Coffitivity
Productivity
ambient noise
SHOW HN2013
337points
205comments
#26of 1,739 in 2013
Top 2%of 2013 by points
How HN took it
DebatedReal support and real criticism
31 positive, 28 neutral or asking, 3 mixed, 25 critical, out of 87 comments about the project. Thread score +0.05.
Idea: 14 for, 8 againstExecution: 3 for, 10 againstPerformance: 1 for, 5 againstDesign: 3 for, 2 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Works well for focus and productivity for some commenters
From 4 comments
I've got to say that as skeptical as I was--noisy environments tend to annoy me--coffitivity is working very well for me. Coffitivity plus Soma.FM's Groove Salad station (Soma.FM…
david_shaw on HNI'm trying this out now and am really enjoying it. I work at home and usually just have my noise canceling headphones on with no music playing, so having the ambient coffee shop…
backwardm on HNI see lots of people talking about it not working for them. I find the idea Genius! I haven't got anything done today, I'm going to start now with your product + the pomodoro…
baby on HNHave to say I was skeptical, but after about 20 minutes of this, I think I'm sold. I do think this would be nice as a downloadable soundtrack/app though but the concept works…
awjr on HN
Calming and effective in open or public spaces
From 2 comments
For me, I find long periods of time spent working in front of a screen can lead to anxiety. When I start getting distracted in many directions the feeling starts to come on.…
toddrew on HNI can't tell, is it the same track over and over again or a new one? By the way, I absolutely love this. I'm 4x more productive in coffee shops compared to everywhere else and I…
josephjrobison on HN
Objections
Dish clatter and background chatter are distracting
From 3 comments
It's alright but there's way too much dish hitting. The talking is good but the kitchen cleaning staff is not only distracting but angering.
instakill on HNInteresting. I honestly would never have thought this type of erratic ambient noise would be a productivity boon. I like to get in the zone, which is trickier when having to…
doktrin on HNThis doesn't work on me. Even with the volume down low, I couldn't help trying to listen to the coffee shop conversations the instant it started playing. All the voices were…
erinaceous on HN
Research cited is weak or overstated
From 3 comments
Silly idea, backed by "research" from the world of business-studies pseudo-academia. Do you trust the results of a paper that starts with the sentence "Creativity is ubiquitous…
Myrmornis on HNfrom the actual paper (linked at the bottom of the coffitivity post): "A total of 188 ideas were generated, for an average of 4.48 (SD = 2.09) ideas per person. The noise level…
plg on HNI didn't read the whole research, but a quick glance at it told me that moderate ambient noise boosts creativity. The research doesn't mention productivity, though. EDIT: And…
ewoutkleinsmann on HN
Does not work for everyone; some find ambient noise distracting
From 3 comments
My brain must be wired differently. I listened to that for about three minutes before I wanted to pull my hair out. The only ambient sound I've ever been productive listening to…
DerKommissar on HN"Research shows it's pretty hard to be creative in a quiet space." I'm sure that research is accurate for some people, but it's definitely not accurate for me. Quiet, aside from…
pivo on HNVery interesting, but I find I get much the same effect with the right types of music (which are also more aesthetically pleasing, to me). Also, recorded environmental sounds…
lukev on HN
Requests
Adjustable density of conversation and background noise
From 1 comment
I like this, it would be even cooler if there were a way to scale the density of the conversation/background noise. As it is, for me, this sounds a bit too cluttered and makes me…
codezero on HN
Downloadable app or soundtrack version
From 1 comment
Have to say I was skeptical, but after about 20 minutes of this, I think I'm sold. I do think this would be nice as a downloadable soundtrack/app though but the concept works…
awjr on HN
Availability outside the US
From 1 comment
(edit: I was confused, it's not restricted. Sorry for the noise) "not yet available outside the US" .. fair enough, and kudos for saying up front. How about adding a way of…
ajb on HN
Questions
Is the audio the same track looping or a new one each time
From 1 comment
I can't tell, is it the same track over and over again or a new one? By the way, I absolutely love this. I'm 4x more productive in coffee shops compared to everywhere else and I…
josephjrobison on HN
Alternatives named
Rainy Mood and rain sound sites
From 2 comments
http://www.rainymood.com is my background noise of choice.
duiker101 on HNThis is very similar to http://raining.fm which I'm a big fan of. Rainfall seems to be a nice approximation to pure white noise while having enough randomness to not be noisy.…
glenjamin on HN
Ambient Mixer
From 1 comment
For arbitrary ambient sounds, http://www.ambient-mixer.com/ is great. You can create your own mixes or just listen to premade ones. And you can individually adjust each 'effect'…
Inufu on HN
Focus@Will
From 2 comments
I ran into a similar thing today, focus@will: https://www.focusatwill.com/about/ More than specific patterns they offer, I found interesting that they they claim unfamiliar music…
lt on HNFocus@Will is a startup doing music to boost productivity: https://www.focusatwill.com/ Lifehacker did a related post abiut choosing music for focus:…
jph on HN
Soma FM
From 2 comments
I've got to say that as skeptical as I was--noisy environments tend to annoy me--coffitivity is working very well for me. Coffitivity plus Soma.FM's Groove Salad station (Soma.FM…
david_shaw on HNhttp://somafm.com/ Old site, still amazing broadcasts direct to VLC. Real people , not an algorithm "learning" what you like. Don't forget to donate:)
wyck on HN