akumpf

In general, while I think more things like Hacker News are a good thing, Product Hunt feels elitist to me.

The people who are already in the know and well connected can get lots of publicity, and those who are more independent or just starting out either can't post or don't get recognized.

I've also had multiple friends (who are much better connected in SF) create big roll-out plans where they get all their friends to quickly up vote them. While it's not technically a problem, it takes away the real test of "is the idea worth voting for" and turns it into more of a popularity contest.

Just my 2 cents. Maybe others have had great experiences (and certainly some of the "products" posted are cool), but I'm skeptical of Product Hunt in general...

My suggestion is to stick with truly democratic places to share your new things (if you want more unbiased feedback), and submit press/news directly to places -- they want good stories and interesting ideas/products to share with their readers if what you have is a genuine contribution.

Good luck!

And here's a game example (way too hard, though).

http://akumpf.github.io/wordist/game/

Hmm, I'm still viewing it, and it says 4 others are also viewing right now...

Try this page, too!

http://ephemeralp2p.durazo.us/82d78987fd1cd530302b81d5643739...

This is a test page with embedded media via base64 encoding. This shouldn't touch the server, so hopefully no bottlenecks for this page either :)

And a link to the live demo:

https://sketchwrite.com/n/wCGHSHrMmp5

Thanks!

While analogies can't map across everything, thinking about circuits as water was one of the things that really got me interested in them early on; it seemed like a natural starting place after building Sketchwrite :)

What about an interface for taking notes-as-code like this: http://fs_previews.kumpf.cc/

Scroll to the bottom for some of the syntax highlighting features I'm working on. Also try the fold/unfold buttons at the bottom.

Any feedback/thoughts would be great :)

For reference, my daily schedule that seems to work nicely is:

1. Turn on one of the background environments (usually the café audio).

2. Play some jazz (trying to pick a playlist of songs that don't have lyrics so it doesn't distract).

3. Warm up with some quick brain/physical exercises.

4. Finally, dive into whatever needs to get done. :)

All the code sits inside a single page of HTML, so feel free to download the source and tweak it for your own links/interests!

Cheers, Adam

Also, out of curiosity, does anyone know of any other code editors that show URL previews inline?

I guess that's an open question at this point... It's still pretty early (i.e. alpha) so I'm thinking that "selling" it isn't really on the table yet. :)

Which particular aspect of Sketchwrite do you think would be most marketable?

Forgot that links don't show up in the original HN question.

Here's the quick proof-of-concept of a javascript file with embedded drawings/callouts in Sketchwrite.

https://sketchwrite.com/n/VNpCzRv5r38

Womp womp... :-/

Thanks for letting me know! Working on that now...

Edit: Should be working now. Thanks again for the catch!

Here's a short summary if you haven't tried it out yet.

--

Sketchwrite is a hybrid notepad that combines the free-form nature of drawing with a line-based text editor. This allows sketches to be placed anywhere while maintaining their relationship with lines of nearby text; all without needing to tediously drag things around or worry about positioning.

The way drawings and text relate may seem like a subtle change in perspective, but it opens up an entirely new way of interacting with digital paper. You can even draw around words for emphasis or pointing as you would in a physical notebook.

--

Sketchwrite works on any device, so give try it from anywhere and let me know what you think (or if you run into any issues!).

Cheers, Adam

Great points. I had some sketches on the home page initially, then pulled them off to keep it super clean. I'll look back into that.

Sign in and accounts are alwlays a hurdle. I'm bummed to hear that the social sign in options turned you away.

I purposely used those instead of dedicated account creation so that it would be easier/faster/simpler for most users. Oh well, your feedback is much appreciated, and if there are others in the same boat I'll look into a dedicated account option.

Cheers! Adam

I'm the dev, so if you have any suggestions about Sketchwrite I'd love to hear what you think. :)

Full disclosure: I'm the dev. If you have questions/ideas, let me know!

