davidy123

Exactly. Too many people compare a $400 cheap Windows laptop to a $1200 Macbook. Compare like for like, and the thing is likely to last until it's absolutely obsolete. And, while I don't really support this, some might find it an advantage to replace the computer three times for the same price. But people should be comparing to a well built, upgradable laptop (especially those that support not just RAM and disk but also display upgrades and adequate ports), running an operating system that has no arbitrary end of life.

That's true for many Google products, I've been burned myself by Daydream abandonment, but Chromebooks are widely used, provided by many companies, some have an 8 year support policy, and Google bought a company who's business is to support ChromeOS on legacy devices. So it's much bigger than one of their trial balloon products. I've been recommending them for years to different people who don't need a "full OS," and they've all been very happy with them. It's actually much less than half the price of a Macbook for a decent, IPS screen and even convertible/hybrid Chromebook like the Lenovo Duet. I find a lot of pushback from Windows enthusiasts, Apple people are more likely to suggest an iPad which I think is more reasonable, but for many activities a Chromebook is a great choice, and you can buy one and a handset for the same price as an Air.

> for the needs for 90% of people

You could say the same thing about a Chromebook. And they are half the price of a Macbook Air.

This reminds me of the neon sign craze of the 50s. After the novelty wears off, it's garish. That neon was torn down in most places, thanks largely to better ideas around mixed use development where constant bright lights are a problem.

People need places to feel part of society, and it's fun to visit, but living in a mall/amusement park/sports bar/Tron has negative health impacts with all the over stimulation.

By now, high density, ecologically sensitive, mixed use cities that have a focus on overall quality of life, rather than dazzling, are more impressive. Chinese development can pull ahead there with a focus on transportation systems.

I am just surprised, after all this time, there is not a mainstream language+runtime that is intrinsically based on full state management. There are glimmers, commercial debuggers for Java and Javascript that support "stepping backwards," and the magnificent Redux DevTools (that I loved for its visceral usefulness, but stopped using when it seemed it was no longer mainstream, plus Redux boilerplate turmoil ugh).

A high level language streamlined on such an approach could be extended to be like executing within a git codebase, with a very visual experience. But the language and runtime need network effects.

I don't have a CS background, maybe this already exists and is not too exotic for full-stack work, I'm all ears if so.

I've been a Trackpoint addict for over 20 years, using computers 8+ hours a day. I wouldn't consider any other pointer method. Trackpoint drift is an issue, but it's not really a big problem. A few times a month, it happens for a few seconds, then it works itself out. I have had episodes of cramping, but they've gone away with no long term impact.

It may be that I've become more zen/accepting, because I'm sure a mouse or trackpad can be more precise pointing tools, but it's worth it for the connection. Input is all about the keyboard and mouse, and the proximity just makes so much sense, especially when using vim mode. I could imagine better systems where typing with a keyboard is still the main input, but they would all involve not taking my hands off the home row.

IMO it would be perfectly reasonable for everyone to have an Internet connection(s), and much of the rest is handled by community efforts. That's how Bittorrent works, and it's very scalable and open. Emerging protocols can add privacy. Solid is another effort in this direction, where any third party could host your data. Finding ways back to that (since it's more or less how things worked pre tech giants) offers a lot of solutions. The tech giants could even pivot (or be forced to pivot) to this approach, which is simply about being less captive on particular ecosystems. It's not even the grand vision of rich interoperability that doesn't depend on backroom deals, which is what we should be talking about now.

While it wraps their web app, I use Frost for Facebook, which is an open source app that lets me access Facebook messages on mobile without using any of Facebook's apps.

> That makes it a more natural fit for an actual computer-maker, such as HP and Dell.

What about XBox and Playstation?

I gather AMD makes equivalent integrated silicon for the leading game systems, so that might be the most interesting comparison.

I don't have fillings or similar, but something like coil whine could certainly be a factor. The question then becomes, does coil whine have any adverse effects, like loss of sensitivity in its spectrum, or via distraction?

