Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48312647

Points: 5

# Comments: 0

I also like to go back to books. I cannot do that with the O'Reilly platform when a subscription ends.

I hear you and agree on the unlicensed training point - it is a form piracy.

It's a very enjoyable craft. Last year I planted up about 600 metres of new hedge that should be ready for me to lay in about ten years.

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48072146

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

You'd make no friends doing it, but as I understand it, for those that have GDPR as a statutory right then under "[Article 22 - Automated individual decision-making, including profiling][0]" you can request to know if your CV was screened by AI and what (and this is key) "meaningful human interaction" led to that decision. Technically this falls under a data subject access request and so a response is mandatory (but who really is going to enforce that - ICO / probably isn't). Companies can't just smash a button and claim meaningful interaction, it has to be, well, meaningful and smashing a "nope" button obviously isn't meaninful.

If it turns out that it was only AI that screened it you can request a human review. Do not hold your breath.

Again, you'd make no friends doing it, but sooner or later a test case will emerge to generate some case law around "AI said no" because employment, or lack of because AI says no, does have significant impact on a human.

[0]: https://gdpr.algolia.com/gdpr-article-22

My collection so far is less than three years old and they're all from nursery stock. It's going to be at least another three years before I can start training them. Niwaki (in the ground) is less harsh on wounding than bonsai (in pots) and tends to focus more on the pruning rather than the overall aesthetic of creating a weathered yet, aesthetic tree. I'm aiming for somewhere in between.

The cool thing about the Elms is that they came from the seeds of a wych elm in a local park about four years ago which finally succumbed to dutch elm disease and was removed last year. I found the seeds in a drawer after being forgotten about for a two years, then germinated the seeds in 2024 they sprouted. I started six, but four have died.

But I am somewhat conflicted because as awesome as they look, all that aesthetic comes from doing the exact opposite of what a tree needs. Deliberate wounding at non-meristematic sites to create deadwood, binding roots into and using wires to manipulate the structure and keeping the tree at a juvenile isolated state. Basically it would make Alex Shigo shudder in his grave.

That being said, if anyone is in their twenties and looking for a nice future hustle pension, then start off some bonsais today. In forty years, if you can keep them going, with a hundred or so you could be sitting on 300K plus of stock. The trees will teach you a lot (notwithstanding the above sentiment on treating them brutally) in terms of patience, planning and delight in aesthetic.

Fortunately around the same time, JamF ended the practice of the mandatory Jamf JumpStart (£5K fee), which finally made Jamf a feasible option for the company I was in at the time.

I'm grateful it arrived, but two and half hours feels less than ideal.

Two years into climbing trees in domestic settings and hand cutting in timber plantations, even three days a week and my body was hammered. Now maybe that's because I was in the 46–50 year old range, but it was clear it wasn't a viable long-term strategy for me. Speaking about the people I now know in that industry, it's commonplace for "climbers" to be done by their mid-thirties. Shoulders all mashed up from climbing and carrying heavy loads. It's not pretty.

On the positive side and injuries notwithstanding (I did get a shoulder issue just like everyone else) my bodyweight dropped 10kg and I did look (and feel) much nimbler. The core of the problem in this kind of work is that when the rubber hits the road "getting the job done" always comes before "correct techniques for doing X". And there's no liability claim to be had as at the start of each job you sign the risk assessment which states that you will get it done in a health-and-safety-compliant way. If you don't sign, you're not on the crew the next day and you're walking home from site. This is basically how it is in the UK for these kinds of jobs where salaries are between £24–34K annually.

It looks a lot nicer out there now and I gave the trees a little prune (I'm a qualified arborist) so people know this is a "tidy area" and so far no more turds in bags.

https://ico.org.uk/action-weve-taken/enforcement/

Some went to prison, some were fined £14M and it's a mixture of small fry and big fry.