artificialidiot's comments

artificialidiot | 2 years ago | on: BMW Ends Combustion Engine Production in Germany

A car is not just four wheels strapped to an engine.

artificialidiot | 2 years ago | on: Battery electric vehicles are like Concorde

What's with the constant bad mouthing of EVs that I've been seeing on social media for the last 3 months? They have been on the market for the last decade and there are no unknowns about them.

Is the competition with chinese EVs so hard that only way out is to buy out the public opinion?

artificialidiot | 3 years ago | on: UV-emitting nail polish dryers damage DNA and cause mutations in cells

They emit UVA which has less energy and body has better defenses for it, but it is not as readily blocked as UVB or UVC, although some would imagine the resin and pigments for this application are designed to absorb UVA more.

I think most risk has to do with manufacturers' lax attitude for safety and consumer expectations and impatience.

Not that it is a particularly healthy thing to radiate oneself with UV but what is life without some color.

artificialidiot | 3 years ago | on: PicoCAD – A tiny modeller for tiny models

I never thought I would feel nostalgic about j2me. So cute.

artificialidiot | 3 years ago | on: Python multi-level break and continue

I think it boils down to "early exit" v.s. "single return" style. More than likely, the average programmer will pick the style they've been taught at school or whichever was preached more.

I think early exit constructs improve readability and python already offers a lot of syntax open to abuse at this point. (things you can write with nested list/dict comprehensions with if conditions/expressions scattered..)

artificialidiot | 4 years ago | on: Ask HN: What are the purchases under $300 that have improved your life?

1. Air filter 2. Dehumidifier

artificialidiot | 4 years ago | on: Lon Lat Lon Lat

Yeah, it is actually silly if you don't have a decent DEM, though you can get away with a geoid approximation if you only want to render a pretty picture for someone navigating to the nearest ATM.

artificialidiot | 4 years ago | on: 'Dutch reach' rule change to Highway Code welcomed

There is a side mirror on the car. Use it.

artificialidiot | 4 years ago | on: What’s the jankiest piece of tech you’ve seen a company depend on?

TYPO3 CMS

artificialidiot | 4 years ago | on: Nokia XR20 Mobile

I used my E6 for almost ten years (replaced the battery once). 3~4 years is just the life of the lithium battery. Nowadays it is the software's fault that perfectly serviceable devices are out of use. I give about 1½ years before they give up.

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Audi abandons combustion engine development

you won't be able to pump at a gas station but you'll still be able to buy cans of racing blends.

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Google-Free Android Smartphones Are Now Available in the U.S.

Nokia X worked pretty good without google. Shame it was killed along with Nokia itself.

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Many small queries are efficient in SQLite

I am working on an app that needs some GIS features. Spatialite and GDAL cover my use case. You can even eliminate GDAL if you don't retrieve data as binary but it is useful in other places too.

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: The Art of Oatmeal

I like rolled oats with yogurt and spices (pepper, chilli and thyme mostly). Not sweet, not slimy..

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Let's Build a Can Stirling Engine (2000)

iirc panasonic had one generator. small scale internal combustion engines are popular because power to weight ratio allows the same design to be used in other equipment and it has near instantaneous power regulation.

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Why shaving dulls even the sharpest of razors

I think that blue bar is just for lubrication. You can shave just with water if enough of it is there

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Relax for the Same Result (2015)

Riding a bike works like that. 2-3 minutes is a huge difference in terms of power output required. Headwinds can sap your power. Going slightly above your average feels like a headwind. A coach potato like me can output about a hundred watts on a good day so if you have money to spare and want to go faster, buy upgrades. 3 watts here, 2 watts there and you are at +10% ;)

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Opinions I have formed about the “geospatial industry”

I agree to all points. For point 6. Mapbox is a big contender for ESRI's current position.

For 8. Openstreetmap, GDAL and associated open source ecosystem offers a solution to proprietary format and API of the month problem to a degree. It is not surprising that there is no money flowing if mapping is not a core business of the users.

Aerial and satellite imagery is the heavily regulated and lucrative part of any mapping solution. If you are allowed and able to obtain that, you can probably get by just selling the raw imagery without geospatial processing.

artificialidiot | 5 years ago | on: Studies show Alzheimer’s occurs more often in people exposed to polluted air

Half the world economy is dedicated to run the automotive industry. Not happening anytime soon sadly..

artificialidiot | 6 years ago | on: Kolonya: Turkey's unique hand-sanitizing method

Well I did a better research and yea, you are right. Traditionally, all bottles have something like "80 proof" on them. Apparently, it is not English proof but French proof which is same as ABV.