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Show HN: A geofence-based social network app 6 years in development (localvideoapp.com)

78 points by Adrian-ChatLocl ↗ HN
My name is Adrian. I'm a Software Engineer and I spent 6 years developing a perimeter-based geofence-based social media app.

What it does:

- Allows you to load a custom perimeter anywhere on the geographic map (180° E and W longitude and 90° N and S latitude), to cover area any area of interest

- Chat rooms get loaded within the perimeter

- You can chat with people within the perimeter

I developed a mobile app that uses an advanced geofence-based networking system from 2013 to 2019. My goal was to connect users within polygon geofences anywhere in the world. The app is capable of loading millions of polygon geofences anywhere in the world.

https://enterpriseandroidfoundation.com/assets/images/other/...

But people didn't really have a need for this. So after failing, I spent the next 6 years trying new ideas to use FencedIn for. I tried a location-based video app and a place-based app that had multiple features. Nothing worked, but now I'm almost finished developing ChatLocal, an app that allows you to load a perimeter anywhere on the geographic map, which loads chat rooms.

The tech stack is 100% Java (low-level mostly). I have a backend, commons library and an Android app. Java was the natural choice back in 2013. However, I still wouldn't choose anything else today. Java is the best for long-term large-scale projects. (I'm also using WildFly. PostgreSQL and a Linux server.)

This app is still not fully finished, but I think the impact on society might be tremendous.

The previous app to ChatLocal, LocalVideo, is fully up on the Google Play store and can be tested. It has 88% of the features of ChatLocal, including especially the perimeter-based loading system.

The feedback I'm mostly looking for is new ideas and concepts to add to this location-based social media app. And how strong of a value proposition does the app have for society.

18 comments

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BanAntiVaxxers
There's so many ways to fake your location data. There's one way that you can't really fake: Send them a secret code on a piece of paper in the US mail to their physical address. NextDoor used to do this at one point.
ranger_danger
Disagree, it's very easy to temporarily forward USPS mail for a specific name from one address to another, and the sender has no idea.
MarsIronPI
Let me start by saying that I really like this idea.

Obviously social apps like this are faced with a chicken-and-egg dilemma of how to acquire users. I'm no marketer, so I don't have any suggestions on how to solve this one.

For myself, I avoid non-free/open-source programs in general, but especially chat apps. I think that especially the programs we rely on to communicate should at least be transparent on the client-side. That being said, I would absolutely try this out if the app were released as FOSS (which it doesn't look like it is?).

pantalaimon
Reminds me of Jodel (https://jodel.com/), an app originally focused on students.

It lost quite some activity in the last decade though, gaining fewer users than it loses.

cyberax
No web version? No sale.

WTF is wrong with these social apps!?!? Who wants to chat on a tiny screen when they have a computer available. Especially for local apps that function only when you're home.

mvkel
This app (like any consumer social app) needs to first solve the cold start problem: make it useful for a single user, layer the social on top.

Instagram had photo filters; Strava had activity stats. What could this have?

wakeforce
I had this exact same idea years ago, it's awesome to see someone else had the same idea, but actually had the guts to do it! Wishing you success!
anotherpaul
I don't quite understand: Instead of using the phones GPS to let me simply chat with people around me, which would be great during traveling or commute, I need to choose the place I chat at?

This seems super counter productive in my opinion. It creates way more friction that I want.

Maybe I want to save a location I have been to as a chatroom, sure but my primary interest would be to have my location determine the chat. So if I enter a university building: boom university chat. I enter Cern: boom Cern chat.

The hard part would be to not just use rectangles but actually make the shapes meaningful. I don't want to walk past a high school or live next to one and then be included in that chat. So yeah. Tricky

diggum
Very cool. I developed something in a similar vein as a way to teach myself web programming 15 years ago or so. Https://dirtywalls.com is location-based message boards. You can create or join ones close to your location. Reminds me that I need to try to tell people about it since it’s mostly just me checking in to my local bars and shops.
kitd
Very cool idea. My only worry is "Anonymous Mode". Anonymity IME usually results in conversations descending into vitriol, snark or libel.
nprateem
Unless you're a masochist you should prototype your idea and see what people want instead of building it first.

Why add new features instead of trying to gain traction?

utopiah
Checkout Hoplr.com that's a Web based equivalent.
g-b-r
Not sure why you link to a screenshot of LinkedIn, or to LinkedIn at all, but you might want to spell-check what's written there
deadcore
Good idea - sort of remind me of YikYak. That was really fun & actually a great way to get local tips if you were new into an area with a good community. Towns it was dead, but if I was in a city that I'd never been to before, put a question out and you would get some real good insights.

It faced a fair few controversies & got taken offline and not sure what became of it...

Always wanted something with that... casual fence... to think of a better word again

patrik_cihal
One pattern I’ve noticed with local / geofenced chat is that without a primary task (coordination, trade, alerts, etc.), chat becomes the product... and historically that converges to low-signal or toxicity. The tech here is impressive, but I’d worry the value needs to be anchored to a concrete job-to-be-done rather than chat itself.