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| | |.---.-..----.| |--..-----..----. | | |.-----..--.--.--..-----. | |
| || _ || __|| < | -__|| _| | || -__|| | | ||__ --| | |
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on Gopher (inofficial) | |
Visit Hacker News on the Web | |
COMMENT PAGE FOR: | |
Happy BuyNothing Day | |
justbuynothing wrote 1 hour 2 min ago: | |
What's up everyone | |
I'm the person behind this site and thank you so much for all of the | |
feedback and stories. Feel free to post any questions about the current | |
state of the site and I'd be happy to answer. | |
nicbou wrote 10 hours 58 min ago: | |
What about buying used? | |
I have this unofficial policy of buying used for frivolous purchases. | |
The extra effort of browsing classifieds and arranging the purchase | |
means that I must really want something before I get it. It also means | |
that nothing gets extracted from nature and shipped around the world to | |
satisfy a weak desire. | |
I've also been much more selective about which objects I allow into my | |
home. I'm older now and I realise how long these objects stay in my | |
life, so they might as well spark joy every time. Again, the long | |
process of acquiring something means I avoid a lot of impulse | |
purchases, and end up with fewer, better objects. | |
mritterhoff wrote 2 hours 59 min ago: | |
My favorite thing to buy used is books! If it was written more than a | |
year ago, odds are good you can find it for half the price of what | |
it's selling for on Amazon. My go to is | |
[1]: https://www.betterworldbooks.com | |
jl6 wrote 11 hours 27 min ago: | |
Seems unrelated to the original Buy Nothing Day campaign from | |
AdBusters? | |
[1]: https://www.adbusters.org/buy-nothing-day | |
justbuynothing wrote 46 min ago: | |
I've never seen this! This is awesome. Really going to ramp up the | |
website to get ready for our Fake Black Friday Clearance Sales | |
Retr0id wrote 12 hours 15 min ago: | |
Maybe I'm thinking about it too hard, but this seems to imply that the | |
"fun" part of online shopping is somewhere in adding things to your | |
cart, or maybe even the act of spending money. | |
But for me the dopamine hit comes from receiving and opening a physical | |
package. Ship me a box of air instead! | |
justbuynothing wrote 46 min ago: | |
I agree! There was a comment below about shipping a post card. I | |
really like that idea. | |
re wrote 12 hours 30 min ago: | |
> The dopamine-free shopping experience. | |
This doesn't seem like an accurate description, since it's designed to | |
trigger the same dopamine release as shopping, just without the | |
real-world consequences. | |
I'm confused by the NoBucks Rewards ("Need $xx.xx more NoBucks; | |
Complete anti-consumption tasks to earn more"; < [1] >). Obviously no | |
real products are getting shipped. I'm not going to make an account on | |
this site but can NoBucks actually be earned? What happens when you've | |
earned enough to actually "checkout"? | |
[1]: https://justbuynothing.com/rewards | |
justbuynothing wrote 40 min ago: | |
You're right. I'm going to update this today that's a good catch. | |
Also, making a way now so that users not logged in can still go | |
through the checkout process. I originally posted this idea on Reddit | |
and got a ton of feedback for gamifying it a bit and that's where the | |
no bucks came into play. Check back in a bit this will be updated. | |
Really appreciate the feedback! | |
mgraczyk wrote 12 hours 34 min ago: | |
I have spent my whole life mostly buying nothing and I realized | |
recently that I am probably pretty far from optimal on that tradeoff. | |
Outside of food, rent, and travel I've been spending around 5k/year my | |
entire life (mostly laptops and phones) | |
Recently I realized I'd probably get old with money better spent while | |
I'm young, so I started spending a lot more. It's felt great overall, | |
for example I bought a sleep tracker, new bedding (had been using the | |
same pillows for 12 years), humidifiers, air filters, CO2 monitor, and | |
a few other things to sleep better. It made a noticable difference on | |
my sleep. | |
Probably many people reading this site actually buy too little. | |
integralid wrote 12 hours 26 min ago: | |
Did it make your sleep actually better? I always considered these a | |
needles luxury (other than maybe humidifier, but I don't think it's | |
useful in my climate). | |
I'm not trying to downplay you, I'm actually probably underspending | |
and you seem to come from the same background as I do. I'm certain | |
that interesting in one's sleep is worth it. | |
justinrubek wrote 2 hours 3 min ago: | |
If you are having any kind of issue with this, please consider | |
doing it. I have this background as well. I am not used to large | |
paychecks or even financial stability. I often freeze when spending | |
that makes my life better. Recently I bought a window air | |
conditioner unit that helped my sleep tremendously. I don't even | |
