/diy/ - Do It Yourself

tl;dr, simple is good. Share your thoughts.

Simplicity is what we essentially strive for as we toil away with our hands and tools to make out thoughts solid tangible things. Satisfaction is all we truly ask for.

Some people easily find metaphors for things (i.e. space expanded at the big bang, it wasn't created, like the surface of an inflating balloon). Associating something complicated with something simple is the best trick to get someone to understand something quickly.

I'd say the universe thrives on the complexity layers between completely shit random and complete structure. Each layer has its own version of a "simple" patterns.

When I make things, its a shitton of simple parts, interconnected in a complex manner.

>>25281
its just seeing a problem and learning how to solve it. really. think about it. a bike is a series of components. something goes wrong. dont think about what the "procedure" is to fix it, dont think about how it's supposed to be fixed, just fix it.

but this is all habit. you dont get this way of thinking through theory, you get it through practice, doing it so often that it is just something you do.

There was a saying i was always given when i was a kid:

KISS. The KISS principle.

Keep It Simple Stupid = KISS

The more complex you make something the more that can go wrong. You never make anything more complex than it needs to be.

So I put a hell load of importance on simplicity. I dont like to add anything more/do anything more than it needs for completion. And then, once it works (and i mean works with no bugs etc; not a 'beta') then i work more on it.. that way i know whatever else i added made it crash.

Just my insight.

You just have to treat things simply. Believe they're simple. There's almost a 'leap of faith' from complexity to simplicity. Just feel that something is intrinsically simple and it becomes that way. Works with anything.

I think you're oversimplifying.

I can't agree more. It seems the universe has some sort of preference for simple things.
But it might also be the case that by always choosing the path of simplicity, we may be missing out on hidden advantages.
Take modern computers as an example: how enjoyable would they be without all the truly complex (or complicated) set of hardware and software they are comprised of?

>All my life I've wondered how master DIY-ers seem to accumulate so much skill with so much relative ease.
I think it's just a certain mindset plus time. You have to be willing to make mistakes and learn from them, and you have to enjoy creating things so you put the time into honing your skills.

>so much skill with so much relative ease

the more skill you get, the more skill you realize you don't have. and it's never 'easy' to get better...

the more you know about something, and the more you understand its complexity, the more simple it will seem when it fits together. a motor seems pretty complex when you don't know what any of the parts are - it's just a bunch of random bullshit with no meaning. but eventually you start to see it as less of a disordered pile and more of a coherent object of which all parts serve a particular function. and then it doesn't seem very complicated at all!

>>25281
>necessity is the mother of all invention
>so lots of diyers are poor fags, like me, I learned to fix cars out of necessity, then it became a hobby, then a profession.
>It's also How I've learned to fix a water heater, my home a/c unit, carpentry, masonry, welding, plumbing, home electrical, gardening, pc repair, electronics repair, appliance repair, and so on, because I simply cannot afford to hire somone to do all of those things for me.

>>25428

I find that when learning something complex, the easiest way to fully understand something so complex is to break it down into super-simple segments, we see this done everyday but I think only great minds can take it to the next level.

I also beleive that taking a less simple approach to something will eventually lead to reduced productivity (i.e. a PC technician that doesnt know the fundamentals of electricity, or a pianist that doesnt know acoustics).

Understanding simplicity itself and the simplicity of other areas breeds innovation.

In this respect it is no wonder Occams Razor holds much merit.

capitalization of free time and spare change.

over time, such capital transforms into usable wealth in the form of skills, materielle and the know-how to apply it. Self-discipline to apply yourself on a consistent basis - no bosses, no teachers.

>>25510
What this guy said.

I'm a licensed A&P mechanic(I'm paid to over think things), and I assure you it is almost always a waste of time. Example: I'm currently working on a project guitar. I could paint my 100 dollar investment, go through the month-long process of Nitro coating it, and end up with a run-of-the-mill mid-range looking guitar, or I can stain it, hit it with some teak oil, and give it a nice, natural satin finish and make my investment look like a high-end instrument with minimal effort.

While I do consider simplicity a great thing to pursue, I think it is not the single thing that makes a DIYer a master in any given craft, nor is it what makes him/her pick up new skills relatively easy, as OP proposes.

You yourself said it, OP. A framework for knowledge.
I think that getting to know a first technique may be pretty difficult. But then you learn another and another. With time you start to understand a structure. Your brain starts to assimilate techniques and it will on its own propose a frame with what to expect (so you already know there will be needed to do this ir that step), and then you just need to fill in the blanks.
This is what allows to learn new skills easier.

