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Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

kidscreen.app

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Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#41

Post by Tintly »

codeulike wrote: post #22

Interested in this, but to work on an ipad that has youtube.com blocked via ScreenTime I imagine it probably wont work (unless you unblock youtube.com and the youtube becomes accessible via the browser). Unless they have found a way round this problem?

Yes — this is exactly how I use it on my children’s iPads. I install KidScreen as a Home Screen web app, block the regular YouTube website and other video sources with Screen Time, and allow KidScreen together with its `youtube-nocookie.com` player. The child opens only KidScreen and sees the shelf I prepared.

Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#42

Post by Tintly »

arendtio wrote: post #25

I like the idea. I solved the issue by building an extra Android Launcher for the kids, where you can add apps and videos, but then you have the problem that you can't configure your own launcher on all tablets (e.g. Fire Tablets).

Nice approach. I chose a web app for the same portability reason: the child signs in once in a browser and KidScreen can be added to the Home Screen. That reduces platform-specific work, but it still does not guarantee that every device or TV browser supports YouTube embeds correctly.

Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#43

Post by Tintly »

spking wrote: post #12

I love this! Thank you OP. Feature suggestion: Invite another parent on the Family page. It would be cool if both my wife and I were able to add approved videos.

Thanks — that is a useful request. Co-parent access is not exposed in the current version. Separate parent invitations would let both adults manage the same shelves without sharing one account, and that is the direction I would take if I add it.

Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#44

Post by Tintly »

Aeolun wrote: post #10

How does it stop Youtube from showing recommendations?

KidScreen removes the YouTube browsing experience: there is no search, no feed, and no algorithm choosing the next video for the child. I add the exact videos myself, and the child sees only that finite shelf. On my children’s iPads I use KidScreen as a Home Screen web app and block the other video sources with Screen Time. In my testing I have not seen ads or recommendations in this setup.

Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#45

Post by Tintly »

kbruner wrote: post #21

YouTube Kids already has a whitelist mode. We use it all the time for our 8 year old.

YouTube Kids whitelist mode is useful, but KidScreen starts from a different idea: I add exact videos one by one to each child’s separate shelf. I am not approving an entire channel or asking an algorithm to select from a catalogue. Nothing is added to the KidScreen shelf unless the parent puts it there.

Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#46

Post by Tintly »

jonhohle wrote: post #15

Sell this to school districts. This is what Google should have done from the beginning.

That is an interesting direction. KidScreen is currently built for individual families, not school administration, so it does not yet have the provisioning, classroom management, or compliance features schools would need. If you have a specific school workflow in mind, I would be interested to hear it.

Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#47

Post by Tintly »

hw-guy wrote: post #26

Or you can give your kids books to read.

Books are great too. I do not see books and video as mutually exclusive; a small amount of parent-selected educational or creative video can be useful. KidScreen is about making that choice intentional, not maximizing screen time.

Re: Show HN: KidScreen, a finite YouTube shelf chosen by parents

#50

Post by Tintly »

LeonKnst wrote: post #18

It'd be so cool if you could customize the shelf according to kids' interests etc

That is already the manual model: the parent creates a separate shelf for each child and adds videos based on that child’s interests. There is intentionally no automated personalization or recommendation system deciding what to add next.
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