The starting point is a notification from an app that you want to create a rule for. So you wait for a notification, then click on it in the "History" tab, and then you can configure the rest from there. It's slightly non-intuitive, but the reason for that flow is that the app needs the package name of the app, which almost nobody will know.
It does have rules for about 25 common apps already built in. I had considered making a feature to 'share' rules with other users of the app, but that would've required Internet access. And as you can see from the comments on this thread, nobody wants an app like this to send data :(
The app requires a very specific permission for this, which it asks for on first launch. It's not even just a popup on which you can tap "Ok" - Android will take you to a special screen from where you need to manually switch on the notifications access for it to work.
iOS doesn't give developers access to other apps' notifications, AFAIK. I'm not an iOS developer though - maybe someone with more knowledge can chime in.
> Have you thought about adding ML-based classification for notifications that are harder to catch with patterns?
Honestly that's a little out my league. The idea did occur to me, but I'm discouraged by the amount of compute required for most ML.
> Also curious about battery impact — how often does it process the notification stream?
The OS sends any new notification to the app (it is a push based approach) automatically. On my own phone, this app currently shows at the bottom of the list in battery usage (<1%).
Personally it just grates me when my notifications stack up (even if I wasn't disturbed when the notifications came in). My philosophy is - I should be able to control what I see, hence this app.
> I've been happy with the solution of switching off notifications from apps that interrupt me with promotions - one strike and they're out.
I have exactly the same policy. But in my case I am forced to keep notifications enabled from apps like MyGate (since nobody would be able to visit me without it) and I have no say in the matter - my gated society uses it and my only way out is to pay for the app itself.
Can you share a screenshot of the notification, and the rule that you created for it at [email protected] please?
Also, do note that if it is a persistent notification[1] then the Android OS does not allow it to be dismissed. In such a case, you will see the notification in the blocked history with a warning icon next to it.
I think it is safe for me say that HN has had a very large role in moulding my personality. A left-leaning atheist who loves computing and is often at odds with the current zeitgeist in India, I find my true home behind a computer screen.. Slashdot was my original initiation, and I moved to Hacker News rather late after a successful YC application. Not much of a contributor, but everyday starts with at least half an hour spent reading the comments here (who RTFAs anyway huh?).
Thank you all. Without you, life would've been much simpler, but not better!
You're probably thinking of the formal definition of a "bath", as in sitting in a tub of water. Over here in India, bathing and taking a shower mean the same thing.
[0] https://developer.android.com/develop/ui/views/notifications...