user data storage. So, at any point in time, user and only the user has access to their notes. Even if their Gaia storage gets hijacked…

Neat! I agree, and although it may not be clear what all of this means to everyone, this is the beginning of how "blockchain" (I use the word loosely) is going to prove its value. At Mainframe, we're working on something similar, called "Noted", and we offer some of the same guarantees but take it one step further: we rely on no centralized infrastructure at all, not even DNS. Congrats on getting this released!

Thanks. I wonder how are you doing that? Is there any way I can learn more?

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#24

Post by jteppinette »

aviaryan wrote: post #7
TekMol wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

at any point in time, user and only the user has access to their notes I don't think that is true. When I use your app, you can do anything you want to my data. You might promise me that the Javascript you delivered to my browser is treating my data in a certain way. Storing it in encrypted form or whatnot. But that is just a promise. Reality is: you can ship me code that does whatever you like.

That is true, and the only way to fix that is when users see the code and run it themselves (I plan to open source very soon). Apart from that, I don't think I can provide any other guarantees. No open source project can. If they are discovered doing something bad, they go rekt. That's how it usually is. So what's the point here? Should I not have a line like this in my copy? Another thing that can be done is that I…

> user's personal data (which are the notes) are guaranteed to be secure and private if you use YourNote

This might be a stretch, since it is not true. You cannot make this guarantee. No one can make that guarantee today.

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#25

Post by aviaryan »

beatgammit wrote: post #8
aviaryan wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is true, and the only way to fix that is when users see the code and run it themselves (I plan to open source very soon). Apart from that, I don't think I can provide any other guarantees. No open source project can. If they are discovered doing something bad, they go rekt. That's how it usually is. So what's the point here? Should I not have a line like this in my copy? Another thing that can be done is that I…

Or more simply, just allow users to self host. Users can trust one version of the app, and then only update when they need a new feature, at which point they can choose to trust that version. However, that already exists. I can use NextCloud in this manner and the have a note app.

True. In fact, if you can self-host things, you have already solved most of the data-related concerns.

But with YourNote, my other aim is to allow users to also move out of the app in case they don't feel like using it. That's why we have features like "Export Notes" that exports the data in clean, hierarchical `.md` files. This way they always have easy access to their data.

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#26

Post by aviaryan »

jteppinette wrote: post #24
aviaryan wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is true, and the only way to fix that is when users see the code and run it themselves (I plan to open source very soon). Apart from that, I don't think I can provide any other guarantees. No open source project can. If they are discovered doing something bad, they go rekt. That's how it usually is. So what's the point here? Should I not have a line like this in my copy? Another thing that can be done is that I…

> user's personal data (which are the notes) are guaranteed to be secure and private if you use YourNote This might be a stretch, since it is not true. You cannot make this guarantee. No one can make that guarantee today.

In a binary sense, you are right but I think everyone still uses them to sell their product. Maybe I can add a disclaimer listing the conditions in which this guarantee doesn't hold true.

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#27

Post by TekMol »

aviaryan wrote: post #7
TekMol wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

at any point in time, user and only the user has access to their notes I don't think that is true. When I use your app, you can do anything you want to my data. You might promise me that the Javascript you delivered to my browser is treating my data in a certain way. Storing it in encrypted form or whatnot. But that is just a promise. Reality is: you can ship me code that does whatever you like.

That is true, and the only way to fix that is when users see the code and run it themselves (I plan to open source very soon). Apart from that, I don't think I can provide any other guarantees. No open source project can. If they are discovered doing something bad, they go rekt. That's how it usually is. So what's the point here? Should I not have a line like this in my copy? Another thing that can be done is that I…

It is true that this issue exists with every software.

I wanted to point it out anyhow because it often is overlooked.

Not sure about the line in your copy. Maybe it is possible to state more clearly what the actual privacy and security mechanisms.

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#28

Post by aviaryan »

alphakappa wrote: post #21
aviaryan wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oops, the info about the product is at the bottom. And I should have added a screenshot or illustration too. I added one in the background now. Here is how the app looks. https://i.imgur.com/T3ZVj35.png

That should be the first thing a visitor sees on the home page. Users don't owe you a click on 'learn more'. Explain the product, and maybe even allow them to use it without creating an account, and only ask them to sign up/sign-in when absolutely necessary (like, if they try to save a note, or if they are leaving with some unsaved work) Also, why would your average user care about 'blockstack'? That's an implementat…

You are right. I made this keeping Blockstack people in mind and didn't realize I should change that before launching publicly. I am working on a new homepage now.

Re: Show HN: YourNote, a note-taking app that puts users’ data first

#29

Post by dyarosla »

aviaryan wrote: post #7
TekMol wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

at any point in time, user and only the user has access to their notes I don't think that is true. When I use your app, you can do anything you want to my data. You might promise me that the Javascript you delivered to my browser is treating my data in a certain way. Storing it in encrypted form or whatnot. But that is just a promise. Reality is: you can ship me code that does whatever you like.

That is true, and the only way to fix that is when users see the code and run it themselves (I plan to open source very soon). Apart from that, I don't think I can provide any other guarantees. No open source project can. If they are discovered doing something bad, they go rekt. That's how it usually is. So what's the point here? Should I not have a line like this in my copy? Another thing that can be done is that I…

Word of advice: your usage of immature expressions very much lowers the professionalism of your product and how much I’d look to trust it. In the comments here, phrases such as ‘user starts hating YourNote for some reason’ and ‘they go rekt’ are two such examples.
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