What's the equivalent of Twitter's 140 char limit for non-Latin charsets? - <AUTHOR> http://bens.me.uk/2010/twitter-charset-experiment

<comment><USER2> Since, presumably, the 140 character limit derives from SMS message limits, it might be interesting to look at what the message lengths are for these (note that this is GSM specific and I don't know the CDMA equivalents):

SMS payload is 140 octets. That means that you can store 140 8bit characters, eg Latin1 encoding, in a text message.

However, the GSM default encoding is 7bit packed. Each character is 7bit and they are packed together into the 140 octets, this leaves a maximum size of 160 characters per message.

For international characters, GSM uses USC2, which is a 16bit encoding, limiting messages to 70 characters.

You can also send concatenated messages, where multiple SMS messages make up the actual message text. In this case, you must subtract (from memory, so may be off) 4 octets from the limits, for the user data header. The user data header consists of a length and one or more information elements. An information element consists of 3 octets: an information element identifier (in this case, 0, for concatenated message) and some parameters (I'm not sure if this is specific to the IEI? I could look it up, but I'm too lazy.. for concatenated messages, the next octet is number of messages and the final one is the current message index).

Hopefully someone found this information interesting ;-)

<comment><USER2> Minor correction - information elements consist of an information element identifier, a length and length number of octets for a total of "length + 2" octets per information element. In the case of concatenated messages, IE identifier is 0 and length is 3 and the 3 octets of data are id, part and number of parts, in that order.

</comment></comment><comment><USER3> It's an interesting experiment, but I don't trust the conclusion. Automatic translation still tends to be fairly literal, rather than idiomatic. I have a suspicion that this tends to increase the average message length. An interesting experiment would be to translate English tweets into those various target languages, and compare the two. If my hunch is right, the text will get bigger in both directions. The ratio between the increases may be a good measure of the information density of idiomatic expression.

<comment><AUTHOR> You're right, it's absolutely unscientific and the results are of dubious statistical significance. Going through machine translation makes the whole thing pointless anyway.

But it was fun to write, which I suppose was the actual point of it. One of the joys of being able to program computers is that when you want to have such a question answered, you can a short bit of code to get the answer.

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> Speaking of which, I've been looking for a new Twitter-alike since Twitter hard-limited tweets to 140 characters. It's just not enough.

Any suggestions?</comment>


Why Every Company Should Have APIs - <AUTHOR> http://motyar.blogspot.com/2012/11/why-every-company-should-have-apis.html#.UgyJfVKHozo.hackernews <comment><USER2> Should be titled "In my tiny world, all companies provide software services over the internet".

I've noticed this attitude across HN, and articles it links to. In particular, "startup" refers to a particular narrow breed of dotcom-bubble style company. I develop for a technology startup that uses custom software to help accomplish its (unique) manufacturing goals. A lot of what I read on HN is relevant to me, so I find it quite irksome when I come across a post that doesn't even acknowledge the existence of a company like mine.</comment>


Unlucky Thief Steals IPhone Used in GPS Tracking Tests - <AUTHOR> http://www.cio.com/article/600358/Unlucky_Thief_Steals_IPhone_Used_in_GPS_Tracking_Tests?source=rss_all <comment><USER2> It was a publicity stunt.</comment>


How to Explain Bitcoin to a 7-Year-Old - <AUTHOR> https://medium.com/bitcoins-digital-currency/a9a8c094feaf <comment><USER2> This fails to address the biggest question any self-respecting seven-year-old will ask:

"Why?"

<comment><AUTHOR> Young kids always ask that, don't they!

I'd probably talk about trust, but there's no correct answer here. My guess is that Bitcoin was created because its creator doesn't trust the government.

<comment><USER3> > My guess is that Bitcoin was created because its creator doesn't trust the > government.

Also privacy in private markets, so not trusting VISA/Mastercard etc to sell my transaction data [1].

Plus the decentralized value [2], so not trusting the bankers/finance industry who have a large influence on the value of state currencies in addition to the government.

[1] [http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2013/05/the_publicpriv...](http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2013/05/the_publicpriva.html)

[2] [http://paulbohm.com/articles/bitcoins-value-is- decentralizat...](http://paulbohm.com/articles/bitcoins-value-is- decentralization/)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> Obviously the guy doesn't have access to any 7 year olds.

Besides being way (way way way way way) too long, it's way too complex.

Lottery, transaction, millions, security camera, online, indestructible, odds, all words that would need their own explanation in 7 year old terms.

This is just more bitcoin fluff trying to ride the buzz.

<comment><USER5> Well, I'm not sure about 7 year olds, but it's the first explanation of Bitcoin I've seen that I think my father may be able to understand. I'm going to link it to him.

<comment><USER6> I was going to send it to my wife - I think she could understand this better than how I've been explaining it. I don't know anything about kids.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> <http://youtu.be/Um63OQz3bjo>

I agree that explaining people (be them 7 or 20 years old) what bitcoins are and what the fuss is all about is quite complicated.

Usually I just send people that video, but this explanation is pretty interesting (maybe not as effective as the video, though).

<comment><USER8> The room full of piggy bank analogy is IMHO a lot more effective and accurate explanation that this video which barely brushes how Bitcoin works. (I too have been explaining Bitcoin to people since 2010 while being deeply familiar with its internals.)

</comment></comment><comment><USER9> "There's a robot in the room that runs lotteries. Every so often, this robot randomly chooses a piggy bank in the room, and puts 50 coins in it. "

Is this true ? So saying if I'm a user of bitcoin, will I just wake up one day to find 50 coins added to my balance ?

<comment><AUTHOR> Assuming you're a miner, yes. In order to a be a miner, you just need to install the program.

<comment><USER9> Yep maybe the analogy needs to be updated to reflect that :)

<comment><AUTHOR> Yeah, I'm not sure how to explain it without making the analogy a lot more complicated.

<comment><USER10> Because it is hard to see from the camera how many coins are there in particular piggy bank, there are working small permoniks (aka miners) with funny caps.

[https://www.google.com/search?q=permonik&tbm=isch&tb...](https://www.google.com/search?q=permonik&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=iK2FUYT8DOOpiAKM44DYAg&ved=0CEMQsAQ&biw=1440&bih=802)

Permonik randomly wanders the room and re-counts the coins in piggy banks. Always he erases an old number and writes his count on the piggy bank with marker.

The robot watches permoniks. He sees how fast they are and if they count well (their counting is equal the majority of other permoniks for given piggy bank). The lottery rewards fast and honest permoniks with higher odds of win.

There is one more thing. When doing transaction, you may leave a small number of coins (aka the fee) under the piggy bank. This is a reward for permonik as he visits the piggy bank for recounting.

Each permonik has a master and all his revenues go to master's piggy bank.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER11> It's just a currency for Silk Road. That's how it is explained. As clear as when I always remember when I wanna understand how is it addicted to the real economy.

<comment><AUTHOR> That's not true. Just because Silk Road is one of its main uses, there are many others. I think Bitcoins will do really well in gaming, small payments, and international trade.

<comment><USER11> I hope.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER12> That explanation doesn't really explain how the coins are mined, but it I guess for a 7 year old, that explanation should be good enough.

</comment><comment><USER13> What about the kill switch? <http://www.loper-os.org/?p=1009>

<comment><AUTHOR> I love this line:

Some people are incensed by "hoarders" – not I. I don't give a damn. At least Bitcoin hoarders never had to kill anyone to obtain their wealth, unlike those who control land and other natural resources.

</comment></comment><comment><USER14> This is pretty good, not sure about the lottery thing though, since not everyone is a bitcoin miner.

<comment><AUTHOR> Thanks. I agree, it's not perfect.

<comment><USER5> How about: Anyone can place a security camera in the room, but maintaining one costs money. The lottery goes to the security camera operators.

<comment><AUTHOR> Hm, it doesn't cost any money to gain access to the network though. Anyone can download the client.

<comment><USER15> I think the point is that mining costs a little bit of money in electricity, and mining is more effective the more money you put into it.

<comment><AUTHOR> Yes, but it doesn't cost money to view the network's history.

To stay true to the analogy, I would include lottery tickets. However, I don't think this is necessary. The core concepts are explained.

<comment><USER5> >Yes, but it doesn't cost money to view the network's history, which is analogous to purchasing a security camera.

It works if you assume everyone who purchases a security camera makes their video feed/history publicly available for free.

<comment><AUTHOR> But then only one person would need to buy the cameras, so why mention it?

<comment><USER5> If only one person has a security camera, his buddy can go in the room and mess with the money, and he can splice in fake footage so no one finds out.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER16> As a (7 year * 4) old man, I dont really understand your explanation:(

<comment><AUTHOR> How can I improve it?

<comment><USER11> > There's a room that anyone can access. The room has security cameras that > anyone can view, and every second of recorded footage is available online > forever.

's/anyone can access/noboby can access/'

's/anyone can view/noboby can view/'

>Naturally, these piggy banks have coin slots, and everyone can see which coins are in which piggy bank.

's/everyone can see/nobody can see/' (Hide it == Show it)

> These piggy banks can never leave the room.

's/leave the room/leave to the light/'

>Then, I walk into the room with a ski mask on.

>> with a ski mask on.

Yeah, You mean it!

>Anyone in the world can see me on the security cameras, but not my face.

>> but not my face.

That's what we are paid for.

>"Who made the robot..?"

The same who made these schemes and manipulations to rule the crowd.

<comment><AUTHOR> I don't quite understand your comment, mind elaborating?

