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Issue #118 - June 6, 2021
If you are looking for work, check out this month's Who is hiring? and Who wants to be hired? threads.
Here are the top threads of the week, happy reading!
1. Ask HN: Tank man” image search blocked on Bing and DuckDuckGo
Top comment by toomanyrichies
This shouldn't have been flagged. My understanding is that posts which comment on current events from a tech perspective are 100% within the bounds of acceptable behavior here.
2. Ask HN: Alternatives to Google Photos?
Top comment by vishnumohandas
Hey, over the last year we've been building ente[1], an end-to-end encrypted alternative to Google Photos.
We have shipped open-source[2] web and mobile apps that have preserved 180,000+ files. Apart from cross-device sync, you can share your albums end-to-end encrypted, and filter photos by location and time.
We recently had a "successful" launch on r/degoogle[3]. We wanted to Show HN after incorporating the feedback we received from there, but since OP asked, I thought I’ll drop a comment here.
If you’ve any questions, please ask.
[1]: https://ente.io
[2]: https://github.com/ente-io
[3]: https://www.reddit.com/r/degoogle/comments/njatok/we_built_a...
Top comment by totalZero
I would try to gently put them on the back foot when they offer a wage.
When you receive the offer, you should comment on the differential between expected and offered wage, even if you intend to accept. For example, you might say with a gently puzzled tone, "this is lower than what I would ideally be earning, based on my experience and capabilities. Can you explain how you came to this number?"
You may be able to push back on them a little bit. You will be able to tell if there's room to negotiate, based on the response to you. Don't overdo it, as simply commenting on the differential and seeing how they respond is a way of gently squeezing them. If it seems the number is negotiable, ask if they can compromise with (for example) $33. The art is in doing this in a confident and friendly way, so that the position doesn't collapse.
Whatever number you set as the price you want, don't waver on it after it escapes your lips. Let them consider the number unless it's clear there will be no budging. If possible, do some research on other roles or other engineers you know in the business, so that you can justify your ask. It's not your standard of living that sets the price, it's your alternative job and their alternative hire.
4. Ask HN: Freelancer? Seeking freelancer? (June 2021)
Top comment by aronishchal
SEEKING WORK | Europe | Remote
Location: Europe
Remote: Yes
Willing to relocate: No
Technologies: Java EE, Spring, Spring Security, REST, HTML/CSS, JavaScript, JQuery, Dojo, Node.js, Python, Perl, Jaspersoft Studio, Eclipse, Tomcat, MySQL, Oracle, Git
Résumé/CV: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Oyazlm3ucxH1XLgqScKs7g9zBOS...
Email: nishchalaro[at]gmail.com
I am a senior backend Java developer / consultant with over 11 years in the industry. My expertise is in - building robust, secure and scalable backend services and enterprise Java applications, Javascript based geospatial maps and data visualization. I also have extensive experience with the TIBCO Jaspersoft BI product offering - Jaspersoft Studio, JasperReports Server and JETL (Talend ETL).
I am looking for part-time contract or freelance/consulting opportunities at the moment (up to 20 hours/week).
Website: https://www.nishchalarora.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nishchal-arora
5. Ask HN: What is your current side-project?
Top comment by ammmir
I’ve been running https://kvdb.io as a side project for a while. This weekend, I woke up to a bunch of alerts that the server had run out of open file descriptors (rookie mistake, I never expected to receive more than a thousand simultaneous requests).
It turns out someone wrote a tutorial on how to automate COVID-19 appointment slot bookings and used KVdb to store SMS OTP codes. Never expected it, but a great surprise. Long tail of SaaS is just wonderful :)
6. Ask HN: What is the most bloated website you use
Top comment by Adrig
Reddit by far. I find the old version unappealing but the new is just a dumpster fire. I'm basically dreading any missclick because I'll be stuck for a few seconds. Not to mention the worst video player on the internet.
