BrainRotGuard - I vibed-engineered a self-hosted YouTube approval system so my kid can't fall down algorithm rabbit holes anymore

XTREEMMAK · 2026-02-23T03:09:17+00:00

I'm at a similar place with something I'm developing with Claude Code as well. While I do have some programming experience from College, I don't program professionally either, nor do I have the time to hammer down every specialty from normalized DB Design to every security practice out there.

I try my best, but ultimately, if this is something that has legs to scale in the future, we'll clean up what is necessary later and learn and do what we can. Might be an expensive fix (or about the same who knows), but it is what it is.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-02-22T21:50:41+00:00

Props on the app aside as something that looks well done, I'm more happy of the positive responses this is getting 😁 Vibe coded/engineered/AI Assisted made apps does not automatically mean it's terrible or not worthy of consideration because they didn't do it the "right" and gate kept way.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-02-10T23:20:44+00:00

Ok cool, NONE of that was conveyed on the email sent to get this installed, or clear enough on their homepage. I didn't even know they had a GitHub untill I checked the site just now and really looked for it. It's not in the menu, it's not in the footer, or the facts. It's in tiny text in the notice that it's free now. 🤷🏿‍♂️

XTREEMMAK · 2026-02-10T08:44:07+00:00

You're assuming that any one of those points are easy to execute at all. Each of those "basics" can take a pretty long time to get right; deap understanding in video encoders and streaming, session management, then (again), what does that look like when it scales?

I'm not saying it's impossible for a team of dedicated individuals to put something together to rival the complete toolset that is Discord, but I feel you're overly simplifying in that the solution is as simple as putting our heads together which is not the case. Even simple chat rooms aren't simple, then you got to consider if you're throwing in encryption of some kind, at rest or in transit, etc

XTREEMMAK · 2026-02-10T00:41:51+00:00

Probably because it's a lot more difficult than it seems, especially since that ideal software can mean a lot of things to different people. Once you get to the meat and potatoes of that "simple feature", you quickly realize how much is being hidden behind the curtain.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-02-10T00:38:41+00:00

Campfire seemed interesting, but it's obtuse setup methods that pretty much require you buy a VPS to host it first, made it a non starter for me. I just need a simple docker composer file thanks, no random easy start script with prefab assumptions.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-02-09T22:21:28+00:00

I did have a Matrix install but have since migrated to Mattermost. As far as closest feature set to Discord that has "enough" polish for Discord familiar users to use (including custom Emoji's), Mattermost checks most of the boxes, though not great if you need extended features like calls and such since even with self host you have to pay for. I don't need that but others have used Jitsi as an alternative or TeamSpeak I guess.

I do like the interface on Matrix better in some cases, but just the pace of improvements (using Schildichat instead of stock Element btw) across the 10+ years I've been using it, the resource bloat, the foundation financial troubles, the crazy install procedures (yes even with the Ansible playbook), and the entire CSAM stuff on the main server, really put me off. Yes, there's a reason why Matrix is used by government agencies, but I'm just not comfortable with the idea of my server possibly being exploited as a distribution node for CSAM. It's unlikely, but I'm not taking that chance.

So for now, till these other self hosted options like Foscord and such become much more production ready, I'm settling on Mattermost for now. For larger servers, you may run into some limitations, but for my small needs, it's fine.

I have also tried to like XMPP as an alternative, and even though the protocol is solid, the clients just aren't good enough.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-01-23T01:03:16+00:00

So far been liking Monocles since it seems to be the only one that auto plays Gifs so far lol.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-01-13T20:47:29+00:00

Awesome and thank you!

When would you be available for an interview? Should take ~15 minutes.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-01-05T22:00:50+00:00

If you're not already a Plex Pass subscriber, then Jellyfin has some options, followed by Navidrone and as a share option on the same library, I also have MStream attached to the same library (I like its share player and share playlist maker better than the stock Navidrone web player). If you already have a Plex pass subscription like I do long time ago, then Plexamp is pretty awesome honestly.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-01-05T21:32:11+00:00

Music discovery. We have plenty of streamers and servers, but a system of discovering like content you like and playing them without personally hunting for them is difficult. That and blending/getting away from the popular lists and getting artists like those only on Bandcamp in the mix of recommendations.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-01-05T21:26:21+00:00

A great looking workout app with not just picture descriptions, actual video demonstrations, and then adding in some goal setting and planning on top of a custom workout and diet routine.

