Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by thire on Thursday June 09, 2022 @12:57PM
(#31683685)
A note about Google Authenticator. There are alternatives which imo are much better, like LastPast Authenticator or Authy. They work exactly the same but they can back up your codes securely. Big plus if you lose or change your phone.
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by pablomalo on Thursday June 09, 2022 @05:21PM
(#31687054)
On Android, I really like Aegis, https://getaegis.app. Open source, biometric unlock, automated backups. Available from the Play Store and Fdroid.
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by beepbooptheory on Thursday June 09, 2022 @01:50PM
(#31684451)
Yeah I just learned this in fact, that the Google Authenticator app is one thing that does not sync to my google acct seamlessly (read: without asking). Learned it the hard but not unrecoverable way thank goodness.
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by bdcravens on Thursday June 09, 2022 @03:23PM
(#31685639)
Since it's just based on TOTP, seems like writing your own would be one of those bad idea "I could do this in a weekend!" fun projects :-)
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by VapidLinus on Friday June 10, 2022 @04:51AM
(#31691652)
+1 for Authy. I like it because it has cloud sync and has a desktop app available as well.
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by yieldcrv on Thursday June 09, 2022 @01:53PM
(#31684502)
tangential: Regarding Duolingo, its nice that its a fun gamified thing for you and your wife to do together, consider formal education though. A 3-month class at community college will propel way further than believing Duolingo's method has short circuited a mental process. Duolingo is a decent addition to another learning method. But level 25 isn't going to be fundamentally different than level 7, it will never tell you "why/when/context" and that's very limiting, whereas a teacher can tell you in 20 seconds.
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by valbaca on Thursday June 09, 2022 @02:32PM
(#31685033)
For sure. Duolingo alone is not sufficient.
We supplement with other materials. She checks out Spanish books from the library and I'm latino, so my (elderly) family is Spanish-speaking.
My parents just didn't learn Spanish (it was "bad" to have any Spanish accent in the 70s and 80s), so I didn't know Spanish growing up either.
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by thefourthchime on Thursday June 09, 2022 @01:32PM
(#31684202)
At least one iOS there is a built-in Shazam button in the control center if you enable it. It's a faster way to find out the song that's playing.
Re:Ask HN: What are some mentally healthy apps to have?
by valbaca on Thursday June 09, 2022 @02:34PM
(#31685054)
yep! I'm on iOS. Everything on the Control Panel is a Good App: airplane mode, low power mode, add note, add audio recording, alarms, timers, stopwatch, calculator, flashlight, Apple Pay, Shazam, and camera
- Spotify: everyone loves music. Put it on speakerphone. Dance and sing silly while you cook.
- Shazam: discover music. Exactly what apps ought to be.
- Google Maps: Does what it does.
- Google home: setting my lights to match the time of day / mood / or movie.
- Google Authenticator: 2FA is good
- "Justin Guitar", a simple guitar tuner, and a metronome app: I've been learning guitar
- Duolingo: my wife and I have been learning Spanish together.
- Apple Books, Libby, Kindle: I use Books for PDFs and epubs I "find" online or get through Humble Bundle. With Humble Bundle you can get a TON of books for super cheap. Libby for getting ebooks from the library. Finally, Kindle for books I purchase b/c I couldn't find them anywhere else.
- Audible: for audiobooks, which was more important when I had a commute.
- Stranger "Things to do": very specific to Seattle, but connects me to my community by giving fun events and activities to check out.
- Carbon: also specific to my interests, this is the best life-tracker app for Magic the Gathering Commander games. Worth the $5 upgrade.
"Mixed" apps:
- Discord. At best it keeps me connected with my friends. It was invaluable during the pandemic and strict quarantines. But can be addicting, toxic, and net-negative.
EDIT: from a comment below, I also realized that everything on the Control Panel is a Good App: airplane mode, low power mode, add note, add audio recording, alarms, timers, stopwatch, calculator, flashlight, Apple Pay, Shazam, and camera.