

Ask YC:What kind of music do you listen to? - aitoehigie

I will like to know the type of music other hackers in here listen to, to get into sync with their hacking? I listen to enya and some meditation music to really get in sync when i hack. so i will like to know, what music do you listen to?
======
swombat
Pattern:

1) YC user is on drugs, has just completed what he considers to be a hacking
feat, or is otherwise mentally stoked, and feels the irrepressible need to
share what music he likes.

2) YC user realises that he can tell the world what he likes by posting a news
item about it under the pretense of asking what other people like, oblivious
to the fact that no one really cares. Note that if said user really cared what
others liked, he perhaps would not include his own taste in the post. But he
doesn't - this is expressive, one-way-only.

3) Some other YC users feel the same need and so congregate on that thread and
reply with their own musical taste. Note that there is no actual discussion
(how could there be?), just a bunch of people shouting their tastes into a
tube with no one at the other end.

4) YC is less valuable for it.

5) Rinse, repeat every few weeks.

<http://searchyc.com/music> :

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=132026>
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=61831>
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=144666>
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=139901> etc, ad nauseam.

Am I the only one who thinks this?

~~~
edw519
"YC is less valuable for it."

I don't think so.

If YC became less valuable every time someone disagreed or posted something
questionable, there'd be nothing left. We'll be fine. Lighten up.

~~~
swombat
I'm not saying we won't be fine :-)

However, a thread like this is not a discussion. Of the bunch of replies other
than my one (and its associated meta-discussion), every single one is a "me
too"-like statement that "this is what I listen to". And how could it be
another way? We are all different people with different tastes and there is no
singular "hacker music" that's best suited to programming.

So, an Ask-YC like this:

\- doesn't bring anything new to the table in the OP (particularly since it's
been done many times before)

\- brings nothing in the comments

\- is theoretically incapable of doing either anyway

Therefore, it's a complete waste of space. There could be an insightful
article on the front page in its stead, but instead, all there is is this
vacuous nothing. YC is worse for it, not better - YC thrives despite the
presence of this kind of thread, not because of it.

~~~
pystar
I dont know if the thought ever entered your block head that the writer of
this post wanted to know the type of music other hackers listen to and not to
declare a particular type of music as being "hacker music". Although you
stated that the question has been posted before, you also made a presumption
that everybody joined hacker news at the same time and every body keeps tabs
on what is being posted and makes sure that he doesnt do a repeat of a post.
that isnt so, new people join hacker news everyday and ask questions, so it is
inevitable that the same questions may be repeated, giving the fact that YC
news doesnt have search natively. downmod me for all i care but i have stated
my points clearly. thanks.

~~~
swombat
Hackers are people, spread around the world and all social classes. They
listen to all types of music.

I would be shocked to find any kind of music that some hacker somewhere
doesn't listen to.

Therefore, the question is as meaningless as asking what colour hackers' hair
is. Or what they eat.

Also, the idea of HN turning into an endless repetition of the same questions
that new people ask all the time because they don't know that they've been
asked before proves my point quite thoroughly: it's not a good future for HN.

------
pavelludiq
I don't listen to music while i program. I listen mostly to hardcore and punk
and that's is not good for your concentration. I have 2 tracks with boring
D'n'B stuff witch i listen to while i read, but not while i write. While im
just browsing and wasting time on the net i listen to HC and Punk and
sometimes some metal stuff. If anybody wants more specific details about my
taste he/she can check me out on <http://www.last.fm/user/pavelludia>

------
porfirion
20 minutes of free jazz or grindcore before hacking and time passes a lot
slower.

Expanding on this: I don't listen to music while programming. If it can be
treated as background music, then it's too boring to hold my attention when I
need to get distracted for a moment. I try to listen to some challenging music
before programming to get focused, and it seems to be working.

------
prateekdayal
Online music is what I listen to mostly these days as my browser is always on.
I love listening to some of these tracks in particular

<http://muziboo.com/song/list/nitindubey23?order=2>

Anyone into Indian music here? :)

Disclaimer: Link from my startup.

------
chilefiend
I stream KEXP out of Seattle most of the time- big fan of the variety- esp new
music, indie bands, some hip hop, and a smattering of everything else... I had
messed around with a trial of Pandora, spent some time going through radio
feeds from all over the world, and KEXP was consistently my favorite.

~~~
brentr
I thought about trying Pandora. What was your opinion of it?

------
mattjung
No music during programming. The only exception is to build a accoustic
protection against typical noise-office. In this case, I hear electronical
music or lounge music (most important: no voice!).

------
greenagain
Boards of Canada, Brian Eno, and other ambient stuff. Stereolab is also good.
There's also this 13 minute ambient song by American Analog Set that is
awesome for work: Late One Sunday.

------
xenoterracide
<http://www.last.fm/user/xenoterracide/> easiest way to find out what I'm
listening to.

------
thomasswift
bassdrive.com or protonradio.com

------
ucdaz
trance, dance, and techno. Basically anything that sounds techy

------
wenbert
somafm.com and 90's rock music.

------
adrianwaj
groove based music only

------
pystar
I kind of like the music of evanescence, it gets me into the mood almost
immediately.

