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I used to think I'd be part of the solution, but I honestly don't know where to apply pressure anymore. Go into policy? Go into reporting? Wait decades to build

I used to think I'd be part of the solution, but I honestly don't know where to apply pressure anymore. Go into policy? Go into reporting? Wait decades to build my influence at a company like Google? It all feels untenable.

toomuchtodo 2y ago
You have a sphere of influence which is a function of your resources (your resources being the aggregate of fiat, assets, your ability, your network, etc). Do good for those who can fit within your sphere. Attempt to grow your sphere. When you pass, you will have done what you can with what you have for those you could. That is the most we can ask of ourselves in the brief period in which we exist.
- nixpulvis 2y ago
  I don't want to just be an influencer. I want to put in the work actually fixing things. We don't have a shortage of outrage and opinion, we have a lack of productive outlets for these feelings.
  - toomuchtodo 2y ago
    Apologies, by influence I meant action or what you can control, things you can do (not social influencer or simply words). Helpful feedback, appreciate it. "Take action people around you need."
    - nixpulvis 2y ago
      I get that, but I'm looking for more tangible advice. No offense; what you're saying is generally good advice.
      - hackable_sand 2y ago
        You could make a large dinner for your friends.
Clubber 2y ago
I would suggest writing a FOSS solution to a proprietary software system. FOSS is the great equalizer. It's hard to compete with free. EDIT: For concrete examples, see what the author complained about, there are some good pain points to attack.
- nixpulvis 2y ago
  I'm looking for a career fixing problems caused by tech as a techie. How do I make some FOSS which addresses being lied to by Google AI? How do I make FOSS that makes the web a more pleasant place to browser without popups and broken back buttons? How do I turn FOSS into a career? I've worked at companies who use FOSS and contributed both on the clock and off, but it was never primary way I made money. What makes me so frustrated is that these things are getting worse, and I feel powerless to stop it.
  - Clubber 2y ago
    >I'm looking for a career fixing problems caused by tech as a techie. Oh, I thought you were looking to do something for the good of humanity. I'm afraid all the paying jobs are antithetical to that goal to varying degrees. >How do I make some FOSS which addresses being lied to by Google AI? Work on your own model, or at least a framework where other people can make their own models. The biggest issue with AI right now is it's expensive to run locally, thus entrenching cloud interests. I suspect that unless hardware gets insanely cheaper that we'll have domain specific models to serve that purpose. >How do I make FOSS that makes the web a more pleasant place to browser without popups and broken back buttons? Ghostery did a pretty good job with this. So much so that the advertising companies are struggling with ad blockers. For broken links, perhaps a wayback machine plugin that renders the latest historical version of said hyperlink. >How do I turn FOSS into a career? I've worked at companies who use FOSS and contributed both on the clock and off, but it was never primary way I made money. The only models I know of that work is freeware / premiumware and/or support contracts. >What makes me so frustrated is that these things are getting worse, and I feel powerless to stop it. You (we) aren't powerless, but perhaps overmatched. The nice thing is tech can really disrupt entrenched interests. Linux is a prime example. Most people don't remember how powerful Microsoft Windows was in the 90s. They still are but at least there are viable alternatives, particularly in the server sphere.
drewcoo 2y ago
Reminds me of hippie boomers who tried to "change the system from within," only to become part of the system. Too bad people can't seem to learn from others.
_DeadFred_ 2y ago
Build connections so you can do good. Be active in local government? Support your local library? The grandiose stuff seems to suffer from the 'the road to hell is paved with good intentions' rule. I see you did smart phone stuff and might feel bad because of the whole 'the road to hell thing'. Well, fun story how I killed people for money (yay). I once had a passion project that reduced waste in an industry, in some cases allowing places providing services to stay open that otherwise would close. When I went to one of the first sites to oversee implementation/learn improvements from the domain experts starting to use it and all proud I was making the world better, I found out that the 'waste' was actually collected and used in desperate communities to save the lives of people that could afford even less than the communities I had helped. I literally at the end of the day and distilled down had ended up killing people in order to save money. And I had spent nights/weekends/alienated my family to make sure it happened! I also saved lives in communities that would have had lost services without the savings, and positively impacted a lot of others. But still, there were people dead over my passion project to make the world better. Or take my parents who were hippies. I grew up on a commune because they were doing the best thing, anti-capitalism, pro-organic, rah rah. All my parents accomplished living on it was they delayed their lives a decade scrapping bare bones subsistence survival out of the earth, and raised their child in poverty. Again, good intentions, bad results (voluntary child poverty for their own child). Sometimes we are going to accidentally increase child poverty or kill people for money. And we just gotta say 'Well f*ck that didn't work' and move on and keep trying, keep smiling, keep being kind, and keep helping others.

