5 ms·

Show HN: I Made Loom for Mobile

69 points by admtal 9mo ago

An app to make demo vids Of course I have a demo vid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_fq0TzlsXI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_fq0TzlsXI This will be my last post to HN about this. I always like to try a few titles to see if any hit.

nottorp 9mo ago
Not this Loom right? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game)
- admtal 9mo ago
  Ha, I was not aware of that loom. I’ll have to check it out, thanks for sharing
- sodapopcan 9mo ago
  This is what I assumed and starting with the comments was very confusing.
leovander 9mo ago
That was a sleek demo, good job! Only thing that I could nitpick is if you polished your floating toolbars to look a bit more Apple-y, this feels like something Apple is going to be sending you an acquihire for.
- admtal 9mo ago
  Thank you - you’re right, I should Liquid Glassify that app asap
teddyh 9mo ago
“Ask me about Loom”
- mdlxxv 9mo ago
  "You mean the latest masterpiece of fantasy storytelling from Lucasfilm's™ Brian Moriarty™? Why, it's an extraordinary adventure with an interface of magic, stunning, high-resolution, 3D landscapes, sophisticated score and musical effects. Not to mention the detailed animation and special effects, elegant point 'n' click control of characters, objects, and magic spells. Beat the rush! Go out and buy Loom™ today!"
  - forbiddenvoid 9mo ago
    I will not hide my disappointment that this headline was not, in fact, referring to the classic adventure game.
    - mdb333 9mo ago
      yes!!!
    - a_shoeboy 9mo ago
      Glad it's not just me.
    - spectre3d 9mo ago
      Same here, I was confused and disappointed when I clicked the link and was presented with yet another screen recorder.
    - GuB-42 9mo ago
      Same for me. However you can still play the original game with ScummVM, available on many platforms, including Android.
BrokenCogs 9mo ago
Loom just reminds me of the cringey-est blog post I have ever read. I hadn't heard about loom until I read the founder's post about how difficult it was being rich and successful. Hope you're not looking to hike through Hawaiian forests or not become an NPC at Big Co
- admtal 9mo ago
  I’m not planning on it, but to be completely honest I don’t want to rule it out
pengaru 9mo ago
For those who were confused like myself - this has absolutely nothing to do with the demoscene described here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demoscene https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demoscene
- pyrophane 9mo ago
  My first thought was of the adventure game Loom.
  - LeoPanthera 9mo ago
    You mean the latest masterpiece of fantasy storytelling from Lucasfilms™ Brian Moriarty™? Why it's an extraordinary adventure with an interface of magic, stunning high-resolution, 3D landscapes, sophisticated score and musical effects. Not to mention the detailed animation and special effects, elegant point 'n' click control of characters, objects, and magic spells. Beat the rush! Go out and buy Loom™ today!
Oras 9mo ago
Really cool demo, well done on creating such a nice app. Feedback, watching your YouTube video, it is clear that the self thumbnail is covering a large part of the screen. I noticed you can enlarge/reduce the size, but it will still covering part of the screen considering mobile dims are a lot smaller than desktop. It would be nice to 80/20 ratio where 80 is for the mobile and 20 for your selfie camera and logo/title/description of what you’re demoing. All the best!
- admtal 9mo ago
  This is a great idea, thank you I did add some title/annotation functionality after making that demo But your right, there should be a way to avoid screen cover
oytis 9mo ago
Disapponted it's not about https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game)
- SirFatty 9mo ago
  Exactly what I was hoping... LucasFilm made some great games.
- tsak 9mo ago
  That was my first thought as well.
- pandemic_region 9mo ago
  You stole my comment sir.
- kleiba 9mo ago
  And here I am, thinking I had a unique comment to write. (I too was excited of that old classic being ported to mobile devices.)
  - schlauerfox 9mo ago
    Pirate button: "Ask me about LOOM" You mean the latest masterpiece of fantasy storytelling from Lucasfilms™ Brian Moriarty™? Why it's an extraordinary adventure with an interface of magic, stunning high-resolution, 3D landscapes, sophisticated score and musical effects. Not to mention the detailed animation and special effects, elegant point 'n' click control of characters, objects, and magic spells. Beat the rush! Go out and buy Loom™ today!
- agiacalone 9mo ago
  Thankfully, it plays nicely on iOS and Android under ScummVM!
jmathai 9mo ago
Very cool! I do this today by connecting my phone to my laptop and recording via Loom. It's a bit janky for sure and the video is off because I looking down at my phone and not the webcam [1]. Does Loom really not offer this capability as an iOS app? I never checked but that's crazy if they don't. Regardless, I think this solves a problem for sure! Congrats on building and launching. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11yHdB-wmgs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11yHdB-wmgs
- admtal 9mo ago
  Thank you, and yes, Loom does not offer it There are tons of iOS screen recorders that record either the camera, or the screen, but none do both. I also had a janky solution, which prompted me to build this
truetraveller 9mo ago
Can this record just native apps (i.e. non websites)?
- admtal 9mo ago
  Unfortunately not iOS guardrails make that pretty much impossible I had to accepts some tradeoffs to get this specific collection of features, Face Cam, touches, etc… I’ve heard Android might allow more, and I’ll be looking into an Android port soon.
  - evv 9mo ago
    Looks like it is possible if you do a normal iOS screen recording, then use your app to add the Face Cam and touches on top.
    - admtal 9mo ago
      Yes, it’s possible to do composite edits after a screen recording The tradeoffs here were aimed at doing it all live in a single take
throwaway-aws9 9mo ago
So all it took was 10 posts over 17 days to get to first page. Nice app btw.
- admtal 9mo ago
  Thanks, I hate that the winning title is “Loom for Mobile” but I get it Maybe it will help SEO if people get stuck and search Loom Mobile
  - deleted 9mo ago
    [deleted]
seoguru 9mo ago
looks amazing! any plans for an android version?
- admtal 9mo ago
  Yes! I purchased an Android device this week, and next week I’m going to start working on a port. From what I’ve gathered, the Android version might be better due to lesser screen recording constraints
eduardogarza 9mo ago
The beauty of Loom is that once you have it installed, either Desktop or Chrome, its one button - record a video, auto-generates the link, and you can immediately send off. I used it a ton, both as a software eng and with designers to better communicate back and forth things in my environment that would be wordy or hard to communicate. I would imagine that if I worked on mobile apps instead of web ones, the benefit of a tool like this would be if I could click a button and have the same experience from my laptop/computer. When I worked on a mobile app for a startup earlier this year, I'd use the Screen Recording, and then send it to myself through Whatsapp, then on my Mac send it off to the person I was targeting. If I could use the app, record a video, and then have that auto-generate the URL and then have that immediately available on your platform so I can see that URL on my computer after refreshing, that would be quite handy.
- admtal 9mo ago
  Thank you for the feedback, I agree instant shareable link is huge selling point on Loom. I’ll try to look into maybe like, a Vimeo/youtube integration for a quick solve.
mcsniff 9mo ago
This is cool and would make a great tool for lots of creators, solo / small business people, etc. If I can make a suggestion, work on the design. At the very least, the emojis don't work for describing what they are trying to, IMO.
- admtal 9mo ago
  Fair, thank you. I’ll try to improve the design of that toolbar