<comment><USER11> Nobody knows what he works for. I mean mining. Is it for good things or not. That's the summary.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER17> How do I create/get my own piggy bank with a key?

<comment><AUTHOR> Good question. Anyone can sign up for a piggy bank outside the room. The robot also takes care of that :)

</comment></comment><comment><USER2> Bitcoin is a lot like quantum mechanics. Nobody really understands it.</comment>


Today's the day that YC invites applicants to interviews - <AUTHOR> "On April 16, we'll invite the groups that seem most promising to meet us in Mountain View during April 26-30." from apply.html<p>Does anyone know when the invitations go out? I'm super anxious to know. <comment><USER2> As was discussed last round [1], they usually arrive at 8PM CDT, 6PM PDT.

[1] <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3179780>

</comment><comment><USER3> I googled this regarding previous years and it seems like they're sent out early evening Eastern time.

edit: mid-evening Eastern Time.

</comment><comment><USER4> Yup W12 I received the email around 6pm PT.

Fingers crossed for S12 and good luck to all the other teams!

</comment><comment><USER5> Good luck everybody. Hopefully one day I'll be ready to submit an application.

<comment><USER6> thanx we all need it =) good luck to U too

</comment></comment><comment><USER7> Same as ig1: last time: 7:01 PM PDT

</comment><comment><USER8> Came here for this info. Thanks, and may the force be with you (and also with you).

<comment><USER9> May the odds be ever in your favor.

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> We didn't get an interview either! Bummer..we were hoping for an interview as we both have quit our jobs + had senior software positions previously. What kind of teams/people did you guys apply with?

<comment><USER11> Good luck to everyone who made it to the interviews! Wish I could be right there with you.

Our team consisted of one senior developer, a creative director and a visual marketing specialist. We're all in our late 20's and were planning to relocate from the east coast.

</comment></comment><comment><USER12> Godspeed to all applicants!

</comment><comment><USER13> We just heard back (4pm PDT) -- no interview for us. Was to be expected, especially as we only heard about YC two weeks before the application was due. Best of luck to everyone else!

</comment><comment><USER14> Last time: 18:58:52 (PDT)

</comment><comment><USER15> We just heard back and got an interview! Terribly exciting news.

<comment><USER16> Congrats and best of luck!

</comment></comment><comment><USER17> We received our rejection and very disappointed. We have a disruptive idea and our demo got raving feedback from domain experts. Will post demo here soon.

Congrats to those who got invites.

</comment><comment><USER18> I didn't get in. Congrats to those who got invites!

<comment><USER19> How do you know did they send you an email or something?

<comment><USER18> Yeah, I just got it.

<comment><USER20> Got my rejection letter seconds ago.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> When does the W12 App go up? If we're not chosen this time, we plan to be the first in line for W12 :)

<comment><USER22> August. Just remember that a rejection isn't quite pluck a random boolean out a hat: you should be looking to move forward and improve, then try for it again if it still seems right. That's what I'll be doing if/when it's a No. Looking to just file again with no change isn't really going to go anywhere.

</comment></comment><comment><USER23> totally ready to get my awesome "rejection letter" lol. =x. it looks like you get the rejections first and then the acceptance letters. hoping to get a response early might be counter-intuitive to the response you're looking for. =/

<comment><USER24> I dont think so. Both are delivered at the same time.

</comment></comment><comment><USER25> Reading old articles about the YC application process, it always seems like the teams accepted were emailing/skyping/etc with yc partners throughout the process.

Is it indicative of a rejection if you haven't had any correspondence with YC since submitting the app? I'm hoping not because nowadays there are just so many more apps.

<comment><USER24> Just chill. We were selected for YC interview last year and we talked/emailed/skyped with partners only when we were selected for interview. I believe teams start talking with partners only when they are accepted for interview.

<comment><USER25> Thanks! I'd chill, but I've decided to base my entire self-worth on this.

<comment><USER25> Yes, I was joking. Perhaps this is not the thread for sarcasm ;)

 _Incidentally both Gates and Jobs started their companies sans YCombinator._

Anything's possible (you could add mark z to that list). It's about validation, resource allocation and probability.

Getting accepted to yc (or even interviewed) is indication that at least a few capable people think you and what you're doing are worth something and that you're headed in a good direction.

There is a limited amount of capital, public exposure (press) and face-time with angels/VCs/worthy advisors to go around. With YC, you get a leg up in getting access to these resources.

A YC company (historically, and for the above reasons) is significantly more likely to at least get to the next stage of funding and growth (actually employing people). Since everything involves luck, anything that improves your chances is a big deal.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER16> Didn't get in. Don't care, had beta :)

<http://daring.is>

Congrats to S12.

<comment><USER26> Same. Congrats to those that made it.

</comment></comment><comment><USER27> any suggestions for calming nerves while we wait? :)

<comment><USER28> press ups, sit ups, code something, draw something just keep doing something contructive! single malt? not before night! ;-)

<comment><USER25> draw something? hmm

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER29> Congrats and best of luck to the invitees!

</comment><comment><USER30> just wonder during the wait after we submit the application, anyone received any msg from them?

<comment><USER30> of course, we checked our utube video, there were not that many views, so this is definitely not encouraging...

we have funding from other sources. still it would be cool if we are chosen by them

</comment></comment><comment><USER6> im so nervous that YC wont invite me =(</comment>


Elon Musk Needs to Stop Tweeting Things He Can't Prove - <AUTHOR> https://slate.com/business/2018/07/elon-musks-attacks-on-reporter-linette-lopez-need-to-stop.html <comment><USER2> I really don't understand some people on HN's desire to shield Musk from any criticism.

When I started in tech as a career nearly 20 years ago I was really excited because I wanted to make the world a better place through technology.

In some ways Musk embodies the kind of person a younger me would have considered a hero. Now increasingly I question his propensity to make outlandish claims on all sorts of topics and then get defensive when he can't substantiate them. The worst outcome of this kind of behaviour is Theranos.

Musk and his companies have achieved a lot. He should focus more on that (and improving ethics in the manner in which they get their results), and less on his appearance.

<comment><USER3> Yup. It's just a cult though.

<comment><USER4> That's absolutely a factor but I believe there's more to the issue than that.

For a certain segment of people, Musk represents one of precious few glimmers of hope in several high impact fields. These people are sick of mega industry, boundless bureaucracy, and financially incentivized shortsightedness stymying progress and actively fighting to preserve the status quo. In their view, Musk possesses the qualities, resources, and initiative necessary to succeed in spite of these problems.

There aren't many who fit that description or the or even give the appearance of such. It's exceptionally rare, no matter how you slice it. With this in mind, it's easy to imagine how some might feel inclined to defend Musk from perceived threats, even if it's criticism rooted in truth. More than Musk himself, these peoples' hopes are at stake, which naturally motivates strong reactions.

Personally, I feel conflicted. I do wish he'd tone down his tweeting and provide concrete proof of things like adequate factory safety, but I also feel that SpaceX, Tesla, and the Boring Company are all important for moving humanity forward (especially the first) and would hate to see them unduly impeded.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> Journalists need to stop "commenting" or "sharing knowledge" on topics they are woefully under-powered (both in terms of rhetoric and intellect) to understand at even a basic cursory level...

Slate has tweeted a number of things they haven't been able to prove, some that could even be considered slander...

<comment><USER6> couldn't you say the same thing about musk?

</comment></comment><comment><USER7> Take a close look at the chosen Tweets in the article. None of them _technically_ levy an accusation or claim that needs to be proven _by him_. They are almost all formed as questions. The few statements that exist are opinions (i.e. "this is not journalism"). He has carefully constructed his Tweets to be free from legal requirements regarding slander, libel, etc. by not actually making any non-opinion claims.

Basically, he's following Cartman's method of "asking questions" on South Park to discredit someone by implying something without actually stating it or providing any actual evidence to support the implied claim.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elRxbGJuCw8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elRxbGJuCw8)

Anyone who utilizes these methods of underhanded, disingenuous attack should be ridiculed and ignored.

</comment><comment><USER8> He needs to stop tweeting? Why should he? I don't get these articles calling on people to stop saying something the author disagrees with. If Musk is wrong then history will judge him. He will eventually have to deal with whatever the consequences of his speech is.

<comment><USER9> > He will eventually have to deal with whatever the consequences of his speech > is.

That may have been true in the past, but is no longer. Source: donald trump.

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> This a weird article. I have been closely following Tesla for the last 5 years and it has been the target of constant FUD and misinformation. Some very powerful people are on a mission to take down Tesla. Look at the stream of negative opinion pieces that come out of WSJ. Weirdly, when Musk fights back against the FUD, the press claims he needs to "shut up". Well, maybe if the press covering Tesla didn't have a clear agenda, may be he will shut up ? Maybe Slate will write an article covering the agenda driven hit pieces against Tesla ?

</comment><comment><USER11> Better yet would be for the press to stop covering Musk-related activities except when they are newsworthy.

</comment><comment><USER12> What's with all the Musk hit pieces lately? Complaining about his tweets? Really?

</comment><comment><USER13> I could no longer suppress the urge to troll on twitter. Before doing so, I read maybe 100 tweets on a thread. It was a political tweet, so the standard of truth was not that high.

Guess what I found? 100% of the tweets were not falsifiable. They were as reliable as tarot reading, probably less scientific than same, and certainly less entertaining.

</comment><comment><USER14> If this can be generalized to "<Anyone> Needs to Stop <Saying> Things He Can't Prove" nobody would be able to say things like "God exists." or "God doesn't exist." (because you can't prove this) and similar.

