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truetraveller commented on Show HN: I Made Loom for Mobile   demoscope.app... · Posted by u/admtal
truetraveller · 10 days ago
Can this record just native apps (i.e. non websites)?
truetraveller commented on Superpowers: How I'm using coding agents in October 2025   blog.fsck.com/2025/10/09/... · Posted by u/Ch00k
specproc · 3 months ago
It's more like shifting from a normal to an electric bike.

You can go further and faster, but you can get to a point where you're out of juice miles from home, and getting back is a chuffing nightmare.

Also, you discover that you're putting on weight and not getting that same buzz you got on your old pushbike.

truetraveller · 3 months ago
Hey, that's a great analogy, 10/10! This explains in a few words what an entire article might explain.
truetraveller commented on Superpowers: How I'm using coding agents in October 2025   blog.fsck.com/2025/10/09/... · Posted by u/Ch00k
simonw · 3 months ago
Yeah, my current opinion on this is that AI tools make development harder work. You can get big productivity boosts out of them but you have to be working at the top of your game - I often find I'm mentally exhausted after just a couple of hours.
truetraveller · 3 months ago
Woah, that's huge coming from you. This comment itself is worth an article. Do it. Call it "AI tools make development harder work".

P.s. always thought you were one of those irrational AI bros. Later, found that you were super reasonable. That's the way it should be. And thank you!

truetraveller commented on A competitor crippled a $23.5M bootcamp by becoming a Reddit moderator   larslofgren.com/codesmith... · Posted by u/SilverElfin
alsetmusic · 3 months ago
If you’d read the entire article, you wouldn’t ask why his character is called into question. The receipts are documented.
truetraveller · 3 months ago
That's a one-sided article. You should read Michael's replies + other people who've been to Codesmith.
truetraveller commented on A competitor crippled a $23.5M bootcamp by becoming a Reddit moderator   larslofgren.com/codesmith... · Posted by u/SilverElfin
sixhobbits · 3 months ago
FWIW, there are similar top-of-google and top-of-reddit results for all bootcamps. Try googling 'lambda school', 'hyperiondev', 'coding temple', 'le wagon' along with 'reddit', 'review' 'legit' or anything similar (or often that's not even needed.

In the end, these bootcamps charge people thousands of dollars to sell them the dream of getting a high paying job after 3 months of part time work, and that's just not realistic.

In addition, in order to survive and sell to consumers, most bootcamps are 90% sales and marketing, and 10% education. They use their own students to teach the next generation, and increase their job placement rates (if you hire your own grad you can claim that that grad got a job!).

I used to work in the industry, and in theory I think it's great to have alternatives to universities which can be elitest and out-of-date with new tech, but I left because it felt kinda like the used-car market of CS, and I don't think it's a great model overall.

truetraveller · 3 months ago
Ok, so this is precisely why I was defending Michael. He rightfully so, is upset about this, and calls it out. What, honestly, is bad about that? Why do a character assassination?
truetraveller commented on A competitor crippled a $23.5M bootcamp by becoming a Reddit moderator   larslofgren.com/codesmith... · Posted by u/SilverElfin
blackhaj7 · 3 months ago
u/Ok-donuts is clearly his alt. Absolutely pathetic
truetraveller · 3 months ago
Oh, I also defended Michael. Not a fan of character assassinations / witch hunts / exaggerated claims.
truetraveller commented on A competitor crippled a $23.5M bootcamp by becoming a Reddit moderator   larslofgren.com/codesmith... · Posted by u/SilverElfin
darksaints · 3 months ago
The article came with receipts. Novati's defenses come across as a raving lunatic, all with unsubstantiated claims. And considering that it has been widely claimed in that subreddit, also with evidence, about his use of sockpuppets, I'm now extremely suspicious of the people running to his defense as well.
truetraveller · 3 months ago
Novati's response also came with receipts. Check his other comments. And check his prev responses on Reddit, including open support for Codemsith, and we he fell out with them.

The receipts in the article were meh. Backed by other "bootcamps" testimonies. The article read like a hit piece, with exaggereated language. And it did not mention he was against other bootcamps as well.

And, not knocking down Codesmith at all, but I think there marketing might be a little exaggerated. Which is typical of many bootcamps.

truetraveller commented on A competitor crippled a $23.5M bootcamp by becoming a Reddit moderator   larslofgren.com/codesmith... · Posted by u/SilverElfin
darksaints · 3 months ago
You're seriously gonna Streisand yourself with your defenses here. Nothing but narcissistic defense mechanisms on display.
truetraveller · 3 months ago
Doesn't come across as a narcissist to me. He's just giving his side. Sure, he might have done things that were not right, but the article paints him as a monster. You should but yourself in his shoes? Are you squeaky clean? What if someone took something that you did that was grey, and framed you as a monster?
truetraveller commented on A competitor crippled a $23.5M bootcamp by becoming a Reddit moderator   larslofgren.com/codesmith... · Posted by u/SilverElfin
cr3ative · 3 months ago
You're right, and thanks for the note - gave me a chance to reflect. I think what I mean is more along the lines that while a right to reply would have been polite, it isn't required of a blogger, and wouldn't change the substance of the post much, which is largely about a pattern of behaviour rather than specifics. Michael's attempts to dismiss/discredit the post based on a process which generally only applies to the press is what sits badly with me.
truetraveller · 3 months ago
Thank you for acknowledging! Most people I know don't have the guts to. Keep doing this!

