[HN Gopher] Show HN: Erin - Open-source and self-hosted TikTok f...
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       Show HN: Erin - Open-source and self-hosted TikTok feed for your
       own videos
        
       Author : willmoss
       Score  : 110 points
       Date   : 2024-10-21 09:51 UTC (13 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (github.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (github.com)
        
       | ramonverse wrote:
       | maybe you could use shadcn and chatgpt to make it cuter
        
       | candiddevmike wrote:
       | The README makes it sound like this uses TikTok, or at least
       | that's how I read it. I think it's just an app that has a TikTok-
       | like UX. You may want to reword things to highlight who would use
       | this and why you built it.
        
         | justusthane wrote:
         | Agreed. It's weird, and probably also a trademark violation?
         | It's not saying that it's "like" a TikTok feed, it's saying
         | that it "is" a TikTok feed.
        
           | dgreensp wrote:
           | Yup, it's a sketchy-sounding concept. Is it for "your own
           | videos," or TikTok videos? Why does it have the TikTok logo
           | in it??
           | 
           | It looks like it's a fork or repackaging of someone else's
           | TikTok "clone."
           | 
           | The author's writing is fluent, but the whole thing is kind
           | of odd. This is the Internet; the developer could be 17. Who
           | knows.
        
             | baumschubser wrote:
             | > The author's writing is fluent, but the whole thing is
             | kind of odd. This is the Internet; the developer could be
             | 17. Who knows.
             | 
             | They may be 17 or 57, why does that matter?
             | 
             | To me the Readme seems absolutely professional. Putting
             | together some React UI lib, use Caddy, put it all in
             | Docker, write a comprehensive Readme with everything there
             | is to know about it and release it. Looks pretty standard
             | (in a good way) to me.
             | 
             | Granted, the Tiktok reference is a bit clickbaity. But
             | that's just Github in the year 2024, isn't it?
        
               | notpushkin wrote:
               | Using the TikTok logo in the app is kinda inappripriate,
               | but otherwise yeah, I think just saying "TikTok for X"
               | gets the idea across in the most concise way. Adding some
               | info on what the videos could be from would be nice
               | though (i.e. do I paste a bunch of YouTube links, or
               | upload files myself, or..?)
        
               | sabbaticaldev wrote:
               | inappropriate to whom?
        
               | warkdarrior wrote:
               | At a minimum, inappropriate from TikTok/ByteDance's point
               | of view. Even if we put that aside, users of this app may
               | find it inappropriate that this app advertised as a
               | "TikTok feed" app is not a TikTok feed app (so it appears
               | very much like a scam from the point of view).
        
               | justusthane wrote:
               | That was my original point though -- it's not saying that
               | it's "like TikTok" or "TikTok for X", it's literally
               | saying that it is TikTok.
               | 
               |  _Edit_ : The title is "TikTok feed for your clips" so I
               | guess in a literal sense it is describing itself as
               | "TikTok for X", but I think that's kind of like saying
               | that something is "Uber for ridesharing". Yeah, that's
               | just Uber.
        
           | butlike wrote:
           | I'd say just removing the TikTok logo would be a good call. I
           | was able to tell it was self-hosted from the blurb.
        
       | KomoD wrote:
       | "vertical video feed" would be more accurate, it's nothing like
       | tiktok other than it being a vertical video feed
        
         | joelhaasnoot wrote:
         | Well, and there being feeds of videos?
        
           | voidUpdate wrote:
           | Don't instagram, youtube and snapchat also have that design
           | language too?
        
         | dtquad wrote:
         | >it's nothing like tiktok other than it being a vertical video
         | feed
         | 
         | Agree. It's interesting that people in tech still don't get
         | that what makes Tiktok so much better than Shorts/Reels is
         | TikTok's semi-manually curated recommendations. They
         | algorithmically detect user interest clusters and manually
         | curate high quality videos for the the biggest clusters.
        
           | spencerchubb wrote:
           | Do you really think it is semi manual? I guess I never
           | considered the possibility, but I would be surprised. It
           | seems like there are way too many niches and sub-niches, and
           | the algorithm works rather quickly when news happens
        
       | arnaudsm wrote:
       | This is great for creating a media-garden for your children!
       | 
       | Kid content on YouTube and TikTok can be extremly disturbing,
       | even for an adult. Until they turn 16 I intend to vet most media
       | myself on a self-hosted server.
        
