Dad of one, balancing full time and indie iOS/macOS dev. Building video apps that protect privacy of your home and family. Building https://xitter.gq/t.co/6LaiKMnO8i in public.
Republic of Croatia
Joined September 2010
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Hi guys, I'm happy to announce what I've been working on last half a year 🤓!
A little backstory first. My wife @tratinche, and I had our son born a year ago, and since we're both working from home, an idea came to me that there should be a way to keep your family members private if they inadvertently hop into your video call.
Behold Xamera Camera (xamera.camera)
This app is a privacy first camera extension for macOS. It is designed so that it
- works with every video conferencing tool
- works with every browser (yes, finally filters with Google Meet on Safari)
- works with any app that supports picking a camera stream
- processes the stream 100% on device
Features:
Advanced Privacy
- will black out your stream if you're not the only person in camera view
- will black out your stream if you leave the camera
Filters
- Adjustable blur and black and white blur
- Color background
- Image background
- Black and white foreground (you can finally look like your Twitter avatar in the video 🥳)
Apply for early access in the link below!
This was built in private, but will continue adding features in public #buildinpublic
Marko Hlebar retweeted
I need to be real with you all. I've gone back and forth about posting this but I can't stay quiet anymore.
My 4 year old son has a severe neurological condition. He's non-verbal and autistic and requires constant specialized care. That alone turned our family's life upside down. We found treatments that are extremely promising but they're just out of reach right now.
Then a few weeks ago, my 11 year old was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.
What was already the hardest chapter of our lives just got significantly harder. We have a 4 year old with intensive daily needs, an 11 year old whose health now requires around the clock management, and a 1 year old. There aren't enough hours in the day and there aren't enough of us.
The art and design markets have been going through some serious changes and it's left us in the tightest financial spot we've ever been in. I'm not here for sympathy. I'm here because love and will do anything for them and have to exhaust every option I can.
If you or anyone you know needs creative work, I have 15+ years of experience across brand identity, creative direction, advertising, content, and AI art. I've worked with adidas, Nike, Google, Valentino, and many others. I'm ready to start immediately.
If you love the art, I have a small curation of unminted new works and my PIECES drop is live on SR. I'm also very open to commissions.
I've always tried to show up here with energy and positivity. Right now the most honest thing I feel I can do is show up with the truth instead.
I'm going to get my sons the care they need and get my family to a place where we can all thrive. If you can help from any angle, please reach out. If you can RT, that matters too.
DMs are open. 🙏
Inspired by @almmaasoglu, for my weekend project I added dithering to xamera.camera.
Impress your boss by appearing all dithered up at Monday standup lol
Marko Hlebar retweeted
I'm looking for a new job/opportunity 🫵
Preferably iOS/macOS. I'm good at it.
about me: krzyzanowskim.com
Please spread the word 🙏 DM open.
Marko Hlebar retweeted
Anyone hiring for iOS? I'd love to be your guy. Please RT this to infinity and beyond!
Performance is a feature 🚀
Worked on performance fixes this weekend for xamera.camera. Managed to get ~20% less CPU (62% -> 49%) and ~10% less GPU (32% -> 29%).
There's a lot more that I can do in terms of performance improvements, but low hanging fruit was as simple as using CVPixelBufferPool instead of allocating a new CVPixelBuffer every frame, and some other minor tweaks.
Some customers asked about supporting Intel, but as a solo dev I don't have the capacity to pursue that. I tested it on my 2019 Intel, and it's still super choppy 😅
#buildinpublic
Users were confused about Advanced Privacy in xamera.camera, so in version 1.3.1, we redesigned this from a switch to a menu where you can have granular control over the features.
Hide Camera
- When someone else is in view 👥
- When I leave view🚶♂️
#buildinpublic
The care and the details that are going into Bezel are still mind blowing to me. That is what Mac apps should be about. ❤️
Bezel is "a game-changing convenience" that "could very well become an essential tool for macOS".
Very, very honoured to read that on MacStories about our own app. 🙏
It's a great and detailed review of Bezel can really recommend to check it out: macstories.net/reviews/bezel…
Marko Hlebar retweeted
Bezel is "a game-changing convenience" that "could very well become an essential tool for macOS".
Very, very honoured to read that on MacStories about our own app. 🙏
It's a great and detailed review of Bezel can really recommend to check it out: macstories.net/reviews/bezel…
I've done some bug and perfomance fixes on xamera.camera, this is now released on the AppStore!
Version 1.1.3
📈 Fix for Xamera extension using CPU even when not in use (thanks Ian)
🥶 Fix for frozen image when turning off camera mid meeting
#buildinpublic
Quite happy with numbers for xamera.camera in the past month. We are still doing basically zero marketing, this is mostly from organic SEO and ASO.
#buildinpublic
Hi people, xamera.camera is 25% off until November 27th, get your copy now!
#buildinpublic #BlackFriday
Marko Hlebar retweeted
This is it, Astro's Black Friday starts now! 🔥
Start optimizing your app today and save 40% with discount code KXMTK1MA.
First $99, now only $59, valid until November 27!
RT are really appreciated 🙏🏻
Marko Hlebar retweeted
Join a growing list of cool #BlackFriday2023 indie sales 🚀💸
indiegoodies.com/blackfriday
Submitted a new version of xamera.camera to the App Store. New features:
- device picker
- the camera shuts off after the meeting is over (duh)
Long time rolling these out, but super motivated by the $6 we made in the last month 🤣
#buildinpublic
Marko Hlebar retweeted
Distraction-free reading punctuated transcripts of any YouTube video. Either listen, read, or watch. appblit.com/scribe without any ads. iOS app is coming soon. Please ping me for TestFlight access if interested 💯
Marko Hlebar retweeted
Big news, friends!
Gratefully just launched on Product Hunt! 🚀
We are proud of this new stage and look forward to continuing to grow.
It’s all about making time for YOU🩷. Small changes, big results.✨
Every RT counts.
Your support means a lot! 🙏☺️
producthunt.com/posts/gratef…
Well this is a pretty good end of the week. xamera.camera got it's first paid customer. We made $3 yesterday. No ads, just Twitter, and blog posts 🥳
#buildinpublic
Marko Hlebar retweeted
Today is the day! @TryAstroApp is live on Product Hunt! 🥳
If you would like to support me or leave a comment you can do so on this page!
There is also a discount code on the page if you want to activate a subscription!
Every RT counts! 🙏🏻
Thanks!
producthunt.com/posts/astro-…
