Heroku shouldn't be sandbagging paying customers who have low-traffic apps - <AUTHOR> http://blog.3solarmasses.com/post/41164909691/heroku-shouldnt-be-sandbagging-paying-customers-who

<comment><USER2> _I've come to the conclusion that Heroku must be using adaptive processes to sandbag us. For example, to save on their resources, they must be creating static caches of the pages which are being requested from these cron pings. They could avoid loading my whole app back into memory with a trick like this. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I see no other way for these pings to be successful and my app to still have bad initial load times when it is not visited for a while._

You are incorrect. We idle single-dyno apps that have not recently received requests. We do no caching, unless you are running an old bamboo app and are therefore going through varnish. See <https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/dynos#dyno-idling>

<comment><USER3> Regardless of his slight misunderstanding of the technical side of things, he is correct when he says that you can be paying over $100 a month for a service and still be subject to dyno idling, which does seem pretty ridiculous, especially since Heroku takes a 30% cut of all add-on revenue ([https://addons.heroku.com/provider/resources/HerokuAddonsLic...](https://addons.heroku.com/provider/resources/HerokuAddonsLicenseAgreement.pdf))

<comment><USER2> He is paying $100 for a bunch of add-ons, which have no idling. He is not paying anything for his dyno. The only current way to avoid this behavior is to pay for a dyno.

If you don't like this behavior, that's something to complain about. I'm just stating facts to help explain why his assumptions are incorrect.

<comment><USER4> It's interesting. I created a simple app (using the free dyno), use the free new relic monitoring and that keeps the app fresh (no idling). And I have no traffic coming to the site. All i'm paying for is SSL. I would think he would have no idling with multiple services pinging it for uptime.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> Heroku don't hide this, it's in their documentation <https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/dynos#dyno-idling>.

Imagine how many free apps are created that are never used again. Should Heroku really devote resources to these apps? I think it's perfectly reasonable to idle them after a period of inactivity. If they didn't, they would need more resources and ultimately the customers would be paying for that. They aren't a charity, they are a business.

It's pretty simple, if you don't want your app to idle out after 1 hour of inactivity, buy a dyno for $35 p/month.

<comment><USER6> From the documentation they "...will have that web dyno idled out after one hour of inactivity."

The issue is that there is no hour of inactivity because there is web monitoring/querying supposedly going on automatically. So there should be no idling.

<comment><USER5> They are trying to "cheat" the system by setting up automated pings to keep it alive. Do you really think that's in the spirit of the offering from Heroku? I don't know why it isn't working but I hope Heroku just "handles" that scenario.

Like I said, if Heroku did provide the resources for all these free apps (and there must be so many that aren't used) then that would be reflected in their pricing. I pay for Heroku and don't want to be paying more to compensate resources for their free apps.

<comment><USER6> I don't think it's in the spirit of the offering, but that's up to individual interpretation. What is very clear is that it doesn't seem to be behaving as _documented_. That's a problem.

Also, bgentry stated "We idle single-dyno apps _that have not recently received requests_. We do no caching." This also seems to contradict what is happening and adds to the confusion.

Why not just clarify what exactly is going on? It's completely reasonable to be handling this kind of situation however they are doing it, but it's not reasonable (IMHO) to repeat and support misleading/incorrect documentation.

<comment><USER7> Well, it's documented in the sense that the free web dyno is documented to spin down sometimes; if you pay $35/month for the extra web dyno, it ought not to.

This seems like a reasonable pricing model to me. And it seems reasonable to me that they don't document _exactly_ in what circumstances the free dyno might spin down on idle. Free is free.

If on the other hand even with the paid extra web dyno you were still getting ~10 second spin up times after idle, that would be something I'd get annoyed at too.

If you're willing to pay over $100/month on services you may or may not need just for the learning experience -- perhaps scale some of those back, and instead pay $35/month for the web dyno you do actually need to avoid the idle spin up time.

I do think it's true that heroku can end up being a lot more expensive than you initially expect for what you need, the extras can add up quick. This certainly can be frustrating. Even when you really are paying only for what you need, things can get expensive for a non-tiny app. But if you want to minimize your costs, you definitely want to avoid paying for add-ons you don't need.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> I feel your pain, as a fellow bootstrapper, but a single paid dyno, which will keep your app unidled, is gonna cost you $35 a month. I did run into a bug recently where one of our dynos was being idled even after we paid up, but it has since been resolved.

I'd say just pay them another $35 a month. Considering the miracles Heroku regularly performs as an ops team, it's worth it.

</comment><comment><USER9> > "I'm employing things like resque, redis-to-go, memcachier, and a dedicated > crane database..."

Yet you have a 507KB (!) image on your site's home page. Optimizing that would go a long way toward improving the end-user experience.

<comment><AUTHOR> Fine-tuning an image like that only matters when your site is getting a ton of traffic. I am only employing these other services for the learning experience.

<comment> grey-area You should look into setting up a small vps. It would be far cheaper, you can run any services you want, and you'd control uptime of processes etc. it's really not hard, and it's quite possible to scale to millions of users a year on a small vps with some caching. Right now you're paying for lots of stuff you're never going to use, and underpaying for the stuff you need ( actual web server processes.) Heroku is not for you, and they're not going to change their policy on free dynos for you because you're trying to use the free trial of this for a real website, which is not going to work or allow you to learn about scaling a website.

This could be something as simple as them ignoring pings from pingdom when deciding to spin up workers, have you tried using curl to simulate hits? Heroku would probably be happy with you moving to linode, it suits what you want to do a lot more.

Re the image, if you're serious about learning about site optimisation, and dealing with load, yes it does matter, far more than your db until you reach much larger scale.

<comment><AUTHOR> Re: Image: I agree with you about the image. What I really should have said is a one-man team who is trying to launch something can't always optimize every little thing. There is always one person like ericabiz above who goes through every hn post and criticizes the author over some petty image optimization issue on their landing page.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> for $108 / month you could have a very nice setup on any number of VPSs, RS, ec2, etc... you could have at least a 2GB setup either split between 2 hosts or all on one depending on how you plan on scaling... but really IMO if you plan on running anything for any matter of time beyond a (hey checkout my neat idea app) get off heroku and figure out how to setup your own systems, nginx/haproxy, etc... sure it's nice to focus only on the app side with heroku so learn stuff there but eventually unless you're getting funded - you'll need to know how to manage your own servers... just my thoughts.. and i do put lots of little projects on heroku but they're mostly none critical services... or ideas

<comment><USER5> Why do you need to know how to setup and manage your own services. If it's not your expertise, spend your time where you can add the most value. I think Heroku is a perfectly fine option until you reach the point where you could hire a full time dev ops.

It's a pretty cheap way to have servers set up with 24/7 monitoring and technical support.

<comment><USER11> I'm running a Hetzner server for 10yrs now. Debian, now Ubuntu. I've installed Redis, Nginx and some other stuff with apt-get and have an basic iptables setup.

Could you detail what I would not need to do when I'd chose Heroku? What "expertise" you are speaking of, apt-get?

I'm confused these days about cloud and how this would save me "full time dev ops". Could you elaborate?

<comment><USER12> You wouldn't need to rely on ten years of experience running your own server. Since you already have that you're in good shape - that doesn't mean your solution will work for everyone else though.

<comment><USER11> That's the point, I've been running servers for 10 years with iptables and apt-get knowledge. There is no "ten years of experience running your own server."

My hypothesis is that everything interesting that happens to servers is not covered by Heroku.

<comment><USER13> If that were the case, Heroku wouldn't be able to charge for what they provide, and everyone with more than just a trivial app would run their own server.

I think you underestimate what it takes to run your own infrastructure. I'm not saying it's black-magic hard, but it does require a not-insignificant skill set for all but the simplest of setups.

<comment><USER11> I might underestimate what it takes to run a server, and what Heroku brings to the table, I'll grant you that.

Taking another of my hats, the CTO of a million-user business hat, I still don't know what TCO wise the cloud/Heroku brings to the table. I know about the fast scale up and scale down benefits, no 12 months contract, OPEX vs. CAPEX etc. but have not found any TCO cost calculation based on real tasks people need to do on rented servers vs. cloud.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER14> I'd be curious what dsower's heroku logs look like. Would you mind posting the portion of this where it happened?

The logs should show 'idling' when idling and also show the 'pings' from pingdom and/or new relic. Looking through that it'd give us all something concrete to discuss - because quite possibly this is just a bug with Heroku's dyno idling that could have simply been submitted as a support ticket.