Yes, I notice the tinny hearing effect, and something specific to the sensitive nasal membranes (basically my nostrils feel like they've dried up). I have also turned down the power of any transmitters that are close to where I sit. But I'm also a nerd so am surrounded by equipment, with at least eight pieces of wireless equipment in my office.

A part of me wonders if by denying this sensitivity, I'm shutting that sense out, regardless it still has a background effect. If it exists at all, which is the other problem (I can at least claim to be a critical neurotic).

Perhaps because of the tinfoil brigade (people want to put down any threads conclusively, associating them with lunacy is an effective strategy), I haven't been able to conclusively find out if directed or 'strong' radio signals can be simply noticed. I don't mean the signal is harmful, although an unexplained sense causes distraction and stress. I have read the WHO report, but at some point it kind of trails off.

The reason I ask … is I have noticed a sense of pressure and other commonly called out symptoms when turning on new wireless gear. The first time I noticed this, before I was aware of specific concerns, was with a first gen wifi WAP. It still happens, but since I'm now aware of the supposed phenomenon other factors may be prevalent.

Going further down the rabbit hole, different people are measurably sensitive to different things[1]. It could be that some people notice these type of linked low level sensations more.

Then again, I haven't methodically gone further into the rabbit hole and just try to see if I can notice a new device being powered up in a blind test. The most likely cause is, I guess, background tension about powering up a new device (I lived though pre-21st century gear when things rarely "just worked") gets subconsciously amplified into noticing a background physical sensation that was already there (I have mild tinnitus, and in general the body is a dynamic smorgasbord of information).

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olfaction#Genetics

Apparent (can't find the reference now) it would attenuate the signals, make them stronger. You'd need to build a Faraday cage around yourself. Add some filtration and you're ready for the 21st century.

I don't get why the general hn crowd is antipathic, at best about this topic (I often get downvoted making any semantic web type post). Intentionally making the web into a database usable by anyone is a wonderful idea that will have knock on benefits to every corner of humanity. I honestly think it's just too much disruption for a crowd very focused on making money from vertical disruption, that has given up on larger projects.

Thanks for adding these details. Montreal's ancient water system is a big reason for a lot of the construction. Apparently more water leaks underground from broken pipes than is used. My street is slated for construction to remove lead pipes (interesting comparison to Flint; https://globalnews.ca/news/6113701/montreal-drinking-water-l...)

The other factor is repairs were neglected for much of the 2010s, which compounded damage, so they're playing catch-up. So yes, there is a lot of construction, and undoubtedly some corruption and incompetence mixed in, but it's not as bad as some people who like to complain say.

It will be interesting to see if they can "catch up" some year, and it's very important for informed people to remain critical and engaged.

I have a bad habit of constantly editing my replies (I think it helps me to think of how other people would read it after I've saved it). I tried to address your point about too much competition within Android in a later edit; that basically Android is a world unto itself, with multiple major players trying to distinguish themselves.

While Google tries to address this by centralizing everything to their services app (which is a nice Open Source solution since it can be swapped; we'll see what happens with Huawei), some vendors still want to claim their turf. I thought that has been getting better, but for the past few years I've found it best to buy Google's version of whichever product, and have been very happy with them (perhaps since I've become more conservative, the crazy pace of innovation lives on in the mainstream Android world, with Apple waiting to see what's sticks before they include it).

I don't "blame" people for buying iPhone, it's certainly a safe choice, but even though I'm not that demanding I just find iPhones to be too limiting (that is partially a Raskin vs Englebart thing). Oh yeah, and Google's on-device AI features are actually useful. However, in the long run Apple is developing a vast closed world akin to a monopoly that will create problems (and if I hear that cheesy default ring tone again or see another film/tv person pull out an Apple device which are the minority in use, I'm going to lose it).

