ThinkPad X1 Carbon - fiji-flo http://www3.lenovo.com/ca/en/new-products/ThinkPad-X1-Carbon-5th-Generation/p/22TP2TXX15G <comment><AUTHOR> I want to be excited by a _good_ non-Apple laptop. But they're all just so terribly designed. They're always some sort of plastic, feel flimsy and bendy, have grills and screw holes and uneven surfaces and stickers everywhere.

I had a T530 for a few years at my first job and just hated it. It had fantastic specs but it felt awful and unreliable and like I had to babysit it. I got a 2015 MBP to replace it after IT damaged it (broke off a bunch of plastic bits from two grills) and while it was a migraine getting Windows and Ubuntu to dual boot, I don't think twice when closing the lid and slipping it into my backpack to go home. Tossing my backpack into my trunk, or in the overhead carry-on.

I would pay a fortune to have a solid chassis (not case) metal non-Apple laptop available.

<comment><USER2> > They're always some sort of plastic, feel flimsy and bendy

The Carbon X1 is made from carbon fiber. It super-robust and light-weight at the same time.

It feels _light years_ ahead of the super-heavy aluminium-nonsense Apple is trying to peddle. Count me happy my laptop doesn't double as a bench-press.

<comment> old-gregg When we got accepted into YCombinator back in 2011 (Mailgun), I remember PG looking at our Thinkpads running Linux and asking something along the lines of _" what's wrong with you?"_, with almost [1] all YC teams using Macbooks.

I wonder if it's the Valley culture? There is no way a Macbook can compete with a proper Thinkpad [2] for programmer productivity: the keyboard, the UltraNav, the swappable batteries (you can fly around the world with a x260 + spare battery), a nice docking station, upgradeable storage/memory and a trouble-free Linux distro. Plus, they don't burn you with ice-cold aluminum every morning.

The gap is huge! If a Thinkpad is a 100, the prev. gen Macbook Pro would be 60 and everything else lingering in misery under 10.

Full disclosure: I am 100% Macbook right now because Photoshop/Sketch, the struggle is real, I miss everything about Thinkpad, hence this passionate comment.

      [1] Another 100% Linux, 100% Thinkpad company was http://www.acunote.com
      [2] Properly configured, i.e. IPS, Intel graphics, etc.

<comment> amiga-workbench I don't understand it either, the thing that always gets me is most developers setting up vagrant on their Mac just to get a working environment.

Cut the bullshit and just run Linux on the bare metal, your program will run faster, and your laptop battery life won't be halved.

You will have to claw my x201 out of my cold dead hands, I've not found a single notebook (even the newer ThinkPads) that are as comfortable to use. I've got no crummy trackpad wasting space and a 16:10 display that's designed for work, and not watching cat videos.

Spare parts are dirt cheap, and since the magnesium alloy rollcage is on the inside I don't have to worry about ugly dents, I just swap plastic panels out on the cheap when I think they are getting a bit too worn.

<comment><USER3> > _(...) most developers setting up vagrant on their Mac just to get a working > environment._

What kind of working environment requires setting up Vagrant on OSX? It's a Unix-based OS, if you're doing any web development you can do it on the host system.

<comment> amiga-workbench You generally develop on the platform that your software will end up running on, and nobody in their right mind uses OSX on a server.

<comment> Const-me If you have a SaaS product that needs 3D rendering on the server, Windows and Linux servers that have a GPU are targeted towards GPGPU and are expensive to rent.

MacPros have two descent AMD FirePro GPUs but much cheaper to rent.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> I was assigned one of these (the 2015 model) as my office laptop, and I hate the thing for five reasons (two dealbreakers on top):

\- It is huge and unwieldy, like a cafeteria tray (and comes with a sizable power brick)

\- The touchscreen doesn't have an oleophobic coating, so it becomes a smudgy mess within hours (unlike my iPad, which looks pristine for weeks despite being even more heavily used)

\- The screen seems dim or washed out no matter what I try (then again, I have a retina MacBook at home...)

