<rss version="2.0" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"><channel><title>Hacker News: emursebrian</title><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=emursebrian</link><description>Hacker News RSS</description><docs>https://hnrss.org/</docs><generator>hnrss v2.1.1</generator><lastBuildDate>Thu, 29 Oct 2026 20:06:41 +0000</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://hnrss.org/user?id=emursebrian" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"></atom:link><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "The smart home graveyard is getting crowded"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>I want appliances that are reliable and last a lifetime, I don't care about smart features. I bought a basic washing machine back in 2005.  Roper brand, which is Whirlpool's value-priced line. The cycles are programmed purely mechanically using a cam timer.<p>Since I've owned it, all I've had to do is replace the clutch which was like a $25 part at the time.  Doing it yourself (or having a repair technician take care of it), is easier and more cost-effective than hauling it out and buying a new one.<p>Cloud enabled features on home appliances had extra complexity and the chance your device will be bricked when the manufacturer decides to discontinue their cloud services.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Mon, 28 Sep 2026 13:53:47 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49878005</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49878005</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49878005</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Audacity 4.0"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>The new editing features will be pretty useful for sound design.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 03 Sep 2026 12:51:26 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49549310</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49549310</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49549310</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Fine, I'll build my own text editor"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>In my mind, my computer is pretty beefy: 2.8 GHZ I7 with 16GB of ram.  Yet, vendors like Adobe figure out ways to consume all available resources and make performance complete trash.<p>Ironically, VS Code is one of the few programs that feels fast.  Meanwhile, Visual Studio feels slow and janky.  Between Notepad++ and VS Code, I don't notice much of a difference in performance for what I do.<p>Browers are one of the few applications these days that are still highly optimized and performant.  This is what allowed us to replace Adobe AfterEffects with a custom browser-based renderer.  We've seen a 10x performance improvement in some cases: 2mins (Browser) vs 20mins (AfterEffects).</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 02 Sep 2026 13:17:18 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49535753</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49535753</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49535753</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "AnkiDroid: Google Play no longer allowing Open Collective donation link"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Wow. The click the build number a bunch of times is already onerous enough. Now we're going to have to wait 24 hours to spin up a new development device?</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 12:24:46 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49521019</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49521019</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49521019</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "AnkiDroid: Google Play no longer allowing Open Collective donation link"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Shit like this is yet another reason why we don't have apps in the app store.  In app purchases are a non-starter for us.<p>As I understand it, there are ways to work around accepting payments or donations outside of the app stores.<p>It adds one more thing to have to do and explain to users.  And even with that piece taken care of, we would need to be constantly vigilant about changes in Apple or Google policies that might eject our app from the storefront.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 12:18:11 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49520954</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49520954</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49520954</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "“It works better in the app”"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>On my iPhone it's just 5 easy clicks:<p>Kebab Menu > Share > View More > Add to Home screen > Add<p>Android - Firefox: It's 4 clicks
Android - Chrome: 3 clicks (Menu > Install App > Ok)</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 11:56:19 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49520739</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49520739</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49520739</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "“It works better in the app”"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>As a user, I don't want to install an app if I can do it on the web.  Most "apps" these days are just web sites wrapped in an app. What's more, they're usually 100% dependent on REST APIs so there's little advantage to having the app anyway.<p>As a developer and (web) app vendor, I understand that many users still want apps.  I just had a user ask when we'd be releasing our app for iOS.  I explained that we did have an app and that it would be identical to what we'd release for iOS.  Then I explained the maze of submenus she'd have to click through to get the icon on her home screen.<p>Apple and Google hate the open web so they make it excessively difficult to "install" PWAs and then in some cases, they're less functional than the website itself.  More blame lies at the feet of Apple and Google than on web-first vendors who release sub-optimal apps as a delivery workaround.<p>We're not releasing apps yet precisely because I want us to be focusing on features.  Having to target two additional platforms increases the surface area for testing and takes time away from developing features with the potential cost of releasing a "sub-optimal" app.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 28 Aug 2026 14:30:59 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49479084</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49479084</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49479084</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Quake Shareware, a CD-ROM just a little too full"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>You could also put this CD-ROM in an audio CD player and play the music on it.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 18 Aug 2026 17:15:27 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49348983</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49348983</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49348983</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Why MySpace fans want it back as relaunch hinted"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>I roasted MySpace hard back in the day, but now I kind of miss it.  I was all too happy to move over to Facebook and leave MySpace behind.<p>For me, the exodus from MySpace to Facebook marks the inflection point were smaller internet communities died and were replaced with services from megacorps.<p>At the time, MySpace was an echo of free homepage sites on providers like AngelFire and Geocities. My friend group had moved over to MySpace from a custom site our friend hosted on a server in his living room.  His web site did pretty much everything that MySpace did, MySpace just did it better.<p>I don't want MySpace back, but I do want some of the cool interactive content back that seems to all but have died out.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 09 Aug 2026 11:25:47 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49230454</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49230454</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49230454</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "How Japan's railways stayed one while splitting apart"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Eki-melos are the things that I really liked about taking trains in Japan.<p>The chirping bird sounds to help blind users find their way to and from the platforms is also a pretty interesting design decision.