Stop building dumb stuff

#1

Post by kintan » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 7:52 PM UTC

Stop building dumb stuff
obviouslywrong.org

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#2

Post by electic » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:15 PM UTC

Seems the website is down. Maybe obviouslywrong.org shouldn't have been built :| Does anyone have the article they can paste here?

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#3

Post by NathanKP » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:18 PM UTC

Cached version: http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://...

With regard to the article I agree that it is noble (and probably more profitable) to build new products and ideas rather than clones of existing ideas, just as it is noble (and doubtlessly more profitable if you are successful) to develop a new vaccine for malaria rather than just distributing mosquito nets.

But mosquito nets are what people need now to save lives. A promise of future vaccine doesn't save lives. Likewise people want facebook for dogs now, and other crap clones, and where the money and demand is the market follows.

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#4

Post by kushalc » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:20 PM UTC

electic wrote: post #2

Seems the website is down. Maybe obviouslywrong.org shouldn't have been built :| Does anyone have the article they can paste here?

Am the author -- wasn't expecting HN frontage, yikes! ;) The site just went up a few days ago and is crashing. I'm on it.

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#5

Post by milesokeefe » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:20 PM UTC

What exactly is the point of this? That non humanitarian efforts are useless?

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#6

Post by milesokeefe » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:20 PM UTC

What exactly is the point of this? That non humanitarian efforts are useless?

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#7

Post by SwearWord » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:21 PM UTC

I disagree that we don't need a Facebook for dogs.

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#8

Post by [deleted] » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:21 PM UTC

electic wrote: post #2

Seems the website is down. Maybe obviouslywrong.org shouldn't have been built :| Does anyone have the article they can paste here?

[deleted]

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#9

Post by endianswap » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:23 PM UTC

It surprises me that the author holds Myrvhold to such high esteem when his company, Intellectual Ventures, is working pretty hard to stifle innovation.

Re: Stop building dumb stuff

#10

Post by jt2190 » Sun, Oct 21, 2012, 8:23 PM UTC

I'm in agreement with his thesis (that there should be an increase in the funding of riskier projects by non-profits) but I dislike his examples of "useless" tech. Technology often starts off in toys and novelties until it can be made with greater reliability at a lower cost. Tech may be "useless" simply because we haven't explored it enough to find all of its applications.