Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–70 of 72 posts

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#61

Post by [deleted] »

evilduck wrote: post #47
watty wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People call you scrooge because you are just like scrooge... seriously, you made a website because you don't like getting off of work, getting gifts, and spending time with family?

Those 3 things aren't really listed on his site, just some of the negative behaviors around them. If you'd care to refute the things listed, you'd have a point. The prevalence of gift giving using consumer credit is just dumb, moreso when it's crappy gift cards that don't mean anything. Only spending time with family during Christmas doesn't feel genuine, and the arbitrariness of getting time off for the holidays is…

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#62

Post by DannoHung »

cypherpunks01 wrote: post #28
DannoHung wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ditto. I actually asked my parents if they could help me get rid of some stuff as a Christmas gift. I did ask for one book though: http://www.cookingforgeeks.com/ Since it's formatting heavy, I'd rather have a hardcopy of it.

That sounds cool. I usually just dig http://www.cookingforengineers.com !

Yep, I love that blog. The new entry on Sous Vide makes me want to give that a try.

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#63

Post by dunham »

tptacek wrote: post #59
_b8r0 wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's the difference between the 10k rotovap and the 2k one? It seems like pound for pound (of dry ice that is) the 2k one might be better for smaller volumes... unless you're trying to simulate martian polar ice caps in your back garden... FWIW I want one of these: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nauticalia-Copper-Pot-Still/dp/B0049... I'm trying to convince the wife that a 'purely ornamental' (due to UK legislation) still…

Where's the $2k rotovap? The $10k looks like an R-210, which is the one I keep seeing in demos.

I think he means the $3k one, it's listed as a "related product" on the page of the $10k one:

http://www.amazon.com/Cole-Parmer-Rotary-Evaporator-System-V...

Looks like smaller "bath capacity" and smaller temperature range (5C-90C)

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#65

Post by tptacek »

dunham wrote: post #63
tptacek wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where's the $2k rotovap? The $10k looks like an R-210, which is the one I keep seeing in demos.

I think he means the $3k one, it's listed as a "related product" on the page of the $10k one: http://www.amazon.com/Cole-Parmer-Rotary-Evaporator-System-V... Looks like smaller "bath capacity" and smaller temperature range (5C-90C)

It looks like this guy don't apply vacuum pressure (the Q&A on their site suggests that you can plug it into a separate vacuum pump). That's pretty key, since the reason to own these things is vacuum distillation.

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#66

Post by urza »

A friend of mine has a very nice wishlist:

If you want to buy me a xmas present, donate to Tor, Wikileaks, Wikipedia, Caring for Cambodia, Unicef, ffii.org... It will make me happier than gifts.

There are people starving, our privacy is dying, world is changing, help it move the right way.

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#67

Post by silencio »

tptacek wrote: post #34
_b8r0 wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Errr... really? This? http://www.amazon.com/Pacific-Play-Tents-Hide-Tunnel/dp/B000...

No idea. There's some old, old stuff on there. I just want the rotovap. Someone buy me a rotovap? Thanks! (I have two kids, for what it's worth.)

(Random, but in the event that your kids are still the right age for that toy...)

I got a very similar product made by the same manufacturer from Costco for a friend's kids, and I don't think that they're worth it. The one I got came with a whole bunch of plastic balls (think xkcd) which were a nice touch and the tents make for good ball pits. Unfortunately, the tent was so flimsy that a toddler can tip over the entire thing just playing around inside.

Most of the time I was there and the kids were playing with the set, I had to sit inside the tent and anchor it down while the kids were running around, and even then it was tough because the entire tent would start shifting around. It was fun for a while, but I would imagine most parents/babysitters wouldn't want to do this every time their kid(s) wanted to play.

It would work just fine if you figure out how to anchor it, but I can't think of many kid-proof/safe ways to do that without bending the whole tent out of shape.

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#68

Post by mgkimsal »

bradly wrote: post #52

I've started asking for non-tangible gifts recently. Things like piano lessons, sailing lessons, rock climbing gym membership, Flickr Pro subscription, etc.

That's a great idea. Gifts such as those will give you experiences and the basis for more experiences over a lifetime. Physical gifts can sometimes do that, but not as often.

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#69

Post by khafra »

bd wrote: post #9
chadp wrote: post #3

Bugatti Veyron

Here you are :) http://mrdoob.github.com/three.js/examples/materials_cars.ht... (needs WebGL capable browser like Chrome 9 dev channel or Firefox 4)

Interesting reversal: I have a Daytona 675 and wanted a CGI model of it for CFD testing on cheap ways to reduce drag. But the only CGI model I could find online was over $100; far more than I'd expect to save in gasoline costs over the life of the bike.

Re: Ask HN: what's on your Christmas list?

#70

Post by protomyth »

tptacek wrote: post #60
protomyth wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's my basic response. I have a single public Amazon wish list that I keep updated with little things in the "buy later" category and I send that to those who want it.

I'm actually very mildly worried (0.5%) that my parents might actually try to buy something based off that last entry.

Like any post on a social network, a public amazon wish list needs to be vetted and not your default list.
Post reply on HN