Vendor discretion whether something is in warranty is a pain point, I've seen people bitten from all vendors. If they don't respond to pressure (for example, finding other people with the same problem for a united voice), it might be a minor problem. If you don't want to take it apart yourself (don't blame you) you could find a local authorized dealer who could hopefully fix it for not much money. I wish they would just offer hardware like this on a subscription.

I don't mean to avoid Samsung (or any other Android) devices altogether, just don't use anything that takes away your portability within the Android ecosystem (which, granted, has various lines in the sand when you rely on Google, outside going no-identity, which is impossible on iPhone). It was easy enough to do when I had my Note2, there are many people within user communities who care about things like this and make sure it's possible without much effort; for example by putting pressure on vendors to enable choice for what apps are used for what purposes. In my experience, Samsung offers its own App Store, I just ignored it, I used Google's calendar instead of Samsung's default enhanced one, etc.

There are some cases, per your examples, where there's a distinct branch in what's supported. Samsung and Huawei are really competitors to Apple more than Google in this case. I can only say that like repairability is the best answer to some questions, interoperability is the best answer to others. Being locked in to any ecosystem, especially over time as our digital lives become linked to health and wealth, is bad for everyone.

My last comment, about "cheap" perceptions, was intended for another comment in the thread, sorry about the confusion.

That's surprising, but there are many third party options to get it repaired. You can even DIY for $115 including required tools.

I know someone whose iPhone XR glass back broke after a year (they had a super robust case), Apple's response was it was not cost effective to repair. Ultimately devices designed to be repaired is the best answer (and maybe not have glass backs?), but I don't think there's that much difference in many cases here.

Neither are Apple handsets, though it's true Apple has been good about providing them for around five years. In both cases, it remains to be seen what updates will be available longer term, people expect most major providers to provide security updates past the guaranteed period.

Also worth mentioning, after three years most people who purchased a new handset will have upgraded. If they spend $400 on each handset, their long term expenditure will be lower, and they'll always have an up to date handset (the early cheap Androids were pretty bad, but a decent smartphone is a commodity these days, the main thing more money buys is better image capture, though Pixel kind of defies that for now). The hardware is probably still good, except maybe the battery, which becomes cost ineffective to replace (in this sense, the company that provides the most easily serviceable devices wins, which I heartily endorse). At that point, many Androids can have a third party OS installed for new features. Not so with Apple.

Though the article brought out some interesting facts about Portland, I don't know why they didn't consider going 500km north. Sure, it's a little colder, and outside major cities not always well integrated, but it has all the attributes they were looking for, while being a lot less bonkers.

Not sure what is going on with your power button, but if it's outside warranty repair $300 for a replacement device is pretty good.

On my fifth Android handset, I have really not found the incompatibility you point out to be an issue. Sure, some companies, like Samsung, try to offer some exclusive features. Just avoid them.

I have to use an iPhone for work, there are a lot of critical annoyances, like how poorly cursor selection works, and then some apps don't support the space bar cursor. Everyday things like changing settings are so much nicer in Android.

My 3 year old Pixel 2 has been a fantastic daily handset, absolutely no complaints, before that my Note 2 was also excellent, though I was glad to get away from Samsung's attempts at exclusive features (the Pixel is "pure Android", albeit with some self-contained on-device "AI" features that are actually useful).

Although there are a lot of cheap Android devices to choose from that can drag down the brand reputation, I would really push back against the suggestion Androids are exclusively "cheap" in the pejorative sense. Most are Just Fine at least. Apple is generally much more conservative in rolling out features, and offers less configuration options, so I guess it's a safer choice, but if Apple weren't such a status symbol I think most people would be more than happy with the lower cost (3a, 4a) Pixel line.

I would like to see a discussion about how Siri Suggested Sites works. Say what you want about Google, but they should be admired for taking the high road on content development to support search. Their participation in schema.org, Wikipedia, and other knowledge resources leads to result that can be used at a low level by anyone. It's another matter that we should be concerned that only a few companies will have the capacity to build the brain to support all this creates, which is well beyond browsing the web, a web site like Amazon, or silo'd apps (though a really large and ultimately non-open site like Facebook could become its own world).

