6 ms·

When I was going to conferences, my laptop stickers were a public display of "these are technologies that I use and you can strike up a conversation with me abo

by shagie 1y ago

When I was going to conferences, my laptop stickers were a public display of "these are technologies that I use and you can strike up a conversation with me about them." To an extent, a resume that you can glance at from across the room. It's a bit of a statement for what you're trying to communicate with that lid - professional experience, political statements, personal "this is neat"... And part of this is a for me the lid of the laptop is something that I'd need to be able to be comfortable with displaying in front of a CxO without worry about if they may be offended or not (though perl might be offensive to some).

viraptor 1y ago
> though perl might be offensive to some Now I'm tempted to make a set of: Perl, COBOL, Java Beans, Java EE, ActiveX, Silverlight, VB.Net, ActiveDirectory, Kerberos, ...
- binary132 1y ago
  Whoa, a little too edgy there, I’m calling HR
- user_7832 1y ago
  You forgot to add Flash ;)
- rsynnott 1y ago
  > Silverlight You absolute monster. I'd managed to forget that that had existed.
SchemaLoad 1y ago
I've got stickers on my laptops. None of them are political, but I've got various indie fashion brands, music related, furry stickers, etc. If someone managed to be offended by them that's more their problem than mine. I can go work anywhere and have enough savings that it would be no inconvenience to me. I wouldn't want to work with someone who couldn't handle some trivial self expression on the back of a laptop. So far no one has ever been offended by this though. HN is far more sensitive than the average CTO.
- esseph 1y ago
  HN is still not a quarter as sensitive as most corporations that aren't tech.
  - SchemaLoad 1y ago
    Most other industries are very exposed to external clients or customers. Software developers who sit in an office and only see other internal employees have no reason cover up their personality like that.
    - potato3732842 1y ago
      rofl. It goes full circle. You should see the shit that b2b sales and support reps say.
    - esseph 1y ago
      Just about every enterprise has tech, and there are many, many sectors. There's also far more "tech folks" than developers at most companies, nor do all companies have devs on staff.
- crazygringo 1y ago
  > If someone managed to be offended by them that's more their problem than mine. That can be a healthy attitude outside of work. People love personality. But at work, that's not a healthy attitude. You're there to work together, not to be uncompromising in expressing yourself. Your stickers are probably fine, but I can also imagine plenty of musical artists that would certainly be offensive (and rightly so) to some people, whether for their lyrics or for their criminal behavior -- and then the attitude of "that's more your problem than mine" is not gonna fly.
  - SchemaLoad 1y ago
    Sure there is some content that is obviously not appropriate, but I'm not seeing it in the OP link. Meanwhile the comments here are filled with a thinly veiled anger over seeing rainbow flag stickers. These are the people I'd be quite happy to self filter themselves out in the workplace. Though I've never met someone like this in the office. Or at least they keep their thoughts to themselves offline.
hdgvhicv 1y ago
Safe to have a perl sticker as while it’s easy enough to put it on, nobody (including yourself) be able to read it.
- shagie 1y ago
  It's fairly readable. https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI
- wredcoll 1y ago
  I've never understood why people were so proud to brag that they can't understand a relatively simple language like perl.
wyclif 1y ago
That's why even though I like the weird and esoteric stickers you see here, I myself prefer the `unixstickers` style I think you're talking about. Debian, Arch, GNU, Python, bash, Ruby, Git, Vim, fork bomb, Tux, DEFCON, 127.0.0.1, &c. These are great for starting conversations, even in cafes. And you end up meeting some interesting people with shared culture.
- shagie 1y ago
  It is about advertising one's (possible) shared culture. For me, my laptop is part of my professional culture and thus I try to keep it as crisp and professional in appearance as one's resume since its a bit... difficult to laptop lids in certain cases. For my personal shared culture, that is the sort of thing that can be exposed (or hidden) on a case by case basis. My choice of t-shirt where I can button up or down depending on the context says a lot more about me than the lid of my laptop. Granted, it' one message at a time - but there are things that I've had on t-shirts that I made sure to button up before going into the office and seeing the boss (old school, and I still have it - those were durable shirts - https://www.flickr.com/photos/strihs/8536766235/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/strihs/8536766235/ ). On the other hand, I wouldn't put https://www.spreadshirt.com/shop/design/let+me+work+on+your+problem+funny+sarcastic+quote+sticker-D65007615be9fdc14d1c2f9c9?sellable=bB3OBjLAvMtrO8Q2geaQ-1459-215 https://www.spreadshirt.com/shop/design/let+me+work+on+your+... on my laptop no matter how much I agree with it. I would be amendable to putting a square of #22b7f2 on my laptop, and that opens up an entire discussion if recognized (I'm not quite ambitious or passionate enough to color the entire laptop that color). In another comment I linked https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI as my laptop lid.
  - brewdad 1y ago
    I keep my travel laptop clean of any outward expression. Saves a lot of potential grief crossing borders or cultures. My at home and around town laptop can be my canvas.
    - shagie 1y ago
      My work computer is spotless. My personal conference (and work appropriate - security wouldn't find anything unprofessional or untoward on it) laptop is the one with some stickers that are technologies that I want to put on there. My personal computer at home is desktop... so no stickers there. Even crossing company culture borders could be problematic if one is a consultant or sales engineer or professional services... This is one of those "in the wrong environment, something could scupper a deal - and you don't want that to be pinned on you."
dylan604 1y ago
> comfortable with displaying in front of a CxO without worry In today's timeline, you'd need to be concerned about what some random TSA agent felt about your stickers and if that might get you pulled aside for additional screening.
- SchemaLoad 1y ago
  You joke, but I had someone tell me they were taken for questioning on entry to the US because their laptop had EFF stickers with some slightly edgy hacker culture phrases on them.
  - dylan604 1y ago
    I'm sorry, but what makes you think I was joking? I have seen a co-worker get pulled aside for additional screening because he wore a t-shirt that had the words of the second amendment or some such printed in a way of looking like a pair of pistols. On the same flight, we sat with another individual who got himself arrested, missed his flight, and was eventually released to sit on our flight because he wore a belt adorned with bullet shells cut in half. I'm not saying either one of them were the deepest of thinkers when choosing the garments for the day, but TSA also isn't employing the deepest of thinkers either, so why poke the hornets' nest
    - tbrownaw 1y ago
      > On the same flight, we sat with another individual who got himself arrested, missed his flight, and was eventually released to sit on our flight because he wore a belt adorned with bullet shells cut in half. I've heard of similar things before, and had the sense that this was less screeners being dumb and more legislators not fuzz-testing their work.
ehnto 1y ago
I have a bunch of stickers from hobbies like bikes and sim racing. I guess it serves a similar purpose!