<comment><USER15> > If this can be generalized to "<Anyone> Needs to Stop <Saying> Things He > Can't Prove" nobody would be able to say things like "God exists." or "God > doesn't exist."

So it can't be generalised to that. It means that factual statements about real people with the easily foreseeable potential to do harm to those real people shouldn't be made without proof (with which you can agree or disagree), but that's less punchy.

</comment></comment><comment><USER16> Is this where we are headed? Pretty soon we will be a world of endless flame- wars. It works for Trump (someone I do not like) and it'll work for Musk (someone I like). It might even work to the author of the article if they manage to gather as large of a following.

I think this is a symptom of the effects of deindividuation. When your communications are always broadcast to a large group you get to feel like the head of an army but are actually closer to the ring-leader of a mob. One is able to justify saying whatever they want because that is where it ends for them, they have spoken their minds. In other words one is able to detach themselves from the ramifications of their words because those are other people carrying on the cause.

To end my rant, instead of telling people to shut-up and grow up which is rarely effective, perhaps we can try to gain a deeper understanding of our society and the side-effects of the rapid changes taking place.

</comment><comment><USER17> I hate how people idolize someone who has a past built on the racist exploitations of the South African system of apartheid, built a payment system that creates a class of haves and have-nots, builds a luxury vehicle for his white friends to virtue signal with, and now exploits a tragic situation involving people of color to further his drilling company.

Slate has it right, Musk should stop tweeting.

<comment><USER18> This sounds like it could be satire.

</comment></comment><comment><USER19> A story about Trump would have been a better use of time.

<comment><USER20> Maybe we all want a break from news/discussion about "that orange guy".

<comment><USER7> Not me. Hate him or love him, Trump news is hilarious and easily the most entertaining thing I've ever seen. I work in downtown Manhattan and despite whatever despair anyone may be feeling at whatever the latest Trump antics of the day are, we can all still share a good laugh at the absurdity of it.

I recall Dave Chappelle musing that "the news had never been so good" when the Clinton scandal was the biggest thing.

"Baby, turn the lights down...the news is coming on". How true, perhaps now more than ever.

<comment><USER21> Caustic indifference to newsworthy events on the national scale is not something people should be bragging about IMO.

Trump is Trump. He's the President of the USA now. We should give him the proper respect that his office demands. In his hands lie the future of the North Korean / USA relations, US / China relations, the Supreme Court (which lies the future of Roe vs Wade, Citizens United, and other such cases decided by the court). US Border policy (at least for the next few years), etc. etc. A wide variety of issues that determine the future of this country.

Its one thing to deeply care about the future of the country, be it on the left or right side. But its another thing to simply not care about it and laugh it off.

<comment><USER7> You can deeply care about the country and where things are headed and still find humor in the absurdity of a lot of his actions. This is quite literally what every late night talk show host does every single day - Trevor Noah, Colbert, Kimmel, etc.

If we are on the express to hell, I am at the very least going to enjoy the ride. Just as I will make sure I vote.

<comment><USER21> And I'm beginning to have doubts that laughing at other people and making fun of them has any useful purpose in the greater political discourse.

Colbert in particular is incredibly caustic, and almost exclusively caters towards making fun of the other side and "how stupid / hypocritical they are". As far as I'm concerned, this kind of trolling and sarcasm is part of the problem. And while Colbert himself is relatively tame, the twitter / internet goons who worship him are just as bad as Musk's online Twitter goons and trolls.

But this is getting quite far away from Mr. Musk and the point of the article. Bringing it all together: the general problem in today's discourse are the hero-worshiping trolls who take a personality (be it Trump, Colbert, or Musk), and take their fight to the internet to harass others.

And btw, Mr. Colbert was one of the first users of this methodology.

[http://www.cc.com/video-clips/z1aahs/the-colbert-report- the-...](http://www.cc.com/video-clips/z1aahs/the-colbert-report-the-word--- wikiality)

This was Colbert in 2006, so 12-years can change a person. I don't see Colbert really unleashing the troll armies upon anyone else anymore. But it is good to remember that Colbert was one of the first to launch a "media invasion" on the online space.

In a very similar manner to what Mr. Musk is doing in the article.

<comment><USER7> Oh, I agree that it's contributing to the problem. Or at the absolute minimum, it's not helping. But it's funny. And that was all I was saying, really.

As for your larger point - yes, the online trolling is bad. People unleashing their dogs, so to speak, is also very bad. But the real problem is social media itself. I'm sure you've seen over the past year all the Silicon Valley insiders coming out saying they knew what they were doing when creating Facebook and things like that. This funnels into the whole "echo chamber" concept. The real issue sitting on top of all of this is that social media isn't designed at all, whatsoever, to increase communication, connectivity, or "togetherness". It is designed entirely to engage and retain eyeballs on screens, sucking up ad-revenue. Exposing oneself to opposing viewpoints is rarely something people find entertaining enough to keep them clicking for more. Just as the things that go viral are virtually never well-reasoned debate - they are insult wars and snark for snark retorts that must be contained within the 280 character limit.</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment>


What drugs is Facebook taking? - <AUTHOR> http://www.surf-the-edge.com/2011/09/21/what_drugs_is_facebook_taking/

<comment><USER2> For some reason I've had the 'new style' facebook feeds and chat for a few weeks already.

Usually when facebook releases updates and everyone has a little rant about it I just sit back and roll my eyes. These things usually have a long term advantage, and change is always a bit painful for users.

However I've had a list of about 25 friends in alphabetical order, from A through to D, just stuck at the right side of my screen for about 6 weeks now. I have no idea why they are there. They're not online. They're not people I historically interact a lot with, I can't sort the list, or add favourites. I can't hide it, because that also hides the people online I might want to chat to.

I honestly would love to know the reasoning behind this. Someone, somewhere sat through multiple planning sessions and laid out some kind of argument that this delivers value _somewhere_ , either in some obscure way to facebook themselves or somehow to the end user. The design doesn't bother me, but the functionality does seem... arbitrary? What inherent interest could I possibly have in my first few alphabetically sorted friends?

</comment><comment><USER3> Cue the requisite 3 days of grousing about News Feed changes before everyone gets used to it.

Remember when Facebook first introduced the News Feed and there were News Feed protest groups with over a million users sperging out about it?

<comment><AUTHOR> Its not a new feature that people don't like, the interface is completely diferent, and unsable!

<comment><USER3> That's exactly what people said about the news feed, and more recently the chat sidebar (when your browser window is wide enough). I found the chat sidebar annoying too, but after a few days it wasn't jarring at all.

People just use Facebook so much that even small changes trigger massive waves of "OH GOD THIS IS COMPLETELY UNUSABLE" hysteria.</comment></comment></comment>


Mac OS X 10.6.1 is out already. - <AUTHOR> http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3810

<comment><USER2> Is this really suprising? A boxed release has to be done weeks (months?) before it ships. Its not like they stop working on it after it gets done.

</comment><comment><USER3> I hope it fixes whatever it is that's causing the new Opera 10 to be unusably slow for me. Has anyone seen this? I haven't been able to get any usable results of out google yet.

<comment><USER4> There is already a fix for this from Opera.

details at [http://my.opera.com/danaleks/blog/2009/09/11/opera-10-slow-i...](http://my.opera.com/danaleks/blog/2009/09/11/opera-10-slow- ipv6-on-snow-leopard)

<comment><USER3> That must've been posted after my comment, but who cares, it works. Thanks!

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> NOW I'll consider installing it.

<comment><USER6> It's a bit arbitrary, no.

If you look at the list of fixes in 10.6.1, do you see anything that would've kept you from making 10.6.0 work on your Mac?

<comment><USER7> Although compay is now repudiating his comment, I'll bite: Even if there's nothing that was fixed in 10.6.1 that would have been important to me, the fact that we got to the first point release without such a fix is better evidence that there was no such problem in 10.6.0, something I would only know, otherwise, had I taken the chance and installed it. Therefore, in the sense that matters, it doesn't make any difference whether there was an important fix in this release, because if there was, it was fixed, and if there wasn't, it's evidence that there was no problem to fix.

Either way, it pays to wait if you're risk averse. And I am.

<comment><USER6> I totally agree that it's a good rule of thumb to always at least wait for the first point release.

But it just got me thinking that we must understand these heuristics and not just follow them blindly.

I wasn't saying the OC did a bad thing, just thinking out loud about how "wait for the first point release" can be arbitrary since with such a popular software, you could read the feedback on various forums to see how stable it is.

If you're going to be having a major problem, chances are others will have it too. And if it's a minor problem that almost nobody has except you, it might not be fixed in the first point release.

<comment><USER7> I was planning to wait until SIMBL was working on 10.6, but it appears that it already is if you tell the app it's modifying to open in 32-bit, so I might upgrade shortly.

I agree that with such widely distributed software, browsing forums and news aggregators might well be as useful as waiting to see what's fixed.

<comment><USER8> SIMBL will probably fall into obsolescence with input managers being disabled for 64-bit apps.

PlugSuit, on the other hand, is SIMBL-compatible and uses a completely different method of injection. The author just needs to work around some new limitations introduced in Snow Leopard before it works with 64-bit apps. I would keep your eyes peeled for an update.

<comment><USER7> If only they would enable copy-on-select as a regular preference for Terminal, I'd have no further need of SIMBL. :)</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment>


10 graphic examples of the abomination that is iTunes on Windows - <AUTHOR> http://www.troyhunt.com/2012/04/10-graphic-examples-of-abomination-that.html <comment><USER2> Or how about: _anything_ I do in iTunes makes it freeze for five seconds.

