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mtw

2,063 karma · joined August 29, 2007

meet.hn/city/45.5031824,-73.5698065/Montreal

Socials: - heri@studiozenkai.com - github.com/heri - instagram.com/heri.rakotomalala - https://studiozenkai.com - x.com/heri

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mtw··on Survival LLM: AI assistant and emergency library that runs on your own computer
For one-off questions, a local archive makes sense.

This is more for elaborate projects where you don't know precisely what you are looking for. Questions I can think of in a survival scenario:

- my solar panel connector is broken. We only have 8 hr battery left. Can you tell me how to DIY repair it with the following parts

- we want to receive emergency FM broadcasts from the state. Give me steps on how to receive it on Flipper Zero with this breakout board I found in my spare parts

- with the dewalt drill and these parts, can you tell me how to build an outboard motor for the canoe. We need to get outta here before the flood goes up further

mtw··on U.S. already has the critical minerals it needs, according to new analysis
Of course the U.S and allies like Canada/Australia have all the critical minerals needed. But the U.S. does not have the ecosystem to mine and process it. The author suggests critical R&D but the administration is also waging war on the top universities (Harvard & co.), and generally looking down on what's coming from them. A good researcher is going to have a pact with the devil to agree to this, unless the administration throws money and brute force at the problem.
mtw··on How to vibe code for free: Running Qwen3 on your Mac, using MLX
how much RAM do you have? I want to compare with my local setup (M4 Pro)
mtw··on Ask HN: Those making $500/month on side projects in 2024 – Show and tell
I make between $3k to $6k from putting a log cabin on Airbnb. This started during period of boredom during the pandemic. I operate remotely with smart home devices and with a local cleaning team/handyman.

I had a project to completely automate this with an AI agent but Airbnb doesn't offer a publicly available API.

$3k seems high but the costs add up and the time as well (details here https://studiozenkai.com/post/airbnb-the-good-the-bad-the-pr... ). I always have a bit of profit at the end of year and the mortgage costs are entirely paid so no complaints here

If I ever get fed up from tech projects, I can see myself getting a bigger vacation property and making this my own version of Barista FIRE

mtw··on Nvidia H200 Tensor Core GPU
I had a shock when I looked up prices for H100 gpus, wanting to use one just for personal experimentation and for an upcoming hackathon. How much this one costs? $300,000?
mtw··on Airbnb nightly rates shot up 36% in 3 years
Airbnb doesn’t have a hosts supply issue. Actually in the past 3 years, hosts growth outpace guests growth

The issue is Airbnb attracted recently a lot of get-rich-quick types, similar to what see for Amazon sellers or crypto bros. We are far from the savvy host who want to share travel experiences and give you a unique experience

mtw··on Ask HN: How many of you are open to Piracy again?
Where I am, there are frequent power cuts or Internet is down because of a storm. We do have a generator so we can keep on living. I hate the fact tho that I'm not able to pay for content I paid for : movies, fitness classes, music etc.

So looking to build a media server full of content, via legal means or piracy!

Another motivation is while I'm ok paying now, what about in 20 or 30 years time? Maybe there will be a time where I want to discard my credit card, but still want to be able to enjoy movies. I would have paid then thousands of dollars to streaming services. A media server with my favorite content sounds like a better bet.

mtw··on Wells are running dry in Southwest as foreign-owned farms feed cattle overseas
The US exports $25B worth of soybeans per year, which is one of the most water intensive crop. Should these exports be banned? same for almonds, cotton, rice etc.
mtw··on Illegal host, electric shocks, slugs, leaks and no support – How Airbnb failed
Airbnb Support is the worst. They speak and write very well, and make you feel they listen to you and will do their best to solve your issue. In most cases though, they will come back to you with a negative answer and will leave you in the worst of situations. You can check the reddit sub /airbnb or on Twitter.

Having 0 support like Google would be much better than being promised help will come, then having various customer agents taking over your case from scratch and then after exhaustion, being told you won't be refunded or no action will be taken

mtw··on The Portuguese can no longer afford to live in Portugal
This is not just Portugal. I see similar sentiment in Canada where young professionals in Vancouver or Toronto complain they can't buy their first home and Vancouver has been "sold out" to foreigners. Similar sentiment in Australian major cities as well.
mtw··on Ask HN: Having trouble getting senior applicants, wondering what to do about it
Review the take-home assignment. Is it really relevant to the job ?

And if you really have to have it, is it specific and interesting? For example don’t ask to use a JavaScript library if the job post specifically asked for talent in rust.

mtw··on In a small trial, drugs seemed to rejuvenate the body’s ‘epigenetic clock’ (2019)
Did they continue tracking health effects years after they study ? It’s possible the drugs reversed the body clock but will accelerate it after. Much like coffee gives you a temporary boost, then makes you crash later
mtw··on Before wave of train thefts, Union Pacific laid off some of its police force
Article seems to indicate it's not arrests but patrols that are correlated with theft. Patrols dissuade potential thefts
mtw··on High degree of overlap between r/poor and crypto subreddits
r/poor only has 7k members - it's insignificant compared to other subs

Try to see overlaps for r/frugal or r/bitcoin if you really want to see if poverty is linked to crypto

mtw··on Mysterious Stone Orbs Stashed All over Neolithic Britain
Why not used as currency
mtw··on Our vacation rental had surveillance cameras. The landlord used them a lot
Cameras & surveillance are a necessity for vacation rentals. People complain about privacy but how would the property manager know that the garbage are placed properly for pickup? Many counties now have automated garbage trucks that won't pickup garbage if the angle or placement is not correct

Same for swimming pool or lawn maintenance. The person renting would be the first to demand a refund if the swimming pool has a strange color/odor or if the garbage is overflowing. The property manager can do a daily video check and ask for pool maintenance person to do a check if the water doesn't look good.