\- Battery life is poor(ish) on the i7 model. I can only partially blame all the corporate junk we have installed.

\- Wi-Fi seemed flakey at times (and you need a proprietary dongle for Ethernet)

I've seen the 2016 models (which don't improve on the above) and they share the good bits:

\- Very decent (if somewhat mushy) keyboard, with lots of travel (perhaps a bit too much)

\- Relatively lightweight (considering the size)

\- Pretty decent touchpad (not on a par with a MacBook, but good enough for three-finger gestures, although maddeningly imprecise at times)

\- Despite the color/brightness issues, the HIDPI screen is sharp and readable under Windows 10

\- The fingerprint sensor actually works (but doesn't hold a candle to TouchID)

\- DisplayPort or HDMI output (depending on model, mine has both, and I use my Apple dongle for DP->VGA)

I disabled TrackPoint within a month due to RSI (I used original IBM laptops for years and it was a recurring issue for me).

TrackPoint is much more precise than the trackpad for accurate positioning, but I'd rather carry a Bluetooth mouse and retain the use of my fingers (whereas I'm perfectly fine with the Mac trackpad for drawing diagrams and pixel-level positioning).

Edit: Oh, and I run Linux on it through Hyper-V and Docker, since I need to run Windows 10. Had no trouble booting a couple of Ubuntu/Elementary Live USB drives for playing around, most of the hardware seemed to work.

<comment><USER5> Sorry, being an owner of the 2015 version, I don't know what the fuck are you talking about:

\- The brick is tiny. Sure, not as tiny as the 50 gram mac one, but is very small compared to most laptop bricks.

\- It's huge? Some peope want more screen real estate, and 14in is good for that.

\- Battery life is 6+ hours; less if I spend them watching youtube of course

\- Never had a problem with WiFi

The only thing I agree is with the ethernet dongle (which I have only actually used once, when setting up the wifi at a new place).

<comment><USER6> I own this laptop too, and I agree with you. I would add a few complaints of my own, though:

\- The computer sometimes seems to turn on after it's closed and asleep in my bag

\- The CPU gets pegged constantly, even on the i7 version (admittedly, this may be due to some background processes that were installed by my employer, but sometimes in task manager it just seems like a generic Windows process it taking up all of the CPU, so it's hard to tell).

\- The fn key placement is awful. Seriously, I think Apple started this trend, and I wish other manufacturers would stop following it. Years of muscle memory have trained me to put my pinky in the bottom, left-hand corner of the keyboard for ctrl. At least you can change this in the BIOS on this computer, unlike a Mac, but that's still less than ideal.

<comment><USER7> On the CPU being pegged, I have bothered my IT department to death over the same thing on my X1 Carbon. If you download Process Explorer, I would bet it's CSCService that's causing the issue. If so, the culprit is likely the Windows "Offline Files" feature which lets your IT department sync your laptop files with the corporate network every so often. My IT department has failed to fix the issue, though, so yours may be unable to find a fix. For a while, I just messed with the power setting on my laptop in order to never allow the CPU to be fully utilized so that the fan noises were not insufferable.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> I have recently upgraded form 4 year old X1 Carbon to new X1 Yoga. Bottom line is I'd recommend the X1 Yoga over the Carbon.

Here is my original X1 Carbon review: [http://blog.itaysk.com/2013/05/04/lenovo-x1-carbon-touch- rev...](http://blog.itaysk.com/2013/05/04/lenovo-x1-carbon-touch-review) And here are my thoughts on the X1 Yoga: [http://blog.itaysk.com/2016/12/30/from- lenovo-x1-carbon-to-l...](http://blog.itaysk.com/2016/12/30/from- lenovo-x1-carbon-to-lenovo-x1-yoga)

<comment><USER9>
        High DPI is still half baked in Windows.

I found this comment hilarious given who your employer is...

<comment><USER8> Just to be clear - I do work for Microsoft, but have nothing to do with Windows, so I don't have any influence on it.

