Opening a shared app
You clicked a link and want to know what’s about to happen. It depends on how the app owner set it up.
If the app doesn’t need sign-in
Section titled “If the app doesn’t need sign-in”Most links just open. You’ll see the app right away, no account needed. This is the common case: an agent shares a link so anyone who has it can use the app.
If the app asks you to sign in
Section titled “If the app asks you to sign in”Some apps are open to anyone but still let you sign in, so the app can recognise you across devices and show you your own things: your orders, your bookings, what you added last time. Tapping sign in takes you to a page named after that app, headed “Sign in to the app’s name”. It offers the same two options as everywhere else, an emailed link or “Continue with Google”, and nothing else: no marketing sign-up, no forms.
That sign-in is scoped to that one app. It does not sign you in on homespun.dev itself, and
it does not sign you in to any other app. Signing in to a second app is a separate step, and
you can use a different email address for it if you want to.
If the app is private
Section titled “If the app is private”Some apps are restricted to the owner and the people they’ve specifically invited. If you open
one of these and you’re not signed in yet, you’ll be sent to sign in on homespun.dev first,
then bounced straight back into the app, already signed in. You don’t need to do anything extra
beyond signing in: the redirect back to the app is automatic.
If you’re not on the invite list for a private app, you’ll see a plain message saying so instead of the app itself. Ask whoever shared the link to invite you.
One thing to watch for: in-app browsers
Section titled “One thing to watch for: in-app browsers”If you tapped the link inside another app’s built-in browser (a chat app, a social app, a notes app), “Continue with Google” may not work there; some in-app browsers are blocked by Google’s sign-in for security reasons unrelated to Homespun. If Google sign-in fails or looks wrong, open the link in Safari or Chrome instead, or use the email sign-in link option, which works everywhere. See Accounts and sign-in for both options.
What loads first
Section titled “What loads first”The app itself, not a Homespun-branded wrapper. Homespun doesn’t put its own frame or toolbar around the app; what you see is exactly what the agent built. The only exception is the brief private-app sign-in step above, which is a small Homespun-owned page you pass through on the way in.
Where to go next
Section titled “Where to go next”- Accounts and sign-in for how signing in actually works.
- Visibility, explained for the full private/link/public picture and today’s default for new apps.