Show HN: Briquette, a Mac OS X client for 37signal's Campfire app

[brettbender]

Hey all,

We just pushed a new update to the Mac App Store for our Campfire client. Mainly bug fixes, performance enhancements, and support for foreign encoding. We're always looking for suggestions for further improvements and constructive feedback, so if you use Campfire, give it a shot and let us know what you think!

http://briquetteapp.com/

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/briquette/id413619425?mt=12&ls=1

It's $4.99 (USD) via the App Store, but if you see this early enough, here's a few promo codes:

MA7LMP9KNLRK

WWMNL7TTPE4X

AARE49946X4N

T97N7W9K7FWF

A34JFRJWK4TM

Thanks!

[tptacek]

How does this compare to Propane? Propane has a Cocoa + embedded Webkit view, like this app. It supports Growl. It supports multiple Campfire sites. It has configurable message alerts. It supports drag-into-window image uploads. It does not, from what I can tell, support "replying to users" (but then neither does Campfire). It's more expensive ($20), but if you use Campfire regularly, $20 is still below the noise threshold on cost, and if you don't use Campfire regularly, $4.99 is a lot to spend for a niche chat client.

I'm assuming there's a direction you want to take this app that is different from the direction Propane is already taking, and I'm curious about what that might be.

[brettbender]

Technically, both Propane and Briquette use a Webkit view, but behind the scenes Briquette actually implements the Campfire API instead of scraping the campfire site for its content. Briquette also supports Growl, multiple sites, customizable message alerts, and drag-and-drop file uploads. Searching transcripts is on the way for version 1.2.

We had been using Propane ourselves when we decided to begin developing Briquette as an internal project. We felt frustrated with the user experience it offered. Briquette is our attempt to provide a client which is more streamlined and pleasant to use. We're focusing mainly on the user experience for business use.

We decided to launch with significantly less features than Propane, but have slowly been implementing more as we figure out the best way to focus on the end-user experience.

[tptacek]

I'm a Propane user, but I'm not even a little bit attached to it. I really like Propane though. So, sell me on how you've improved the user experience with Briquette.

I mean, if you want to talk to a model customer for your product. Otherwise, good job, good luck, &c!

[brettbender]

We personally prefer the user experience that we've crafted. Notifications in the app differentiate between new messages and mentions (in the room list), for one. We also feel that the display of messages in each room is superior, and prefer the room listing to the tabbed approach Propane uses.

These differences are largely subjective, though, and some people may prefer Propane's approach (and that's fine). I suggest if you're not convinced, use a promo code and try it out for a day or two. If the promo codes are all used, I'd be happy to email one to you.

We are also always happy to hear suggestions to improve the user experience:

http://getsatisfaction.com/bearded/products/bearded_briquett...

[dillera]

Wondering: how can you be 'not even a little attached to it' yet 'REALLY LIKE' it- which one is it?

[tptacek]

Orthogonal. If Briquette is better, I'll happily switch to it.

[JonLim]

I didn't get the nab one of the promo codes, but I figure I will check it out a little later - our office uses Propane and we don't really have any gripes with it.

Curious: what sort of frustrations did the Propane user experience really offer?

[ddagradi]

I don't want to bash our competitor, but I can talk about our goals. We want to craft a clean and simple Campfire experience for the desktop, and we think we're well on our way to creating a unique and easy-to-use application. It will fit each individual's workflow differently, however, and we'd love your feedback :)

[dylanrw]

Thanks for the chance to try your app. Right off, I love it's look and simplicity. I will use it for the next several days and be thoughtful in the review.

[brettbender]

Thanks, hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

[ddagradi]

Thanks Dylan! We had a lot of fun making it

[atrain34]

Thanks! I got the last code (mentioned first) (MA7LMP9KNLRK).

Promise to provide a review on the Mac App Store for you.

[brettbender]

Thanks a lot! We appreciate your help.

[fabiandesimone]

Clickable: http://briquetteapp.com/