toomuchtodo 2y ago

You have a sphere of influence which is a function of your resources (your resources being the aggregate of fiat, assets, your ability, your network, etc). Do good for those who can fit within your sphere. Attempt to grow your sphere. When you pass, you will have done what you can with what you have for those you could. That is the most we can ask of ourselves in the brief period in which we exist.

nixpulvis 2y ago
I don't want to just be an influencer. I want to put in the work actually fixing things. We don't have a shortage of outrage and opinion, we have a lack of productive outlets for these feelings.
- toomuchtodo 2y ago
  Apologies, by influence I meant action or what you can control, things you can do (not social influencer or simply words). Helpful feedback, appreciate it. "Take action people around you need."
  - nixpulvis 2y ago
    I get that, but I'm looking for more tangible advice. No offense; what you're saying is generally good advice.
    - hackable_sand 2y ago
      You could make a large dinner for your friends.

Clubber 2y ago

I would suggest writing a FOSS solution to a proprietary software system. FOSS is the great equalizer. It's hard to compete with free. EDIT: For concrete examples, see what the author complained about, there are some good pain points to attack.

nixpulvis 2y ago
I'm looking for a career fixing problems caused by tech as a techie. How do I make some FOSS which addresses being lied to by Google AI? How do I make FOSS that makes the web a more pleasant place to browser without popups and broken back buttons? How do I turn FOSS into a career? I've worked at companies who use FOSS and contributed both on the clock and off, but it was never primary way I made money. What makes me so frustrated is that these things are getting worse, and I feel powerless to stop it.
- Clubber 2y ago
  >I'm looking for a career fixing problems caused by tech as a techie. Oh, I thought you were looking to do something for the good of humanity. I'm afraid all the paying jobs are antithetical to that goal to varying degrees. >How do I make some FOSS which addresses being lied to by Google AI? Work on your own model, or at least a framework where other people can make their own models. The biggest issue with AI right now is it's expensive to run locally, thus entrenching cloud interests. I suspect that unless hardware gets insanely cheaper that we'll have domain specific models to serve that purpose. >How do I make FOSS that makes the web a more pleasant place to browser without popups and broken back buttons? Ghostery did a pretty good job with this. So much so that the advertising companies are struggling with ad blockers. For broken links, perhaps a wayback machine plugin that renders the latest historical version of said hyperlink. >How do I turn FOSS into a career? I've worked at companies who use FOSS and contributed both on the clock and off, but it was never primary way I made money. The only models I know of that work is freeware / premiumware and/or support contracts. >What makes me so frustrated is that these things are getting worse, and I feel powerless to stop it. You (we) aren't powerless, but perhaps overmatched. The nice thing is tech can really disrupt entrenched interests. Linux is a prime example. Most people don't remember how powerful Microsoft Windows was in the 90s. They still are but at least there are viable alternatives, particularly in the server sphere.

drewcoo 2y ago

Reminds me of hippie boomers who tried to "change the system from within," only to become part of the system. Too bad people can't seem to learn from others.

_DeadFred_ 2y ago

Build connections so you can do good. Be active in local government? Support your local library? The grandiose stuff seems to suffer from the 'the road to hell is paved with good intentions' rule. I see you did smart phone stuff and might feel bad because of the whole 'the road to hell thing'. Well, fun story how I killed people for money (yay). I once had a passion project that reduced waste in an industry, in some cases allowing places providing services to stay open that otherwise would close. When I went to one of the first sites to oversee implementation/learn improvements from the domain experts starting to use it and all proud I was making the world better, I found out that the 'waste' was actually collected and used in desperate communities to save the lives of people that could afford even less than the communities I had helped. I literally at the end of the day and distilled down had ended up killing people in order to save money. And I had spent nights/weekends/alienated my family to make sure it happened! I also saved lives in communities that would have had lost services without the savings, and positively impacted a lot of others. But still, there were people dead over my passion project to make the world better. Or take my parents who were hippies. I grew up on a commune because they were doing the best thing, anti-capitalism, pro-organic, rah rah. All my parents accomplished living on it was they delayed their lives a decade scrapping bare bones subsistence survival out of the earth, and raised their child in poverty. Again, good intentions, bad results (voluntary child poverty for their own child). Sometimes we are going to accidentally increase child poverty or kill people for money. And we just gotta say 'Well f*ck that didn't work' and move on and keep trying, keep smiling, keep being kind, and keep helping others.