Ask HN: Tell me what iOS app you'd like me to build, and I'll open source it.

9 points by benigeri ↗ HN
It can be anything, doing this for the final project of a class at Stanford.

21 comments

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Alarm clock that gives you a standing ovation (and cheers) when you stand up.
Hahah yeah thats would be pretty cool.
Would be great to see an open-source front-end to Kandan (https://github.com/kandanapp/kandan), which has really started picking up steam. I imagine with the momentum behind it there's a good chance it'll be carried along by the community.

Very simple API to tie into as well (if only it had OAuth built in...)

Right now I'm thinking of making a fast email sender. You select a template, then select a contact, and in two taps you can send a predefined message.
Really easy (alcohol) drink diary. Preferably using the UK system of units-of-alcohol. Units are given by (serving size in ml * strength in ABV) / 1000.

It needs to be really easy to use, so that people get an accurate count of how much they're drinking each week.

Things that make it hard:

1) Wine is served in different measures and strengths, and sometimes these aren't known.

2) Some spirits have legally defined measures, and others don't.

3) Some drinks are served in pints, and sometimes their strength isn't known.

I think maybe even just photos would be a good idea.

Like. Aside from the UK part, maybe make it possible to switch....
A weather app for people to check in the morning that tells them the weather for the upcoming day in an easy to understand sentence, compared to the previous days weather.

EG: Good morning! It's going to be a bit colder than yesterday and if you're going to be out around 2pm we would suggest an umbrella.

So instead of trying to figure out, hey ok it's going to be 35 degrees with a wind speed of 15 MPH you could just think about what it was like yesterday and dress/plan accordingly

Really would love to try to build this myself haha unfortunately lacking the dev abilities (app academy application....fingers crossed!)

Thats an awesome idea. Unless I get any better suggestions, I think I'll go with this. Shoot me an email: paul|at|benigeri|dot|com and I'll send you a link when its released.
Yes this is the best idea out of the bunch!
isometric game template (can use cocos2d). Tiles, etc.
A really good HN reader app with commenting.
Haha, I'am working on one. A full features HN client for iOS.will be on the App Store a week or two!
This may be too complex to do on a phone and especially given that it is for school, but a kid at CMU built a tool for computers where the computer tracks eye movement. So while you read an article, the page automatically scrolls up or down depending on your eye movement. And if you take your eyes off of the camera, an automated voice picks up from where you left off and starts reading.
I find it interesting that all of these ideas come from non-technical, non-iOS developers.

I'd like to see an app that:

i) shows innovation in design, using novel components, e.g. the Path flyout menu. ii) provides an easy-to-use approach to a common problem, .e.g Tinder for online-dating.

A 3D collaborative notes app

3D meaning sublists, a depth of at least three. Collaborative is vague, if the app is free then relying on a shared Dropbox folder could work. I think a good notes app should have offline access, a queue of changes for next time you are online and most of all a changelog. Closest I've found so far are Workflowy and Cotton.

An GPS-enabled app where a user can set taxi rates and audits whether or not the taxi they are in is A) using a meter that has been altered/is fraudulent and B) if the taxi driver is potentially taking a negligent route based on traffic/etc.

I'm in DC and with increased competition from Uber/etcetera, taxi fraud has been on the rise. Just google for example news reports and FBI busts.