For this to work you do need simplicity of concepts, or rather, understand complex tasks by the many simple steps required, but to actually amase a large number of skills, you need to be exposed to the learning process in a regular basis. Learn new techniques and put them into practice. All the time. That is the only way to accumulate skills with ease.
There's no shortcut.

I think the hardest questions have multiple answers, and aren't simple. I think were running out of simplicity, honestly.

list all the philosophy texts you read
or at least the ones you consider most important

Amusingly enough, I've pondered on this as well. Though I reached the opposite conclusion, sort of...
Personally I'm thinking it is a *simplicity*, but a simplicity born from complexity.
The best example of this I can think of right now is Physics. Our understanding is many small concepts that have been discovered and built upon over the years to form what we have today - which is admittedly complicated but pointing in the direction of something overarching yet simple.
So, in the context of /diy/ this is like saying "learn the basics of your craft" and eventually, you'll look at something complex and see something simple. This is especially the case when you branch out and learn other crafts. You'll also notice that many skills of one craft are the same/similar to that of another.

This thread is lovely, I have to go and make something now, motivation 9000. I wanna be one of the great men of time. A great thinker like Thoreau, and Einstein, and a great inventor like Da Vinci. It's fuckin possible, I know it. I'm the Ash Ketchum of /diy/. Building LEGO was the first step, and now the journey starts.

Simplicity is all. Simplicity is none. Simplicity just is. Simplicity just isn't.

Simplicity is just that; simplicity. And that simplicity, is simplicity it self.

I believe you are a little wrong. It's 'analytical ability'. With it you can perceive things as "simple", which leads you to conclude that it's simplicity itself that is essential.

I'd say a good learner, an intelligent person, or whatever you want to call it has a great chance of being good at analyzing, breaking down things into patterns and modules that are already known.

So instead of
see thing>learn from ground up
see new thing>learn from ground up
etc

you get
see thing>learn from ground up
see new thing>reduce to elements already known from first thing, only have to learn actual new elements
see next thing>reduce to known elements, probably even less actual new elements to learn

So, for someone that is good at analysis, the more you learn the easier it gets to learn more.

For example you could learn about painting and woodworking and notice that in both cases the progress from planning to execution is similar, making it easier to learn and memorize the analogue process when learning about mechanics.


Of course if you define "simplicity" as reducing and abstracting, then you're right, but I think using the term "analytical ability" instead of simplicity is less misleading.

everything has rules. all rules are related in some way. finding one set which work in one field allows me to branch into others, finding the similarity between disciplines and projects is the talent which a polymath holds most dear.

The ability to see parallels and connections.

>>25281

I've taught myself programming, electronics, woodworking, machining, welding, and chemistry, so I think I might be qualified to help you out, OP.

Simplicity is definitely the key thing; so much so that I've actually got a weird neurosis about it, to where if I see something with a complex design, it makes me significantly upset.

There's another part to it as well, however; if you work using simplicity alone, you'd eventually end up as a particle physicist through a process of reductionism. What I've done is I've found good "stopping points" for my knowledge, that put upper and lower bounds on the level of detail my brain works with.

For example, I don't go any "lower" than classical physics, or any higher than a few calculations beyond those equations. An example of something that would violate the "upper" bound would be engineering equations developed for specific applications; for example if I were to design a gas engine, I wouldn't use <some guy>'s engine equation, which may very well be extremely accurate; instead I would use simpler things like the ideal gas law, and accept some inefficiencies in exchange for greater simplicity.

Continued below

>>27918

Overall the most important thing I've learned is to value simplicity over reality, which is probably why I've been able to learn so much; simpler thoughts are smaller than more realistic thoughts, so I can fit more of them in my head.

One last thing, as well; once my brain had accumulated simple explanations for how all the parts of the world work, it began to run a sort of simulation in my head; whenever I'm using a tool or driving a car or fixing a circuit--whenever I'm doing anything with anything, really--my brain visualizes what's going on in every part of the thing at the same time. This is probably why complex things are so upsetting to me; I can't just turn that function off, so it's overwhelming to look at something like a modern car engine or a modern computer motherboard.

This is kind of rambling and probably doesn't explain everything well, but I hope it helps a little at least.

>>27734
But is analytical ability really what does this? I've always been a fast learner and I've always been able to do this. The only time I have a problem in learning anything (I never study except for this case) is when I have to remember specific things, as in not HOW things work, but WHAT things are, like the periodic table, constants, etc.

I do what you said instinctively, I guess it's definitely part of the process but I've always thought there was perhaps something more to it.

>>25281
You know Thoreau left town by two miles? And he lived in a house, and entertained guests regularly.
I don't know how Walden got it's association with wilderness living.

>>27711

with those dubs u'll be unstoppable