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Ask HN: Idea Sunday

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301–310 of 589 posts

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#301
post #97

A voting system based on the Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System behind Bitcoin. The major reasons votes couldn't be conducted electronically is because of trust issues and today we have a technology that solves that. I think this could potentially disrupt voting if properly executed.

Unfortunately all the bitcoin fiascos lately do nothing to engender public support and confidence in a voting system that "works like bitcoin."

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#302
post #260
post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "I'd really love a browser extension that could keep track of how the user reached a given site." I used to love to have this. I called it "browser history", but then Mozilla decided it made the browser so terribly slow that you can now no longer really configure how long history is retained. After a while it just disappears. I used to have my history all the way back from 2006...

Is this true? I checked and I seemed to have lost my history from before 2012, and assumed I'd messed up somewhere in transitioning between computers. I couldn't find any info about Firefox doing this (arbitrarily deleting history from the past), but I'm almost sure it does. Edit: This time I found it: https://wiki.mozilla.org/Firefox/Projects/Places_async_expir... I find it rather annoying, however, that this isn't…

Well, it's stored in a simple sqlite file (places.sqlite), so you can just do regular backups or import it into another DB.

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#303
post #236

An app that allows you to have a meeting with someone anytime both of you're available for the meeting. So it's schedule-less. Example: You want to talk to Paul. Paul wants to talk to you. But not as much. Paul is ranked "a1" in your book and you are ranked "b5" in Paul's book. Paul notes that he is in a "b5 and above" time period. Maybe he just got done exercise so he is more interested in talking to anyone (you are…

I really like this idea, although I'd be unlikely to mark my availability often. Maybe have a 'get me a meeting now' button, which raises your availability until a meeting matches.

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#304
- Browser plugin that lets you have private group conversations around other peoples' posts. Pure evil, I won't do it due to pesky ethics. (Think "people gossiping about how ugly someone is in their selfie behind their back" as primary use case.) UX would be injecting thread inline on major sites, first would obv be Facebook.

- Better wedding planning software

- Tool to go through LinkedIn "Who You Might Know" recommendations to assist in job hunt

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#305

Open University. A massive repository of all books needed for any career. No teachers, no videos, no homework, nothing, just the books, free, forever.

I'm working on this - obviously there are licensing issues with books, but my idea is to have students keep notes online, and then have those documents available to everyone.

I'd love to hear any more ideas you have about this.

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#306
post #31

Downloadable sounds for electric cars. Electric cars must make noise under new EU rules: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26857743

For blind people, they must make a sound that person recognises as a car. So they can't download their favourite bands latest single.

From the article:

> MEPs agreed that in future the vehicles must be fitted with devices to make them "sound similar" to cars with combustion engines.

So you'll have a limited choice to choose from.

But personally I'm hoping they can make them a bit less rough and more of that smooth "Hummmm" you associate with luxury cars.

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#307

A notepad that can send my handwritten notes to the cloud. It should have a mini-scaner embedded into the top cover so when I want to backup a note, I just close the notepad, push the cover, remove the first page, close, push again. None of these ipad apps can substitute the good old pencil drawings

Why not just photograph your notepad with your smartphone?

the point seems to be to have your handwritten notes uploaded automatically. that's the product.

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#308
post #33

A cheap hardwire device that I can take to the gym and not worry about breaking it. There are lot's of great workout tracking apps but I won't risk having my expensive smart phone smashed in order to record my workouts. I see more people using pen and paper even with all the amazing apps out there.

this is probably a core use case for smartwatches. i'd probably lift with a smartwatch on.

Re: Ask HN: Idea Sunday

#309
post #73

A way to submit any legal document, and for a fee have it returned but explained in plain english. What do you guys think about this? And what do you think are the most common use cases/legal documents?

> A way to submit any legal document, and for a fee have it returned but explained in plain english.

SNARK: I understood this to be called a "lawyer".

NOT SNARK: Legal language is so recondite, complex, and heavily dependent on external dependencies defined elsewhere, that short of very smart AGI I despair of there ever being a programmatic way to translate between legalese and plain language with any hope of maintaining fidelity -- and, given the import which legal documents tend to have, a bad translation may well be worse than none at all.

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