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I solved some interesting technical problems this year. One was optimizing a script that took over eight hours to run, to just twelve seconds (validation code b
by ph0rque 8y ago
I solved some interesting technical problems this year. One was optimizing a script that took over eight hours to run, to just twelve seconds (validation code brought that back up to several minutes, but still a lot better than eight hours). Another was taking several map pins whose coordinates were based on the same physical address (just different suites/floors, and having the same exact coordinates returned from the API) and staggering them. I ended up using a spiral pattern to do the staggering.
An ongoing soft-skill problem I am learning to solve is the effective customer development.
An interesting UI/UX problem I am currently thinking about is how to allow people to draw sun/shade patterns, wind current patterns, and essentially contour lines that show elevation on their property (the last is to ultimately learn how water flows on their property, and where there are drainage problems) in a fun, minimal-effort way. If anyone has any suggestions on this, please feel free to share.
The last two types of problems are for my side project, AutoMicroFarm.
- abraae 8y agoIMO the most fun way to enter elevation data for your property would be to ride around on your farm bike with an altimeter lashed up to a smartphone, gathering data as you go.
- ph0rque 8y agoThanks for the idea! I found a variety of altimeter apps for the phone; I'll have to try just walking around my yard with one (or several), then see if it's possible to get elevation data on a map from such an app.
- brianpgordon 8y agoI'd suggest getting an app like Sensors Multitool for Android which gives you the raw output of your phone's sensors. I tried one of the altimeter apps a few years ago to see how tall a big hill was, and the value that the app reported turned out to be far off the actual value. There are various techniques for mixing and cleaning data from the GPS and barometric pressure sensors and a premade altimeter app (if it's not open source) obfuscates what's really going on with the values you'll actually end up seeing if you create an app for your microfarming project. Also be aware that different phones have different levels of support for non-GPS location services. I was surprised to learn recently that my Pixel 3 can use data from the US, EU, and Russian satellite geolocation systems for better coverage/precision.
- ph0rque 8y agoThanks for the tips! I don't need accurate readings, just precise ones (so the map can be internally consistent; here's what I drew manually for my property: https://i.imgur.com/2ZGmB1M.png https://i.imgur.com/2ZGmB1M.png). I'll keep in mind what you suggest when I am ready to develop that part of the app.
- ph0rque 8y agoWell, I tried both Accurate Altimeter and Sensors Multitool, and I must say I'm disappointed. The values varied by 20 meters! In reality, my property varies by 2 to 3 meters at most. I'll keep thinking about how to solve the problem.