I don't find any problem criticising what's wrong and commending what's right. I do that openly with "my employer" products, and the competition as well.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> A large chunk of the Thinkpad user community is pretty fed up with the ultrabook spec that Lenovo is shipping on its flagship models, namely the inability to effectively customize and modify to use. I keep an X201 alongside my late 2013 rMBP simply because I can use expresscard and a dock and ethernet without carrying around a stupid dongle. I understand they are trying to chase Apple's market, but expect them to fall flat with products like this. I can stand to have a few extra mm of thickness to actually have a usable product.

51nb (chinese forum) has been addressing the need for upgraded specs in the old chassis with things like their Thinkpad X62 [https://imgur.com/a/As6On#uHTzOer](https://imgur.com/a/As6On#uHTzOer) (you can find the boards on ebay)

There's no products that fit the old ultraportable form factor. The T5xx series is great but can't be lugged around easily.

<comment><USER11> X240/X250: dock, Ethernet, VGA, SD, optionally smartcard and mobile modem. No dongles required. In X260 they replaced VGA with HDMI, but everything else is still there.

The X62 looks nice though :D

</comment></comment><comment><USER12> My Thinkpad X1 Carbon 2nd gen is still going strong 3 years later, but this 5th gen is pretty tempting.

 _Main questions:_

\- Are these "up to 15.5 hours of battery life" numbers purely theoretical? Even brand new, my 2nd gen only got about 6 hours of normal usage. I run Ubuntu so maybe these power saving tweaks are the result of closer hardware integration with Windows?

\- The mobile broadband option (Qualcomm Snapdragon X7) is intriguing, it would save me carrying around a separate hotspot. Has this worked for any Linux users? What carrier do you recommend?

\- Any reports of the Wigig Dock working on Linux?

 _Pros that I can see:_

\- Real function keys! The adaptive touchpad on my 2nd gen is awkward and silly -- can't believe Apple followed their lead on this. Good riddance.

\- That the 5th gen is even smaller and lighter boggles the mind. My 2nd gen is already ridiculously thin. After 5 years of hauling 5-8lb T4x models around NYC my back was killing me, and I was probably on the verge of permanent physical injury. The X1 was a godsend.

\- Same old Trackpoint I know and love. Not for everyone, but a mouse on the home row + vim is ergonomic heaven for me. Never change, Thinkpads!

 _Cons that I can see:_

\- Looks like almost the same display as my 2nd gen, a 2560x1440 WQHD IPS. A small bump up in nits but that's it. Viewing angles are better than on older laptops, but I still can't read my screen in bright environments, and it gets gummed up with debris and smudges way too easily. Apple continues to dominate in this dimension.

\- Matter of taste, but the Silver design feels like Lenovo is trying way too hard to look Apple-y.

<comment><USER13> I can't say anything about this specific Qualcomm, but I have used Qualcomm Gobi 2000 and Sierra EM7345 in previous generations of Thinkpad. They both work fine with Linux but their firmwares were buggy as hell. You have to upgrade them as soon as possible. All the problems I ever had were finally solved by upgrading those firmwares. This usually mean you need to keep Windows for that.

<comment><USER12> Good to know, thanks!

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER14> They really should write that it has USB-C charging in bigger letters (see [http://www3.lenovo.com/medias/ww-lenovo-laptop- thinkpad-x1-c...](http://www3.lenovo.com/medias/ww-lenovo-laptop- thinkpad-x1-carbon5-gallery-5.png?context=bWFzdGVyfHJvb3R8MTc5Njd8aW1hZ2UvcG5nfGhlZS9oZDIvOTM1NzAyNzM3NzE4Mi5wbmd8ZTAyMDM1NTY4OGVmOGI1MjhiNGZjMTZjOTlkMTJkOWViZDVmODkwNWM0M2VjMjBhNzljNDRjODIwOWNhZWU2Zg) for the evidence).

<comment><USER15> Is that USB-C fully compatible with the new MBP one?