</comment><comment><USER15> Reposting my comment from the website here (unreadable there):

I contacted support about this a while ago (was in a similar situation). Their response was "Use more than one web dyno". I didn't need more than one, but that was the only way they offered to allow my app to not "go to sleep".

<comment><USER16> Would it help to think of it as "the paid tier dyno is buy one get one free" ?

I agree that Heroku could do a better job of explaining their offering, but I don't think they're doing anything wrong.

</comment></comment><comment><USER17> This is kind of an annoying problem if you have a lot of small sites for whatever reason. I think their policy is reasonable and they are upfront about it, so I certainly don't begrudge them, but it is still annoying.

What is the best way to host a bunch of low-traffic sites for less than $35 (I believe that is what it costs for the second dyno, required to keep your app from being spun down) each per month? The usual answer is "PHP", but I sometimes wonder if there'd be a market (and way to make money) for Heroku- like ease of deployment/management, billed based on resources (much like a VPS) rather than per application.

<comment> X-Istence I host a whole range of applications on a single dedicated server from OVH.com. $40 a month.

It hosts email, various domains, static, non-static, Python, Ruby, Postgres, MySQL ... and I don't pay a cent more for each of those services.

One of the sites I host on there has been Reddited and it didn't even break a sweat...

<comment><USER17> VPS and Dedicated Servers certainly work and are usually going to be more economical, but then you are going to have to deal with all of the setup/maintenance tasks that Heroku abstracts away from you.

I'd venture that there are far more people using Heroku for its easy deployment and management than its ability to scale quickly and easily.

<comment><USER18> >I'd venture that there are far more people using Heroku for its easy deployment and management than its ability to scale quickly and easily.

That's well and good but I wouldn't be so quick to pass off on dedicated. A simple 50-100 line fabric script that takes 30 minutes to write can manage your custom deployment for you. And guess what, your next project will be even easier to deploy because of that same script.

If the only reason to use Heroku or other of its kind is easy deployment - maybe we just need better deployment apps that can work seamlessly across servers.

<comment><USER19> > If the only reason to use Heroku or other of its kind is easy deployment - > maybe we just need better deployment apps that can work seamlessly across > servers.

Heroku certainly thought so. That's why they got a few dozen brilliant programmers into the same building and made it happen.

Of course, with a ~$5M/year burn rate _, it's probably also why they charge money for their services.

_ (making up numbers here, but assume 30 developers at $150K => ~$4.5M so I would guess I'm laughably low)

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER20> I love the way the comments have steered into technology nonsense, while the issue has nothing to do with the way in which Heroku screws him over, just the mere fact that they ARE screwing him. Commenters who have suggested 'just pay $35/month for not having 10 second lag' are idiots.

Heroku is a great and easy service, but I find the add-on 'no lag for $35/month' which is what the dyno basically is to the poster, unacceptable. But if most commenters are willing to pay into the hype, go ahead.

Just go with Linode or appfog or something.

<comment><USER21> How is giving him a free dyno (albeit one that spins down when it's idle) "screwing him over"? Be specific.

The cheapest Linode is $19.95/month, and that's just a bare VM. You have to do all the sysadmin stuff yourself. For $15/month more, Heroku takes care of all that for you. If your time is worth anything at all, maintaining your Linode is going to burn up more than $15/month.

Now, granted, for some use cases the Linode makes more sense (I have one of those, too, and have been happy with it and the company overall), but I don't think either company is screwing anybody over. Both are offering good value on their products, but those products are different. Linode gives maximum flexibility, but at the cost of full responsibility. Heroku gives maximum convenience, but at the cost of less flexibility.

<comment><USER20> I call it being screwed over when you pay over $100/month to have your site 'spin down'.

I grant you that Heroku is a great service. Having a reasonably big site you'd need a system admin who costs $100/hour, Heroku saves on that too. I am not arguing against the technical convenience that it brings you. But I believe the policy of spin downs should depend more on if and how much you are paying, rather than if you are paying for a specific element of their service, in this case a dyno. It does not cost $15/month more to achieve what the poster wants, but $35/month.

<comment><USER21> He's not paying "$100/month" for dynos. If he wants to avoid spin downs, he has to pay for a dyno. That's not hidden.

" But I believe the policy of spin downs should depend more on if and how much you are paying, rather than if you are paying for a specific element of their service, in this case a dyno."

You're seriously arguing that if you buy several items from a company, they're then obligated to give you a completely different item for free?

<comment><USER20> It is easy to play devil's advocate on something like this. Technically yes, you are right, it is not hidden. What I am saying is that I find it bad form that they spin your stuff down when you are paying so much for a SERVICE.

The purpose of the dyno is not to prevent spin downs, it is a provision for background processes, think processing orders, updating information from external APIs every hour, etc.

Your comparison is obviously bogus as we are dealing with a service, not products. It is more like paying for a spotify premium account and still having to listen to ads. He is being treated like a free user, while he is paying for premium service.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER22> Best thing to do is provide the logs and see if it is idling.

I agree though that if you are hitting the damn thing every second it shouldn't go idle.

</comment><comment><USER23> I have some feedback on your site (<http://www.mycelial.com>) that is unrelated to your post. I had no idea what your site was until I went to the About page. I think the contents of the About page should be put on the homepage.

</comment><comment><USER24> We use Pingdom to keep a couple low-traffic sites alive without issue. I think we could provide you with more help if you posted a condensed sample of your Heroku logs.

</comment><comment><USER25> Unfortunate responsive design.

Forcing me to read in landscape.

<http://www.imgur.com/SVebzkP.png>

<comment><USER25> Unfortunate color choices.

<http://www.imgur.com/x8wCC8U.png>

The same day as a post about about contrast.

<comment><USER26> Check your browser plugins, especially adblock. The background on the comments should be dark grey #ccc. You're probably blocking or rewriting something from Disqus.

<comment><USER27> I am having a similar problem, in Chrome and IE, on a XP box. the background is dark grey, and the text is slightly lighter grey. No plugins.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER28> At least Google isn't doing it, you can enable "warmup requests". [https://developers.google.com/appengine/docs/python/config/a...](https://developers.google.com/appengine/docs/python/config/appconfig#Warmup_Requests)

Btw. Heroku and App Engine apps start fast, compared to what ep.io (free) app start took, it was more like 20-30 seconds than 2-5 seconds.

</comment><comment><AUTHOR> To clarify: I understand that getting another dyno would solve this problem. I love heroku but I think that they need to rethink the idle process. Some users only need 1 dyno and a bunch of addons. If we are paying decent money then the idle threshold should be increased, in my opinion.

<comment><USER29> It's just semantics. They are giving away the first dyno. Would you prefer they took that away when you purchased one for real? 2 for the price of 1 seems pretty nice.

That and fundamentally (as you noted about being optimistic) you're paying $100+ a month for an app that gets zero traffic. That seems to be the core issue.

</comment></comment><comment><USER30> A cron job where a request is sent at regular intervals to a dyno from Phantom should solve your issue. It should be justified if you are buying addons. For free sites with no revenue to Heroku, it's reasonable since they have many sites that only get visited monthly, if that.

<comment><USER31> Isn't what you're suggesting exactly what he has three services doing? Why from Phantom?

</comment></comment><comment><USER32> Seems to me the real problem is you spend 50 for a bigger DB instead of 35 for a dyno. If you got no traffic why do you need so much db cache especially in addition to memcache. You can easily fix that with pgbackups and import into a basic db.

</comment><comment><USER27> Your post says that you want to hear from Heroku, but it doesn't mention anything about you trying to contact them directly. Did you try to contact them before making a somewhat accusatory blog post without much proof? What did they say?

</comment><comment><USER33> Write 'intelligent' automated tests (you're a HN'er so you have these already right ;) and schedule them to run CI on your production site. That may prevent any adaptive processes from caching.

</comment><comment><USER34> The add-ons aren't Heroku, they are 3rd parties.

That being said, they aren't making this policy a secret. Not sure what you have to complain about after the fact.

</comment><comment><USER35> As an aside, that's a nice site you've built, dsowers.

<comment><AUTHOR> Thanks! It's not getting much traffic so every word of encouragement helps.

<comment><USER36> try stumbledupon's paid traffic (www.stumbleupon.com/pd) program for really cheap traffic, if you want to keep morale up while the going is slow.</comment></comment></comment>


Ask YC: Proper way to ask seperate questions in comments? - <AUTHOR>

Just now, i had to ask myself what to do when i were commenting on http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=138249 .
Basically, i had two unrelated questions to raise for the same article. Should i have done it the way i did, asked both questions in the same comment or should i have asked them in different comments to branch two different discussions.
What is the etiquette? <comment><USER2> I would split into two comments, because I always assume there will be value in dedicated discussion threads.