It's been explained to me that this is because my music collection is around 200GB, so my iTunes Library.xml file is around 60MB, and any action (playing a song, renaming, etc.) rewrites the entire XML file on disk (incrementing play count, renaming, etc.).

And this is on a MacBook Air with SSD under Lion!

<comment><USER3> Whose idea was it to use an XML file for a non-human-readable library file? SQLite would sing in this use case.

<comment><USER4> There's a regular (possibly SQLite-based) database format as well. The XML file is the _backup_.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> I've always marveled at Apple. They have top notch Engineers working their hardware. They have fantastic Designers.

But for some reason. Apple can't get a decent programmer. Their software sucks. Plain down right sucks. I love using apple hardware but I can't stand any software made by them. (See: Xcode, Itunes, Safari)

<comment><USER6> _> But for some reason. Apple can't get a decent programmer. Their software sucks. Plain down right sucks. I love using apple hardware but I can't stand any software made by them. (See: Xcode, Itunes, Safari)_

If you prefer Emacs/Vim, OK, but I can't see a much better tool than XCode for Objective-C (and arguably C/C++), plus UI building. Version 4 is buggy and crashes, but then again it's a mostly complete rewrite of the old XCode codebase. 4.3 is stabler than previous 4.x releases --it will get better.

As for iTunes, I can't see any problem with it, besides handling a lot of different functionality in one app. Do you see many actual bugs in day to day use? Because using it for almost 10 years, I don't remember any.

Safari, yes, tend to do some stupid things. Though, Chrome, to which I migrated is also based on Apple code for the core engine.

Plus: the OS, Logic, Aperture, Pages, Keynote, all top notch apps.

<comment><USER7> > is also based on Apple code for the core engine.

Apple Safari uses WebKit - a free open source web browser engine. It's not Apple's code, it existed way before Apple got into browser business.

<comment><USER6> _> Apple Safari uses WebKit - a free open source web browser engine. It's not Apple's code, it existed way before Apple got into browser business._

I used Konqueror long before Apple made Safari, so I am aware of the history. It's hardly the whole story though.

Safari uses Webkit, but Apple made Webkit. Webkit did not exist before Apple got into the browsing business. What did exist was khtml made by the KDE project.

That engine was a nice stable base that Apple used to build Webkit upon but it was lightyears behind the Webkit we know. Apple put TONS of work into Webkit and made it into one of the rendering engines that it is today, long before even Google got involved.

Most of Webkit buy the time was Apple's code, including tons of bugfixes, huge performance improvements, all the HTML5 support (heck Canvas is Apple's invention, before it become a standard), css tranformations and animation, and the all-important Javascript engine, which was the first Javascript engine to kick of the speedy javascript JIT race (Firefox followed suit and then come V8).

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> <conspiracy theory>

Apple is intentionally keeping iTunes on Windows a "sub-par" experience to attract more users to move over to MacOS. I think the majority of non-power don't understand the problem is with iTunes specifically, and would say something like "The whole damn computer sucks".

</conspiracy>

<comment><USER9> The biggest problem with this theory is that iTunes is hardly an enjoyable experience on OSX either!

<comment><USER10> It's only the comments in this thread that have made me realise iTunes is infuriating for everyone.

Having never been an Mac OS user, I had always assumed they put all their effort into the Mac version, and then did some kind of nasty port and hacked away until a windows version worked. Not a conspiracy theory, so much as a lack of interest from Apple to make a decent windows version.

On windows, I use winamp. It supports my iPod, and actually allows me to listen to and manage my music collection.

<comment><USER11> +1 million for using winamp. By far the thing I miss most from windows. (I'm OSX and Linux all the way these days, but there are things I miss.)

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER12> Another one for the collection: iTunes starts randomly. While doing some work, it suddenly starts up and shows in my screen. With no reason. There's no iPhone in my house. I didn't configure an iPhone with wireless sync with iTunes, and my WiFi is secured (nobody else than me accesed through it). And it still starts randomly, since the update that came with iOS5.

</comment><comment><USER13> Here is another example. Every time iTunes needs an update it brings up an automatic updater. Fair enough. I click on update, and the iTunes updater downloads the new version and every single time fails to install it with some generic unhelpful error. Then I have to go and manually download the new version from the website and manually install the new version.

And every time a new update comes, I click "update" on the automatic updater hoping that this time they fixed it, but no such luck.

I was so happy when iOS started updating without a computer.

</comment><comment><USER14> To be fair, it's pretty horrid on OS X as well - several of these issues apply cross-platform (iTunes WiFi sync error messages are presented to me on a daily basis running Lion, for example.)

</comment><comment><USER15> Examples 2, 3, and 7 are common for me on OSX. I just hate syncing my device.

Some of the other problems I've been having: iTunes gives me an alert saying some tracks can not be synced and so the sync process hangs until I close the prompt or manually stop the sync on my iPhone. If I remove a large app on my phone (example: the 1Gb Max Payne game) and then attempt to sync the phone after, iTunes decides to install the app again which means a lengthy transfer of a 1Gb file. If I make a change to my playlist on the phone and sync, two versions of the playlist are created (not always reproducible).

iTunes is a horrible horrible experience on either OS. I've given up using it as a music player, in favor of Ecoute[1]. Pity I still need it for my iPhone.

[1] <http://www.pixiapps.com/ecoute/>

</comment><comment><USER16> I actually find the iTunes store on the iPhone to be quite terrible as well.

It takes longer than any other app to power up and then greets you with a "Loading..." routine. In case you get over this it will do it again every time you switch to a different item on the menu, e.g. Search. It's like it's not sure of itself and must phone home before displaying the UI to, I don't know, show a user the "Purchased" screen. Same deal with the App Store and Mail apps. All very clunky.

<comment><USER17> Indeed!

It wouldn't be too much to ask to cache what has been loaded WHILE the app is running, is it? Or even maybe keep it cached w/o the pictures. Hell, they could maybe poll 50 entries instead of 25 and cache it with no problem (excluding graphics).

While I am at this, WHY does mobile safari have to reload a page every time i switch tabs/press the home button and instantly power it up again? It's not only hugely annoying on a non 3g device, it also makes no sense, you should at least be able to set an interval/turn it off...

</comment></comment><comment><USER18> At least on windows you have alternatives...

I'm still looking for a viable replacement on OSX.

Actually scratch that. More urgently I'm seeking a Finder-replacement that doesn't lock up for seconds at a time _all the time_. In 2012. On a 2 GHz computer. With a SSD. Truly magical!

<comment><USER19> Check out Path Finder - <http://cocoatech.com/pathfinder/>. I've been using for a while, it's light years beyond Finder. You can't completely kill Finder, OS X won't allow it but Path Finder makes it a lot better.

</comment></comment><comment><USER20> The one I love is when I create a playlist, verify it has songs in it (on iTunes), sync my iPod and the playlist is empty. Completely empty.

Then the duplicate playlists that appear out of nowhere for whatever reason. But they're only duplicated on the device.

Then there's the need to use a third-party hack to detect and remove dead tracks, or add new ones when I'm not purchasing musing from iTunes. As far as Apple is concerned, I must purchase my music from them, not from Amazon. So something so mundane as a folder watch isn't needed.

It's unfortunate that we love the devices but have no choice but to put up with the horrid crap that is the software.

</comment><comment><USER21> If you use Windows, Apple secretly hates you.

<comment><USER22> To be fair, MS Office on Mac has a tendency to fail in extremely frustrating ways too... (Seriously, section references, picture captions/references, toc, all just stop working at a certain document size, if at all, not to mention the freeze at a 100pp thing).

<comment><USER12> I know that maybe you do work that is impossible to do in other suite than Office, but, did you try LaTeX?

It manages all the references incredibly good, picture captions, TOC... it requires more work than Office, but I think is more rewarding.

<comment><USER23> Yeah, good luck getting LaTeX to be accepted for interdepartmental correspondence, let alone inter-company.

Also, Word can track revision history on each document. What's the equivalent for LaTeX? A git repo?

The upshot of network effects is that if you work for anybody but yourself, a Windows PC with a moderately recent Microsoft Office is a requirement.

<comment><USER12> If the correspondence does not need to be editable, PDF is the best option, with even less problems than Word or OpenOffice formats. And LaTeX has built- in support for it.

I agree with revision history, Word probably manages it pretty good. But git repos aren't a bad option if you are used to them. I personally use Dropbox, so I have a simple revision history without problems.

Anyways, I didn't say LaTeX was the perfect solution, that's why I said that he maybe had some impediment to use it instead of Office.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER24> Or the lack of the most basic elements of a media library: folder watching. No, I don't want one folder, I want to watch any folder. Seriously, how fucking complicated is that to implement?

<comment><USER25> Do you mean just to add media/quickview playlists, or to index the entire library? (assuming the latter)

Given the default behavior of organizing all of your media within the iTunes directory, it makes perfect sense and would be a great feature. I'm sure there are other people more qualified to comment, but my first impression of the problem is that without some clever implementation there would be some major speed issues with large libraries.

<comment><USER24> By folder watching, I mean: when I put a multimedia file in in a folder (which I've assigned to be 'watched'), iTunes updates the library. I'm very certain Windows has APIs for exactly this kind of situation. In fact, if they can do it for one folder, I'm having trouble seeing a reason why they wouldn't be able to do it for several folders.

