Hacker News Reader

Plug for the app I built that's helping me significantly: NoMo Screentime

It blocks all distracting apps. To unblock, I need to choose # of minutes upfront, then pause and put my phone face down for sometime. And then, it unblocks the app for the time I requested, and blocks it again.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nomo-screen-time/id6748623068

madrasmanon Meta confirms 1000s of Instagram accounts were hacked by abusing its AI chatbot

Unlike programmers, most people don’t read long help articles or take multi-step actions. Bots can answer questions directly and take actions (or guide a user through step by step).

madrasmanon Meta suppressed research on child safety, employees say

I’m so tired of social media rotting brains and ruining health and relationships. But also find it hard to completely quit Instagram/Linkedin/X as I get some value out of it. Sewer in the water line situation.

Built a screentime app to automatically block after chosen number of mins and it’s helping me. Completely free to try: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/nomo-reduce-screen-time/id6748...

madrasmanon Streaming services are driving viewers back to piracy

In India, people classify movies as “mass” or “class”. Netflix and Prime are doing a lot more “mass” and for good reasons.

madrasmanon Gemma 3 270M: Compact model for hyper-efficient AI

It has saved the world from future attempts.

madrasmanon Steve Wozniak: Life to me was never about accomplishment, but about happiness

Love the simplicity of “Happiness is more smiles than frowns”!

madrasmanon Why LLMs can't really build software

The 2 iOS apps that I published (mid level complexity and work well) say otherwise. I was blown away by what cursor + o3 could do.

madrasmanon People are bad at reporting what they eat. That's a problem for dietary research

Yeah the best option is to meal plan and follow the plan vs letting your mind make on-the-fly decisions. But ofc, that isn't always feasible.

madrasmanon People are bad at reporting what they eat. That's a problem for dietary research

I worked at Noom and the most successful users weighed the ingredients. Many users were frustrated about not losing weight even with calorie deficit, but the issue was they weren't logging accurately or skipped logging snacks and meals that were clearly not good.

madrasmanon How We Handle Cap Table Information

truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth

madrasmanon Ask HN: Problems for the next decade?

I have been thinking more of this problem recently. Excess phone use seems to be affecting vitality, presence, connection, sharpness, and happiness, with older adults too. Can you share any more insights on the problem or ideas?

madrasmanon Ask HN: How to do market research for product?

Identify your target audience: In your case, it would be restaurant owners who struggle with keeping their menus up to date on delivery apps and online platforms.

Define your research objectives: Determine what specific information you want to gather through your market research. For example, you may want to understand the challenges restaurant owners face in updating their menus or their willingness to adopt a new solution.

Conduct competitor analysis: Research existing products or services that aim to solve similar problems for restaurant owners. Analyze their features, pricing, customer reviews, and overall market share.

Gather feedback from potential customers: Reach out to restaurant owners through surveys, interviews, or focus groups to gather insights about their pain points, needs, and preferences related to menu updates and online platforms.

Test your product concept: Create a prototype or mockup of your product idea and present it to potential customers for feedback. This will help you validate whether your solution meets their needs and if there is sufficient demand for it.

Analyze the data: Once you have collected data from your market research activities, analyze it to identify patterns, trends, and key insights that can guide the development of your product.

Refine your product strategy: Based on the findings from your market research, refine your product strategy by incorporating customer feedback and addressing any identified gaps or opportunities.

Remember that market research is an ongoing process that should continue throughout the development and launch of your product. Stay open-minded and adaptable as you gather insights from potential customers and make adjustments accordingly.

Good luck with your market research journey!

madrasmanon Ask HN: Could you share your personal blog here?

www.aswathkrishnan.com

madrasmanon Ask HN: Share your personal site

www.aswathkrishnan.com

madrasmanon Update on AB5

I largely agree with that, but with a couple of possible exceptions where it is relevant. 1) Some people bought cars or quit other jobs because Uber offered a much larger pay and bonuses two years ago. 2) Uber also killed the taxi industry, which offered better working conditions to drivers.

madrasmanon Show HN: Everything I Know Wiki

Not all comments are the same. Comments that are thoughtfully articulated and about the ideas rather than an unexplained character judgement of the author, detract from the discussion.

madrasmanon Zoom S-1

well said. Being innovative and smart seems to dominate mindshare more than high quality execution.

madrasmanon “Every minute I spent thinking about competitors was a minute wasted”

What about it makes it sound more like survivorship bias?

madrasmanon “Every minute I spent thinking about competitors was a minute wasted”

You shipped 6 months ahead, therefore your game is better than the larger incumbent - so keep playing the way you were. All incumbents eventually get beaten - why not by you?

Over a long enough timeframe, the better player always wins.

madrasmanon Pinterest S-1

Could be a couple of things: 1) Growing native app usage 2) More users starting on pinterest.com rather than google

madrasmanon Product Building Principles

Thank you so much! I just started this blog this week and your comment made my day :)

madrasmanon Ask HN: How do you keep track of your creative thoughts?

Totally agree - constantly trying to jot down thoughts as they occur is both distracting and can get overwhelming to revisit.

I was taught this technique that helped me strengthen my memory. In the afternoon and before going to bed, take 10 mins to mentally recall (and maybe write down) the day's events and thoughts.

Another helpful technique is to consolidate your thoughts on a topic by writing it out (or with a blog post). Turns out that there are only a handful of topics we think and learn about - so this simple solution works.

madrasmanon Can We Grow More Food on Less Land?

eating beef being higher quality of life may be less real and more perceived (because of habit and freedom), given that there are several similar substitutes.

madrasmanon Ask HN: What simple tools or products are you most proud of making?

http://www.nuggetsapp.com/

It helps you remember the things you read and learn by sending you timely email reminders based on spaced repetition (memory theory).