I also do this with E-mail. For example, someone sends a message to a group asking multiple unrelated questions, I reply to each question in a separate E-mail (and maybe even change the subject) so the reply threads aren't confusing.</comment>


Paulo Coelho Supports The Pirate Bay - <AUTHOR> http://torrentfreak.com/paulo-coelho-supports-the-pirate-bay-090415/

<comment><USER2> "It is a shame that his email went unnoticed"

The gloss over that fact very quickly: the investigative side of me was suspicious straight away. Why ignore the email? It's a good coup.

I could well be over suspicious though. :)</comment>


Tokyo vs. the Bay Area - <AUTHOR> https://medium.com/@quanza/tokyo-vs-the-bay-area-db3d1523c3c4 <comment><USER2> > Tokyo is the world's most livable city.

This is a really bizarre claim. Tokyo, like Japan is special in it's own right, but it, like the rest of Japan, is very homogeneous, you are pretty much getting the same thing everywhere (or slight variations thereof). And, as a non-Japanese, much of what the natives can experience is somewhat closed to outsiders, or simply doesn't appeal to them. And no, Tokyo doesn't list in the actual ranked most livable cities list: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_most_liveable_cities](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_most_liveable_cities)

> Tokyo has the most number of Michelin stars for a single city.

Because we all like to eat at Michelin starred restaurants...

This article reads like the author has misinterpreted his own personal preferences as some gospel truth that should apply to everyone. Which really isn't of much use to anyone.

<comment><USER3> > And no, Tokyo doesn't list in the actual ranked most livable cities list: > [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_most_liveable_cities](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_most_liveable_cities)

There are three surveys on that page. The last one, Monocle, does indeed put Tokyo at number 1.

<comment><USER4> But Monocle is a magazine put out by and aimed at wealthy urban professionals with mucho disposable income. Their priorities and idea of liveability is not the same as other groups'.

<comment><USER3> That may be. But smegel's claim was that Tokyo does not appear on any rankings list. And the evidence presented for this was a page which in fact had Tokyo first on a rankings list.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> Interesting read! I think the biggest advantage / disadvantage is the double- edged sword of there just not being a lot of startups in Tokyo. It's really easy to cut through the noise and stand out, but at the same time, there's not as much of a high-quality community of people doing interesting things.

For anyone looking to experience the Tokyo startup community first-hand, we're going there next month with Hacker Paradise (hackerparadise.org) and will be throwing a number of events with the local tech scene.

<comment><USER6> Caser i would be very interested in joining you for a drink. Currently me and a friend are running a small event for the startup/tech community in Tokyo. Check us out on slack/doorkeeper.

[http://techtokyo.herokuapp.com/](http://techtokyo.herokuapp.com/) [https://techcrawl.doorkeeper.jp/](https://techcrawl.doorkeeper.jp/)

<comment><USER5> We should definitely chat. Shoot us an email or Tweet at us @hackerparadise

<comment><USER6> Will do now.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> One detail worth mentioning, and a few other bloggers have touched on this as well is that Japan, from a business perspective, can still be very xenophobic. Kind of a cultural and racial version of the "not built here" problem. If it's a problem for foreigner workers, it is likely a compounded problem once you throw in the high-risk nature of start-ups and the extremely risk-adverse cultural preferences.

</comment><comment><USER8> A lot of people like to talk about Tokyo as the next start-up city for some reason.

I love Tokyo, but I imagine places like Shanghai or Shenzen to be much better. Cheaper cost of living, better economic environment (that is, despite the recent crack, China is still growing their economy tremendously)

When I went to an embassy networking event in Shanghai there were plenty of people starting new business or new offices, but a networking event in Tokyo for the same country could only muster people who worked for the big old companies for a long time.

</comment><comment><USER9> "eat some of the healthiest cuisine known to man, and hack away."

I love Japanese food, specially fish. But I don't know if the above statement is true after Fukusima. I try not eating fish in Japan now just in case, is a constant effort, because I like it so much.

"Tokyo is the world's most livable city." Most people I know in Tokyo does not live, they just work, and work. Lots of people there seeing their families(kids if they could afford to have them) on weekends. Extremely expensive place to live.

I prefer the German or Swiss model of work.

Japan is getting older and older, it is already a gerontocrazy, and very nationalistic. There are more opportunities for young foreigners in the future in Asia in places like Vietnam or Thailand.

Old people have something in common, they HATE change, and startups are change.

I would recommend living in Japan for lots of things, but never for startups. For me they are the antithesis of it(I worked there when I was younger).

<comment><USER10> Even where you can eat the fish, much of Japanese cuisine is far from healthy. Fried this, insane sodium that, etc. not to say I don't absolutely love it, or that they don't have plenty of healthy food, but let's not kid ourselves.

</comment></comment><comment><USER11> "Putting aside all other variables (changing skill-sets, technology trends, etc.), if you're financially responsible and even if none of the 15 startups is a unicorn, at least one is bound to have a decent enough exit to pad a good nest-egg."

What? So 1 in 15 startups makes a big enough exit for not only the executives, but run of the mill engineers to have a good retirement? What universe is this guy from? I want to live in that universe!

<comment><USER12> Not really retirement, but 200k in equity payout for a senior engineer isn't exactly rare.

I'd call 200k a "decent enough exit to pad a good nest-egg". It's not fantastic, it's not going to create a nest-egg, but it will "pad" a good nest- egg.

</comment></comment><comment><USER13> Lifestyle factors: Tokyo is a wonderful place to live and work. (Much, much better than I had expected prior to moving there.)

Relevant to startup factors:

a) Unbelievably bad fundraising environment as compared to the Bay Area. The absolute amount of money available is pretty large, but for a variety of pipeline reasons, I would not assume it was easily accessible for a variety of firms that would have an easy time accessing Meaningful Amounts of Money in the Bay Area as of 2015 (or any time for the last 10 years, for that matter).

b) Talent market: with specific regards to foreign entrepreneurs hiring in Tokyo, I often find that they have... interesting expectations. "Hey I'd like to find a bilingual Japanese/English engineer who has startup-compatible risk tolerances, is comfortable working in a bicultural environment under a minimum amount of supervision, can solo-ship code in one or more modern programming stacks, and is willing to work for $2.5k per month." I think if you also have this expectation, you will not find the Tokyo labor market to be accommodating of your desires.

Assuming one is reasonably clueful with regards to looking for folks who actually exist... I think one would be a bit disappointed with regards to who actually exists and it what quantity. It's a minor miracle that one can reliably staff a team of 20 engineers to build a never-before-seen highly scalable application out of nothing to do something which is actually meaningful. You can accomplish this miracle in the Bay Area. It will be expensive, but it is doable, and you'll be one of _hundreds of firms doing it at the same time_. In Tokyo... you're going to find that individual pieces of that 20-strong team are very, very hard to find. A CTO who has done it before? An architecture lead who is both capable of making good choices and will also happily actually touch an AWS account with their own two hands? An intermediate Rails or Python developer who can both ship code and is willing to work for you? Times five? _Every_ hire there is a fun adventure which might end in "And then despite everyone's best efforts there was no engineer available for hire and the company died ingloriously."

c) Ambient competence levels among Tokyo entrepreneurs and other people associated with the startup ecosystem are... how to be charitable here... lagging ambient competence levels in Silicon Valley. By at least a few cycles, if not more. Stuff which is way-the-heck-below table stakes for e.g. a YC startup which is N weeks old is treated here like PhD thesis level black magic. (Specific example: "Your cost of customer acquisition is actually highly sensitive to your conversion rate if you're using paid acquisition sources." "That doesn't sound right." " _sigh_ Alright, let's go to the whiteboard for a minute." _15 minutes later_ "WHOA.")

<comment><USER14> As a "bilingual Japanese/English engineer who has startup-compatible risk tolerances, is comfortable working in a bicultural environment under a minimum amount of supervision, can solo-ship code in one or more modern programming stacks", I indeed have had to check on a few occasions whether the stated salary was monthly or daily. Generally a good sign that the talk is not going anywhere...

<comment><USER13> Yep. 桁が違う all over the place. (Translation for those who'd find it helpful: ("Not the expected number of digits." / "Off by an order of magnitude.")

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER15> I'm an undergrad in US and have thought about going to Japan to work after graduation.

However, according to my Japanese teacher many people in Japan have to work until 8pm or later on a regular basis, and sometimes overtime. Does anyone have those kind of experience in Tokyo's tech industry?

