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Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

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Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#281

Post by Red_Leaves_Flyy »

Semiapies wrote: post #236
closetohome wrote: post #230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The search for an ongoing revenue stream is one of the most destructive forces in the tech industry. It leads to some very customer-hostile experiences.

The problem is that not having a revenue stream is one of the most destructive forces to tech (or other) companies , and people like to keep their jobs.

UBI, more research spending, a flatter wealth distribution, and separating necessities from investment portfolios would help to allow developers to develop without living like stereotypical artists.

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#282

Post by asdff »

ChicagoBoy11 wrote: post #69
dbcurtis wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the early days, farm tractors were pretty simple, and many farmers did a lot of their own work. As machines got bigger, most used local repair shops that could always order from parts depots. But as electronics has invaded tractors (for many good reasons) it has gotten to the point where you really need the diagnostic equipment. So this is a lot like what auto repair was in the early days of the diagnostic plug-in…

It's actually much worse. All of the electronics also causes the machine to collect quite a bit of data on how/when it is used. WRT to the individual farmer, that data now has value and the manufacturer can extract that value by requiring the customer to pay to have access to it. At scale, that data can be sold off to hedge funds and other wall street shops to help inform data trading algorithm on grain futures and t…

Seems like a good opportunity for a white hat to crack the probably shitty security and give this data to farmers for free.

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#283

Post by asdff »

wiremine wrote: post #58

Disclaimer: I'm a VP for an IoT software company. I also grew up in farming communities. I'm all for the right to repair, but I'm concerned we're creating a bit of false hope for famers. As more and more software gets injected into the equipment, "fixing" things requires touching both the physical devices and the software. Obviously, the right to repair for non-software related problems is easy to understand. I'm won…

Be aware of your own biases, farmers are just as capable of learning about software as anyone else. You study the tools for your job like in any job.

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#284

Post by squish78 »

skinkestek wrote: post #176
jay_kyburz wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've often wondered if our government has some massive stores of grain somewhere to feed the nation for a few years in the event of a near total crop failure. Seems irresponsible not to have it. Update: I sometimes wonder what it would take for me to have a year of food in reserve here at home, but I worry that its just the crazy Prepper in me trying to come out.

> but I worry that its just the Prepper in me trying to come out. Fixed it for you :-) There's nothing crazy with a little prepping, is it? Many of the practices are even recommended around here (stock up on food with long shelf life, keep clean water around, some iodine, a battery powered radio etc)

There’s nothing wrong with a little prepping but you have to take that to the scenario’s logical conclusion. What happens if you run out of supplies and there is no deus ex machina narrative and you are faced with starvation.

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#285

Post by h0l0cube »

metiscus wrote: post #273
h0l0cube wrote: post #271

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> For reasons of genetics, hybrid seeds cannot be reused in the next season. Can you provide supporting evidence/materials to back this claim?

Depending on the plant, you'll get either of the two species used to make the hybrid instead of the hybrid itself.

Thank you, and excuse my naivete here. So what makes the hybrid route the optimal way to produce these GM plants, rather than cross-breeding in a way that survives reproduction? Do we know GM crops to always be hybrids of this nature?

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#286

Post by p1necone »

gowld wrote: post #224
ssivark wrote: post #208

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The app ecosystem is just a matter of time, once there exists a solid foundation. We need the breakthrough device that will make it possible to get started. Consider Linux on the desktop. For about a decade after it became popular (late 90s) ie till late 2000s, the user experience was crappy, and the app ecosystem was sparse. But they developed so well over the next ten years that in many ways Linux today is more use…

95% of the market does not find Linux more user-friendly than Windows/MacOS. While Linux was getting its shoelaces tied, ChromeOS showed up and put the lie to the dream that any user-controlled Linux would satisfy the market's needs. 2020 is the Year of Linux on the Desktop.

Usability is not the only thing that affects adoption. I'd wager a pretty large chunk of that 95% doesn't even know what Linux is. It also doesn't matter how usable Linux is when you can't go into a store and buy a PC with it preinstalled (although that probably falls under the umbrella of "usability" for many).

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#287

Post by paulcole »

p1necone wrote: post #240
freehunter wrote: post #234

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The last iPhone I bought was the 6S 4 years ago and I think it was $649 But now? The 11 Pro is $1000. WTF? Ridiculous argument. Apple still makes a current-generation phone roughly on par with the price that you found acceptable. Just because they also added a more expensive mode does not in any way discount that fact.

I don't think this is true, Apple has definitely been raising prices significantly in the last few years even on the cheapest models. Unless you're counting still being able to buy a generation or two behind for cheaper as "current generation" Edit: this article has a nice chart https://www.gsmarena.com/price_history_of_apples_iphones-new... There's a couple of blips with the 5c and the SE but for the most part even…

The iPhone 11 at release was $699, $50 more than the person paid for the 6s 4 years ago. They got the model with 16gb and a 4.7” screen. The 11 starts at 64gb with a 6.1” screen.

Is this raising prices significantly?

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#288

Post by LennyWhiteJr »

h0l0cube wrote: post #271
SquareWheel wrote: post #250

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your comment on GM crops is technically correct but also misleading. Most crops are already grown from hybrid seeds. For reasons of genetics, hybrid seeds cannot be reused in the next season. It's also quite a time-consuming process to reuse seeds, which makes the whole process less cost effective anyway. GM crops have not had a significant effect on this issue.

> For reasons of genetics, hybrid seeds cannot be reused in the next season. Can you provide supporting evidence/materials to back this claim?

Cash crops use something known as hybrid vigor (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heterosis) which breeds together two distinct, albeit mediocre, blends into a single offspring that is sort of like a super plant. The catch though is that it only works for a single generation, and if you were to replant the crop's offspring you would end up with a highly undesirable crop. For this reason, almost no farmers replant using their harvest. This pre-dates the use of GMO seeds.

Every summer in the midwest you get armies of workers who do something called 'detasseling' where you walk through the seed fields and rip off the male genetalia of one of the two breeds, which forces the seeds to be pollinated in a specific way. The result is the seeds that are used to plant next years crop.

source: I grew up on a corn farm.

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#289

Post by LennyWhiteJr »

h0l0cube wrote: post #285
metiscus wrote: post #273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depending on the plant, you'll get either of the two species used to make the hybrid instead of the hybrid itself.

Thank you, and excuse my naivete here. So what makes the hybrid route the optimal way to produce these GM plants, rather than cross-breeding in a way that survives reproduction? Do we know GM crops to always be hybrids of this nature?

Hybrid vigor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heterosis

It lets you create a sort of super crop... but it only works for a single generation. ‾\_(ツ)_/‾

Re: Nebraska farmers vote overwhelmingly for Right to Repair

#290

Post by Izkata »

lbotos wrote: post #270
closetohome wrote: post #230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The search for an ongoing revenue stream is one of the most destructive forces in the tech industry. It leads to some very customer-hostile experiences.

My fave is "subscription headphones": https://www.nuraphone.com/products/nuranow

> Please note: NuraNow is not a rent-to-own program — as long as your subscription stays active, the Nuraphone stays active too.

...isn't that straight worse than rent-to-own...?

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