Ask HN: Am I the only dev who, with the advent if AI, want to work in a forest?
Am I the only software engineer who, with the advent of AI, is thinking about going to work in a forest, surrounded by nature, to change completely life prospective?
I bought a small forest. They are not actually expensive in my area. I love walking out of my door when work gets frustrating and walking through it. So yes, the answer to your question is definitely "Yes." But there are middle grounds between dedicating your life to the modern tech dystopia vs. completely walking away. Work remotely. Find a home that is in a natural setting. Go outside and enjoy it.
I got perfect 5G on top of a hill in the forest near me.
As it is I have a nice office above my pay grade in a run down and underpopulated building... It's pretty sweet, particularly compared to the CS building across the street which is an overcrowded WeWork kind of space where I really do think I'd be driven crazy by other people.
No, you aren't the only one, however I know from my uncle who used to do this that it will most likely mean back-breaking work or paid measly (sometimes both), hardly enough to feed a family.
But it's a funny image of usually quiet forests now crawling with former software devs looking for a new purpose.
As a kid I lived somewhere close to a forest, as well my granpa had a tiny farm. I basically grew up in the woods as I'd go there to play with my friends, take care of livestock on the farm, do all kinds of random stuff and also get bitten by a snake and random problems too.
We made a soccer field, built a hut and a couple of other things there. It was fun.
I do miss it, and this isn't about AI or anything, but mostly nostalgia of a simpler time, but it isn't that simple as an adult or to make this a full-time endeavour and just live there.
Nature is fucking harsh, people that are crying about AI getting them unemployed or changing their professions are pretty much mostly softies... and seeing nature as refuge is a mistake. Living there is HARD.
There's a reason why people accept living in a huge city instead of buying some cheap plot somewhere.
Life in the city is so easy as the government typically takes care of a lot of invisible problems you have if you live in the middle of nowhere.
So, living in the woods is very tough, I just lived nearby and we've had to deal with many issues because of it.
If you intend to live there, you are up for a rude awakening. It's very expensive as well, you'd need to invest quite a bit to make it livable.
Also if you want to eventually plant some potatos or something there might be regulations and limitations of what you can do.
With some planning it's definitely doable, but it isn't that simple to just move in there.
An alternative nowadays can be to have a camper, but not all countries allow you to camp anywhere, in the US you are allowed to, but in Europe AFAIK you can't.
Then you can just camp for sometime and see if it's fitting you, and figure out how can you make a living doing it, as inevitably you'll need money and find out how to survive.
As it is I have a nice office above my pay grade in a run down and underpopulated building... It's pretty sweet, particularly compared to the CS building across the street which is an overcrowded WeWork kind of space where I really do think I'd be driven crazy by other people.
We made a soccer field, built a hut and a couple of other things there. It was fun.
I do miss it, and this isn't about AI or anything, but mostly nostalgia of a simpler time, but it isn't that simple as an adult or to make this a full-time endeavour and just live there.
Nature is fucking harsh, people that are crying about AI getting them unemployed or changing their professions are pretty much mostly softies... and seeing nature as refuge is a mistake. Living there is HARD.
There's a reason why people accept living in a huge city instead of buying some cheap plot somewhere.
Life in the city is so easy as the government typically takes care of a lot of invisible problems you have if you live in the middle of nowhere.
So, living in the woods is very tough, I just lived nearby and we've had to deal with many issues because of it.
If you intend to live there, you are up for a rude awakening. It's very expensive as well, you'd need to invest quite a bit to make it livable.
Also if you want to eventually plant some potatos or something there might be regulations and limitations of what you can do.
With some planning it's definitely doable, but it isn't that simple to just move in there.
An alternative nowadays can be to have a camper, but not all countries allow you to camp anywhere, in the US you are allowed to, but in Europe AFAIK you can't.
Then you can just camp for sometime and see if it's fitting you, and figure out how can you make a living doing it, as inevitably you'll need money and find out how to survive.