Bigwords.page
The most recommended of 14 web apps
Turns any screen into a sign by editing the URL, handy for showing one message without design work. Critics note it needs someone to open the URL on the screen remotely.
Turns any screen into a sign by editing the URL, handy for showing one message without design work. Critics note it needs someone to open the URL on the screen remotely.
48 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 45
- criticize it
- 3
- approval share
- 94%
Recommended in 1 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 45 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 15 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 1 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Simple, crisp idea
“This sort of incredibly simple, crisp idea is what changes the world.”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” “This is so brilliantly simple.”
Comment from 8 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” “Simple idea. Nice execution.”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” Useful for quick one-off displays
“It's definitely useful for businesses that just need to display one thing, and don't feel like spending a ton of time designing.”
Comment from 8 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” “Turning a URL into a fully customizable sign is one of those simple things that can be surprisingly useful.”
Comment from 9 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” “Would be great for conferences in particular”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” Message stays in URL fragment
“Browsers don't send URL fragments to the server, so I never see your message.”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” “I like that the fragment is basically argv for a static web app.”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” “Make the URL the entirety of the data needed.”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” - Comment from 8 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app”
Does one thing well
“It's also a concise and accurate description of the service.”
Comment from 8 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app” “it exemplifies DOTADIW, do one thing and do it well”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: Bigwords.page – Turn any screen into a sign. The URL is the app”
Other web apps people recommend
The four most recommended other web apps, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bigwords.pageThis page | 45 | 3 | 94% | 1 | — | — |
| Jmail | 39 | 10 | 80% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Stowaway | 21 | 4 | 84% | 2 | — | — |
| Scroll Wikipedia like TikTok | 18 | 5 | 78% | 1 | — | — |
| MyTinyCafe | 12 | 4 | 75% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
33 of the 49 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Super useful for NFC tags”
“Turning a URL into a fully customizable sign is one of those simple things that can be surprisingly useful.”
“Very nice, and practically a standalone solution.”
“It's definitely useful for businesses that just need to display one thing, and don't feel like spending a ton of time designing.”
“It's also a concise and accurate description of the service.”
“the app is a good idea and works well”
“This is so brilliantly simple.”
“Using hash to save bandwidth.”
“Beautiful Idea. keep improving.”
“bigwords has the advantage of accepting inline parameters though.”
“It's a really cool idea with lots of potential uses”
“"the URL is the app" is just meaningless”
“Nice feature-set, cool project.”
“Very cool. Could you add base64 encoding to the query part so that it doesn't hint at what the screen will say”
“Neat! For mobile, it would be nice to have an on-screen button to toggle full screen and turn the page landscape.”
“This is neat. I'm deaf, so I have to write people all the time with big text.”
“Cool project and nicely done”
“This sort of incredibly simple, crisp idea is what changes the world.”
“This solution is way more flexible than mine was.”
“epilepsy warning for the 'MAGIC' style”
“This is a new project and a great place to start.”
“It is a good idea perhaps (if you have the means to open a URL remotely)”
“Cool idea, but agree that fixing actual mistakes in the title is a worthwhile use of time.”
“it exemplifies DOTADIW, do one thing and do it well”
“would be a great companion to a web browser app on those TV devices”
“I like that the fragment is basically argv for a static web app.”
“Love this and I already have a use for this”
“Make the URL the entirety of the data needed.”
“Simple idea. Nice execution.”
“Site is blocked - getting an SSL warning on Firefox.”
“Would be great for conferences in particular”
“Really clever! Definitely feels like positive hacker creativity.”
“Browsers don't send URL fragments to the server, so I never see your message.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.