5 ms·

why "not proud"? Life is too short to struggle with basic stuff like watching Netflix when you want to relax.

Minor49er 7y ago
I'm in a similar situation. I come home from work. My girlfriend and I watch some stuff on YouTube via Chromecast to unwind. Firstly, it's a brain drain and time suck in most of the ways that TV was for everyone in the same routine 20 years ago. Just because it's a smart device doesn't mean that it's any less of an idiot box as the television. Secondly, watching gives power to YouTube/Google when they are despicable companies
- K0SM0S 7y ago
  > it's a brain drain and time suck in most of the ways that TV was for everyone in the same routine 20 years ago I mean, I won't claim I never lose time on YT same as I used to on TV, occasionally, but as far as "brain drain" and "time suck" are concerned, it kinda depends on what you're into. I spend countless hours watching tech talks, math/sci news and teachings, podcasts with my heroes (on AI, CS, philosophy..) Some of it (most I'd say) helps in my work (not by chance, ofc). Nowadays is by far the best audiovisual average quality of content I've ever had in my life (37 here), because I have the choice of what and when (even where & how with a phone). And it's not like I could ever watch all that's worthy so I can select with excruciatingly high standards (my motto with most media: consume only the very best, ditch everything else: you still won't have enough time to run of content, ever). I think ultimately it's more about control, decisions we make for ourselves, provided the options are there (e.g. couldn't help but eat TV shit on some hours; can't blame myself for having rest time at the 'wrong' hour of TV, hence why I played so much video games back then maybe, which are much 'easier' and deeper time vortexes than any other video form content, IME). I say, 'when in doubt, read a book'. Can't go wrong with doing that even if the book is mediocre.
  - thom 7y ago
    I agree with this. I feel my personal viewing is much more directed these days. If I want to zombie out for a whole day it's just as likely to be a chess tournament on Twitch as anything else, and when there's nothing on I'm much quicker to give up and do something else rather than channel hop as in the old days.
  - worldsayshi 7y ago
    I don't doubt there's a lot of great content on YT but it sucks for exploring and finding it. Do you want to recommend anything on your list of good content channels?
    - K0SM0S 7y ago
      Fair point; sure, there you go. (in no particular order, I'm probably forgetting many greats) ### Tech: - Lex Fridman — AI podcast: hall of fame of AI speaks there, and I really like Lex. https://www.youtube.com/user/lexfridman https://www.youtube.com/user/lexfridman - EngineerMan is one of the best teachers out there for the "get it done" simple PoC stuff — lots of cool tricks, crystal clear explaining. Mostly devops / system. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrUL8K81R4VBzm-KOYwrcxQ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrUL8K81R4VBzm-KOYwrcxQ - lots of conferences (all talks) get posted, so I tend to watch enough of those (not the 'big' marketing stuff like Google, more specific tech or domain driven like some language, paradigm, product...). It's my way to keep in touch with many of these spaces without spending more than a few hours per year: from the mouth of the lion (main keynote is usually 'enough' for the 20% effort). E.g. I heard Rob Pike maybe 6 months ago, so I know where Go is at on its ~10-year journey so far. It's also a great way to discover in-depth features when you're digging into a topic (again ideally, 1 as-fast-as-possible talk from developer themselves). You generally have to seek the relevant channel, e.g. for Pycon 2019 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxs2IIVXaEHHA4BtTiWZ2mQ/videos https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxs2IIVXaEHHA4BtTiWZ2mQ/vid... - Coding Tech posts a lot of talks from all around the programming scene, and the curation is surprisingly good (some talks are really awesome, maybe half is quite decent). https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtxCXg-UvSnTKPOzLH4wJaQ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtxCXg-UvSnTKPOzLH4wJaQ - Level1Techs (and Level1Linux): Wendell is a nerd like us, but he's smarter and funnier at it than most. I love this guy. Real, real good perspectives. https://www.youtube.com/user/teksyndicate https://www.youtube.com/user/teksyndicate - ServeTheHomeVideo: from the same website, a reference for all things DIY server (and frankly IT in most SMBs). https://www.youtube.com/user/ServeTheHomeVideo https://www.youtube.com/user/ServeTheHomeVideo - Gary Explains: he's just the best for all things mobile, ARM, etc. (very high-level, but he knows programming and sysadmin so he's not shallow like most popular YouTubers with those topics) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRjSO-juFtngAeJGJRMdIZw https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRjSO-juFtngAeJGJRMdIZw ### Science, math: - Isaac Arthur, possibly the best "aggregator" of hard sci-fi concepts, I've binged so much on his channel. Love the spirit. