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This is a great idea! I see others have mentioned ferries, however when I put my route in (Bainbridge Island to Seattle, WA) it chose roads not the ferry. Any way to force it to use my ferry route rather than the 3 hour road trip it chose?
Perfectly happy is maybe a stretch, but there are a few bills I still write checks for. These are a small stick it to the man because these companies charge a "convenience fee" for paying by credit card, and the only other payment option is check. I can't believe it doesn't actually cost them more to pay for a person to open my envelope and process my payment, so it's pretty clear a "convenience fee" is just a cash grab, so a check it is. My bank gives me checks for free, and the postage stamp is cheaper than the fee. And yes, I'm aware of the security issues, but so far I've had my credit card numbers stolen not checks.
Re:Show HN: I trained an AI model on 120M+ songs from iTunes on Thursday February 02, 2023 @11:50PM (#34637270)
Came with the same feedback, I'm having fun playing with it, but it's amusing to search for "Comfortably Numb" and the first match is "Comfortably Numb" :D

https://maroofy.com/songs/1065976170

Re:Ask HN: Do you care about your HN karma? on Thursday February 02, 2023 @01:24PM (#34630900)
To be honest, yes, in that I'd hate for it to drop. However I've been on since 2009 and only have 309 karma, so I guess I don't care enough to try to make it higher.
I feel pretty secure in my job until ChatGPT can write itself. Once it can improve on itself, then I'll be really worried.
Re:Yet another keyboard post, or, introducing ErgoNICE on Friday January 13, 2023 @12:48PM (#34371201)
Not sure how small you're wanting, but Kinesis sells the Cirque EasyCat AG which is 3.3"x2.6". I've not used it myself, but I do have the Freestyle Pro keyboard, which I absolutely love and is very high quality, so I'd guess the rest of the products are similar.

https://kinesis-ergo.com/shop/cirque-easycat-ag/

Re:The Organ as a Wind Instrument on Monday January 09, 2023 @04:40PM (#34316531)
There's a lot of people using Hauptwerk (virtual organ) for this and assembling their own consoles. Here is an organist on YouTube who shows his whole build process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UtzLlfwJ5w&list=PLUL_VC1ItB...
Re:Ask HN: What weird technical scene are you fond/part of? on Monday November 21, 2022 @08:25PM (#33700636)
I still have a Net Yaroze sitting in a box in my garage, including all the manuals and CodeWarrior that probably won't work on anything anymore. I'd love to donate to someone who would use it, but it literally has a lifetime non-transferrable license :(
Movies have been doing this for a while, and people just seem to have gotten used to it after the initial "yuck" reaction. Peter Cushing, Coke Commercials, etc.
Re:Everything in Japan is next level on Wednesday June 22, 2022 @02:06AM (#31832573)
Abroad in Japan. He’s really popular, but I find him pretty balanced.

That Japanese Guy Yuta. Some find him annoying, but I like it. He covers a lot of controversial subjects. I’ve actually purchased his language learning and it’s been really good.

Re:Ask HN: Good review sites and channels by humans on Tuesday June 21, 2022 @01:30AM (#31820245)
I just discovered this channel about 6 months ago and am ridiculously hooked on it. Am I ever going to buy a right angle impact wrench or a chain saw sharpener? No, but I'll sure watch a 20 minute video on which one is the right choice.

It's a great channel! And, he does actually review a lot of things I do buy.

Re:Everything in Japan is next level on Tuesday June 21, 2022 @01:26AM (#31820214)
I've only visited Japan once (I'm American), and as someone who had never been, I definitely saw a lot of things that seemed magical and I can understand the tendency to romanticize it.

Funny enough, I've been planning another trip (that was supposed to be for my daughters high school graduation, but COVID changed that)and spent a lot of time watching videos to get ideas and learn a bit of the language and culture, and some of the English speaking Japan based YouTubers opened my eyes to a lot of the areas where Japan definitely isn't magical.

It's been good to get some balance! I'm still excited to visit when we finally can.