Also, I was defending Michael, because I'm not a fan of witch-hunts. I truly believe the article is exaggerated, even if there are bits of truth. The author himself is a master affiliate marketer, it's a grey area to say the least. It wouldn't be difficult for me to "spin" some things he's done in a bad way, and make a 10 page article out of it, but that would be wrong.

truetraveller commented on A competitor crippled a $23.5M bootcamp by becoming a Reddit moderator   larslofgren.com/codesmith... · Posted by u/SilverElfin
michaelnovati · 3 months ago
I'm going to focus on the MODERATION ACCUSATION first since that seems to be the main issue.

What moderating r/codingbootcamp actually looks like:

I don't own the sub - I report to the owner who asked me to help after I'd been one of the most active and helpful contributors. The coding bootcamp industry is absolutely infested with astroturfing. Brand new accounts, manufactured conversations, fake testimonials. It's constant daily spam trying to manipulate people making $15K-20K decisions.

My job is to support authentic discussion. We have above-average Reddit AI filters. We generally don't review flagged content because we can't tell who these suspicious brand new accounts are. Occasionally we approve legitimate posts caught in filters.

The accusation that I delete Codesmith's posts:

This is not only false, it's the exact opposite of what I do. I regularly break the sub's rules to manually approve Codesmith content that Reddit's automated systems flag as spam. I shouldn't be doing this - the same rules should apply to everyone - but I do it constantly because their posts get caught unfairly.

Why are their posts getting flagged?

In mid-2024, Codesmith hired a marketing contractor to post on Reddit. Their CEO even sent me proof of this. They probably didn't know it at the time, but this guy was running one of the most extensive astroturfing operations I've ever seen. Dozens of high-karma sockpuppet accounts. Fake conversations across hundreds of subreddits promoting hemorrhoid cream, garage door openers, lava lamps, custom suits, you name it.

I helped uncover this network and Reddit nuked all those accounts. But Codesmith's legitimate accounts got tangled up in it, and Reddit's AI started auto-suspending them by association - IP addresses, posting patterns, behavioral signals.

I explained this to Codesmith. Multiple times. By email. By phone with their CEO directly. With screenshots. With specific suggestions on rebuilding trust signals through authentic engagement.

They accused me of "deleting their posts." I told them I was approving their content, not removing it. They didn't listen, didn't change their approach, and to this day their content gets constantly flagged.

The evidence is in their own sub, look at some of their official AMAs:

https://www.reddit.com/r/codesmith/comments/1iduu2d/https://www.reddit.com/r/codesmith/comments/1ilpihd/https://www.reddit.com/r/codesmith/comments/1gvazaz/

Go look right now. Count how many comments are flagged/suspended/deleted/collapsed. Roughly half get flagged by Reddit within weeks. Not by me - I'm banned from that sub. That doesn't happen with legitimate engagement.

There was a fake account on LinkedIn liking all their stuff that is now suspended as well.

With my moderator hat on, I'm being accused of bias while actively protecting Codesmith from the consequences of their own marketing decisions. I approve posts that should probably stay filtered. I give them more leniency than other bootcamps. I've consistently tried explaining how Reddit works and how to fix their reputation signals.

On my criticism of their program:

Yes, I've been critical of specific Codesmith practices since 2022 - whether bootcamp grads should present 3-week projects as "4 months of mid-level experience" or market themselves as "mid-level engineers" with zero professional experience. I have strong opinions backed by outcomes data and CIRR reports.

But that has nothing to do with how I moderate. I've been equally critical of other bootcamps like TripleTen, BloomTech, App Academy. I recommend a dozen or two people go to Codesmith! At the same time I was questioning their marketing. My moderation standards apply to everyone except Codesmith, who I give more leeway to.

Bottom line: If I wanted to hurt Codesmith as a moderator, I would simply let Reddit's automated systems do their job. I wouldn't override the filters.

truetraveller · 3 months ago
Oh, one more thing. All of these "bootcamp" companies are known to be bad, and HN knows this. Perhaps "Codesmith" is better, I can believe that. I did a quick search, and it does seem like it's above the pack. I'm not trying to knock down Codesmith, the founder Will seems genuine. but it's still very plausible it has some of the same "badness" of bootcamps, at least according to Michael. And one might ask, why did Michael focus on Codesmith? The answer is two-fold. 1) he targeted other bootcamps as well 2) and Codesmith claimed explicitly they were unlike other bootcamps, and Michael was on a personal "jihad" to make sure they were called out.

u/truetraveller

KarmaCake day316October 9, 2012View Original