The graveyard of good ideas
Solutions that were tried, and what stopped them.
Patents that were rejected or abandoned, products that shut down, projects that went quiet. Borrow the idea, avoid the dead end.
2,500 solutions
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Why has the quality of discourse on HN gone downhill?
I know - this is probably the thousandth time you have heard this complaint, but please hear me out. I have been lurking and reading on HN since 2016 (I never actively commented til 2019), and the spirit of discussion was outstanding then (2016-2020). The amount of high quality posts and discussions about the technical and operational sides of technology and the tech industry was astounding! Yet, something seems to have changed with the culture on this site since 2020 - it feels as if the site has become a parody of itself, with “edgy” hot takes, cargo culting around supposedly conventional knowledge, and the insane amount of “stanning” of certain figures gossip and a handful of companies. The increase in political content as well has been a massive change on this site as well, and as this is a discussion board it is fair game for everyone to have a say assuming civility. Yet this civili
Why it failed: I know - this is probably the thousandth time you have heard this complaint, but please hear me out. I have been lurking and reading on HN since 2016 (I never actively commented til 2019), and the spirit of discussion was outstanding then (2016-2020). The amount of high quality p
alephnerd
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Is there any “PBS Kids” alternatives these days?
I think that was the only channel that had the perfect mix of education and being attractive for children, that got discontinued. Any other alternative’s?
Why it failed: I think that was the only channel that had the perfect mix of education and being attractive for children, that got discontinued. Any other alternative’s?
DaniDaniel5005
- startupShut down2022
Tell HN: Current WFH trend (part 2)
I wanted to follow up on my previous post - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27696235 My latest observation at my current company which is "fully-remote": 75% of the new headcount is out of US. Total compensation offered in foreign countries is much cheaper (35-60% lower depending on Canada vs EU vs LatAm vs Asia) than even the lowest pay-tier US regions. Bulk of the gains are flowing to the company's revenue bottomline, and thus to the biggest shareholders (Capital class). A small fraction of those gains is coming to the rank-and-file's pocket via the increased value of their meagre RSUs. To address a big point raised in the previous thread about outsourcing, when we have been trying that since 2000's and why is it a big deal now - with previous rounds of outsourcing, entire project was shipped to a different country. There were neither any &q
Why it failed: I wanted to follow up on my previous post - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27696235 My latest observation at my current company which is "fully-remote": 75% of the new headcount is out of US. Total compensation offered in foreign countries is much c
RestlessMind
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Are Microsoft development stack and Azure a dead-end career path?
I had a recent, lengthy, conversation with a recruiter. He said two things: 1) Microsoft dev stack is really a dead-end, any new startups or even large corporations starting new initiatives are more and more are moving away from any kind of MSF tech or Azure cloud development, and 2) no developer really wants to work with MSF tech. I have lived in the Microsoft world my entire career, although MSF is increasingly open source/polyglot. Also, I spent a couple of years doing node.js, react, salesforce dev and integrations, Heroku, etc. I found it a breath for fresh air in some ways but lacking in others. And I have to say that I do 'like' working with C# and Azure and the rest, but I am at the point in my career, and with the market the way it is, that I could still possibly make a move and not take a major hit salary-wise, but I probably not for too longer. For context I am
Why it failed: I had a recent, lengthy, conversation with a recruiter. He said two things: 1) Microsoft dev stack is really a dead-end, any new startups or even large corporations starting new initiatives are more and more are moving away from any kind of MSF tech or Azure cloud development, an
a_brawling_boo
- startupShut down2022
Show HN: Have fun betting virtual (not real) money on predictions from HN users
I wanted to see how difficult it would be to build a web app using a sub-$300 android smartphone. Decided to build a fun predictions website where you could bet virtual (not real) money on predictions made by others, and also make predictions of your own. Building it turned out to be considerably easier and more fun than I anticipated. Primary tools used were: # QuickEdit as the mobile code editor (Note: the free version of the QuickEdit app is riddled with ads, it shows an advert each time you close a tab, but it unfortunately had the best UI of the 3 or so Android code editors I tested. Ended up using NetGuard to block it from retrieving & displaying ads), # PHP for the Backend ( custom PHP microframework I've used and built on over the past few years ). # jQuery for the frontend js ( cringing ) - it appears I'm simply too lazy to learn React/Vue/et al. Every on
Why it failed: I wanted to see how difficult it would be to build a web app using a sub-$300 android smartphone. Decided to build a fun predictions website where you could bet virtual (not real) money on predictions made by others, and also make predictions of your own. Building it turned out t
rose_ann_
- startupShut down2022
Tell HN: Never Trust 'Lifetime' Licenses
I guess a lot of people here already know this, and in general I don't expect a lifetime license to be actually 'lifetime', but I saw the worst example I've seen so far today. Just over a year ago I bought an emojipicker for mac (getmumu.com) that claimed to have a 'lifetime license'. It's a neat little tool and I've used it daily. Now I got a new mac and I tried to transfer it over, only to find out that it's rebranded from "Mumu" to "Mumu X" and 5x'd in price. After hunting through the website I found the tiny "get old version" in the footer. I entered my license key and was told it was already used. I wrote to the support email and was told that "Mumu" was discontinued and "Mumu X" was a new app that I'd have to buy it again. > And note that “lifetime” means it would work on the
Why it failed: I guess a lot of people here already know this, and in general I don't expect a lifetime license to be actually 'lifetime', but I saw the worst example I've seen so far today. Just over a year ago I bought an emojipicker for mac (getmumu.com) that claimed to h
sixhobbits
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Have You Burned Out?
