NewsLab
Jun 28 20:18 UTC

Show HN: Y – A malleable coding-agent desktop app built with Electron (github.com)

34 points|by HetPatel106||23 comments|Read full story on github.com

Comments (23)

23 shown
  1. 1. ermantrout||context
    Hey this is pretty cool
  2. 2. HetPatel106||context
    Thanks!
  3. 3. joelres||context
    Very cool!

    Suggestion: would be helpful to include examples of what's possible, or some things to try (or things that are explicitly prevented).

  4. 4. HetPatel106||context
    Good point. I’ll add this to the README. Thanks!
  5. 5. warpech||context
    Cool!

    Your readme mentions Modify. What’s that?

    Does this use some generative UI?

  6. 6. HetPatel106||context
    Thanks! Modify is the part where you can ask your coding agent to update the app live - including UI changes.
  7. 7. joeyguerra||context
    Reminds of smalltalk.
  8. 8. HetPatel106||context
    Whoa! I did not know about smalltalk. Thanks for letting me know!
  9. 9. linzhangrun||context
    smalltalk is basically the textbook ancestor of OO
  10. 10. giovannibonetti||context
    It would be even cooler if it was made with a Lisp and took advantage of it being homoiconic.
  11. 11. dr_kiszonka||context
    Also, a bit like emacs.
  12. 12. eightysixfour||context
    This is cool conceptually, but "y" do I have to login to your site if it is local and uses my Claude Code?
  13. 13. HetPatel106||context
    y uses your local Claude Code/Codex and your local files. Your chats stay local too - I never get them. Login is for account/product features like feedback, usage analytics, and updates, not for proxying your repo or chat history through us. Details: https://ytimesy.com/privacy and https://ytimesy.com/terms
  14. 14. lellow||context
    I like it. I see this concept of allowing users to modify things to cater to their preferences being the future tbh.
  15. 15. HetPatel106||context
    Yes, I agree!
  16. 16. seabass||context
    An app ui that can be modified by end users is a really cool idea. I hope to see that in more apps!
  17. 17. tuo-lei||context
    does the userland persist across app updates? curious what happens to my modify changes when you ship a new version of y
  18. 18. HetPatel106||context
    Yes! Your modified version would stay the same, if I have an update which conflicts with your modified version you can simply select what to add to your modified version and then modify would take care of the rest.
  19. 19. dhruv3006||context
    I guess this is in tune with the yc rfs - https://www.ycombinator.com/rfs#dynamic-software-interfaces - but i do have the same question for the app updates - you will break everything as soon as the update takes place - this opens up a nice rabbit hole for discussion.
  20. 20. HetPatel106||context
    It will not break the app. If I ship an update that conflicts with your modified version, you can select from a checklist what you want to add and then modify will take care of the rest.
  21. 21. anoop_kumar||context
    I used to like Electron but most recently became a fan of Tauri. Electron is great from a UI perspective but seems like it tends to get bloated very quickly. Any suggestions on how to deal with it?
  22. 22. dmitrygr||context
    > Any suggestions on how to deal with it?

    Yes, pick up a book on swift or MFC

  23. 23. KetoManx64||context
    Tauri performance on Linux as abysmal. I'll take Electron any and everyday of the week withe all ita extra bloat instead of having Tauri apps ramp my Nvidia GPU to 100% in order to show me a basic screen.