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Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

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Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#41

Post by ether »

typpo wrote: post #28

I like the dream idea a lot. In a similar vein, I made http://keepdream.me/ to help people record dreams via email when you wake up. I can definitely see how people might prefer voice recording though. Another option to consider is SMS, as a phone call requires you to know when you're waking up.

Thanks! Well I think the whole point of WakeMyself is it functions both as an alarm AND as a dream capturing tool, which means, you do know when you wake up--it's the time you set the alarm at. It's quite tricky, but I think there's a subtle but crucial difference between synchronous capturing (phone call) and asynchronous capturing (sms) and that's what makes it work. But maybe it's just me, so please try it out tonight :)

Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#42

Post by caseysoftware »

freshhawk wrote: post #11

I have this same thing as an app on my phone (that I wrote myself and is not polished but who cares, it works). I think the idea is awesome, and it does work well to hear yourself when in that just-5-more-minutes-mom half awake state of mind. Why a service rather than an alarm app? That strikes me as pushing the user into a less effective/usable solution to the problem that gives other parties access to personal info…

One version of the app that works for iOS, Android, or dumb phones. Nothing to distribute so easy to deploy update. No need to go through Apple's approval process.

And since it's not on your phone, there's no way to get at or share your other info like Path did.

Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#43

Post by ether »

jefflinwood wrote: post #38
ether wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Awesome! Thanks for the feedback! Yes I used Twilio API. I went to a hackathon last weekend and built this using Twilio API, and it was cool so I decided to refine it some more and release it. 1. Yeah currently it's alarm for hours and minutes "from now" rather than actual time, because you know, time zone conversion thing is really annoying and takes up too much time. But you're right I gotta make that more clear. 2…

Was it the XHack hackathon?

Yes. By the way XHack hackathon was really awesome. Best host ever.

Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#44

Post by swombat »

dabent wrote: post #39

Apparently I'm already using this for something slightly different than the intended purpose and loving it. This may be an excellent tool for me to send myself reminders for tasks I'm doing later in the day. I often write a task list in one moment, then forget it in the midst of the day's work. It's the use of the "Call yourself after" section being a timer, rather than a clock that makes that easy to think about. I'…

lift iPhone up to ear

tudum!

Remind me to call my mom at 3pm tomorrow.

dudum

I'll remind youuu

Maybe you just need an iPhone 4S.

Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#46

Post by dabent »

swombat wrote: post #44
dabent wrote: post #39

Apparently I'm already using this for something slightly different than the intended purpose and loving it. This may be an excellent tool for me to send myself reminders for tasks I'm doing later in the day. I often write a task list in one moment, then forget it in the midst of the day's work. It's the use of the "Call yourself after" section being a timer, rather than a clock that makes that easy to think about. I'…

lift iPhone up to ear tudum! Remind me to call my mom at 3pm tomorrow. dudum I'll remind youuu Maybe you just need an iPhone 4S.

> Maybe you just need an iPhone 4S.

Indeed. I got an Android device in the fall and have regretted not waiting for the 4S. A site like this at least fills the gap. I also like being able to type in my instructions on a laptop, not sure if Siri has that kind of interface.

Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#47

Post by ether »

dabent wrote: post #39

Apparently I'm already using this for something slightly different than the intended purpose and loving it. This may be an excellent tool for me to send myself reminders for tasks I'm doing later in the day. I often write a task list in one moment, then forget it in the midst of the day's work. It's the use of the "Call yourself after" section being a timer, rather than a clock that makes that easy to think about. I'…

Great to hear that! Can you elaborate on how it being a timer rather than a clock makes it easy to think about? That might be very useful feedback for me. Thanks!

Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#48

Post by masterzora »

The recording feature seems like a neat way to differentiate this from alarms, but I think I'm getting the wrong idea from your second paragraph.

I've got an alarm on my phone already. The tone is the same as my ringtone. The slide required to shut it off is identical to the slide required to answer. If it weren't for the record feature, would this really be adding anything? If not, why not emphasise the record as the primary feature?

Re: Show HN: WakeMyself. Get a wakeup call from your yesterday's self.

#50

Post by ether »

masterzora wrote: post #48

The recording feature seems like a neat way to differentiate this from alarms, but I think I'm getting the wrong idea from your second paragraph. I've got an alarm on my phone already. The tone is the same as my ringtone. The slide required to shut it off is identical to the slide required to answer. If it weren't for the record feature, would this really be adding anything? If not, why not emphasise the record as th…

Thanks for asking.

I think it's more about the message than the alarm itself. The problem I saw with alarms is not that I never hear them, but most of the times I do hear them but just turn it off because that's the only thing you can do with an alarm, right?

But if I can hear a message containing meaningful content, I will listen to it, because that's the intended action. And if that content tells me my todo list for today and helps me realize how busy I am and gives me the sense of urgency, it would be easier to wake up. Because as I mentioned, there are countless times where I regret not waking up and think "Damn if I was able to think rationally while I was sleeping, I would have totally waken up."

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