I am looking to discuss / talk to people who have burned out, whether or not you feel you've recovered. I just got turned down for another job and I am at the end of my mental and emotional rope. Tomorrow I have a second interview at a local retail store. I've been a web developer or software engineer for a decade but increasingly painful failures have ruined me as a person and I am lost and without purpose in life. I think I just need to give up on software, I no longer feel welcome or wanted. I have read that burnout can take up to five years to be resolved, I'm about in year three at this point. It's kinda like a recession you can't see it coming but looking back its easier to see when it started and its root causes. Even with resources (supportive wife, limited family, therapist) recovery is slow, difficult, confusing and not a straight path. I need a jo
Why it failed: I am looking to discuss / talk to people who have burned out, whether or not you feel you've recovered. I just got turned down for another job and I am at the end of my mental and emotional rope. Tomorrow I have a second interview at a local retail store. I've been
dirtybirdnj
- startupShut down2022
Tell HN: A disabled 40-year-old person founded a startup and makes a living
I am Michael Cao. I am from Viet Nam. I suffered the polio disease and became disabled when i was one year old. When covid 19 pandemic hit the world. All people has suffered a lot. I and my friend, Canadian guy, decided to cofound 2HAC Studio because we thought that we need to do something to help people. We don't want to hire any employees to keep the cost at minimum (only spend 9.99$ per year for domain). I keep my job at American company in Viet Nam and my cofounder also still worked at a Bank of Canada. We spent our free time to implement and marketing our products We have been developing the Google workspace addons. Out technology stack are App Script, VueJS for addons. Hugo for our website. We hosted our website in Google Cloud. Paypal is our payment system. Tawk for customer support. All of them are free. At 2020, we had a pain point in Viet Nam because health official requir
Why it failed: I am Michael Cao. I am from Viet Nam. I suffered the polio disease and became disabled when i was one year old. When covid 19 pandemic hit the world. All people has suffered a lot. I and my friend, Canadian guy, decided to cofound 2HAC Studio because we thought that we need to do
michaelcao
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Why XMPP failed and SMTP didn't?
I was born too late to witness popularity of XMPP as a decentralized instant messaging protocol. When I started to be a "conscious" user of the Internet, such services already became centralized, so I don't really remember those times. As I follow the development of projects like Matrix, I wonder what has made SMTP such a stable protocol that has stood the test of time and what is the real reason we don't use XMPP (I mean, we do using Whatsapp, but as a part of closed ecosystem). Is it only that XMPP was overcomplicated and if managed better it would survive? Or is it something else?
Why it failed: I was born too late to witness popularity of XMPP as a decentralized instant messaging protocol. When I started to be a "conscious" user of the Internet, such services already became centralized, so I don't really remember those times. As I follow the development o
kertoip_1
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: What's the best way to monetize actual programming?