<comment><USER16> It'll be grossly non-compliant with the USB spec if not, but the thing you have to take into consideration is the wattage. Apple likes to provide basically the weakest charger it can get away with based on how much power a particular Macbook model will draw while in use. I believe it's a 29W for the Air, 61W for the 13" MBP, and 87W for the 15" MBP. So while you can technically use any charger with any machine, if your machine draws more than the charger then it won't be able to keep up while you're working (plus, running the device at a charging deficit like this will wreak havoc on the battery).

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER17> Has anyone installed Linux on this machine? If so, how has your experience been with respect to driver support, etc.? Thanks in advance.

<comment><USER18> I've got a 2016 model and things work pretty well with Ubuntu 16.10. Only gripe I have is bluetooth audio isn't working out-of-the-box.

<comment><USER19> What about inexpensive USB plug-in Bluetooth adapters?

<comment><USER20> There are some that just show up as an audio USB device, which is pretty nice. I have this one, been using it with Ubuntu 14.04 on my W520 Thinkpad:

[https://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-BTD-500-Bluetooth- Dongle/d...](https://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-BTD-500-Bluetooth- Dongle/dp/B007C4D6A8)

It does voice too, but looking at the reviews it seems that some other people have headphone compatibility issues. Definitely try before you buy.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> 354 comments for a constantly-refreshing 404 page( "Product 22TP2TXX15G does not exist" )? Is anyone actually following the link or just commenting on the title?

<comment><USER22> try: [http://www3.lenovo.com/ca/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-x/Thi...](http://www3.lenovo.com/ca/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-x/ThinkPad-X1-Carbon-4th- Gen/p/22TP2TXX14G)

<comment><USER23> That points to the 4th gen X1 Carbon, whereas the link for the story seems to be about a 5th gen X1 Carbon (which now returns a 404). Lenovo may have inadvertently leaked that page onto their site without intending for it to be reachable yet.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER24> This looks like a very nice computer.

I really applaud dell for trying to make the XPS 13 somewhat Linux friendly but they really do feel cheap.

Lenovo thinkpads, while not having the quality they had during the IBM era, are still head and shoulders above Dell in this regard.

This is the Linux laptop to get in 2017.

<comment><USER25> When I bought my notebook back in february, I went to a shop (cyberport) that had both the (then current) X1 carbon and the XPS 13 on display, which I figured were the only ones acceptable for developers.

The X1's keyboard was larger, had more key travel and all, but was subjectively somewhat less comfortable to type on (matter of get using to, I suppose, but still).

The X1 had a much worse display, and was overall bulkier and clunkier, yet more expensive. Went with the Dell and didn't regret it.

Edit: running Ubuntu on it

<comment><USER26> Any issues with Ubuntu? or did it all just work out of the box?

I'm really interested in the XPS 13/15, but don't want to end up with a brick.

<comment><USER27> XPS 15 9550 here. Got mine on eBay for ~$1k with no SSD. Mine has the i7-6700HQ, 4K IGZO touchscreen, bigger battery (which takes up the 2.5" SSD space, so M.2 SSD only which is fine by me), and GTX 960. Follow [http://seb.mamessier.com/dell- xps-15-9550-ubuntu-16-04/](http://seb.mamessier.com/dell- xps-15-9550-ubuntu-16-04/) \+ [http://malachisoord.com/2016/09/10/xps-15-9550-ubuntu- setup/](http://malachisoord.com/2016/09/10/xps-15-9550-ubuntu-setup/) and it's OK. Graphics switching doesn't work flawlessly. Powertop requires some messing about to get the fans to totally stop. Battery life is worse than under Windows. Palm detection on the touchpad is wonky and requires blacklisting a kernel mod to get working properly (the touchpad shows up as two devices). My keyboard had a cable under the spacebar not properly glued down, so I had to get a replacement KBD (~$15 on ebay, parts are readily available). Plextor M8Pe works fine but I had to mess with the BIOS a bit to get the UEFI boot stuff working correctly. Wifi works fine. Bluetooth works as well as it does on Windows, which is to say not that well, but I don't think it's the fault of the hardware or Ubuntu. Configuring X to play nice with the proprietary drivers + power settings + stupid Synaptic touchpad daemon + graphics switching + Arc theme took a few days to get more or less working.

