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ecaron

5,075 karma · joined May 22, 2008

Minnesota-based developer/product-manager. Tools typically in my arsenal include Linux, Docker, AWS, PHP and Node.js.

Tweeting at @ecaron. LinkedIn at http://linkedin.com/in/ecaron. Email is me@ericcaron.com.

Random HN code: d13b2ac1c6b22c9a1557ee5a5dd4f41855f65133

Your topcolor should be dfcdfc

submissionscomments
ecaron··on A formula for responsive font-size
My favorite solution in this space remains https://www.modularscale.com/, because (like others mentioned) different device types warrant different scales, BUT ALSO changing line height and padding on a modular scale (also per device type) takes the math out of my responsibilities and puts it on the computer - where it belongs.
ecaron··on Adobe Staff Worry AI Will Kill Graphic Designer Jobs
Article sans paywall: https://web.archive.org/web/20230727022758/https://www.busin...
ecaron··on Ask HN: Who is hiring? (April 2022)
Caribou Coffee (a part of Panera Brands) | Sr. Software Engineer | Minneapolis, MN / Remote (US) | Full-time | https://www.cariboucoffee.com/careers/listing/sr-software-en...

At Caribou Coffee, our Digital Experience team ensures that our customers have a good time when they interact with our brand digitally (whether that's our website, mobile app or 3rd party integrations). We're a small, agile team that's half 100% remote. We build our systems API-first, and we love serverless solutions (e.g., AWS Lambda, Azure Functions). You'll work with Product Managers, Business Analysists & other engineers to define + implement the company's roadmap. We're a small crew but we make a big impact. There's a tremendous amount of satisfaction being able to sit in our coffee shops, watch customers order coffee, and take pride in the fact that you removed barriers between that person & the cup of coffee that'll make their day great.

Our tech stack: Node.js (with Quasar & Vue, though Svelte keeps tempting us as a JavaScript framework). We use a lot of Azure, but we're cloud agnostic. We're always open to hearing different technologies that would make work easier.

Questions? Feel free to email me at eric.caron+hn@cariboucoffee.com

ecaron··on Ask HN: What newsletter are you receiving that you are reading?
The Weekly Thing - https://weekly.thingelstad.com/

It is a fabulous collection of technology, privacy, leadership, family and life in Minnesota.

ecaron··on Show HN: Client-side, diceware-based password generator
I'd love to submit a PR to have them move from Google Analytics to something else. Does anyone know alternatives (like what we discussed earlier this month - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23560823) that are privacy-oriented but free to open source projects?
ecaron··on Show HN: isEven API – tell if a number is even SaaS
This would be much easier to adopt if there was an NPM package or Rubygem to simplify our company's integration with their platform.
ecaron··on Office 365 to begin setting Bing as Chrome's default search engine
Good catch. Corrected.
ecaron··on Office 365 to begin setting Bing as Chrome's default search engine
The comments on the bottom, plus the UserVoice (https://odinsiders.uservoice.com/forums/920533-distribution-...) really emphasize how this change is impacting customers.
ecaron··on Show HN: My in-network Node app for controlling my kids' nightlights
For the light-attached end, it is down to $10 with this like the HUZZAH ESP8266 Breakout. At that price, the LED nearly becomes the most expensive part of the setup (assuming you want anything more than a single color and/or light).

What I love about the ESP8266 + NeoPixel style setup is that it gives you control over the form factor. For example: https://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-a-BAT-signal/

ecaron··on Show HN: My in-network Node app for controlling my kids' nightlights
Well done! This is very impressive!!! You're 100% right that the Hue lights don't get nearly dim enough.

I'm sorry I didn't see your product sooner. More parents should know about your this - I'll make sure to spread the word whenever possible (:

ecaron··on Show HN: My in-network Node app for controlling my kids' nightlights
Agreed about the Dash button. I've moved one of the rooms away from that to a doorbell attached to a Pi Zero. I also picked up a Voice Kit (https://aiyprojects.withgoogle.com/voice/) for $10 at Microcenter, and I'm playing with what that could offer.

If you the room is near a server you have in the house (like a Pi running Pihole), then Bluetooth buttons (like Puck.js) unlock a lot of potential for you too.

ecaron··on Show HN: My in-network Node app for controlling my kids' nightlights
I think it depends on the age. This started several years ago to give my 4 year old an "ok to wake" light, which helps considerably with sleep training.
ecaron··on Major Azure Outage
I'm guessing he inherited it. I'm guessing most people on this thread are in that boat.
ecaron··on Major Azure Outage
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/status/ was just updated, showing "Network Infrastructure" is down across the board.
ecaron··on Azure goes super-secure by borking MFA in Europe and Asia
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/status/ shows the impact (I didn't find a link to it in the article)
ecaron··on The Marvel API
For teaching in a class, I like https://github.com/BestBuy/api-playground. Let's you consume it and see how it is written while still having relatable content.
ecaron··on Ask HN: Who is hiring? (January 2018)
For better or worse, the answer is yes. Or as I said in a 12/19 tweet (https://twitter.com/ecaron/status/943292264692011009):

