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Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

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Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#11

Post by fogus »

I once worked at a car wash were most of the employees were out on work release. Anyway, the days were long and boring so I took the time to devise a way to get free sodas out of the vending machine. I was not interested in stealing soda, as I hated it, but only in figuring out how to do so. I eventually did so. I was so proud of myself that I decided to show one of the guys that I got along with pretty well. When I came back few days later the machine was completely empty and was never again able to provide tasty beverages for very long. Eventually the owner of the machine caught on and removed it from our site. I was very naive.

Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#12

Post by kyro »

fogus wrote: post #11

I once worked at a car wash were most of the employees were out on work release. Anyway, the days were long and boring so I took the time to devise a way to get free sodas out of the vending machine. I was not interested in stealing soda, as I hated it, but only in figuring out how to do so. I eventually did so. I was so proud of myself that I decided to show one of the guys that I got along with pretty well. When I…

Yeah, a similar story here. Pumping the lock with your finger would pop it out, which, after unscrewing the bolt, granted me access to a world of soda beverages.

Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#13

Post by zackattack »

For many years, jamba juice was running a promotion: buy a $25 gift card, get a free jamba juice. So one day I bought a gift card, got my free razmatazz, and was about to head out on my way when I doubled back.

Me: "I'd like another $25 gift card please."

Cashier: "That will be $25. What is your free smoothie?"

Me: "Peach pleasure."

And then I would pay with the previously purchased gift card, creating an infinite loop with a sunk cost of $25. I was only once refused. I netted at least 50 jamba juices for me and friends..I hope to incorporate this into a screenplay some day.

Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#14

Post by zackattack »

anamax wrote: post #9

Girls like sex and want to have sex with me. All I have to do is express interest and not piss them off until afterwards. Generalizing "afterwards" makes relationships possible. Women are girls in many respects.

I can't believe how long it took for me to internalize this

Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#15

Post by jacquesm »

zackattack wrote: post #13

For many years, jamba juice was running a promotion: buy a $25 gift card, get a free jamba juice. So one day I bought a gift card, got my free razmatazz, and was about to head out on my way when I doubled back. Me: "I'd like another $25 gift card please." Cashier: "That will be $25. What is your free smoothie?" Me: "Peach pleasure." And then I would pay with the previously purchased gift card, creating an infinite lo…

That should teach them about recursion :)

Brilliant to spot the loophole on the spot.

Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#16

Post by nfnaaron »

I hacked a skydiver once.

I was a civilian/sport/fun/non-military jumpmaster in the eighties. Taught/supervised skydiving students from the second jump on. Sometimes sat in the plane and supervised/critiqued, sometimes jumped out with them for some task they were learning that involved another person in the air.

One student was having trouble staying stable when he left the plane. Tried everything I could think of, he was just tense and maybe a little tunnel visioned. He really wanted to succeed, and I really wanted him to.

However the student leaves the plane (there are many ways), you or the student would typically say out loud "ready, set, go!" and go on "go." Regardless of how he left the plane, he tumbled.

As we went up once again, near the end of the day, I had no idea what to try except some variation of what I/we had always done. We got to altitude, turned on jump run, and he climbed past me to stand on the step outside the plane. I still didn't know how to help him.

He got in position, looked in at me, and almost without thinking about it, rather than saying ready set or whatever, I took a big, obvious breath, slowly let it out in an exaggerated, relaxed way, and casually pointed at him.

Beautiful exit, and he had a big smile when we met on the ground. Helping that guy through that was one of the most satisfying moments in my life.

Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#19

Post by iigs »

It's not a specific hack, but it has given me the same feeling, something I keep discovering: It's just a bunch of rules. Learn the rules and you understand it.

We've probably all seen it with computing; it looks mysterious from the outside but learn the logic and you can make it go.

Fixing cars is the same way (fuel, air, spark). Circuit design is the same way (a few types of component, logic gates). Power engineering is the same way (W = V*A, wire's got to be big enough). Music is generally the same way (very math-y in both the time and frequency domains). Dating is pretty similar (statistics play a different role here, but you can do well enough here "by the book").

We're currently learning that raising a child is the same way. Diaper, hungry, tired, hot/cold, {colic, teething, other age related issues}, doctor.

Re: Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

#20

Post by thesethings »

* Cooking: Ramen can be used not just for soup, but for stir-fry.

* Travel: Any supermarket is your fee-free ATM. (cashback) (US)

* Travel: In the middle of your urban trek and have to pee? Hotel lobbies usually have clean, open bathrooms. (Specifically talking about the one you're NOT staying at, when you're wandering for 10 hours in a foreign city, and don't want to go all the way back to "base.")

* Travel: Hotel lobbies often have free wifi.

* Cooking: Peel an orange inside the produce bag. Makes for perfectly dry, not messy, not sticky experience. (your fingers can poke through the skin and tear it, and it doesn't tear bag. Magic.)

* Travel: I have so many Priceline and Hotwire strategies, but the short version is: use these sites to book hotels.

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