skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
If you are a programmer and strongly left-brained (not always the same thing), I'd suggest tricking yourself into thinking you have a logical approach to interpersonal relationships and then going to social gatherings quickly before you over-analyze.

Step 1 - Read most of http://www.amazon.com/Nlp-21-Days-Harry-Alder/dp/0749920300/... - this is NOT a good scientific book, but it seems to be good at convincing you to step outside your comfort zone. Optionally, skip this step and do sit-ups and push-ups instead which will make you feel more confident and comes with a low price tag.

Step 2 - Practice on an opposite-gendered friend whom you have no romantic interest in. If such a person does not exist, skip this step.

Step 3 - Attend social events. These are easy to find: book groups, local music, free martial arts class. Talk to people with no intent to "hook up" or even make friends. And I don't mean "tell yourself you're not interested so you'll have a better shot." I mean just talk to them. Ask something about the event. Ask what time it is (don't wear a watch or carry a cell phone). You don't have to have a conversation. You just have to communicate. Likewise, anytime you eat at a restaurant require yourself to compliment at least one employee while you are there.

Step 4 - Rinse and repeat until you realize you're enjoying all of the events and you talk to random people with more ease. As some of the comments have said, you can have great conversations talking about silly stuff that you don't care about if you enjoy the process of facilitating a good conversation.

Tips:

Don't drink unless you know your limit and have a pre-established track record for staying under your limit. Otherwise, you will end up undoing all confidence building when you get hammered and embarrass yourself once.

Avoid drunk people. They are a pain in the ass and will spill things on you. Both of these tips are easy to stick to if you don't go where people are drinking.
Shyness is self-perpetuating. So start small, by doing something as simple as saying hi to people in an elevator (btw, elevators are a great place to talk to people, because they can't avoid you).

When you go to social events, go with a friend and make it a friendly competition to see who can meet the most interesting people.

Volunteer to do as many public speaking things as you can. And just generally force yourself out of your comfort zone. Reading won't get you very far, it's just practice practice practice.
Take a look at alot of the popular Mac software companies out there. Many of them make quite a living, like Panic, and Delicious Monster.
Microhoo: A frenetic week ahead; Yahoo could turn the tables on Microsoft
Next Providence Geek Dinner this Wednesday 5:30-9pm
Microsoft should do this: Exchange plus Hotmail
Is OOP a branch to nowhere?
Web 2.0 Expo: What to watch for
Ad Networks: The New Pyramid Scheme
I second the "meet nerds in other contexts" cause. I played some theatre at my university and besides becoming friends with some very cool girls and traveling the world, I strangely enough met a lot of other cs guys there.
And those are the ones who are indeed more interesting as they have a life beyond their computer, travel the world and have a broader context in life.
Wanted: Sr. Software Engineer that loves reverse engineering
So, what we lost is that people no longer have to spend years developing in lower level languages like C before being able to become competent programmers? Maybe I could understand his point of view better if the author explained explicitly why he was pessimistic about the future of web programming instead of just vaguely mentioning that skills have been lost and he has "no reasons to be optimistic".

I guess it's just a pet peeve of mine when people present an argument without actually taking the time to bring forward any specific reason for the stance they are taking. It's like they are expecting the commentators to do all the work supporting or refuting their assertions.
This is incredibly insightful advice. Almost accidentally, I've found that recursively asking "why?" results in very unexpected answers. And by unexpected I mean insightful.
Eating smaller meals isn't a bad approach. Don't snack should have been "don't eat packaged snack food" because it's more likely to be junk.

So, we agree. If you want to slice up some cucumber and dip some humus, that's probably fine. If you're staring at a bag of chips, that's probably trouble.

One of the best methods to make snacking benign is to not stock anything unhealthy. Like, if it's crap, don't buy it and then you won't have to worry about avoiding eating it at home later.
Just be a decent person - if you're at an event and talking to someone and another person is hovering near by, bring them into your conversation. Be friendly, try and help people etc
So - for the analysis part of the question: why? What makes them different?
Start by pretending to be genuinely interested in other people's lives, and their problems. If you pretend this for long enough, you'll find yourself actually feeling that way. And then you'll enjoy being around people, because they'll enjoy being around you.
But how likely are the terms to get better down the road? And, if Microsoft is interested enough in your idea, are the barriers to entry really sufficient to keep them out of the solution-space?
History repeats. Web 2.0 will get into the enterprise the same way the PC did. Through that back door.

IT directors wanted nothing to do with the PC. It threatened their ivory tower. But users wanted simple solutions to their problems without waiting years in the IT development queue. Once they were able to buy a PC with spreadsheet software without higher budget approval, the "man behind the curtain" was exposed forever.

