Hi,

Like many of you, I struggled with short-form video addiction. I'd open Instagram to reply to a DM from a friend, or YouTube to check a coding tutorial, and 45 minutes later I'd find myself in a zombie trance scrolling brainrot Reels.

Existing blockers (Opal, Forest, Freedom, StayFree) were always all-or-nothing: they block the entire app package. But I didn't want to delete Instagram or YouTube—I just wanted to kill the addictive algorithmic feed while keeping DMs and long-form videos intact.

So I built Scrolln't (Android): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.scrollnt.focus

How it works technically:

1. Selective Feed Interception: Instead of just monitoring running foreground packages via UsageStats, it uses an Android AccessibilityService to inspect the active window state (`typeWindowStateChanged` and `typeWindowContentChanged`).

2. On-Device Node Inspection: When Instagram or YouTube is open, it inspects accessibility node labels strictly in-memory for elements matching "Reels" / "Shorts" tabs.

3. Zero Data Collection: The accessibility service doesn't record, store, or transmit any keystrokes, personal messages, or screen pixels. The check runs in memory on-device and immediately triggers an overlay/redirection if a doomscroll trap is entered.

4. Hardcore Mode & Friction: Gentle zen bells or breathing timers never worked for me (I'd just skip them). Scrolln't introduces actual friction: progressive delays, math verification to forfeit, and a local roast engine with sarcastic quotes.

5. Local-First: All focus history, streaks, and app limits live locally on the device (SQLite/SecureStore). Backend sync is strictly optional for cross-friend squad leaderboards.

Challenges I ran into:

- Android OEM Battery Killers: Aggressive task killers on Xiaomi/Samsung kill background accessibility services. Had to build explicit intent guides for OEM autostart.

- Google Play Compliance: Play Store is extremely strict with the Accessibility API disclosure. Had to ensure all checks are prominent, local-only, and fully documented in the privacy policy.

- Dynamic UI changes: Meta frequently changes resource IDs, so relying on accessibility text/content-description heuristics was the only resilient way to track the Reels tab without breaking on every update.

I built this solo over the last few months. It's live on the Play Store, free to use, and has no ads.

Would love any technical feedback, criticisms on the approach, or feature ideas from the HN community!

Hi,