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Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

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61–70 of 399 posts

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#61
post #2

Cool idea. Amazingly they've found a way to put "in-app purchases" though. This app could just be an image set as your lock screen background. I've found a good way to discourage mindless phone staring is to set the display to monochrome (e.g. through colorblind emulation). The decreased visual stimulation seems to have an effect on me, at least until I want to see a photo or video in colour and go back to normal.

I have greyscale set to activate in the evening to wind down for bed.

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#62
I like the idea, congrats on the launch!

One feature request: instead of giving me a freeform field to enter "why", give me a few of common uses cases as options like: - Picking up the phone for real use (order, cab, call etc) - For social connection - For mindless scrolling

overtime you can plot why the phone was picked

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#64
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The point I think was more a critique on the fact that everyone now tries to extract profit with everything, even the simplest of apps.

The point is, everyone believes all apps should be free when this developer spent time building, testing, and iterating to come out with quite the useful app. And the developer respects users, so they chose to monetize in a way that doesn’t collect our data or shove ads in our faces.

The first thing OP says is "Cool idea - don't deserve to get paid for it though".

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#65
post #29

My buddy has a wallpaper on his phone that says, in large letters, "Do I really to be picking up my phone right now?" Done and done.

I prefer this method too, as it helps me develop my self-control. (I have "τῶν ἐφ᾽ ἡμῖν καὶ οὐκ ἐφ᾽ ἡμῖν", which is from Epictetus and means "things that are up to us and things that are not up to us" as a reminder that I can exert control over my phone use).

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#66
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's with that idea that compulsions aren't real? They are just as real and difficult to drop as substance-based addictions, for a rather simple reason: The physical addiction is only a compounding factor, not the core difficulty in a "classic" addiction. What really makes people always come back, no matter what, is the psychological addiction, not the physical one. Which is also why phones can be just as difficult…

[flagged]

Do you speak from a position of authority on the subject?

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#67
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The point I think was more a critique on the fact that everyone now tries to extract profit with everything, even the simplest of apps.

Critiquing the players and not the game misses the forest for the trees. This is the system we live in.

You're allowed to critique both. "The system" isn't handed down from god. It's just a set of choices made by people.

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#69
post #51

Love it. I wish there was a way to select multiple nudges. Is it possible to provide a lifetime subscription (instead of a monthly one) for premium features?

Thanks for the try.

Now I realize that the decision to make nudges in the same way as modes on iOS was a bad decision. I made it intentionally, you select nudge as one mode to enable. If you want to customize the content, just change the prompts in the nudge. Apologies for the inconvenience.

And about lifetime subscription. I also get that. I will replace the subscription with a one-time purchase eventually.

Re: Show HN: App that asks ‘why?’ every time you unlock your phone

#70
post #60
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is totally fair to charge for work you've done - but then again, in my opinion, not everything needs to be built with some profit in mind (not talking about this app in particular now). I think it's really refreshing to find an app that doesn't lock any features behind a paywall or makes using it more cumbersome unless you pay. I'm mostly okay with one-time payments though. Just because you invested some time into…

> not everything needs to be built with some profit in mind (not talking about this app in particular now). I agree, and I make many projects for fun and find it rewarding when others use what I've built. But that is a decision that I make myself, for my own work. I never feel like I have the right to tell others whether they should build something with profit in mind or not.

I agree - it's definitely OP's decision and a valid one.
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