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Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

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Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#641

Post by vishkk »

dyauspitr wrote: post #431
vishkk wrote: post #75

Not sure if it is niche, but focused on one South Asian music genre -- been working on this personal project to compile, and collect resources from reliable sources along with mapping lineages of people. Also, I archive a lot of music for this genre from different sources before it vanishes from internet! https://www.qavvali.com/ EDIT: I have one more page but that is not in navigation yet for people not familiar wit…

Qawali is some of the best music in the world, but I think it’s a little hard for a western audience to digest, especially without someone providing a running translation and context behind a lot of the things being said. That being said, your website is wonderful! Nice work.

Thank you, and absolutely! I have been trying to get more people to try — my friend and i host a Zoom listening session every 3 months or so where he curates a playlist to introduce new artists.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#643

Post by pickleglitch »

linsomniac wrote: post #301

I've been working on trying to help fill out the MeshCore network in our area for off-grid communications. Some of us are setting up solar powered, battery backed MeshCore nodes, they have no connection to power or Internet. You can use a small device (like a credit card or a small walkie-talkie) with a phone, or a blackberry-like device, to send/receive encrypted messages, chat on channels, or communicate on BBS-lik…

I just started trying to get into this, and so far it's been kinda disappointing. I got a couple of heltec v3s, set them up with meshtastic and found zero other nodes in range. I did a range test by carrying 1 node around with me while I walked my dog, and the other one at home. It maxed out at about a block. I know there are other nodes in the area but I can't reach them unless I turn on MQTT, but at that point you're just using the Internet with extra layers. I'm looking into more powerful antennas, etc, but it looks like a big money sink.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#645

Post by futune »

Glyptodon wrote: post #387

Just a suggestion as this isn't my hobby, but look into gem cutting. There are some tools for designing new cuts, but I think I lot more is possible than is commonly accomplished. And every gem material is different so that adds to things. Plus, the more precise the cut the better the result. And it's very math and loop driven.

This sounds really interesting! How does one get started? Is it expensive?

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#646

Post by linsomniac »

Havoc wrote: post #516
linsomniac wrote: post #301

I've been working on trying to help fill out the MeshCore network in our area for off-grid communications. Some of us are setting up solar powered, battery backed MeshCore nodes, they have no connection to power or Internet. You can use a small device (like a credit card or a small walkie-talkie) with a phone, or a blackberry-like device, to send/receive encrypted messages, chat on channels, or communicate on BBS-lik…

What does the battery setup on these things look like? Definitely could set one up but don’t want to change batteries weekly

The ones I built I used the Austin Mesh guidelines, and they use a USB battery setup they've found that is reliable.

I wanted to set up some of the 1 watt radios for the repeaters (more powerful output plus better input stages) have a known problem where if the battery power drops down to 3.3v it goes into a "deep sleep" mode that it won't recover from once the battery pack comes back up to voltage, without physically resetting it. This USB pack is known to provide 5v power as long as it can, and then shut off until it's been charged to the point it can provide 5v again.

Then I plug a solar panel into it. There are also the "SenseCap Solar Nodes" that are a total solution (enclosure, solar panel, radio, batteries) ready to deploy.

I have one of mine on a 20ft tower on the roof at work, I'm not messing with that weekly. I will need to do firmware updates periodically, which can be done via bluetooth.

edit: Forgot to mention that other units can just use little LIon battery packs that plug right into the board and can be charged by a charge controller on the board to a less expensive solution, that's more what the SenseCap uses. Also I think my board has some firmware patches to fix the problem. I just wanted something that was known to not require much messing around with.

https://www.austinmesh.org/devices/ https://www.seeedstudio.com/SenseCAP-Solar-Node-P1-Pro-for-M...

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#647

Post by krottler »

hiAndrewQuinn wrote: post #90

Recreational mapmaking. Every couple of months the family and I will book out some long weekend to just go to an Airbnb in some random town with some copy paper and just go around trying to draw what we think is around us. Inevitably the lines collide and we have to ask some local passerby for help, and if they know any interesting places nearby, and before you know it they're following along with a colored pencil an…

This sounded very interesting. Can you share some map that you created?

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#648

Post by linsomniac »

mrheosuper wrote: post #511
linsomniac wrote: post #301

I've been working on trying to help fill out the MeshCore network in our area for off-grid communications. Some of us are setting up solar powered, battery backed MeshCore nodes, they have no connection to power or Internet. You can use a small device (like a credit card or a small walkie-talkie) with a phone, or a blackberry-like device, to send/receive encrypted messages, chat on channels, or communicate on BBS-lik…

Is this similar to meshtastic? I've heard about it for a while.

They are very similar in function, as another reply said. MeshCore relies more on dedicated repeater infrastructure, and it's design seems to make it more reliable for longer range communications. Most people with solid mesh networks seem to be moving from Meshtastic to MeshCore and having improved experiences with it.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#649

Post by linsomniac »

Liftyee wrote: post #540
ternus wrote: post #469

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Came here to mention this. I've had a lot of fun putting up stealth repeaters in trees to build out the Meshcore network. One or two nodes in critical places can light up dozens of square miles for the mesh. Find your local Discord and get rolling. In the Bay Area it's baymc.org.

I've been thinking about this for Meshtastic - How do you power them? Little solar panels?

Yes, little solar panels. The ones I put on my solar nodes are USB-C connected and just plug into the USB battery pack I have in my repeater.

Re: Ask HN: Any interesting niche hobbies?

#650

Post by aquarin »

notepad0x90 wrote: post #437

autonomous weapons? Just kidding. Honestly, the best ideas out there are low-tech. Anything where as you put it is "crowded" with tech people don't want, but is also of good build. Or if you must add an LLM and a touch screen to everything, do it in a way that respects user consent and boundaries. One thing I wanted to get into but can't due to time is sub-150ms responsive LLM for use with drones and bots. Faster res…

Interesting, I am getting exactly into this now. Did you have anything done you can share?
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