69 points by admtal 9mo ago

nottorp 9mo ago

Not this Loom right? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game)

admtal 9mo ago
Ha, I was not aware of that loom. I’ll have to check it out, thanks for sharing
sodapopcan 9mo ago
This is what I assumed and starting with the comments was very confusing.

leovander 9mo ago

That was a sleek demo, good job! Only thing that I could nitpick is if you polished your floating toolbars to look a bit more Apple-y, this feels like something Apple is going to be sending you an acquihire for.

admtal 9mo ago
Thank you - you’re right, I should Liquid Glassify that app asap

teddyh 9mo ago

“Ask me about Loom”

mdlxxv 9mo ago
"You mean the latest masterpiece of fantasy storytelling from Lucasfilm's™ Brian Moriarty™? Why, it's an extraordinary adventure with an interface of magic, stunning, high-resolution, 3D landscapes, sophisticated score and musical effects. Not to mention the detailed animation and special effects, elegant point 'n' click control of characters, objects, and magic spells. Beat the rush! Go out and buy Loom™ today!"
- forbiddenvoid 9mo ago
  I will not hide my disappointment that this headline was not, in fact, referring to the classic adventure game.
  - mdb333 9mo ago
    yes!!!
  - a_shoeboy 9mo ago
    Glad it's not just me.
  - spectre3d 9mo ago
    Same here, I was confused and disappointed when I clicked the link and was presented with yet another screen recorder.
  - GuB-42 9mo ago
    Same for me. However you can still play the original game with ScummVM, available on many platforms, including Android.

BrokenCogs 9mo ago

Loom just reminds me of the cringey-est blog post I have ever read. I hadn't heard about loom until I read the founder's post about how difficult it was being rich and successful. Hope you're not looking to hike through Hawaiian forests or not become an NPC at Big Co

admtal 9mo ago
I’m not planning on it, but to be completely honest I don’t want to rule it out

pengaru 9mo ago

For those who were confused like myself - this has absolutely nothing to do with the demoscene described here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demoscene https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demoscene

pyrophane 9mo ago
My first thought was of the adventure game Loom.
- LeoPanthera 9mo ago
  You mean the latest masterpiece of fantasy storytelling from Lucasfilms™ Brian Moriarty™? Why it's an extraordinary adventure with an interface of magic, stunning high-resolution, 3D landscapes, sophisticated score and musical effects. Not to mention the detailed animation and special effects, elegant point 'n' click control of characters, objects, and magic spells. Beat the rush! Go out and buy Loom™ today!

