1What FoxPlug reads from Product Hunt
These are the exact things it reads, and nothing else.
| What | The details it takes |
|---|---|
| One launch: the one at the address you paste | a single question for a single post: its id, name, address, upvote count, comment count and the time it was created; the launch is found by the last part of the address, so https://www.producthunt.com/posts/your-product becomes your-product |
| The first 50 comments of your launch | for your private launch-day list of requests: each comment's text, the commenter's public @handle, its upvotes and its address, found with one request for your own launch only when you press Check launch comments; your own replies are left out |
| When your launch was created and featured | used to find your launch window, the launch day and the 24 hours after it in Pacific time |
| The numbers from your previous read | if your connection already holds a read of the same launch, its upvote count, comment count and time are kept next to the new ones, so the app can say how much changed since you last looked |
| The count of reads you have made | the time of the last read and how many reads were made today, kept on your connection to enforce the daily limit |
| A one-line log of each read | FoxPlug writes a log entry for each read that was skipped, succeeded (with the upvote and comment counts) or failed (with the error) |
2Moments it finds, and what each becomes
A moment is one thing that happened in Product Hunt worth a second look. Each one is scored, then it becomes a post, a changelog entry, a thing to fix or an idea to email, or it is skipped.
new comments arrived on a launch made in the last 7 days
The moment is titled like this: not a milestone: a fix-first card in the Today brief, 'Reply to 4 new comments on your Product Hunt launch.'
Your launch of a made-up app, Trailmap, had 6 comments at your last read and 10 now. The brief shows 'Reply to 4 new comments on your Product Hunt launch.' with the line '10 comments on "Trailmap" (Source: Product Hunt). Replies in the first hours decide how the day goes.' and a link to your launch. On the very first read, all comments count as new.
the launch has 25 or more upvotes
The moment is titled like this: not a milestone: a say line in the Today brief, 'Thank the 31 people who backed your launch.'
Trailmap sits at 31 upvotes. The brief suggests a short thank-you post, with the line '"Trailmap" is at 31 upvotes (Source: Product Hunt). A short thank-you post is the easiest win today.' Nothing is posted for you.
upvotes rose by 10 or more and by 20 percent or more since your last read
The moment is titled like this: not a milestone: a say line in the Today brief, 'Your launch is climbing: +14 upvotes since you last looked. Post where your visitors come from.'
At your last read Trailmap had 60 upvotes and now it has 74, a gain of 14 that is more than 20 percent. The brief says '60 to 74 upvotes (Source: Product Hunt)' and nudges you to post where your visitors come from.
3How the brain uses it
The rules below are the ones that apply to Product Hunt. The same rules, with worked examples, are on the brain page.
- Only your own launch: you paste your own developer token and the address of your own launch, FoxPlug reads that one launch only when you press a button, never more than once every 10 minutes (6 a day, except on your launch day and the 24 hours after it), reads its numbers and the first 50 comments for your private list, and never writes to Product Hunt. How the brain decides
- Reply to new comments (fix first): comments that arrived since your last read, on a launch from the last 7 days. How the brain decides
- Thank your supporters (say): from 25 upvotes, a short thank-you post is suggested. How the brain decides
- Your launch is climbing (say): at least 10 new upvotes and 20 percent more since your last read becomes a nudge to post where your visitors come from. How the brain decides
- The numbers are shown to you only, marked 'Source: Product Hunt' with a link to your launch, and kept on your own connection: never published, shared, exported or used on any public page. How the brain decides
4Set up Product Hunt in a few steps
Access: your own Product Hunt developer token plus the address of your launch page (a second box). What to give it: your own developer token, read-only; your own launch only.
- Open producthunt.com/v2/oauth/applications.
- Click Add an application and name it FoxPlug.
- Product Hunt asks for a Redirect URI. Fill it in even though FoxPlug never uses it; your own website address is a fine answer.
- Create the application, scroll down on its page to Create Token (the developer token) and copy it.
- Paste the token into FoxPlug. In the second box paste the address of your launch page, which looks like https://www.producthunt.com/posts/your-product, copied from the address bar of your launch.
- Press Connect. The developer token does not expire, so it keeps working until you delete it yourself.
5Limits worth knowing
Where it stops, so nothing surprises you.
- At most 1 read every 10 minutes, always. At most 6 reads a day, counted by calendar day in universal time, except during your own launch window (from 00:00 Pacific on the day your launch is featured to 24:00 Pacific the day after), where the 10-minute gap is the only limit, so at most 144 a day; a read that is too soon is skipped and says how long to wait.
- Product Hunt's own rate-limit headers are read; when the allowance it gives us is at 10 percent or 100 points, whichever is larger, FoxPlug makes no read until it resets, even inside your launch window.
- If Product Hunt answers 'too many requests', FoxPlug waits (as long as Product Hunt asks, at most 10 seconds) and tries once more; it never loops.
- Each request is cut off after 20 seconds.
- The address must be a launch page address or its plain name; anything else is refused with an explanation.
- If no launch is found at the address, the read fails with 'no launch was found at that address'.
- A launch older than 7 days gives no lines in the Today brief; it is treated as history.
- A single switch in the code can turn the reader off; when off it refuses before any request.
6What it never reads
Read only means read only, and the list below is what the code leaves alone.
- A way for comment text or @handles to leave your account: they sit in your own private list, are never published, shared or exported, and are not milestones
- Anyone else's launches, a leaderboard or a list of posts (the single question asks for one post by its address and nothing else)
- Who voted, or anything about people beyond the public @handle on a comment of your own launch (the request asks for comments, their upvote counts and handles, nothing about voters)
- Anything written back to Product Hunt: the one question is a read and there is no mutation in the reader
- A public milestone: the reader returns no milestones, so the numbers cannot reach a post, a changelog or a public page
7Questions
Does FoxPlug look at other makers' launches?
No. One question is asked, for the single launch at the address you paste. There is no list of other posts.
Will my upvote numbers appear on a public page?
No. They are kept on your own connection, shown to you with 'Source: Product Hunt' and a link to your launch, and never turned into a post or public milestone.
How often can it read my launch?
Only when you press a button, and no more than once every 10 minutes. At most 6 times a day, except on your launch day and the 24 hours after it, when the 10-minute gap is the only limit. It stops sooner if Product Hunt's own limits run low.
Does FoxPlug read the comments on my launch?
Yes, on your own launch only: the first 50 comments, with the commenter's public @handle, so it can keep a private list of what people ask for. That text stays in your account. It is never published, shared or exported, and FoxPlug never writes to Product Hunt.
Does the developer token expire?
The connect guide says this token does not expire, so it keeps working until you delete it yourself. If you lose it, read it off your application at producthunt.com/v2/oauth/applications again.
What does it do with the numbers?
It turns them into plain lines in your Today brief: reply to new comments, thank your supporters from 25 upvotes, and post while the launch is climbing.
FoxPlug reads this tool only when you press Check for what's new, and only to read. Plans and limits are on the pricing page. Questions: support.