Ask HN: Anyone making a living building desktop applications?

#Monitoring Tools #Utilities #Android 25 social mentions

2

Recut

I tried to make 2 different desktop apps in 2021 and failed at both. Atomic Edits[0] is a desktop app that helps YouTubers (like me) automatically remove silence in videos. It went viral on Reddit[1] but I realized later that building a video editing app with Electron (and not C++) was a bad choice. Library support video/audio editing was lacking. Recut[2] is an app that basically does what Atomic Edits aimed to do, but actually succeeded. I think it's because it was a native Mac app which meant it had access to better libraries for editing videos. (That or I gave up too early on Atomic Edits.) Orbital[3] is desktop app that allows you to search, filter, preview video files on your computer like YouTube. I posted on some subreddits and it had potential but I realized it wouldn't be enough to sustain me. It could've worked as a side-project but being as my main source of income was from YouTube ad-revenue, it wasn't worth it. VideoHubApp[4] is a desktop app that does what Orbital aimed to do and actually earned a couple thousand dollars. It was started a few years earlier and was built with a similar tech stack. All that is to say, I made desktop apps that had potential, but I did not have the time to spend making them feature complete. [0] https://github.com/SuboptimalEng/atomic-edits [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/webdev/comments/ohbl6i/i_made_a_desktop_app_that_automatically_detects/ [2] https://getrecut.com/ [3] https://github.com/SuboptimalEng/orbital [4] https://videohubapp.com/en/.

#Content Creators #Video Editing #Video 29 social mentions

3

OpenIn

Have 4 macos apps that I have built about an year ago. Getting 600-1500 a month. https://loshadki.app/.

#Project Management #Website Testing #Webapp Testing 8 social mentions

4

Hyperdeck

Https://hyperdeck.io It isn't released yet, but I do have some loyal beta users, so I'm hopeful that some of them will buy the app once the last couple of issues are fixed.

#Presentations #Design Tools #Slideshow 5 social mentions

5

Folge

Working on https://folge.me app for creating documentation and step by step guides ( basically an advanced screenshot tool with editor and many export options). One-time license, and no recurring charges, app brings in around 400-500 EUR (500-600 USD) per month.

#Productivity #Customer Communication #Document Management 8 social mentions

6

IP Messenger

#Communication #Group Chat & Notifications #Work Collaboration

7

EasyMorph

I started a company that built, I believe, the most advanced no-code data automation desktop application (https://easymorph.com). It's entirely bootstrapped, profitable and pays salaries to 10+ people (and we keep hiring). Many our customers specifically looked for an on-prem solution as they don't want to deal with SaaS and its privacy issues and use-based pricing. With an on-prem tool like ours they get unlimited runs, unlimited data volumes, unlimited use for a reasonable fixed price. I believe SaaS is overhyped and in a few years the trend will change toward on-prem SaaS-like apps and platforms.

#Office & Productivity #Data Dashboard #Business & Commerce 7 social mentions

8

Mumu

Yes. I’m building https://getmumu.com and the revenue is still growing strong over time. And it’s been fun to make something that earns money yet people love the product.

#Design Tools #Windows #Mac 4 social mentions

9

Nova Code Editor

There are a lot of shareware or shareware-like desktop Mac apps that I have been relying on for many years. The programs continue to be updated regularly and don’t seem to be hobby projects, so I assume the developers are supporting themselves. Some are sold through Apple’s App Store, and some are sold directly by the developer. Here are the ones that I use most and the companies that develop them: Fission; Audio Hijack (Rogue Amoeba): https://www.rogueamoeba.com Amadeus Pro (HairerSoft): https://www.hairersoft.com/index.html Transmit (Panic): https://panic.com Jedit Ω (Artman 21): http://www.artman21.com/en/ BBEdit (Bare Bones): https://www.barebones.com GraphicConverter (Lemke Software): https://www.lemkesoft.de/.

#Development #Text Editors #IDE 39 social mentions

10

Things

#Project Management #Task Management #Todos 54 social mentions

11

Kanmail

I’m building a desktop email client [0] that has $45 lifetime licenses. Made to scratch my own itch I’ve been using it as my only client for 4 years now, barely makes any money though! [0] https://kanmail.io.

#Email Clients #Kanban #Productivity 4 social mentions