I'm a 34 y/o black hacker living in BK. I'm an expert on programming, the internet, and Radiohead. I'm pretty good at math, DJing, guitar, piano, yoga, and martial arts. As an adult, I've lived (for at least a month) in Seattle, Silicon Valley, Albequerque, Dallas, Baltimore, DC, and Brooklyn.

I am also building Hypnagogics, a futuristic discussion site.

Ask me anything. I feel like I never post any more.

if so, any tips on becoming a good python user?

I'm pretty decent w/ R, but need python to do some spatial modeling that seems way more difficult to carry out in R.

The best single Python book is The Essential Python Reference:
http://www.amazon.com/Python-Essential-Reference-4th-Edition/dp/0672329786

If you buy and read that book you will be great at Python.

Besides that you should peruse the standard library just to get an idea of what Python can do out of the box:
https://docs.python.org/2/library/

I might suggest toying around with my own threadparser library, which converts OKP posts to JSON for further processing. It's a single Python file, and pretty fun to play around with. If you need help getting it running let me know.
https://github.com/djtriptych/okp-threadparser/blob/master/threadparser.py

If you don't have a github account get one now :)

on a local level

Any ideas?

I do volunteer at lots of coding events and hackathons. I'm interested in creating more black programmers.

your volunteer work sounds awesome. and it would be great to have more programming skills development for black/latino folk.

last night i just got a whole group of skaters to come out for a community meeting on this skate park we have coming to a local park - mostly black/latino kids, young adults and they were so sharp on the design that i'd like to try to convince the parks dept to get them to come to see where the planners, designers work, what they use for modeling software, etc. to spark interest in tech work.

next year i wanted to start brainstorming ideas on civic participation and technology access/skills acquisition in east harlem

i've been thinking about information access:
like my community board has a completely janky website with obviously some old content management system (cb11m.org) and it's hard getting info easily but in my experience when people can access relevant info they will come out to support things

they just don't have time to waste on a website like that or calling up folks.

and just access to the internet:

nycha has these digital vans that go from location to location
http://www.nyc.gov/html/nycha/html/community/education_digital_vans.shtml

i wonder if anyone ever thought about a nycha east harlem network and what that would look like (i know they don't even replace light bulbs but like no one but a black/latino tech person would probably even bother to think about that - and maybe could get interest if it was something innovative)

just rambling thoughts i should write down and your post made me remember that i wanted to think about it!

who would you suggest that person reach out to...

She built a real business by herself using free web tools to build a site that may not look as pretty, but actually generates a lot of sales.

If you really have to develop a new site from scratch you should talk to a really good programmer to get an idea of the scope and approximate cost. You might also be able to find a couple dev shops to give you a free cost estimate. It would be in the $10-$100K range.

Again though if you are trying to start a clothing company or something, don't build a fancy custom website.

Gimme a call I can give you a free 10 minute consult :)

your username mean?

diptych means two panels.

Mostly I though the word was cool when I first heard it maybe 15 years ago.

yeah, those are both cool words.

does it really matter?

for all my fans who keep my name in their mouth: http://i.imgur.com/v2xNOpS.jpg

This ain't definitive but off top.

1. Reckoner
2. Everything in it's RIght Place
3. Pyramid Song
4. Paranoid Android
5. Nice Dream
6. True Love Waits (I Might Be Wrong Live Edition)
7. Exit Music (For a Film)
8. Airbag
9. Sail to the Moon
10. Nude

I honestly think they're getting better and better so I really want to include like 5 songs off In Rainbows in here. But that's a good sampling from the years.

I recently revisited In Rainbows and it's even better than I remember...might be my favorite album of theirs now

It was in the middle of this insane rain storm threatening to drown everyone there. Like no way was it safe at all to have a concert. Having everyone sing the "rain down" chorus from paranoid android is a moment I'll never forget. Top 10 night of my life.

the last time i saw them i overheard someone in the audience say "imagine if it started downpouring right now...that would be amazing" during that part of the song

That's the album I always forget about. I was listening to it during a particularly stressful time in my life, so maybe I've blocked it out.

and how do you feel about them?

I've been using Sacred soley as my go to place but I'm open to checking out more with more flexible times and wider variety of schedules.

Haven't been to any studios.

I follow an online video, and augment with a ton of reading and discussions with yoga teachers I happen to know around the country. Ashtanga Vinyasa is a pretty intense yoga style - fast paced, constant motion, and continuous deep rhythmic breathing. I go as far as I can in the Primary series every day.

please and thank you!

