format997 (u/format997)

format997 commented on Ketamine's effect on depression may hinge on hope med.stanford.edu/news/all... · Posted by u/cpncrunch

nullindividual · 2 years ago

I find this... frustrating to read, at the least. This post assumes that all depression is a _lack_ of something external to the body. Or that depression is simply a chemical imbalance. It takes no accounting of physical deficiencies that can _never_ be cured and require a lifetime of maintenance, of which Ketamine can be (literally) lifesaving.

The post is irresponsible. No one should be thinking that some sort of "transcendence" will solve their issue, or that is what their problem is.

Always discuss treatment with a psychiatrist.

format997 · 2 years ago

I mean, I guess it depends on what the truth is. Clearly the two of you have very different perspectives on what the underlying cause of depression or mental illness is. If your view is incorrect, it could also be equally irresponsible, could it not?

format997 commented on Ask HN: Mobile development – two native apps or cross platform framework? · Posted by u/format997

rvz · 4 years ago

Here is a real case study: ClubHouse vs Discord.

Clubhouse launched their app first as iOS only and it was native. It took them more than a year to release the Android version. By the time they did that and removed the waitlist, their growth already declined and they were copied to death.

Discord on the other hand released their iOS and Android apps using a cross-platform framework (react native) and have even copied Clubhouse's prime feature (Stages) before Clubhouse could even finish the Android version.

I think that alone tells you that you that Discord is doing something right; even with a tiny team working on the apps rather than what Clubhouse was doing.

format997 · 4 years ago

Awesome. That is great feedback, already. Thanks!

format997 commented on Google Demanded T-Mobile, Sprint Not Sell Google Fi Customers' Location Data motherboard.vice.com/en_u... · Posted by u/tony101

format997 · 7 years ago

Sounds like your phone was so delayed because of a huge black friday promotion they ran that put their pixel stock a month or more behind back orders. My experience with them, outside of this one massive underestimate of how many phones they would sell because of the phenomenal deal that they ran, has been really good. Phones are normally in stock and ship almost immediately. And customer service is very responsive.

format997 · 7 years ago

As a side note, the phone that I snagged during that promotion just barely arrived a week ago. And I ordered it at the end of November. I think you just ran into some unlucky timing, at least in regards to the delays in shipments that you encountered.

format997 commented on Google Demanded T-Mobile, Sprint Not Sell Google Fi Customers' Location Data motherboard.vice.com/en_u... · Posted by u/tony101

vanattab · 7 years ago

Ask HN: Is anyone here happy with Google Fi service? I ordered a Pixel 3 phone directly from Google Fi and signed up for service with Google Fi the end of December. When I ordered the phone it showed up as in stock and estimated I would get my phone by the 4th of January. On the 2nd I got an email saying that the phone shipping was delayed and I would receive an email when it ships. I have heard nothing from google so I called Google Fi support and was told I would get an email from the shipping team letting my know when my phone would ship but that was 2 days ago and have not heard a word from them. I tried following there instructions to cancel the order but when you click the edit order button where they say there is a cancel button none can be found. Anyone else have similar experience? Before I placed my order I was thinking the user experience from Google must be better then T-Mobile or Sprint but I am starting to regret the choice.

format997 · 7 years ago

Sounds like your phone was so delayed because of a huge black friday promotion they ran that put their pixel stock a month or more behind back orders. My experience with them, outside of this one massive underestimate of how many phones they would sell because of the phenomenal deal that they ran, has been really good. Phones are normally in stock and ship almost immediately. And customer service is very responsive.

format997 commented on Ask HN: What discontinued company/product do you wish was still around? · Posted by u/cellml

tvanantwerp · 7 years ago

Come next March, I'm going to be missing Google Inbox. Completely changed how I use email for the better. I'm dreading going back to the tradition email workflow and hope to God that somebody builds something to replace Inbox in my life.

I also miss StumebleUpon from years ago. I don't even know if the site still exists, but for me it died when it forced me to pick interests. The great thing about that site was that it served me random things from outside of my bubble. I saw all sorts of fascinating stuff that I'd never have seen if I were trying to search for and curate content. I'm tired of algorithms trying to sell me a faster horse.

format997 · 7 years ago

I just made the switch off recently. It actually is a lot more seamless than you'd expect. You can still snooze emails, and then "archive" (mark as done) everything that is taken care of/replied to/no longer needs your attention. Those are probably the two biggest pieces of the Inbox workflow that are pretty much identical in Gmail.