Oras 9mo ago

Really cool demo, well done on creating such a nice app. Feedback, watching your YouTube video, it is clear that the self thumbnail is covering a large part of the screen. I noticed you can enlarge/reduce the size, but it will still covering part of the screen considering mobile dims are a lot smaller than desktop. It would be nice to 80/20 ratio where 80 is for the mobile and 20 for your selfie camera and logo/title/description of what you’re demoing. All the best!

admtal 9mo ago
This is a great idea, thank you I did add some title/annotation functionality after making that demo But your right, there should be a way to avoid screen cover

oytis 9mo ago

Disapponted it's not about https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game)

SirFatty 9mo ago
Exactly what I was hoping... LucasFilm made some great games.
tsak 9mo ago
That was my first thought as well.
pandemic_region 9mo ago
You stole my comment sir.
kleiba 9mo ago
And here I am, thinking I had a unique comment to write. (I too was excited of that old classic being ported to mobile devices.)
- schlauerfox 9mo ago
  Pirate button: "Ask me about LOOM" You mean the latest masterpiece of fantasy storytelling from Lucasfilms™ Brian Moriarty™? Why it's an extraordinary adventure with an interface of magic, stunning high-resolution, 3D landscapes, sophisticated score and musical effects. Not to mention the detailed animation and special effects, elegant point 'n' click control of characters, objects, and magic spells. Beat the rush! Go out and buy Loom™ today!
agiacalone 9mo ago
Thankfully, it plays nicely on iOS and Android under ScummVM!

jmathai 9mo ago

Very cool! I do this today by connecting my phone to my laptop and recording via Loom. It's a bit janky for sure and the video is off because I looking down at my phone and not the webcam [1]. Does Loom really not offer this capability as an iOS app? I never checked but that's crazy if they don't. Regardless, I think this solves a problem for sure! Congrats on building and launching. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11yHdB-wmgs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11yHdB-wmgs

admtal 9mo ago
Thank you, and yes, Loom does not offer it There are tons of iOS screen recorders that record either the camera, or the screen, but none do both. I also had a janky solution, which prompted me to build this

truetraveller 9mo ago

Can this record just native apps (i.e. non websites)?

admtal 9mo ago
Unfortunately not iOS guardrails make that pretty much impossible I had to accepts some tradeoffs to get this specific collection of features, Face Cam, touches, etc… I’ve heard Android might allow more, and I’ll be looking into an Android port soon.
- evv 9mo ago
  Looks like it is possible if you do a normal iOS screen recording, then use your app to add the Face Cam and touches on top.
  - admtal 9mo ago
    Yes, it’s possible to do composite edits after a screen recording The tradeoffs here were aimed at doing it all live in a single take

throwaway-aws9 9mo ago

So all it took was 10 posts over 17 days to get to first page. Nice app btw.

admtal 9mo ago
Thanks, I hate that the winning title is “Loom for Mobile” but I get it Maybe it will help SEO if people get stuck and search Loom Mobile
- deleted 9mo ago
  [deleted]

seoguru 9mo ago

looks amazing! any plans for an android version?

admtal 9mo ago
Yes! I purchased an Android device this week, and next week I’m going to start working on a port. From what I’ve gathered, the Android version might be better due to lesser screen recording constraints

eduardogarza 9mo ago

The beauty of Loom is that once you have it installed, either Desktop or Chrome, its one button - record a video, auto-generates the link, and you can immediately send off. I used it a ton, both as a software eng and with designers to better communicate back and forth things in my environment that would be wordy or hard to communicate. I would imagine that if I worked on mobile apps instead of web ones, the benefit of a tool like this would be if I could click a button and have the same experience from my laptop/computer. When I worked on a mobile app for a startup earlier this year, I'd use the Screen Recording, and then send it to myself through Whatsapp, then on my Mac send it off to the person I was targeting. If I could use the app, record a video, and then have that auto-generate the URL and then have that immediately available on your platform so I can see that URL on my computer after refreshing, that would be quite handy.

admtal 9mo ago
Thank you for the feedback, I agree instant shareable link is huge selling point on Loom. I’ll try to look into maybe like, a Vimeo/youtube integration for a quick solve.

mcsniff 9mo ago

This is cool and would make a great tool for lots of creators, solo / small business people, etc. If I can make a suggestion, work on the design. At the very least, the emojis don't work for describing what they are trying to, IMO.

admtal 9mo ago
Fair, thank you. I’ll try to improve the design of that toolbar