Really lovely concept. I think your welcome map is too complex seems like that should be simplified for a good first experience for more devices. I'd like to be able to rotate around the map but seems like it's fixed in one direction.
I don't know man, I think I am not the right audience for this. I think online meetings are fine as is, I want to spend less time on them and more time connecting in real life.
I have been working remotely for a decade now, with fully remote teams, and we never felt the need for a deeper bonding in the form of work meetings that are more casual.
That said, if we want this kind of experience, online gaming already gives us that. I see lots of members of the team hanging out by discord and in gaming platforms.
Looks cool, but I don't want it. That's just my opinion.
I always wonder who the right audience is for this type of virtual environment for online meetings. And I am seriously curious because I am probably too old to relate to younger professionals these days, so I may be missing something that other may find fun.
Well, in my case I am more than glad to be missing on this fun is my point.
I think I wouldn't be able to function well in a work environment that had this kind of setup for their meetings on a regular basis, it would feel very draining to me.
I would be certainly open to it infrequently, or as an opt-in, but if the workplace moves towards this direction I know I would struggle.
The only on-par open source solution is https://workadventu.re/, but it is impossible to self-host to the point that one would think they're doing it on purpose so that you pay them for hosting.
>The only on-par open source solution is https://workadventu.re/, but it is impossible to self-host to the point that one would think they're doing it on purpose so that you pay them for hosting.
is there a name for this? I've seen it all over recently. Ente products are like that; it's self-hostable but you've gotta really want it.
One trademark of this : the first steps of install are easy, but then it progresses into this quagmire of no-docs/old-docs/presets that favor the company somehow.
one of these things, (maybe ente photos/auth?) were self-hostable but there was a secret button on the mobile app that had to be known about to input a server URI outside of the cloud host to connect the app to the server backend that's self-hosted. Why would you go to that extent if not to add friction?
Hey, thanks for the feedback! It might be the first map load that's a bit heavy (I'm working on this now) - later once everything is loaded it should be much faster. Was it just the first couple seconds that were problematic for you or you stayed longer?
PS. there is also a bunch of graphic tiers which suit more older machines. If you click on the top right there is a menu which has a graphics tab. It should switch automatically after a while too.
Those videos of the actual webcam feeds are AI-generated, right? If I were you I would at least use the videos of real people from the original demo, if not try to have another live demo. Maybe not the highest priority but it does affect the first impression of the product and whether people assume it's a vibecoded mess under the hood or not.
mildly interesting detail: some of the videos also include an audio track - and because some of the videos are mirrored in time, you get to hear demonic voices:
Are developers still in denial about the capabilities of coding agents, "vibecoded mess under the hood or not"? If the application works, do you think most users are thinking about the code quality?
As someone who has seen and used (and disliked) many similar pieces of software, something about this feels much better and natural (I think it's that your avatar is just a circle with your video on it). Great job on nailing the feel of it!
This looks cool! I think I would use it more as an online platform for friends rather than work or business. Maybe lean more into the social / games aspects
Sounds interesting - especially as gather.town no longer offers an event option.
However, the landing page uses 100% CPU and stutters a lot.
Also, signup does not work for me, with https://app.flat.social/api/auth/signup
returning 403 forbidden:
Having a birds eye view changes the dynamic of an in person event because you can more easily observe who makes a beeline for who. But as someone who gets a headache from first person games I still prefer birds eye anyway.
Okay, you got me on the first impressions. signed up. also, use a demo video which has real people doing those activities and smiling etc. A little bit of authenticity will go a long way here.
This is really great and I hope it succeeds. I am waiting for a service that combines the virtual spaces concepts of Habbo Hotel into digital meeting spaces. I think Meta VR attempted this but it was too clunky (requires a headset). Mozilla Hubs attempted this too but it was too similar to Second Life and Roblox in the sense that things were not modular enough and it takes too long to do simple things.
Thank you! There might not be as many elements in flat.social as there are in Habbo Hotel but I built an entire map builder which you can use to customise your space. There is a bunch of options - from procedural persian rugs to furnite, plants and lamps. You can even add a dill pickles jar that vigorously opens itself when you press enter.
I would work on affordances for when people with 0 gaming experience need to join, maybe a flat or simplified mode that someone can opt in to.
I have a lot of experience testing a defunct spatial conferencing app during the pandemic and gamers had fun with it but people with no gaming experience universally hated it and wanted nothing to do with it. There were no affordances or instructions that made a dent after months of trying.
I have been working remotely for a decade now, with fully remote teams, and we never felt the need for a deeper bonding in the form of work meetings that are more casual.
That said, if we want this kind of experience, online gaming already gives us that. I see lots of members of the team hanging out by discord and in gaming platforms.
Looks cool, but I don't want it. That's just my opinion.
I think I wouldn't be able to function well in a work environment that had this kind of setup for their meetings on a regular basis, it would feel very draining to me.
I would be certainly open to it infrequently, or as an opt-in, but if the workplace moves towards this direction I know I would struggle.
I think we peaked at https://www.gather.town/
The only on-par open source solution is https://workadventu.re/, but it is impossible to self-host to the point that one would think they're doing it on purpose so that you pay them for hosting.
is there a name for this? I've seen it all over recently. Ente products are like that; it's self-hostable but you've gotta really want it.
One trademark of this : the first steps of install are easy, but then it progresses into this quagmire of no-docs/old-docs/presets that favor the company somehow.
one of these things, (maybe ente photos/auth?) were self-hostable but there was a secret button on the mobile app that had to be known about to input a server URI outside of the cloud host to connect the app to the server backend that's self-hosted. Why would you go to that extent if not to add friction?
PS. there is also a bunch of graphic tiers which suit more older machines. If you click on the top right there is a menu which has a graphics tab. It should switch automatically after a while too.
Anyways, is source available anywhere?
https://flat-social-bucket.lon1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/p...
https://flat-social-bucket.lon1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/p...
(and I really like this audio-less one: https://flat-social-bucket.lon1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/p...)
Tell us more about this experience. Very interesting!
I have a lot of experience testing a defunct spatial conferencing app during the pandemic and gamers had fun with it but people with no gaming experience universally hated it and wanted nothing to do with it. There were no affordances or instructions that made a dent after months of trying.