I feel that I was lucky early in my career. I got a job at an early-stage startup which bootstrapped with agency-style work. I got a generous share in the company, so pumping out high quality work products very much directly contributed to my own interests. I worked a lot, but at the end I was rewarded very well for this when we had an exit. Since then I have failed to find an incentive structure which actually rewards programming. I've worked inside of standard agile teams, and typically I can handle the tasks which management can prepare for work within a matter of a couple days if not a number of hours. I'm not incentivized to excel in these environments, since I'm not rewarded more for producing output faster than the rest of the team, and there's social consequences for making other programmers "look bad" and increasing management expectations. In princ
Why it failed: I feel that I was lucky early in my career. I got a job at an early-stage startup which bootstrapped with agency-style work. I got a generous share in the company, so pumping out high quality work products very much directly contributed to my own interests. I worked a lot, but at
throwaway34135
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: HNers with multiple sclerosis, can we get in touch?
I was diagnosed with MS 15 years ago, and was doing pretty well for a long time, but with the pandemic experienced a tremendous amount of stress that has left me with my first major flare-up since diagnosis and, more importantly, developing over the past 3 years, a feeling in my brain that feels like having been lobotomized, and symptoms like "mild" dementia. Difficulty multitasking, make silly mistakes, mentally tired easily, emotional issues, etc. The MS was so far outside my concerns for all these years that I didn't know about the cognitive effects of MS (though I retrospect I realize I had some milder form of these symptoms all along), but I now understand MS causes brain atrophy and damage irrespective of flare-ups and lesions. I've tried many things to make it better over this past year especially, but it's getting worse. It's quite evidently differen
Why it failed: I was diagnosed with MS 15 years ago, and was doing pretty well for a long time, but with the pandemic experienced a tremendous amount of stress that has left me with my first major flare-up since diagnosis and, more importantly, developing over the past 3 years, a feeling in my
mush_room
- startupShut down2022
Show HN: Fast Deep Reinforcement Learning Course
I worked on this applied Deep Reinforcement Learning course for the better part of 2021. I made a Datacamp course [0] before, and this served as my inspiration to make an applied Deep RL series. Normally, Deep RL courses teach a lot of mathematically involved theory. You get the practical applications near the end (if at all). I have tried to turn that on its head. In the top-down approach, you learn practical skills first, then go deeper later. This is much more fun. This course (the first in a planned multi-part series) shows how to use the Deep Reinforcement Learning framework RLlib to solve OpenAI Gym environments. I provide a big-picture overview of RL and show how to use the tools to get the job done. This approach is similar to learning Deep Learning by building and training various deep networks using a high-level framework e.g. Keras. In the next course in the series (open for p
Why it failed: I worked on this applied Deep Reinforcement Learning course for the better part of 2021. I made a Datacamp course [0] before, and this served as my inspiration to make an applied Deep RL series. Normally, Deep RL courses teach a lot of mathematically involved theory. You get the
gh1
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: How do you overcome feeling completely lost in life?
I feel a bit ambivalent posting this on HN. On one hand, I keep coming back here because it's one of the only places on the internet that I trust and that makes sense to me. On the other hand, most people on here seem to have their sh* together, so to speak, and in that respect I feel like an outsider. Admittedly, these days I come to HN more for self-help than tech news. Reading through the recent threads on loneliness have given me some courage to reach out and be vulnerable, so here goes. I'm a software developer quickly approaching 30 with no direction in life, no hobbies, no friends, no family, and no idea what I even want to change. I've somehow floated through 30 years of life like this. I've had a few highs and a few more lows, but what's been constant is just this deep sense of emptiness. Like a longing for something I don't have and maybe never wil
Why it failed: I feel a bit ambivalent posting this on HN. On one hand, I keep coming back here because it's one of the only places on the internet that I trust and that makes sense to me. On the other hand, most people on here seem to have their sh* together, so to speak, and in that resp
adantical
- startupShut down2022
Show HN: RSS Brain
I wrote an RSS reader called RSS Brain recently. The motivate is the current RSS readers either don't sort articles by priority, which makes it hard to read posts from HackerNews and Reddit, or sort it with some "smart" algorithm which I don't trust. I also like the Google News feature that can show related story from different source, but the sources are not configurable and the algorithm is not transparent either. So with RSS Brain, I implemented these features: * Recommend related articles from the feeds of your choice. It's backed by ElasticSearch and the algorithm is described on RSS Brain's website. * Option to sort articles by upvotes and time. The algorithm is similar to the old Reddit and you can find it on the website as well. * Save search terms into folders so you can filter the articles. I've been using it for a while and found these featur
Why it failed: I wrote an RSS reader called RSS Brain recently. The motivate is the current RSS readers either don't sort articles by priority, which makes it hard to read posts from HackerNews and Reddit, or sort it with some "smart" algorithm which I don't trust. I also li
wb14123
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: How do you deal with getting old and feeling lost?
