
Show HN: We are the same, app for practicing compassion - mattront
http://wearethesameapp.com
======
fleitz
It's unclear what the app does, or why I'd want it. From reading the text over
and over I think all you need to write is:

Find happiness and peace, amidst difficult situations.

At least that's the benefit I saw in the wall of text.

Place the text beside the picture of the app with a button that says something
like "Get the app"

See <http://piictu.com/> as an example, the "We are the same" app as currently
pitched sounds like work, and from the tiny iPhone screenshot it looks like
it's a gorgeous app.

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maxgaudin
Correct...you need to clearly identify what it does and why I want it. After
having to scroll down to see "How it Works" I still don't get it. Change the
wording on "Exercises are designed to induce practical experiences of various
aspects of compassion." And give me some screenshots that I can actually see.
Cool idea.

~~~
mattront
Thanks! Corrected.

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gawker
It's a very interesting idea and as a Buddhist, I absolutely commend you for
trying to help people learn compassion. I'm curious to know if compassion can
actually be built through a digital relationship.

Personally, I feel that words typed out on the computer carry less compassion
than words through our mouths. But does this mean that this app is about
building more compassion for yourself, helping others, i.e. in the mindset of
Kiva? Or is it more about developing better relationships with those around
you?

Unfortunately, I tried connecting with Facebook and nothing happened.

~~~
mattront
The idea of the app is not to communicate with people directly, but to see
them from a different perspective - as human beings, equal to ourselves,
deserving our affection and respect.

The app is based on Buddhist approach to developing love and compassion.

Would love to debug the Facebook connect issue. Feel free to contact me on
matjaz [at] humane-tehnologije.si

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stephengillie
Interesting idea.

Those with neither Apple devices nor a Facebook account can't try this out.

Edit: My tired mind didn't realize this at first - this service utilizes both
photos and statuses of the same person. Facebook is one of the few services
which brings together a person's photographs and status updates, and has a
large stock of both. The next best supply would be...a mash-up of Twitter and
Flikr?

~~~
mattront
I'm the app's author. We are thinking about letting users create their
profiles in the app. That would be "practice material" for users without
Facebook accounts. Another option would be using the address book on the
phone.

~~~
crntaylor
I think I would be more likely to sign up if the page included a short example
of an "exercise in practising compassion". As it stands, I don't have any idea
of what this app actually does.

~~~
shane_armstrong
Agreed with crntaylor, it seems like some form of status sharing application
but I don't really have a clue.

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newbie12
That's not what "compassion" means. It is "a feeling of deep sympathy and
sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong
desire to alleviate the suffering."

What you really mean to say is "empathy"

[http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-
empathy-...](http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-empathy-and-
compassion/)

~~~
mattront
You are right. We added empathy to the description.

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corkill
A trial without me linking up my facebook would be good, or a really clear
example of what will happen. People want to see visually not read a whole
bunch of text and imagine what it will be like.

~~~
mattront
A short demo video is now online. Hope it helps.

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spacemanaki
Interesting idea, but wouldn't pulling a profile from your pool of Facebook
friends limit this in a pretty big way? How often are Facebook users friends
with people who are _really_ different from them? This seems like it might
allow a user to "practice compassion" for people who are superficially
different from them, not people who are more radically different, in culture,
political leanings, religious background, etc

~~~
mattront
That's a valid point. We are thinking about letting users submit their profile
into the global pool of people. With that the practice would not only cover
friends but also people we don't know.

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jfc
Cool idea. If you haven't already, you should share this app with Stanford's
Persuasive Technology Lab -- they work on using technology to influence and
change human behavior, especially across differences -
<http://captology.stanford.edu/>

~~~
mattront
Thanks, will check it out.

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mattront
Thank you for constructive feedback. There's no place like HN for that ;)

We took your advice to heart and changed the text to present the purpose and
benefit of the app in a clearer way. Hope it helped.

Right now we are working on recording a short demo video. It should be online
soon.

~~~
mattront
Video is now online.

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barryfandango
Considering hackernews' way-above-average aspberger's demographic, expect a
lot of "ERROR INCOMPUTABLE" type comments in here. You're going to need a lot
more hand holding in your pitch (not literal hand holding, that makes us
uncomfortable.)

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nollidge
> Exercises are designed to induce practical experiences of various aspects of
> compassion.

I have no idea what this could mean. I think you should have some examples.

EDIT: And reword that. It sounds like corporate-speak, of all things.

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sparknlaunch12
Nice app. Who is the target market? Is this app backed up by any research?

~~~
mattront
Didn't think much about the market yet. For now, it is more an experiment to
see what can be done.

The app is based on Buddhist approach to mind training.

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septerr
There's a typo on the landing page. Tt instead of It.

~~~
mattront
Thanks, corrected.

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hafabnew
I have literally no idea what this does.

