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Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

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Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#21

Post by ynafey »

wslh wrote: post #11

Private blockchains: everything there could be built before Bitcoin. It can be just replaced with fintech in general. Other technologies like VR are easy to understand even if they fall short.

Can you please explain a bit more on this. Why do you think blockchain is hyped? Also did anything similar to blockchain (distributed decentralized information store) exist earlier?

Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#23

Post by segmondy »

DigitalSea wrote: post #4

Virtual Reality. As someone who has tried HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Playstation VR (I own PSVR) and even Samsung's foray into VR via its flagship Galaxy phones (S7 Edge) I would have to say that at present, it's still overhyped. The technology is so new that most companies are experimenting and finding their feet. As cool as VR is, the cool factor wears off very quickly when you realise that screen technology hasn't qui…

computers where not hyped when it was 320x240. Virtual reality doesn't have to be about gaming. If it can open new ways of thinking, interaction, then it doesn't need 4k. The resolution is more than adequate. It's more about finding utilization.

Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#24

Post by wslh »

ynafey wrote: post #21
wslh wrote: post #11

Private blockchains: everything there could be built before Bitcoin. It can be just replaced with fintech in general. Other technologies like VR are easy to understand even if they fall short.

Can you please explain a bit more on this. Why do you think blockchain is hyped? Also did anything similar to blockchain (distributed decentralized information store) exist earlier?

> Can you please explain a bit more on this.

Yes, sure. The bitcoin innovation was solving the duplicate transaction (or spend) problem in a trustless network. In a private blockchain you have trust between the nodes so this innovation does not apply.

> Also did anything similar to blockchain (distributed decentralized information store) exist earlier?

Yes, databases supported this configuration before and the idea of smart contracts predates Bitcoin. Also, there are a lot of articles before Bitcoin about secure transaction logs.

Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#25

Post by Grangar »

DigitalSea wrote: post #4

Virtual Reality. As someone who has tried HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Playstation VR (I own PSVR) and even Samsung's foray into VR via its flagship Galaxy phones (S7 Edge) I would have to say that at present, it's still overhyped. The technology is so new that most companies are experimenting and finding their feet. As cool as VR is, the cool factor wears off very quickly when you realise that screen technology hasn't qui…

I would say it's neat. But whoever thinks this has any use outside of entertainment, in ecommerce for example, is wrong IMO.

Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#27

Post by kirillzubovsky »

segmondy wrote: post #23
DigitalSea wrote: post #4

Virtual Reality. As someone who has tried HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Playstation VR (I own PSVR) and even Samsung's foray into VR via its flagship Galaxy phones (S7 Edge) I would have to say that at present, it's still overhyped. The technology is so new that most companies are experimenting and finding their feet. As cool as VR is, the cool factor wears off very quickly when you realise that screen technology hasn't qui…

computers where not hyped when it was 320x240. Virtual reality doesn't have to be about gaming. If it can open new ways of thinking, interaction, then it doesn't need 4k. The resolution is more than adequate. It's more about finding utilization.

Interesting point to belabor further. I am not old enough to know/remember what computers were like in the early day. Can anyone shed a light on what it was like when personal computer were in the same stage as VR today? I get a hunch computers were indeed less "hyped", but perhaps that's just the nature of the world we live in now. In 2016 it's no longer enough to have a good product, you have to shove it in the consumer's face or your competitor rips it off and does it first. Maybe hype is just a necessary evil?

Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#28

Post by nathan_f77 »

knz wrote: post #17
fuqted wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He might be referring to the thought of sharing the home of a person while they're in it.

Ah. We've only ever booked a whole unit for that reason .

I stopped using Airbnb when I realized that most of the units I was booking were just hotels and guesthouses, and I could get a huge discount by just booking via their own website. Especially if you are visiting a tourist town or a big city, Airbnb is generally a waste of money.

Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#29

Post by nathan_f77 »

Yxven wrote: post #20

From a web dev perspective, I've heard a lot about React lately, so I learned it. I'm not saying it's bad, but I expected it to do a lot more.

I've heard a lot about Vue.js lately, apparently it's even better. But yeah, they're just small view libraries. If you want something that does a lot more, then you should check out Ember.

Re: Ask HN: Most overhyped technology of 2016?

#30

Post by nathan_f77 »

DrNuke wrote: post #5

Big data where big is volume, as in the mainstream. Influencers do not know statistics, do they?

Haha, I never thought about that. I think you're saying that you can gather meaningful insights by looking at a small sample of data, instead of collecting and processing absolutely everything. Is that what you mean?
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