<comment><USER25> You can do this with Applescript as a folder action. You can see how to do this here: <http://dougscripts.com/itunes/itinfo/folderaction01.php>

I was thinking that you meant live monitoring, i.e. your library would be a reflection of your directory structure with additional metadata stored in unit sections so that it scales better.

<comment><USER24> It's nice the Applescript exists (although I was talking more about Windows) but again, it's very sad one has to use an Applescript to accomplish this, on Mac.

I mean, a solution is out there: very good. Nevertheless, it doesn't justify or excuse iTunes for not having this feature.

<comment><USER26> There's an "Automatically Add to iTunes" folder that'll do that, but it's still annoying to have to use one special folder instead of just pointing it at my regular download folder. I always forget that Apple added this. More here: [http://lifehacker.com/5356619/itunes-finally-adds-watched- fo...](http://lifehacker.com/5356619/itunes-finally-adds-watched-folder-to- automatically-add-new-music)

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER27> Which is why I have been using MediaMonkey as much as I can with my iPhone, iPad, and iPod. I hate when I am forced to use iTunes for an upgrade. It is like going to the dentist.

</comment><comment><USER28> _6\. Reboot? But I don't want to reboot!_

I never understood why it has to have a system reboot either, and I'm on a Mac. I don't like rebooting, I just like to let my Mac sleep!

<comment><USER17> Well, they are probably replacing a file which is currently in use on which other files depend on. While there may be other solutions to that problem, rebooting is the least error prone one and people are already used to having to reboot their computer after updates.

<comment><USER24> That's a shitty excuse to reboot; sounds more like they didn't want to bother. If you do your job properly, errors can be handled. If you do your job properly, errors aren't simply hex values.

Maybe people were used to reboot their computers 7 years ago but these days, you can entirely work and reboot only for system patches.

<comment><USER17> Yes, you are obviously right. They obviously didn't want to put up with error handling, as you can tell by the crappy error messages they implemented. Basically, they said "fck it, just reboot".

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER29> I haven't used iTunes for quite a while, but my gripe (on Windows at the time) was that it decided what your content was, presumably by file extension. "Please class these files as TV episodes, for my iPod Video, iTunes", to which iTunes would say "sorry, those are movies", and move them into the movie folder... never found out how to stop it from doing that.

</comment><comment><USER30> The seemingly easiest UI concept is the most annoying. "Apply" != "Save and Immediately Sync".

Why is there no way to simply change my settings without syncing??

Another annoying "feature" - iTunes handles syncing everything BUT pictures. Why?? Why do I need to open Windows to drag/drop the files in a folder?

</comment><comment><USER31> I don't even like iTunes on OSX.

</comment><comment><USER32> People would be surprised at the size of the team that produces the iTunes client.

<comment><USER24> 3 squirrels and 1 microbe?

</comment></comment><comment><USER33> I guess I'm the only one that doesn't have any problems with iTunes on windows, eh?

<comment><USER34> Came to say something like this. I know that iTunes is everyone's favorite whipping boy, but with a 10,000 song library on a 5200RPM drive that's at least 6 years old.. I don't seem to be having all of these issues that everyone else does with the Windows iTunes.

The worst problem I've had is error codes when trying to wifi sync, and that was solved by just disabling and reenabling the feature.

</comment></comment><comment><USER35> I think that several of these problems more or less just apply to windows programs in general. Its no excuse, but just something to keep in mind. Microsoft loves its cryptic error codes too.</comment>


It's time for laptop companies to switch to Precision Touchpad - <AUTHOR> http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/10/pc-oems-ditch-the-custom-touchpad-drivers-give-us-precision-touchpad/ <comment><USER2> Does anyone know why a Windows OEM _wouldn 't_ use the Precision Touchpad? At first I thought it was because Microsoft mandated higher-quality (read: more expensive) components for PT devices, but according to this article it's purely a question of which drivers they use. Then I thought maybe Synaptics was leaning on OEMs to use their drivers instead (they're the usual choice for Windows trackpads), but the article says PT is a joint effort between Microsoft and Synaptics, so that doesn't make sense either. Why aren't all Windows trackpads PT right now?

<comment><USER3> I think a lot of OEMs have partnered with Synaptics to produce custom driver software. Lenovo ships drivers that are customized for Lenovo branding and seem to have configurability that the precision drivers don't.

I think the Lenovo custom drivers suck and I'd rather they just ship the precision drivers (or an option to switch) but I'm sure some middle manager there owns these drivers and keeps pushing them as delivering value to consumers.</comment></comment>


How to Debug (2010) - <AUTHOR> https://blog.regehr.org/archives/199 <comment><USER2> The definitely most difficult bug I have ever worked on was a device that would have its flash memory erased from time to time. With couple of million of those in the field only about one hundred would be affected, every day meaning the frequency was enough to cause huge financial issue for the company (bricked devices to be destroyed and replaced, unhappy customers, PR nightmare) yet not frequently enough to be observed in lab environment.

We had to set up couple dozen of these doing operations 24/7 just to be able to note single occurrence of the problem maybe once a week or two.

The device was built in a way that made it impossible to observe physical lines between CPU and flash chip. This was intended as a security feature but caused the whole debug procedure to be extremely difficult.

The start of the problem could not be linked to any particular change in the software.

In the end we have tracked the problem to a single decision made a year before the problem started showing up.

The decision was to use UNLOCK BYPASS feature. UNLOCK is a special command sent to flash chip that kind of validates that the message was not garbled. UNLOCK BYPASS turns off the use of this feature. This was done to improve write performance as the UNLOCK command slows down writes. With the UNLOCK turned off, flash chip is more likely to interpret noise on its lines as a valid command.

This change did not immediately cause problems. Only later, another chip on the board started being used in a bit different way which caused much more noise to be generated. With the higher noise floor the flash chip would occasionally execute a command that was not sent from the CPU.

The irony here is that the rules for the construction of the device required that some of the signal lines are sandwiched in the inner layers of PCB between two layers of signal lines, to prevent easy access to the inner lines. With 4 layer PCB this prevented large ground planes that would help control induced noise that was causing the issue.

Whenever we tried to replicate the problem on a set of development devices (devices with the communication lines available for probing), the problem would not show up due to a different layout of the PCB.

In the end debugging the problem took about half a year.

</comment><comment><USER3> Two bug stories of limited usefulness:

Worked on a tool that used 3D trajectories in an analysis. Some of the output looked strange, but not exactly incorrect (there was no obviously correct answer). Looking at the trajectories used in the analysis, we started thinking some of them had to be wrong. We isolated the "most" incorrect ones and dug in to the code. After looking at the x, y, z components, that pointed us to a few functions. We found a function call with a typo. Instead of f(x,y,z) it was called with f(x,y,y). That one took a day or two to figure out.

Working on a tool that plotted satellite trajectories as part of results visualization, there was a strange jump in the orbit plot. Orbits before and after were fine. We eventually narrowed down the jump to crossing a specific date and time, and not at an obvious boundary (some day in the middle of the year if I remember correctly). There was no obvious reason for it to occur (no errors in our calculations or the input data). Eventually, we discovered that a leap second had been added on that date. The libraries we were relying on did not include that leap second since it had only been added recently, but the input data did. That was... frustrating. If I recall correctly, leap seconds are no longer added to time information (thankfully).

</comment><comment><USER4> > 2\. Stabilize, Isolate, and Minimize

I feel this section is a bit neglected in terms of clarity and emphasis, it brushes on a lot of advanced details but looses sight of the basics important to a novice... Anecdotally but with more than one sample, the most common rudimentary mistake I see is someone attempting to isolate a bug upside-down, i.e poking around in small portions of code that do not comprise the whole system involved in the symptom, without any prior reason to be confident that the portion of code is involved.

In 99% of cases, starting with the whole system involved in reliably reproducing the symptom and then bisecting, or some guided divide and conqueror techniques etc, will get to the interesting parts of code fastest and with confidence that allows focus on elusive bugs. Yes this is not guaranteed to work, e.g notoriously difficult bugs with multiple, disparate factors or even timing issues will evade this technique, but you would still attempt it before resorting to more challenging methods.

Perhaps most teachers miss explicit emphasis of this because it seems so obvious to them, it seems implicit to the word isolate, but if I had to pick one single concept for novices, it would be this one.

<comment><USER5> It also highlights the importance of writing isolatable code. The simplest way to do that is to write code that doesn't use any global variables, but this is something that even experienced developers can't seem to wrap their heads around in my observation. Even languages like Java that don't allow global variables end up having them simulated with dozens of "singletons" that are referenced everywhere that do things that make targeted troubleshooting impossible.

</comment></comment><comment><USER6> One of my favorite types of bugs in C is what my professor called 'unlucky bugs'

A bug the code where changing the arrangement of your code can with fix or create. Its possible if you have a static array initialized to the wrong length.

Changing the arrangement offsets the initalization segment of memory which is why this is possible.

<comment><USER7> The other side of this is having code that only works correctly because you've gotten lucky. For example, the variables on the stack that you're overwriting due to a buffer overflow are no longer being used at that point in the function.

<comment><USER8> and a third variation are 2 or bugs that cancel themselves, for example you overwrite a variable but never use it (where you should have)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER9> If you're interested in a deeper dive into this, Andreas Zeller's Udacity course is excellent: [https://www.udacity.com/course/software-debugging-- cs259](https://www.udacity.com/course/software-debugging--cs259)

Despite the name, it's not a "how to drive PDB/GDB/JDB/etc." course, but focuses on the higher level concepts of how to identify bugs and build tools that automate the debugging process.

