edw519

62 ms·

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by edw519 14y ago
Over time, I have discovered that I generally work in one of 3 modes: Mode 1: Unproductive. Like many corporate people. Busy, even completing transactions, but when you get right down to it, not producing much product. Mode 2: Productive. W
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by edw519 14y ago
I do not believe that common courtesy should have anything to do with properly positioning oneself, scoring points, earning a good reputation, or anything else remotely associated with a "zero-sum game". We should be courteous for one reaso
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by edw519 14y ago
This post reminds me of that old joke: Husband: I am the head of the household! I determine our family's position on all of the major economic, political, and social issues of the day! Wife: I decide the little things, like where we'll live
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by edw519 14y ago
This post is the exact opposite of my primary mode of building software and yet I still love it. Why? Because it makes me think outside the box, which is my secondary mode of building software. I've longed believed that addressing the hair-
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by edw519 14y ago
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Govern
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by edw519 14y ago
We call ourselves innovators, but most of us are really just iterators... That's a fine line. The most significant innovations are often iterations. (Google comes to mind.) Why do we do this? Because we want to get rich, of course. I di
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by edw519 14y ago
Nice post. Whenever I run into a fresh technical problem, I often think of this: "Why does Grandma remove the chicken's legs when she makes soup?" Aunt Dorothy: "It's easier to cut the chicken when it's cold that when it's hot." Uncle Bob:
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by edw519 14y ago
When you greet your interviewer, hand them this card: |=================================| | | | Hi, I'm John Doe and I'm happy | | to meet you. | |
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by edw519 14y ago
Great post! Sorry, but I couldn't resist this, which immediately came to front of mind (just having a little fun on a Friday afternoon)... Ok, Hacker News regular, non-redditor here. I've got no horse in the reddit race, but I do know my Ha
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by edw519 14y ago
How do you cope or handle such situations? Pay day and beer, ususally on the same day. (This is not a snarky answer, but the truth, for me and many of my contemporaries. The internal conflicts caused by the irrationality of others can e
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by edw519 14y ago
Great post! I've felt this way for years but never put words to it quite like OP just did. Thank you. I also work in 2 modes: "1. Make it perfect." and "2. Just get it done and hope I never see it again." I used to do everything in Mode 1 a
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by edw519 14y ago
Being a software engineer means whatever you choose for it to mean to you. Sorry to hear your choice of analogy. Not my choice for sure. I'm not going to try to compare my pain with your pain or anyone else's; I just want to say that I've b
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by edw519 14y ago
I purposely didn't include any of yours. Why? 1. Mine are issues and yours are details. If my 10 are satisfactory, I can live with your 9, even though some may not be satisfactory. But if you 9 are good and my 10 aren't, I'd last about a ye
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by edw519 14y ago
How to hire me: 1. Tell me about the 3 biggest things you must accomplish. 2. Tell me why you must accomplish them. 3. Tell me when you must accomplish them by. 4. Tell me how you intend to accomplish them. 5. Tell me what
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by edw519 14y ago
I've noticed that many of us with a hacker mindset (myself included!) have this innate need to optimize / maximize / minimize... For me, this often leads to "all" or "nothing". I have to drink either 6 beers or no beers, eat 6 donuts or no
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by edw519 14y ago
should I focus on encouraging and motivating them to realize how cool it is to create your own product No. You shouldn't have to motivate someone to see how cool something is. Expose them, yes. Motivate them, no. If they can't see how coo
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by edw519 14y ago
Please note that GitHub no longer supports Internet Explorer versions 7 or 8. How ironic. This covers so many enterprise programmers with locked down Windows PCs.
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by edw519 14y ago
Both of my grandfathers did this 100 years ago. They never saw their homeland or most of their friends or relatives ever again. They must have known that was the way it was going to be. I often wonder how they felt about it.
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by edw519 14y ago
I have been a dreamer all my life. It took me until last year to figure this out, and only thanks to this community. Great. Dreaming is necessary but not sufficient for great accomplishments. Glad you're one of us. I hardly ever tried -
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by edw519 14y ago
Every once in a while you read something and shake your head thinking, "I always felt this but was never able to verbalize it like this." This is one such post: one of the best things I've discovered in 6 years of Hacker News. As someone
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by edw519 14y ago
Slight aside... Every time someone here responds when their name is mentioned, I think of this scene from "Annie Hall": Alvy Singer: [the man behind him in line is talking loudly] What I wouldn't give for a large sock with horse manure in i
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by edw519 14y ago
From: edw519 To: Paul Graham Hi Paul, Thanks for your note and sending ?investor? our way, we really appreciate it and always enjoy meeting with YC followers. Keep 'em coming! We loved ?investor? and are impressed by both his pedigree and t
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by edw519 14y ago
I feel like I'm trapped in an HN parody. Congratulations! We have a winner. You have just won first place in the crowd sourced competition for the front of V2.0 of the official Hacker News Tshirt. Honorable mention: Wear something peo
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by edw519 14y ago
Proud to buy and wear this. Thank you! But I think I'll customize the back of mine: "My cofounder went to Startup School and all I got was this lousy MVP."
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by edw519 14y ago
Who took a chance on you? No one. Perfect SAT scores. Great grades. Most creative in class. Most encouraged in class. Rejected by every college but one. After graduating college, rejected by every prospective employer except Denny's. Taug
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by edw519 14y ago
Brilliant building of software. Less than brilliant copy. I would change Black plays; checkmate in one! This is a chess CAPTCHA. Click on the board to make your move, and prove you are human. to This is a chess CAPTCHA...
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by edw519 14y ago
My grandfather: Maybe the smartest and most talented person I ever met. Born in 1895 is eastern Europe and as a child never went to school, missed many meals, feared for his safety, and emigrated to the U.S. alone at age 11. Married my gran
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by edw519 14y ago
After 34 years, my recipe for the best way to get better: Find customers. Satisfy them. Repeat. They will pull you kicking and screaming into your excellent future much faster than you can ever do it yourself.
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by edw519 14y ago
The greatest opportunity for improving HN lies with us , not with the site. Here's a good place to start: http://edweissman.com/how-to-participate-in-hacker-news
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by edw519 14y ago
Hi Kate, If you're reading this (and I'd like to think so because Hacker News is no longer a stepchild), 2 things: 1. It sounds like you've turned the corner on this thing. If so, congratulations and best wishes. Oddly, I just posted my fee

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