onoki

I don't care about which operating system, but my hobby projects have always included things that help myself. E.g.

• Software to collect/archive/analyse real life data (e.g. real estate data from various sources).
• Scripts to parse and structure data that I need e.g. for learning other things.
• Firmware for small embedded electronics.
• Home automation.

So my suggestion is to think of something that you need, but there isn't a perfect solution yet. Although this advice comes from someone who has been working in software development for two decades now.

If you haven't programmed before, think something very very small first.

Interesting to hear news from the smaller countries too. Thanks for sharing!

I would look at the current job postings what kind of skills are in demand in China. Chances are, most of those are still applicable couple of years from now on.

How do you find that information? Someone else might have a better idea of that. But I also see many people learn very interesting software niches for which there are close to no employers in my country (not China).

Baba Is You belongs to the same category. One of my favorite puzzles.

Pre-existing models/art is something that is a huge work effort. Not to be undervalued. If one can get those for free, it can be the reason some game exists.

Take Auto Chess for example. I can imagine programming that DOTA 2 mod was an effort one or few programmers did as a hobby at first. If they would have had to either pay or network with artists to create the art and other people to do marketing, it would have been a lot more than a hobby.

One of the best games there is, but without any keyboard shortcuts, that will be annoying really soon.

I participated in multiple homestays in different countries as part of my studies. The shortest was one night, the longest one month. But to be clear, no working, just an opportunity to live with a local family when studying abroad.

I guess those were the best ways to actually see how regular people live in those countries. What are the apartments like, what kind of habits they have. Everyday stuff that you won't see as a regular tourist.

Those would have also been golden opportunities to improve my language skills more, if I wasn't so shy.

But regardless, now almost 20 years later, those are one of the very memorable and distinct experiences from my youth.

I would definitely recommend it. Assuming the culture/country is something that interests you.

They were a bigger deal. I started learning Japanese when the first Iphone came out and spent quite some time in Japan when the Android phones were a new thing. Internet on the phones was very limited.

Dictionaries existed on the phones, but the usability was non-existent. Even worse if you had to look for a word you didn't know how to read.

The electronic dictionaries had great writing detection and cross-referencing between language and informational dictionaries etc. At the time they were awesome. One electronic dictionary could contain dozens of dictionaries of various topics, which probably was convenient for Japanese themselves (and not just language learners).

Of course nowadays you can do the same on a phone, but there was a period when you couldn't.

"for a lot of models" is a bit of an exaggeration. Especially as Xiaomi/Dreame try to actively restrict Valetudo use.

But yes, Valetudo is a great project. I'd just wish there was a manufacturer who would openly endorse it.

At least in Chinese it's 海豚 (haitun).

There are many streamers who stream somewhat daily things. But the streamers are content creators - they interact with the viewers and choose their activities such that it is likely to be interesting to watch.

So, I'd give it a try if I was you. But probably not exactly what you are looking for.

I think there are many good replies already, but I feel one consideration is missing: time.

If you have the time for only one job, why wouldn't you take one paying more, even if it requires a bit more skills to achieve? You are going to do that for a long while, so living more comfortably has a value.