

Show HN: Travel tips for airports - return0
http://airportcat.com

======
dewey
A bit of feedback:

\- There's no https (not even on the signup page), which isn't really ideal in
general and especially not if it's a site which is probably being used through
open airport wifis or in coffee shops waiting for the next flight.

\- The button on the signup page
([http://airportcat.com/signup](http://airportcat.com/signup)) isn't
consistent with the other buttons

\- Personally I think the yellow font on the pictures makes it all look a bit
"cheap" and it's hard to read.

\- The check in feature is a good idea but I'm not sure if it'll get used a
lot, there are already Foursquare and Facebook and you can only use so many
check in apps at once. Maybe integrate these other services somehow? Not sure
if that's possible with their API.

\- The localisation isn't choosing the closest airport for me, it should be
MUC but it's using FRA.

Apart from that I like it and I'll probably add some tips myself.

~~~
return0
Thanks for the feedback! I really did not expect so many upvotes. We are
really only starting out so every suggestion counts.

------
BryantD
I like this; I think your search algorithm for airports could use a little
improvement. It looks like you may be prioritizing airport name matches over
code matches: "SFO" puts San Francisco International Airport at the bottom.

~~~
ssharp
Airport code should definitely take a higher priority. It would also be nice
if you could use airport size as a sorter in your algorithm as well. For
example, if I type in "Cleveland", I'm most likely looking for our main
airpot, Hopkins International, but that's the last option that comes up. The
other options are small, regional airports that only run private and charter.

~~~
BryantD
I like the idea of airport size a lot. You could even generate that by hand
with a list of the top 100 airports or something.

~~~
toomuchtodo
Top airports:

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_busiest_airports_by_pas...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_busiest_airports_by_passenger_traffic)

[http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2012/may/04/world-t...](http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2012/may/04/world-
top-100-airports)

------
benraf
I really like this idea, a couple of comments:

\- As other people have pointed out, the search should work better with
airport codes, and should probably prioritize more popular airports. Typing in
"atlanta" for example brings up several general aviation fields. Also typing
in "ohare" doesn't work, you have to type in "o'hare" (with the single quote).

\- Its not super obvious that you can enter tips until you create an account
and login. I would expect to see the "Add new tip" button when logged out, and
be asked to login/create an account when I press it if I'm not logged in.

\- You probably want prioritize a UI that works well on phones, since I
imagine a lot of users of something like this will be walking around the
airport while on the site.

\- The weather map is in celsius. You might want to put it in fahrenheit for
US airports.

------
jongalloway2
Great idea, was just thinking about the need for something like this while
travelling through Europe last month.

One idea - have specific info (not just buried in the tips) on how to find
WiFi and power outlets. They're top concerns when flying through a new
airport, and it's often not publicized or documented anywhere.

~~~
dewey
That's a great idea. It would be really handy to have one location to look for
these kind of informations, usually I just resort to frequent flyer forums or
Foursquare.

------
edent
Doesn't appear to be mobile friendly (Opera on Android) - would suggest that
you address that as a major issue. If I'm roaming, I don't want to pay
excessive data charges. If I'm wandering down to baggage reclaim, I don't want
to pan around on my phone.

~~~
ernests4
Agreed would expect most use to be mobile

------
grimlck
Good idea, the autocomplete dialog is just too slow, which makes for an awful
first impression.

I should be able to just type 'lhr' and enter

Instead, i need to

\- type 'lhr'

\- wait a painful second for the autocomplete dialog to load

\- click on 'lhr' from the dropdown list

\- click 'go'

------
ernests4
If I type an exact code and hit search it should go through. I should not have
to select from the dropdown

------
joefarish
Foursquare also has some useful tips on it:

[http://blog.foursquare.com/post/87115587663/foursquare-
tips-...](http://blog.foursquare.com/post/87115587663/foursquare-tips-at-
airports-from-lax-dxb-and)

------
dag11
Searching the airport code didn't seem to bring up my airport. "SEA" brought
up everything but Seattle-Tacoma.

Tip: If I type SEA and hit enter, even before waiting for the suggestions to
load, it should take me to SEA :)

~~~
vmarsy
Typing 'sea' brought me Seattle-Tacoma as the first of the list.

But I agree, something like google "I'm feeling lucky" that would :

when you type a 3 letter code, redirects you directly to that airport

or

when you type a city name : redirects you to the main city's airport (For
instance, typing Houston and pressing enter should give me George Bush
Intercontinental)

------
danhak
Cool Idea. Wanted to add a tip but was required to sign up, so I didn't.

If you're worried about spam you could just hide tips from non-members until
some manual review process?