<comment><USER16> Our friend patio11 wrote a bit about it here:

[http://www.kalzumeus.com/2014/11/07/doing-business-in- japan/](http://www.kalzumeus.com/2014/11/07/doing-business-in-japan/)

<comment><USER17> One detail missing from their overtime situation is a lot of companies do not practice interval between work hours. This basically means you can be forced to work until 5AM and then expected to show up 9AM in the morning.

There seems to be some talk about the regulatory amendment to fix this, but considering current "service overtime" already crossing legal limit, I don't know how effective that will be.

<comment><USER16> Yikes! Or a law will be enacted, but enforcement will be lax...

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER18> Ummm language? It's easy to underestimate communication because it is hard to quantify but when you cannot express the value of a startup clearly or develop deep relationships due to language barriers its going to affect your success.

<comment><AUTHOR> This was my first thought - I can't imagine how someone could feasibly start a company here without being at least somewhat bilingual.

I've seen people found and run successful companies with only moderate Japanese ability, but only when they'd already lived here a long time and had lots of contacts. (And folks in that position will have their own opinions about the startup climate...)

</comment></comment><comment><USER19> FWIW, these guys (Gengo) show up on Glassdoor/Tokyo now and then with a role description in English, but based on this blog post they seem to be looking exclusively to pull Japanese engineers out of e.g. "Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic". You'll find good engineers there of course, but you won't find them with a listing on Glassdoor in English. It's good to know what their target is, since I apparently wasted my time applying there about a year ago, and again earlier this year, without even so much as a follow-up "thanks but no thanks" stock email - just total radio silence.

(Anyway, Glassdoor is not very active in Tokyo.)

I wouldn't take what this author is saying to mean "Tokyo is attractive _for engineers_ ". It basically is not, at least not compared to the Bay Area, or really any tech-focused metro area in North America or Europe. Especially considering Tokyo's large population (>35 million), it is not a global tech hub by any stretch. Entrepreneurs might be a different story.

</comment><comment><USER20> They forgot to mention the weather; Tokyo has seasons and an oppressive summer with snow in the winter. The Bay Area's climate is much more moderate and liveable, in my opinion.

<comment><USER21> I agree that the summers are moist and rainy, followed by heat that can kill. But I don't think you are right in describing the winters as snowy, in six years I remember about four instances of snow. Also, it lasted for at most two or three days. The Tokyo winter is horrible in that it is grey and windy, but certainly not snowy.

<comment><USER10> Note for tour Sets visiting in August...don't think the cooling centers are just for children and elderly. You WILL be using them. I'm from Chicago which has hot and humid summers and nothing prepared me for that weather.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER22> > World-class cuisine — ramen, sushi, yakitori, shabu shabu

This made me smile because, actually, ramen and yakitori (and sushi to some extend) are considered cheap fast food here.

</comment><comment><USER23> If you are looking for connections and opportunities in Japan, we are running community of over 300+ members (319 to be exact as for now) from tech/startup scene in Asia.

[http://focusasia.famouslabs.co](http://focusasia.famouslabs.co)

At least 40 of our members is from Japan (mostly Tokyo area).

</comment><comment><USER24> How about the VISA to get talent tech people in Japan? How does it work?

<comment><USER13> File this under "doable but not easy." If you need specific instructions, they're often situation-specific and outside the scope of an HN comment. Email me and I'll data-dump about it. (Offer open to any HNer at essentially any time.)

The high percentage options are a) spouse of Japanese national, b) engineering status of residence (need to be able to demonstrate approximately ~3 million yen a year in income and an ongoing contract with one or more Japanese companies, and it is highly to your advantage if they're established old-line companies), and possibly, c) intra-company transfers (easiest to accomplish for established startups with significant ex-Japan operations), and possibly d) the new point-based immigration system.

<comment><USER5> Is it that tough? As a freelancer, I'm sure it's not easy, but as a funded company hiring engineers with college degrees, I thought it was relatively straightforward either with the Engineering visa or by somehow classifying the work under the Specialist in Humanities visa.

(btw will be back in Tokyo in September, would love to buy you coffee)

<comment><USER25> I believe it is easy to hire people with the Engineering visa. I was looking into it recently, as I was considering hiring someone, but it looks like I don't need to at the moment, so I haven't looked at the details closely. My understanding is that the main issue you might have is a small capital requirement and/or income to show that you can support the employee. I've talked with people who have sponsored foreign English teachers and they have told me that they had absolutely no difficulty (though this was several years ago -- things might have changed).

I haven't actually read the fine article yet, but I'm not really sure what would attract people to doing start ups in Japan. Hiring locals is difficult because of the way the job system works -- people don't change jobs every few years. It's quite a bit cheaper to live here than many other places in the world, but it is culturally very different. I spent 5 years here teaching English amongst many young (mostly American) colleagues. I wouldn't bring people over here unless you are prepared to help them out a lot when they inevitably get in trouble (shuddering recalling the experience of having to help my colleague who punched a police officer). It's a big commitment. Also, unless you have a lot of experience with Japanese culture yourself, it can be a bit tricky to handle all of the business issues. For my business, I write code and leave all the business issue to my Japanese wife (even though I am quite fluent in Japanese). Without her and my accountant, I would be lost.

But, of course, Japan is an amazing place if you are the kind of person who fits in here. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER26> >There's less competition for the "eccentric" — the bilingual, tech-talented, sociable, engaging entrepreneur.

>There's less competition for the "eccentric" — the bilingual, tech-talented, sociable, engaging, white male entrepreneur.

Fixed that for the OP.

<comment><USER27> Well delete your tumblr account, because "white male" is not a useful concept in Japan. They might assume what country you're from, but if you're not too blonde, loud and fat they'll charitably assume you're French or Russian. And it won't get you further than being black, African, Chinese or anything.

Japanese landlords are openly racist, though, and will ban whole categories of people at will. They might have a problem with one tenant and just stop accepting any Chinese person or sailor or whatever for a year.</comment></comment>


Raise a glass for a GDPR solution built on Site-lokd brewery technology - <AUTHOR> https://gdpr.inversoft.com/ <comment><USER2> Ha, this is great. This will be as effective as Beer websites asking if you're 21 before you enter.</comment>


Why North Korea Sucks at Rocket Technology - <AUTHOR> http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/04/north-korea-rocket-tech/

<comment><USER2> I wouldn't be surprised if there was a Stuxnet-like program for North Korea.</comment>


Meter and app to tell if a gas station has pumped less than you paid for - <AUTHOR> http://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/device-smartphone-app-detect-short-liters/ <comment><AUTHOR> TLDR; Gas (petrol) stations pumping less than you paid for is a problem in some parts of Mexico (they're mostly full service). These guys are trying to market a device to measure the amount actually pumped into your vehicle.

</comment><comment><USER2> This site downloaded a 1.2KB PDF to my phone! I suspect they have maladverts. It doesn't happen the second time.</comment>


New Release Vue Unicons Added 60 Brand and UI Icons - <AUTHOR> https://github.com/antonreshetov/vue-unicons <comment><USER2> Nice. I've been using vue-fontawesome[0], but have been experiencing some problems getting font awesome pro icons to load via npm on BOTH local dev and netlify.

Happy to see how another implementation does it.

[0] [https://github.com/FortAwesome/vue- fontawesome](https://github.com/FortAwesome/vue-fontawesome)

<comment><AUTHOR> Just SVG, just with love for developers )</comment></comment>


Ask HN: Question about search engine feasability - <AUTHOR> So, many have noticed in recent years the bloated/intrusive/annoying drift of many pages on the web.  One could put in browser features to block much of this, but then most web pages become unusable.
However, we don't need to use all of the web.  There are more web pages out there than we can ever visit in our lifetimes, even if we restrict it to just those in our own language.  What we need, is to be able to find usable web pages, that aren't bloated/buggy/intrusive/etc.  For this, I wonder if the browser is not the tool that needs to change, but rather the search engine.
So, if one made a search engine that only displayed results whose total content was below some user-set limit, or that had some other configurable filter (no javascript, no cross-origin content, etc.), is there enough out there still to have a usable amount of content?  I have the idea that there is a nice, text-based, non-intrusive, non-bloated web still out there, it's just buried under a pile of bloated crapware.  If we had a search engine that could sift the wheat from the chaff, would there be enough wheat left to stay informed? (my apologies to gluten-intolerant readers for my wheat metaphor)
Thing is, I am not an expert in this field.  But, perhaps on Hacker News there are people who have some experience at what it takes to build a search engine.  Does this seem feasible?  Especially let me know if this has already been tried and failed. <comment><USER2> I think this would be a great feature. This could either be a selectable/tunable filter that filters out results, or it could just provide detail on the page size of each item in the search results. People already do some amount of mental filtering when looking at search result lists so this should seem familiar to them, in other words they will understand the filter.

