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Ask HN: Is this iPhone app too trivial/commonplace to promote?

6 points by KevinMS ↗ HN
Movie here:

http://basketeerapp.com/

It took about ten tear-downs and do-overs just to make it as simple as possible. I might have simplified it so much that nobody will take it seriously.

I wrote this app mostly for myself as a companion to go with my first iPhone.

My problem is - I don't have a good understanding of the iPhone market, or even the common needs of iPhone users. I have no idea if I should just keep this to myself and just let it disappear into the back hole the appstore apparently is.

Encouragingly, I've already had two anonymous people tell me its something they have been looking for. But how to evaluate a large percentage of a very small selection of users saying its something they have been trying to find in an app?

Should I drop some promo codes here? I have a bunch left but I'm not sure of promo code etiquette on HN.

17 comments

[ 3.7 ms ] story [ 49.9 ms ] thread
helen842000
I like the checking-off of items as I go round the supermarket.

I doubt I'd use the Tagging (grouping?) feature.

KevinMS
I called it "grouping" until I realized that items could be in multiple groups, so "tag" seemed like a more accurate metaphor.
reledi
I have no use for this because I never carried around a shopping list in the first place. I also don't own an iPhone, but I would imagine the app store is already saturated with shopping list apps.
SHOwnsYou
This too complex for me to use.

For a shopping list I want what I have on paper. A list of items that gets crossed out when I put it in my cart.

Trying to revolution the shopping list with technology (tags and tagging tags) is a losing battle. Try to mimic the tried and true, hundreds of years old shopping list. Complicating it by adding technology seems like a recipe for disappointment.

KevinMS
I used it today like this -

On my way home I decided I wanted a baked potato with dinner.

I already had a baked potato tag, and it contained 3 things

  Potato
  Butter
  Sour cream
I selected the potato and sour cream items, knowing I already had butter.

What happened far too frequently to me was that I'd forget to even remember sour cream and just get potatoes. That's what tags are for, a memory tool. Don't use them if you don't want. I find them extremely useful and are the main reason I created this app.

I also have baked potato tagged with dinner, so on my way home, I could have scanned through the "dinner" tag and decided what I felt like eating.

You see, I wasn't trying to mimic the shopping list, I was wanted a tool that helped me the way I grocery shop.

SHOwnsYou
If that's how you use it, advertise it that way.

That is a neat way to use the app and is way more interesting than telling me I can tag tags. If I can scroll through what is essentially a menu on my phone, pick the items I want for meals, and the ingredients automatically get added to my list - that's pretty useful.

I still wouldn't use it, but I think that angle of usage would appeal to more people.

KevinMS
If that's how you use it, advertise it that way

I made a movie showing that, but I guess it wasn't clear enough.

SHOwnsYou
Dude really? Be less snarky in your replies and I'm sure people will be more willing to help you.
KevinMS
I just meant that because you didn't get what I intended out of the movie that the script wasn't good enough and I should rewrite it, I didn't mean to be rude.
hugo31370
I use Listary (friend's app) for the same thing but it's a paid app. GroceryIQ is a good free app for that.

I think your app adds complexity where it isn't needed. Tag tags? Hard to get. The whole terminology is not clear. If you want to group items, call it Group.

A good feature would be to recognize items as you type them and add to specific aisles (produce, bakery, etc). That way you won't need groups.

I also think the icons are not very clear and the delete function should be a simple swipe sideways.

KevinMS
I didn't think groups would be appropriate because the same item could be in multiple groups. I think most people think of groups as containers and having the same item in multiple groups is confusing, but they do understand that a single item can have multiple tags.

The tags are for your own use. They can be for meals, ingredients, isles, pets, etc. I would not impose a "use case" for them upon the user.

There is a swipe delete, its just not shown in the movie. I'm not sure why you say its not there. It would also not be used very often so its not a big deal.

eps
I think for a vast majority of people it's a solution in a search of a problem. Grocery shopping is an uncomplicated matter and the pen and paper list covers the need for a memory aid in those (rare) cases when it is needed. It is also much easier to operate as it can be kept in the shopping cart in front of the eyes at all times, it is easier to glance over and it is easier to strike items off the list (by tearing through them). All in all, the paper list is better than the app on a device. Don't get your nerdiness blur your perception of reality of common folks :)
KevinMS
Grocery lists don't help you figure out what you need to put on that list, that's why it often fails me and why I created a list with "tags". Maybe I'm the only one, but its already helping me to not forget things.
bmelton
I also want to add in that this seems complicated -- I mean, I get the purpose of tags and the like, but the UI steps to get there are unintuitive, and the video doesn't do a great job of showing me why I would want to.

I see elsewhere in this thread that you present a use case -- make that clearer.

It was surprising to me that the ONE thing this had the potential to offer over pen and paper isn't a feature -- the thing I hate about pen and paper is that when I scratch out something I've put in the cart, it doesn't go away.

See tadalist for what I mean -- when I check something, it is grayed out AND pushed to the bottom of the list. This is a huge feature that I think you're missing (for me at least).

KevinMS
Thats interesting. My first 4 or 5 attemps had a checked item disappear (actually animated it to go back to the main list). Then I found myself accidentally checking items off by mistake and being annoyed I couldn't recheck them easily. So I decided since my lists were always short, I would just grey them out so the unchecked ones would stand out. At least thats my reasoning at the time.

Oh, and as a compromise, to remove checked items from the list, you just cycle the list button, and that cleans up the list, so I was hoping you'd get the best of both features. 1. A less twitchy list. 2. The ability to clean up the list.