notice the $300 gone but I've gotten energy back that I didn't know | |
I had. I've tried other things for sleep but this one was the most | |
significant. There is a cost for not deploying your resources too. | |
mgraczyk wrote 12 hours 23 min ago: | |
Yes I've been measuring it and I sleep more as a fraction of the | |
time I spend in bed. Part of this is paying more attention to | |
things like how late I work out and drink water, but without the | |
tracker it would be hard to pay close enough attention | |
mysterydip wrote 14 hours 3 min ago: | |
Saw a frisbee for sale for $170, but there was free shipping... | |
bravesoul2 wrote 13 hours 47 min ago: | |
In theory it is self-shipping if there is enough skill. | |
justbuynothing wrote 47 min ago: | |
hahahaha | |
Waterluvian wrote 15 hours 1 min ago: | |
You are never too old to play store. | |
jan_Sate wrote 15 hours 1 min ago: | |
Interesting. So much fun clicking around on the website. Not that I'm | |
addicted to online shopping tho but still a pretty fun site to play | |
around with. | |
justbuynothing wrote 47 min ago: | |
Glad you are enjoying it! | |
bookofjoe wrote 15 hours 9 min ago: | |
>Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping | |
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverend_Billy_and_the_Church_of... | |
karim79 wrote 15 hours 18 min ago: | |
Amazing store, but I think the elite soccer ball is a tad bit too | |
expensive at $21. I'll wait until black Friday I think then get that | |
for my least favourite nephew. | |
Great work! | |
justbuynothing wrote 45 min ago: | |
thank you! I actually noticed these prices are crazy on the site. | |
Tried to optimize them a bit better so if you look today shouldn't be | |
as crazy. | |
Be on the lookout for our Everything Must Go Holiday Sale. | |
hilsdev wrote 15 hours 38 min ago: | |
I started buying silver, platinum, and gold coins. Itches that âget | |
shinyâ scratch, and Iâve been profitable enough to not regret | |
collecting something. After I got started, I became a calmer, more | |
rational investor in the digital realm. Something about the physical | |
weight of the silver unlocked some âitâs all okayâ mechanism in | |
my brain. It felt drug like, a chemical change. | |
gorbyhead wrote 15 hours 14 min ago: | |
Now go try to sell it. Hint: thereâs no limits on fees they can | |
charge, and it is super shady unless you have sealed ingots with | |
holograms for provenance. Thatâs why every gold store is some | |
sketchy mall shop. Buying is easy. Selling is hard. | |
1945 wrote 13 hours 41 min ago: | |
r/pmsforsale | |
tristor wrote 13 hours 51 min ago: | |
Or just sell it to Kitco, and only buy bullion coins of high | |
quality provenance, probably also from Kitco. No real issues other | |
than the logistics costs associated with shipping via registered | |
mail. | |
RyanOD wrote 16 hours 1 min ago: | |
I resist buying many things by thinking about my kids having to (some | |
day) deal with it when I kick the bucket. | |
rs186 wrote 15 hours 21 min ago: | |
I know people who live in an apartment resist purchases by thinking | |
"it's going to be a liability for my next move" which works quite | |
well. | |
JohnFen wrote 4 hours 4 min ago: | |
Living in an apartment definitely limits my purchasing. I'm not | |
thinking about things being a liability for the next move, though. | |
I'm thinking about now. I have limited space, so part of the | |
purchasing decision is "what am I willing to get rid of to make | |
room for this?". Often the answer is "nothing" and the purchase | |
doesn't happen. | |
steanne wrote 15 hours 14 min ago: | |
especially with art, "how hard is this going to be to clean?" helps | |
too | |
whilenot-dev wrote 12 hours 31 min ago: | |
Maintainance in general, excludes all IoT electronics right off | |
the bat for me. | |
cnst wrote 16 hours 3 min ago: | |
I try to combat the shopping addiction by ensuring for every purchase, | |
(1), that the price is really good, (2), that the quality is actually | |
really good, too. | |
For example, $149 for a great monitor is a great deal. But it has to | |
be IPS, USB-C, DP 1.4, QHD or higher, 400nits etc. Normally, these | |
retail for $599, so, I don't buy. Many monitors retail for $99, but | |
they're FHD 250nits VGA crap. | |
Slickdeals.net is a nice website where you can find some of these | |
deals. Keep in mind that even for really good deals, some people over | |
there would still be unhappy and would still expect higher specs or | |
lower price, so, you have to use your own judgement whether something | |
is good or not. Recently missed a 32in 4K UHD monitor at 159.99 | |
because it was a VA, and people complained too much that VA sucks, but | |
the rest of the specs were just too good, and it sold out quickly; | |
OTOH, I can now wait for a better deal! | |
cheschire wrote 14 hours 29 min ago: | |
I set aside some money for a monitor and it was years before I got a | |
good one. one day at Costco I was walking by this monitor I had been | |
