[HN Gopher] Show HN: Use your iPhone's camera to see any photo o...
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       Show HN: Use your iPhone's camera to see any photo on your wall
        
       Author : hitmyapi
       Score  : 106 points
       Date   : 2021-10-31 19:10 UTC (3 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (apps.apple.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (apps.apple.com)
        
       | good8675309 wrote:
       | Unfortunately due to the iOS 15 requirement this is non-starter
       | for me and I'm sure many others who are boycotting the update due
       | to Apple's privacy snafu. Fortunately you can re-export your app
       | to support older versions of iOS.
        
         | Daedren wrote:
         | Apple very very rarely backports new developer APIs, as such
         | it's normal that most apps will rapidly raise their minimum iOS
         | requirement to make use of them.
         | 
         | This is unlike Android, where you still see a lot of apps with
         | a minimum requirement of Android 6.
         | 
         | All this to just say that it's much much worse to be on an non-
         | updated Apple device than an Android one. Your apps won't take
         | too long to stop getting updates.
        
         | ghostly_s wrote:
         | Which "privacy snafu" would that be? iOS 15 includes several
         | new privacy-minded features.
        
           | good8675309 wrote:
           | Scanning the personal photos on your device and reporting
           | them. They delayed the feature but did not cancel it.:
           | https://www.techradar.com/news/apple-delays-child-abuse-
           | phot...
        
             | moooo99 wrote:
             | I understand the concerns that such a feature might bring,
             | but if I got that right only the photos which are scheduled
             | for upload into iCloud are subject to the scanning.
             | According to reports, the images in iCloud are already
             | subject to CASM scans, but on the server side instead of
             | the client side. So if anything, the on device processing
             | would be a privacy improvement?
             | 
             | Am I missing something? Is the technology used on the
             | client side more error prone? Is the process which will
             | lead to the reports different than with the other
             | approaches already in place (including those used by other
             | services such as Google Drive)
        
               | jrockway wrote:
               | Imagine that you're a lobster, and Apple dropped you into
               | some water. Apple assures you that you're just getting a
               | nice warm bath. Some lobsters are a little nervous given
               | how many other lobsters have been boiled alive after
               | being promised a nice warm bath.
        
               | sjtindell wrote:
               | I don't think you're missing anything. My personal
               | opinion is it's severely overblown.
        
             | evv wrote:
             | If iOS is anything like macOS, they have already quietly
             | rolled it out.
             | 
             | If you're on a mac, even "Big Sur", check to see if the
             | CSAM weights file is here at: /System/Library/Frameworks/Vi
             | sion.framework/Resources/NeuralHashv3b-current.espresso.wei
             | ghts
             | 
             | If you use un-jailbroken iOS 14 of course you can't easily
             | check for the presence of the weights file, so you're
             | already trusting Apple on their word.
        
               | buildbot wrote:
               | That would be such a disgusting move I'd sell all the
               | apple hardware I own right away.
        
               | evv wrote:
               | I'm not big into "conspiracy" but you gotta wonder why
               | this "NeuralHash" file on my computer exists if
               | "NeuralHash" was supposedly delayed, according to Apple,
               | on an undetermined timeline.
               | 
               | If I did want to cook up conspiracy theory, it would be
               | easy: Apple wants to distract from the fact that
               | NeuralHash was broken by researchers. This project
               | apparently is able to create CSAM collisions:
               | 
               | https://github.com/AsuharietYgvar/AppleNeuralHash2ONNX
               | 
               | If NeuralHash is really rolled out, and if this python
               | project can really create collisions, the CSAM system
               | could be DDoS'd by people on their own computers, jamming
               | up Apple's internal censorship review system with false
               | positives. Hence, Apple would be incentivized to sweep
               | this under the rug by "delaying" rollout indeterminately.
        
               | detaro wrote:
               | The work you link is based on the NeuralHash code
               | shipping with iOS and macOS, and explicitly says so, so
               | there is no reason to theorize _if_ it might already have
               | been in a shipped OS - if it hadn 't, we wouldn't have
               | research about its abilities. (What as far as is known -
               | and I suspect it would have been found by people
               | scrutinizing the updates - has not been rolled out is
               | code that actually uses it to implement the reporting
               | mechanisms)
        
           | buildbot wrote:
           | Probably the CSAM scanning which was paused IIRC
        
         | hitmyapi wrote:
         | Hey there- that's a good point. My decision for the iOS 15
         | requirement was because some new API's were introduced that
         | made development a bit easier, but I think I can add support to
         | iOS 14 with a bit of TLC. I'll look into that, appreciate the
         | feedback!
        
           | sgt wrote:
           | Hi, I also got stopped due to the iOS 15 requirement.
           | Honestly I didn't even know what version of iOS I was
           | running, and the phone never asked me to upgrade. Now I'll go
           | ahead and upgrade.
        
             | diebeforei485 wrote:
             | For some reason, Apple isn't nudging iOS 14.x users to
             | install 15 yet - though they are still pushing 14.x
             | updates.
        
         | bigyikes wrote:
         | I wasn't boycotting, but it turns out I'm not on iOS 15 either.
         | Would be cool if older versions were supported.
        
         | djrogers wrote:
         | Let's focus on the app in question instead of trying to turn
         | this in to another argument about on/off device CSAM scanning.
        
       | amelius wrote:
       | I guess they left the photo-frame for the next version of the
       | tool.
        
