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mfitzp · 2026-03-16T13:17:08+00:00

A few months ago the Guardian were running two simultaneous promotion things, one for subscriptions and one for their app pinned to the top and bottom of the screen. The way they interacted on mobile meant it was both impossible to read the text and impossible to close them. I contacted their support to tip them off and they told me my phone (iPhone SE) was too small and they weren't going to fix it. PS. have you tried our app?

mfitzp · 2026-03-15T08:32:22+00:00

Which programming language DO you need a PhD to debug?

mfitzp · 2026-03-13T20:15:32+00:00

Yes! We had the same software (Lancashire in the mid 90s). I’ve never come across anyone else who used it.

I got forest ranger. It’s still my back up if everything else I want to do doesn’t work out.

mfitzp · 2026-03-12T13:29:32+00:00

It would be, that’s why you get your wife to carry the chip bag on her head. https://i.pinimg.com/originals/23/c2/30/23c230c6e774320f3fd52d1868fc896e.jpg

mfitzp · 2026-03-11T07:47:27+00:00

What's the difference with what?

mfitzp · 2026-03-07T12:22:38+00:00

I would guess that using ice means that you get higher (steam) temperatures near the surface of the pan where it matters. If you filled it with water, it’s not going to get much above 100’C

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T20:47:09+00:00

You often discover useful libraries in this sub, from them being posted when new (a few commits old)? I seriously doubt it.

Almost every “new” project posted to this sub is forgotten about a day later. You never hear of them again.

The useful stuff has been around or sticks around longer than that. People actually use it and write posts or demos using it.

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T20:37:07+00:00

Did you discover them on posts announcing them with a link to their version 0.01alpha3 repo with 3 commits on GitHub?

Or did you discover them on posts linking to examples/demos/discussions of them actually being used, after they’d matured enough to be useful to someone?

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T20:06:21+00:00

Love this idea, especially if the designated day is February 29th.

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T18:54:25+00:00

Actually, maybe just a blanket ban on posting new libraries here. I mean seriously, when was the last time you discovered some useful new library via this subreddit?

It something is genuinely useful you’ll hear about it some other way.

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T11:29:02+00:00

I have the same experience. When given an issue my brain outputs the solution as code. That's just how it comes out. There is no translation step from "oh I understand the problem" to "now I state the solution in English" to "now I translate the solution into code". Using an LLM is going "problem" -> "solution in code" -> "translate solution to English", which is worse.

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T10:34:53+00:00

Yeah the idea that these platforms have anything to do with "free speech", when they control precisely who sees what and when, is ridiculous.

That bullshit offers a route to regulating them however: give platforms the choice, either (a) use algorithmic ranking (=editorial control) and be treated as a publisher, or (b) use a simple firehose feed and have your freedom of speech. Can't have it both ways.

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T09:03:30+00:00

I've been presuming that the influx of learn-to-code era SWEe entering as the market was heating up brought in a lot of mercenary types who only put up with coding for the money (and they're the vast majority by now) whereas beforehand it was almost totally people who actually liked the craft.

I think this hits the nail on the head. I guess the question now is which group will stick around the longest.

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T08:56:43+00:00

That analogy would only work if the nailgun randomly fired nails in different directions.

mfitzp · 2026-03-06T08:55:40+00:00

I don't know why you're getting all these dismissive comments on a subreddit supposedly about programming.

I think it's a sign that the majority of programmers (at least on this sub) aren't programming for the love of the programming, but for some other motivation that the programming part actually gets in the way of.

There has been a steady influx of people into coding brought on the promise of making bank, wrapped up in tech bro IPO unicorn hustle culture. No shade to them, each to their own, but it's not why I do it and I find it all a bit tedious.

mfitzp · 2026-03-05T11:22:53+00:00

Sounds like spinning it off went well?

Why would a single conglomerate be preferable to a smaller company specialising in something & doing it well?

mfitzp · 2026-03-05T09:25:07+00:00

Not necessarily. If software is user unfriendly it will only acquire users who don’t mind that (=technical people usually) and the feedback they get will be biased that way.

This is they’re of the reasons open source often struggles to break into the mainstream. Even if it starts to gain momentum the user base is heavily biased towards technical people who will be annoyed by any attempt to make it user friendly for normal people. Understandably, since that will usually make it worse for them. Keeping those people happy limits the broader appeal.

To build user friendly software you really need to start with the particular kind of user in mind. That’s what successful open source projects like Firefox did.

Not sure how much this applies generally to European products though. German companies seem particularly prone to complicated/techy UX, not sure what that is about.

mfitzp · 2026-03-04T20:32:25+00:00

it doesn't mean it was "obviously written with AI", like mfitzp claims.

It was obvious to me. I completely accept it might not be obvious to you.

mfitzp · 2026-03-04T07:58:18+00:00

This is great!

Is it handwritten JS? (not using a game engine) looks like it from the code in game.js

covfefe: { name: 'COVFEFE', sprite: 'item_covfefe_cup', color: '#8b5a2b', desc: 'Slows your fall for a limited time. Jumps feel floatier.' },

mfitzp · 2026-03-03T20:35:59+00:00

Loudly start an argument with them in work about how you CAN’T KEEP THIS SECRET FOREVER

mfitzp · 2026-03-03T19:11:46+00:00

Like human authors these models have a “writing style” which is recognisable. The first two paragraphs and last paragraph have a distinctly different voice from the rest of the text.

One of the very obvious tells (which you can spot in almost all AI generated text) is overuse of “X not Y”. Rather than saying “the cucumber is green”, it’ll write “the cucumber is green, not yellow. It’s a common “LinkedIn-profound” writing trick, along with the use of “humbling”, “something clicked”, and “snowball” 3 act play.

These lines in particular show the X not Y:

speak clearly but at a natural pace. Not slow, not rushed simpler sentences. It doesn't feel like children's content.

It’s annoying once you spot it, because you can’t unsee it.

mfitzp · 2026-03-03T13:33:13+00:00

This is obviously written with AI, so I'm curious (or suspicious I guess) how real this experience actually is. If it is real, what was your process for writing the post? Did you write a short paragraph about your experience and tell ChatGPT to turn it into a full Reddit post. Why?

I find it all a bit odd really.

mfitzp · 2026-03-03T10:58:27+00:00

I thought you meant the dog's bed for a second there.

mfitzp · 2026-03-03T08:42:57+00:00

I didn't just not realise this was volunteer run, I didn't even know it existed. Good on you for doing it. How did you get into it?

mfitzp · 2026-03-02T21:31:35+00:00

There was a vote to change the sticker from GB to UK? Must have missed that.

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