I think you should email the people at duckduckgo.com and let them know that you think it would be a very useful and valued feature by users.

</comment><comment><USER3> In experimenting with IPv6 at home, I set up a wifi AP with only IPv6 access (no IPv4 translation mechanism) so I could try an IPv6-only connection from my phone. In this configuration, I can visit google.com, facebook.com, and a handful of blogs that I know about, but the world wide web is basically unusable without IPv4 because most of the links are IPv4 only.

Since it's hard to find IPv6-connected web pages when you only have an IPv6 connection, some people have reverted to manually building directories of interesting websites that are accessible over IPv6. However, these are full of stale links; manual curation of an internet-wide doesn't scale well.

I know that "ipv6-only" is an odd use case, but it sure feels like the early web. We could really use a little search engine to be the front page of the ipv6 web.

</comment><comment><USER4> Sounds like a potentially good idea to me and not that hard to implement. However whether it would ultimately be useful is hard to tell without building it first. So give it a try!</comment>


Show HN: HN Favourite Users (chrome extension) - <AUTHOR> I've made a simple Chrome extension for Hacker News: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/hn-favourite-users/hleiemhnepoghplnnhkhpnjeiaifnobo
It allows you to add your favourite users to a list, and the extension will highlight them here on HN. Simple, but it prevents me from missing comments made by my friends :)
The extension is also open source so feel free to fork it: https://github.com/janhancic/hn-favourite-users
I'll appreciate any feedback you can give me.
Cheers! <comment><AUTHOR> Clickable links:

[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/hn-favourite- users...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/hn-favourite- users/hleiemhnepoghplnnhkhpnjeiaifnobo)

<https://github.com/janhancic/hn-favourite-users>

Some more details: <http://hancic.info/hn-favourite-users></comment>


Ask YC:  Why bother with a blog if social news sites were to provide user rss feeds and profit sharing? - <AUTHOR>

Social news sites should provide some sort of profit sharing so that you would get money from advertising associated with your contributions.  Also, you should have rss feeds for user submissions so that one could subscribe to users as is done with blogs. <comment><USER2> I'd rather get dollars from my blog and lucrative work opportunities than pennies from digg.

<comment><AUTHOR> You would get less money from ads per click, but for most people, you would get a much larger audience looking at your stronger submissions.

Also, submissions can simply be links with no commentary. You would still make money from those.

You should also be able to make money from commenting on other people's submissions.

One possibility is to pay people based on their karma.

<comment><USER3> Blogging is not about money, sure, you can earn some cash from blogging, but I think that no one should really blog thinking about how much money can be earned.

You blog because you love writing and have something to share with the world, if people like your blog, then the money comes.

<comment><USER4> That is the defining line between useful blogs and spam blogs.</comment></comment></comment></comment>


Scientist wins prize for 'virtual water' - <AUTHOR> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23708265/ <comment><USER2> This is a little bit bogus as water seems to be treated like oil for the purpose of scaremongering in the article. Unlike oil, water is a _closed_ system. The 2400 liters the article claims you use when you eat hamburger is does not vanish from the earth forever, rather it goes around again.

I think its a bit dishonest to use this scientists formula together with predictions about water shortages in coming decades in order to illicit a fear response. There is plenty of water, go have a hamburger.</comment>


How to Start Running - <AUTHOR> http://www.nytimes.com/well/guides/how-to-start-running <comment><USER3> I used to be overweight and could not run to the door even if my life depended on it. Five years later and I run no less than 5k a day from Monday to Friday. Resting during the weekend. Do run events every other month or so on Sundays.

How did I do it?

I started with the couch-to-5K program[1]. That led me to diet and eat better. Did my first 5k four months later. Then a 10k three after that.

Running is not for everybody. But you should try it out. Run at your own rhythm and style. Some people are naturally better at long distances, some of us are sprinters. The truth is its about patience and pacing yourself. It is also great for thinking (or not thinking). My life is definitely better because of it. Feel free to ask me questions!

[1][http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml](http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml)

<comment><USER4> Regarding "some people are naturally better..."; it took me ~4 months, "running" 4 days a week, to be able to jog a 3 mile (~5K) run in ~30 minutes. My age then was 28.

My friend, who never worked out in any way, woke up with a hang-over and decided to join some friends for a competitive, cross-country 10K... he came in first. He was 22 years old, IIRC. His father is a dedicated marathon runner (qualifies for Boston Marathon), so that partly explains it.

<comment><USER3> Now apply that to software and interviewing. Its mind blowing to think of an interview being like that cross-country 10K and your group of friends being in it and being judged against the guy who came in first without trying. Life sure is funny.

<comment><USER4> Well, something I quickly learned while running; I am trying to improve my life directly, not by comparison.

I am not a conquerer of worlds. :) Strange that being "average" is virtually a sin... Life is funny (or fucking awful, depending).

<comment><USER3> Absolutely! I can only be as good as the best I can be. I suck at some things, average at many, and unfairly good at handful. I love it because it never gets boring. :)

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> So much bad advice.

(1) Actually it _does_ matter how and where (relative to your body) you land your foot. Contrary to the article, many people do need to fix their "natural" form and/or get shoes that help them avoid pronation, both to avoid injury and to increase the enjoyment that will help them stick with it.

(2) Similarly, the article's advice about stretching is way out of date. It's now consensus that static stretching can not only reduce performance but increase chance of injury. The author weakly hints at some of this, but never actually recommends against static stretching like most would.

(3) Lastly, there's a pervasive assumption bordering on encouragement of people wearing headphones while they run. I realize there's a lot of controversy about this, but a responsible author would at least have mentioned that it's a safety issue as well as an aesthetic one. If you run all alone where there's no traffic - including pedestrian traffic - do whatever you want, but if you're running in crowded times or places it's _irresponsible_ to deafen yourself. I've know runners who have both been injured and have caused injury to others because of this, so I'm not inclined to let that pass.

I'm sure many people could follow this author's advice and be fine, especially if they're young enough and slim enough that they've never had to overcome the barriers that face older/heavier runners. Good for her and good for them, but that doesn't mean her experience can or should be generalized to everyone. There are better sources. Just search for "beginner running advice" and pick anything, especially one of the articles from Runner's World. With all that was already out there - it's practically an industry - this one just doesn't cut it.

<comment><USER6> _a responsible author would at least have mentioned that it 's a safety issue as well as an aesthetic one._

Not only will I second this, I'll add that it's also an _athletic_ issue. I used to run with headphones. But I don't anymore, because I realized I wanted all my senses, not just to be aware of my surroundings, but to be aware of myself. I literally listen to my body when I run, because it's a cue for me that I'm running correctly. I know it's not for everyone.

<comment><USER7> I used to always have earbuds in but then I ran an official 5k where earbuds were not allowed and I've never looked back. If you had told me I'd enjoy running without anything to distract me from the exercise I would have thought you were crazy but it turns out I now completely agree about wanting all of my senses.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> I always tell people that my life-saving workout device was the Kindle 3. In 2010, I was 315 lbs, sedentary as hell and not making any progress to fix that. The idea of running just seemed like complete drudgery.

I ended up making a pact with a friend to meet up at the gym every morning, and I took my kindle and reread a long epic fantasy series page by page. I started off stupid-slow, with a slight incline. First 25 lbs shed without a problem, and steadily increased my pace.

I've now graduated to actually running outside (yay!) and distracting myself with podcasts, have completed 2 half-marathons, and at one point was down to ~210lbs.

People's motivations and activation hurdles are different - for me it was boredom and accountability - which I fixed with a book and some peer pressure.

<comment><USER9> That's entirely awesome and inspiring. Out of curiosity, what was the series?

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> _The absolute best way to keep yourself running is to find a race, sign up for it, pay for it and put it on your calendar._

I've wasted a lot of money thinking this way. Unless you're cash-strapped and it meant a lot buying that ticket/software/tool/book/etc, you just shrug it off and move to the next target. Money doesn't buy discipline. YMMV.

<comment><USER11> It didn't keep you training until at least the event date? Sure its not going to change your lifestyle forever, but it will at least force you to train so that you are not totally unprepared come race day.

<comment><USER12> I've signed up for a half marathon, stopped training and then run/walked it anyway. I have also signed up, trained, gotten injured and run anyway, and I've signed up, trained, been injured and dropped out.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER13> I joined a running club in NYC. It had classes ranging from walkers to elite marathoners. Probably fairly unique to have such a range but I believe this was quite key to their long term (30+ years) success. Having a complete cycle helps everything run smoothly. It was run by Shelly and Bob Glover, two well known names in the world of running.

