vijucat

This is why I don't read.

Try writing a poem. Mine were so obviously regurgitations of past material consumed that I realized that to output anything original, I had to develop an individuality by starving the creative neurons, so to speak.

Of course, this is only restricted to fields where one would like to produce novel output. You're free to read academic papers, etc; But if you want to write original sci-fi, start by not reading sci-fi.

Not mentioned were code comprehension tools / techniques:

I used to use a tool called Source Navigator (written in Tcl/tk!) that was great at indexing code bases. You could then check the Call Hierarchy of the current method, for example, then use that to make UML Sequence Diagrams. A similar one called Source Insight shown below [1].

And oh, notes. Writing as if you're teaching someone is key.

Over the years, I got quite good at comprehending code, even code written by an entire team over years. For a brief period, I was the only person actively supporting and developing an algorithmic trading code base in Java that traded ~$200m per day on 4 or 5 exchanges. I had 35 MB of documentation on that, lol. Loved the responsibility (ignoring the key man risk :|). Honestly, there's a lot of overengineering and redundancy in most large code bases.

[1] References in "Source Insight" https://d4.alternativeto.net/6S4rr6_0rutCUWnpHNhVq7HMs8GTBs6...

I believe that you can use QueueListener and QueueHandler to serialize the calls:

https://docs.python.org/3/library/logging.handlers.html#logg...

It helps reduce the number of hoops I have to jump through. Previously : hit a problem, use Google search or read the official docs, StackOverflow, etc; Now : ask Copilot and assess if the solution makes sense to me. Often, it does.

Ctrl+F "copilot". Nothing.

My only request for these tool-makers is: don't be shy. Tell me why I will stop paying for GitHub Copilot and pay for your tool. Make me sign up ASAP for a trial. Please don't pretend Copilot doesn't exist in the same universe. You probably have 5 seconds max (and I don't say this out of self-importance. I say this out of being a desperate little piece-of-shit who eliminates everything from their life that doesn't keep them on the path to their already less-than-ideal productivity :( I just can't afford that attention you demand)

I suspect a larger theme at play, whether it be the universally disliked flat UI design that permeates all platforms or how company logo fonts are all converging to a bland sans serif [1], is that UX designers are not only disconnected from the U in UX, the Users, but are encouraged to have a self-image as being superior in sensibilities and thus, free from having to deign to listen to the inferior User. How else can one explain how the Windows UX team supposedly uses Apple Macs, lol? I would fire that bunch and replace them with a more grounded set that actually uses the product they design ("eat your own dog food"). Stop the starving artist impersonation while sipping on $7 lattes and listen to the actual user, IMHO.

1. https://justcreative.com/why-do-everyones-logo-fonts-look-th...?

A relevant article that comments on this one: https://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/The-person-behi...

Very cool. Please do sequence diagrams with swimlanes; they're the most useful.

Why, Sir, I have seen people whose entire jobs live inside this box called a "computer". Peculiar, to say the least.

GitHub Copilot obviates the need for these platforms, in my humble opinion. You don't need "low-code", you want "low-effort coding". You want something quick and dirty that does 80% of the work.

I'd reply to you but my caste only talks to DisplayPort, USB-C, or higher. HDMI cable, pfft...

It's a joke, people, based on our friend's username.

I've been trying to teach my daughter (11 years old) Python and she gets quite confused by the whitespace-as-indent construct. For example, it's not at all obvious when a block ends and you have to unindent / go back to a lesser level of indentation. Flower brackets (C, Java, etc;) or explicit ENDIF are much better. This course [1] is quite good for kids of that age.

And, oh. Just realized that self.name (object.variable) quietly retrieves the Class.name class variable (class "attribute" for the pedantic) :|

Hate how dynamic languages bend over backwards to not report an error. I would much prefer the "inconvenience" of having to compile my program and then be told what all is wrong at compile time. Sad that this is now popular. The language is very adhoc in general.

1. https://www.udemy.com/course/real-world-programming-for-kids...

The NoSQL movement was absolutely acrid towards SQL. The blowback is justified, IMHO. "blending my firstborn for margaritas" is very colorful language, woah :-)

Don't choose hamster-wheel career tracks in the first place. Try to find Lindy paths [1], [2]. For example, SQL experts and DBAs. The rise and (mostly) demise of NoSQL actually cemented SQL's reputation as an irreplaceable technology. The latest Web framework is by definition non-Lindy: it's the new kid in town who think they know it all. grep is lindy, Unix is lindy, the qwerty keyboard is lindy, C++ is lindy, Computer Science is lindy, algorithms and data structures are lindy. Knowledge of the real world, whether it be finance or shipping, is lindy. Sorry, verbose reply, but I hope it helps.

