[HN Gopher] Show HN: Oliphaunt - A native Mastodon client for macOS
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Show HN: Oliphaunt - A native Mastodon client for macOS
I've been building Oliphaunt, a native Mastodon client for macOS,
as a solo project -- designed to be fast, lightweight and feel
right at home on the Mac. It's not built with Catalyst or Electron
framework. Key features: * Native macOS UI using AppKit with some
SwiftUI integration (not a web wrapper) * Core Data for local
caching * Responsive, keyboard-friendly interface * UX tailored
for desktop-class Mac computers * Supports multiple accounts,
cross-instance timelines and search You can try it via TestFlight
(macOS 14+ Sonoma): https://testflight.apple.com/join/Epq1P3Cw
Feedback is welcome here, on GitHub, or via TestFlight:
https://github.com/anosidium/Oliphaunt-Feedback-And-Support
Author : anosidium
Score : 70 points
Date : 2025-05-09 16:21 UTC (6 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (testflight.apple.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (testflight.apple.com)
| mountainriver wrote:
| The link goes to testflight?
| anosidium wrote:
| Yes. It's not on the Mac App Store yet.
| dlachausse wrote:
| Always great to see native macOS apps! Is there a reason you
| aren't using SwiftUI for the whole thing and that you opted for
| Core Data instead of Swift Data?
| wpm wrote:
| Swift Data is CoreData in a wrapper.
|
| Also, not OP, but I'm glad it's written in AppKit vs SwiftUI
| purely; AppKit just feels better on the desktop. I can always
| "smell" a SwiftUI app just like I can an Electron app.
| drcongo wrote:
| If the Settings app on current macOS is SwiftUI, then I can
| too. It's horrible.
| sgt wrote:
| Never thought of that. Is that why the Settings app is so
| slow? If I click on one of the menu items on the left, it
| takes half a second or more to load the screen.
| tough wrote:
| Search is also broken af raycast saves me from going mad
| galad87 wrote:
| SwiftUI doesn't help, but each panel is a separate
| process. The previous version of System Preferences hid
| the delay by showing an animation, the new one doesn't.
| zerkten wrote:
| Why is a separate process necessary here?
| pvg wrote:
| You don't want login settings, cursor blink rate settings
| and random app settings running in the same process
| kstrauser wrote:
| Why? Is there a mechanism by which one of those would be
| able to interfere with another?
| anosidium wrote:
| Thanks! I'm glad to hear that.
|
| It's an AppKit-first app -- I've used SwiftUI in parts where it
| fits well, but I've avoided relying on it entirely because it's
| still maturing, especially on macOS. In certain areas, it can
| compromise the native look and feel, or introduce unexpected
| behaviour.
|
| As for Core Data, it's a proven and robust framework that
| already does everything I need. Swift Data is still relatively
| new and doesn't yet offer the same level of flexibility or
| stability for more advanced use cases.
| andrewmcwatters wrote:
| Nicely done, looks good!
| techlatest_net wrote:
| Thanks for the TestFlight invite! I'll install the iOS build and
| keep an eye on performance, UI responsiveness, and any crash
| logs. Happy to send feedback through the TestFlight app if
| anything comes up.
| zimpenfish wrote:
| Alas, fell at the first hurdle by saying my Akkoma and GotoSocial
| instances aren't valid.
| anosidium wrote:
| Could you please give me some instance URLs so that I can
| check?
| rglullis wrote:
| You can find out about different servers on
| https://fedidb.com
| stonogo wrote:
| FediDB doesn't track GoToSocial servers, because of a
| dispute about scraping/crawling.
| anosidium wrote:
| Is there a better source that tracks a broader range of
| Fediverse servers? At the moment, my app officially
| supports Mastodon, though I'm aware there are derivative
| forks and other compatible implementations.
| anosidium wrote:
| Thanks, that's helpful!
| zimpenfish wrote:
| Added a couple of mine to the issue I filed earlier.
| noiv wrote:
| I like the Mac integration and all the features in the menu. Did
| I miss bigger fonts somewhere?
| anosidium wrote:
| Nope. I will add this feature in future updates.
| grishka wrote:
| It does look nice.
|
| I can't seem to figure out how to open posts and profiles though.
| Neither single nor double-clicking does anything. Sometimes
| double-clicking a post that contains a link would open the link
| in the web browser. The only thing that works is right click ->
| open in new window. MacOS 14.7.5 (23H527)
| anosidium wrote:
| Thanks!
|
| Yes, that's intentional -- to view a thread or profile, use the
| contextual menu (right-click or control-click). Clicking is
| reserved for posts that contain a link or preview card, which
| will open in the browser.
| thephyber wrote:
| New iOS (XCode) developer here.
|
| Do you have any pro tips for optimizing workflow, reducing toil
| in XCode, or speeding up UI testing?
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