Finally, many vacation homes have their own dedicated water systems. Its perfectly possible that the water source can only cater to 6 adult, or that the septic system can dispose for only a max number of people. If the renter comes with a big group, then there will be no water, or the septic system will overflow and clog. Again, in those cases, the group renting will be the first to complain and ask for refunds. So it is important to check via a camera the number of guests coming and making sure it is below the max number of people that the property can accomodate.

mtw··on Our vacation rental had surveillance cameras. The landlord used them a lot
This is what the article author states. But how certain are you that the dog didn't actually poop on the property or entered indoors?

The author stated before that there were no dogs on the property but was forced to admit that there was indeed a dog. It is therefore plausible he is also taking liberties at his other statements

mtw··on The Great Hanoi Rat Massacre of 1902 Did Not Go as Planned (2017)
Municipal water sanitation

Fine for rat infested houses

Significant Fines and inspection for business especially live markets, food factories and mills

Citizen education program, such as encouraging cats, not leaving food around, inspecting homes for holes

Strict garbage collection. Fines for properties that leave garbage outdoors outside garbage collection days

mtw··on Ask HN: What tech job would let me get away with the least real work possible?
I would look into acquiring a service on sites like microacquire.com that generates monthly income for you. There are a few listed there that requires little to no work. Sometimes it's just 3 to 6 hours of replying to customers questions.

Of course, it doesn't come free, you have to pay for the service. But this guarantee little involvement with the product, fully remote, no boss plus you can do whatever you want the rest of the time.

mtw··on DeLorean considering all-electric reboot
> instant torque that an electric vehicle puts out just shreds a gearbox

Doesn't the Porsche Taycan have 2 gears? and it actually beats Tesla Model S in 0-60 times

mtw··on Trump bans Alipay and seven other Chinese apps
At the same time, the US controls the financial monetary system (petrodollar), dominates the world military-wise, tech and so on. If one is able to follow this logic, does that mean that Europe and other countries should also take hostile measures against the US since they control "supply chains" and has "great but subtle" powers over them?
mtw··on Trump bans Alipay and seven other Chinese apps
I don't understand why Russia is doing obviously hostile acts (elections, hacking government agencies, invasion of Ukraine & others, covert operations and so on...) against the US, and not much is done.

Meanwhile, I can't remember a covert operation done by China or a visible invasion of a third-party country (except putting concrete on a few inhabited islands) and then everything is done to portray them as the bad guys and ban entire industries

I can't help thinking of either racism, or politicians being controlled by Russian intelligence (possibly them not being unaware of this)

mtw··on Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)
all of this tech and no mention of warm hats. anyone living in cold countries know most of the heat is lost through the hat.

and drafts! any draft will make you cold, even if you heat your home at a high 24C

mtw··on Google Stories
oh cool! another google product that's going to be deprecated in a couple of years
mtw··on Could we reboot a modern civilization without fossil fuels? (2016)
In Canada, hydro dams generate most of the electricity. It attracts amongst others huge aluminium smelters in Quebec. So the idea of not being able to generate industrial products with solar panels or dams is not a 100% valid argument
mtw··on Airbnb S-1
- Many airbnbs have a spa, especially those outside cities. I've also seen saunas and gyms

- Airbnb plus or Airbnb Luxe can have breakfast or groceries basket

- Early check in or late check out is possible. Just discuss with your host prior to confirming reservation. Unless they have a guest coming just after or their cleaning crew can't make it work, they will find a way to make it work

- Many Airbnbs have 24/7 access. Many have electronic door locks

- You can get local, custom recommandations by discussing with the host, and more. Same for complaints

- Flower service, laundry, babysitting options are available with Airbnb Luxe

On the other hand, if your goal is to socialize, talk to hotel staff, talk to other travellers, then of course, airbnb are NOT an option for you. Airbnb doesn't have to provide everything. I can tell you they are great for families looking for a vacation home.

mtw··on Samsung TV owners complain about increasingly obtrusive ads
Well you see Google selling Pixels which is supposed to be an idiot box to reproduce voice signals but it turns out it's loaded with ads and trackers. Samsung probably followed along the lines that Google pioneered
mtw··on Foiling Electric Boat
How much is this ?
mtw··on The Most Counterintuitive Recession Ever
Too early, we're still in the middle of the pandemic. Who knows how numbers are going to be in October
mtw··on Canada extends financial aid for millions for two more months
This is not true. Canada produces planes, helicopters (Bell Canada) and aerospace that requires advances engineering work

Canada produces the most advanced video games that require real talent, and the commercial bits happen in Canada yes.

Canada has international clusters in AI that are ahead from the ones in the US

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