Hacker News: mc_blue

New comment by mc_blue in "Tesla close to level 5 autonomous driving technology, Musk says"

mc_blue — Thu, 09 Jul 2020 13:03:27 +0000

“I remain confident that we will have the basic functionality for level 5 autonomy complete this year.”

This type of quote frustrates me to no end because it's obviously meant to stir up attention in the media, yet the vagueness of the language Musk uses removes any accountability to deliver. What is basic functionality for level 5 autonomy? I would define it as automated lateral and longitudinal control and a navigation system, and I would argue that quite a few auto companies have this 'basic functionality' for level 5. I would love to hear other thoughts on this!

New comment by mc_blue in "I Am Deleting the Blog"

mc_blue — Tue, 23 Jun 2020 14:00:10 +0000

Could you explain what you mean by true disagreement with someone is equivalent to hating them?

New comment by mc_blue in "SoftBank launches $100m minorities startup fund"

mc_blue — Thu, 04 Jun 2020 14:10:25 +0000

I'm not sure I understand your counterpoint analogy. Regardless, I take issue with your second statement on the blind person asking for help if needed. Minorities do ask for help, I think it's disingenuous to imply that minorities have never requested assistance in being treated more like the majority. I think many times we push responsibility for achieving equality onto those who are treated unequally, the old 'pull yourself up by your bootstraps'. Martin Luther King Jr: "it's a nice thing to say to people that you oughta lift yourself by your own bootstraps, but it is a cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he oughta lift himself by his own bootstraps."

New comment by mc_blue in "America’s ‘Fried Chicken War’"

mc_blue — Tue, 12 May 2020 13:53:36 +0000

Yep - my family makes a trip to Frankenmuth in November/December each year. We walk around the shops downtown, get stuffed with fried chicken and those delicious noodles at Zehnders, and then wrap up with a walk around Bronner's.

New comment by mc_blue in "Loudness war"

mc_blue — Thu, 09 Jan 2020 13:56:34 +0000

Logic isn't the industry standard though. PT has long been thought of as the industry standard, although that's changed recently with Cubase/Ableton Live/FL/Logic becoming massively popular as well. Really depends on genre/application (EDM, acoustic, film/game/media, etc).

New comment by mc_blue in "Calm Technology"

mc_blue — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:53:32 +0000

Why can't there be multiple definitions for hustle? I agree that your street smart definition is valid, but I also think that energetic teamwork is an equally valid definition.

New comment by mc_blue in "McDonald's is to replace human servers with voice gen in its US drive-throughs"

mc_blue — Thu, 12 Sep 2019 15:34:37 +0000

I actually don't think tenders is included in the order... I think they just ordered the ranch dip cups you would get if you ordered nuggets.

New comment by mc_blue in "Practice does not always make perfect, finds study of violinists"

mc_blue — Wed, 21 Aug 2019 14:27:01 +0000

Exactly! If Steph was 7'1", my bet is he would rely more on playing closer to the basket (like Shaq did) and would not have had a need to develop his 3-point shooting to the level that it is today. Also, how do we know that Shaq at 6'3" wouldn't have developed into a different style of pro player?

New comment by mc_blue in "Facebook failed to break into hardware: The untold story of Building 8"

mc_blue — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 15:05:16 +0000

Really fascinating article, and once again a reminder that hardware and software are two different animals with different timelines and processes.

2 humorous tidbits and 1 scary: >>The eight in Building 8 represented the number of letters in Facebook. Its physical location was inside Building 59 on Facebook’s main campus in Menlo Park, California.

So the Building 8 team is not actually at a building called Building 8, but Building 59?

>>The exclusive invitations had arrived in the form of stainless steel slabs. To get into the event, attendees handed their invitation to a staffer, who put the slabs onto a machine programmed to cut the metal into a bottle opener. The staffer then handed back the bottle opener, along with a beer.

Just... peak Silicon Valley.

>>In early 2018, the remaining research projects were moved to Oculus Research, which has since been rebranded as Facebook Reality Labs, based in Redmond, Washington. That’s where the company is working on a brain-reading interface — a noninvasive wearable device that will allow people to type using their thoughts.

The implications of this type of technology (especially used by FB) make me really uncomfortable. The ability to access, store, and analyze user thoughts is something that has the potential to be used in very wrong ways. Just another way to get even more specific and targeted user information, potentially information that I never intended on sharing with Facebook. What do other people think about this technology? Am I crazy?

New comment by mc_blue in "Where did the melody go? (2017)"

mc_blue — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 15:43:56 +0000

Simpler and repetitive does mean worse - for you. I actually agree with you, but I know plenty of people that love club/dance music, which is about as simple and repetitive as you can get. I think it's important to take the context of the music being played/performed as well: a simple, repetitive piece would likely not be received well in an orchestra hall, while a song with complex melody, deep lyrics, and rich harmony would likely be skipped at a football tailgate party. Music serves several functions in many different environments, and labeling a piece or style as universally worse is almost never true.

New comment by mc_blue in "Tourism Is Overwhelming the World's Top Destinations"

mc_blue — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 14:42:59 +0000

I like the lottery idea a lot, as it would create a more level playing field. I think a possible improvement would be to have a small cost of x to enter the lottery, and then if you are selected you pay X to secure your spot where X >> x.

New comment by mc_blue in "Tourism Is Overwhelming the World's Top Destinations"

mc_blue — Mon, 12 Aug 2019 17:15:31 +0000

Interesting take! A couple thoughts: -Wouldn't a high tax/price on tourism have a drastic negative effect on the local economy? Your example of Venice - if you price out the majority of tourists, I would think the Venice economy would have to do a major pivot, something that would likely take some time and effort. -High tax/price on tourism is only pricing out the tourists that can't afford the tax. I agree it's one of the easier solutions to implement, but something doesn't feel right about tourist destinations becoming destinations only for those rich enough to afford the tax. In addition, I don't necessarily believe there is a correlation between wealth and environmentally friendly tourist behavior. In other words, are wealthier tourists really that more likely to treat the tourist destination in a more positive way than lower/middle class tourists?

New comment by mc_blue in "Contrary to Musk's claim, Lidar has some advantages in Self Driving technology"

mc_blue — Wed, 07 Aug 2019 16:11:35 +0000

Can you give examples of specific vehicles from Volvo/BMW/truck companies that are at level 4?

New comment by mc_blue in "Despite High Hopes, Self-Driving Cars Are ‘Way in the Future’"

mc_blue — Wed, 17 Jul 2019 15:50:10 +0000

Super Cruise is considered level 2, not level 4.

New comment by mc_blue in "Despite High Hopes, Self-Driving Cars Are ‘Way in the Future’"

mc_blue — Wed, 17 Jul 2019 15:44:54 +0000

I agree with you on level 3, but why do you consider levels 1 and 2 to be worse than useless?

New comment by mc_blue in "Teslabot: A virtual assistant for Tesla cars – Locate, lock and other features"

mc_blue — Thu, 20 Jun 2019 14:25:54 +0000

I was wondering the same thing.. I understand that there are some additional features, but what is keeping Tesla from providing those features in a future app update? This is a cool product, but I wonder about the ability of it to compete with the official app, especially when they are relying on Tesla's API.