

Answers are easy. Finding problems are hard. - dcpdx
http://venturebeat.com/2011/05/20/answers-are-easy-finding-problems-are-hard/

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auganov
Isn't there a problem with the headline? Maybe they're not that hard to find
after all. If not then there is one with my english, which would still mean
that finding a problem is not too hard :-).

Anyways I am not sure if it is really easier to solve a problem than to find
one. I would say the hardest part would be defining a problem in way that it
is approachable. You can come up with a lot of very general problems, the hard
part is narrowing it down.

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whimsy
Yes, there is a problem with the headline. The latter sentence should read,
"Finding problems is hard."

However, convention on HN suggests that it's appropriate to copy headlines
verbatim from the linked article. It's unclear what the appropriate behavior
is.

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hugh3
Unless we're talking about the particular class of problems which involve
finding things. As in:

"Sorting problems are easy, finding problems are hard."

And of course, finding problems is a finding problem. No wonder it's hard!

~~~
whimsy
Hm... I hadn't considered that. Touché.

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nprincigalli
Finding good problems for _the answers you already have (built)_ is hard, also
known as seeking market fitness :)

I stumble on good problems with no obvious answers frequently, and my take is
that _approaching them with the mindset of "hey, what if...?"_ is what is
really uncommon. Not hard, children do it all the time.

What's hard? Keeping that mindset of "what if...?" alive over the years! :)

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sp332
You don't have to solve a problem to have a product. E.g.
<http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/08/just-in>

~~~
krigath
The link seems dead. The following works though:
[http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/08/just-in-
time...](http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/08/just-in-time-fo.html)

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nemoniac
Grammar are hard.

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PaulHoule
Most problems are trivial or impossible. Progress happens on the small margin
of problems that are in between.

~~~
michael_dorfman
Yes, but don't discount the trivial-- that's where a lot of the money is made.

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FrojoS
Richard Bellman, I think, is famous for pointing this out frequently.

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cturner
The phrase "it turns out" has gone viral. Unfortunately somebody else got the
domain before me.

~~~
j_baker
It seems to me that complaining about the phrase "it turns out" is what's
_really_ gone viral.

~~~
beza1e1
Relevant link: <http://jsomers.net/blog/it-turns-out>

