Raccoon for Lemmy app

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This community is dedicated to the discussion about the Raccoon for Lemmy mobile app. Raccoon is an open source app powered by Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP) and Compose Multiplatform (CMP) which intends not only to provide a mobile client for Lemmy, but also to create a space where users' voice is listened to, and we grow together by exchanging opinions.

Main features:

view post feed and comments with different listing and sort types;
possibility to upvote and downvote (with configurable swipe actions);
community and user detail (with info about moderators/moderated communities);
user profile with one's own posts, comments and saved items;
inbox with replies, mentions and direct messages;
global search with different result types (all, posts, comments, user, communities);
create and edit new posts (with optional images);
cross-post contents to other communities;
reply to post and comments (and edit replies);
mark posts as read (even while scrolling) and hide read contents;
custom appearance (color scheme, fonts, text sizes, post layout, etc.);
custom localization (independent of system settings);
block users, communities and instances;
report post and comments to moderators;
support for multiple accounts with account-specific settings;
lazy scrolling (referred to as "zombie mode");
explore all the communities on a given instance in guest mode;
multi-community (community aggregation);
view the moderation log;
community moderation tool (examine and resolve reports, ban users, feature posts in community, block further comments from posts, mark comments as distinguished, remove posts/comments, review all created posts/comments, edit/create community);
save drafts for posts and comments;
anonymous mode with quick instance switch;
admin tools (purge users/posts/comments/communities, feature posts locally, hide/unhide communities).

Why was the project started?

experimenting and testing Kotlin Multiplatform and Compose Multiplatform in a real world project, to explore what could be achieved with multiplatform libraries and share as much code as possible in the commonMain source directory;
offering a feature rich Lemmy client mainly aimed at both beginners and “pro” users, i.e. users who are not content with just browsing the contents of the Fediverse, creating posts and answers but be able to customize the app and “feel at home”;
dig deeper inside Lemmy’s internals and understand better what it is like to work with a decentralized platform.

We believe that Lemmy has a lot of potential and part of its success depends on users being able to enjoy the experience on robust and well-done clients. Moreover, encouraging discussion between people is important to develop a healthy and tolerant society where everyone's right and freedom are safeguarded. To know more, have a look at the Procyon Project's manifesto.

References

Quick links

have a look at the source code;
create a report in the issue tracker;
join the Matrix room to reach out to the developers!

founded 4 months ago

MODERATORS

akesi_seli

[Suggestion] I recommend raising the min api to 30(Android 11) (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 3 weeks ago by [email protected] to c/raccoonforlemmyapp

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Raising the min Android version would be a proactive move to focus the development on limited set of Android versions and to keep the code modern and to avoid problems in the future.

If the app got released into F-Droid with the current min api, there will always be the chance you would need to choose in the future between having the best app or serving the highest amount of users and that would lower the value of this client compared to other clients.

I see that Raccoon for Lemmy has a great potential, but I am scared it will turn out as a generic client.

To see my point clearly, check out Summit for Lemmy, in theory in a couple of months both Raccoon and Summit would be in the same level in terms of functionality, the only competing factor in my eyes is the user experience.

Thank you for your valuable work on reviving this client.

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[–] akesi_seli 1 points 3 weeks ago

Raising the min API level does not refer to the API level the app is compiled against or targeting, nor that it cannot use newer functionalities. It just means that there are some "if"s for when a newer system API is called to exclude its usage on older devices and, instead, use a fallback when possible.

Personally, I would not raise minSdk because that would restrict the user base, which is already quite narrow. Rather, I am going to continuously raise targetSdk because that ensures the app can use the latest features and works correctly on newest Android versions.

Maybe you are referring to Summit supporting predictive back gestures and Raccoon not doing so. This is not related to the API level but to the fact that Raccoon uses Kotlin Multiplatform and Compose Multiplatform. Being a multiplatform app means that it's relatively easy to get an iOS or desktop build but there are restrictions on some native features such as predictive back.

Raccoon uses the Voyager library for navigation which still doesn't support predictive back (issue here) due to such difficulties. I've considered replacing it because AndroidX Compose navigation has been ported to multiplatform but it's not easy changing a core library like the navigation one.