Hacker News Reader

kliaoon Brad Feld: I Don't Hate Crypto

yes, valuations have gotten ahead of reality. that seems like it happens a lot with technology products and companies. the hope is that the law will eventually catch up, tech improves, market matures, and more people will find cryptocurrencies a decent substitute for fiat. if these things don't happen, crypto might die out, and haters will be right. but with most innovation, there needs to be optimism and some "true believers" or visionaries who will work and build stuff that pushes forward the industry. there seem to be plenty in web3. let's see what happens!

kliaoon Brad Feld: I Don't Hate Crypto

https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/why-im-less-than-infin...

Reliable money transfer in nations with under-developed banking systems is a clear use case for crypto.

kliaoon I tried Paragon's ntfs3 and it didn't go well

I read this as Polygon's nfts...too much web3 for me recently.

kliaoon After the first tech job

32 is too late to get married and start a family? C'mon, you're still so young and have plenty of time to do all that stuff and more.

kliaoon Ask HN: What are unintended consequences of new tech you've noticed?

Historically, misinformation spread due to lack of reliable communications technology (news took a while to travel around the world). Now, misplaced trust in media and abuse of technology spread misinformation.

kliaoon Sweden Wants to Revive Europe’s Overnight Trains

Good in theory, but implementation was poor the one time I tried it. The 6-person sleeper car is extremely cramped (2 triple bunks), and with the passport checks at border crossings, it's difficult to get a good night's sleep. Personal safety and luggage theft was a concern as well. I canceled my return trip and booked a low cost flight instead. Maybe the extra funding will improve train conditions and process.

kliaoon Data Factories

Have you heard of blockstack? Seems similar to what you’re describing.

kliaoon The carbs-obesity hypothesis

I think to draw this conclusion you need a (4) People who manage their nutrition and have uncontrollable weight gain.

Then, we can say there is a difference between (3) and (4) and attribute it to biology instead of diet.

kliaoon Ask HN: Is spending a year learning from MOOCs a good plan?

Why not ask professors at your university for opportunities on campus to do research in the fields you're interested in? This would be infinitely better than only doing MOOCs on your own (which you can also do on the side) because you are 1) receiving guidance from professors and/or grad students, 2) possibly getting paid, 3) have something concrete to put on your resume.

The thing with doing MOOCs on your own is it seems easy to get lazy and end up wasting a lot of time with nothing to show on your resume.

kliaoon Ask HN: What software would you pay for right now?

YouTube offline mode

kliaoon Ask HN: Food hacks?

+1 for Slow cooker. Just cooked a 5 pound organic free range whole chicken ($13) which should last at least 5 meals. Washed chicken, added some fresh ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, water. Total prep time about 15 minutes. Slow-cooked for 3 hours on high.

5-minute freshly steamed leafy greens (kale, spinach, collards, mustard greens, etc.). No need to chop, just rip off a handful, wash, throw in a small pot, put on lid, turn on low heat for 3 min. Ready to eat.

Canned sardines for cheap, instant, healthy protein.

Capellini pasta (very thin) cooks in 2 min as opposed to thicker pastas which might take 10 min.

kliaoon Ask HN: Math books like SICP?

I like Pugh too. All three are sitting on my bookshelf :). Coming from very little formal math training, and trying to self-study analysis, I would bounce from Rudin if I got stuck, go to Abbott for a confidence boost, and try out some Pugh for a different viewpoint. Pugh might have been just right in terms of rigor and accessibility.

kliaoon Ask HN: Math books like SICP?

Echo the above. Pairing little Rudin with a more user-friendly book like Understanding Analysis by Abbott is a great way to learn the material if you get stuck.

kliaoon Sony releases the Holy Grail: A flexible e-ink screen

wait, this device is literally flexible as in bendable like paper? that's what the article makes it sound like, but it doesn't seem to be true based on the product page:

http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/cat-digitalpaper/cat-digitalpap...

kliaoon Ideas We'd Like to Fund

Regarding idea #1 - "We’re looking for an iconic consumer company to reinvent health information."