eyeing for about six months. It was on sale. Last one. Floor model. | |
No box, no book, just the monitor and the power cable. Saved $150. | |
Cost about $350 after the mark down. Itâs been great for over a | |
year without any issues. | |
Your deal will come! Just keep your eyes open and your budget | |
prepped. | |
abhinai wrote 16 hours 6 min ago: | |
I'd heavily expand on the selection. Maybe even make them AI generated | |
with beautiful designs so people can go through an endless catalogue. | |
Dream. You may be on to something and this may be bigger than your | |
original idea. You could help people dream about stuff that does not | |
exist. | |
justbuynothing wrote 44 min ago: | |
Originally I had over 1K products on site and quickly realized that | |
cloudinary is expensive....Once I can come up with a better way to | |
scale I'll add them all back. Also have some AI generated futuristic | |
products to unload. | |
re wrote 12 hours 41 min ago: | |
> Maybe even make them AI generated | |
Pretty sure they already are--just ahead of time, not on-the-fly. | |
netsharc wrote 15 hours 53 min ago: | |
Hah, an AI-generated page of specs would give me a mental boner.. | |
"This floorp Deluxe comes with 512 zroom fleex cores, plus 768 of the | |
latest-gen 4nm-process QPU...". | |
steanne wrote 15 hours 12 min ago: | |
[1]: https://youtu.be/Ac7G7xOG2Ag | |
FollowingTheDao wrote 16 hours 7 min ago: | |
This is like cigarettes and coffee for ex-alcoholics. | |
coffeecoders wrote 16 hours 11 min ago: | |
I think this could work if it was more than just a static site with no | |
description page. Give it description pages with gallery, reviews etc. | |
justbuynothing wrote 47 min ago: | |
products should all have descriptions, prices, and reviews (still | |
waiting for users to generate these) when you click through on them. | |
Want to add more for each like all e-commerce sites have but man | |
Cloudinary is expensive. | |
re wrote 12 hours 37 min ago: | |
Unless it's changed in the few hours since you've commented, there | |
already are detail pages and reviews. You have to scroll down below | |
"Limited Time Offers" to the complete category list/gallery, and | |
those products are clickable. e.g. | |
[1]: https://justbuynothing.com/product/6086 | |
redhale wrote 16 hours 14 min ago: | |
I have found that adding things to a todo (Todist) list called | |
"want-to-buy" gives me the little endorphin boost / anxiety relief | |
without spending any money. I periodically go through and delete stuff | |
from this list after time has passed, and I'm always glad I didn't go | |
through with the purchases. Rarely I will come across something I truly | |
do still want, and will purchase it. | |
cabaalis wrote 2 hours 56 min ago: | |
I feel the exact same way about Amazon lists and that's what I use | |
them for. I wonder if that's why the "Add to List" button is somewhat | |
hard to find, and if they regret the feature. | |
woutr_be wrote 13 hours 41 min ago: | |
I've been thinking about setting up a small website that lets you | |
input what you wanted to buy, and after 24 hours sends you an email | |
asking if you really wanted to buy/needed this. | |
justbuynothing wrote 54 min ago: | |
Check out the chrome extension on the site! Helps ask you are you | |
sure? before buying something on Amazon. Not on the chrome store | |
yet but can be tested in dev mode. | |
bravesoul2 wrote 13 hours 49 min ago: | |
Also see if you can make do. So many things when really thought about | |
are unnecessary. | |
Cerium wrote 15 hours 18 min ago: | |
Similarly, I have a "no same day buy" rule. Usually I wait at least a | |
few days and most of the time by then I don't need the item anymore. | |
ron_k wrote 10 hours 13 min ago: | |
I have a 10â¬/day rule: if I want to buy something that costs | |
120â¬, I have to be sure of wanting it for 12 straight days. | |
That doesnât apply to emergencies, of course. | |
deadbabe wrote 14 hours 4 min ago: | |
One thing I would always buy right away is book recommendations. If | |
someone recommends a book and it sounds interesting I just buy it | |
right away even if Iâm not sure that I want to commit to reading | |
it or not. This helps keep my bookshelf filled with interesting | |
stuff that I could still potentially read someday. | |
sokoloff wrote 9 hours 35 min ago: | |
You should buy the Codex Leicester containing many of Da | |
Vinceâs thoughts, designs, drawings, etc. | |
;) | |
[1]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex_Leicester | |
Shadowmist wrote 11 hours 46 min ago: | |
You'd probably enjoy "Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of | |
Cooking", which has beautiful photography and possibly goes | |
deeper into cooking than any other book. The main author was CTO | |
at Microsoft back in the day, and another author founded a | |
company that makes a thermometer with some pretty neat tech. | |
mikepurvis wrote 16 hours 4 min ago: | |
I do this as well, itâs especially good for media purchases like | |
