Hacker News: apabepa

New comment by apabepa in "I know when you're vibe coding"

apabepa — Thu, 31 Jul 2025 10:31:43 +0000

For me it is difficult to give good code comments just when code is written. The problem is solved, the tricky parts if any are internalized. I dont mind reading code so just documenting what the code is doing does seldom bring value. The important thing is to document why the code does things in an non obvious way and unintuitive scenarios and edge cases etc.

When revisiting code is the best time to add comments because then you will find out what is tricky and what is obvious.

Code reviews are also good for adding code comments. If the people reviewing are doing their job and are actually trying to understand the code then it is a good time to get feedback where to add comments.

New comment by apabepa in "Open-sourcing AudioCraft: Generative AI for audio"

apabepa — Wed, 02 Aug 2023 18:37:26 +0000

Or is the past endlessly rehashed with AI generated content?

New comment by apabepa in "The Kingpin of Shanghai"

apabepa — Fri, 15 Oct 2021 07:44:19 +0000

Please don't. It will just become the usual Americanized trope filled insult to the original story. Stick with Marvel to produce your generic entertainment.

New comment by apabepa in "Show HN: Xplr – A hackable, minimal, fast TUI file explorer"

apabepa — Tue, 06 Apr 2021 11:40:34 +0000

Minimalist as in the README does not specify that it refers to the UI though.. If I read minimalist software I would assume a more holistic interpretation unless otherwise specified.

Maybe replace minimalist with modern for a more correct description of software with 100s of dependencies? (Joke!)

Nitpicking aside, The app looks good and I do like this TUI trend!

New comment by apabepa in "Streaming subtitled box sets is the new Eurovision"

apabepa — Mon, 05 Apr 2021 08:48:37 +0000

This is a rather pretentious take. Not sure I agree that a lowest-common-denominator i.e. violence and sex TV-drama counts as common culture. The setting could be whatever, it would still sell using the same tropes. I guess it is in a way similar to how McDonald is European "common food culture"..

New comment by apabepa in "Senior Engineers Build Consensus (2019)"

apabepa — Sat, 20 Mar 2021 11:28:43 +0000

What is an IC? I don't recognize the acronym in this context

New comment by apabepa in "Functorio"

apabepa — Tue, 16 Feb 2021 21:50:08 +0000

I have been day dreaming about a program taking a factorio blueprint and running it through a genetic algorithm to produce a compressed but still functional version. I can imagine it could produce some interesting spaghetti layout! One way to ensure that the end result still works the same would be to only let the algorithm work with a selection of predefined refactoring steps that guarantee that the factory does not break. Another maybe more interesting approach would be to include some actual simulation that could test the factory. With the simulation the algorithm could work more freely with possibly destructive changes and apply them until the factory works as expected. This I figure would produce even more interesting spaghetti..

New comment by apabepa in "Games can fix remote team building"

apabepa — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 16:16:09 +0000

A more natural way would be to arrange for people to work together in smaller groups on tasks as part of the normal work. If you provide this then I agree with the parent poster if there is a social interaction to be had it will come. If not that's OK as long as we can work together in reasonable harmony. I value professionalism, if I can make a friend through work that is great but it should not be the norm that we all have to be friends to get along.

New comment by apabepa in "The unreasonable effectiveness of simple HTML"

apabepa — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 23:32:36 +0000

Thanks for the response, very informative, I feel it explains a lot of what I was confused about.

So maybe a simplified view for me is: massive adoption of JS + frameworks, cookie cutter development, no point learning anything else when you have the golden hammer.

I actually thought you still did learn HTML and stuff before the digging into the frameworks. But maybe it is analogous to learning assembler before python, i.e out of fashion and not needed to get the job done.

In this context what seems like the simpler and more suitable solution to me (static HTML+some minimal JS) might not be on the map for most modern web developers. What they do is overkill but it is what they know and it gets the job done.

New comment by apabepa in "The unreasonable effectiveness of simple HTML"

apabepa — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 19:00:50 +0000

Yes the ads/trackers/etc is most likely a reason that a webpage cannot be completely without javascript.

Two other possible reasons from the top of my head:

If a web developer is hired to make a site they can probably charge more if it is a fancy javascript site. In some cases it might be in their self interest to up-sell this to a client that does not know better.

