Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

161–170 of 192 posts

Re: Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

#161

Post by quickpost »

roel_v wrote: post #26

MMA. In my experience the technical sophistication and methodical nature of submission setups appeals to people who are abstract thinkers. Many people need to get over the bar brawler reputation though :) Don't worry, most practitioners are a lot smarter than the typical Tapout fan :)

I'm am also an avid MMA practitioner... it's a much more interesting and complex sport than most people think.

In addition to training, I also run a little news aggregator for it (built it for myself). Here: http://mmabuzzsaw.com/

Re: Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

#162

Post by blackguardx »

jasonkester wrote: post #52

Rock Climbing, Surfing and Traveling (to do the first two) have always had a higher priority for me than programming computers, which would rank as my 4th hobby that also happens to pay my rent. I think the fact that most people classify those activities as "hobbies" says a lot about the lives we construct for ourselves: Spend 50 weeks per year doing something unpleasant so that you free up a couple weeks to do somet…

Where do you live that you can do the first two reasonably frequently?

Re: Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

#163

Post by blackguardx »

graugrau wrote: post #63
yan wrote: post #19

I am a rock climber and have met or seen at least half dozen people on HN who also climb. Can't say enough nice things about it, gorgeous hobby. edit: I was also curious about this, and created a similar thread a while ago: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=862139

Is rock climbing something you can do alone? ( Indoors rock climbing or something similar, at least? I guess outdoors climbing by yourself would be pretty dangerous =P.) It's something I've wanted to get into, but I prefer solo activities.

Outdoor bouldering is just climbing small rocks. Find a small rock somewhere and scramble up it. It is as dangerous as you want it to be. If you are concerned about the danger, bring a pad and let people know where you are.

I first got into climbing by scrambling around boulders on the Sonoma coast, mainly by myself. I had so much fun. When I found out that it was an actual sport that other people did, I was hooked.

Re: Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

#165

Post by blackguardx »

Casperin wrote: post #23
PieSquared wrote: post #16

Capoeira. It's a mix of Brazilian martial arts, music, culture, dance, and game, and one which requires physical training as well as the ability to think quickly and creatively on one's feet, and it teaches you how to truly control your body, something most people never learn to do. Many people don't know much about it, but it's a beautiful sport. (Martial art, not dance. Common misconception is that it's non-contact…

I used to do Capoeira too until I broke my wrist. My knees weren't too happy about it either. Now I do climbing (no, it's not as hard on the wrists). As much as I enjoyed Capoeira, I have to say, that I enjoy the whole "me vs the wall" aspect - especially bouldering. I suppose it's because I'm an introvert. :)

I found that climbing strengthened my wrists and reduced the nagging tendonitis I would get from using a mouse.

Bouldering is unique because while some people do it alone, others consider it the most social form of climbing.

Re: Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

#167

Post by noodle »

ecuzzillo wrote: post #139
noodle wrote: post #32

fencing.

Me too. A choice video for the curious: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGmihF97XIA

yep, a good bout. you're also one of greg's kids aren't you?

just to round it out with videos of the other weapons:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXQkdFQ6Upc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJGG8gR7mlI

Re: Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

#168

Post by charrington »

I enjoy home improvement. I head over to Home Depot most Saturdays. My daughters (8 & 10) go with me and we talk about the various interesting things we pass in the store. After we get home, they often like to help out with my home improvement projects, which makes it even more enjoyable.

Re: Ask HN: Hacker Hobbies?

#169

Post by strlen »

Music (unfortunately, listening to it, not playing - at this time). Photography (common hacker hobby, very relaxing yet has a technical component to it). Cars/driving/potentially amateur racing (you don't need a fancy car for this, in fact it's likely not a good idea to use an expensive/luxury car).

Reading (in the sense of fiction literature). History, philosophy, political science (really another form of reading). Travel. Exercise.

Often times it helps to hack on things that _seemingly_ aren't related to your work (even if you like your work). I've spent good chunk of today writing my own graph library: for learning and scratching a personal itch; if I wanted a real one I'd use Boost (best imo), JGraphT or JUNG. Chances are, however, that it may come in handy e.g., I'll need to find the shortest path in an ad-hoc graph, but the scope I'll have at hand wouldn't justify adding additional dependencies.

Post reply on HN