Running is a great way to get to know a diverse crowd. I met girls, cardiologists, musicians, students, postal workers, young and old. On the pavement we were all just friends talking about our PRs and next races.

We were very supportive of anyone of any level and really encouraged newcomers. If you have access to a running club or class, I recommend it. The class was paid, which might sound ridiculous at first, but once you get into it you quickly see the value of experienced coaches and supportive classmates.

</comment><comment><USER6> As someone who's already run 900 miles and four marathons year-to-date, I'll add some hard won advice:

1) Do not be in a hurry. Most runners do way too much way too soon. You will likely get injured. You gain aerobic capacity in a matter of weeks to months. But soft tissues, tendons, ligaments, bone density... those takes years to adapt.

2) If you're getting injured, something is wrong. You're doing too much too soon, or you have a bio mechanical or strength issue. Running requires strong hips and a strong core. If these are weak, you will get injured. The injury will show up in your legs, so you'll look there. You'll buy new shoes. You'll foam role. You'll wear orthotics. The problem will not go away, because the problem is probably not in your legs.

3) Run as little as you need to to achieve your goals. The more you run, the more you increase risk of injury.

4) You probably need to run more than you think you need to. Beginner marathon training plans are a huge disservice. They'll get you to the finish, but you'll hate it. Wait till you've been running at least a couple years, that banging out a 13 mile run mid-week is no big deal, that you can easily handle a 50 mile week.

5) The shoe industry is a racket. Wear the lightest weight, most comfortable running shoes that you can tolerate. You probably don't need a motion control or stability shoe.

6) The key to not getting injured, besides having sufficient strength per above, is landing softly. Landing softly requires a quick step and not over- striding. Your feet should land under you, not out ahead of you. A good goal to aim for is 180 steps/minute. This is not easy for most people. Quick light step. Repeat that to yourself all the time during the run. (Aside: you run faster primarily by pushing off harder so that you cover more distance per step, not by over-striding, and not by increasing turnover.)

7) There's a lot of exercises you can do for core and hip strength. But none better than picking up a barbell and putting it down. Specifically the back squat and the dead lift. These two exercises will protect you from injury for life. Start doing them now. They will make you a better runner.

Edit: Beginner running advice - [http://fellrnr.com/wiki/Running_for_Beginners](http://fellrnr.com/wiki/Running_for_Beginners) (This is a better link than the Reddit Runnit FAQ I had previously linked to here.)

Edit 2: I've added my running background as a reply to this comment.

Edit 3: Running helps with weight loss. Weight loss helps with running. It's a virtuous cycle.

Edit 4: A few more links with good advice:

\- Really, all of fellrnr - [http://fellrnr.com/wiki/About_Fellrnr](http://fellrnr.com/wiki/About_Fellrnr)

\- On having a light step - [http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/02/10/why-we- get-running-...](http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/02/10/why-we-get-running- injuries-and-how-to-prevent-them/)

\- On choosing shoes based on comfort - [http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/08/05/choosing-the- right-...](http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/08/05/choosing-the-right- running-shoes/)

<comment><USER14> As for learning to land properly: some training barefoot can do wonders. Only the most stubborn people keep slamming their heels into the ground, when there's nothing at all to cushion the blow.

If you want to get into barbell exercises, get a coach or at least look for good guides online (or in book form). Don't do half squats.

<comment><USER6> Good advice to have someone who knows what they're doing show you how to deadlift and back squat. I read Starting Strength before I started, but I'm glad I didn't try to do it on my own.

I'm iffy on the barefoot running advice. If you're going to run barefoot, it's probably best to do it on a soft surface like a grass field. But, that will allow you to continue to heel strike, and worse, because your heel will sink further into the ground, may increase the stress on your achilles. I prefer to advise people to try to land quietly[1], since that usually equates with landing softly. Also, re: heel strike, see this:

[http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/02/10/why-we-get- running-...](http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/02/10/why-we-get-running- injuries-and-how-to-prevent-them/)

[1] Part of the reason I no longer run with music. I want to listen, literally, to my body.

<comment><USER14> I'll started a friend barefoot running on hard urban ground. It worked. Just don't be an idiot, stop heel striking.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER15> The British National Health Service provide a nine-week training plan for complete novices. There is an MP3 for each week of the plan, building up from a gentle walk-run-walk to continuous running. The training advice has been reviewed by medical experts to minimise the risk of injury. An extended set of podcasts are available for people who have finished the programme.

[http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/couch- to-5k.aspx](http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/couch-to-5k.aspx)

</comment><comment><USER16> The longest I've ever run in one go is 6 km. There was never any runner's high, just excruciating pain.

For a good fraction of the population, running is fucking awful.

<comment><USER17> > There was never any runner's high, just excruciating pain.

That's pretty normal. I run a _lot_ , and runner's high is a very rare thing for me to experience. I think most people confuse it with the sense of accomplishment one often gets after a run.

I've only felt a real high after very hard workouts. _Very_ hard workouts. Workouts where my heart beats hard enough to break capillaries in my lungs, and the aerosolized blood gives a metallic taste.[1] The high feels like a weird mix of THC and opiates, and takes a couple of hours to wear off. During that time, it's definitely not safe for me to drive.

I like to run, but honestly, I think enjoying running is a little masochistic.

1\. Vulnerability of pulmonary capillaries during severe exercise: [http://geoff.greer.fm/files/Vulnerability%20of%20pulmonary%2...](http://geoff.greer.fm/files/Vulnerability%20of%20pulmonary%20capillaries%20during%20severe%20exercise%20821.full.pdf)

<comment><USER11> This sounds entirely psychosomatic. I've run several marathons and Ironman races and I would occasionally get a runner's high while training, where I felt like I could nearly sprint for long periods of time without fatigue. Definitely no mental effects, let alone anything that would make it "unsafe to drive". But I would mention this "high" to friends who were competitive runners and they all felt there was no such thing as a runner's high. They just had good workouts where they felt like they were fit and improving and bad workouts where they did not.

<comment><USER17> I doubt it's psychosomatic. I didn't know the effects of opiates or marijuana when I first experienced it. It was only later that I discovered THC caused the same close-eyed visuals and differences in time perception. Likewise for opiates (prescribed after dental surgery). The decreased appetite and body high suddenly made sense.

There's research to back this up as well. In response to exercise, the body produces cannabinoids, opiates, and stimulants.[1]

1\. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurobiological_effects_of_phy...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurobiological_effects_of_physical_exercise#Euphoria)

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER18> I've been running about 8-10 miles/week for 15 years now, but have never been able to expand beyond that very much without excessive knee pain, foot pain, and muscle loss (I weightlift a lot too).

There was a period of about a decade in which I had to wear custom-molded graphite orthotics (~$300) during most of my waking hours because my feet were supposedly "flat". Two podiatrists said that I'd need to wear them the rest of my life or get surgery, which would leave me in crutches for 6 months per foot (they won't do both at the same time).

I lost my orthotics in a flood, and unwilling to fork over another $300, I focused on fixing my feet. I started stretching my soul, walking around the house barefoot, and going for short (~100m) barefoot jogs on a grassy field. After a few months, I started wearing shoes without arch supports to force my feet to adapt. Managed to get rid of my foot pain within 2 months :).

Still struggling with the knee issue though. I've been treating running as an isolation workout on the knee joint -- my body can handle it just fine, but like in weightlifting, I can't isolate the same muscles/joints day after day. Sprinting any amount hurts, and I have to avoid all hills (going up is fine, the descent is killer).

While I figure out a way around the knee pain, I've recently been doing more metabolic conditioning (think Insanity or P90-X, but with fewer knee- destroying jumps). I experience a lot more fat loss this way, plus the workouts seem more holistic than running in the sense that my upper body is not neglected.

<comment><USER19> "After a few months, I started wearing shoes without arch supports to force my feet to adapt. Managed to get rid of my foot pain within 2 months :)."

This demonstrates a truism that we should all become familiar with: If you brace a body part, the body part being braced will become weaker. Orthotics are a brace that hold up the arch of your foot. Your arch will get weaker.

"Sprinting any amount hurts, and I have to avoid all hills (going up is fine, the descent is killer)."

I cringe to offer up personal anecdotes or helpful tips, but on the outside chance that it is helpful, you might try running downhill on toes only - <USER2> heel at all. It's a bit odd looking, but it's worth playing with.