         | komali2 wrote:
         | I thought things had changed after ElsaGate but I peeked into
         | the airbnb room at a friend's party the other day and the kids
         | were watching youtube, and it seems that type of content still
         | has a hold. The kids were watching some really long video of
         | this guy that kept making an AI-esque youtube-thumbnail style
         | open mouth face after some 5 second event occured. E.g: Man
         | runs into door, makes youtube face. Man tries to sit on toilet,
         | but the toilet lid is down. He lifts it, and finds the toilet's
         | full of colored balls, youtube face. Driving, shot of a speed
         | bump, shot of him bouncing in his seat and hitting his head on
         | the ceiling of the car, youtube face.
         | 
         | The kids were utterly enthralled. I wish I could find a link to
         | the video but it was just some autoplay on a smart tv and I
         | never managed to grab it before leaving the party.
        
           | dbspin wrote:
           | Slight tangent, but it's my intuition that some version of
           | this is the end game for media. Completely compelling, AI
           | created, individually attuned videos generated in or near
           | real time that appeal so well to the individual (adult)
           | viewer they overwhelm our learned resistance. Infinite Jest,
           | but rather than dying laughing you orient your entire life
           | around engaging with the content.
        
             | jareklupinski wrote:
             | if we can fit that power into a box that can fly with me to
             | alpha centauri, i think we'll be ok
             | 
             | once we figure out feeding and waste management,
             | entertainment over a low-bandwidth link will be tricky
        
               | dbspin wrote:
               | Picture a two curves of technical progress. One is the
               | process toward creating a 'hot' media stimuli so
               | addicting that it shifts your utility function. The other
               | is the route to interstellar travel. Now imagine the
               | relative resources that are being expended to push
               | technology along each curve.
        
               | jareklupinski wrote:
               | an intersection of the two curves must exist, at some
               | point
               | 
               | when two roads diverge in a yellowed wood, blaze down the
               | middle
        
         | paulcole wrote:
         | > Until they turn 16 I intend to vet most media myself on a
         | self-hosted server.
         | 
         | Are you going to use the same methods your parents used to do
         | this for you/
        
           | arnaudsm wrote:
           | Yes. Before the internet, my parents looked at the PG rating
           | of every movie we rented at Blockbuster. Many parents did.
        
             | mewpmewp2 wrote:
             | Would you consider that good?
             | 
             | I grew up with the Internet and people sharing shock horror
             | sites with some very questionable content. It seems we all
             | mostly still grew up fine.
        
               | arnaudsm wrote:
               | There's a difference between accidentally stumbling on
               | shocking TikTok content and willingly browsing a gore
               | site.
               | 
               | If my kid really wants to check it, it might be
               | acceptable, but I'm not ok with an algorithm showing it
               | by surprise.
        
               | mewpmewp2 wrote:
               | I wouldn't want my kid browsing TikTok or anything with
               | addictive recommendation system either, but I was mainly
               | talking about explicitly taking effort to keep teenagers
               | away from questionable content. But actually I'm not sure
               | exactly how much policing the OP intended.
               | 
               | It seems to me like a way to get your kid to not tell you
               | anything in fear of censorship.
        
               | j45 wrote:
               | You won't know for another 10-20 years for what you are
               | de-sensitized to.
               | 
               | Also, your experience won't be anyone else's. Assuming so
               | can create challenges.
        
               | mewpmewp2 wrote:
               | How do you know it's 10 - 20 years?
               | 
               | I'm not alone though, all the childhood people I grew up
               | with that were exposed to this questionable content seem
               | functioning fine now.
               | 
               | Although I would agree that people and especially
               | children shouldn't use TikTok or addictive things like
               | that, but I'm mainly talking about the content
               | specifically.
        
           | mynameisash wrote:
           | When I was 16, nearly all the media I consumed was
           | vetted/regulated by the FCC.
        
