121–130 of 172 posts
I was just thinking it would be neat to use an LLM to study how comments on a post change in tone as the sun rises over different countries and cultures. Also what articles make it to the front page etc. At the moment the US is asleep, and I’m getting more of a European vibe from the comments.
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Exactly. Being "stuck in traffic" is a car thing. Pedestrians and cyclists are literally never "stuck in traffic".
You're mainly correct, but if you have a look at busy times in a bike-oriented city such as Copenhagen then there are big queues of bikes/trikes at traffic lights. Maybe "paused in traffic" would be a better description of them though.
> and the greater the chance they’ll conclude they’re working in a bullshit job.
OK but you guys all know how many software have been involved in the creation and shipping of that bicycle and all its material? It's software all the way. The 3D modelling, the logistics, all the payment processing making buying/shipping the materials, etc.
I won't comment on taxes (on revenues for all the companies involved and on their employees too and on the sale etc.) and all the software that implicates and all the bureaucracy that it allows to thrive because, to me, that is the real bullshit that should be decimated (not reduced to zero but decimated).
But anyway many things we enjoy and take for granted exists thanks to and because of software.
Put it this way: even if they're similar in that they both have two wheels, I'm not trading an early 20th century for my Specialized (californian company btw even though I'm in the EU) full carbon S-Works (S-Works is the top end from Specialized) bicycle.
Thank you very much, software devs, for having made the creation of that wonderful bicycle possible.
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That's the reason I use a single-speed bike (not to be confused with a "fixie") for commuting. I absolutely love the simplicity of it: no gears to muck around with, much less maintenance, light, and hassle-free. Perfect to deal with the "frequently stop and start" biking in a city. In a (flat) city for commuting short distances, you simply don't need gears if you're below 50. It's a nice to have . It also helps that…
> you simply don't need gears if you're below 50 And here I am with all the gears; on a nice road bike; and I struggle to maintain 30 km/h on flat.
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That's the reason I use a single-speed bike (not to be confused with a "fixie") for commuting. I absolutely love the simplicity of it: no gears to muck around with, much less maintenance, light, and hassle-free. Perfect to deal with the "frequently stop and start" biking in a city. In a (flat) city for commuting short distances, you simply don't need gears if you're below 50. It's a nice to have . It also helps that…
Seconded. Love that my single speed rarely needs anything other than some air in the tires. I've got a converted 70s Raleigh that has been bomber for almost 20 years, with the only exception being a busted crank arm. Replace those old hollow aluminum things if you go this route. Even got my dad a single speed e-bike. If you live somewhere mildly flat, that's a fantastic choice for durability with an ebike. So many bi…
I love cycling but absolutely hate maintenance. I’d always prefer to be riding my bike than working on it. Two recent enhancements that significantly improved my life are electronic shifting, and wax lube. I haven’t had to mess around with gear indexing once since I bought a bike with electronic shifting (SRAM Rival) a couple years ago, and it always shifts perfectly. I do have to keep the batteries charged, but one…
I think bike maintenance is one of those things that is similar to how you read about programmers who pick up woodworking here on HN. I know it's a zen thing for me, similar to other "craftmanship" (I'm not sure if this is the right english word for things like machanics, carpenters, plubmers and so on) like home improvement DIY, gardening or even cleaning the damn house. It's just very zen. Both because it tends to…
But for me it always just feels like a chore - something I need to get done before tomorrow morning or else I have to listen to some dreadful sound for the entire ride.
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True, the price tag might buy you a second hand car. But if you factor in the maintenance cost of cars it comes in cheap in comparison. I’ve just had to replace the clutch in my car (~2200€), whereas having the whole transmission (all sprockets and the chain) in a bike fixed is around 250-300€. Less if you do it yourself. And being able to do it myself feels really good, I couldn’t agree more!
Right, but you realize that comparing a bike to a car is a bit ridiculous, right? They're for very different use cases.
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You're mainly correct, but if you have a look at busy times in a bike-oriented city such as Copenhagen then there are big queues of bikes/trikes at traffic lights. Maybe "paused in traffic" would be a better description of them though.
Traffic lights only exist because of cars, though. Pedestrians and cyclists don't need them. So, again, it's all caused by cars.
However, modern traffic lights tend to be designed exclusively for motorised traffic and here in the UK it's annoying because we don't have a "turn left on red" rule, so cyclists can end up waiting at a red light even though a left turn would be perfectly safe. I got caught out the other day at a set of lights that didn't detect me on my carbon bike, so I sat patiently waiting (the other roads were busy) until I figured out that my turn had been missed and had to carefully find a gap to make my turn.
The other thing is that stopping and starting on a bike takes significant energy and effort, so a straight road with many lights can turn an easy commute into a chore which is why it's common to see cyclists going through red lights. Interestingly, that kind of red-light jumping is allowed under some jurisdictions e.g. Paris.