Soft.xyz is an independent, data-driven platform that compares 232+ developer tools across 69 categories by real metrics — GitHub activity, npm downloads, actual pricing, DX scores, and community sentiment. Unlike pay-to-play review sites, every ranking on Soft.xyz is based on publicly verifiable data pulled from GitHub, npm, and official pricing pages.

How does Soft.xyz collect data?

Soft.xyz pulls data from public APIs including GitHub (stars, forks, commits, open issues, last commit date), npm (weekly download counts), and official pricing pages. Community sentiment data comes from Reddit and Hacker News mention tracking. All metrics are refreshed weekly and timestamped so you can see exactly when data was last updated.

Is Soft.xyz free to use?

Yes, Soft.xyz is completely free to use. All tool pages, comparisons, benchmarks, DX scores, pricing analysis, and category rankings are available at no cost. For teams that need a deeper analysis, we offer a paid Stack Audit report ($199) that evaluates your entire tech stack with personalized recommendations. An API is also available for programmatic access to our dataset.

How many tools does Soft.xyz track?

Soft.xyz tracks 232 developer tools across 69 categories including databases, hosting, authentication, payments, analytics, CI/CD, monitoring, search, CMS, and more. Each tool page includes real-time GitHub metrics, npm download counts, pricing breakdowns, and side-by-side comparisons with alternatives in the same category.

🪦

Google Hangouts on Air

Shut Down — September 2020

Reviewed byRoman K· 2020-09-12

What was it?

Live broadcasting via Hangouts to YouTube. Free webinar tool for creators and educators.

What happened?

Migrated to YouTube Live. Hangouts on Air removed as standalone feature.

Migration Guide

YouTube Live, Streamyard, or Restream for live broadcasting.

Timeline & context

Google Hangouts on Air shut down in September 2020, 6 years ago. It sat in the design category, where Soft.xyz tracks 7 discontinued products in total. If you are still running it in production, the migration path above is the shortest route off it.

FAQ

Why did Google Hangouts on Air shut down?

Migrated to YouTube Live. Hangouts on Air removed as standalone feature.

What should I migrate Google Hangouts on Air to?

No drop-in replacement is tracked yet — check the design category for current options.

Is there a free alternative to Google Hangouts on Air?

Not among the tracked alternatives.

Also dead in design

Skype — 2025 Google Jamboard — 2024 Google Hangouts — 2024 ICQ — 2024 Google Podcasts — 2024 Microsoft Cortana — 2023