10
points
solfox
Joined 3,514 karma
founder at https://bestinterest.app
email: sol at electricfox.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/solkennedy/
- solfox parent100% this. I recall watching their launch video about Liquid Glass. It was filled with ego-driven "we're changing the world here" nonsense. They were designing in a bubble and wanted to do something different so they could justify the work. It was never about the user.
- When I first saw the starfield post, I had one kid. I was building her all sorts of cool stuff: brio table, custom childrens book, etc. So naturally, I disbelieved the assertion that my second child would get anything less than my first. Alas, the insight is spot on - for all your good intentions, the second child gets shafted. I think it's just one of those things you have to experience to get it.
- I spent a few days with Firebase Studio when it was announced. I stopped using it because it was clearly a very early alpha - tons of bugs, and didn't seem well thought out. Now, less than a few months later (!!!), they announce a competing IDE with essentially the same functionality, but a different brand? Is the right hand talking to the left?
- Looks amazing! Reminds me of a funny reddit thread about a man who built a fiber optic star ceiling for his daughter. The top comment was "First child?". :)
https://www.reddit.com/r/DIY/comments/8g8pce/fiberoptic_star...
- One thing I didn’t expect from this experience: the pain that started it was so personal that building this startup — especially bootstrapping it — has felt almost like a vocation. I’ve always worked hard when I’m excited about something, but this has been different. It’s by far my favorite project I’ve ever worked on.
- I'm by no means an expert here, but search currently drives about 80% of our downloads.
Before the app was ready, I launched the website and started populating it with articles on various helpful topics for the coparenting/high-conflict niche. Many of these ideas just came from content I was already consuming. Long-tail terms have been strong drivers of traffic.
Several are now >10 for their search terms like "jade technique". I also used AI to generate several free resource offers, typically related to features that I have yet to release (like a spreadsheet-based custody calendar), so that I can start ranking on those terms, which has also become a big driver for our mailing list.
I've been using Squirrly for SEO (not recommended per se, but affordable), along with siteguru.co to track keyword ranking (highly recommended and affordable).
- 3 points
- We enrolled our kids in K thinking the same as you - some light eco-minded spirituality never harmed anyone. Until we started to learn more about their actual philosophy.
From my experience, the teachers and admin will actively disclaim any adherence to the Waldorf / Anthroposophy connections, but I can assure you that if this is truly a Waldorf school (not "Waldorf-inspired"), they are 100% absolutely members of the Anthroposophy organization. I saw teachers actually do things like quickly hide away Steiner's books from their desk when parents would drop in. But do dig a bit deeper into your school if you can - you'll find there is a "college of teachers" and other such secretive meetings, religious Christian-inspired songs being taught to the children (speaking of God and angels from heaven), and more such nonsense at your school.
If you are a Anthroposophist, then by all means, send your kids there. But Waldorf has an international track record[1] of hiding covering their tracks and pretending to be secular when they are anything but. They just don't belong to a religion that you've heard much about [2].
[1] https://waldorfcritics.org/concerns/ [2] https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cult-of-waldorf-sc...
- PLEASE do your due diligence before considering Waldorf for your kids.
I'm not saying that kids cannot have a good experience at a Waldorf school, or that all their educational ideas are bad. Just that once you children have been there for a couple of years, you learn some very disturbing truths about the organization. It's not an education institution as much as it is a religious organization - your children WILL be taught hymns about god and angels in class. The teachers will not admit to this. They will be taught from the original lessons of Steiner, who had some rather unconventional pseudo-scientific ideas (even for his day). This is coming from a dad who had his kids at Waldorf for three years, and I'm so glad I finally got them out - even with the difficult academic transition.
There is plenty of information published about their organization online, and growing awareness worldwide.
- We once rode the Amtrak from Sacramento to Reno, through the snow, with the kids. Figured it would be a fun adventure. On the ride up, we were about an hour behind schedule - no problem. On the way back, we started our day at 8am and didn't arrive home til 8pm. Train had to keep stopping for "unexpected delays". Regulars on the train were saying it happens all the time. Not fun.
Why anyone would pay 100x the price to have the same experience is beyond me.
- Accessibility is great, but you really should have a guide supporting you for your first journey. This is very different than being (say) introduced to a computer for the first time. Having an experienced friend/practitioner/therapist there can help you go deeper, keep you safe, and support you in integrating your experience. This is probably the most potent psychedelic on the planet.
- I was 100% thinking this. GREAT book. And they, too, shredded books to ingest them into the digital library! I don't recall if it was an attempt to bypass copyright though; in Rainbow's End, it was more technical, as it was easier to shred, scan the pieces, and reassemble them in software, rather than scanning each page.
- Honestly, much of work under capitalism is meaningless (see: The Office). The optimistic take is that many of those same paper-pushing roles could evolve into far more meaningful work—with the right training and opportunity (also AI).
When the car was invented, entire industries tied to horses collapsed. But those that evolved, leveled up: Blacksmiths became auto mechanics and metalworkers, etc.
As a creatively minded person with entrepreneurial instincts, I’ll admit: my predictions are a bit self-serving. But I believe it anyway—the future of work is entrepreneurial. It’s creative.
- Extrapolating from my current experience with AI-assisted work: AI just makes work more meaningful. My output has increased 10x, allowing me to focus on ideas and impact rather than repetitive tasks. Now apply that to entire industries and whole divisions of labor: manual data entry, customer support triage, etc. Will people be out of those jobs? Most certainly. But it gives all of us a chance to level up—to focus on more meaningful labor.
As a father, my forward-thinking vision for my kids is that creativity will rule the day. The most successful will be those with the best ideas and most inspiring vision.