4 ms·

The Smart Home is the ultimate triumph of capitalism. A product that nobody needs who's biggest value is mining user's data in order to sell that user more shit

by tharne 3y ago

The Smart Home is the ultimate triumph of capitalism. A product that nobody needs who's biggest value is mining user's data in order to sell that user more shit they don't need.

paranoidrobot 3y ago
> mining user's data The article is about offline Smart Homes. Using something like HomeAssistant, and products supporting integrations with local control you can eliminate data going to third parties.
- tharne 3y ago
  I get that it was about offline Smart Homes. I just got stuck on the fact that the author said they weren't concerned about privacy.
  - kccqzy 3y ago
    Did we read the same article? The author didn't say that.
j45 3y ago
You'd be surprised how much time you can actually save yourself and get back for living towards other things by automating the right few things for yourself. Get a stopwatch and try it out.
- tharne 3y ago
  I'm sure that's true, but I just don't see the point. No one ever died saying, "man, if only I'd lived life more efficiently".
  - imp0cat 3y ago
    That was probably before the invention of robovacs.
- candiddevmike 3y ago
  Pretty sure I spend more time fucking with my smart home setup than me or anyone in my family will "save". It's a gimmick at best.
  - j45 3y ago
    Playing around with things to tweak more is hobby time to me. Setting it up for others to use it is another. The comment about Apple Homekit "just working" has some merit. If it's not automated in the background on a schedule, and on demand, there's some merit to it. Maybe there's a sweet spot of not having to hack every little thing. My smarthome setup for example is centered around becoming an appliance of the home that stays with it, and making design considerations for that.
- wolvesechoes 3y ago
  And how do you use your precious time that you have saved through careful improvements in efficiency? More scrolling on HN? Yeah, big win.
  - j45 3y ago
    30 minutes a day saved is 15 hours a month, and about 22 work days (8 hours) a year of waking time. Awake time. I get that much more time with my kids or towards something else I want. It's free time for the taking for a fixed investment, I'll take it. It might not make sense for you and how you value your time, but in time it might. The thing about doubt like yours is nothing new will reach a brain that starts closed off. I generally avoid doubt worshippers who validate their doubts by painting them on others instead of openly entertaining a viewpoint that isn't theirs. I got no problems being straight with you the way you're willing to behind a keyboard. I understand the fun part of being a devils advocate and a skeptic, but not everything has to be for everyone, nor does it have to be validated by you to be acceptable. To answer your question, HN is limited on a few devices, a few times a day, with the procrast settings, and in grayscale. The hosts file has been blocking it for many years. After a while I pick up and put down the device I have for reading. What do you do that works for you?

by tharne 3y ago

The Smart Home is the ultimate triumph of capitalism. A product that nobody needs who's biggest value is mining user's data in order to sell that user more shit they don't need.

paranoidrobot 3y ago

> mining user's data The article is about offline Smart Homes. Using something like HomeAssistant, and products supporting integrations with local control you can eliminate data going to third parties.

tharne 3y ago
I get that it was about offline Smart Homes. I just got stuck on the fact that the author said they weren't concerned about privacy.
- kccqzy 3y ago
  Did we read the same article? The author didn't say that.

j45 3y ago

You'd be surprised how much time you can actually save yourself and get back for living towards other things by automating the right few things for yourself. Get a stopwatch and try it out.

tharne 3y ago
I'm sure that's true, but I just don't see the point. No one ever died saying, "man, if only I'd lived life more efficiently".
- imp0cat 3y ago
  That was probably before the invention of robovacs.
candiddevmike 3y ago
Pretty sure I spend more time fucking with my smart home setup than me or anyone in my family will "save". It's a gimmick at best.
- j45 3y ago
  Playing around with things to tweak more is hobby time to me. Setting it up for others to use it is another. The comment about Apple Homekit "just working" has some merit. If it's not automated in the background on a schedule, and on demand, there's some merit to it. Maybe there's a sweet spot of not having to hack every little thing. My smarthome setup for example is centered around becoming an appliance of the home that stays with it, and making design considerations for that.
wolvesechoes 3y ago
And how do you use your precious time that you have saved through careful improvements in efficiency? More scrolling on HN? Yeah, big win.
- j45 3y ago
  30 minutes a day saved is 15 hours a month, and about 22 work days (8 hours) a year of waking time. Awake time. I get that much more time with my kids or towards something else I want. It's free time for the taking for a fixed investment, I'll take it. It might not make sense for you and how you value your time, but in time it might. The thing about doubt like yours is nothing new will reach a brain that starts closed off. I generally avoid doubt worshippers who validate their doubts by painting them on others instead of openly entertaining a viewpoint that isn't theirs. I got no problems being straight with you the way you're willing to behind a keyboard. I understand the fun part of being a devils advocate and a skeptic, but not everything has to be for everyone, nor does it have to be validated by you to be acceptable. To answer your question, HN is limited on a few devices, a few times a day, with the procrast settings, and in grayscale. The hosts file has been blocking it for many years. After a while I pick up and put down the device I have for reading. What do you do that works for you?