It's not quite as integrated, but all of the pieces are still there. For using reminders, you'll have to use google Keep. And for tasks without reminders, you can use Google Tasks.

On the plus side, it feels like Google stopped maintaining Inbox a while ago and it was getting horribly slow for me. The new gmail is amazingly responsive in comparison. I'm actually glad I made the switch for that reason alone (I had to make the switch before march because the Android Inbox App stopped working - it would crash within second after I opened it every time).

format997 commented on Ask HN: What's a reasonable rate for a contract software engineer to expect? · Posted by u/format997

davismwfl · 10 years ago

It depends. Contract work through contract services will generally pay a range from $40-$100/hr depending on your location and skill set. They do this because in the end they are charging $70-$200/hr, and they are spending money to find the jobs and place you.

If you instead go the "freelance" route, then your rate would be more along the lines of what a contract agency is charging.

Some advantages of contract services is that many times they will have health benefits if you need them and it only costs you a small amount of money. Also, they will work hard to keep you working and they deserve to be compensated for it. If you instead go the freelancer (independent consultant) route you'll be responsible for finding the work, doing the work and keeping yourself moving forward. Depending on your network the ability to find and keep work is either reasonably easy or damn hard.

Please just don't take your prior salary and divide it by 2080 and figure that is your rate. When you contract you will need more savings, you will have additional costs including taxes to pay etc. So make sure you keep all that in mind.

format997 · 10 years ago

Thanks for the insight. Good to know ranges and what goes into those rates. I think I'm liking the convenience of going through an agency at the moment, though if I get an itch for more money, nice to consider the freelance route.

format997 commented on Ask HN: What's a reasonable rate for a contract software engineer to expect? · Posted by u/format997

techjuice · 10 years ago

I would highly recommend going in as a business instead, your rates can be even higher and you will already be prepped to higher people to help you complete your clients tasks so you can work on building your business. Being a solo contractor is nice but being a business always has the upper hand in the short and long term. If you do things right you might even be able to get government contracts as a sub contractor or a prime contractor. Good thing is it can still just be you as the only employee at the start, then as your business grows you can create jobs by hiring people to work on your contracts.

When going from employee to a contractor you will normally double what you made hourly as an employee as you will need to pay the full amount for what your employer was paying. So you will need to bring in at least $220,000/year or $105.77/hour to make what you were making as an employee. You will also need to factor in enough income in case a client ends their contract with you or you have a dry spell for a bit.

To break this down more you will now need to pay for the full price for medicare, social security taxes, state and federal taxes, life insurance, health insurance, vacation time your own bonuses/raises if you want and your 401k. Since your going solo you will need to also need to pay for contractor insurance, lawyer fees, accounting fees, financial adviser fees, regular training online (CBT training, ebooks, etc.) and offline (classes, certifications, etc.) to keep yourself sharp and ahead of your competition, upkeep of your hardware and software so you can run the latest and greatest software and modern hardware, secure website design and hosting if your not doing it yourself, secure email hosting, and furniture so your comfortable working.

One thing you may also want to look into is a business phone or number so when you want to offline from working you can actually do this and send any calls to an answering service (someone that can assist with a few things clients might call about and if it is an emergency if you have the customer on an instant access list transfer them to your cell phone for emergencies).

You will also need to be careful not to decrease your hourly rate too much or you will start running into troublesome clients that are slow to pay or very picky about what they agreed too and try to weasel themselves out of paying you what they are due. You can increase/decrease the rate I listed but insure that you plug in all the numbers and account for things your employer paid for on your behalf. Just remember as a contractor you need to make more than you did as an employee to cover your increased costs as most of what you make if it is equal or a little bit above your salary when you where an employee will be gobbled up by taxes, insurance, and keeping yourself up to date.

format997 · 10 years ago

If you go into business as a contractor, is there an easy target to pick for the contracts you'll go after? Known sources of contracts? Or do you typically branch out from opportunities you know of or learned about while in the industry?

format997 commented on Ask HN: What's a reasonable rate for a contract software engineer to expect? · Posted by u/format997

liquidcool · 10 years ago

Contract rates depend on location, duration, skill set, experience, and industry, and you've only given the first. So it's impossible to tell you what to charge (and I don't know the Utah market, assuming it's even uniform).

I recommend patio11's salary negotiation guide:

http://www.kalzumeus.com/2012/01/23/salary-negotiation/

If you move from contracting to freelancing (which is a pretty big move), check out http://doubleyourfreelancingrate.com/

Very good material.

format997 · 10 years ago

Thanks, appreciated.