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nativeforks

386 karma · joined April 15, 2025

Android Developer | FOSS Advocate | Technical Writer. @MubarakNative

- https://github.com/MubarakNative

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nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – FOSS Android and Compass App
This GitHub issue tracks https://github.com/CompassMB/MBCompass/issues/52, new feature requests, improvements, and upcoming features. Feel free to suggest improvements.
nativeforks··on Show HN: Building Electret Mic Preamp Open sourced
I've made the process easy for others to mimic this. But I don't have a budget to make CUSTOM PCB's and sell it. Thanks for your appreciation :)
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
This doesn't work like that, mate! OSM has a tile server limit policy because it operates on donations for the server. We need to adhere to this, so I do as much as I can to limit the tile server use. Once I have enough users. I will self-host it and add additional features. Thanks for asking.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Thanks, I will do it.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Thanks! I’ve actually already answered this earlier in the thread — true north using declination based on location is my current milestone. I know how important it is for a modern compass app and am working on it
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Thanks for the comparison! Yeah, MBCompass applies smoothing intentionally to reduce jitter on noisy sensors — especially on low-end devices. That can make it look a bit less snappy, but I'm working on making it more responsive without sacrificing stability. Appreciate the feedback!
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Good question! It needs network permission only to load the OpenStreetMap tiles for showing your location on the map. No data is collected or sent anywhere — privacy is a core focus. :)
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Yeah, that’s the plan! Honestly, building apps like this is tough — especially when aiming for unique features, keeping the app lightweight, and staying up-to-date with the latest tech stack. Support from the community really helps keep it going. :)
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
@skeledrew Fair question! For me, the drive comes from passion and the joy of building something clean and useful. It’s less about standing out for fame, more about being found by the right people — folks who value FOSS, privacy, and ethical software. And yeah, alternative stores like Aurora or F-Droid make that discovery easier. :)
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Yeah, magnetic declination can be calculated using just lat/lon from GPS location.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
I think instead of charging for app features, I’d prefer to add a donation page — if users like the app, they can support it. If not, no problem — it’ll always be free to use.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
That makes a lot of sense — but apps like mine in the “Compass” category really struggle to stand out among countless bloated, ad-filled apps with hundreds of millions of downloads.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Thanks for the great idea! I’ve noted it down and will look into it for a future update
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Thanks! I don’t have a Play Store account yet due to budget, but this is on my to-do list.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Appreciate your perspective — and I agree, technically, free apps can be published without issue. But from my experience (and others I've followed in the FOSS space), the “uphill battle” isn't about being blocked or targeted — it’s more about discovery, sustainability, and alignment with the platform’s incentives.

On stores like Google Play, the design favors apps with ad revenue, IAPs, or growth metrics — not minimal, ethical apps with no monetization. Free, privacy-respecting tools often get buried or flagged for things like lack of user engagement, sparse permissions, or not following monetization guidelines (like not using Google’s billing).

That’s why I released my app, MBCompass, on F-Droid first. It's where users expect simple, ethical apps — and where visibility isn't tied to commercial strategy.

So yeah, free apps aren't “targeted,” but the environment isn’t really designed to support or surface them either.

nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Exactly — AOSP dropped a lot of basics. That’s part of why I built MBCompass. :)
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
That’s a cool idea — I hadn’t heard of Burt’s solar compass before! Would be fun to explore as an optional mode in MBCompass. Thanks for the link — I’ll definitely read more into it.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Totally agree — it's tough putting something ethical and free into platforms that are built around ads and in-app purchases. I released MBCompass on F-Droid first for that reason, and I’m still figuring out how to reach users who care about privacy and simplicity.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Trail Sense is awesome — love the survival tools, and sun/moon data! MBCompass is more focused: great for quick direction checks, offline use, and showing your location on OSM with zero clutter.
nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
Yeah, all Android phones have compass apps or Google Maps features. But MBCompass is unique because it’s fully open source, privacy-friendly, and super lightweight — no ads or trackers, and works offline. Plus, it shows your location on an OpenStreetMap-based map, which most compass apps don’t have.

Thanks for asking! :)

nativeforks··on Show HN: MBCompass – Android Compass App
My next milestone is to implement magnetic declination correction using GPS. That way, the app can provide more accurate results by adjusting magnetic readings to true north while still respecting user privacy. Thanks for the great suggestion!
nativeforks··on Material 3 Expressive
Yeah, I also tried it yesterday in Jetpack Compose, it looks awesome. Some of the components in M3E, like the Fab menu, were cool. I was trying to implement this on my own for the past years, inspired by the Google Calendar app.
nativeforks··on Kotlin's Compose UI Framework Is Now Stable for iOS Apps (Blog.jetbrains.com)
JetBrains has released the first stable version of Compose Multiplatform for iOS, enabling developers to use Kotlin and Jetpack Compose to build native user interfaces across Android, iOS, desktop, and web — from a single codebase.

This brings full cross-platform UI development closer to reality with shared UI logic, native performance, and official tooling support in IntelliJ IDEA and Android Studio.

Has anyone tried using Compose Multiplatform in production yet?

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