             | ffsm8 wrote:
             | Really? I'm a millennial and most of the content I consumed
             | came from                 * Initially various Warez sources
             | (KDX , eMule etc) (2000-2005 I think)       * later on
             | liveleak, 4chan,  digger (2006-2007? Not sure anymore),
             | * Then stumble upon, 9gag (08-10)       * finally ending at
             | reddit (2010-2014, that was the year spez edited user
             | comments. Very rarely used it since)
             | 
             | I vividly remember watching pretty fucked up shit back
             | then, like racists executions of teenagers by police
             | officers (South America) and a lot of sexual content, which
             | is pretty disturbing from today's perspective if I don't
             | completely misremember them.
        
               | arsenico wrote:
               | However, none of that was fed to you by algorithms, but
               | rather your own curiosity for weird stuff and your
               | ability to find it. I am not saying that it is good or
               | bad, but in my book, it is different from infinite
               | algorithmic feeds we currently have.
        
               | Scrapemist wrote:
               | Good point
        
               | mewpmewp2 wrote:
               | Yeah, but OP was talking about vetting and policing
               | content. I fully agree that addictive algorithms are bad
               | though.
        
               | 93po wrote:
               | this difference is that none of that was mainstream, less
               | than one percent of my high school ever read 4chan or
               | even knew what it was. almost literally every kid today
               | has a smart phone, the vast majority of them are on
               | youtube, and an absolute ton of them are on tiktok.
               | 
               | when older millennials were young, it was mostly
               | television, movies, maybe some radio, and maybe some
               | CDs/tapes. and as the previous person said, this was all
               | extremely moderated and you didn't have unlimited access
               | to most anything
        
               | mewpmewp2 wrote:
               | People in my school were constantly pranking each other
               | with this type of content, so everyone even people who
               | weren't seeking it out, were exposed to that. I assume
               | everyone knew what 2 girls 1 cup is, and if you ask
               | around my age right now, most people will know it from
               | around secondary school. And at least most guys knew
               | about the pain olympics.
               | 
               | Not really executions though, luckily.
        
             | kome wrote:
             | i bet before the internet?
        
         | spookie wrote:
         | My parents never restricted me access, but talked with me
         | openly about movies, games, or websites they saw me
         | using/playing when they came to my room. I didn't take any
         | precautions, or fear their reactions... because they were open
         | about things with me.
         | 
         | Some discussions went pretty deep, others not really.
         | 
         | Moreover, they usually would spend time with us late evening
         | watching interesting stuff. Given how open they were, me and
         | siblings would ask about it too. They weren't the type that
         | watched the most banal thing either.
         | 
         | I did end up visiting many strange websites. But the way they
         | educated me never came second. I did start concerning myself
         | with what I consumed.
         | 
         | Honestly it's better to open up, talk, keep up with what they
         | watch but in a way that can be educative for them (i.e.
         | question, discuss).
         | 
         | This is mostly things above 10 yo, granted. Before that I
         | didn't have internet. But my friends did, and I did spend lots
         | of time with friends.
         | 
         | My point is, it's better to confront with real life things
         | sooner and have the time to talk. After 16 no one has time :)
        
           | j45 wrote:
           | Not all (or a big majority) of parents will be like this.
           | 
           | Until they are, screentime and internet access should be
           | regulated for young people.
           | 
           | Parents think their kids are safe at home but the whole world
           | is coming into it.
        
       | lasermike026 wrote:
       | This is good. It is long over due that we burn the social media
       | sites to the ground.
        
       | ranger_danger wrote:
       | No search function?
        
       | elicash wrote:
       | Nice work!
       | 
       | Can we get a video demo of this in action? Curious what it looks
       | like in desktop, too.
        
       | butz wrote:
       | Any hints on optimal encoding for videos, to reduce storage and
       | network bandwidth? I would go even for a compromise in video
       | quality, to have them looking more akin to Encarta '98 videos, if
       | it greatly reduces file size.
        
         | 01HNNWZ0MV43FF wrote:
         | Newer codecs compress better at the cost of a more complex
         | decoder. so maybe av1 or h.265 at a low bitrate?
        
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       (page generated 2024-10-21 23:01 UTC)