       | hitmyapi wrote:
       | Hey all, wanted to share a new ARKit app I recently published.
       | You can choose a photo from your gallery, specify its dimensions,
       | and see how it'd look directly on your wall!
       | 
       | Inspiration for this project came when I was looking to buy
       | artwork over the summer, but wasn't sure what size would look
       | best on my wall. I made this so ideally you could preview how a
       | piece of art would look on your wall before you buy it. Would
       | love any feedback on it
        
         | mensetmanusman wrote:
         | AR camera shots often have an uncanny valley appearance.
         | 
         | It would be cool if there were an option to have the initial
         | simulated image 'annealed' with a generative adversarial
         | network.
         | 
         | Maybe you could also partner with local frame builders (ask for
         | 2% of sales or something) to send clients your way, since, so
         | often, the frame has a large effect on the art's aesthetic
         | impact.
        
           | TAForObvReasons wrote:
           | Go all the way and make a "buy now" option. That would entail
           | partnering with printers and framers to offer standalone
           | posters and framed versions of standard / custom artwork.
        
           | 10000truths wrote:
           | I think the uncanny valley thing is because the
           | superimposition does not take into account the lighting
           | conditions of the room.
        
         | jw1224 wrote:
         | Cool project!
         | 
         | I have a pretty extensive niche art collection at home, and
         | this sort of thing would be really useful. If I could suggest
         | one important addition...
         | 
         | It would be great if you could set a surrounding frame and
         | matting. You could maybe offer a few different frame
         | styles/colours, and let users access a colour picker to select
         | the shade for the matting. Then you could project a "framed"
         | piece of art on the wall with AR.
         | 
         | This would make it really easy to see how a new piece would
         | look in context, alongside other artwork which has been
         | professionally framed. It would save a lot of uncertainty
         | before a visit to the framing shop :)
        
           | hitmyapi wrote:
           | Agreed I think that would be a great addition to be able to
           | select and customize different frames, I could see how it'd
           | be valuable to see it framed next to other framed artwork
           | already on the wall. It was a feature I decided to leave off
           | for the initial launch for simplicity, but will prioritize
           | adding it into a future release. Appreciate the suggestion!
           | :)
        
             | jw1224 wrote:
             | Thanks!
             | 
             | Also, just curious... How does developing for ARKit work?
             | Does the Xcode Simulator have "virtual rooms" to test your
             | code in, or do you have to compile and run from a real
             | device each time?
        
               | hitmyapi wrote:
               | Unfortunately the app won't even compile on the
               | simulator, it seems like some of the AR libraries aren't
               | actually available when building for the simulator. I
               | have to test on real device each time for the time being.
               | That would be super cool if there were virtual rooms to
               | test AR code in, I feel it could expedite some of the
               | development time haha
        
         | 2muchcoffeeman wrote:
         | Why are we trying to "-fy" everything?
        
           | [deleted]
        
           | CharlesW wrote:
           | The suffix "-ify" means "to become, or to make someone or
           | something become, something". So if you make an app that
           | allows a photo to become a virtual canvas, "Canvify" is
           | short, unique name that's at least semi-self-descriptive.
        
             | 2muchcoffeeman wrote:
             | I understand the convention. And I don't want to be too
             | negative.
             | 
             | But it's a really awkward sounding name. And in tech I see
             | naming conventions in products that go in and out of
             | fashion. '-ly', '-fy', 'i-', '-(2 digit year)'.
        
         | huskyr wrote:
         | Thanks, worked very simple and fast. Great that you published
         | this for free on the app store.
         | 
         | One small feature request: it would be useful to change between
         | metric/imperial measurements. I don't live in the US and don't
         | now how long an inch is.
        
         | mortenjorck wrote:
         | This is off to a great start! A few initial UX suggestions:
         | 
         | - Most users are probably just looking to see how a single copy
         | of something looks on their wall, so instead of subsequent taps
         | adding subsequent copies, they should probably just move the
         | existing one.
         | 
         | - My iPhone doesn't have LiDAR, so it's somewhat hit or miss
         | whether ARKit hits the actual wall, or ends up a foot in front
         | of it (or gets the angle wrong). Consider offering an
         | adjustment mode to manually slide the artwork into place.
         | 
         | And now a product suggestion:
         | 
         | - Consider pitching an integration to Society6, one of the
         | largest marketplaces for wall art. It would be a huge value add
         | for customers to be able to view prints directly from creators'
         | catalogs with pre-filled sizes, and I'd imagine you could work
         | something out that would support this project well into the
         | future.
        
       | enlyth wrote:
       | Damn, if only I had known about this yesterday, I just ordered
       | some artwork and eyeballed it
        
       | ngoel36 wrote:
       | Super cool man!
        
       | rodonn wrote:
       | This is very cool! A feature I'd love to have (and would gladly
       | pay for) is to be able to add multiple photos to one wall to test
       | out different arrangements. We've been thinking about how to
       | arrange our framed art on the walls, but it's hard to visualize
       | what arrangement would look best as a "gallery wall" of art
       | https://stylebyemilyhenderson.com/blog/how-to-make-a-gallery...
        
       | geocar wrote:
       | I couldn't get it to do anything besides select a photo. It
       | showed the ar startup "move phone around" message. I tried
       | Measure and that was working fine so I tried your app again. No
       | luck. iPhone 12 mini (in case relevant)
        
         | hitmyapi wrote:
         | Hmm interesting, does the "move phone around" message ever go
         | away? I'm working on tuning it still, but you might have to
         | walk around and pan the camera around the area a bit more
         | (looking into optimizing this more in coming updates). It's
         | currently setup so ARKit can calibrate itself during that time,
         | and that message should disappear once it's done calibrating.
         | Once it's ready, a message like "Tap on the wall to see your
         | artwork" should show up
        
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       (page generated 2021-10-31 23:00 UTC)