

Show HN: I got tired of using whatsapp and Facebook Messenger, so I wrote my own - jklp
http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/flip-messenger/id521037450?mt=8

======
jklp
Hi, I'm the author here. Just thought I'd give some background on the app, and
also to listen to suggestions and feedback anyone may have

I mainly wrote Flip out of my frustrations of using whatsapp (which somehow
became the default mobile messaging app of choice) both in its poor usability
and (at the time) questionable security measures.

I was also getting worried about Facebook's prevalence in every aspect of our
online lives, and really didn't like seeing it creep into what I think is our
most intimate form of online communications.

So I wrote Flip, as an alternative to both of those, and also (hopefully)
provide more value than them too.

Please let me know what you think. I'd be more than happy to receive any
feedback :)

Thanks Jerrold

~~~
antihero
Are you planning to do encryption ala BBM? Also not seeing anything here:
<https://play.google.com/store/search?q=flip+messenger> so I don't think
messenger that allows you to only communicate with people on a specific device
is particularly useful.

~~~
jklp
Hi,

I'm not 100% on the encryption scheme BBM uses, but currently all
communications for Flip, between the client and the server, are done over
https (which was a pain in the arse to get approval for in the App Store).

Also, every request from the client is authenticated with a key generated on
the client side, and both key, phone numbers, are encrypted and salted on the
server side.

From what I understood, for a long time whatsapp was plain text
communications, and I remember there being a debacle where whatsapp passwords
were just device UUIDs, which weren't encrypted or salted (so I made sure both
these weren't the case with Flip).

As for Flip not being on Android, yes unfortunately I haven't had time to
implement an Android version. I work full time, so it's taken me close to 9
months just to get the iPhone version released, so I'm hesitant to spend more
time unless the iPhone version does well (and besides, Instagram was iPhone
only for a long time :) )

Thanks Jerrold

~~~
lardissone
The difference with Instagram is that it's only to share photos, you don't
need to communicate using it.

If you don't launch it multi-platform, I see near dead to it. Sorry, I'm an
iPhone user, but I see a lot of messenger apps in the AppStore and the only
ones that survives are the ones you can use with ALL your friends, not only
the ones that uses specific brand.

It's like invite to your party only people driving BMWs.

Focus on feature more platforms.

~~~
joshbaptiste
Indeed.. the usefulness of Whatsapp is the fact that one can talk to friends
on most devices ios/Android/BB/Windows/Nokia/Symbian. Anything else ,security,
annoyances etc.. are easily ignored by non-techies.

~~~
jklp
Very good points re: multi-platform. I'm an ex Java developer, so I'll have a
look at the Android codebase and see how difficult it is to write an Android
version.

------
jcfrei
it looks really slick but damn did you pick a difficult market. anyway,
godspeed - i hope at least you got your friends to use it.

~~~
jklp
Oh and yep, most my friends and family use it. They were my early beta
testers, and quite good at leading me in the right direction on what was
important and what wasn't.

The hard part is getting it out beyond my social circle, and I think the other
commenters are right re: missing Android support.

