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Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

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Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#811

Post by etothepii »

habosa wrote: post #809

Data Insurance. Almost every company out there is collecting tons of data, but 90% of companies don't have an IT department capable of keeping it safe and compliant with the latest regulations. Companies thought data was an asset but as the hacks and regulations pile up I think they will begin to view it as a liability. So what are their options: 1) Try and beef up your tech operation. Maybe spend $xxM with AWS and h…

These products exist but in the US insurance is a highly regulated relationship driven transaction. The insurance market is ripe for disruption but having worked in the reinsurance market for 4 years I don't see any realistic prospect of it happening.

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#812

Post by izacus »

Klonoar wrote: post #405
NewLogic wrote: post #390

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The XPS 15 is basically that laptop and is only hamstrung by dell being slow to move to Ryzen 4000 mobile chips. Mobile intel runs hot and slow.

I'm sure some people like the XPS 15, but having tried it, I don't believe that it fits here - and honestly, I've not found _any_ Dell hardware to have fit and finish remotely close to a MacBook.

Then you have very strange standards, the XPS 13 I have at home can easily compete with 13" MBP and outshines it in several areas. Especially having a sturdy build quality and a good keyboard.

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#813

Post by TheGuyWhoCodes »

NewLogic wrote: post #390
Klonoar wrote: post #379

Premium-feeling laptops that aren't Apple machines. Yes yes, I get the economical barriers. I'm past caring. It is so incredibly frustrating to look outside the Apple ecosystem and feel like the entire PC industry is content to sell the bare minimum of quality (outside of Gamer hardware, which looks obscene - but I get that it's subjective). It's a horrible business idea on the numbers and nobody would do this, but i…

The XPS 15 is basically that laptop and is only hamstrung by dell being slow to move to Ryzen 4000 mobile chips. Mobile intel runs hot and slow.

Dell made so much noise about their cooling chamber for the new XPS but forgot to actually do QA. They forgot to provide a working power brick. It didn't provide the advertised wattage (100 not 130) and even if it did actual workstations go with 230W. The trackpad was also broken for most people.

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#814

Post by phil21 »

freehunter wrote: post #603
peruvian wrote: post #467

Earlier quoted context omitted.

(Pre-covid of course) I think about this often, but then I go for a walk (or in other cities, a drive) and see packed bars and restaurants every night with people from all ages having a good time. Makes me feel like the problem is on me - people are obviously able to make friends and hang out without any special apps beyond what is available now.

Pre-covid I went to bars a lot to hang out. Ranging from suburban “family dining” bars to downtown dive bars to hipster breweries, I’ve been a regular at a lot in the last 10-15 years. Most people at my bars come in with friends and really only talk to existing friends or friends of friends. Maybe/rarely the strangers directly next to them if they’re feeling extra social, but not much more than a bit of small talk. F…

It depends on the bar. If you already are well-established socially somewhere, you usually tend to self-select into establishments that kind of cater to those established friend groups.

For recent transplants they roam bars until they find one with more singles and folks looking for social interaction. They do exist, but are probably more rare.

My theory of course is that the latter type of bar morphs over time (decade+) into the prior type of bar as "friend groups" get established at the new place. The new place slowly turns into the old hangout spot.

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#815

Post by Too »

daniellarusso wrote: post #337
gangstertim wrote: post #317

Battery-operated household items. I have a cordless dewalt drill that I can use all day on my jobsite, but every single appliance in my kitchen needs a cord. Hand mixer? Immersion blender? Regular blender? Stand mixer? Everything has a cord. Why isn't there a kitchen battery system yet? Similarly: I'd love to have a little reading sconce on my wall next to my bed, but running a circuit through the existing walls with…

What about a mechanical adapter to couple the immersion blender into the deWalt chuck? I have seen battery powered blenders, though.

On that topic. What happened to standardized batteries, like the good old AA, AAA, etc.

Every appliance i have nowadays have their own built in proprietary lipo and even worse their own proprietary charger which adds yet another mess of cables everywhere. Why can't i take the DeWalt battery and plug into my Bosch screwdriver?

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#816

Post by aarroyoc »

mehrdadn wrote: post #261

Flexible regex engines. Pattern matching is a much more general problem than string matching, and you don't necessarily always have the entire input available initially. (In fact, especially for performance reasons, you might the pattern itself to tell you what possibilities to consider for the next portion of your sequence.) I've repeatedly found that a regex engine that can work on more general objects (not necessa…

Some of the things you say can already be achieved with Prolog DCGs, which are more or less like pattern matching over lists (usually lists of chars, but not needed).

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#817

Post by goodcanadian »

Too wrote: post #799
yosamino wrote: post #196

Geothermal Energy. Extremely simplified, all you need to do is drill a hole deep enough for a high temperature difference. Then stick in two pipes, on for sending water down, one for steam to come up. Run a turbine, add a valve to regulate how much water you want to converted into steam to be able to regulate output, enjoy your first mover advantage and price the competition out of the market. ... It's not that I do…

To everyone saying this is impossible. This is proven tech and it's actually not uncommon to heat your house like this already today. Depth of a hole in your backyard is around 100-200m and one such hole provides more than enough for one big house. Payoff for such investment to break even with more basic forms of heating is around 5-10 years in cold northern europe climates. Sadly most people have shorter foresight t…

I think you are confusing geothermal energy with ground source heat pumps. That said, both are being done where it makes economic sense to do so.

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#818

Post by teatree »

jamestimmins wrote: post #441
rubidium wrote: post #380

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. I’ve set up my life to foster and form in person social interactions (and organizations to the extent that they help) in my neighborhood. It’s affected where I live, what kind of house I have, each weeks schedule, my kids education, and what jobs I’ll consider. But it’s totally the main thing that we have to work on as humans.

Care to share more details? I'm very curious what this looks like in practice.

+1 to @jamestimmins' comment

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#819

Post by teatree »

ilaksh wrote: post #488
baron816 wrote: post #243

In-person social organizations. Social isolation is probably the biggest cause of unhappiness in advanced countries. Having a strong social network has lots of advantages including providing better romantic and career opportunities, as well as improving physical and psychological health. Humans have a long history of dishing out lots of money to be parts of strong communities too--country clubs and fraternities have…

I think that people will be surprised in the near future how realistic (and similar to in-person) VR and AR interactions will be. Especially with eye tracking that will enable virtually looking the other people in the eyes. Think about as optical waveguide technology becomes more affordable enabling very lightweight comfortable headsets that actually are close to normal glasses in comfort. Combined with pose detectio…

Just like porn is not real sex, VR / AR is a long way from making in person friends and acquaintances.

Re: Ask HN: What are you surprised isn’t being worked on more?

#820

Post by yrimaxi »

offtop5 wrote: post #290
seneca wrote: post #282

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is essentially what the book Bowling Alone is about. It's worth reading, along with the writer's other research.

I can also suggest Lost Connections. Last year I did everything I could, to go to tons of concerts, meet up groups, and alumni events. I had a very successful year in terms of meeting new friends, finding high income partners , and generally loving my life. I've long been disillusioned with social media, and I completely blame it for destroying a generation of mental health. You need to make friends, and you need to…

Love the finding high income partners part. Wow, the hustle.
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