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Posted by pikseladam 5 days ago

Kiki – Accountability monster for people who are easily distracted(www.kiki.computer)
52 points | 55 comments
doormatt 5 days ago|
>Is there any way to trick Kiki?

>Several users have tried. None have succeeded.

But then

>What browsers does Kiki support?

>KIKI supports Chrome and Safari. Other browsers can confuse it. Stick to those two.

dopidopHN2 5 days ago|
Exactly my thought. Self-control ( a free app referenced above ) cut the access at the host file level. Superior.
Rnonymous 5 days ago||
I was using selfcontrol during my studies. It works by temporarily blocking certain domains on your hosts file. Happy to see it still exists, and free

https://selfcontrolapp.com/

Retr0id 5 days ago||
My version of this is having custom ublock filter rules for my set of "timewaster" websites (HN included), I comment/uncomment them as needed.
dopidopHN2 5 days ago||
Self control is great. I've been using it for a solid decade.
wds 5 days ago||
For $60/year, I'd expect a lot more from software that runs on my own computer with no additional services provided.
nine_k 5 days ago||
I think that being paid is part of the thrust. If you ignore Kiki which you have bought to ruthlessly force you to stay focused, you feel bad for squandering the money. Kiki is for people so desperate that they explicitly asked for a strict master and no escape hatch anywhere.

> Will KIKI judge me for my poor time management?

> Yes. That's part of why it works.

tavavex 5 days ago||
Sunk cost reasoning only goes so far. See all the people who buy gym memberships or things they promise they're surely going to use, before quickly forgetting about them in spite of the large upfront costs.

It's frustrating to me how often sales pitches try to obscure or dance around the nature of money in a fashion similar to your argument - thinking of so many alternate explanations for why something has a high pricetag or a recurring payment tied to it while profusely ignoring the "we want as much money as possible and we think this is the most you'll give us" reason. As if these businesses are our friends or something.

no_wizard 5 days ago|||
Its $29.88/year. It is $4.99 a month, which if you pay by the month would be $60, but if you're going for a year, I don't see why you wouldn't take the 50% discount
wds 5 days ago||
Five years ago, I paid a flat $45 fee for Cold Turkey, software which does the same thing on Windows and Mac which doesn't require I chip in for no additional work on the developer's part; It is completed software that runs on my own machine, just like Kiki.

Sure, diming $30/year is a 'better deal' than nickeling $5/month, but this is not the sort of 'deal' which this software warrants. This is not a service product, and pricing it like one is silly.

agumonkey 5 days ago|||
Maybe it's pure digital placebo. You paid for that so now you're revenge overachieve to make it worth it.
1shooner 5 days ago||
Right, just like a gym membership.
SV_BubbleTime 5 days ago|||
Damn, you didn’t need to burn him like that!
insin 5 days ago|||
Too soon
m463 5 days ago||
maybe you should spend a few hours researching other anti-distraction solutions... doom scrolling, and asking ai, and yak shaving...

that's what I usually do. :)

wds 5 days ago||
https://getcoldturkey.com

Same functions, costs less than one year of Kiki for life, and multiplatform. No AI required.

calebm 5 days ago||
For those unfamiliar, the name is based on the Kiki/Bouba effect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouba/kiki_effect
reconnecting 5 days ago|
This must be about Kiki and Jiji by Miyazaki. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiki%27s_Delivery_Service
idiotsecant 5 days ago||
The kind of people who are easily distracted like this are the kind of people that will be very unlikely to configure an application filter for each task. What would be immensely more useful would be a (local) AI that periodically looks at your screen, uses context clues to figure out what you're doing, and first uses social pressure to get you on track, and eventually just closes it if you keep getting distracted.

Putting the ones on the user to manage this is just adding one additional thing that requires executive function.

Artoooooor 5 days ago||
Please, put info that this is Apple-only in the FAQ. I got it after reading through the whole page and clicking "download app" on my Android phone.
furyofantares 5 days ago||
Hmm. The only button on the screen is ([Apple Logo] Send me a download link). When you scroll it off screen it's replaced with ([Apple Logo] Try Kiki) and a collage of macOS screenshots.

They could certainly put it in the FAQ, which is below the ([Apple Logo] Get the App) button, I don't actually disagree with you, but it is somewhat of a funny complaint to me given the actual content of the page.

evgpbfhnr 5 days ago|||
(logo doesn't render on my browser... So I wouldn't have guessed either.) (firefox/linux, but it really is a font problem, not a browser problem)
tavavex 5 days ago|||
The Apple logo character isn't a real symbol, it's just a space from the Unicode private-use area (the 'anything goes' area that's not codified and is reserved for niche local uses) that Apple decided would render as the Apple logo in iOS and macOS, probably to allow them to draw their logo as text. It's not something that should be used in browsers or anything that can render outside of Apple's ecosystem. It's not a great sign that something this front-and-center, immediately apparent on any non-Apple devices, wasn't tested by them on any other platforms.
furyofantares 5 days ago|||
Hah, doesn't work on my PC either, I bet it pretty much only shows up on apple devices. And makes me glad I said I didn't disagree with OP!
novemp 5 days ago|||
I see a grey square on the download button, no Apple logo.
GZGavinZhao 5 days ago||
On Android there is a similar app called "Forest". I used it five or six years ago, not sure if it still exists now.
charlie-83 5 days ago||
Why is this a subscription?
ares623 5 days ago||
Because modern credit card networks and payments gateways have virtually zero friction now so subscriptions are a no-brainer for everything.

It takes the same amount of effort to setup a recurring subscription stack vs a one off payment.

shermantanktop 5 days ago|||
That lack of friction also allows that subscription to do a recurring charge every month out of sight and even auto renew with an email that will be lost in the noise.

I might pay $5 to find out if your app is even useful. I will not pay $5 recurring monthly for an app I forgot existed until I notice it on a monthly credit card bill sometime in the future.

What I want is a one month subscription. I’ll sign up for recurring if I want to but it would require explicit action.

But nobody wants to offer that so they don’t get me at all. I assume there are others like me, perhaps even dozens of us.

tavavex 5 days ago|||
That doesn't answer the question that was asked. The person above didn't ask about the workflow of negotiating recurring vs. singular payments with financial services. Some other 'mysterious' factor pushed this business to monetize their non-recurring service with a recurring payment. The question is if there is even a semblance of reasoning to make this a subscription (especially one with this kind of a pricetag), or if they made a purely local app once and just wanted to rent it out for more money.
ares623 5 days ago||
I was implying it. Because recurring payments are such low friction today, there is very little to no incentive for creators to offer one-off options. For every 12 potential buyers who would scoff at the recurring payments, there is one who can cover 12 months worth of revenue.
4corners4sides 3 days ago||
Cool addiction blocker product. Also ties into a strange concept whereby something has value because you pay for it as opposed to the other way around. This idea probably generalises to any kind of self help app that people normally get for free and ignore. If you can provide enough polish to justify a luxury price tag people may invest!
dzonga 5 days ago||
> Used by smart, distractible, individuals at .....

the more I see that - the less I trust

rorylawless 5 days ago||
I’ve always wondered 1) if those things are real and, if so, do they 2) ask for permission to include the logo.
navigate8310 5 days ago||
Gives vibe coding vibes
riversflow 5 days ago||
> testimonials from real humans (probably)

(X) Doubt

AuthAuth 5 days ago|
Does it come with the little red fella sitting on your screen? If not then its a waste of money. If it does then its worth every cent.
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