I am turning 35 years soon and I feel like I haven't achieved much, both personally and professionally. I have held jobs in small and big companies for mostly for 1-2 years each, traveled and lived in different countries, had 2 failed startups, and have about $500k in savings. I am single and haven't had a serious relationship for many years now. As time went on, I started feeling less excited about everything, personal or work related. I used to be excited about new technologies, but not these days. I feel like I've seen most things before, and it's all just different iterations of the same. I increasingly wish I could go back to my 20s. Now I feel too old to go to festivals, bars and clubs and make new friends that way. This has been a recent change for me. When I was ~30 I still considered myself young and able to do anything I could do when I was in my 20s. But no
Why it failed: I am turning 35 years soon and I feel like I haven't achieved much, both personally and professionally. I have held jobs in small and big companies for mostly for 1-2 years each, traveled and lived in different countries, had 2 failed startups, and have about $500k in saving
trendingwaifu
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Have anxiety, need help with live coding interviews (funny hat dance)
I don't have the live coding problems skill (funny hat dance). I've failed 4 live coding interviews so far, which has been my wake-up call that I need to learn this skill. I do question funny hat dances value in the real world... I learned a different funny hat dance 8 years ago called white boarding. I questioned its real world value back then too, but had no choice, it's what people wanted to see. I'm not saying I'm the best engineer in the world. I'm saying I've provided tons of value for the companies I've worked at and my salary reflects that. I've had an above market rate salary for the last 3 years. No, the company I work for isn't dumb, in fact, it's often seen as tackling some of the hardest problems in computer science (decentralized cloud storage). I know I provide value and I know I'm a good engineer. However, I also
Why it failed: I don't have the live coding problems skill (funny hat dance). I've failed 4 live coding interviews so far, which has been my wake-up call that I need to learn this skill. I do question funny hat dances value in the real world... I learned a different funny hat dance 8
amozoss
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: How to overcome regret by missing out on opportunities to get rich?
I definitely had some character flaws that I didn't fully overcome until my late 20's. Basically, I was incredibly insecure and this led me to always try to do things on my own. This didn't really change until I started jiu-jistu. Anyways, I was able to get my first job out of college at a top university. I met some amazing people there. But really held back from socializing much, because I wanted to do well at my very menial job. A couple times colleagues tried to include me on projects, but I politely just focused on my work. Now many of them are leading very successful startups that I could've likely been an early employee at. I ended up working at 2 failed startups (I got from cold applying), and have failed about 20 times building a side hustle of my own. I feel like I needed to go through some struggle, but I can't help but regret my choices. I need a win b
Why it failed: I definitely had some character flaws that I didn't fully overcome until my late 20's. Basically, I was incredibly insecure and this led me to always try to do things on my own. This didn't really change until I started jiu-jistu. Anyways, I was able to get my firs
highwayman47
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Should I move to California or Germany as a SWE with 2 small kids? (pt2)
I asked this same question a week ago[1]. I got lots of really great perspectives which I very much appreciated. Overwhelmingly, people suggested we move to Bavaria. A couple of responders pointed out (I think rightfully) that the answers may have be skewed slightly due to my having posted around 2pm CET. Most of CA was still waking up. I'd like to ask one last time in a more CA-friendly time. Sorry if posting again is noisy. This will be the last time I ask. I'm at a crossroads in my life. My wife and I are trying to figure out if we should move back to California or move to Germany to be closer to her parents. A bit of background: We're in our mid-30s. Both in tech. I'm a software engineer. She's a product manager. I'm American and she's German. We met in SF in 2014 and left together in 2017. We traveled for a while, then moved to Amsterdam where we l
Why it failed: I asked this same question a week ago[1]. I got lots of really great perspectives which I very much appreciated. Overwhelmingly, people suggested we move to Bavaria. A couple of responders pointed out (I think rightfully) that the answers may have be skewed slightly due to my hav
de_or_ca
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: How did you switch to part time?
I currently work a full time week for a small ~10 person dev agency. I want to switch to a 3 (or even 4) day work week - reduced hours, not compressed. I’m unsure how to best pitch this. Would love any advice, stories about how you made it work (or failed to), etc. I’m most interested in people who’ve just reduced their existing full time role to part time, but would also love to hear other solutions - switching to contracting, switching jobs, increasing holidays, anything really. As an agency we bill hourly so it’s hourly salary * markup - I.e me working fewer hours = less cost but less profit. That’s why I’m struggling to see how to make this appealing.