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZFipeZtQM5CKUjx6grh54g https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZFipeZtQM5CKUjx6grh54g - Anton Petrov is the best astrophysics and related science news I've ever had (10 minutes a day is enough for me). Almost real-time with papers, and plenty of skill to explain the stuff simply. A really "wonderful person"! https://www.youtube.com/user/whatdamath https://www.youtube.com/user/whatdamath - Dr. Becky, same as Anton Petrov, cool astrophysics. She studies galaxies! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYNbYGl89UUowy8oXkipC-Q https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYNbYGl89UUowy8oXkipC-Q - the whole "-phile" suite — Computerphile, Numberphile, etc. Selectively, when I like the topic. https://www.youtube.com/user/Computerphile https://www.youtube.com/user/Computerphile - PBS Space Time, probably the best layman content to understand theories in astrophysics, and Matt is awesome. He studies black holes! (also consider PBS Infinite series which is inactive now). https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7_gcs09iThXybpVgjHZ_7g https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7_gcs09iThXybpVgjHZ_7g - 3Blue1Brown, obviously, selectively for topics I need/like. (but I tend to binge his stuff because it's so good) - Channels like MIT OpenCourseWare for lectures. https://www.youtube.com/user/MIT https://www.youtube.com/user/MIT - TED is not what it used to be, but worth watching a few sometimes (TEDx has disappointed me too many times with clickbait (waste of my time), so I really avoid it now unless someone human recommends a video). - Talks at Google has some interesting stuff sometimes. https://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks https://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks - People like Socratica (math, Python), Andrew Dotson (physics), Zach Star (math), Kai Hendry (Linux, AWS..), "Machine Learning with Phil". It fluctuates in time as I discover new people or as their content becomes boring to me. - Special mention for Robert Miles, AI safety researcher at Cambridge iirc. It's mostly abstract math / philo stuff (that funny boundary between the two), and really mind-blowing at times (I mean literally, not the smoking gun, just your mind melting down from thinking through the problem). I'm in awe at the talent of this young dude, so fluent with such topics. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLB7AzTwc6VFZrBsO2ucBMg https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLB7AzTwc6VFZrBsO2ucBMg ### More general stuff: - Stefan Mischook has the best freelancer (and beginner developer) advice you can find, imho. He's a legit down-to-earth guy with a knack for telling it like it is in simple words. https://www.youtube.com/user/killerphp https://www.youtube.com/user/killerphp - Joe Rogan, because why not! Selectively (mostly philo/sci guests and maybe 1% of his MMA-related stuff). https://www.youtube.com/user/PowerfulJRE https://www.youtube.com/user/PowerfulJRE - these days I'd get informed on the coronavirus from doctors directly, e.g MedCram https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quDYb_x54DM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quDYb_x54DM ### Some music I like, examples of channels concepts: - COLORS (really artful uncut live video recordings from up and going artists) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2Qw1dzXDBAZPwS7zm37g8g https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2Qw1dzXDBAZPwS7zm37g8g - InYourChill (background) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCncxHd8o_VhhHAJ7QqB5azg https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCncxHd8o_VhhHAJ7QqB5azg I also watch a few musicians who do impressive stuff, but that's more fleeting, no real sticker here for me. Just impressed at all the tatent out there! ### For fun: - The Daily Show with Trevor Noah https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwWhs_6x42TyRM4Wstoq8HA https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwWhs_6x42TyRM4Wstoq8HA - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight _____ My MO is simple: I only look at my "subscription" page (ignore the 'home' page with suggestions most of the time). Occasionally, I'll look at the right pane suggestions and try things, but I'm quick to close the tab if it doesn't feel genuine. Also, lots of backtracking. When I discover a channel that's great, I'll just spend months going through the catalog...
thom 7y ago
Eh, parenting is a somewhat competitive sport, I guess. You go through phases of boasting how your little ones aren't interested in cartoons and just want to do maths puzzles, followed by periods where you just want to dump them in front of the TV for ten minutes while you try and remember who your wife is.