</comment><comment><USER10> One of the best debugging tools is to consider the application layers. Item 2 in the list "Stabilize, Isolate, and Minimize" touches on this, but to be more specific: consider your system as a call-stack or as an application stack. Can you find the last place in the system where things work as expected?

</comment><comment><USER11> I needed a link to something like this while writing the JavaScript debugging tutorial for Chrome DevTools. I think I initially tried to start the tutorial off with conceptual information like this "How To Debug" article but eventually scrapped it because the conceptual preamble was longer than the tutorial itself.

</comment><comment><USER12> Steve Litt has a Universal Troubleshooting Process which he has been promoting since 1996:

[http://www.troubleshooters.com/tuni.htm](http://www.troubleshooters.com/tuni.htm)

</comment><comment><USER5> > pretty close to working and break it worse and worse

I wish I could say the last time I did with was when I was in college...

</comment><comment><USER13> My answer is usually in the error. If not I made a design flaw.

<comment><USER13> Well it works better than osmosis..

</comment></comment><comment><USER14> > How do Debug

Don't.

Write tests, assertions and logs to understand what happened when something went wrong. Do not ever 'debug', it is losing your time.

<comment><USER15> I have a friend who is the best programmer I know who says he used time spent in the debugger as a red flag that someone is bad at programming.

He writes lots of validation/logging features in his code. Not a whole lot of unit tests, per se, that I've seen.

<comment><USER16> I believe the total opposite is true. If I can use a debugger you can bet I am going to prefer that over log statements. In the debugger I can see the value of any variable on the entire stack and how they change over time. If I want to log that I would have to add _many_ log statements, trawl through the output and then go back and remove them afterwards.</comment></comment></comment>


Successfully registered and then denied login at a website. "surname too short" - <AUTHOR> http://imgur.com/a/SMkKx <comment><AUTHOR> And then I couldn't register for a new account with a fake surname because the system apparently deems the email address already taken.

I mean what the actual hell. Even the last two Chinese presidents both have two-character surnames (written in Latin script of course). And why would you allow an account to be created and then inaccessible to the client? This is both hilarious and tragic. I'd say this kind of programming is quite a way to let people stop taking you seriously immediately.

</comment><comment><USER2> It looks like the creators of that site have never read this:

 _Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Names_

[http://www.kalzumeus.com/2010/06/17/falsehoods- programmers-b...](http://www.kalzumeus.com/2010/06/17/falsehoods-programmers- believe-about-names)

If they had, they'd know that trying to validate names is a losing proposition, and they should trust their users to get their own names right.</comment>


Ask HN: How to monetize web apps without much content? - <AUTHOR> I have a few web apps that are very focused on achieving one task. They don't have much content per se but they are pretty used and I was wondering how could I try and monetize them, even just enough to cover server/domain costs.<p>I would put some unobtrusive ad but most advertisers don't like that the website doesn't have content. Any other ideas? <comment><USER2> Make it paid, or add additional paid features?

How many users are on there? What are the tasks? Are they used more for personal usage or for business (the latter usually being easier to monetise)?</comment>


Why I killed my standing desk - <AUTHOR> http://blog.pickcrew.com/why-i-killed-my-standing-desk/

<comment><USER2> I think there's some good information in this article, but the elephant in the room is "why didn't he just use an adjustable standing/sitting desk?" You can't make a transition to standing all day cold turkey, I'm shocked anyone thinks they could.

When I stand at my desk, I'll do it until I feel uncomfortable/fatigued. When I sit at my desk, I stand when my back and legs get tight. It's that simple.

<comment><USER3> I haven't looked into it recently but last I checked those adjustable desks were frightfully expensive.

<comment> m-i-l The adjustable Ikea Bekant sit/stand desk is "only" about three times the price of the non-adjustable Bekant desk. (I don't have one but have been tempted.)

<comment><USER4> Three times the price of fixed legs, but compared to most other sit/stand desks, it's relatively inexpensive.

I tried it at the store, and I was surprised at how smooth and fast the motor was, especially given the price.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> Anecdote here: it took me around 3-4 weeks to get fully acclimatized to my standing desk, a period during which I was often tired and sore. However, once I got used to it, standing became a normal part of my day. Because I'm already standing, I have an easier time walking away from my desk - to get a drink, go to the bathroom, confer with a colleague, go for a walk, etc. - and I've also been incorporating squats, calf raises and stretches into my daily movements. Several months after going all-standing, I feel better than I have in years. My posture is better, my back no longer aches, my knees have stopped hurting, my mood is better and my productivity is as good as, or better than, it was when I sat all day.

<comment><USER6> I have to second this. I've had multiple runs at standing desks, and the only time I've been able to hack it for full days is when I was already doing squat exercises.

<comment><USER5> Interesting point. I started doing squats because I was already standing, but it didn't occur to me that I was able to stand because I was doing squats.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> Humans assume that standing, walking or running (or even sitting!) is something that you just pick up along the way. It is not. Doing it right requires practice and technique.

Couple of months ago I was in Bali and I saw local women weaving fabrics. They would sit for hours with their legs straight on the ground and a perfectly straight back, like a letter L; no back support of any kind (try it!). Bad back? That's western problem. We sit in our "comfortable" chairs with "lumbar support" and slowly decay.

When I started doing deadlifts I found the posture quite strange and the motion felt very unnatural. Too many things too keep track of. But my trainer would point out all my mistakes and I'd improve, bit by bit. After few months the results are great.

Standing is in the same bucket. It is a physical activity. One shouldn't assume it is something that humans are just supposed to be able to do right without practice. Most certainly not after years of bad habits. If you don't have the proper physique it's going to hurt. If your posture is bad it is going to hurt. So figure out what are you doing wrong and fix it!

<comment><USER8> > Humans assume that standing, walking or running (or even sitting!) is > something that you just pick up along the way. It is not.

People are so presumptuous. What are they going to arrogantly assume next? That they can breathe properly without proper training; that they can socialize without a dating coach; that they can chew food properly without getting digestive problems; that they can listen to their own intuition without a consultation by a life coach?

<comment><USER9> Apparently a lot of people are breathing wrong. [0]

[0] [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22135480](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22135480)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> Of course you're going to get fatigued if you're not used to standing for long periods of time. You're constantly engaging muscles that you let lie comfortably for most of the day when you get into the office and sit or slouch into your chair.

Of course it's going to take training, as building up any muscles does, and it's going to be tough while you're doing it.

I'm glad to see others here saying they're happy with their standing desks. It's something I've been really eager to try but haven't been able to for a number of reasons yet.

Whatever the future is, I don't think it's sitting at 90 degrees at a small desk for long periods of every day.

Personally I find it very hard to recline and get work done. I find it harder to engage with what I'm doing, get drowsy more quickly, etc.

<comment><USER11> I use a sit-stand desk at work that allows me to switch between standing and sitting at will. I couldn't imagine having to choose between either setup. It's a little more expensive than a traditional desk but the flexibility that it offers is worth it.

I've also found that a big factor in how much I stand (and enjoy standing) is what I'm standing on. Comfortable shoes and a padded mat make the all the difference and stop my legs from getting sore as quickly. At first, my experiences were pretty similar to this authors, but I've since warmed up to it a bit more.

</comment></comment><comment><USER12> "Even though I was fighting some pain, I thought it was good pain — like the pain you get when you're building muscle when you workout. It felt like I was training my muscles for better posture and this was all part of the process."

Completely the wrong approach. Fighting chronically tense muscles with more tension is not going to help anything, standing or sitting.

It worth noting that muscles can only pull. He should have been trying to relax the tense muscles rather than trying to counter with more tense muscles. This is not easy though. Have a look into the Alexander Technique or Feldenkrais Method, or the book Somatics by Thomas Hanna for some different approaches to re-educate your sense of kinesthesia.

[http://www.amazon.com/Somatics-Reawakening-Control- Movement-...](http://www.amazon.com/Somatics-Reawakening-Control-Movement- Flexibility/dp/0738209570)

These are popular with dancers, who generally move with a lot more grace and less effort than the average computer geek.

</comment><comment><USER13> I built a standing desk and a sitting desk at the same time when I moved into "downtown" office from my home office. For a year I had them in an "L" and didn't really use the standing desk as much as I thought because like the author I would get sore/tired very quickly and the nice chair was always a couple of feet away.

About 2 months ago I decided to reorganize my office and I put the sitting desk across the office looking at a wall and the standing desk by a nice window view. With that little bit of change I started using the standing desk more and more and now I use it all day.

One important note: I've also been taking a break every 1.5 hours (I have several alarms set on my phone) to do some hamstring stretches on the floor. I bought some cheap interlocking foam flooring that I sit on for stretching. On the days I ignore the reminders to stretch I do start getting a tense back by the mid/end of the day. Maybe I should add some squats...

</comment><comment><USER14> When I built my standup desk, I paired it with an elevated chair that resembles a saddle for horseback-riding[1]. The hip position is adjustable and _IF_ the monitors are at the right height, the back is straight even though the chair has no back support.

With that setup, I could switch between sitting and standing, while keeping a straight back.

[1] [http://www.wayfair.com/Office-Star-Products-Height- Adjustabl...](http://www.wayfair.com/Office-Star-Products-Height-Adjustable- Backless-Stool-with-Saddle-Seat-ST205-OT1111.html)

</comment><comment><USER15> For me, the key was to alternate the standing with the sitting phase. Someone suggested to sit for one hour, then stand for twenty minutes. After that, walk around (get a coffee, talk to a colleague, go to the bathroom). This was so good for me that I wrote a little app to remind me doing it on time: [http://papamufflon.github.io/StandUpTimer/](http://papamufflon.github.io/StandUpTimer/) Feel free to use it, it's gratis.

