manda-reader/prd.txt at main · coyotiv/manda-reader · GitHub

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Manda Reader
Key takeaways for the new extension
– Goal: super-fast way to get from feeds (Hacker News, Substack, blogs, etc.) to the actual content, with light bookmarking and minimal UI.
– Musts: easy feed adding (paste URL), HN-specific list + behavior, in-extension reading that “just works,” simple bookmarking/export, and multi-device sync.
– Everything else is secondary or noise.

Product goal / philosophy
Optimized for “content websites” (HN, Substack, blogs) rather than generic news.


Primary job: get me to the content as fast as possible, with just enough memory (bookmarks/history) to find things again.


Lightweight, minimal, no “home” dashboards or clutter pages.


Must-have functionality
Feed sources and adding feeds


Start from a useful default set of feeds (e.g., Hacker News, BetaList, etc.).


Ability to add new feeds by pasting a normal web URL (e.g., Substack post or blog), and the app discovers the RSS/Atom automatically (can use search if needed).


Simple “Add feed” entry point in the extension UI (e.g., browser button “Add this site to Reader”).


Hacker News experience


List view shows: title, number of comments, score/likes, and age/time.


Sort options including “popularity” (score-based) and maybe time-based.


Clicking the item opens the external link (the article), not the HN comments page.


Clicking on “comments” or “score/likes” opens the HN discussion page.


Reading experience


Built-in reader panel that can display ~95% of pages correctly inside the extension/app.


By default, open in the built-in view; provide a clear “Open in new tab” option.


Visible URL + easy “Open in new tab” and “Copy link” actions.


State, bookmarks, and sync


Items auto-mark as “read” when opened.


“Save for later” / bookmark per item.


Ability to export bookmarks as a list of links (basic export is enough).


User account + sync so the same feeds and state can be used on multiple computers.


Nice-to-have / secondary features
History


A “History” view that shows, per day, what was in the feed and what I clicked.


Day-by-day snapshot so I can return to “what I saw today” or “recently” even if items disappear from the main feed.


This is useful but considered secondary / harder; can come later.


Reader mode


Clean reader mode (simplified article view) as a toggle.


Most of the time, normal webpage rendering is fine; reader mode is a bonus.


Substack-specific support


Extra support for Substack: connecting a Substack account and listing my subscribed newsletters.


Tracking new posts per subscription and pulling them into the same reader UI.


BetaList and similar feeds


For feeds like BetaList, default behavior is still “go to the main link,” but offer an easy way to open the BetaList page for that startup as well.


Mobile


Mobile app or PWA version that mirrors the same experience.


Treated as “nice to have,” not core v1.


Favorites/Bookmarks


Simple, like Safari, feature to add my go to links. This is not about RSS feeds. When I open a new tab I want to easily go to my bookmarks.
Things that don’t matter / should be avoided
Generic “Home” pages, news dashboards, or extra sections that don’t help with fast access to content.


Heavy feed-management interfaces; just keep a list and basic add/remove.


Overcomplicated recommendation systems or social features that slow down the core “open content fast” workflow.