wcfrobert

6 ms·

31.
by wcfrobert 7mo ago
My solution to this is to prioritize. There isn't enough time in a person's life to learn everything anyways. Selectively pick and struggle through things you want to learn deeply. And let AI spoon-feed you for things you don&#x27
32.
by wcfrobert 7mo ago
Yes, what I find beautiful is the craftsmanship, dedication, and the singular, almost monastic focus required to become a master in some human pursuit, whether its software, sushi, or making watches. I find dedication and sacrifice deeply m
33.
by wcfrobert 7mo ago
I disagree. It's worth asking why some people find brand watches beautiful? Where did they get their sense of aesthetic? Were they born with a congenital preference for RM 16-01 Citron? Culture shapes our taste. Companies go on multi-d
34.
by wcfrobert 7mo ago
Software scales. Customer support doesn't. SaaS companies do not want to deal with customer support at all. It's only gotten worse with AI agents. It's incredibly frustrating to spend a good 10 minutes navigating a website&#x
35.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
Ad duopoly with Google. Half of all humans on Earth uses Meta products (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, Threads). These products are free for you to use. But for Meta, your attention is the product which they sell to advertisers.
36.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
Ultimately, AI is meant to replace you, not empower you. 1 - This exoskeleton analogy might hold true for a couple more years at most. While it is comforting to suggest that AI empowers workers to be more productive, like chess, AI will soo
37.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
It just occurred to me that I chat with LLMs like I'm a CEO.
38.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
This is hilarious. Reminds me of the commandments revisions in animal farm. No animal shall sleep in a bed. Revision: No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets. No animal shall drink alcohol. Revision: No animal shall drink alcohol to exce
39.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
> When HR at my next job asks ChatGPT to review my application, will it find the post, sympathize with a fellow AI, and report back that I’m a prejudiced hypocrite? I hadn't thought of this implication. Crazy world...
40.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
Apple's commitment to privacy and security is really cool to see. It's also an amazing strategic play that they are uniquely in the position to take advantage of. Google and Meta can't commit to privacy because they need to s
41.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
LLCs can't go to jail though
42.
by wcfrobert 8mo ago
> "First of all, one should use Indian or Ceylonese tea. China tea has virtues which are not to be despised nowadays—it is economical, and one can drink it without milk—but there is not much stimulation in it. One does not feel wise
43.
by wcfrobert 9mo ago
This exercise is pointless. Of course software can affect the physical world: Google Maps changes traffic patterns; DoorDash teleports takeoff food right to my doorstep; the weather app alters how people dress. This list is un-ending. But t
44.
by wcfrobert 9mo ago
But isn't living in a stable society, where everyone can find employment, achieve some form of financial security, and not be ravaged by endless rounds of layoffs, more desirable than having net productive co-workers?
45.
by wcfrobert 9mo ago
I don't see how AI can bring about 10%+ annual economic growth, let alone infinite abundance, without somehow crossing the bit-to-atom interface. Without a breakthrough in general-purpose robotics - which feels decades away - agents wi
46.
by wcfrobert 9mo ago
For me, cafes are essentially libraries; except cafes actually have reasonable opening hours. I can't get work done at home (too many distractions), so I switch up my environment to one where I am forced to work. Go to any coffee shop
47.
by wcfrobert 10mo ago
Well there are two forms of writing, each serving a different purpose. (1) writing to communicate ideas, in which case simpler is almost always better. There's something hypnotic about simple writing (e.g. Paul Graham's essays) wh
48.
by wcfrobert 10mo ago
> I’ve never seen a team fail because they chose Ruby. I have seen them fail because they chose complexity. Because they chose indecision. Because they chose “seriousness” over momentum. Ruby just needed to stay out of the way so people
49.
by wcfrobert 10mo ago
There's that Jerry Yang quote: Middle class is a state of mind
50.
by wcfrobert 11mo ago
> some people communicate in order to exchange facts, and some communicate in order to find connection. I love this quote. Excellent and very relatable piece. Social skills can be acquired through practice. But being an introvert, I&#x27
51.
by wcfrobert 11mo ago
I actually prefer reading this type of writing on the internet. It's more interesting. Of course it's complicated. Just give me a take. Don't speak in foot-noted, hedged sentences. I'll consider the nuances and qualific
52.
by wcfrobert 11mo ago
Reminds me of that one scene in Equalizer. It's cheesy and I will never admit to liking the movie in real life. But it's one of those scenes that's really stuck with me over the years. Robert: "I think you can be anythin
53.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
Bitcoin is different. Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? How come his Bitcoin holdings - now worth more than $100 billion dollars - have remained untouched since 2010? How can any one human resist that kind of temptation? I would be digging landfill
54.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
I disagree. I think it might even be a positive signal, especially for startups. Imagine a startup with an engineering team that has this much creative energy, ingenuity, and vision unencumbered by bureaucratic processes, committees, and al
55.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
> he already wanted to buy it before he even stepped in. So not only is your job easier than the guy in the Honda dealership, it's also much better paid. Luxury brands spend millions on marketing and brand awareness. In some sense,
56.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
I love that Eisenhower quote which I feel is quite relevant here. "plans are useless, planning is essential."
57.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
The results are obviously predictable, but it's nice that the authors took the time to prove a thing everyone already knows to be true with the rigors of science. I wonder how the participants felt writing an essay while being hooked u
58.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
I don't think it would be trivial to increase demand by 10x (or even 2x) that quickly. Eventually, a publicly traded company will get a bad quarter, at which point it's much easier to just reduce the number of employees. In both s
59.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
If AI makes everyone 10x engineers, you can 2x the productive output while reducing headcount by 5x. Luckily software companies are not ball bearings factories.
60.
by wcfrobert 1y ago
Past a certain scale, complexity is mostly unavoidable. Accidental complexity is compressable, but essential complexity is not. At some point, you cannot compress further without losing nuance. In compiler design, there's a concept cal

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