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After seeing the criticisms of Dropbox[1] on Hacker News, I'm much more analytical of the stereotypical "critical top post(s)" when introducing a new project. G

After seeing the criticisms of Dropbox[1] on Hacker News, I'm much more analytical of the stereotypical "critical top post(s)" when introducing a new project. Getting candid, constructive critical feedback is certainly one of the values of posting on HN, but criticising that a product or service is just a combination of known technologies is an incredibly weak criticism: it could be applied to any innovation. Here's my litmus test for whether something has already been done: if I asked ten random people to solve the problem this thing is trying to solve, could they name a product that solves it? Ex: * "How would you have a folder on your computer that stays synchronized across multiple computers and is accessible online?" -> Dropbox or Google Drive (not an acceptable answer: "I'd set up rsync to run as a daemon syncing to a VPS on each computer") * "How would you send public messages to people you didn't know in close proximity?" -> Popcorn Messaging? 1. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8863 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8863

angersock 13y ago
Don't get me wrong, it's a nifty little app. I'm just pointing out that I heard an idea a few months ago that was nearly identical. Our advice to the folks was "Yeah, this is cool--go code it!". These toy campus apps are really great for building experience and learning; that said, they're still just that: toy campus apps. The obligatory "but but but facebook" rebuttal is that it was a matter of timing more than anything else.
- zackbrown 13y ago
  Don't you think calling this a "little app" and "toy campus app" is a little bit condescending? And that dismissing it as a simple rehashing of other ideas is not actually constructive? How many successful new products/services in the last decade aren't just rehashes of existing ideas? I'd say kudos to the author for actually rolling up your sleeves and making this idea happen; it's way harder and more admirable IMO to do that than it is to be an armchair critic or armchair ideationist.
  - angersock 13y ago
    Would you like me to give you some Ruby code that would emulate this functionality? I am fairly sure the size of the program would be less than 300 LOC, tops. That is indeed a "little app". The 30-something line regex parser Pike wrote (http://www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/archive/spr09/cos333/beautiful.html http://www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/archive/spr09/cos333/bea...) ? Also a "little app". There is no shame in solving a small problem, solving it well, and solving it concisely. As far as being a "rehashing of other ideas"--how many hackathons have you been to on college campuses, and/or how many students doing mobile dev stuff have you chatted with, and/or how many people with a great idea for a local messaging app have you met? This is not, will not, and never has been a novel idea. That doesn't make it worthless, that doesn't make it pointless, but it also doesn't make it new. As for the "toy campus app": that's what this is...a toy application (small, concise, single-function) targeting primarily college kids (see the comparisons in this very thread to JuicyCampus). I honestly don't understand why you're getting so defensive just because I'm not getting down on my hands and knees to praise the obvious genius and ingenuity and novelty that went into this (this is sarcasm, by the way). I can respect it as a work on its own merits, but I will not afford it more than that.
    - danneu 13y ago
      A recap of your pleasant original comment: "Don't get me wrong, it's a nifty little app. You probably learned a lot! That said, it's still just a toy campus app." A morsel of value from the world squandered. I'll bite your offer for you to mock it up in Ruby real quick. The problem with the "it's easy and I could do it" dismissal is that, even though you could, you didn't. Maybe you can team up with this guy[1]. You can probably even reuse his repo[2]. [1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=678501 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=678501 [2]: http://code.google.com/p/hackerexchange/ http://code.google.com/p/hackerexchange/
      - tempestn 13y ago
        Hey, [1] was only 1584 days ago. [2]'s looking not too bad for only 225 weekends in.
- lfuller 13y ago
  You may have heard an identical idea a few months ago, but I've never heard of it. I have heard of Popcorn.
latj 13y ago
I am imaging you in the Amazon meeting a previously uncontacted tribe and asking, "How could you eat today if you didnt feel like hunting and gathering?" When the elders answer "we dont know" you would go back to the lab and try to invent Cheerios. Just because people dont know about something doesnt mean that it doesnt exist. Just because something exists doesnt mean that one shouldnt work solving the same problem.
- christiangenco 13y ago
  Not sure what your point is here, but I'd reinforce that in your Amazon example that would be perfectly good justification to create a food product directed towards Amazonians (or perhaps just a Cheerios distribution network in the Amazon?).

angersock 13y ago

Don't get me wrong, it's a nifty little app. I'm just pointing out that I heard an idea a few months ago that was nearly identical. Our advice to the folks was "Yeah, this is cool--go code it!". These toy campus apps are really great for building experience and learning; that said, they're still just that: toy campus apps. The obligatory "but but but facebook" rebuttal is that it was a matter of timing more than anything else.

zackbrown 13y ago
Don't you think calling this a "little app" and "toy campus app" is a little bit condescending? And that dismissing it as a simple rehashing of other ideas is not actually constructive? How many successful new products/services in the last decade aren't just rehashes of existing ideas? I'd say kudos to the author for actually rolling up your sleeves and making this idea happen; it's way harder and more admirable IMO to do that than it is to be an armchair critic or armchair ideationist.
- angersock 13y ago
  Would you like me to give you some Ruby code that would emulate this functionality? I am fairly sure the size of the program would be less than 300 LOC, tops. That is indeed a "little app". The 30-something line regex parser Pike wrote (http://www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/archive/spr09/cos333/beautiful.html http://www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/archive/spr09/cos333/bea...) ? Also a "little app". There is no shame in solving a small problem, solving it well, and solving it concisely. As far as being a "rehashing of other ideas"--how many hackathons have you been to on college campuses, and/or how many students doing mobile dev stuff have you chatted with, and/or how many people with a great idea for a local messaging app have you met? This is not, will not, and never has been a novel idea. That doesn't make it worthless, that doesn't make it pointless, but it also doesn't make it new. As for the "toy campus app": that's what this is...a toy application (small, concise, single-function) targeting primarily college kids (see the comparisons in this very thread to JuicyCampus). I honestly don't understand why you're getting so defensive just because I'm not getting down on my hands and knees to praise the obvious genius and ingenuity and novelty that went into this (this is sarcasm, by the way). I can respect it as a work on its own merits, but I will not afford it more than that.
  - danneu 13y ago
    A recap of your pleasant original comment: "Don't get me wrong, it's a nifty little app. You probably learned a lot! That said, it's still just a toy campus app." A morsel of value from the world squandered. I'll bite your offer for you to mock it up in Ruby real quick. The problem with the "it's easy and I could do it" dismissal is that, even though you could, you didn't. Maybe you can team up with this guy[1]. You can probably even reuse his repo[2]. [1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=678501 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=678501 [2]: http://code.google.com/p/hackerexchange/ http://code.google.com/p/hackerexchange/
    - tempestn 13y ago
      Hey, [1] was only 1584 days ago. [2]'s looking not too bad for only 225 weekends in.
lfuller 13y ago
You may have heard an identical idea a few months ago, but I've never heard of it. I have heard of Popcorn.

latj 13y ago

I am imaging you in the Amazon meeting a previously uncontacted tribe and asking, "How could you eat today if you didnt feel like hunting and gathering?" When the elders answer "we dont know" you would go back to the lab and try to invent Cheerios. Just because people dont know about something doesnt mean that it doesnt exist. Just because something exists doesnt mean that one shouldnt work solving the same problem.

christiangenco 13y ago
Not sure what your point is here, but I'd reinforce that in your Amazon example that would be perfectly good justification to create a food product directed towards Amazonians (or perhaps just a Cheerios distribution network in the Amazon?).