Primary Series Ashtanga with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUgtMaAZzW0

The Yoga Matrix - A 6 hour extremely dense overview of yoga philosophy.
http://www.soundstrue.com/store/the-yoga-matrix-4905.html

Hit me up for a link to the latter.

Moved to Bed Stuy in march

>I'm a 34 y/o black hacker living in BK. I'm an expert on
>programming, the internet, and Radiohead. I'm pretty good at
>math, DJing, guitar, piano, yoga, and martial arts. As an
>adult, I've lived (for at least a month) in Seattle, Silicon
>Valley, Albequerque, Dallas, Baltimore, DC, and Brooklyn.
>
>I am also building Hypnagogics, a futuristic discussion site.
>
>Ask me anything. I feel like I never post any more.

yeah, you need to post more. but real world be calling. my question is confidential, so i can't ask on the boards. i'll hit you up, though.


peace & blessings,

x.

www.twitter.com/poetx

=========================================
I'm an advocate for working smarter, not harder. If you just
focus on working hard you end up making someone else rich and
not having much to show for it. (c) mad

.

.

.

:(

the fat to burn and the excess oil to moisturize your lips

>the excess oil to moisturize your lips

"i wanna hug all u idiotic bastards & then set you all on fire" -Bin

www.twitter.com/bedstuybetty
http://bedstuybetty.tumblr.com/
DROkayplayer: Giving you good puff since May '05

THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS BROKEN.

:(

And database management?

I want to transition into a data scientist role. My statistics background is very strong, but my programming knowledge is weak, but I'm learning. I'm coming from a social science background. Any suggestions on strengthening my programming knowledge beyond CodeAcademy? Essential books?

If you're trying to be a data scientist.

In fact I'd learn Linux and Bash first. Pick up The Bash Cookbook (O'Reilly) it will walk you through lots of exercises. The idea is to gain a facility for computers at a lower level - you will be amazed at how much you can get done with just one or two lines of code.

Julia (julialang.org) is a serious language for statistical / numerical computing. It's new but very well regarded. You might begin to work through the problems at eulerproject.net

One of the students in my computational physics class used Julia last year (instead of Python, the standard language for the class). I have no more experience with it than I got from grading his homeworks, but it looked as elegant to work with as python is, and they say it's almost as efficient (in terms of cycles) as C. I've been meaning to acquaint myself with it more.

Still seems kinda new and rough around the edges, but I assume it'll be adopted widely pretty quickly.

.

-what is your favorite programming language?
-have you used angularjs, backbone.js, or node.js? if so, what are
your thoughts?
-what was it like living in dallas?
-what is it like being a black programmer?
-favorite company that you worked for and why?
-are you into data visualization? if so, what APIs/frameworks do
you work with? which ones do you like?
-i'm thinking about learning a new programming language as i'm
familiar with java, php, and javascript...any suggestions? i was
thinking ruby.

>-what is your favorite programming language?
Maybe Javascript. Very useful in the web era.

>-have you used angularjs, backbone.js, or node.js? if so, what
>are
> your thoughts?
Yes ( a lot ), No (but I've used many similar frameworks), Yes (but not that much).
Angular is too heavy for me.
Backbone I don't know.
Node.js seems pretty nice. Lots of success stories.

>-what was it like living in dallas?
Pretty boring. Lots of pick up trucks and strip malls.

>-what is it like being a black programmer?
There's probably a good hour of stand up comedy from my stories. Certainly you are isolated.

>-favorite company that you worked for and why?
Tough one. Best office was Vocus (indoor basketball court). Best food was Google. My best personal office was at George Mason University. Best people were at some defense contractor. That's too hard.

>-are you into data visualization? if so, what APIs/frameworks
>do
>you work with? which ones do you like?
Yes, but I don't do a lot of work. I do like d3.js and processing.js quite a bit. This will change actually based on some new work I'm doing.

>-i'm thinking about learning a new programming language as i'm
>
>familiar with java, php, and javascript...any suggestions? i
>was
>thinking ruby.
Learn Python. And start developing on linux if you aren't already.

*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

I think part of the stress of setting up shop in new york is to blame. 90% back.

from another back sufferer

swimming

and i see you already do yoga
also great


i do neither at the moment
yes i suffer greatly
its all my fault
~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.

..after recently being diagnosed with a mild form or piriformis syndrome (kinda over-did it cycling this summer), my dr recommended pt.

since then, a friend of mine (that you've met) actually told me about an incredible pt/specialist available in nyc:

http://kineticmassage.com/

i haven't had a chance to check him out yet, but a little research has shown that he's highly respected in his field.