blurays and video games. Eventually thereâs a sale or I just | |
realize I donât actually care or want to see/watch it any more. | |
patrickscoleman wrote 16 hours 12 min ago: | |
I do this with just an ever expanding notes file. Works! | |
initramfs wrote 16 hours 15 min ago: | |
this is brilliant | |
justbuynothing wrote 51 min ago: | |
thank you! | |
Null-Set wrote 16 hours 16 min ago: | |
Does it track my behavior to sell it to advertisers of less whimsical | |
storefronts? | |
mgkimsal wrote 16 hours 19 min ago: | |
Worked in a mall in the 90s and thought a store that let people 'shop' | |
but not actually pay money for things might be fun/useful. Or... sort | |
of like a membership. $10/month, come in to some luxury type store - | |
browse, test out stuff, etc. Go through a 'checkout' step with your | |
'store card', just... leave the items in the store as you leave. For | |
some folks, the leaving and driving away is the 'high', but for a lot | |
of folks, the 'purchase' itself is the high, and it's downhill after | |
that. I saw so many people buying things they shouldn't buy - and that | |
was over 30 years ago(!). I know it's only become worse over the | |
years. | |
FWIW - my idea was possibly sort of dumb, but I was a bit of a dumb kid | |
at times... :) | |
thefz wrote 9 hours 4 min ago: | |
I do this all the time with online shops: fill the cart with things, | |
come back later or after a couple of days and I don't check out | |
because I feel I was dumb for wanting that stuff. | |
drivingmenuts wrote 4 hours 18 min ago: | |
That's how I do my online grocery shopping - I fill the cart with | |
things that are interesting, needed, etc., and when I'm ready to | |
actually buy, I empty the cart and fill it with the things I | |
actually need. Many times, what seemed like a good idea was, in | |
later reflection, not such a good idea. | |
steanne wrote 15 hours 16 min ago: | |
you can even put some empty boxes in bags for them to carry out | |
moritzwarhier wrote 15 hours 29 min ago: | |
Just replace "leave the items at the store" with debt, | |
buy-now-pay-later or "30 days return" guarantees and you have a | |
business idea! Car culture and oversized suburban homes even absolve | |
you from the pain of carrying things you don't need, and finding | |
storage space for them. | |
It is a win for the economy! | |
And if you need to free up storage space, dispose for free, it's | |
societies responsibility! | |
mockingloris wrote 15 hours 34 min ago: | |
There are utilities to your idea and by that virtue, Just Buy | |
Nothing. | |
With a bit of contributed enhancements this could actually solve a | |
niche problem. | |
I'm already imagining a situation where you can opt in for a | |
discovery/assessment after checkout; each item is assessed for | |
utility of need vs want and whether a smaller or less expensive | |
replacement could meet the same needs. | |
At the end of this, a user could come off with a smaller basket that | |
they could then take to a real shopping site and or be charged for | |
the session. | |
Privacy has to be nailed quickly though. | |
Closing remarks: | |
AI could help in the aspect of scaling the discovery/analysis with | |
users. | |
This was about 15 minutes of thought. There's something here for | |
sure. | |
justbuynothing wrote 56 min ago: | |
I like this idea a lot. Been working a ton on the site to get it to | |
where it is today and make updates based on user feedback. | |
AI has been helping me create product images. Right now I have it | |
limited to 150 products on the site at the time. I originally had | |
1K+ and realized that cloudinary is very expensive. It provides the | |
best user experience but had to cut back a bit for now to not break | |
my own wallet. | |
AndrewKemendo wrote 16 hours 22 min ago: | |
When people buy, you should send them a postcard to close the dopamine | |
loop. | |
In my experience the majority of compulsive shoppers like getting a box | |
almost as much as whatever is in it | |
justbuynothing wrote 48 min ago: | |
I like this idea a lot! That's the missing piece is not actually | |
getting something delivered. | |
Thinking about making a premium version where users can log in and | |
get a postcard delivered and simulated ads like emails and SMS for | |
fake deals. | |
thatxliner wrote 16 hours 36 min ago: | |
This is a pretty good idea but what if we simulated actual store UI | |
such as Amazon | |
ronsor wrote 16 hours 23 min ago: | |
>what if we simulated actual store UI such as Amazon | |
A phone call from Amazon lawyers. | |
justbuynothing wrote 50 min ago: | |
definitely am trying to avoid getting sued. Made it as close as I | |
could without it being exact. Also thinking of adding additional | |
skins to match stores where users find themselves spending for no | |
reason. | |
dmoy wrote 16 hours 50 min ago: | |
So it's like nicotine patches? Gives you a similar dopamine hit | |
without the wallet hit? | |
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