
Show HN: Netflix Showdown – because I can't decide what to watch - flipside
http://netflix.tinj.com
======
gedrap
I have this problem for years. Sometimes I spend so much time 'deciding' what
to watch, that it gets too late to watch. While actually anything in the given
genre, not longer than XYZ minutes and with rotten tomatoes/imdb rating about
X would do. Here you have an idea for a project... Eliminate annoying daily
choices. Oh how many times I went to buy trousers, couldn't choose from
dozens, went to other store where they have 2-3 styles and about 3-4 colors
each and bought in a couple of minutes. And etc.

~~~
gcb0
Do you really think netflix wouldn't have solved that yet?

the problem is not that you are not finding what to watch. The real problem is
that there is NOTHING LEFT to watch.

their inventory sucks. Yeah, they have a couple movies, but chances are you've
seen them all already.

Netflix is not a blockbuster/torrent/movie theater replacement. It is a TV
replacement.

It works for people that sit down, select from the few series they are
following, and press play.

It may work as a movie provider for the first 2 months, until you get to the
point mentioned above; you've seen them all.

~~~
jimbobimbo
Oh, for Christ's sake! Netflix has a _huge_ DVD/BD library. I actually have
DVD queue twice as long as streaming. There's always something to watch.

~~~
ams6110
The DVDs are an extra subscription. If you have basic streaming NetFlix, you
easily exhaust the stuff worth watching in a few months, give or take,
depending on how much time you spend watching TV.

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podman
Seems kind of similar to Max, from Netflix themselves:
[http://blog.netflix.com/2013/06/let-max-be-your-netflix-
guid...](http://blog.netflix.com/2013/06/let-max-be-your-netflix-guide-on-
ps3.html)

Although I really only watch on my TV and not my computer, I like the concept
and it seems well implemented. Cracking the nut of figuring out what to watch
is a tough one, that's for sure. Good luck!

~~~
flipside
I came up with the basic idea for showdown about a week before they posted
that.

Lots of opportunity in the space, decided to build a chrome extension because
Netflix doesn't allow new API access anymore...

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micampe
The link says I can't use it because it's a Chrome app, which, as far as I
know, is nothing more than a website artificially constrained so that I can't
use it on an iPad or any browser that is not Chrome.

This seems worse than Flash websites, what are the advantages for developers
or users? They are built using web technologies anyway, why restrict your
audience?

~~~
tokenizerrr
It's a browser extension that modifies the netflix page in-browser. There is a
difference between Chrome extensions and Chrome apps, extensions run in the
background and usually provide an icon with information or modify pages or
perform some resident task. The apps are, somewhat as you say, a glorified
webpage making use of special chrome APIs [1] to offer functionality that is
not possible on regular web pages.

[1]:
[http://developer.chrome.com/apps/api_index.html](http://developer.chrome.com/apps/api_index.html)

~~~
micampe
I see, thanks. Just a very poor error message then.

------
trentmb
I really wish netflix would let me create 'channels.'

I wish I could pick 5 or 6 television series, group them together, and just
hit 'play random.' Netflix then randomly selects an episode from one of the
series, then plays it!

~~~
BinaryBrainz
If we take your idea and added a mechanism that plays new episodes (from those
pre-selected series) at a user-designated primetime showing, I think we would
have a winner.

Why can't one of these services just give us our own legit pseudo-channel?
(Hulu???) BTW, you can sort-of do this with a combination of XBMC, a few
plugins (mainly pseudoTV), Couchpotato, Sickbeard and a good tracker, but it
is way too much of a headache to setup and maintain.

------
RKoutnik
I really like the timer concept here. Too often I've found that suggestion
services just serve to further choice paralysis. The timer adds a time
imperative that overrides my usual action of overanalyzing everything.

~~~
marquis
I have a trick I do: flip a coin to decide. You tend to make a decision before
the coin lands, rather than have blind fate make the choice for you.

~~~
flipside
The opportunity to "decide in the air" is one of the things that's missing
from "feeling lucky" recommendations, too much happens in that one step.

------
dccoolgai
I've gotten into a phase recently where I am obsessed with dark BBC comedies I
had never heard of like Snuff Box and League of Gentleman. I found them just
random-surfing on Netflix.

------
mentos
Its a funny phenomenon where you'll sit through 3 hours of movie+commercials
to watch 'Tommy Boy' for the twenty something time on cable but you'd never
seek it out on Netflix.

I really think some sort of 'channel' on Netflix where movies just play and
you can tune in would catch on. Something about knowing other people are out
there watching the same thing..

------
ode
Wish it worked with [http://instantwatcher.com](http://instantwatcher.com)

~~~
flipside
Added to my todo list, thanks for the suggestion!

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satjot
I just used and am now going to actually watch a movie instead of wasting time
deciding and falling asleep.

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ismaelc
Can you add a way to cancel the final showdown timer? Like Escape to clear the
window?

~~~
flipside
Gonna add an autoplay checkbox and bail button tonight!

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raghavneesh
Why dont you use movies recommendation services. I like
[http://metataste.com](http://metataste.com) very much. It may not have good
interface, but way better recommendations then netflix.

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flipside
Hey HN, the chrome extension is about 3 days of work at this point but
mobile/web versions are in the works.

Lot's more cool stuff planned and feedback welcome!

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jayzalowitz
Going to netflix.com after installing this is the shit.

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ck2
[http://instantwatcher.com/genres](http://instantwatcher.com/genres)

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Pro_bity
This is a cool extension that acts as a nice forcing function for my
indecisiveness. Nice job.

~~~
flipside
hacking around indecisiveness ftw!

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taylorhou
was this started or prototyped at a 3daystartup?

~~~
flipside
I built v0 at the TV of Tomorrow Hackathon
([http://hack.tvot.tv](http://hack.tvot.tv)) in June, v0.1.1 at Disrupt SF
Hackathon 2013 in September, and cleaned it up over the last 48 hours instead
of sleeping.

------
ak2webd3
way better than Max

