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amwelles

153 karma · joined November 1, 2010

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amwelles··on How two bored 1970s housewives helped create the PC industry (2015)
Why can’t this headline say “two women?” Big yuck.
amwelles··on Ask HN: What should I say to my manager when my performance starts suffering?
> In software this would be the equivalent of just writing components or html for an extended period of time without any variety, which is soulcrushing.

This is essentially what I do, and I enjoy it! I like my work to be a bit boring so that I can save my energy and creativity for things outside of work. I convert designs into functional websites. Somebody recently likened my job to being a construction worker or general contractor. Maybe 2-3 times a year I get something challenging, and I either jump at the chance to learn something new (if it’s something interesting or for a client I like) or I dread it (if the documentation is unclear or the client is exceptionally difficult).

amwelles··on Building a personal website in 2021
I reference Sheldon Brown’s website very often. So much good content and advice there.
amwelles··on Cycling is more important than electric cars for reaching net-zero cities
Something tells me there’s a lot more to it than that.
amwelles··on If you miss an Apple Card payment, Apple disables all your Apple accounts
Depends on the card you apply for. I didn’t have a credit score until my mid 20s because I avoided them like the plague and bought only with money I had. Now I still do the latter, but I get rewards for using a credit card for purchases. My very first credit card had a very small limit ($250-500, I think), and I only used it for groceries.

Not to say everybody needs a credit card/score, but they do have advantages if you’re responsible with them. :)

amwelles··on Shift to Remote Work Based on 7k HN Who Is Hiring Posts
I got over this by having teammates who regularly asked for help in Slack. Suddenly, it felt very acceptable for me to do so. Our #dev channel is full of my coworkers and me asking and answering questions for everybody to see that we all need a nudge in the right direction from time to time. I think when that stuff gets hashed out in DMs or in other less public places, the new devs don’t realize it’s happening.
amwelles··on Great American Rail Trail
The route itself is very easy to follow and well-marked. I did the southern half (C&O), and if you camp along the way using the free sites, you don’t even have to get off the trail except to resupply.
amwelles··on Great American Rail Trail
I was lucky to take my bike up to Cumberland, MD from Raleigh, NC a couple of years ago by train to do the C&O trail. I really do wish they’d offer more ways to travel with your bike, because that was a great experience. I’ve also done the trip from Raleigh to Durham, which makes for a nice little day trip.
amwelles··on Show HN: Write-Only Interface for Twitter
Reminds me of the good old days of Birdhouse[1].

1. https://sandwich.co/work/a-notepad-for-twitter/

amwelles··on Why everything you know about wolf packs is wrong (2013)
I’ve been training dogs as a hobby for a good 15-20 years. It’s been neat to see the shift away from “dominance” training to positive reinforcement. The difference in how dogs react is pretty wild. With the new way, the dogs are excited to work. With the old way, there were so many dogs working just to avoid punishment, which doesn’t give them the same drive to please.
amwelles··on I tried out-training my diet for 18 months
A well-balanced diet will certainly make you healthier and feel better! If you are eating more energy than you're expending, you will gain weight. If you are eating less energy than you're expending, you will lose weight. This is well-researched.

I think, from my experience and from the experiences I've read of people who have lost weight and kept it off, the key is finding a sustainable diet. One that your future, goal-weight self can be trusted to follow even after you're done losing the weight. People tend to get to that point and then go back to eating like they did when they were overweight, which reverses all the hard work they did.

amwelles··on I tried out-training my diet for 18 months
It's well-documented that your weight fluctuates quite a bit from day to day. Mine goes up and down a pound or two. It has to do with the amount of water your body is retaining at any given time. Starting a new exercise routine will make your weight spike temporarily. Cutting your caloric consumption will sometimes dramatically decrease your weight, then you'll gain a little bit back, then it'll gradually go down again if you stick to a deficit.
amwelles··on I tried out-training my diet for 18 months
Eating less is a simple concept, but not necessarily easy. The author specifically mentions struggling with binge eating.
amwelles··on How to force yourself to leave the computer using the leave command
Seconding ColdTurkey. I started using it when I began working from home a few years ago. It’s great for keeping me on track.
amwelles··on How to force yourself to leave the computer using the leave command
I use Forest. It doesn’t actually lock you out, but I’m reminded not to look at my phone when I start a timer.

https://www.forestapp.cc/

amwelles··on 2020 Mac Mini – Putting Apple Silicon M1 To The Test
I’m curious what you consider serious work? I write a lot on the iPad, can answer emails, get my shopping done, etc. I definitely wouldn’t use it for programming, but I know some people have set it up to do so.
amwelles··on 2020 Mac Mini – Putting Apple Silicon M1 To The Test
Nope, I’m using the Smart Keyboard folio, since it came with the iPad. (Bought secondhand from a friend.)
amwelles··on 2020 Mac Mini – Putting Apple Silicon M1 To The Test
I switched from a MBP to a Mac Mini and iPad Pro last winter for my personal setup. I absolutely love it. I spend roughly equal time on both, but I’m not doing a ton of programming these days outside of work. Taking the iPad traveling is way easier than taking a laptop.
amwelles··on Ami, a tiny cube on wheels that French 14-year-olds can drive
This is why I love it when offices have showers at work. Commute in, shower, show up for work fresh. No need to do cardio outside of my ride in and out, so it’s saving me time in a way because it’s built into something I’m already doing.

I know not all offices have showers, but it was something I looked for when I was deciding on a coworking space a couple of years ago.

amwelles··on We quit our jobs to build a cabin
They are called travel trailers. If you buy used, you’ll have much better luck getting a similar price out of it. Only caveat is that they aren’t made to be lived in full time in most cases, so they’ll have more issues than a regular house might.
amwelles··on Del.icio.us
At least on Mac OS, Cleanshot[1] is a decent Skitch replacement if you were using it for marking up screenshots.

1. https://cleanshot.com/

amwelles··on Text-Only Social Network
So far, your username _can_ be a racist slur and they’re not intending to stop it. It’s a no-go for me.
amwelles··on What if aviation doesn’t recover?
We did 200 miles over four days (across the state of Maryland on the C&O trail). We brought a tent and a hammock for sleeping, then we spent the last night on a hotel.
amwelles··on Text-Only Social Network
No report button. Already seeing racist usernames.
amwelles··on What if aviation doesn’t recover?
Bicycle touring is so much fun! I did a four-day trip a couple years back, and there’s something about slowly pedaling your way from point A to point B that’s incredibly satisfying.
amwelles··on The wild economy of tabletop board game funding
I’m a fan of Citadels. If you can, get the version with the original artwork. The new artwork just isn’t the same.
amwelles··on Git Repo of Police Brutality During the 2020 George Floyd Protests
That would belong in a git repo of property crimes caused by protestors. It’s an entirely different data set.
amwelles··on Open-source, DRM-free Kindle alternative
> there's no way to check out an ebook from a library in a way that doesn't involve Amazon

Isn't this what Libby - https://libbyapp.com/ - does?

amwelles··on Bicycles from Sketches (2016)
My friends and I did this, but with horses, during a camping trip once. The results were hilarious and still something we joke and laugh about.
amwelles··on Fitful nightly sleep linked to chronic inflammation, hardened arteries
A (healthy-weight) roommate of mine would regularly stop breathing in his sleep. He was convinced he was fine until his girlfriend finally got him to do a sleep study. Got his CPAP machine shortly after!
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