Yes, Fiddlewax Blue is gridded. That is both a weakness and a strength. :)

There are two main use cases for the app:

1. New musicians (i.e. people who haven't really played an instrument before) can jump directly into playing notes and chords in a way that far less intimidating than most physical instruments, but still build intuition around chord types, pitches, harmonies, relationships, etc.. It's a foot in the door to no longer feeling like making music is beyond you, and encourages you to play/enjoy the process. When you hit the app's limits of griddedness, that's when you take that intuition and excitement to other instruments.

2. Proficient/comfortable musicians can pick up Fiddlewax Blue to create new sounds and progressions than they would otherwise explore on their main instrument. For example, a lot of people play the guitar, but spend so much time learning a few chords that they can feel boxed in. When you have a larger palette of chords and scales, you can find new melodies and riffs, then translate those back to your main instrument.

This is a good debate to have.

My hope is to get more people making music and thinking more deeply about how notes, scales, chords, etc. are all related for creating new songs. The formality of sheet music is secondary, and naturally most people that really get into an instrument will inevitably learn how to read/write notes on a staff.

But initially, I think the formalism of sheet music gets in the way and is discouraging to lots of people who may otherwise enjoy learning to play an instrument. Getting someone to sit down and start creating a new song with any kind of depth, phrasing, or chord progression is a feat itself.

I believe that forcing sheet music to be a primary focus bogs down the initial excitement/drive. It's like teaching color theory before playing around with crayons first. :)

Also, write-up just posted on HackADay here:

http://hackaday.com/2014/11/07/make-a-capacitive-clothespin-...

Direct link to step-by-step instructions here:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Clothespin-Piano-for-iPad/

Here's links to more detailed info about Fiddlewax Pro.

Overview: https://fiddlewax.com/pro

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wx1tDcC_zM

Audio: https://soundcloud.com/adam-kumpf/sets

Walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMASFk1ksOM

Guide Book: http://news.fiddlewax.com/post/94051722909/proguide

I understand the perspective you're taking, but I politely disagree. I think you're missing the bigger point here.

Let's say someone is interested in baking a cake. There is a LOT you can learn, spanning general baking techniques, chemistry, design, art, tasting, etc. But if your immediate response is "we need flour, so go plant some wheat and wait a few months," they would likely lose interest.

Teaching people to plant and harvest wheat is awesome, but for most people it probably shouldn't be the first thing you're met with when you are trying to learn how bake a cake.

This is like an alternative form of "Yak Shaving." :)

Instead of going super far down a path, following each step along the way, and somehow ending up with a yak in your hands, you're immediately asked to find a yak and you rightfully ask, "what does this have to do with yaks?"

Yes, the command-line is powerful, but it is definitely a huge hurdle for most as they're really just trying to do something else. Well stated PG.

And here are direct links to the video/audio for those who don't like reading text :)

Overview Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wx1tDcC_zM

Sample Audio: https://soundcloud.com/adam-kumpf/sets/fwpro

30-sec Spot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EW1Jq6X64fM

7-min Walkthrough: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMASFk1ksOM

I haven't created one personally, but if you're in a maker desert (where there isn't great access to spaces/people/tools to build and hack things), consider starting a maker space.

I used to live a few blocks away from one in Seattle and it was awesome. Just a couple workbenches, a 3D printer, hand tools, wifi, and some electronic components can go a long way and get people in the community stoked. :)

Seems like an interesting idea, but none of the submissions are populating for me. I'll try back later and hope it's resolved :)

Thanks. Interesting to see all the variations on Hacker News out there. Definitely a ton of HN mirrors, but agreed that there is potential in seeing an alternative view of what's already been upvoted.

Nice! That goes a long way in the right direction. Still lots of big company stories, but interesting to see a different take on the same submissions.

Any other easter egg HN views we should know about? :)

Looks cool; although it feels a bit gated and sparse on first read.

I really like the democratized submission process on hacker news.

Just curious, is it wrong to ask for a HackerNews upvote at the end of an write-up?