If a web developer makes a site for themselves I am sure many want to take the opportunity to get some experience in the latest web-tech while they are at it. Just as I will use an obscure programming language for my next side project..

New comment by apabepa in "The unreasonable effectiveness of simple HTML"

apabepa — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 18:13:34 +0000

I am not a front-end developer but looking at it from a distance I really don't get modern web design. Sure some sites might need fancy javascript single page features, like if your webpage is an interactive map or realtime game, but most sites are just text and some pictures. Whats with all the javascript? Your site looks just like the next one anyway! It feels like an "Emperor's New Clothes" situation or maybe more likely I just don't understand the allure as an clueless user.. I am almost tempted to make a webpage to see what the big fuss is about!

New comment by apabepa in "Show HN: AI-powered landing page builder"

apabepa — Sun, 03 Jan 2021 13:28:21 +0000

I see this as a part of the trend towards a bleak future of auto generated low quality generic content flooding the web. It already feels like it has been going on for a long time even though it has not been fully AI-driven before. This is a natural evolution of the direction things are going towards. I believe that non-algorithmic curation and aggregation will become even more important services that people will be willing to pay for.

New comment by apabepa in "A Simple and Dynamic Method for Consistent Productivity"

apabepa — Sat, 02 Jan 2021 13:33:37 +0000

I had the exact same experience! I found that copying things by hand it keeps the backlog in check and avoids long running tasks.

New comment by apabepa in "Show HN: Baller ToDo – a no-list todo app"

apabepa — Sun, 08 Nov 2020 09:46:51 +0000

Its not new. Its called a covey chart and is used in "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" from 1989, a highly popular self help book. (not sure if it was used in any prior work)

New comment by apabepa in "Ask HN: How do I learn to write better code?"

apabepa — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 17:27:10 +0000

Another way to do it is to fix bugs and refactor old not so good code. Force yourself to understand the actual underlying logic and the problems it solve. Use your frustration to figure out a better design that code so it wont punish future programmers.. After doing this for years you will hopefully have built a good habit of simple and clean design.

New comment by apabepa in "Sid Meier: “I don’t think I could make Civilisation today”"

apabepa — Wed, 09 Sep 2020 07:19:29 +0000

> Okay, was it a bad game? Who knows, hardly anyone played it. That's the crux of what he's saying.

I played it a few times when it came out. I had been looking forward to it. Unfortunately it was unbalanced with very obvious exploits. Maybe they fixed it later but I gave up on it.

New comment by apabepa in "Ask HN: How do you switch off from work, particularly when working from home?"

apabepa — Tue, 18 Aug 2020 12:46:31 +0000

If stress levels are normal usually a short walk will do. If something is really stuck in my head i complement with stashing away the work computer and having a drink on my balcony. I am not recommending it, but you asked how I switch off :)

New comment by apabepa in "Essays on programming I think about a lot"

apabepa — Tue, 21 Jul 2020 07:55:10 +0000

I read it from your link. It was an interesting piece about innovation and imagination versus lack of imagination.

New comment by apabepa in "Does scrum ruin great engineers or are you doing it wrong?"

apabepa — Tue, 30 Jun 2020 06:34:13 +0000

Yes I agree for the general case and I have seen this problem many times where management refuse to see the problem with anti-social loners holding too much of the competence in a team.

It can also depends on what kind of software you are working on. Some parts might require a 'brilliant mind' to push through a spike solution for certain areas. This individual should not really be in a "normal-happy-scrum-team" though, that would be a punishment both for the team and the individual...

New comment by apabepa in "South Korea's drive-through testing for coronavirus"

apabepa — Fri, 13 Mar 2020 23:53:10 +0000

I agree with this comment. I see it as pragmatic thinking not to test people at this point. It is a special situation, if you show any symptom of sickness just stay at home, it should be a no-brainer. What if you cough in public? Will you shout "IT IS JUST A COMMON COLD" and people will feel safe? Actually people who "just have a bit of a cold" should stay at home in normal circumstances too in my opinion. It might be OK for you to have a runny nose but some other poor guy might catch your cold and get it worse because of bad immune system. Its comes down to individualistic vs collectivist thinking and now might be the time to think about the greater good.