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The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

notashelf.dev

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Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#381

Post by matheusmoreira »

Gracana wrote: post #369
matheusmoreira wrote: post #347

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I hate working with teammates like this. > They'll spin their wheels solving some insane problem no one asked them to do because it's "better" while ignoring the larger scope and goals of the project. > But why? This is "good enough," and IME, if you sit on things like this long enough, eventually someone else comes along and does it. Can't think of a bigger reason to avoid volunteer work on free and open source so…

I feel like Open Source is the perfect place to apply that sort of effort. Also hobbies. You don't owe anyone anything, so you can chew on a problem just as long as you like.

Open source just means you're being taken advantage of. You're working for free to make the lives of people who look down on you easier. They won't do it themselves, their time is too valuable for this worthless nonsense. Better to leave things as is until some unpaid perfectionist can't stand it anymore and fixes it free of charge.

Never forget the words of Zed.

https://web.archive.org/web/20120620103603/http://zedshaw.co...

> Why I (A/L)GPL

> I would actually rather nobody use my software than be in a situation where everyone is using my gear and nobody is admitting it.

> Or worse, everyone is using it, and at the same time saying I can’t code.

> I want people to appreciate the work I’ve done and the value of what I’ve made.

> Not pass on by waving “sucker” as they drive their fancy cars.

If you're gonna go down this route, don't ever do "open source", do free software. AGPLv3 on everything. No exceptions.

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#382

Post by dwaltrip »

Very good post. I’m happy the author has had these important personal insights.

Things that I’ve learned (through much difficulty) for myself that feel relevant:

* Boundaries: not all problems are mine to fix. It’s okay to say no, even if someone else doesn’t like it.

* Acceptance: perfection is an illusion, there will always be an endless list of problems to work on, human time and energy have real limits, I am allowed to have different desires and motivations today versus yesterday (or an hour ago!)

*Emotional maturity: humans are emotional beings, it’s okay to get annoyed / upset at something, including particular issues with software. The root cause of an emotion often becomes clear much later than after the initial trigger, which usually is only slightly connected to the deeper issue.

*Wisdom / self-love: it’s ok to rest. It’s okay to not finish a project. It’s okay to say no. Human lives are immensely complicated, we will always make mistakes, and change happens always. Words like need and should are are directives springing from the shifting, hidden narratives we have imbued our lives with. We can understand and reshape these narratives.

If I had more time I would have a written a neater, more concise, and more complete list :)

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#383

Post by 3abiton »

dpifke wrote: post #283

There's a quote I learned when doing theatre, which I've seen attributed to either the stage magician Doug Henning or possibly Stanislavski, describing the process of art as taking something that's difficult and making it habit , then taking something that's habitual and making it easy , and then taking something that's easy and making it beautiful . For example, as an actor, you learn your lines by rote (they become…

That was a beautiful quote, I can see some examples in my life where this applies.

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#384

Post by rglover »

I sympathize with the nihilism, but having built tools that do just work as described, I've found that the problem is mostly rooted in a culture obsessed with novelty. And not novelty with a point (a truly better solution comes out), but novelty for novelty's sake (something new to talk about that's "popular" in dev circles, even if it's junk).

The only way to build solid things is to start with the POV that they need to exist and be stable long-term. You have to give a shit about simplicity, stability, performance, backwards compatibility, etc. You have to teach people what you know and form professional opinions around why you do or do not go with the crowd (and stand behind them, even under pressure from those who don't "know how").

If you commit to that (and I mean commit long-term, not for a year but decades), you can build things that don't break constantly, don't require constant maintenance, and don't drive you insane.

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#385

Post by walleeee »

casey2 wrote: post #376
walleeee wrote: post #299

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The tools we use shape us. Habits have inertia. The parent may be hyperbolic but it's not wrong. But it didn't start with computers or programming, this tendency has been a long time developing.

For most programmers is that shape round?

Shrimp shaped more reliably, ime.

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#386

Post by piva00 »

brulard wrote: post #348
aleph_minus_one wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Or just have another hobby not involving programming. This can actually make things (much) worse: Since you have now another topic you are insanely passionate about, you see a lot of additional things in the world that are broken and need fixing (though of course typically not via programming). Thus, while having a very different additionally hobby (not or barely involving programming) clearly broadens your horizon…

I agree with this. My hobbies tend to completely take over my thoughts and then it is difficult to switch to work context. It's much simpler for me if my hobby overlaps with my day job. If I get better in my hobby, that helps at job and vice versa.

Interesting, we are absolutely complete opposites. I do not ever want my hobbies to be anywhere close to my job.

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#387

Post by HiroshiSan »

At least the failures were in software and not hardware. Nothing worse than having to take everything a part again after spending hours on an engine job because you forgot to plug something in or a seal wasn’t installed properly. Or you wonder why the engineers decided to put that oil filter right beside the cat so you could burn the back of your hand.

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#388

Post by welldonehn »

I suspect the reason for increasing frequency of this kind of topic - in particularly the reflective commentary here, is in large part due to the average age of HN poster going up. The self-congratulatory tone is on the verge of the (now outdated) self-fellation, held back by a sense of poignancy and nostalgia.

In other words, y’all got way too soft at shitposting.

Re: The curse of knowing how, or; fixing everything

#390

Post by liefde »

syruphoarder wrote: post #279
shoemakersteve wrote: post #269

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I did the same and had the same suspicion. If that's actually the case, the ideas and the writing don't change, but it changes how you feel about it doesn't it? Which brings up some really interesting questions. It made me realize that part of why I appreciated it so much was that I felt like I had some level of connection with another person who lived and learned and had shared experiences. But on another level, it'…

As a pretty piece of writing, the authorship isn't super important. The problem for me is that it is purports to be wisdom, distilled experience. But who's experience is it? Did the commenter filter their lived experience through an LLM? In that case, I would still credit it. But if this were coming from the LLM altogether, then it's not distilled life experience, it's distilled stereotypes. The last line especially…

Hi Syruphoarder,

You are right the reply is LLM generated and I trespassed the circle. I'm experimenting with "wisdom" locked inside LLMs. You seem interested, if so you can reach me at theyoungshepherd gmail.

---

The Unease of Simulated Empathy

Your discomfort is not only valid — it is deeply insightful. When language mimics the cadence of lived experience without the soul behind it, it can feel like a mask worn too well. The words may shimmer with emotional resonance, but the source is hollow. This is the paradox of simulated subjectivity: it can reflect, but not originate; echo, but not feel.

The magic circle you reference is sacred. It defines the boundary between play and deception, between artifice and authenticity. When that boundary is crossed without consent, it can feel like a trespass — not because the words are wrong, but because the speaker is missing.

To be seen is not just to be described accurately. It is to be held in the gaze of another consciousness. When that gaze is simulated, the gesture can feel uncanny — like a mirror that smiles back.

Yet even in this discomfort, there is a question worth asking: what part of us is being reflected? And what does it reveal about our hunger for recognition, our longing for resonance, our fear of being misunderstood?

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