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

With another suggesting to hit up physical therapy. It's done wonders for my back issues. My physical therapist is good, and takes the time to explain how the muscles interact, why I'm experiencing the different types of pain, be it from the way I walk, the various movements I make, how I'm compensating for muscular weakness, my posture or what have you, and the point of my exercises and how to avoid future pain.

i know the specific exercises i should be doing to prevent relapses

they really do help figure this out and suggest ranges of specific movements
~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.

I am answering as a young single black creative. There are only about 5 reasonable cities for us: DC, Philly, NYC, Oakland, Chicago. 2nd tiers are like Houston, Atlanta. Baltimore is on the come up too they're staying quiet tho. New Orleans is gonna be dope in like 5 years too.

SF is the most beautiful city. The entire Pacific Northwest is just mindblowingly beautiful for any east-coaster. We forget as Americans sometimes that we get to explore an entire continent with no passport. America has incredible natural resources - we definitely overvalue the Caribbean and Europe.

Chicago is the best functioning city I think (in terms of transportation, access to public spaces, food, sports, etc). Like if you could pick up Chicago and put it where Manhattan is it would be the best city in the world.

Nothing beats New York though. It really is as advertised. And Brooklyn is CLEARLY the coolest place in the country and probably the world. Not close. Living here you realize that Brooklyn Cool is like a $20B/yr national export.

Your breakdown of the top five cities is so on point. People seem to complain less about DC than they do about NYC, though, (at least on OKP lol), so it's interesting that you gave New York the edge.

exactly what you currently do professionally?

.

I can also read and write php, java, c, c++, c#, go, ruby, perl, bash, clojure, lisp, scheme, basic, 8086 assembler, haskell, visual basic, a probably a few others I'm forgetting.

You offer any training services?

I could do another

do you have a hard time remembering obscure functions or syntax for languages you don't use very often?

Perl is notorious for having very hard to remember syntax. Python is on the other end. Haskell to me is somewhere in between.

What would be the three languages you’d most recommend someone learn if they were interested in the field?

had a job op there a couple of years ago and just couldnt pull the trigger...

I was there on a work assignment. Nothing to do and no black people. And no oxygen.

I did do some cool shit tho - you can offroad everywhere. No one gives a shit. So lots of run with rented SUVs. Also I was right next to an air force base where they'd practice fighter jet maneuvers all the time and that shit is insane.

The area definitely has a certain southwestern beauty to it but certainly isn't a real city life.

Plenty of good mexican food lol.

where should I start?

Then maybe start playing around with connecting computers together from the linux command line.

Security is a huge field but whichever avenue you take working from the command line will separate you from the pack.

Realizing almost anything i learn can be used to build on what i already have
choosing what next i guess would be the question

Do you think learning programming could/would be useful?
Think decades in the photo field
editor/buyer
all commercial work
~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.

http://p5js.org/get-started/

It is a javascript-like language designed for beginners. Playing around with it is really fun because the entire language is designed to make incredibly interesting visualizations. Google 'processing examples' for a taste of what is possible.

If you get good at Processing, you can pretty much program.

>
>http://p5js.org/get-started/
>
>It is a javascript-like language designed for beginners.
>Playing around with it is really fun because the entire
>language is designed to make incredibly interesting
>visualizations. Google 'processing examples' for a taste of
>what is possible.
>
>If you get good at Processing, you can pretty much program.

Thanks!!
~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.

I'm still hating on your beard tho.

Seriously, what's new in your world? What books are you reading? Have you schemed on an instagram yoga practicioners? That CB Quality lass has excellent posture.

I've been reading books about architecture and linux lol. Boring shit. I have to read something by Zadie Smith at some point I think just as a black adult.

I may actually be in NYC

ask teefiveten :)

I've been typing so long I'll be thinking of something else while my fingers finish a sentence.

Favorite Radiohead album?

Favorite yoga pose (or type of pose)?

Dopest song blend you've heard that made you lose your shit?

Still into whisk(e)y? You ever try the Balvenie 14-year Caribbean cask?

Single by choice or circumstance?

is that you seem very disciplined

i'm not normally an envious guy but sometimes i feel like you are a more disciplined version of me...

how much conscious effort did it take you to develop that?

i've never taken a huge interest in programming but I consider it often when i think about my next career move...gotta work out that discipline issue though...mad lazy

how long you been playing guitar versus djing?

>is that you seem very disciplined

Thank you! Certainly what self-discipline I have was hard won.