> If I work at a coffee company and my boss said, "You might be over-caffeinated", do I cut back or aim for the #FullFry

ecaron··on Ask HN: Who is hiring? (January 2018)
Caribou Coffee | Minneapolis, MN | ONSITE, FULL-TIME | http://www.cariboucoffee.com/

We're looking for a Principal Applications Engineer. We're a collection of companies that are 25+ years old and we're merging our technology stacks. For this position we're looking for someone who wants to set the new foundation, deciding what technology we keep and what technology we delete. We have a growing team in Minnesota and a large team in Colorado.

We're largely a dotNet shop that's increasingly using more of the Azure stack, but we're not afraid to advocate for the right tool for the right job. Restaurant technology is evolving at an incredible pace, and what used to be "really advanced" 3 years ago is the new norm today. If you love coffee & bagels, and want to bring best-of-breed software & experience to 1500+ stores & 1M customers - then you should come be a part of our team!

Questions? Email me - ecaron@cariboucoffee.com

You can learn more and apply at https://secure.jobappnetwork.com/apply/c_caribou/l_en/Princi...

ecaron··on Goodbye to GNU Libreboot
Better source for her side of the story is at https://libreboot.org/gnu/
ecaron··on Show HN: Best Buy's open source tool to help students learn APIs
We published the story of why we did this at https://medium.com/best-buy-developers/we-built-you-a-playgr...
ecaron··on Why a federal high-tech start-up is a money loser
One piece of 18F that I've always appreciated is their published API standards - https://github.com/18F/api-standards. They spawned it off the frequently mentioned White House API standards, and it phrases a lot of the opinions well without being preachy.

But more than anything else, this made me feel like there are real humans behind 18F. So I wish them all the best and hope this article (and ones like it) falls into the camp of "Haters gotta hate" and just inspires them to find more visible success.

ecaron··on Using Node.js and Raspberry Pi Zero to track download speeds and latency
Thank you very much! This will actually run very well on the Pi 2. Before you attempt the rewrite into Ruby, would you give this a try and give me feedback?
ecaron··on Wing – A dead-simple, responsive, CSS framework
I think that's not a problem with the framework, but the CDN link in a box that should instead be scrolling unto itself. Still worth a GitHub issue to get fixed...
ecaron··on Why I stopped hacking the Amazon Dash button and learned to solder
This is more than that, though. This attaches to a web site where I can see when the button was pushed, control the color based on time of day, and turn it on/off remotely (plus define the length of time for the auto off).
ecaron··on Why I stopped hacking the Amazon Dash button and learned to solder
Previous HN conversation on it is at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11687463. TNW article about it is also pretty decent - http://thenextweb.com/gadgets/2016/05/16/dash-elsewhere/

I suppose in the article I should have mentioned that I expected the button to be able to fire whatever HTTP payload that I wanted. Probably an odd expectation of mine, but that's the price I pay for my day job seeping into my night life.

ecaron··on Why I stopped hacking the Amazon Dash button and learned to solder
That's really where I burnt the first 4 weeks of this exercise. I would go on those sites, read blogs/posts/product pages over and over, and get overwhelmed and just shut down based on the number of options.

Probably a personal character fault. You're right that it is overkill. And I'll probably be tossing some more money towards SparkFun soon too - but the just from being a pure-software guy to buying/assembling the raw parts just shut me down :-(

ecaron··on Why I stopped hacking the Amazon Dash button and learned to solder
We've taught our son that when the light turns red, it is time for bed. When the light is blue, it is time to get up. It has been amazingly beneficial for times of the year like Daylight Saving ending/starting because he's not yet able to read a clock and know "Oh, its 4am - I should try and go back to sleep".
ecaron··on Why I stopped hacking the Amazon Dash button and learned to solder
Did you do a successful swap of the battery? Are there any markings on the case that designate it being a Rev1 or Rev2 battery?
ecaron··on Improving Color on the Web
This reminds me of a demo page from the late 90s that made me appreciate graphic formats on the web, where it highlighted what true alpha transparency could really accomplish and what you miss out on when you don't have it http://www.libpng.org/pub/png/pngs-img.html

Beyond just the topic at hand, this is a wonderful example of showing people how much more the web can do and why it is important that we keep pushing for progress.

ecaron··on Internet connected bttn now half the size, adds long press
Flic isn't exactly a fair comparison, since it requires Bluetooth and would only work when your phone or computer are near.

But I am also non-plussed by this offering. Ignoring the price, this should come with an option where it isn't dependent on external servers. For me, Particle's Internet Button[0] is still my favorite solution on the market.

[0] https://www.particle.io/button

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