There are some significant features that have changed. For example, it's become a lot harder to pick alternative routes, it used to be possible to finely edit them. Also, I don't think it's always been this way, but sometimes when I chose a route in Maps on Android for my own reasons, it will revert to its own idea spontaneously, putting me on the wrong route. Another feature they removed is it used to be possible to tap the current big green navigation step to have it read it out loud, which was really handy, now you have to drill several taps down into "directions."

Combine it with the other annoyances, like it showing destinations and advertisements that have nothing to do with my search (including a persistent bug where they show up as results when they're not after a couple interactions), and not being able to chose a particular route and send it to someone (my carefully selected route gets ignored for its calculated route), along with the fact they can just change this under people's feet, and I'd be glad to switch to something based on open source/maps.

I want to somehow make the point, which seems to be somewhat out of fashion this season (it was a focus a few years ago), that one of the features of Javascript is that it's universal/isomorphic. And that the average computer (and even smartphone) is very powerful, so if storage is abstracted, the distinction blurs. To me, this means features like browser based tools, which are gradually becoming more user friendly, don't really need a "server," except perhaps as a way to coordinate and for long term storage. Eventually, I think a non technical user should be able to create content that contains open-ended dynamic formatting and distributed data based views, without a round trip to a server. If they want to dip into arbitrary Javascript, maybe just re-using a module, fine. Ultimately, the same code might be used in the browser as that in a development process. Current markdown tools and notebooks are headed in this direction. However, trying to use something like mdx-js shows we are far from reasonable bundle sizes when taking this approach. One-tool-per-application might yield the small bundle sizes and dynamism for this goal. Wondering if Rome has this goal in mind. Thanks!

Build, buy, and engage if it's part of a larger project that involves any innovation. Engagement falls under "vendor management," but that seems like a very reduced description.

The problem is, without using all mitigation, at all times you /may/ have been exploited. So every time your system acts weird, you'll have that extra doubt. And can it can be pretty difficult to get remove a sophisticated exploit. I could see a sophisticated exploit network probing, tagging and targeting different exploits, for profit or just for fun. Probably not worth the risk for "most" people.

There is nothing "crazy" abut "Browsers gobble it up." Along with annotation, this was supposed to be a standard feature of the web, in fact it was built into early versions of Netscape[1]. It just takes the world a long, long, long time to catch up with the bigger background ideas, because there are so many details and so many ways to make money with the immediate.

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netscape_Composer

Record from mic works for me. Listening to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FATTzbm78cc in one window with mic recording does the expected at the end of the song — https://www.magneticmag.com/2012/08/the-aphex-face-visualizi...

While there are reasons for concern, I don't really blame Philips (Signify) for this. They released the v1 hub quite early in the smart home space. It wasn't compatible with Apple Homekit features when they were released due to hardware limitations for reasons they presumably couldn't have predicted (unless they made it a more capable and expensive device in the hopes it would support unknown requirements). They made all v1 owners an offer to get a new hub "free" with a colour changing bulb, though it's not good value if you don't want the colour changing bulb or find it on sale and don't care about the hub. The old hub will continue to work, just not remotely. After eight years, I think it's a responsible and fair response within the parameters of consumer gear. The only way it could be better would be if the hub weren't required at all, or it was more easily interoperable with other controllers, but from the start that would have meant a more complicated experience.

I was an early adopter of Hue, even though it's kind of expensive I enjoy the capability to change the colour and mood of room lighting. $400 worth of lighting hardware for a house over 15 years is less than the comparable effect of painting a single room. From the start it has good support for local-only implementations with good open source libraries.

Well, yeah, not sure why you even wrote this except to get some snark in. The point is the trade off of having the basic if imperfect operation of vi/vim, along with what vscode offers. That includes connecting with the large community of vscode users.