Well, I actually have something to show. As you guys know, if you've been following this little blog of mine, I've been spending countless hours working on this. I happen to think this is going to help me with user retention, and thus that has been my driving force.
However, I've reached the point in time on a project where I could use a little help. I'm packing quite a bit of features on this for a simple app, but the truth is that although I'm stripping it from noise, there are things that I can't leave out, not even for this beta testing version.
So, let's make this sound official!!!
📱 What is HiveSnaps?
HiveSnaps is a modern, mobile-first social media application built specifically for the Hive blockchain. It provides an intuitive, Twitter-like experience for creating, sharing, and engaging with content on Hive, designed from the ground up for mobile users.
✨ Current Features (Already Implemented)
🔐 Authentication & Security
- Secure Hive Login - Full integration with Hive accounts using posting keys
- Secure Storage - Private keys stored safely using Expo SecureStore
- Multi-node Support - Connects to multiple Hive API nodes for reliability
📝 Content Creation & Sharing
- Create Posts ("Snaps") - Write and publish posts directly to the Hive blockchain
- Image Support - Upload and share images with Cloudinary integration (subject to change, thanks @mengao for the tip)
- Camera Integration - Take photos directly from the app or choose from gallery
- Markdown Support - Rich text formatting with full markdown rendering
- Tag System - Automatic tagging with 'hivesnaps' for content discovery
📺 Rich Media Experience
Video Embedding - Supports YouTube, 3speak, and IPFS videos
Inline Video Players - Watch videos without leaving the app
Full-Screen Image Viewer - Tap to view images in full screen
Smart Media Detection - Automatically detects and embeds media from URLs
💬 Social Interaction
- Threaded Comments - Full reply system with nested conversations
Upvoting System - Vote on posts and comments with adjustable weight (1-100%) - Real-time Updates - Live vote counts and engagement metrics
User Avatars - Profile pictures loaded from Hive accounts
Engagement Metrics - Vote counts, reply counts, and payout information
🔔 Notification System
- Real-time Notifications - Get notified about votes, replies, and mentions
- Notification Badge - Visual indicator on the main navigation
- Notification History - View all past notifications in dedicated screen
- Smart Navigation - Tap notifications to jump directly to relevant content
🎨 User Experience
- Dark/Light Mode - Automatic theme switching based on device preferences
- Responsive Design - Optimized for both Android and iOS
- Pull-to-Refresh - Swipe down to refresh content
- Smooth Animations - Professional UI transitions and loading states
- Keyboard Handling - Smart keyboard avoidance for better typing experience
📱 Mobile-First Design
- SafeArea Support - Proper handling of device notches and navigation bars
- Touch-Optimized - Large touch targets and gesture-friendly interface
- Platform-Specific - Native Android and iOS behaviors
- Performance Optimized - Efficient rendering and memory management
🚀 Near-Future Features (Coming Soon TM)
📊 Enhanced Discovery
- Algorithm-based content discovery (need ideas here)
- Tag Exploration - Browse posts by specific tags
- User Search - Find and follow other Hive users
👥 Social Features
- User Profiles - Dedicated profile pages with post history
- Following System - Follow your favorite authors
- Direct Messages - Private messaging between users (memo based?)
💰 Hive Economics
- Wallet Integration - View HBD, HIVE, and HP balances (claims rewards? maybe nothing more)
- Reward Tracking - Track your earnings and payouts
- Token Information - Real-time price feeds and market data (not decided yet)
🛠️ Technical Stuffseseseses
- Modern Tech Stack
- React Native with Expo for cross-platform development
- TypeScript for type safety and better development experience
- Expo Camera and Media Library for camera functionality
- dhive library for Hive blockchain integration
- EAS Build for professional app distribution
Development Practices
- Version Control - Full Git integration with GitHub
- Modular Architecture - Clean, maintainable code structure
- Error Handling - Robust error management and user feedback
- Security First - Secure key storage and API practices
📲 Beta Testing Available
We're currently in beta testing phase! The app is available as an APK for Android users who want to try it out. We're gathering feedback to improve the user experience before the official launch.
📱 How to Test HiveSnaps Beta (Android)
Step 1: Download the APK
Click this link on your Android device: Download HiveSnaps Beta APK
The APK file will download to your device (usually in the Downloads folder)
Step 2: Enable Unknown Sources (Required for APK Installation)
Since this app isn't on the Google Play Store yet, you'll need to allow your phone to install apps from unknown sources:
For Android 8.0+ (Most Recent Devices):
Go to Settings → Apps & notifications → Special app access → Install unknown apps
Select your browser (Chrome, Firefox, etc.)
Toggle "Allow from this source" to ON
Alternative Method:
When you try to install the APK, Android will prompt you
- Tap "Settings" in the popup
- Enable "Allow from this source"
- Go back and try installing again
For Older Android Versions:
- Go to Settings → Security
- Enable "Unknown sources" or "Install from unknown sources"
Step 3: Install HiveSnaps
- Open your file manager or Downloads app
- Find the HiveSnaps APK file you downloaded
- Tap on it to install
- If prompted, confirm you want to install the app
- Wait for installation to complete
Step 4: Launch and Test
- Find HiveSnaps in your app drawer
- Open the app
- Log in with your Hive account credentials (posting key only)
- Start exploring and testing!
🔒 Security Note
This APK is safe to install - it's built using Expo's official build service. However, as with any beta software:
- Only install if you trust the developer
- The app is in testing phase, so expect some bugs
- Your Hive keys are stored securely on your device
📋 What to Test
Help me improve HiveSnaps by testing these features:
- Login/Authentication - Can you log in with your Hive account?
- Creating Posts - Try posting text and images
- Viewing Content - Browse the feed and read posts
- Commenting - Reply to posts and comments
- Voting - Upvote posts and comments
- Media Playback - Test video and image viewing
- Notifications - Check if you receive notifications for interactions
- Dark/Light Mode - Switch themes in your device settings
🐛 Found a Bug?
If you encounter any issues:
- Take a screenshot if possible
- Note what you were doing when the bug occurred
- Reply to this post with the details
- Include your device model and Android version
📱 Device Requirements
- Android 5.0+ (API level 21+)
- Internet connection required (one would think so, right?)
- Camera permission for photo posting (optional)
- Storage permission for image uploads (optional)
🆘 Troubleshooting
Can't download the APK?
- Make sure you have a stable internet connection
- Try using a different browser
- Clear your browser cache and try again
Installation failed?
- Make sure you enabled "Unknown sources"
- Check if you have enough storage space
- Try restarting your phone and installing again
App crashes on startup?
- Make sure your Android version is 5.0 or higher
- Try clearing the app data and restarting
- Let me know your device model for compatibility checking
- 🎯 Your Feedback Matters!
This is a beta version, which means:
- Some features might not work perfectly
- Your feedback helps shape the final app
- You're getting early access to cool new Hive App!!!!!
Thank you for helping test HiveSnaps! Your feedback is invaluable for making this the best Hive mobile experience possible. 🚀
Afterword
If you follow this blog then you might know, but in case you don't. I will be releasing all the code to this app too. As a matter of fact it already is public. So you might be wondering why? Well, because I feel like I need it.
I want to be able to give someone a simple app, and allow them to be a hivean. They don't have to be bloggers, they don't have to be amazing writers, they just have to be.
You see, since I got a lot of gray in my beard, I do happen to find Hiving on a computer a lot more comfortable. But, this is not the case for the majority of people. Where I live, everyone has a cell phone, very few people have a computer. I think that explains it all...
And, with this giant post and announcement, I think I will call it a day.
Much love
MenO