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pekinb

98 karma · joined December 11, 2010

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pekinb··on Curebit’s at it again, stealing more than code this time
The glee with which people are piling criticism on these guys is disturbing.
pekinb··on Steve Jobs didn’t
"Do you think Moby Dick or War and Peace are considered great due to their simple ways of communicating ideas?"

This is not an argument for being deliberately obtuse.

pekinb··on "This is water, this is water."
Really? There are valuable lessons in this speech. How does DFW's suicide affect his messages?
pekinb··on Attn Entrepreneurs: Mark Zuckerberg Isn’t the Role Model. Reid Hoffman Is.
Sarcasm doesn't do well on hacker news, unfortunately.
pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
That's unfair. I have no skin in this game. The example I gave originally addressed the establishment with no gift cards. Then I had to respond to the claim that Giftrocket is trying to replace gift cards, so I said I'd always pick a gift card if one were available, and if not, I'd give cash over paying a third party.

You'd use the service. I wouldn't. I argued why I don't see anyone using it. Don't write me off as an internet misanthrope trying to ruin everyone's fun.

edit: I'll be more constructive. I'd consider using this if it somehow felt like a gift card instead of a deposit to my paypal account.

pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
I would give a giftcard if one were available. I'd buy a $30 card for $30. If one weren't available, I sure wouldn't pay a company $1.50 to set up a hoop for my friend to jump through.
pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
It wasn't a gift card in my examples. It was cash. Or an American Express giftcard. Just like you'd be getting with GiftRocket, except GiftRocket wants a cut.
pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
$X is worth $X in gift cards. I'm fine with that. I hate the idea of paying this company when they don't add any value.
pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
Me: "Hey dude, there's this great new Mexican place on your block. Here's $30. Enjoy." = free

Me: "Hey dude, check out this website that's going to tell you about this great new Mexican place on your block. Here's $30. Enjoy." = not free

pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
At that point, why not just transfer the money yourself? I get that gift cards > cash for gifts, but if you're worried about the issues you mentioned, you might as well give the person the cash and tell them you know this great new restaurant you think they'd love. It's like you're saying, "Hey, wouldn't it be cool if there were gift cards that didn't have these drawbacks?" It exists. It's money.
pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
"Of course, the recipient can always opt not to actually use the gifted money..." That's some A+ writing there, Lou.
pekinb··on GiftRocket (YC W11) Lets You Send Gifts That Can Be Redeemed At Any Location
So I pay a company 5% for the privilege of sending my friend blocks away so I can put money in his paypal account?
pekinb··on Ask HN: What will Y Combinator look like in 3 years?
Navy SEAL BUD/S
pekinb··on YC Is Not a School for Startups; It's Marine Corps Boot Camp for Founders
Headlines like this are one of the dangers of our little HN niche.
pekinb··on Cosmonaut Crashed Into Earth 'Crying In Rage' [in 1967]
really? I think that makes it significantly better.
pekinb··on Feynman's wobbling plate: how to recover from burnout
what work do your "fuck"s and "shit"s do?
pekinb··on What Every Startup Can Learn From AirBnB
what other verticals is airbnb entering?
pekinb··on Ask HN: Anyone Else Sick at the Groupon Commercials?
I think you guys need to start exercising or something
pekinb··on Groupon spends big on Superbowl commercials, but ads anger many viewers
< is outraged > < joins Save the Whales facebook group > < satisfied, inserts handful of almonds into mouth >
pekinb··on Statistician Cracks Secret Code Behind Lottery Tickets
more details?
pekinb··on Ask HN: What are your favorite AuthorsGoogle talks?
junot diaz
pekinb··on Ask HN: Daddy, what's "tax"?
"It's like trying to eat, but before you can bite, you have to pay for your share of the spoon."
pekinb··on [dead]
edgy and cool
pekinb··on The polynomial algorithm for 3-SAT problem (or P=NP)
I may be mistaken, and this might require an exhaustive search of the relevant literature, but I believe 3SAT is NP-Complete and therefore this one example does indeed lead to the stated conclusion.
pekinb··on Treat Everyone with Respect
Should have been more clear: this is sarcasm. The guy in the video sounded like a douche.
pekinb··on Sex, drugs, dopamine and exceeding expectations
When I read that sentence, I felt like I did the last time I ran out of sex.
pekinb··on Farewell NYC (and YCW11 rejection next steps)
If anything, budget for slightly more than you think you'll need. I just don't see how 1300/mo is going to be possible.
pekinb··on Introducing Word Lens
Can someone at questvisual say more about the platform? I have some ideas I'd like to try.
pekinb··on Treat Everyone with Respect
I'm confused. Do I also need to show respect to people who have no chance of helping me or my friends later?