</comment><comment><USER16> If you are finding it difficult to stand for extended periods, consider getting your feet checked, and if you have already, using your prescribed orthotics (insoles/shoes/other supports) whilst standing.

When I come home, I routinely take my outdoor shoes off. I spent most of my time at home sitting at my desk, but last year I began to learn bass guitar. I found that standing to play for less than an hour was enough to wipe me out for the entire evening, with knock-on exhaustion until the next day.

I have pes cavovarus - a deformity of the feet characterised by high arches and inward turned heels. When I finally got orthotics and placed them into my outdoor shoes, walking suddenly became easier and instances of debilitating cramp reduced in frequency and severity.

Following my experiences with playing my bass, I placed a spare pair of orthotic insoles into my slippers. This was not something my medical team had suggested previously. Suddenly I found it less exhausting to stand for extended periods. The change was actually quite immediate and significant.

Flat arches are far more common than what I have, but I suspect the same concept still applies - and orthotics for flat arches are far more widely available to consumers!

</comment><comment><USER17> I don't understand the attraction to non-adjustable standing desks. Standing all day seems just as bad as sitting all day, especially if you start standing all day after sitting for years. As long as you're relatively active (~3hrs of exercise/wk) you're probably OK just standing an hour or two a day.

I opted for an adjustable standing desk that I love. After doing a lot of research I ended up going with a brand called EvoDesk ([http://www.evodesk.com](http://www.evodesk.com)). Their parent company is NextDesk, which has nice products, but cost more than I was willing to spend for what I wanted.

I ended up getting the smallest desk they have (48"). With all of the options, including the speakers it came out to around $1,000, which I consider reasonable for a tool I use ~14hrs a day, ~everyday. Though, I ordered the keyboard platform add-on, but didn't like it (I'm fairly tall) so it's sitting in the closet.

I've had it for a couple weeks now and love it. I stand anywhere from 1hr - 6hrs/day depending on what's going on. This isn't the best image of the desk, but I took this picture the other week for a "show us your office" thread: [http://imgur.com/ybIEoqB](http://imgur.com/ybIEoqB) The desk is at sitting height. The bubble looking thing under the desk is the subwoofer for the Harman Kardon sound system option that came with it. You could probably order it for $30 or so cheaper separately on Amazon, but I didn't want to hassle with drilling/finding my own screws. It has 4 height memory presets. I'm 6'1" and the highest desk height is about 6" higher than what I use standing.

Now that I have a standing desk I can't imagine going back, but I'd definitely want an adjustable desk. If I had to choose between a fixed sitting desk or a fixed standing desk I'd choose a fixed sitting desk.

<comment><USER18> This looks great. Does the sub woofer makes the desk or the stuff on the desk vibrate a bit?

<comment><USER17> Thanks.

No, it's attached very securely to the desk so it doesn't rattle.

If I play hip hop with a lot of bass and turn it up loud you can feel the bass hit as you'd expect to, but nothing on the desk shakes, it's pretty sturdy. Besides, I only turn it up that loud when my wife and I are hanging out in the living room, not while I'm working.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER19> I know at least one workplace where they use desks that can be adjusted to a standing or sitting position. If you feel like standing, you stand. If you prefer sitting, you sit. Isn't this the best of all worlds?

I tend to find the reclining & feet up posture described near the end the most comfortable for me, though it also tends to make me drowsy. Ergonomics "experts" however have told me again and again that the sitting upright position is the best for my back, which seems to contradict this article.

<comment><USER20> I guess it depends on whether we're talking spine, muscles, circulation or back-as-support for the whole body.

Standing seems like "paleo" to me. Our ancestors did it so it must be best, am I right brah? They died younger or had much worse old age, but I guess it depends on the definition of best/better as well as definition of spine.

Edit: emphasize sarcasm

<comment><USER19> I hear you about the "paleo" fads, but in this case I think spending so many hours sitting in front of a computer, without taking breaks or exercising your muscles, is genuinely bad. I know _I_ have a terrible slouching posture, and wonder if it's caused by my extremely sedentary computer-induced habits.

What's wrong with an adjustable desk that lets you change postures to whatever you feel more comfortable at any given moment? I know I wouldn't use it in a standing position _all the time_ , but maybe some of the time?

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> I had a standing desk for several months - and it was a mixture of good and bad. When I had a delayed flight though Dubai and ended up stuck in a queue for 4 hours waiting to rebook tickets, it meant I didn't feel too much more fatigue than a normal day at work. :-)

I think it was helping me not slouch so much - so probably good for my back.

But then, with our newborn (colic, etc.), I was just so exhausted in general, that I found I'd arrive at work and not have the energy to stand upright for more than an hour or so, and sometimes just walking upstairs to my desk would make me feel out of breath and floppy.

So when I had to move offices, I simply couldn't be bothered to re-set up all the stuff I'd need for a standing desk, and resorted to a chair. I've only been back in the chair for a month or so, so I don't know if my posture will end up as awful as before. Maybe the thing to do is to use a standing desk half the year, and a sitting desk the other half... An adjustable desk would be best, but either expensive, or complicated.

<comment><USER22> Standing desk + a tall chair w back is a decent option to let you change back and forth a lot..

<comment><USER10> Sounds like a great option. The desks that can rise/lower to standing/sitting positions are pretty damn expensive. Setting up an Ikea standing desk with a barstool so you can stand/sit when you want to sounds optimal and cost effective.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER23> I am sorry to say this, but the entire article sounds like you are rationalising an irrational decision. As the studies show sitting is bad for you and while is understandable that not everybody can get used to work standing, just arguing against the research will not do any good. The final conclusion:

"The key is to do some activity every day. It doesn't have to be a five-mile sprint. A walk to and from work, taking the stairs, or some squats while you're waiting for your lunch can be enough to do the trick."

Sounds exactly like the stuff smokers say to justify their smoking habit.

I don't want to defend any religion (the standists? lol), i can just say that i like it, and i like it so much that after 3 years of standing i would keep doing that and i would really suggest to everybody to try for at least 3/4 months. You need time to get really used to it. After that make your decision.

</comment><comment><USER24> Whenever I've tried standing, my feet ache within about 10 minutes. Walking I can do for much, much longer stretches. Either way, it's a big change to go from sitting all day to either walking or standing, and a good idea to blend it in to your work day slowly over a couple of weeks rather than force yourself to go whole hog from the the first day.

Now that I think about it, when I switched from sitting to walking, I got a tall sit/stand stool so I could switch a lot. It was a really cheap stool, and it put my butt and legs to sleep in 10-20 minutes. It was so uncomfortable that I would only use it when standing was starting to hurt, and I'd sit until sitting was starting to hurt, and then have to stand again. That stool didn't last long, but it might have helped me transition more than I thought.

<comment><USER25> Aching in the balls of my feet is the most common pain I get. I've tried using a soft mat which had no effect compared to a hard floor. It seems to be down to footwear - running trainers can be fine for several hours but with converse flats I'll barely last 2.

</comment></comment><comment><USER26> Standing desks can be "affordable", though still not cheap. I've been using the Jarvis base, and putting my own locally sourced hardwood tops on them. The base is $500 shipped inside the US ($520 with the digital controller), and you can put whatever top you want on it. The Jarvis base is high quality, i've got 10 of them in my office now.

Here's a pic of my biz partner modeling one during our recent office move: [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UNFNw1p6-Xw/VG_WYEYFfYI/A...](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UNFNw1p6-Xw/VG_WYEYFfYI/AAAAAAAAQbE/dqOQbSyzT8k/w760-h570-no/IMG_20141121_161831.jpg)

</comment><comment><USER27> I sit on a ball chair. It encourages me to bounce and move, not "slouch" or crumple into the chair (since it has a minimal back) and also makes it easy for me to pop up and stretch my legs.

Sitting in my home office leather/traditional chair causes my feet to go cold, the ball chair doesn't have this same side effect.

Also, leaning in a pinching your neck muscles/nerves is a major factor. Make sure you're screens are high enough, and close enough to discourage this behavior.

</comment><comment><USER28> I built a standing desk and wanted to be able to both stand and sit. No chair that I found was that high.

Solution: Good office chair with a back rest and a fat rectangular beanbag propped on top of the chair.

Pros: I can adjust my sitting position. Cons: I have to reset the beanbag because it de-forms after a while of climbing on top of it and out of it.

<comment><USER29> There are chairs that tall they're often referred to as "office stools."

</comment></comment><comment><USER30> I just bought a Bekant adjustable desk from Ikea a couple of weeks ago and I can say I'm very happy with it! I wouldn't be able to stand all day through, but it feels so good to sit after an hour of standing and to stand after an hour of sitting. Would totally recommend it, although it's quite expensive.

</comment><comment><USER31> Article summary[1]:

1\. Sitting isn't actually that bad for you, so there's no rush to get on a standing desk

2\. He found standing too uncomfortable and distracting to focus properly on actual work

-

[1]: My take from a quick scan, for those who don't want to read.

</comment><comment><USER32> The point isn't to stand 100% of the time. The point is to be able to switch it up as your body needs. Stand sometimes. Sit sometimes. I often change over the course of the day.

</comment><comment><USER33> I have one that raises and lowers, I wouldn't want a pure standing desk. The hydraulic ones aren't cheap, though.