Why it failed: I currently work a full time week for a small ~10 person dev agency. I want to switch to a 3 (or even 4) day work week - reduced hours, not compressed. I’m unsure how to best pitch this. Would love any advice, stories about how you made it work (or failed to), etc. I’m most inter
throwaway1178
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: How did you find joy in life?
I can't find joy in life. Nothing interesting. When I think rationally I am excepting myself as whom I'm. Yes, for example, friends talk to me passionately about something (music, events, chess, etc..). I'm just like, "yeah, interesting". I never feel excited about anything deeply. I admire people like Feynman who are passionate and curious about science, life, to learn. I want to feel like them but nothing triggers that type of feeling. In the end, I'm just passing my days. Naval says in his book something like " we will be forgotten 100000 years from now. There is no meaning". this is not the case for me. I don't want to be remembered or make something useful for people, for the world. I just want to be curious, and passionate like Zorba (Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis), like Feynman. Without curiosity, man is nothing. If you had exper
Why it failed: I can't find joy in life. Nothing interesting. When I think rationally I am excepting myself as whom I'm. Yes, for example, friends talk to me passionately about something (music, events, chess, etc..). I'm just like, "yeah, interesting". I never feel exc
jamilaghasiyev
- startupShut down2022
Remote workers, how do you stop thinking about work?
It’s the end of your work day. You close your laptop. You step away from your desk. Your head is hurting from eye strain. You’re telling yourself to chill out but your mind keeps going back to work. You’re thinking, did I rub people the wrong way with my presentation? How am I going to solve this problem that seems so hard to solve? What if I fail? What do you do to stop ruminating about work and get on with your life outside of work?
Why it failed: It’s the end of your work day. You close your laptop. You step away from your desk. Your head is hurting from eye strain. You’re telling yourself to chill out but your mind keeps going back to work. You’re thinking, did I rub people the wrong way with my presentation? How am I go
ampham
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Has GitHub stars become a gamed metric?
It seems that FOSS and “open core” has become a hard requirement to gain street cred, especially for dev tools. Businesses and VC-backed projects are doing it, but they need to monetize, somehow. For established businesses, they have lots of resources and sharing a wide range of tools that are orthogonal to their core business, and low risk. For startups, they go with the open core model for their flagship product. I’ve noticed some VC backed startups having thousands of GitHub stars but very little online presence, sometimes with zero references on HackerNews. Also, merge requests go abandoned or closed when you dig deeper. Has fraud detection proof bots for GitHub become more prevalent and accessible?
Why it failed: It seems that FOSS and “open core” has become a hard requirement to gain street cred, especially for dev tools. Businesses and VC-backed projects are doing it, but they need to monetize, somehow. For established businesses, they have lots of resources and sharing a wide range of
diceduckmonk
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: Is RSS dying? Or coming back?
Is RSS still actively developed as a protocol? If not, why not? Are there any viable alternatives on the horizon? I find it really troubling that we seem to have resigned ourselves to web content discovery and distribution belonging to corporations like Google and Meta. Also grateful for any reading recommendations on this subject, both on RSS specifically and on the question of web content discovery/distribution broadly. (I’ve read through most of the stories/posts pronouncing RSS dead or resurrecting it and I’m not convinced either way.)
Why it failed: Is RSS still actively developed as a protocol? If not, why not? Are there any viable alternatives on the horizon? I find it really troubling that we seem to have resigned ourselves to web content discovery and distribution belonging to corporations like Google and Meta. Also grat
bundleunbundle
- startupShut down2022
Ask HN: How do you create learning plans for skills development
In this dynamic world and specially tech space, there are numerous things coming up and evolving. To stay competitive, we have to improving our skills on technical, business, and other soft skills. As there is a wide variety of things to learn, how do you create learning plans (specific path towards a direction)? Also how do you avoid participating in the sessions which offer beginner-friendly content? How do you find good quality in learning materials? I find most of them offering just basic introductory lessons. But I find them overly repetitive, and want to focus on practical use cases more than theoritical aspects.
Why it failed: In this dynamic world and specially tech space, there are numerous things coming up and evolving. To stay competitive, we have to improving our skills on technical, business, and other soft skills. As there is a wide variety of things to learn, how do you create learning plans (s
adityam582y