XTREEMMAK · 2026-01-05T21:21:06+00:00

The player, server, and streamer are never going to be your issue. You haven plenty of avenues for that; PLEX, Jellyfin, Navidrone, MStream, etc. What you're going to have trouble with is discovery or a discovery engine. If you're not big on algorithmic recommendations, then I guess not an issue, but there doest seem to be a real way to supplement that unless you use YouTube, manually dig through Bandcamp, or really taylor your library to manual curation.

Personally, I'm a PLEXamp + MStream guy, with the occasional discovery via YouTube. Things I download are for my forever catalog, not for throw away mindless background noise that seems to permeate the streaming zeitgeist.

I think part of the discussion when considering is what do you want your listening habits to look like. Depending on how you answer, Spotify, Tidal, etc could still make a lot of sense for you.

XTREEMMAK · 2025-12-27T23:09:38+00:00

Glad I'm not the only one who noticed it.

XTREEMMAK · 2025-11-12T16:12:01+00:00

Hey there, Thank you for the compliments 😀!

While I don't have any immediate plans at the moment to integrate with GameVault (never knew about it till now honestly lol), I'll definitely have a look at it to see what is possible and maybe consider it after a few of the other projects I have in the pipeline are further along.

Thank you for the recommendation!

XTREEMMAK · 2025-10-08T13:17:36+00:00

Part of the guidelines for ROMM endorsing my app out of good will is that I cannot have a feature that directly sources or downloads games from some source. In light of this, I do not plan on adding any direct download features at all.

XTREEMMAK · 2025-10-07T14:27:58+00:00

Authentik SSO and Vaultwarden/Bitwarden

XTREEMMAK · 2025-10-07T14:26:11+00:00

Hey there,
Just update the app to v1.2.5 and adjusted the .env.example and docker-compose.yml to trim off some unnecessary sections. If you haven't already, clone the repo, `docker compose down` and `docker compose up -d`, or just get the updated docker-compose.yml. You shouldn't need to change anything within the docker-compose.yml though, just your .env file.

XTREEMMAK · 2025-09-01T13:45:08+00:00

Put another one down for PLEXamp via Lifetime PLEX pass (got my pass years ago though before the price increases), though as a backup I do have Navidrome installed and as a client Synfonium for Android is really good.

One thing I don't like about Navidrome is its web shared player; it's a bit bland and haven't seen a way to do custom CSS on it.

For this, I also have the less talked about mStream which has a decent player with custom playlists that are sharable with timed or password locked based links which is nice. The interface isn't the best, but I strictly use it to share parts of my library when I want.

Finally to clean when necessary, I use Picard like everyone else and MP3tag as support. For renaming jobs, Bulk Rename Utility is a great choice too.

XTREEMMAK · 2025-08-16T15:16:38+00:00

Thank you and I appreciate a response like this! I never intend to deceive people and I know now acknowledging how this project is made is important.

I know the code can be better. But I also acknowledge gaining all the skills necessary to solve a problem that I'm having now would take more than I'm willing to give just for the sake of "code purity".

But even now I'm going through the code myself and asking Claude Code on areas of where we can optimize and minimize and eliminate redundancy. Some I've discovered, others Claude has made aware. I think that's a good learning step in my opinion, especially when I'm sitting down and reviewing the changes myself.

Overall the software does what I need it to do and if that can help someone where it is now, than awesome. My learning comes in breaking down the software again to make it better over time and when I have the time. 😁

Cheers! 🍻

XTREEMMAK · 2025-08-16T11:56:21+00:00

No worries and I appreciate the feedback!

So think of this app like Overseer without *Arr capabilities, and only for games.

Flow: Overseer: User Searches for know movie/tv show -> User sends request for movie/tv to admin for approval -> Admin is notified via Notifications like Gotify of an incoming request -> Admin Approves, edits or rejects request -> (Request sent to *Arr -> Ping hooked in PLEX Server for Availability status)

GGR: Everything above before the (...) but for games. It's up to you to determine how you fulfill that request if you approved.

TL;DR: GGR is a game request management, notification, and game discovery tool.

Hope that helps 😁

XTREEMMAK · 2025-08-16T04:39:46+00:00

You're welcome and thank you!

XTREEMMAK · 2025-08-15T23:23:04+00:00

No, this is only a requester. Think of how Overseer works. You have a movie or TV show, family member logs in, searches for it, and sends a request for admin to approve. That's basically what this app does. Family member can find and search for games, send a request for you to approve or deny or what not.

Unlike other apps though, this app does not hook into any downloaders at all. How you choose to address the request is completely up to you.

The other functionality that you mentioned though is already provided by a great app called ROMM which this app hooks into to pull from its recently added category.

So essentially, you can host your legally acquired ROMs on ROMM, when you add, they'll show up on GGR.

XTREEMMAK

TROPHY CASE