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thomaslangston

591 karma · joined June 11, 2011

www.langstonsoftware.com

All opinions are my own. My opinions do not represent my employers past, present, or future.

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thomaslangston··on Reasons Not to Refactor
I'd say #2 and #3 need to be modified.

#2 Are there related changes on the horizon for the code being refactored?

I think more qualifications than that probably miss times you should refactor.

#3 Has the code been changing recently OR have changes been delayed because modifying the unrefactored code is considered too difficult.

I've seen too many times where unrefactored code is considered too dangerous/difficult to modify even with total test coverage. Refactoring is a necessary step towards self documenting code in those cases.

thomaslangston··on String of recent killings linked to Bay Area 'Zizians'
Less Wrong
thomaslangston··on The history of spaghetti squash in America
Recommendation for eating spaghetti squash in the spaghetti style, use half actual spaghetti pasta. You get the taste of pasta you're craving in each bite but with half the benefits of substituting of a full plate of spaghetti squash.
thomaslangston··on Goodreads has no incentive to be good
Not OP, but

Different Translations

Corrections or Updates

Additions

Different Illustrations

thomaslangston··on A Senior Engineer’s Guide to FAANG Interviews
Yes
thomaslangston··on Framework Laptop 13 Review
Would a blank ISO keyboard work?

My Google skills are failing me and I can't seem to get a clear answer if the Scandinavian layout fits on ISO keys.

thomaslangston··on For the first time, renewable energy generation beat out coal in the US
Batteries are not cheap, but they are cost effective based on local conditions.

Time of use billing. The battery is generating ROI if it can arbitrage energy over the day.

Net metering + solar. If net metering is not available, or sufficiently discounted, and your energy usage is not high enough during the day to use all your solar power, then batteries generate ROI.

Grid stability. A battery effectively is insurance against outages of a few hours. With sufficient solar and rationing, that may extend to week long outages (think natural disasters).

thomaslangston··on NPR cancels 4 podcasts amid major layoffs
Short Wave is a short week day science NPR podcast I enjoy.
thomaslangston··on Building a city optimized for bikes is a choice
Cold doesn't have to be an obstacle. Here's a video on Finland's bike infrastructure.

https://youtu.be/Uhx-26GfCBU

thomaslangston··on Twilight of the Libraries: What Gets Lost When Books Go Off-Site and Online (2022)
> This gives publishers the ability to retroactively wipe libraries' catalogs on the basis that they own them.

This doesn't have to be true. We could have licenses that are perpetual.

thomaslangston··on Sci-fi becomes real as renowned magazine closes submissions due to AI writers
I've often thought an authenticated proof of donation to a global charity could be a solution to these types of problems, scaled in price to the senders locale.

Not refundable, but at least a donation to UNICEF allows the receiver to impose a submission cost without the implication they are doing so out of greed.

thomaslangston··on Solar panels on cars make no sense at this point
This doesn't compute.

Higher interest rates makes a highly efficient and modestly sized two seater more attractive not less.

thomaslangston··on Solar panels on cars make no sense at this point
One way to approach the engineering question of how to make solar cars for the mass market is to push the car body design to be extremely efficient. Aptera's three wheel, two seat, design seems more likely to deliver the type of daily range extension that will make solar cars a contender in the market.

https://aptera.us/vehicle/

thomaslangston··on Ask HN: Those making $500+/month on side projects in 2023 – Show and tell
There are some YouTube channels that specialize in landscaping. I could see digitally and entrepreneurially minded landscaping professionals being a good part of their audience. Might be worth sponsoring a video or two.
thomaslangston··on Ask HN: What is your opinion of “unlimited” PTO?
I'd much prefer an explicit required amount of yearly PTO, plus the freedom for a manager to freely grant bonus PTO.
thomaslangston··on After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
That's using a 5 percent withdrawal rate.

A 4 or even 3 percent withdrawal rate is more likely to be sustainable. Those are also rates I see suggested more commonly on retirement planning sites.

thomaslangston··on Just use Postgres for everything
Good tests are a lot easier to write with good interfaces.
thomaslangston··on Engineered ‘Superplant’ Cleans Indoor Air Like 30 Regular Plants
They make A&H boxes that are designed to have sections torn off to let air through but not spill the baking soda.
thomaslangston··on Multiple assertions are fine in a unit test
Test order should be random, so that the ability to run them in parallel and distribute them across multiple hosts is not lost by missing enforcement of test isolation.
thomaslangston··on Elon Musk owns Twitter: The story so far
My experience has been tradeoffs.

Real identity has those most vulnerable get more threats, the majority get less.

thomaslangston··on 2/3 of kids bike to school in Assen because it was designed that way (2013)
Certainly not if you define everywhere as including all of the US and Canada.
thomaslangston··on Californians may tax the rich more to subsidise electric cars
> I'd rather the government focus on fostering choice and options, rather than picking what they deem is "best" for everyone.

This is not a reasonable interpretation of reality.

One, the government effectively limits choice today via single family zoning and car centric city planning. Claiming NIMBYS are for more choice is disingenuous.

Two, there are some valid definitions of better, if not best. Dense, walkable, bike friendly, public transit oriented city planning leads to more active lifestyles, fewer transit deaths, less air pollution, lower carbon footprints, and better city financials.

Spreading out as worse isn't an assumption. It is a multi faceted and we'll documented reality.

thomaslangston··on Spanish airline reserves 10 Airlander airships
Yes, the price of high carbon goods and services would go up with a carbon tax.

The lower class is more susceptible to the effects of worsening air pollution and climate change. They see the greatest benefits in those categories as each are improved by a carbon tax.

The downsides for the lower class can be further ameliorated by making the tax redistributive, e.g. increased welfare benefits, lowering other taxes, UBI, etc.

thomaslangston··on Fandom Acquires GameSpot, Giant Bomb, GameFAQs, TV Guide and Metacritic
PeerTube is the only one that I've heard about any lately.
thomaslangston··on Newsom just signed California pay transparency bill
1. The listed pay range can be any size. So they could put any number they want for the top end for overqualified applicants.

2. They can create a new position at any time with a higher range and offer you that position.

thomaslangston··on 'Securing Open Source Software Act' introduced to US Senate
Nah. You'd just need to use the old versions that had gone through a security audit and had some enterprise level Long Term Support contracts available.

IBM will offer quotes for whatever is required within 2 quarters or less.

thomaslangston··on The culture of rejection in computer science publications
What does R1 mean in this context?
thomaslangston··on I still love PHP and JavaScript
This reads better when reflection is used in both meanings.
thomaslangston··on TITO: Electric Argentine car
What are the US market examples at a similar price point or lower with same or better specs?
thomaslangston··on Ask HN: Are companies preparing to end Remote?
Remote work =/= work anywhere.

Companies can easily set policies to only allow work in jurisdictions they have tax and legal infrastructure to handle.

This isn't the same as requiring all your employees to come in the office.

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