<comment><USER34> Apparently Ikea has a powered standing desk that costs ~$500 [http://iamnotaprogrammer.com/Ikeas-own-standing- desk.html](http://iamnotaprogrammer.com/Ikeas-own-standing-desk.html) I haven't been able to find one yet.

<comment><USER35> I bought that desk in 2013 and have been using it ever since, would not be able to go back to a normal desk.

The secret is definitely that it should be adjustable, that is you should be able to vary between sitting and standing. I switch about 4 to 5 times per day.

It's glaringly obvious that you're not supposed to stand and work the whole day. I don't understand how the author of the linked post (and many other "standing desks suck" articles) didn't realize this.</comment></comment></comment>


Show HN: An app for nightlife, greeklife, and gyms. Looking for feedback - <AUTHOR>

We built Roodle http://www.roodleapp.com/ - An app that lets you instantly rate your location's social potential and pass on the info to your friends. It's simple. It's private. It's free. You can rate 3 factors: crowd quality, male to female ratio, and population density. Also, signing up is not required to see ratings. It's not connected to Facebook or Twitter. It doesn't even touch your phonebook. You can add people by searching their first name, last, or username if you know it.
We soft launched on iOS and Android several months ago in Arlington, VA and it went as well as a soft launch could have gone. I've added in all the Greek Houses, Bars, and Gyms in Blacksburg (Virginia Tech), Stillwater (OKState), and Greensboro (ECU), plus spots in Cambridge, NYC, and Charlotte. I'm looking for people to try it out and give us feedback. You can even use it for Gyms to avoid people. It's still rough around the edges, but it's a start.
We need beta testers. Even though it's a location based app, you can use/test it from anywhere. I'll even add a bunch of places around you if you want. Contact me on here or at jon [at] roodleapp.com to chat about anything.
We have one press release out. http://www.arlnow.com/press-releases/localized-bar-and-hotspot-rating-app-launches-in-arlington/
- iOS 7+ - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/roodle/id889246753?mt=8 - Android 4.4+ - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.Roodle.RoodleApp <comment><USER2> Ok so how do you add a venue in the iOS app?

<comment><AUTHOR> Currently we don't have that feature. It's something we've gone back and forth about a thousand times. We felt it was best to control what was being added to start out for several reasons.

If there's a group of locations you'd like me to add, like me know, and I'll do it so you can test it with a bunch of people.</comment></comment>


Amateur astronomers say Chinese space station could crash to Earth - <AUTHOR> http://phys.org/news/2016-07-amateur-astronomers-chinese-space-station.html <comment><USER2> Original article: [https://theconversation.com/amateur-astronomers-say- chinese-...](https://theconversation.com/amateur-astronomers-say-chinese- space-station-could-crash-to-earth-are-they-right-62583)</comment>


Export Instagram Data to Excel in a Few Clicks - <AUTHOR> https://instaloadgram.com/export-instagram-data/ <comment><AUTHOR> Try it out and export 100 items for free.</comment>


A joint policy proposal for an open Internet - <AUTHOR> http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/joint-policy-proposal-for-open-internet.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FMKuf+%28Official+Google+Blog%29 <comment><USER2> So Google loves net neutrality except when it doesn't.</comment>


CO2 Emissions Will Break Another Record in 2019 - <AUTHOR> https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/co2-emissions-will-break-another-record-in-2019/ <comment><AUTHOR> While global emissions need to decrease by 7.6% every year for the next decade to meet 1.5°C Paris target, according to a UN report

[https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/press- release...](https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/press-release/cut- global-emissions-76-percent-every-year-next-decade-meet-15degc)</comment>


Through the Looking Glass: Hiring Sales People - <AUTHOR> http://bhorowitz.com/2013/04/15/through-the-looking-glass-hiring-sales-people/

<comment><USER2> I love the line - we have two kinds of sales people, rich and new.

There is a definite truth to the fundamentally different psychology of top sales people compared to engineering talent. Sales works best as a very objective judge by results environment - with great rewards at the top and a short walk off the plank for non-performers. I find, having done both, that a lot of engineers find it difficult or impossible to put themselves in the mind of a sales person and truly understand what motivates them, if they've not done it extensively themselves.

Glengarry Glen Ross gets it right with First Prize a new BMW, Second Prize a set of steal knives, Third Prize you're fired. If you're an engineer watch that movie or Boiler Room with horror and recognize that many sales people see those as very realistic expositions of certain kinds of aggressive sales environments.

</comment><comment><USER3> There's a very fine line on hiring salespeople. It is great to have super confident people. It's ruin to have bullies who over-promise to hit quotas. There is a fine line as you need the former to stay in business and grow, but the latter is a cancer.</comment>


Ok You Luddites, Time To Chill Out On Facebook Over Privacy (2010) - <AUTHOR> http://techcrunch.com/2010/01/12/ok-you-luddites-time-to-chill-on-facebook-over-privacy/ <comment><USER2> The good old "privacy is already dead" argument doesnt make sense to me.

If privacy is dead, why do organizations keep secrets from their staff? Why doesnt the public have full insight into everything the government and the military does? Why are there secrets?

How come we cant see the people who watch us on the streets, but they can see us?

Who watches the watchers?</comment>


Sharing Knowledge in a Remote team, across Timezones - <AUTHOR> https://erickhun.com/posts/sharing-knowledge-in-a-remote-team/ <comment><USER2> Tools like Loom and CloudApp seem pretty cool. One concern I have about them, though, is using them to cover information that is internal to my company. It seems like the resulting videos / GIFs are stored in those third parties' own systems. I couldn't get a good idea of how they would protect, say, proprietary information recorded by them. Does anyone have any experience with these sorts of tools that could comment?

<comment><USER3> GifCam does fine local gif recording.

Debugmode Wink was a great tool for self directed lightly interactive presentations but it is getting long in the tooth, having trouble with large resolution screens, and it doesn't seem to have a replacement waiting in the wings.

These days I try to record when someone is showing something on zoom but the other parties shoot me down without giving a reason.

The biggest challenge I've had is to get the other members of your team to actually accept the need for documentation (heh all code should be self documenting aka we should never write anything down, you are acting out to write things down) and let you create, let alone use what you created or the stretch goal of creating their own documents.

The number of excuses I've head re: we're getting rid of this system in 3-8 months, why document it for new people would be enough to make me a rich man.

I have not been able to convince my manager of the need for it so I content myself to document things as I can fit it between tasks.

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> It sounds like you and your team are taking a great approach to knowledge sharing. Thanks for sharing! The promotion requirements from the top communicate that knowledge sharing matters. And the way your team shares knowledge focuses on creating content people want. It's not just documenting because you "should."

This is totally in-line with what I've learned about effective knowledge sharing. People tend to ad-hoc share knowledge as needed instead of thoroughly maintaining a wiki. This isn't bad. With ad-hoc sharing, like with your Loom video, you have a clear recipient in mind. Your effort is valuable.

(I'm building an app to help you keep your private notes better organized so this ad-hoc sharing is easier. In bytebase.io you write your notes like you're texting. "Texting" lets you be fast and messy. It also adds modularity to your notes. Modular notes are easier to organize).

</comment><comment><USER5> Nice write-up. I second the endorsement of Loom. It's so much easier to record your screen and talk then to type out an email and take screenshots.</comment>


The rivalry behind the world's smallest chess program - <AUTHOR> http://kernelmag.dailydot.com/issue-sections/headline-story/14353/small-chess-program-bootchess-nanochess/ <comment><USER2> You can't really talk about 492 bytes versus 472 bytes or whatever unless you precisely define the platform the code runs on, and the features required. To my mind castling and enpassant should be required, they are a fundamental part of the game. Also underpromotion and stalemate (if they don't implement castling, I'm guessing they take some other shortcuts). On the other hand, alphanumeric labels for ranks and files just mess up the rudimentary text console display and should be omitted. I would require rejection of all illegal move attempts by the human opponent. But I wouldn't require implementing 3 fold repetition, insufficient material or 50 move draws.

</comment><comment><USER3> Poudade wrote the 256 byte intro megapole which recently featured at Assembly 2015 ([https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8Av7Sc7yGY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8Av7Sc7yGY)). Lot of drama for his online personas beyond this chess competition (which I've just wasted an hour reading about) but unquestionably an excellent size coder

</comment><comment><USER4> There was a long discussion on the validity of this (here on YC and on reddit) achievement when Poudade's program was first released.

I still do not consider it a proper chess program as castling and en passant have been an integral part of chess rules for centuries.

So these programs are nice but they are not chess.

For this contest to have a relevance, make it simple: program must abide by the chess rules (per say FIDE or USCF) and also support UCI to avoid worrying about interfaces: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Chess_Interface](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Chess_Interface)

That would make it a nice level playing field.

PS. Of course then some smartass would write:

import Crafty

import UCI

Crafty.Play(UCI.Handle)

</comment><comment><USER5> This brings up the question of how chess engine size is related to playing ability. I couldn't find an online comparison, does one exist?

As a corollary, does anything similar exist for go? People trying to write the smallest go engine?

</comment><comment><USER6> I wonder how many bytes would be required to add castling and en passant.</comment>


First impressions count - <AUTHOR> http://successfulsoftware.net/2010/09/18/first-impressions-count/

<comment><USER2> Someone here gave me some feedback on one of my websites and this (first impressions) is generally kind of on my mind here lately. (Thank you someone.) Anyone have any thoughts on how this applies to websites instead of programs? (Or links to suggest?)

Thanks.</comment>