by shagie 1y ago

viraptor 1y ago

> though perl might be offensive to some Now I'm tempted to make a set of: Perl, COBOL, Java Beans, Java EE, ActiveX, Silverlight, VB.Net, ActiveDirectory, Kerberos, ...

binary132 1y ago
Whoa, a little too edgy there, I’m calling HR
user_7832 1y ago
You forgot to add Flash ;)
rsynnott 1y ago
> Silverlight You absolute monster. I'd managed to forget that that had existed.

SchemaLoad 1y ago

I've got stickers on my laptops. None of them are political, but I've got various indie fashion brands, music related, furry stickers, etc. If someone managed to be offended by them that's more their problem than mine. I can go work anywhere and have enough savings that it would be no inconvenience to me. I wouldn't want to work with someone who couldn't handle some trivial self expression on the back of a laptop. So far no one has ever been offended by this though. HN is far more sensitive than the average CTO.

esseph 1y ago
HN is still not a quarter as sensitive as most corporations that aren't tech.
- SchemaLoad 1y ago
  Most other industries are very exposed to external clients or customers. Software developers who sit in an office and only see other internal employees have no reason cover up their personality like that.
  - potato3732842 1y ago
    rofl. It goes full circle. You should see the shit that b2b sales and support reps say.
  - esseph 1y ago
    Just about every enterprise has tech, and there are many, many sectors. There's also far more "tech folks" than developers at most companies, nor do all companies have devs on staff.
crazygringo 1y ago
> If someone managed to be offended by them that's more their problem than mine. That can be a healthy attitude outside of work. People love personality. But at work, that's not a healthy attitude. You're there to work together, not to be uncompromising in expressing yourself. Your stickers are probably fine, but I can also imagine plenty of musical artists that would certainly be offensive (and rightly so) to some people, whether for their lyrics or for their criminal behavior -- and then the attitude of "that's more your problem than mine" is not gonna fly.
- SchemaLoad 1y ago
  Sure there is some content that is obviously not appropriate, but I'm not seeing it in the OP link. Meanwhile the comments here are filled with a thinly veiled anger over seeing rainbow flag stickers. These are the people I'd be quite happy to self filter themselves out in the workplace. Though I've never met someone like this in the office. Or at least they keep their thoughts to themselves offline.

