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Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

stretchmytimeoff.com

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Re: Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

#91

Post by kleiba »

jagermo wrote: post #64
fullstackchris wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed, in Switzerland this idea of "stretching" is common but I find it stupid. Weather going to be bad? Doesnt matter, I can stretch my total time off 3 days more!!! Total off season to where I am traveling to? Doesnt matter, I get that single extra "bridge" day! Man so cringe. I don't know, seems much easier that if you dont want to work then don't! I mean the tool OP posted recommended 2 weeks off at the end of M…

>>I mean the tool OP posted recommended 2 weeks off at the end of March into April on the easter holiday (because of the friday and monday holiday)... who is honestly doing that? sad parents tied to school holidays noises.

Sorry, I don't understand - why wouldn't you do that?

Re: Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

#92

Post by svilen_dobrev »

fullstackchris wrote: post #58
lumb63 wrote: post #29

Ha, this reminds me of a very similar practice I used to engage in with a few buddies when we started work. It was always fun to try to figure out how to optimize the PTO to get the “most days per day”. Nowadays, I find that the best time to take PTO is when I feel like taking PTO. Taking a long weekend when I’m feeling burnt out or disengaged goes much further for me than grinding for the entire first half of th yea…

Agreed, in Switzerland this idea of "stretching" is common but I find it stupid. Weather going to be bad? Doesnt matter, I can stretch my total time off 3 days more!!! Total off season to where I am traveling to? Doesnt matter, I get that single extra "bridge" day! Man so cringe. I don't know, seems much easier that if you dont want to work then don't! I mean the tool OP posted recommended 2 weeks off at the end of M…

> plan your holidays for the next year

i am absolutely lost in why anyone would do that. And on other side, resource planning is only lame excuse.

But AFAIK most of western europe goes that way.. which is a preliminary planned existance. Boring like hell. Where is Life?

Re: Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

#93

Post by limbero »

zachd wrote: post #14
occz wrote: post #7

Cool project! Some regional feedback coming from Sweden - your source data set is not 100% in line with what most workers in Sweden will get. For example, 24 December, 31 December and Midsummer's Eve are not reflected as days off in this calendar.

Ah shame, I totally depend on the well maintained npm package date-holidays. But I guess it could use a PR! https://github.com/commenthol/date-holidays/blob/master/data...

I have a similar home-cooked tool at https://semestra.limbe.ro but ended up using Nager.Date instead, and it has better coverage for Sweden at least: https://date.nager.at/Api I liked the online-first approach since it means you get new or moved holidays without a package bump. The downside is of course if you want an offline-first approach.

Re: Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

#94

Post by Freak_NL »

svilen_dobrev wrote: post #92
fullstackchris wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed, in Switzerland this idea of "stretching" is common but I find it stupid. Weather going to be bad? Doesnt matter, I can stretch my total time off 3 days more!!! Total off season to where I am traveling to? Doesnt matter, I get that single extra "bridge" day! Man so cringe. I don't know, seems much easier that if you dont want to work then don't! I mean the tool OP posted recommended 2 weeks off at the end of M…

> plan your holidays for the next year i am absolutely lost in why anyone would do that. And on other side, resource planning is only lame excuse. But AFAIK most of western europe goes that way.. which is a preliminary planned existance . Boring like hell. Where is Life?

As soon as you have kids in the age range where school is mandatory you are pretty much confined to the school holiday roster for big trips. This means you pretty much have to get your planning going soon, if you want trips that are both interesting and possible.

Planning ahead is the only way to actually have some freedom. You can rent really nice cottages, get that night train reservation, etc., as long as you plan ahead.

I'd love it if it were possible to have elective days off for kids in school as well, but that's usually only possible for people in certain jobs who can't use the regular school holidays.

Re: Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

#95

Post by Freak_NL »

kleiba wrote: post #91
jagermo wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>I mean the tool OP posted recommended 2 weeks off at the end of March into April on the easter holiday (because of the friday and monday holiday)... who is honestly doing that? sad parents tied to school holidays noises.

Sorry, I don't understand - why wouldn't you do that?

Parent (heh) means they have no choice but to plan their holidays during the days off in the school roster. Tools like these are pretty much pointless if you can take a day off from work, but your kid is required to show up in school.

Re: Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

#98

Post by LoveMortuus »

I like to use my vacation days to change my workweek from five days per week to four days a week by using one vacation day every Friday (could also do Monday or Wednesday, each has advantages and disadvantages). This year using this method, I managed to make it so that starting with October I'm only working four days a week.

It could be longer, but my superiors told me that according to law, I have to take one break that's at least 10 vacation days long and after that I can use the days as I wish.

Re: Show HN: Stretch My Time Off – An Algorithm to Optimize Your Vacation Days

#99

Post by alkonaut »

I'd like to add some more constraints, like "I'd like to maximize my time off around christmas", where you can see different alternatives e.g.

using 3 days off, you get 7 consecutive days using 4 days off, you get 9 consecutive days

Because sprinkling them to maximize the total number of days isn't really interesting in reality, even though it's an interesting programming challenge. The reason is that I want to have at least maybe 4 out of 6 weeks off consecutively in the summer months, even if that's not maximizing the total number of consecutive days off. It's those remaining 5-10 days I'd like to optimize for particular holidays and so on.

You could also imagine assigning weights to the months. E.g. 1 day off in July is the same value as 10 days off in January (Say you live where the sun doesn't rise without saying you live where the sun doesn't rise)

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