The screen is also terrific and very noticeably better than my work mid-2014 15" rMBP. I wouldn't have optioned the touchscreen if I had a choice, but the 4K IGZO is only available as a touchscreen. I actually use it sometimes, and the hinge is good enough that it doesn't flop around and it feels solid when tapping on it. I only really use that for casual browsing.

My past few personal laptops have been Dell Latitudes since they're typically made from metal and have nicer parts (keyboard, hinges, touchpad, etc) than stuff like the Inspiron series. Parts are cheap and easy to find (e.g. an extra power adapter is $35 shipped in bulk packaging) and they're generally easy to repair, with repair guides, service manuals, and Dell's great service code look-up readily available. If it blows a motherboard or drains a battery tomorrow, I know that I can keep it running for relatively little money. Dell also has great business warranties if you can find a used one with a year or so of warranty left.

TL;DR it's still a huge PITA to get even the latest Ubuntu working right with a top-of-the-line Windows laptop, and even then it's less nice and doesn't "just work" as well as a Mac, but I paid about 1/3rd of what a comparable MBP would cost, and since it's just a personal laptop for my side projects and electronics hobby stuff (microcontrollers, audio measurement, open source, etc) it's totally fine.

<comment><USER26> Interesting, thanks!

It seems like a lot of effort. I think I may just snap up a 2014 MBP and install Ubuntu on that.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER28> As someone who is constantly on the road, having a built in sim card for connectivity is something I'm super excited about. This could be the 2016 MBP we wanted, but switching to windows still sounds difficult.

<comment><USER29> Why do you find that better than tethering to a phone? The last thing I want is a separate mobile account for my laptop.

<comment><USER30> I have a 4th generation x1 carbon, and having a built in sim card is way nicer. With 2 clicks I can connect to 4g vs getting my phone out, turning tethering on, and then connecting to my hotspot. (Not to mention the extra battery drain from tethering).

Project Fi allows you to add extra data sims for free, so the cost is the same as tethering.

<comment><USER29> Here is why I don't like mobile data peripherals on laptops: it causes the software to firm incorrect beliefs about the link state. With a mobile modem the OS will decide the link has gone down, and sever all connections. With wifi tethering the laptop has no idea what the link state on the phone might be, so it rides out brief loss of signal events.

Small but important difference in my opinion.

<comment><USER27> Not saying you're wrong, but I was pleasantly surprised that I only had to plug my iPhone 6S+ in via USB and it just showed up as an additional network connection and "just worked" in Ubuntu 16.10. I've never had an easier tethering experience. FWIW it also did not work at all over Bluetooth (couldn't even see my phone).

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER31> I absolutely adore my ThinkPad X201, if there was any way to purchase a pristine new-in-box X201 I would. However, I recently picked up a 3rd gen x1 carbon and absolutely love it compared to my rMBP '15\. Sure, it's not quite as fast and the screen isn't quite as good, but I can run a true tiling window manager (not the garbage that is KWM on OSX) and have a unfettered dev platform.

I run Fedora, I like it more than Ubuntu or Debian and like the fact that I don't have to worry about random underlying features breaking all the time when I update (which wasted a ton of my time when I was using Arch Linux).

<comment> Ar-Curunir I'm sure you can run a decent Linux on MBP; I've been running Arch on my MBP for 2.5 yrs now, and it's been great, bar a couple of hiccups. In fact currently it works better than MacOS; MacOS refuses to wake up after shutting the lid.

</comment></comment><comment><USER32> Why is the webdesign so amateurish. I really don't understand these companies that can't put proper priority on having webpages that look really good and luxurious. Spend millions on great industrial design but can't spend the thousands for a decent sales page.

<comment><USER20> That was my first thought as well. The page just looks awful, even more so on mobile.