Re:How to Walk (12 miles a day) on Wednesday May 04, 2022 @03:59AM (#31257888)
Interestingly, I just got a VanMoof electric bike a few weeks ago as part of a commuting program at work. I'm able to use it for leisure too, so I hope you're right.
Re:How to Walk (12 miles a day) on Wednesday May 04, 2022 @03:57AM (#31257864)
It's probably several factors, according to the docs. Partly genetics, partly taking up running later in life (about 35, loved it, but the knee pain started in about 5 years in), partly being tall, partly weight issues.
Re:How to Walk (12 miles a day) on Tuesday May 03, 2022 @05:54PM (#31254109)
I used to be an avid walker, at least an hour a day back and forth to work, and long walks with the dogs around my home (lucky to live in a beautiful area in the PNW with close beaches and lots of trees, so plenty to enjoy.) I've been walking since I was a kid, as it was the only way to get back and forth to school and town growing up in the Berkeley hills. Though I resented it as a kid, I grew in to loving walks.

I've been developing severe osteoarthritis in my knees over the last decade since I hit my 40's, and now it's so bad, I'm unable to walk more than about 10 minutes. It's had a tremendous negative impact on my physical and mental health, especially as it was coincident with the pandemic. I've "replaced it" with biking, but for some reason, it just doesn't do as much for me as walking did. I've gained about 30 pounds, I'm tired all the time, and for the first time ever, feeling a little blue now and then and not doing other things I used to enjoy (very mild though, my wife has major depression and mine is a blip comparatively.) I guess I'm a living testament to how important walking is.

I like the timing of this article for myself. On the bright side, I'm getting one of my knees replaced next week, and the other hopefully in 6 months if recovery goes well. I am really looking forward to daily walks again and getting back to that healthy place I was in for so long!

Came here for the 128 :)
Mine connects, specifically to allow Alexa voice control. It actually comes in handy once and a while (or should I say, handless...)

The one appliance I have that has internet capability that I don't understand is my dishwasher. It has the ability to be remote started. I can't think of a single use case for this, since you need to load soap to use it, and it has a delay feature. It's a great dishwasher, and I bought it in spite of the silly internet option, which I've never enabled.

Re:What use is mental math in 2022? on Monday February 28, 2022 @02:13PM (#30503709)
Mental math is useful (vital) when playing poker or other odds based skill games! You'd be thrown out of any casino if you broke out your phone every hand :D

And, this sort of goes with the article, it's really useful for negotiations/haggling where you may not want to use a calculator.

Re:Solve Puzzle to Join Waitlist on Sunday January 23, 2022 @08:59PM (#30052792)
Does anyone have any info on who is behind this before I submit my e-mail address to a random website? It seems like it could be interesting in an advent of code style thing, but I'd like to make sure of what I'm signing up for...
Re:Centers of Population on Friday January 21, 2022 @07:01PM (#30031602)
And the median is a Toyota plant in Indiana! https://goo.gl/maps/gG9KGVpJ3rovVRyH6
Re:How to help a friend who lost their home in a fire (2020) on Friday December 31, 2021 @03:57PM (#29752459)
See my top level post, but I’ve been through it. A couple of quick answers.

It’s hard to understand how overwhelming it is to suddenly loose every single material possession. And you’re spot on. Dealing with all the paperwork and agencies like FIMA and insurance companies. If you have the ability to help someone out in these areas it could be really helpful. Unfortunately it’s hard, and most of the “dealing” has to be done by the victims.

So, the point of the article is what can you do so help in the immediate where you have people you know suddenly have to replace literally everything. The spatulas and boxes may seem silly, but when you’re dealing with so many things at one time, even small stuff taken off your plate is helpful. For example, the first night I finally went to go to bed and hadn’t even thought to pick up a toothbrush and I was too overwhelmed to deal with it and actually broke down in tears!

Prevention tips? Well for the Oakland firestorm or the Colorado fires there’s not much to prevent. All I can say is do an inventory of your home and determine what you’d really miss if it were gone. Put those things close together so you can grab them in a minute. Or make sure you have copies. Cloud photo storage definitely makes a big difference. If you have old photos, make digital copies.

Re:How to help a friend who lost their home in a fire (2020) on Friday December 31, 2021 @03:40PM (#29752320)
I lost my childhood home in the 1991 Oakland hills fire when I was in my early 20’s. I was the only one home at the time and it started on our block, so I had no time to get anything out of the house but the clothes on my back. So, I’ll emphasize number 12 as one of the most important points on the list.