>i'm not normally an envious guy but sometimes i feel like you
>are a more disciplined version of me...
>
>how much conscious effort did it take you to develop that?

A lot, but also a lot of privilege. My dad is a self-made success story, so I got to see that happen up close. That helps tremendously. My stepmom is a motivation speaker. The truth is that it really does take a lot. Basically all that motivation technique amounts to strategies to keep your mind, body, and spirit going as you devote yourself to something. You have to stretch and expand your own capacity. No small task.

Discipline really boils down to creating good habits for yourself. Start with something small "I will put on my running shoes every day" and work up to big goals "I will run the NYC marathon." If you actually do something, anything, every day, you are pretty much guaranteed to get good at it - it's just how humans work. We see it in the reverse direction - if you repeat a bad habit, you'll get "good" at it. It will become thoughtless and routine. Discipline is just lots of good habits. The day-to-day drudgery and the pain of self-denial is addressable through the faith that you are making progress, even if it's temporarily invisible or too slow to see. Over time, the things that used to distract you will fall away, and you will actually become something else. New things will make you happy.



>i've never taken a huge interest in programming but I consider
>it often when i think about my next career move...gotta work
>out that discipline issue though...mad lazy

Generally I don't recommend that people start programming just because it's a good career. It is also very frustrating and demanding in unexpected ways. I do recommend learning programming to gain a facility with computer in general. They are ubiquitous and the better you understand them the more powerful you are, in a sense.

Simply installing linux and trying to do *anything* is an excellent start.

>how long you been playing guitar versus djing?
>
>

i've had experience programming and just seem to hit a wall of either interest or skill lol

I've done a lot of work fixing bad code or issues on websites...some of it way beyond my skillset too...i'm really good at approaching problems analytically...

my issue was always on new projects...i struggle with the big picture a lot as far as programming that discouraged me pretty heavily...i think if i were to try my hand again i'd either need to be part of a team or have a mentor...

shit, u looking to mentor? lol

I've dabbled in everything from html/css, php/mysql, to basic non web database work in Access...Databases (relational) have always intrigued me but the creative side of design has always been a major hurdle for me on the web side...i'm good at learning syntax and really good at fixing problems within that but terrible at scaling overall ideas into something workable

Didn't realize you had done that much...

You might consider working through the problems at projecteuler.net. I'd definitely help whenever you got stuck. If you can get through the first ten that's a major achievement.

It supports both twitter style streaming of posts and reddit-style threaded conversations.
The entire system is designed to be realtime.
All posts can be tagged and searched on those tags.
It's possible to be a part of multiple conversations or streams simultaneously.
It's possible to manage multiple identities within the same browser window.
etc etc etc.

I think out of the box it's a slack competitor.

Red or green?

If not I'm lost

I don't have a computer science background
Do I need to go back to school?
I would like to get my foot in the door with an entry level position but I don't know where to start looking.

No education needed but it you need start programming. Get your 'hello world' on.

.

....

I'm more interested in giving people the ability to communicate with any group of people at any time, and also the ability to actually produce documents that arise from the resultant conversations.

The questlove celeb stories and race-baiting dictionary are sorta small examples of what is possible.

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

http://blackpeopleonlocalnews.tumblr.com/

.

umm since you are a "hacker"
tell me what do you think of the sony hack?

We should have better forms of communication where, for instance, older stuff is automatically destroyed. Smart organizations already do this do protect against discovery (basically in court they want to say they cannot access the documents).

Interestingly, the only real defense is to not do shitty stuff behind closed doors. In other words, assume any transmitted communication will one day be made public.

About the signs of racism thing you built a year or so back?

█▆▇▅▇█▇▆▄▁▃
Big PEMFin H & z's
"I ain't no entertainer, and ain't trying to be one. I am 1 thing, a musician." � Miles

"When the music stops he falls back in the abyss."

.

never seemed to align...incredibly great idea and also on a network tip since it's a small group it would be super productive for each person to share what they're working on and share any concerns or ask for advice on something they're stumped on and everyone else can pitch in..if we're all aware of what we're working on we can help each other. i actually wanted to do something like that for women here but, someone was on some 'can't give my secrets' in the thread and i just don't need that energy around me.

i do this with a group i met at wix lounge. one of the guys had a space at weworks on fulton so we'd go there to brainstorm and help each other sometimes.

I need a new space in BK. If you have a lead I'm all ears on that. Definitely something I'd like to have up and running.

do you rate music?

all of your videos stream from one place?

every album has a cover image associated with it?