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 19 Jun 2026 13:10:50 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48598167</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48598167</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48598167</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Ask HN: Who is hiring? (June 2026)"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Emurse | <a href="https://emurse.io/jobs" rel="nofollow">https://emurse.io/jobs</a> | Outbound Sales Specialist | Remote | Part-Time<p>Emurse is a platform for learning languages with a focus on instructor-led courses, phonetics and comprehensible input.<p>Your mission as an Outbound Sales Specialist is simple: identify high-value targets, craft compelling email sequences, and turn cold contacts into warm introductory meetings.<p>To apply, review the instructions and job details at <a href="https://emurse.io/jobs" rel="nofollow">https://emurse.io/jobs</a>.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 02 Jun 2026 15:08:04 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48371273</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48371273</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48371273</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "YouTube to automatically label AI-generated videos"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>I mostly get AI slop ads for scam products, though slop videos do creep into my shorts feed.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 28 May 2026 13:10:22 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48308488</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48308488</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48308488</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Stripe's Payment APIs: the first 10 years (2020)"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>We're using Stripe to run our marketplace where teachers can sell their language courses. It does MOST of what we want/need.<p>I've done numerous checkout/payment processing integrations over the years.  Stripe is still pretty easy to use and full-featured compared to what I've used in the past.  It does have its annoyances, shortcomings and API inconsistencies - but it's still better than the alternatives, in my view.<p>Support has been good when I needed more documentation on something.  Their chatbot performs very poorly, however.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Mon, 20 Apr 2026 14:05:35 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47834566</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47834566</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47834566</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "A Japanese glossary of chopsticks faux pas (2022)"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Most of these are common sense. As a tourist foreigner, you also aren't expected to know all the customs but it's appreciated when you try.  The one about which direction to NOT point the chopsticks in was new to me. If you just watch what other people are doing, then try to do the same thing, you're probably on the right track.<p>Related to eating, one pro-tip I got from a local is that when you're ready to close your tab or get your check at a bar or restaurant, you can make a small X with your index fingers.<p>Really useful in a busy bar!</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Fri, 20 Mar 2026 21:25:52 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47460799</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47460799</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47460799</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Building a TB-303 from Scratch"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>The UI for loopmaster looks really good.  The color scheme is really pleasing to look at and it is easy to jump right in and start editing stuff.<p>I've owned a bunch of different synthesizers and used a bunch of DAWs over the years and it was clear to me where I needed to make my edits to affect the signal chain.<p>We do real-time client-side audio processing in Emurse, and there were definitely a bunch of challenges to overcome there, so it would be interesting to hear more about what went into building the tool.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 11 Mar 2026 13:37:40 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47335423</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47335423</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47335423</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Classical statues were not painted horribly"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Fish sauce is also really popular in southeast Asia and Worcestershire sauce is often made with fermented fish so can also be considered garum adjacent.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 18 Dec 2025 14:20:22 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46312989</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46312989</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46312989</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Show HN: I built FlipCards – a flashcard app with variations to improve learning"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Anki is great for what it is, but it has some annoyances when studying languages.  They were annoying enough for me that I build some tools for Anki to try to address the problems.  Eventually, I migrated my SQL scripts and JavaScript code to a lightweight .NET Core app that replaced Anki entirely.<p>This app was the starting point for presenting interactive content in Emurse.  We're currently focusing on filling in areas of language learning that are missing - like phonetics.<p>If anyone is interested, they can checkout Dogen's Phonetics Course on Emurse: <a href="https://emurse.io/courses" rel="nofollow">https://emurse.io/courses</a>.  There's also an "instant demo" for the Thai Course where you can try a demo without creating an account.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 04 Sep 2025 18:47:32 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45130807</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45130807</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45130807</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Show HN: I built FlipCards – a flashcard app with variations to improve learning"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>Multiple variations "per-card" are the way to go.  It was one of my big gripes about Anki too!  My other big complaint is that it only really is tracking one metric when it comes to study - whether you remember the "card" or not.<p>This is where Anki falls short for language study, because we as language learners also want to look at listening & reading comprehension as well as pronunciation.<p>Any reason why you're using SM-2 over FSRS? In Emurse we're using an algorithm similar to SM-2, mainly because FSRS wasn't out when we started building it. it works well enough because we've come up work arounds for Anki's problem of workload distribution.  Looking into FSRS a bit, I am definitely interested in giving this a shot and seeing if it improves it in that area.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 04 Sep 2025 18:38:53 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45130700</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45130700</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45130700</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Our Farewell from Google Play"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>It's hard for even developers and small companies TRYING to make a living there.  Keeping an app active in the app stores requires a lot of extra overhead, but doesn't add significant value to the product in cases where it's a native cross-platform or browser-based app.<p>So many of the apps installed on my phone could be PWAs, but since the implementation of PWAs is quite limited - a native app is required in most cases.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 02 Aug 2025 17:35:16 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44769573</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44769573</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44769573</guid></item><item><title><![CDATA[New comment by emursebrian in "Run a C# file directly using dotnet run app.cs"]]></title><description><![CDATA[
<p>I've been developing with .NET since version 1.1.  I feel like it's always been pretty easy to use for beginners.  You install Visual Studio, create a new project and BOOM you've got a program that builds and runs.<p>Having used Turbo Pascal and Turbo C prior to Visual Basic and Visual C, Microsoft's "Visual" IDEs and other Windows based IDEs of the 90's were a step up in ease of use even if they did require more files to build a project.</p>
]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 29 May 2025 14:11:23 +0000</pubDate><link>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44126329</link><dc:creator>emursebrian</dc:creator><comments>https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44126329</comments><guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44126329</guid></item></channel></rss>