<comment><USER18> I've heard about heel vs midfoot vs toe striking and have been making a conscious effort to midfoot strike when I jog or toe strike if I take large steps. I don't understand how shifting weight off the heel is better on the knee, but I'll try anything -- personal anecdote or not. Thanks for the suggestion!

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> In the last month, I've gone from running in stops and starts to doing 5k with ease and recently completing my first 10k run.

Here are some bulleted observations (more details at the link below)

\- When I got started I was almost always overdressed.

\- Couch to 5K works — but perhaps it's not for everyone.

\- Transitioning from beach to pavement was helpful.

\- Heart rate is super important.

[http://daily.weisser.io/post/anecdotes-from-a-reformed- fanbo...](http://daily.weisser.io/post/anecdotes-from-a-reformed-fanboy- turned-runner-part-one)

EDIT: if you're in the bay area and average 9.5-10 minute miles on 3-5 mile runs I'd love to run with you (I'm new here). Add me on Strava [https://www.strava.com/athletes/7583883](https://www.strava.com/athletes/7583883) or email me.

</comment><comment><USER20> > Some people are natural heel-strikers while others tend to lead with their > toes. The good news: neither form is inherently better than the other

That is in opposite to common knowledge that heel-striking is worse, and leads to increased injuries.

<comment><USER17> Common knowledge? If anything, the preference seems like a fad to me. Plenty of elite runners heel-strike.

I've been running for... a while. In high school, I was captain of the XC team. I finished 5th in the state and our team won the state meet.[1] The spring after that, I ran a 4:18 mile and a 9:07 two mile. In college, I competed in Division I NCAA XC. None of my coaches cared that I was a heel- striker. I've since switched to forefoot, but noticed no difference in times or injuries.

If you're just getting into running, forefoot will be murder on your calf muscles and Achilles tendon. As the article says, It's best to just go with what feels comfortable. As you run more, your form will become smoother and more efficient.

1\. 2002 Washington state AAAA boys results: [http://www.jcrawford.net/boys4a02.html](http://www.jcrawford.net/boys4a02.html)

<comment><USER5>
      "Plenty of elite runners heel-strike."

I think the focus on heel vs. other strike is misleading. Sure, plenty of elite runners strike with their heels, but do they land their feet way in front of their body? That's the real fatal combination, and IMO the main reason to discourage a heel-heavy style is that most people can't overstride too badly with a fore- or mid-foot strike. Their quads won't let them. ;)

      "As the article says, It's best to just go with what feels comfortable"

I actually kind of agree, with the caveat that it's important to know warning signs and possible remedies. If someone's natural way of running continues to feel comfortable and keeps them injury-free, that's fantastic even if it's not the "correct" style that some books recommend. However, most people do need to make some adjustments and it's important to know when or how. Maybe you don't even remember when coaches were using that knowledge on your behalf to correct things that might have caused you trouble, but if you were running at that level in HS and college I'll bet it happened.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> These plans are terrible. In particular, the marathon program recommends a 26 mile training run followed by a three week taper. No one recommends 26 mile training runs outside of the very top elite athletes (and for very, very good reasons). It just isn't actually good for you to run that long, especially when you're only running three days a week. Seriously, that marathon program, if run on cement, would likely cause a stress fracture in a new runner.

</comment><comment><USER22> This is a well-timed article for myself.

My girlfriend is a very keen runner, with a lot of half-marathons and triathlons under her belt.

I suffer from bad knees (and a back) partially due to previous injuries and having a slight case of scoliosis. She's encouraged me to start running with her. Today is the second rest day I've had this week and I'm already feeling better for it.

Next up is getting some proper trainers fitted (I walk weirdly to begin with).

Seriously, make time for running. Even a mile a day.

</comment><comment><USER23> I cannot recommend Hal Higdon's programs enough. He has free training programs for every level and various distances. We used a modified version of the advanced program in high school XC and won state championship twice in a row.

5K: [http://www.halhigdon.com/training/50932/5K-Training-The- Most...](http://www.halhigdon.com/training/50932/5K-Training-The-Most-Popular- Racing-Distance)

</comment><comment><USER24> It seems to me that a lot of the discussion is in the manner of "what programming language to teach first", and that here as with programming the main thing is to start.

I would boil down my advice to a couple of points. First, get good shoes. If you are a beginner, go to a store where the staff is gaunt. (I think of the Pacers stores in the Washington area.). You can count on them knowing something about running and shoes. Second, listen to your body. Don't try to run through an injury. If you are running in hot weather, be very aware of how you feel. Never hesitate to stop and walk back if something isn't right.

Beyond that, I would quote Joshua Slocum ([http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6317/pg6317.txt](http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/6317/pg6317.txt)): "To young men contemplating a voyage I would say go." (And of course, I include young women.)

</comment><comment><USER25> For me this is an actual example where apps helped me a ton. I started running a few years ago, nothing exceptional but I try to go consistently twice a week. I track with runkeeper and this helps me with motivation, including seeing my friends that "just completed a run".

This year I was surprised by the "year of running" [1], so I took the challenge. Coincidentally today I'm celebrating my 100 miles this year :)

I also built "run with mark" [2], again to help me with motivation... and counting. Coincidentally again, I was updating it right now, when I saw this post (going to build a geo map with balls where I run).

[1] [https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10102579357179331](https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10102579357179331)

[2] [https://github.com/runwithmark/runwithmark.github.io](https://github.com/runwithmark/runwithmark.github.io)

</comment><comment><USER26> If you're in the UK (or some places in Europe) checkout Parkrun. That's what got me started. I've now done around 170.

</comment><comment><USER27> I'm surprised at the amount of discussion about headphones. Safety issues aside -- certainly only listen when it doesn't affect safety -- what are your favorite headphones for running? And what are your favorite apps for music?

I've been using yrbuds, and I love them compared to all other headphones I've tried, but I'm still interested in what works for others and what else might work even better for me.

For music, I've been using RockMyRun, and I absolutely love being able to set an RPM for pacing that doesn't change. There's almost nothing else I like about this app, it's slow and buggy, but the RPM feature keeps me using it, even with music styles I don't care for. :P

<comment><USER28> The only thing that works for me is earphones with earclick molds. Larger speakers that you don't have to jam into your canals. Unfortunately, there aren't many of these, and the urbanears "medis plus" aren't even made anymore. I don't think there are any that are bluetooth, either.

The ones that hook around the earlobe are ok, but most of those are the ones with the smaller speakers that have to sit against your ear canal just right, or they go partly into your canal in a way that is never quite perfect. Both lead to sound that is massively different from step to step. Completely frustrating.

</comment></comment><comment><USER29> I have taken running more seriously over the past year and cannot emphasize finding a running group more. Committing to run with others will build it into a habit. I have written about my experiences with running here [http://aviadas.com/blog/2016/02/09/10-things-i-learnt- going-...](http://aviadas.com/blog/2016/02/09/10-things-i-learnt-going- from-10k-to-a-marathon-in-2015/)

</comment><comment><USER30> Because of the HN crowd, chances that if you start rinning, you're going to start reading and studying the science behind it.

When you do, keep in mind that most studies have been done on elite athletes who self-selected themselves. They became elite because they had the right genes and trained properly. You might not have those genes.

There still is a lot of material saying that if you train you can increase your VO2 max, which has been shown to be true only for people with specific genes, a few years ago.

</comment><comment><USER31> _stares at the animated graphic for a moment_

Well. Someone failed to properly apply animation cycles in whatever they used for the header image. When a runner's near hand passes across the body going forwards, there's an extra frame that is almost a duplicate, but slightly further back, which results in a little hitch in the motion.

This error is meticulously maintained on all of the running figures, despite them being all out of synch with each other.

</comment><comment><USER32> Nicely put together.

Some commentary though -

When I started running, it would have been very useful to have it drilled in to me that all "running" is not equal, and doesn't have to be at a fast clip, until that makes sense. Of course running 26 miles seems crazy based on what it feels like to "run" a mile when you're untrained and trying to go fast. Yes, that guide starts out suggesting a run/walk routine - however I think it would do new runners much service to explain what kind of paces there are, what they feel like, and why most of your running should be done at an easy one.

> First pick a race.

Why?! It really bugs me that so much of current running culture seems to be about earning that 13.1/26.2 sticker for your car, or getting that "Finisher" t-shirt. Certainly, completing races and achieving goals in general benefits our psyche and sense of accomplishment.

