Daily issue / 2026-06-01
Useful things that surfaced in Hacker News discussions on 2026-06-01. Open the context to see why each one caught our attention—or jump straight to the original thread.
What we found
One Sec — friction app that adds a pause before opening distracting apps.
Source discussion: I made my phone slow on purpose
Editorial paraphrase
One user said it helped them delete Instagram and never look back.
Read the original threadScreenZen — donation-supported screen-time blocker with mindful app-opening prompts.
Source discussion: I made my phone slow on purpose
Editorial paraphrase
A commenter said it was their preferred blocker and cited the one-time tip model.
Read the original threadAppBlock — Android app blocker with timed lockouts and website blocking.
Source discussion: I made my phone slow on purpose
Editorial paraphrase
A commenter described waiting three minutes without switching apps, then relocking 15 minutes later.
Read the original threadStepLimit — iPhone app that unlocks app time only after you walk.
Source discussion: I made my phone slow on purpose
Editorial paraphrase
One commenter liked earning minutes on tracked apps by walking.
Read the original threadDOSBox-X — actively maintained DOSBox fork with broader compatibility and extras.
Source discussion: Windows GOG DOS Games on M-Series Macs
Editorial paraphrase
A commenter said vanilla DOSBox was least interesting and listed DOSBox-X among the main maintained forks.
Read the original threadDOSBox Staging — polished DOSBox continuation with current development and filters.
Source discussion: Windows GOG DOS Games on M-Series Macs
Editorial paraphrase
The thread singled it out alongside DOSBox-X and praised its CRT-style display filters.
Read the original threadDOSBox Pure — RetroArch-friendly DOSBox fork that bundles games into single zips.
Source discussion: Windows GOG DOS Games on M-Series Macs
Editorial paraphrase
A commenter liked putting full games into one zip file and using it like a console-style bundle.
Read the original threadBoxer — Mac DOS game launcher remembered for the nicest retro-game UX.
Source discussion: Windows GOG DOS Games on M-Series Macs
Editorial paraphrase
Commenters called it wonderful in its day and noted GOG used it for Mac DOS releases.
Read the original threadExpanse — cluster prediction layer that reduces wasted GPU and HPC capacity.
Source discussion: Launch HN: Expanse (YC P26) – Unlock Wasted GPU Capacity
Editorial paraphrase
The launch thread said it predicts what a job actually needs before submission to cut waste.
Read the original threadPolyCSS — CSS-based 3D engine that renders low-poly scenes in the DOM.
Source discussion: Show HN: A CSS 3D Engine (no WebGL)
Editorial paraphrase
The thread benchmarked it against Three.js and discussed the low-poly DOM approach.
Read the original threadGitea — self-hosted Git service suggested as a lighter GitHub alternative.
Source discussion: GitHub and the crime against software
Editorial paraphrase
Commenters suggested self-hosted forges and migration-friendly alternatives instead of GitHub lock-in.
Read the original threadllama.cpp — C/C++ LLM inference project commenters praised over Ollama.
Source discussion: A 10 year old Xeon is all you need
Editorial paraphrase
A commenter said llama.cpp is much faster and better than Ollama, though less user-friendly.
Read the original thread