This website's performance is shameful.I would spend easily twice as much time on Reddit as I do right now if it was snappy
7. Ask HN: What are some things you learnt from a game that changed your life?
Top comment by nokya
I played an online MMORPG called "Anarchy Online" (AO) while in my early twenties, probably for a little bit more than a year. At a dinner with friends, I started talking about the game and why I liked it.
During that discussion, I came to the realization that even if I did absolutely nothing "productive" in the game, I always had access to food, clothes, health services and shelter. Things were organized in a way that I had to work (kill monsters/bad people, harvest, salvage, heal, repair, etc.) to get money or more direct rewards. For example, clothing and homes were standardized and quite basic. I could "work" to actually get access to a better home and good-looking clothes to customize my avatar. Still, I could decide to do nothing, wander around, watch stuff, and still have my "avatar" alive and well. Anarchy Online gives all users access to a set of basic universal services that include shelter, food, education, health, etc.
~700'000 users playing this universe quite intensively on a daily basis (at that time), would you think they just did "nothing" and sat down?
During that same dinner, I became conscious that this could be a reality. I learned later that I was getting introduced to the concept of universal income (UI).
I started reading about it, talking about it around me. I quickly noticed two things:
1. People around me thought (and still think) it's an impossible/unsustainable model, although there is an increasing amount of research supporting it could be sustainable.
2. Most countries / States that tried UI implemented it as a monthly paycheck given to citizens. I honestly tried understanding why people absolutely want to implement this as a paycheck.
In 2020, we voted about universal income in my country. It was widely refused (78% no). Political parties successfully scared "us" into believing that UI would decimate the country's economy and put everybody into unemployment. It worked.
Today, I am still amazed that I have to work to get money to pay for the most basic things I need to stay alive. I do not think I should get a "paycheck" to get food and shelter. I am not sure the game taught me something that is actually possible, but it showed me an alternate model of society, which I still often think about and do not see as "impossible".
8. Ask HN: Where would you incorporate in 2021?
Top comment by sdevonoes
You incorporate in the country in which you live 183 days per year (or more). It's simple.
If you live more than 183 days in country X, but you incorporate in country Y, you'll have a hard time explaning it to the tax authorities.
9. The reason people don't read the article: They just want to socialize
Top comment by wiml
It's definitely partly that, but it's also that the reading experience for many articles is atrocious. If I click the comments link, I get to the comments immediately — perhaps incomplete, uninformed, argumentative, but they're right there. If I click on the article, I have to wait for a bunch of branding banners, ads, sidebars, and analytics scripts to load. Then I have to wade through some popups for cookies and the site's app and wouldn't I like to subscribe? Then I have to read a couple pages of the author reminiscing about a bagel they once ate before they actually start talking about the topic at hand — along with some more slow-loading fade-in images and scrollbar hijacking. It's exhausting! I don't have time for all that.
10. Ask HN: How to disconnect from work?
Top comment by timomeh
It is absolutely not a problem that programming is your passion and also your job. For many people, it's a dream come true.
But don't do work in your free time. Don't fix bugs for your employer, don't learn stuff you need to learn for your employer. Don't give away your time for free. Doing work in your free time will burn you out. Doing the same things you do at work will burn you out – it will take a bit longer, but it will happen.
Many employers discourage working in your free time, just because of that (and because in some countries, they're legally obliged to ensure their employees have some free time).
Instead, do your own thing, develop your own project. Probably you'll create 10 side projects and abandon every single one of them after a few days. Something will stick (finding a side project is a whole other topic). Maybe do some open source contributions. Be passionate about your own project(s). And try something new, something you can't do at work. May it be another framework, language, or just some new fancy libraries. It will broaden your horizon and drastically improve your skills as a software engineer.
You will still think of that annoying bug you couldn't fix that day. Those feelings won't go away, but they will be less and less nagging.
Finally, turn off distractions from work in your free time. Mute your work-related notifications, don't check your work mails, they can wait until monday. Oh, and don't forget to meet your friends, go grab your favorite drink with them.