1. https://luca-dellanna.com/lindy/

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindy_effect

An absolute must-have for me is an AHK script I use to clear the clipboard 15 seconds after something is copied to it. I developed it after a colleague pasted in chat, "Let's call it $xxxK and call it a fair deal" (with actual numbers) :|

Should be mandatory at law firms, for example.

Both faced racism and turned to physical training as a way of overcoming it. Both had a belief and practice around "mind over matter". Both consider themselves philosophers to an extent.

I've always liked this one, "My sun sign is Xoltran". "There's no such sun sign!". "Hey, the others are all made up, too, so why not my own? ;-)"

I've always held this conjecture that Jeet Kune do (JK do, so to speak) was actually a nod to JK, Jiddu Krishnamurthi, whose writings deeply influenced Bruce Lee while being bedridden in hospital for many months.

He was the David Goggins of that generation. What an amazing human being.

> "I do think being a waitress has done one great thing with respect to writing: it has made me understand deeply and fundamentally how many writers are full of shit"

Ha ha. Somehow reminded me of Charles Bukowski. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ilmOZvpOa8

> Most people consume ecstasy by mouth, but I’ve heard from many that anal ecstasy is a more satisfying experience.

I don't know why now and why this, but this has convinced me that I really need to cut down on what I read online. 99% of it does not go towards my life objectives and 100% of it is probably taking up space in my brain. To be clear, I would have laughed at that fact and moved on before. It just hit me differently today; I could be thinking about my family, work, friends, whatever, but now I know some irrelevant fact about ingesting drugs via the butt.

Very interesting. Not the intent of the article, but it shows the power of positive thinking, affirmations, visualization et al. Silencing the inner critic seems to be the common theme.

True. I shouldn't have used a universal qualifier. I should have, "all the data possible (that one corporation can get it's hands on)" or something qualified.

> Self driving is probably the most sophisticated domain besides chat, and there too it's the exact same problem. They can drive a vehicle in some complex scenario with super human performance, and then they randomly drive straight into a highway divider at full speed on a clear day with no traffic.

Yes, very good point. Self-driving maximalists who believe that self-driving will be solved with more data need to realize that ChatGPT was trained with ALL the data possible and is still deficient. This defect is probably inherent to existing neural net models and a leap forward of some sort is necessary to solve this.

Another scary thought: just as each ChatGPT session is different, and you never know whether the agent is going to get angry, overly apologetic, or something else, every self-driving drive may be different due to emergent properties in neural networks that even the best in the field do not yet understand.

> "The fact that they were both at exactly 23 seconds is probably just a crazy coincidence"

Immediately brought a smile to my face. This profession makes us detail-oriented detectives. It's a joyful power and a powerful joy :-) Now I know it's not a good personality trait. I guess one's hobbies should ideally be complete opposites, based on intuition and a feel for things.

Hong Kong, similar speeds to yours up and down (9xx Mbps), but 2 lines (2x1000 Mbps). $45 USD per month. Speed to servers in NYC is ~ 100 Mbps.

     Server: HKIX - Hong Kong (id = 34555)
        ISP: Netvigator
    Latency:     2.90 ms   (0.35 ms jitter)
   Download:   949.79 Mbps (data used: 676.7 MB)
     Upload:   946.68 Mbps (data used: 460.6 MB)

Packet Loss: 0.0%

I find it interesting that in parallel, I see a shockingly feminine Korean man in an ad every day here in Hong Kong. The Chinese government has banned effeminate men in media, and the mass self-emasculation of men chasing fashion trends is a legitimate national security concern!

https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2021/09/02/c...

Yes! It was distrust towards Microsoft that kept .NET from growing to be a universal language and kept Java in the game, to be honest. The language / framework, per se, is to be celebrated as a great leap forward borne out of the good kind of competition.

Other have great recommendations. Two of mine:

1. The Java Programming Language book:

The K&R of Java

https://www.amazon.com/Java-Programming-Language-4th/dp/0321...

2. Zantorc's videos: https://www.youtube.com/@Zantorc/

He really gets into the nitty gritty. You can listen to this while commuting, etc; Just finish 1 video per 3 days, say. It adds up quickly.

C# .NET had async and await in 2012, for comparison. I've always loved Java but Microsoft deserves immense credit for raising the bar, and so quickly, too.

It's funny how this article could be rewritten by every developer about their own silo: "NoSQL is the future!", "XML is the future!", "git is the future", "Kubernetes is the future", etc. Tech is a continuous hamster wheel of whatever-is-in-fashion.