This would be great. I wish there was something out there that provided objective up-to-date interpretations of health-related medical publications applicable to everyday living. For example, conventional knowledge vilifies saturated fats, but new research seems to indicate otherwise. Numerous diets exist all clamining to be optimal and backed by science. What scares me is finding out 20 years from now, all efforts at maintaining a healthy lifestyle were completely misdirected and in fact, unecessary or even detrimental. What are some ways to accomplish a completely unbiased health guide? It could be based on meta-analysis of academic publications, crowd-sourced, or expert peer-reviews...just something that weighs the reliability of research, points out any deficiencies, and fights the propagation of sensational headlines like "Red meat kills you!" anytime some journalist misinterprets a dubiously controlled experiment on lab rats that shows a statistically insignificant correlation between two variables.

kliaoon I don't know

I really like this idea and try to apply it as much as possible. In my experience, for any kind of teamwork, the faster we get to the "I don't knows", the faster we solve problems, while stating half-truths/guesses-as-facts spreads confusion and kills productivity. I've also noticed that the type of person who is afraid to admit knowledge gaps is usually also the one who looks at me funny or expresses disapproval whenever I use the phrase. It's as if they are confused as to why I would ever admit such weakness.

kliaoon FanHero (YC S13) Helps YouTubers Sell Branded Merch To Their Fans

This looks really cool. I spend a lot of time on YouTube and most of the more popular YouTubers eventually start selling t-shirts or some kind merchandise through sites like Shopify or CafePress. The "pay what you want" option and fan spending leaderboard are interesting features. But at the core, it still looks like another shop creator site. So what makes FanHero different? Is it purely a marketing play to appeal to sellers with a fanbase?

kliaoon Linux developer Seth Vidal killed in Hit and Run accident on his bike.

i'm glad you're ok, haj!

kliaoon Ask HN: Tell us about your side projects.

In order to learn Django and web development, I'm trying to build a simple website for tracking weightlifting workouts.

kliaoon Screw the Black Swans: Ichiro is our role model, not Barry Bonds.

The whole analogy to sports players is confusing and unnecessary, though it probably attracts more views. He claims that 500 Startups focuses more on teaching rather than finding the best talent, yet Ichiro was already a huge star in Japan before he came over to the Seattle Mariners for a sizeable posting fee. Then, the point about consistently "hitting singles" and getting on base more often as opposed to hitting homeruns is strange considering Barry Bonds has one of highest on-base percentages in league history. The steroid issue that clouded the legitimacy of Bonds's career also muddles the message the blog post is trying to convey; in comparing Bonds with YC, casts YC in a negative light, though probably unintentionally.

kliaoon Learning From Data - Online Course

who says they are trying to compete with other universities? the goal here is to provide quality education accessible to everyone. it also looks like the webpage was created by the professor himself (http://work.caltech.edu/ is his personal page) and may not be completely ready yet.

kliaoon Tell HN: I want to teach you web development. In 8 weeks. For free (sort of)

Sounds interesting. How much is tuition? What are the companies that will reimburse tuition?

kliaoon Still trust restaurant reviews?

i sometimes don't trust my friends' recommendations. what if my friends and I don't share the same tastes? or, maybe my friend recommended a sushi place, but it was the first time she tried sushi...

kliaoon The stock market is controlled by algorithms that are fighting with each other

even though technical analysis may not have any merit, many people do use it in their trading decisions. thus, sometimes it is worth paying attention to.

kliaoon Show HN: My "November Startup Sprint" Project - Create and Share Lists

Sorry, I cannot view the site right now, because it is blocked. But, I was wondering how you combine several users' lists. For example, say there are action movies labeled A,B, ..., Z. Suppose 3 users have ranked action movies. Their lists are A-B-C-D-E, Z-A-B-C-D, and F-A-B-C-D. How do you combine those 3 lists to form a master list? I've looked into this before and was just curious what method you decided to use and why.

kliaoon Show HN: My "November Startup Sprint" Project - Create and Share Lists

How do you combine different lists for the same category?

kliaoon I've been programming for a solid 5 minutes now, so how do I make an MMORPG?

In one of the comments, OP says he is 14, so at least he's found a good resource and has plenty of time to learn...

kliaoon Ask HN: Review Compound Time.

I tried to click the Android image and since there was no link, assumed that the mobile app was still under development. You might want to consider linking to your Android Market listing.

Also, to clarify for sound clips, I meant allowing users to upload recordings of their own practice sessions / performances. The previews on Itunes seems like a good idea as well.

Btw, I'm viewing on IE, so I might not be seeing everything correctly...

kliaoon Ask HN: Review Compound Time.

Interesting concept. I definitely could have used some extra motivation to practice piano as a kid and this looks like it could almost be a Pomodoro timer for studying music. Some points:

1. The tagline mentions Nike+...what if people don't know what Nike+ is? I've heard of it before but am not really sure what it does.

2. Mobile app would be ideal but it looks like that is already in the works.

3. Uploading sounds clips might be something to look at...

kliaoon Probability Theory Review for Machine Learning

I think this is definitely readable for someone who has stepped away from probability for maybe a year or two after having taken a couple courses on the subject at the undergrad level. And that seems like the target audience as well--undergrad students who need a refresher at the start of a new course.