As long as you are insured, the only things you really miss are the things that can’t be replaced. In our case it was slides and photos of when we were kids and of grandparents, great grandparents, etc. And mementos like concert t-shirts and such.

If you are a relative and have old photos, consider having them digitized and printed, and give an album to the ones who lost their home. My sister (in her own place by then) collected photos from relatives and made my mom and I each an album like this (not digital then so it was a bit more work!) and it’s literally the only photos I have of myself growing up that I can share with my kids. It’s weird in a way, my wife has boxes of childhood treasures she can show the kids, and I have just one small album, but I think it means that much more because it’s all I have.

If you are a friend, and shared experiences with the person who lost the home, and you have some keepsakes from those times together, that would be an amazing gift. I mentioned concert t-shirts, and I had a friend at work who had a connection with a well known musician who was able to score me a few old shirts. I still have them to this day and treasure them as one of the few reminders of those good times.

Also, about #5, bringing food. Please ask first! Food tends to be a popular way to help, but it can actually get overwhelming. We had so much in our freezer at one point we had to ask people to stop bringing it. Plus, you don’t necessarily know peoples tastes or what they are really craving for comfort. I think restaurant gift cards would be a better choice. Hardly any storage needed and it lets the family choose what they really want. Or, as mentioned in number 7, invite the affected people over for a meal! In the beginning they are probably in a hotel room until insurance helps with a more permanent place and it is nice to get out for a night.

Otherwise, this is a good, timely article with the fire in Colorado. My heart goes out to those families as I’ve been through it and it sucks.

I love Stockholm (and Sweden in general). Had I visited earlier in life I likely would have wound up there. Second choice would be Amsterdam.
Re:Found at Goodwill: WebPad 1001 Prototype on Monday June 07, 2021 @01:54PM (#27425733)
I miss Mike Quinn and Weird Stuff. I haunted them in my youth and made all kinds of crazy projects.
Re:8-Year-Old Calls Out NPR for Lack of Dinosaur Stories on Wednesday February 10, 2021 @07:57PM (#26096920)
Get some dinosaur kids books. Kids love it when you read with them and tend to latch on to the ones you make really fun. As others have said, nothing is guaranteed, but it will certainly improve the odds. Worked with both my kids, one girl, one boy. They are teenagers now and don't care as much about dinos now, but still think they are cool.
Re:Ask HN: Team fun event ideas during WFH? on Tuesday February 09, 2021 @03:35PM (#26082114)
My team is fully remote and distributed among time zones, making it impossible to have an event during "working hours" for everyone. So we all just agree on an acceptable time. We think it's important to socialize as it helps engender trust, so we take the hit as it were. We do try to make it fair by moving the time around so it hits various people's off hours.
I agree with you, this is the best almost no cost option as there is such a close detour route and there is so little traffic coming from the east. I'm surprised this wasn't offered as a solution, all it would take is a barricade.
Re:Stonehenge Remodelled (2012) [pdf] on Monday April 27, 2020 @06:26PM (#23000840)
I agree with this! On our last visit to the UK we stopped at Avebury. Aside from touching the stones (and the sheep touching you!), there is a very nice little National Trust museum. Also in the town (all steps away) is Avebury Manor, which was a neat little museum that has different rooms decorated for different periods. There's also St. James Church, which aside from being very historical and interesting, happened to have the group of "church ladies" (which I think was the actual name of their group) who were serving a pot luck lunch for a very small donation, and as it had just started to rain, bent the rules for all of us and let us picnic in the church. Avebury is by far one of our best memories of the trip!
Re:Google Chrome Is Losing the 'Close Other Tabs' Option on Wednesday August 28, 2019 @08:10PM (#20825412)
I'll miss "bookmark all tabs". I'm in the 0.64% who use it, I find it very handy when doing research. I open a bunch of tabs and then save them off to reopen later and basically "keep my state."
Re:The Matrix Code Came from Sushi Recipes on Monday April 01, 2019 @03:55PM (#19547506)
You know what, this is the first I'd heard this. That makes so much more sense than the battery thing which always left me shaking my head. I agree, and I think the execs underestimated their audiences.

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