I'm in a similar situation. I come home from work. My girlfriend and I watch some stuff on YouTube via Chromecast to unwind. Firstly, it's a brain drain and time suck in most of the ways that TV was for everyone in the same routine 20 years ago. Just because it's a smart device doesn't mean that it's any less of an idiot box as the television. Secondly, watching gives power to YouTube/Google when they are despicable companies

K0SM0S 7y ago
> it's a brain drain and time suck in most of the ways that TV was for everyone in the same routine 20 years ago I mean, I won't claim I never lose time on YT same as I used to on TV, occasionally, but as far as "brain drain" and "time suck" are concerned, it kinda depends on what you're into. I spend countless hours watching tech talks, math/sci news and teachings, podcasts with my heroes (on AI, CS, philosophy..) Some of it (most I'd say) helps in my work (not by chance, ofc). Nowadays is by far the best audiovisual average quality of content I've ever had in my life (37 here), because I have the choice of what and when (even where & how with a phone). And it's not like I could ever watch all that's worthy so I can select with excruciatingly high standards (my motto with most media: consume only the very best, ditch everything else: you still won't have enough time to run of content, ever). I think ultimately it's more about control, decisions we make for ourselves, provided the options are there (e.g. couldn't help but eat TV shit on some hours; can't blame myself for having rest time at the 'wrong' hour of TV, hence why I played so much video games back then maybe, which are much 'easier' and deeper time vortexes than any other video form content, IME). I say, 'when in doubt, read a book'. Can't go wrong with doing that even if the book is mediocre.
- thom 7y ago
  I agree with this. I feel my personal viewing is much more directed these days. If I want to zombie out for a whole day it's just as likely to be a chess tournament on Twitch as anything else, and when there's nothing on I'm much quicker to give up and do something else rather than channel hop as in the old days.
- worldsayshi 7y ago
  I don't doubt there's a lot of great content on YT but it sucks for exploring and finding it. Do you want to recommend anything on your list of good content channels?
  - K0SM0S 7y ago
    Fair point; sure, there you go. (in no particular order, I'm probably forgetting many greats) ### Tech: - Lex Fridman — AI podcast: hall of fame of AI speaks there, and I really like Lex. https://www.youtube.com/user/lexfridman https://www.youtube.com/user/lexfridman - EngineerMan is one of the best teachers out there for the "get it done" simple PoC stuff — lots of cool tricks, crystal clear explaining. Mostly devops / system. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrUL8K81R4VBzm-KOYwrcxQ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrUL8K81R4VBzm-KOYwrcxQ - lots of conferences (all talks) get posted, so I tend to watch enough of those (not the 'big' marketing stuff like Google, more specific tech or domain driven like some language, paradigm, product...). It's my way to keep in touch with many of these spaces without spending more than a few hours per year: from the mouth of the lion (main keynote is usually 'enough' for the 20% effort). E.g. I heard Rob Pike maybe 6 months ago, so I know where Go is at on its ~10-year journey so far. It's also a great way to discover in-depth features when you're digging into a topic (again ideally, 1 as-fast-as-possible talk from developer themselves). You generally have to seek the relevant channel, e.g. for Pycon 2019 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxs2IIVXaEHHA4BtTiWZ2mQ/videos https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxs2IIVXaEHHA4BtTiWZ2mQ/vid... - Coding Tech posts a lot of talks from all around the programming scene, and the curation is surprisingly good (some talks are really awesome, maybe half is quite decent). https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtxCXg-UvSnTKPOzLH4wJaQ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtxCXg-UvSnTKPOzLH4wJaQ - Level1Techs (and Level1Linux): Wendell is a nerd like us, but he's smarter and funnier at it than most. I love this guy. Real, real good perspectives. https://www.youtube.com/user/teksyndicate https://www.youtube.com/user/teksyndicate - ServeTheHomeVideo: from the same website, a reference for all things DIY server (and frankly IT in most SMBs). https://www.youtube.com/user/ServeTheHomeVideo https://www.youtube.com/user/ServeTheHomeVideo - Gary Explains: he's just the best for all things mobile, ARM, etc. (very high-level, but he knows programming and sysadmin so he's not shallow like most popular YouTubers with those topics) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRjSO-juFtngAeJGJRMdIZw https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRjSO-juFtngAeJGJRMdIZw ### Science, math: - Isaac Arthur, possibly the best "aggregator" of hard sci-fi concepts, I've binged so much on his channel. Love the spirit. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZFipeZtQM5CKUjx6grh54g https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZFipeZtQM5CKUjx6grh54g - Anton Petrov is the best astrophysics and related science news I've ever had (10 minutes a day is enough for me). Almost real-time with papers, and plenty of skill to explain the stuff simply. A really "wonderful person"! https://www.youtube.com/user/whatdamath https://www.youtube.com/user/whatdamath - Dr. Becky, same as Anton Petrov, cool astrophysics. She studies galaxies! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYNbYGl89UUowy8oXkipC-Q https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYNbYGl89UUowy8oXkipC-Q - the whole "-phile" suite — Computerphile, Numberphile, etc. Selectively, when I like the topic. https://www.youtube.com/user/Computerphile https://www.youtube.com/user/Computerphile - PBS Space Time, probably the best layman content to understand theories in astrophysics, and Matt is awesome. He studies black holes! (also consider PBS Infinite series which is inactive now). https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7_gcs09iThXybpVgjHZ_7g https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7_gcs09iThXybpVgjHZ_7g - 3Blue1Brown, obviously, selectively for topics I need/like. (but I tend to binge his stuff because it's so good) - Channels like MIT OpenCourseWare for lectures. https://www.youtube.com/user/MIT https://www.youtube.com/user/MIT - TED is not what it used to be, but worth watching a few sometimes (TEDx has disappointed me too many times with clickbait (waste of my time), so I really avoid it now unless someone human recommends a video). - Talks at Google has some interesting stuff sometimes. https://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks https://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks - People like Socratica (math, Python), Andrew Dotson (physics), Zach Star (math), Kai Hendry (Linux, AWS..), "Machine Learning with Phil". It fluctuates in time as I discover new people or as their content becomes boring to me. - Special mention for Robert Miles, AI safety researcher at Cambridge iirc. It's mostly abstract math / philo stuff (that funny boundary between the two), and really mind-blowing at times (I mean literally, not the smoking gun, just your mind melting down from thinking through the problem). I'm in awe at the talent of this young dude, so fluent with such topics. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLB7AzTwc6VFZrBsO2ucBMg https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLB7AzTwc6VFZrBsO2ucBMg ### More general stuff: - Stefan Mischook has the best freelancer (and beginner developer) advice you can find, imho. He's a legit down-to-earth guy with a knack for telling it like it is in simple words. https://www.youtube.com/user/killerphp https://www.youtube.com/user/killerphp - Joe Rogan, because why not! Selectively (mostly philo/sci guests and maybe 1% of his MMA-related stuff). https://www.youtube.com/user/PowerfulJRE https://www.youtube.com/user/PowerfulJRE - these days I'd get informed on the coronavirus from doctors directly, e.g MedCram https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quDYb_x54DM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quDYb_x54DM ### Some music I like, examples of channels concepts: - COLORS (really artful uncut live video recordings from up and going artists) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2Qw1dzXDBAZPwS7zm37g8g https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2Qw1dzXDBAZPwS7zm37g8g - InYourChill (background) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCncxHd8o_VhhHAJ7QqB5azg https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCncxHd8o_VhhHAJ7QqB5azg I also watch a few musicians who do impressive stuff, but that's more fleeting, no real sticker here for me. Just impressed at all the tatent out there! ### For fun: - The Daily Show with Trevor Noah https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwWhs_6x42TyRM4Wstoq8HA https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwWhs_6x42TyRM4Wstoq8HA - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight _____ My MO is simple: I only look at my "subscription" page (ignore the 'home' page with suggestions most of the time). Occasionally, I'll look at the right pane suggestions and try things, but I'm quick to close the tab if it doesn't feel genuine. Also, lots of backtracking. When I discover a channel that's great, I'll just spend months going through the catalog...

thom 7y ago

Eh, parenting is a somewhat competitive sport, I guess. You go through phases of boasting how your little ones aren't interested in cartoons and just want to do maths puzzles, followed by periods where you just want to dump them in front of the TV for ten minutes while you try and remember who your wife is.