# Spotify's dead Car Thing becomes a desk assistant

DeskThing swaps the Car Thing's stock software for a community OS that runs Spotify, local audio, Discord and GIF apps. Every button can be remapped. It's a v0.9 beta.

- Category: Code (mod)
- Device: [Spotify Car Thing](https://afterware.xyz/d/spotify-car-thing)
- Made by: ItsRiprod on GitHub
- Original: https://github.com/ItsRiprod/DeskThing
- On Afterware: https://afterware.xyz/p/spotify-car-thing-rebuilt-as-a-desk-assistant

## Can I build this?

- Difficulty: Beginner
- AI-buildability: 4/5 (Mostly software on a device you already own, with a flashing step that is guided by a video and an installer.)
- Time: An evening
- Cost: $0
- Parts: Spotify Car Thing
- Tools: computer for flashing, USB cable

Estimates based on the original write-up. How the AI-buildability score works: https://afterware.xyz/ai-buildability

## Build sheet

- Device: Spotify Car Thing
- Platform: Chromium web app
- Companion: Desktop app
- Status: Community project, v0.9 beta

## Starter prompt

```
Based on "Spotify's dead Car Thing becomes a desk assistant" on Afterware: https://afterware.xyz/p/spotify-car-thing-rebuilt-as-a-desk-assistant

I have a Spotify Car Thing flashed with a custom image. Write a small web app for its Chromium browser that shows the current track title, artist and album art, with buttons for play, pause, skip and previous. Send the controls to a companion script on my computer that calls the Spotify Web API. Keep the layout readable on a 800x480 touchscreen.
```

## Story

Spotify killed the Car Thing, but its little screen and dial still have work to do. DeskThing replaces the stock software with an alternative OS. The device runs a Chromium-based web app and talks to a desktop companion app on your computer. That app installs apps, manages and updates the display, and maps button presses to whatever functions you want.

The apps come from the community. Spotify control brings album art and podcast support. Another app handles local audio for anything playing on your machine. LyrThing shows lyrics, and an image viewer puts uploaded GIFs on the screen.

Installing takes some care. The repo warns against pulling the main branch. Grab the installer from the project website instead, and follow the video walkthrough. If you'd rather hack on it, development uses Node and an Electron-style src/main, preload and renderer layout.

## Resources

- [Official website](https://deskthing.app/)
- [Install walkthrough video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iW2biAnq0n8)
- [superbird-tool (CarThing image)](https://github.com/Car-Thing-Hax-Community/superbird-tool)
- [Reddit community](https://reddit.com/r/DeskThing)
- [App directory](https://deskthing.app/apps)

Tags: car thing, alternative firmware, spotify, desktop companion, electron, custom buttons

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