MindPush allows users to post anonymous comments (left) and read and review comments from other users within half a mile.
At a time when most social applications rely on networks of people that know each other and on content produced by users with distinguishable identities, Kansas City, Mo.-based JimmyGood Technology is taking an altogether different approach with its latest application, MindPush.
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What if all you know about someone else is that they’re nearby right now and that they have an opinion or information to share? Well, that’s where MindPush hopes to enter the equation. MindPush is a location-based social messaging application that allows anonymous interaction between users within a half-mile of each other.
“The sheer volume of anonymous thoughts in one location is immense, but until now, untapped,” JimmyGood co-founder Brian Smith (below) said in a press release. “Imagine if regulars at a coffee shop could share info about a great new drink they just tried, or if a commuter in Grand Central Station could ask fellow users if any of them could assist with writing a press release.”
Released into the Android Market on Dec. 31 and coming to the Apple App Store soon, MindPush allows users to post messages that others in their locale can see, “like” and decide if the post is fit for the public, all in real time. While most messaging applications and social platforms require users to create a profile of some sort, or identify themselves with a handle, MindPush has no such prerequisites.
Users simply log in (an email address is required to set up an account but is not visible to other users), compose an anonymous message and then publish it for other users in close proximity to see. Via a “Read Minds” screen, users can view all recent messages, and they can interact with those messages, expressing approval or disapproval with “Yeah” or “Nah” votes. Users can also request removal of inappropriate messages, with three such requests resulting in a message being taken down.
Location-based group chat applications were all the rage last year at South By Southwest Interactive in March. Many apps like Ask Around, YoBongo, Domo and LocalMind launched around the time of SXSW and provide similar offerings to MindPush. But the characteristic that seems to distinguish MindPush from most other apps of its kind is that ability to remain anonymous.
“There is still work to be done,” JimmyGood’s Austin Jones said in an email, “but we believe MindPush fills a void in the current messaging platforms and provides great value for consumers and businesses.”
JimmyGood’s other work includes CiAll, an application that allows remote online monitoring of mobile devices, and CiiMemories, an application for wedding guests to share text and picture messages with others attendees.
Image credits: Screenshots from MindPush in the Android Market. Smith photo from thinkbig.kansascity.com.