But running can be so much more than a sequence of training runs leading up to the all important race. Runs should be enjoyed. To me, one of the secrets of running, or at least - something that takes time to learn - is that running becomes much more enjoyable with experience, and you may have to put in some grind time to get there. When running 3 miles leaves you feeling completely wiped, the "runners' high" seems alien and unimaginable. As you get more experienced, AND learn to pace yourself, 3 miles seems short, and you probably won't feel into the groove until you're at least 1-2 miles in. When you have the fitness to casually run 5 miles through the park or on your favorite trail and feel good afterward - THAT's where running really starts to add balance and enjoyment to your day, imho.

When you've leveled up a bit, running becomes personal time, meditative, and leaves you refreshed. While people may discover this on their own - encouraging the mindset of, "Pick a distance, plop down some money for a bib, and train" \- seems to encourage people to treat running as a means to an end, where the end (the race) just means it is time to pick a new goal (longer race, better time.)

Why not suggest people find a beautiful trail within an hour of where they live, that would take them a few hours to hike, and then run until they can experience the joy of gliding through that trail in a fraction of the time?

There's a lot of great information in that article, but I suppose I feel like it falls in to the trap of spending much more time on the "how" of running - how to pick a training plan, what shoes and socks to buy, how to eat, how to avoid injury, etc... - and not enough time on why it's worth it to put in all that work. Other than for the likes you'll get when you make your half- marathon completed Facebook post.

<comment><USER27> I'm in full agreement that running's best enjoyed, but be fair to the writing and the audience. In the very next sentence, she explained exactly why to start by picking a race, and it wasn't about earning stickers or getting tshirts.

The reason is motivation, and having a deadline and a financial commitment is motivating for most people. This was written for an audience that isn't running yet, and most people who aren't running yet do need to have tricks to motivate.

</comment></comment><comment><USER33> Just choose a running method which is fun for you. You wont keep it up for 50-some years if it is not fun. Some people like social running, while others hate it. Some like outdoors, even in difficult weather, while other prefer indoor treadmills. Some like frequent formal races, while other dont.

</comment><comment><USER34> I use to walk 8 to 10 kms per day. Would there be a benefit if I move from walking to running? My major concern is that running will hurt my knees in the long term.

<comment><USER35> Walking is good for overall health but it's also important to get your heart rate up. There was a post in here that crowdsourced resting heart rate and the people who elevated their heart for 45 minutes a week had a lowered resting heart rate.

</comment></comment><comment><USER36> I thought it was a great article, and I like the format. I'll start running today because of it.

</comment><comment><USER37> slowly and patient...

</comment><comment><USER38> The word half-marathon is irritating. Either you run a marathon, or you don't. Half a marathon has nothing to do with a marathon

<comment><USER6> Uh, except that it's exactly half the distance of a marathon. And it's a good stepping stone to the marathon. Seems like a pretty obvious name for it. It's sometimes called a mini-marathon, which is a little silly. But really, to non- runners, every distance is a marathon ("good luck on your 5K marathon this weekend!"), so what does it matter? :-)

<comment><USER38> Yes I get it, and it does not matter, I'm just grumpy. The point I'm trying to make is that for an amateur runner, the distance of a marathon is a performance that require LONG time preparation and discipline, and maybe even talent. Not everyone is capable of completing this distance by foot. Not a runner myself, but I have 2 _very_ athletic friends that completely failed this distance with the most unexpected injuries and fatigues, even after a year of preparation. I am just tired of how 'half-marathon' associates with an actual marathon, because a marathon is a completely different thing that will destroy a casual runner. Have a good weekend js2

<comment><USER6> Ah, as we like to say, the marathon is two halves, but the second half doesn't begin till mile 20. It is a distance that demands respect. You are right, it is a completely different beast than the half-marathon.

About your two friends: I'm at the point, fortunately, where I can _complete_ a marathon at will. But _racing_ it is a different thing altogether. I'm going to guess that, given you say they are very athletic, they had set a time goal for themselves. That's usually a mistake for the first marathon, and regardless of their fitness, it's a distance where if you push too hard, you will be punished.

Gosh I love marathons. Except when I hate them. :-)

<comment><USER38> Yes, my friends (who are not really runners) both expected to compete and probably finishing around 3:30 - 4:00 but aborted about 3/4 into the race

I have competed in 4-6 hour races in other sports. Trust me I will never show up unprepared again ;) longest most painful days of my life

Best of luck with your future marathons - maybe I'll give it a go one year</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment>


From Homeless to YC Interview in less than a year - <AUTHOR> https://medium.com/@javier_noris/from-homeless-to-yc-interview-in-less-than-a-year-e28cd0190936#.p2ysd0to2 <comment><USER2> Although that seems a bit reckless: only having 3 months runway; good job executing and sticking to it. I'm impressed you didn't just find another job once you had your injury.

I wanted to also mention, only a fraction (I don't know the exact fraction) of YC teams invited for interviews get funded. I hope you keep your work ethic up, I'm sure regardless of funding you'll be successful, if not this venture then the next.</comment>


Steve Jobs Accuses Google in his Response to Tracking Claims - <AUTHOR> http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2011/apr/25/steve-jobs-responds-iphone-tracking

<comment><USER2> Ahh yes, if everyone does it, it must be ok.</comment>


Rhomobile - crossplatform smartphone dev - anyone tried this? - <AUTHOR> http://rhomobile.com/home <comment><USER2> If you use it for a for-profit program you have to give the company a % of sales. I would rather suffer through Objective-C.

<comment><USER3> Have you tried it compiling for S60?

I checked out their samples. They have a file in the .sisx format which I guess is S60-v3

Could you share any more info about this tool and your experience with it?

P.S: it would have been better if they had a pay-per license model than charging a % of the app's profit. Ridiculous offer for commercial apps.

EDIT: just looked at their licensing. <http://rhomobile.com/products/licensing>

wtf? they have 3 licensing models. one for opensource apps, another for free closed-source apps and another for closed-course apps charging money for usage.

<comment><USER4> Singalong,

We do in fact have a per user model. Noone has complained to date about the small percentage of revenue that we ask. We just want to share in a small way in our developer's success. Send a message to email@example.com and Pierre will work out something for you.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> I think they will be driven out of business by HTML5 after some time. WebKit is already on Android, iPhone and Palm Pre. It's only a matter of time before Blackberry and Nokia succumb too - they need a web browser and they can't afford to create their own. Microsoft is the only one that is questionable here.

So I say if you want to see the future of cross-platofrm mobile development take a look at HTML5 and the WebKit (the latest and greatest is in iPhone OS 3.0) The javascript speed is improving rapidly, CSS animations are built-in and you can store both code and data locally. No PIM access yet, but if that gets solved then that's the end of the road for form-based native apps and maybe even some of the simple games (and until then there is PhoneGap).

<comment><USER6> Nokia already uses WebKit:

<http://opensource.nokia.com/projects/S60browser/>

</comment></comment><comment><USER7> The concept itself is really a great selling point: you develop one mobile app in ruby and it works across on blackberry, iphone, symbian, android etc. Plus they have a sync server to keep data current on the device.

From my experience building a small app on it, it works great if your building an extension to an enterprise/business app. For something like Salesforce where its mostly just a glorified excel table + CRUD, it fits perfectly.

Wikipedia recently switched to it from Objective-C.

If your doing something particularity complicated it might not be the best option - yet. Although, they do have GPS, PIM and camera support that can be accessed via ruby.

The good thing is that its open source so you can hack the source if you know java/ruby.

</comment><comment><USER8> I was at demo these guys did for a SV Rails Meetup, and while the basic functionality is pretty damn cool, I have some concerns about the base footprint of applications.

The baseline they quoted was 2MB, which may not be much when you're talking about a desktop app downloaded over cable or DSL, but in the mobile space, where (non-iPhone) devices may only ship with 50-100MB of storage free, and many users are served mostly by poky EDGE networks, a multi-MB "hello, world!" seems a bit excessive.

That being said, for their core market -- namely, developers porting enterprise app UIs to mobile devices -- I think it could be an acceptable tradeoff for the productivity gain that results from it being "just another browser app".

</comment><comment><USER9> I saw this for the first time today as well - never heard of it before. Looking forward to playing with it later this weekend.

When it comes to % of sales: as a developer on Windows/Linux machines I don't have any other choice, do I? At least when it comes to iPhone development.

<comment><USER5> You do: you can spend $600 for a Mac Mini, or you can give up percentage of your sales.</comment></comment>


Show HN: Easy Password Validations for Python - <AUTHOR> https://github.com/tarunbatra/password-validator-python <comment><AUTHOR> The purpose of this library is for the developers be able to easily and confidently define password rules for their application. I know rules which try to limit a password's length or impose other non-scientific restrictions are not good for security, but the library doesn't judge.</comment>