A generation later, it's all about to happen again, with or without the IT department. Even if IT fights it by blocking sites users want to use, they'll get around it with proxies or by bypassing corporate networks. You can't stop progress. Enterprise IT departments would be better off in the long run by embracing what their users already know.
I'm not sure if I qualify as a "hacker", but I am a development manager for a small software company and hold an MBA from SCU. All of my prior experience had been in product development, so the MBA was useful primarily for gaining a broader perspective on other areas such as marketing, finance, and operations. It would have taken me much longer to learn the same things through work experience and self study.

If you do decide to pursue an MBA let me put a plug in for my alma mater. It's a good choice since you can work full time in Silicon Valley and then go to school nights and weekends.
http://www.scu.edu/business/graduates/admissions/evening-mba...
It looks a lot like what you get with the Clickpass button.
Your site is one of a few that I've added to my bookmarks on the first visit.
Shriram is one of the best professors I've had.
This information is freely available on their website (not to mention their widely distributed paper catalogs). Google has crawled much of Digi-Key's website and has this information on their servers. However, Digi-Key is specifically targeting Octopart (actually, I'm not sure if they're threatening Google, my uninformed guess is no though). The only thing we're doing differently than Google is distilling the information in a way that allows part buyers to compare prices readily. There are other part information websites also crawling Digi-Key, but Octopart is one of the only ones doing price comparison - again, I'm just guessing, but I doubt Digi-Key is threatening any of these other websites.
Actually my local YMCA does have Internet-connected weight lifting equipment.
Yeah, I was wondering if this competes with Clickpass? I want to add OpenID to my app and was contemplating using Clickpass. Does anyone smarter than me have an assessment of the relative strengths or weaknesses?
That's a central question though. Digi-Key doesn't want to compete on price (potentially because they believe that the price reported isn't an accurate portrayal of their offering, because of inventory, service, et al). The problem with that is that it doesn't help (actively hinders?) the reduction information costs for the other market participants (Octopart's value as I understand it). Whether this is evil or not depends on what brand of free marketeer you are...

One possible way to address this would be to incorporate some kind of a service metric into Octopart, similar to the way that pricewatch evolved.
The Craigslist comparison comes from:

1) The fact that in SF and NYC, they charge directly per listing in certain categories.

2) The fact that they didn't take VC funding.

3) The fact that they stayed small.

4) The fact that they didn't sell the company.

All of these would have been extremely easy to stray from, but instead they stuck to the core philosophy. What DHH was talking about was just that: a philosophy. Any company can stick by that philosophy, regardless of how it attracts customers or the specifics behind their product or service.

Asking the question "what other web or software companies make a living the 37signals way?" is kind of a weird question. The 37signals way is actually the normal way to run a business. It just seems weird because the scale of the web has thus far screwed up everyone's minds to the point where everybody forgets the past.
I went with my friend to the convenience store on the weekend. He spent a couple of minutes chatting with the clerk behind the counter while I watched. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world.

He later told me that he didn't feel at all comfortable during the conversation. He said that he has been trying to "bust out of his geeky shell" by talking to random people. To me it looked like he was just a friendly guy chatting with a stranger.

Moral of the story: just do it. It will probably feel weird but you are the only person who will notice.
I've gone through the process of implementing OpenID and integrating with Clickpass. I have a clear understanding of what idselector does now, and I have reasonable guesses as to how it and Clickpass will compete going forward. However, I don't have a reliable way of determining if I'm smarter than you. Would you settle for simply more informed than you on this particular issue?
Monopoly is a misnomer here. Is Wal-Mart a monopoly?

The parts supply industry is not an industry of monopolies. There are a few large names--Grainger, McMaster-Carr, MSC, Digi-Key--that probably account for 25% of the market, and then a very, very, very long list of names most people have never heard of.

Ironically, Ma & Pa Electronics are frequently the ones with the highest prices. Large distributors like Digi-Key are often less expensive than small local shops.
this is true - but is huddle chat negatively impacting Campfire? Campfire customers are not running for the doors now that some other company has built a free alternative.
Building less of an app that serves a real need and provides an elegant solution can also mean that customers love your product and stick with you. Alternatives will always exist, competition is a natural part of business, giving your product away for free is not the only way to deal with competitors.
The problem with that line of reasoning, in my opinion, is that "normal" businesses sell "normal" products. As a simple example, how much would you pay for a clone of reddit? Not much. The value of the site is entirely in its large community. Same thing for eBay, for the most part. Also, normal products always cost something. There are a ton of information goods that are free: Linux, Apache, all kinds of languages, compilers, editors, browsers - everything you need to run a business, almost, can be had for free these days.

