Big Head
We have all been there.
We get completely dependent on an app to help with our productivity, and WHAM! It takes off—and who does it forget as it slowly disappears behind a paywall?
You!
Let me explain.
As someone with ADOS (Attention Deficit—OH SQUIRREL!!!), I would forget my own head if it weren't attached.
I really liked the app Pieces from the moment I found it. It started out with all the bells and whistles: debriefs, daily recaps, the ability to ask questions about what you'd been doing—it was awesome.
Then, slowly, things started disappearing behind a paywall.
Then it got a big head and became an MCP.
The nerve!
I thought, Okay, maybe this is the wrong one.
Then one day, I logged in and found that practically everything I had been using was behind a paywall.
I was furious, to be completely honest. I had been using Pieces for more than a year. It had become part of how I worked and kept track of what the hell I had been doing all day.
So, naturally, I went down a couple of rabbit holes.
That's when I found an open-source alternative called Screenpipe.
And judging by what I've seen so far, it may actually be better than Pieces.
Oh, and did I mention it's open-source?
Which is important because I ain't made of money.
Now, let me tell you how much trouble I had getting this thing installed.
Because apparently, when I'm mad, I lose the ability to think straight.
First, I tried using the terminal.
Ugh.
I can code. I can read code. I can translate what something is telling me. But apparently that doesn't mean I know everything under the sun about installing an application through a terminal.
So that was a no-go.
Then I tried downloading it.
That was a pain in the neck, too, mostly because my Wi-Fi connection was playing fast and loose with my emotions.
Never mind the fact that it was a ZIP file—and despite what Windows says, I don't think it particularly appreciates ZIP files.
Finally, after several days and enough language to make a sailor blush, I actually managed to get Screenpipe downloaded and installed.
Minus some of my hair.
At this point, I would like to praise the people who have spent time working on Screenpipe and contributing to it on GitHub, because it's freaking amazing.
And somehow, after all that aggravation, I had managed to get it running.
Now came the fun part:
Was Screenpipe actually going to replace Pieces?
Because getting the damn thing installed was only half the battle.
Right from the get-go, the AI is limited to chats per day, UGH! And it can be used as an MCP. It can be connected to multiple services, such as Google Calendar and Gmail. Also, it can be used with several AI agents, and you can create tools using it. Maybe I'm jaded by Pieces, but I feel like this is only a temporary solution to my absent-minded professor routine. sigh
