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Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

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Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#1

Post by samrazer »

I’ve always liked fast online tools for jotting notes or organizing thoughts — but most “productivity” sites either save data to the cloud, require sign-ups, or are full of distractions.

So I built an online productivity tools website, a small collection of browser-based tools. It includes an online notepad where you can write and save notes right in your browser, a cornell notes tool available in more than 20 languages, and more coming soon like a pomodoro timer and a simple blank page for focused writing.

Everything works entirely in-browser using localStorage — no accounts, no cloud sync, no tracking. The site uses only minimal ads (anchor and vignette) to keep it free.

I built it mostly for myself to have a clean, private place to write and study, but I figured others might find it useful too. Feedback, bugs, and suggestions are all welcome.

Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website
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Re: Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#3

Post by samrazer »

codeonline wrote: post #2

I can barely see the site behind the hugely intrusive adverts on the page. Maybe 30% of the screen real estate is visible on mobile. I don't know how this is usable much less productive.

It generally appears on the first load of the website and should be easily closed using the “⌵” or “Close” buttons. If not, rest assured, I will adjust it through AdSense settings. A quick question for me to understand the problem with ease: It might also be related to your mobile device — are you using a phone with a small screen? Sometimes on smaller screens, it can appear awkward. Thank you for your feedback, and sorry for the inconvenience! If possible, could you send screenshots of the issue to contact@onlinenotep.ad? It would help me identify and fix the problem much faster and more accurately.

Re: Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#4

Post by rendall »

samrazer wrote: post #3
codeonline wrote: post #2

I can barely see the site behind the hugely intrusive adverts on the page. Maybe 30% of the screen real estate is visible on mobile. I don't know how this is usable much less productive.

It generally appears on the first load of the website and should be easily closed using the “⌵” or “Close” buttons. If not, rest assured, I will adjust it through AdSense settings. A quick question for me to understand the problem with ease: It might also be related to your mobile device — are you using a phone with a small screen? Sometimes on smaller screens, it can appear awkward. Thank you for your feedback, and…

Good luck with this project. Sincere respect. However, seeing the ad, I immediately closed the site, never to return.

I'm a bit baffled about what interest this would hold for the HN audience. Does it solve unusual technical challenges? Is it open source?

Seems to be no to both questions. Just another commercial site, like many others. No shade, but baffling.

Re: Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#5

Post by samrazer »

rendall wrote: post #4
samrazer wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It generally appears on the first load of the website and should be easily closed using the “⌵” or “Close” buttons. If not, rest assured, I will adjust it through AdSense settings. A quick question for me to understand the problem with ease: It might also be related to your mobile device — are you using a phone with a small screen? Sometimes on smaller screens, it can appear awkward. Thank you for your feedback, and…

Good luck with this project. Sincere respect. However, seeing the ad, I immediately closed the site, never to return. I'm a bit baffled about what interest this would hold for the HN audience. Does it solve unusual technical challenges? Is it open source? Seems to be no to both questions. Just another commercial site, like many others. No shade, but baffling.

Thank you for your honest feedback and for taking the time to share your experience. I completely understand your reaction, and I’m truly sorry that the ads caused you to leave the site. Your input is invaluable, and I’ll review the ad placement and settings carefully to make the experience better for all users.

I hope you might consider giving the site another try in the future — I’m committed to making it as smooth and enjoyable as possible.

Re: Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#6

Post by pj1115 »

I'm not sure I agree with 'minimal ads'. On a 27" monitor, 3 banners and an ads privacy pop-up don't take up much screen real estate, but visually some pages have as much ad as content. It's not a great experience when you're competing with other free (or OSS) products. If you're really only looking for feedback, you might have better luck if you aren't trying to monetising the people giving up their time!

Congrats on building this for yourself, I can certainly see the benefit of building writing tools to suit your own needs.

Re: Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#7

Post by samrazer »

pj1115 wrote: post #6

I'm not sure I agree with 'minimal ads'. On a 27" monitor, 3 banners and an ads privacy pop-up don't take up much screen real estate, but visually some pages have as much ad as content. It's not a great experience when you're competing with other free (or OSS) products. If you're really only looking for feedback, you might have better luck if you aren't trying to monetising the people giving up their time! Congrats o…

I think the majority of the problem stems from the ads and I totally understand it — even if “minimal” sounds fine on a large screen, I see how visually some pages can feel crowded, especially compared to free or open-source alternatives. Google does sometimes adjust the number of ads depending on screen size, so I’ll look into optimizing that so it feels less intrusive.

Also, the privacy pop-up is actually the default from Google, and it varies by region — users in the U.S. see a slightly smaller version than in the EU. Still, I understand it can disrupt the experience, so I’ll explore ways to make it smoother.

Re: Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#8

Post by pj1115 »

samrazer wrote: post #7
pj1115 wrote: post #6

I'm not sure I agree with 'minimal ads'. On a 27" monitor, 3 banners and an ads privacy pop-up don't take up much screen real estate, but visually some pages have as much ad as content. It's not a great experience when you're competing with other free (or OSS) products. If you're really only looking for feedback, you might have better luck if you aren't trying to monetising the people giving up their time! Congrats o…

I think the majority of the problem stems from the ads and I totally understand it — even if “minimal” sounds fine on a large screen, I see how visually some pages can feel crowded, especially compared to free or open-source alternatives. Google does sometimes adjust the number of ads depending on screen size, so I’ll look into optimizing that so it feels less intrusive. Also, the privacy pop-up is actually the defau…

I wish you the best, but you do not have a product to monetise yet.

IMO: if your goal is to attract users or to make money, you have too many strong free competitors to be using ads like this, especially if your audience read Hacker News. It's not the right business model. Any amount of time spent making these ads 'smoother' is better spent on the product, because you won't earn enough ad revenue to make it worth it.

If you need revenue to pay for hosting, you'd be better off making it open source or self-hostable.

If your goal is getting feedback, you have to recognise that people are doing it for you, not for them. Don't make them pay you to do it.

Re: Show HN: I built an online productivity tools website

#10

Post by samrazer »

pj1115 wrote: post #8
samrazer wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the majority of the problem stems from the ads and I totally understand it — even if “minimal” sounds fine on a large screen, I see how visually some pages can feel crowded, especially compared to free or open-source alternatives. Google does sometimes adjust the number of ads depending on screen size, so I’ll look into optimizing that so it feels less intrusive. Also, the privacy pop-up is actually the defau…

I wish you the best, but you do not have a product to monetise yet. IMO: if your goal is to attract users or to make money, you have too many strong free competitors to be using ads like this, especially if your audience read Hacker News. It's not the right business model. Any amount of time spent making these ads 'smoother' is better spent on the product, because you won't earn enough ad revenue to make it worth it.…

Thanks a lot for your kind wishes and detailed feedback! I’m a bit unsure what you mean by not having a “product” — I do have an online notepad and a Cornell notes tool; I just shared the homepage, not the specific tools (there are currently two, and I plan to expand gradually). Do you mean a large product or so?

I really appreciate your thoughts on monetization. I’ll definitely keep improving the notepad, Cornell notes, and other productivity tools to be added to the website to be as smooth and distraction-free as possible.

About making it open source or self-hostable, I might consider that later as more people suggest it instead of the current model.

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