In other words, things do work differently on line, in some cases. Understanding that, and understanding what happens why is crucial to being able to do a 'DHH style' company that doesn't get crushed by a big player, or undercut by a bit of open source software.

I highly recommend the book 'Information Rules': http://www.amazon.com/dp/087584863X?tag=dedasys-20
Hi all,
thanks you all for your comments.
Thanks to 9oliYQjP very much too.

Regards
Tomas Zeman
tomas.zeman@wirenode.com
Read "How to Make Friends and Influence People".

Oh you said besides that...well practice what it preaches. Us folk (geeks/nerds/hackers) tend to like to show how much we know about a subject. Some old dude is talking about how his phone can now surf the web...what do you say? Act a bit surprised and ask him a bit more about the subject. Let HIM show what he knows, and get that little feeling of self-importance. Don't squash it by saying you could ssh in to work on your phone 5 years ago and that his phone is garbage.

Also practice, and have someone judge your performance. There are a zillion things to improve on here, it is a difficult art to master. I would also say it is a long road that I wouldn't be satisfied in saying I know well until I can sit in a room with anyone at anytime and befriend them and/or convince them they want to reconnect with me again shortly.

One last thing, I have the most difficulty talking to people I know well and respect. For example, I was recently discussing business and my goals with an old co-worker I really respected, and I found myself a bit flustered. Anyone else experienced this and/or have any suggestions?
My wife and I both started Weight Watchers about 5 months ago because she wanted to drop the baby weight she put on while pregnant with our son. To date I have lost 40 pounds and am in better shape then I was in high school. My wife has lost over 30 pounds and is also thinner then in high school, and she's still losing weight (she is about 3 lbs from her target weight). I have hit my target weight and am now maintaining by adding additional points and continuing the exercise routine.
Weight Watchers has been great for us because we can eat whatever we want, but we only get so many points per day so we have to make decisions about what we eat. I can have Taco Bell for lunch for 14 points, or I can have a turkey sub from Subway (hold the Mayo) for 10 points and have an ice cream sandwich for 4 points after dinner.
The biggest change hasn't so much been what we eat, or even how much we eat (although we eat much more appropriate portions now), instead the biggest change has been how I think about food, how I perceive foods that are inherently unhealthy versus more healthy options. It's been a life changing process and I'm never going back.

Thanks
Mark
You underestimate corporate overhead.
Tim Bray - "Why is Ruby on Rails so darn slow?"
Venture Capital Still Loves the Net
Maroon is usually good for that :)
Also keep in mind that DHH suggested building a product for a business, not consumers. Consumers are used to free, but businesses are more than willing to pay. In fact, a price tag is a way for businesses to justify their corporate use of the product.

I'm constantly surprised when I see companies paying for a service that I get for free (Any premium chat/voice Vs. Gtalk). The thing is, businesses don't like to spend time looking into the best and most cost effective way to solve a problem - they like to throw money at it and make it go away. DHH suggests being that person who makes it go away.
"no matter how you slice it, there are just not enough advertisers to support all the stuff that we are putting on the web right now"
Here's a quote from "Happy to Burn" (http://www.surreal.com.au/sankhara/Happy_To_Burn.pdf):

The most effective way I know of is the giving of ourselves. I don't mean in the passionate sense, but
more as a form of empathy, as a spiritual generosity.

For instance, try responding to people as if they were your brother or sister instead of a stranger, with candid good will; usually they'll respond in kind. If someone does something you like, tell them - nothing gushy, just let them know in a direct and quietly thankful way.

Let someone in a hurry go ahead of you in a queue, let them overtake you when you're driving, thank the bank teller or the shop assistant. All these things are so small, but they all add up, and from each act there will be a corresponding positive effect within you.

The giving of yourselves in this way has an immediate and positive effect on the mind/body. Try to be aware of how it feels as you do all of these things. You will feel your whole mind/body loosening up, a feeling of lightness that can't be achieved in any other way.
when I need "freedom" I just turn off my google notifier. no endless new mail sounds to distract me.
A large number of Mac users are also professional designers or music producers and not part of that typical Internet user. So Mac users may pay for Mac software, but not for web-services.

My point is: the consumer market offer less niche markets that allows you to build a sustainable business compared to the "Fortune 5,000,000". I know this is not good news, because building software for enterprises (no matter how big they are) is less fun.
The latter is clearly case by case. The likelihood of terms getting better depends on the company's trajectory. That is, in this case, if Xobni grows by two orders of magnitude in important metrics, their valuation is likely to grow as well.
I'm re-reading "Moneyball" by Michael Lewis, and everything he describes about baseball scouting at that time (i.e., every team is chasing players with relatively unimportant characteristics while the guys that really contribute to victory are undervalued) feels similar to what SV considers "important" right now.
I wouldn't consider that settling :-)
I had one for a while--a shareware business that sold pop up blockers, before they were free, along with a privacy suite. Many shareware businesses fit the description. The Association of Shareware Professionals, which I used to belong to, has many members living this way. Their newsletter had an article series about how to run your shareware business from anywhere in the world.