hdgvhicv 1y ago

Safe to have a perl sticker as while it’s easy enough to put it on, nobody (including yourself) be able to read it.

shagie 1y ago
It's fairly readable. https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI
wredcoll 1y ago
I've never understood why people were so proud to brag that they can't understand a relatively simple language like perl.

wyclif 1y ago

That's why even though I like the weird and esoteric stickers you see here, I myself prefer the `unixstickers` style I think you're talking about. Debian, Arch, GNU, Python, bash, Ruby, Git, Vim, fork bomb, Tux, DEFCON, 127.0.0.1, &c. These are great for starting conversations, even in cafes. And you end up meeting some interesting people with shared culture.

shagie 1y ago
It is about advertising one's (possible) shared culture. For me, my laptop is part of my professional culture and thus I try to keep it as crisp and professional in appearance as one's resume since its a bit... difficult to laptop lids in certain cases. For my personal shared culture, that is the sort of thing that can be exposed (or hidden) on a case by case basis. My choice of t-shirt where I can button up or down depending on the context says a lot more about me than the lid of my laptop. Granted, it' one message at a time - but there are things that I've had on t-shirts that I made sure to button up before going into the office and seeing the boss (old school, and I still have it - those were durable shirts - https://www.flickr.com/photos/strihs/8536766235/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/strihs/8536766235/ ). On the other hand, I wouldn't put https://www.spreadshirt.com/shop/design/let+me+work+on+your+problem+funny+sarcastic+quote+sticker-D65007615be9fdc14d1c2f9c9?sellable=bB3OBjLAvMtrO8Q2geaQ-1459-215 https://www.spreadshirt.com/shop/design/let+me+work+on+your+... on my laptop no matter how much I agree with it. I would be amendable to putting a square of #22b7f2 on my laptop, and that opens up an entire discussion if recognized (I'm not quite ambitious or passionate enough to color the entire laptop that color). In another comment I linked https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI https://imgur.com/a/jWhyBmI as my laptop lid.
- brewdad 1y ago
  I keep my travel laptop clean of any outward expression. Saves a lot of potential grief crossing borders or cultures. My at home and around town laptop can be my canvas.
  - shagie 1y ago
    My work computer is spotless. My personal conference (and work appropriate - security wouldn't find anything unprofessional or untoward on it) laptop is the one with some stickers that are technologies that I want to put on there. My personal computer at home is desktop... so no stickers there. Even crossing company culture borders could be problematic if one is a consultant or sales engineer or professional services... This is one of those "in the wrong environment, something could scupper a deal - and you don't want that to be pinned on you."

dylan604 1y ago

> comfortable with displaying in front of a CxO without worry In today's timeline, you'd need to be concerned about what some random TSA agent felt about your stickers and if that might get you pulled aside for additional screening.

SchemaLoad 1y ago
You joke, but I had someone tell me they were taken for questioning on entry to the US because their laptop had EFF stickers with some slightly edgy hacker culture phrases on them.
- dylan604 1y ago
  I'm sorry, but what makes you think I was joking? I have seen a co-worker get pulled aside for additional screening because he wore a t-shirt that had the words of the second amendment or some such printed in a way of looking like a pair of pistols. On the same flight, we sat with another individual who got himself arrested, missed his flight, and was eventually released to sit on our flight because he wore a belt adorned with bullet shells cut in half. I'm not saying either one of them were the deepest of thinkers when choosing the garments for the day, but TSA also isn't employing the deepest of thinkers either, so why poke the hornets' nest
  - tbrownaw 1y ago
    > On the same flight, we sat with another individual who got himself arrested, missed his flight, and was eventually released to sit on our flight because he wore a belt adorned with bullet shells cut in half. I've heard of similar things before, and had the sense that this was less screeners being dumb and more legislators not fuzz-testing their work.

ehnto 1y ago

I have a bunch of stickers from hobbies like bikes and sim racing. I guess it serves a similar purpose!