To answer the article's question, the people who do winzip, pretty good solitaire, clipmate and desktop tower defense are probably good examples.
really, its very simple:

1) practice a lot

2) recognize/record your problems/faults/issues.

3) work on either improving the improvable problems, or working around the unimprovable ones.

it would really help to have a friend looking on from the outside to help note problems. you have to be really open to change to make this work, though.
Why does engineering/math/science education in the US suck?
We used to play a game in bars and other places, one friend picks a random person and you need to hold that persons attention for X minutes of conversation. Fail to do it and the next round is on you.

Iterate until you are comfortable with it, and can leave your wallet at home.
The Wikipedia, Knowledge Preservation and DNA
Thanks for building bugmenot btw. I've used that site on and off for the last 2 years or so, I always look before I start a bullshit account.

What kind of conversion do you get when a person looks up a site, doesn't find a working account, leading to a new user submission for the site in question?
Or, there's this thing... that most browsers already have built in.

Bookmarks?

:D
IGNORE every advice out there including this, but do learn to LISTEN without jumping to conclusions - ironically, nature works in such a way that a good listener is considered exponentially nice already :) Oh, one more thing, if you learn about yourself, you are social already, for everyone else out there has the same social "adept"ability concerns - so take it easy on them and you are on your way to being a socialite (in the good sense of the word, not the crazy paparazzi); so, only if you find yourself truly, i.e. that listening is important, then the real learning takes place and fear burns away.
When people see some things as good,
other things become bad.

Hold on to the center. -- Lao-tzu
I haven't read the book in detail, although I've read the course notes it's based on. He has you build (in Scheme) a number of interpreters for a variety of small programming languages. They all share the Scheme syntax, but they have different features than Scheme, so you can see the benefits of each specific language feature and how you can implement it. By the end, you've written many different interpreters, including a compiler for a functional language. (I'm not sure how this compares to SICP, but I get the impression that it covers similar ground.)

At the time, it was an eye-opening experience: I learned that a programming language is much more than just its syntax, and that adding features to a language has both benefits and drawbacks. The section on compiling programs functional programs by automatically rewriting them in the continuation-passing style was particularly enlightening.
I've got a similar question.

Whenever a client tells me that they want an RSS feed I make sure that they understand the ramifications. An RSS feed typically drives up bandwith and drives down traffic. An RSS that includes full content is even worse since it gives a nice easily scraped content source for content theft.
Read a book on Typewatching/MBTI. I've found it's much easier to relate to people when I understand the differences between their personalities and my own.
Come on, this isn't about hacking people." Forget the X minutes, forget the competition, and just get out for face time with people.

Go to events that you're actually interested in (talking to someone with similar interests is stacking the deck), join a club or society in the same vein. When you've got a free night, check out the local calendar. Whatever you do, just get in the habit of going out, going out, going out! Don't prepare, read up for tips, construct elaborate plans...just go out. Most people are out for the same reason as you. Culley says it best when he says you can't find this in a book. It takes effort.

And remember: the worst thing that can happen is you stay inside and nothing happens.
Holographic storage
Going out every day during lunch break to pick up girls in the town center with a guy who was very good and natural at it worked great for me.

So, I'd say find someone who's really good at socializing and hang out with him. 1000x better and faster than any book or doing it on your own.
OK, here's my assessment:

Clickpass and idselector both allow a "one click" login experience for return users. Both let you type in usernames for large OpenID providers to make things friendlier for people who don't want to type URLs.

Clickpass also provides a uniform registration interface. This helps new users tie their OpenIDs to existing accounts, and/or register a new account reusing profile information from previous registrations. This is especially handy if you collect square profile photos.

Idselector most likely does not do anything registration-related, although it potentially could using SREG. As a result it's much easier to implement. If you already support OpenID, just add some code to your login page and you're set. Clickpass requires some real development work.

If the Clickpass login button doesn't already work on sites that haven't done full integration, look for Clickpass to come out with a "lite" version that just works like idselector.

Look for JanRain to do more with registration in the future. I expect sites that use idselector will soon feel that that piece is sorely missing.
Digi-Key is considered evil because they are trying to kill Octopart in order to preserve their monopoly pricing. They are making the frivolous claim that Octopart is acting illegally when it displays public information and links back to their webpage.

Basically, Digi-Key is using their size in order to prevent free market competition in their industry.
Observe people who are.