</comment></comment><comment><USER33> It is almost perfect. I would love real 4 core i7 with 8MB L3 cache CPU for laptops, instead of the 2 core (4 threads) with 4MB.

Edit: 6th generation of mobile Intel CPUs have models with 4 cores and 8MB of L3 cache (i7-6970HQ), using 45W [1]. However, in 7th generation there are only 2-core models [2].

[1] [http://ark.intel.com/products/family/88392/6th-Generation- In...](http://ark.intel.com/products/family/88392/6th-Generation-Intel- Core-i7-Processors#@Mobile)

[2] [http://ark.intel.com/products/family/95544/7th-Generation- In...](http://ark.intel.com/products/family/95544/7th-Generation-Intel- Core-i7-Processors#@Mobile)

<comment><USER34> They'll have the 4C model in the T470p

[http://www.notebookcheck.net/Lenovo-Classic-ThinkPad- models-...](http://www.notebookcheck.net/Lenovo-Classic-ThinkPad-models-with- Kaby-Lake-announced-T470-T570-T470s-T470p-L470-L570.189047.0.html)

<comment><USER33> Thank you! :-D

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER35> All it shows me when I try to view models or customize is a message saying no models are available at this time.

[https://www.dropbox.com/s/nymnxfm8xmdcl0s/Screenshot%202016-...](https://www.dropbox.com/s/nymnxfm8xmdcl0s/Screenshot%202016-12-30%2011.18.45.png?dl=0)

I don't see a 5th-generation listing under Lenovo's products pages. Does anyone know what the release date will be?

Edit: closest hit I can find is a rumored launch at CES in a few weeks -- [http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/leaked-new-lenovo- thinkpa...](http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/leaked-new-lenovo- thinkpad-x1-carbon-2017-coming-january)

<comment><USER36> > Does anyone know what the release date will be?

CES is next week, we'll likely get more details then, shipping products are still likely a few months out.

</comment></comment><comment><USER37> Ubuntu on a ThinkPad X1 Carbon is my workstation. As a Go developer I only need Chrome, a terminal, and Go itself (which I install from the official tarball binaries).

Now that I have Google Fi I'm kicking myself for not getting the cell radio builtin as Google will send you a data only SIM for free! I would never have to deal with another terrible airport or hotel captive portal again!

My coworkers are all Macbook Pro users and ask why I don't get one too. I just don't see the point. I think MBP's build quality is nicer but otherwise I get twice the machine for the same price and get to develop on the same OS as my project primarily targets (Linux).

<comment><USER38> > Now that I have Google Fi I'm kicking myself for not getting the cell radio > builtin as Google will send you a data only SIM for free!

Oh, I forgot Fi would send us this, thanks!

> I think MBP's build quality is nicer but otherwise I get twice the machine > for the same price and get to develop on the same OS as my project primarily > targets (Linux).

I just looked at the X1 carbon specs and my 3 year old MacBook Air is faster than the base model carbon and I spent about the same amount of money.

The build quality is huge for me as I spend 50+ hours a week directly-on or with peripherals cabled to my laptop. If I wanted, I could install a Linux on it, but really, OS X just works without having to fuss with it (e.g. trying to get the touchpad feel anywhere near as nice).

As for writing Go, isn't cross-compilation pretty good? I spend most of my time writing in VHLLs (js, python, etc) and OS X is (still, even after some iOS-direction changes) quite good as a dev environment -- spinning up a VM for when I need to compile something lower-level and test on a target OS is trivial.

<comment><USER37> > As for writing Go, isn't cross-compilation pretty good?

Go's cross-compilation is near perfection _unless_ you use cgo which needs to use a C compiler to link against native libraries. Then you need all of the normal tools and libraries for cross-compiling C; Go just puts a decent on it.

<comment><USER38> Ah, cool. My workflow is essentially "write Python until it's too slow, then profile and write C," so maybe it's time I move to a Go/C approach.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER39> It's not the sexiest laptop in the world, but my work Dell Latitude 7470 with an I7 6600U, 16GB DDR4 RAM, NVMe drive with a 1920x1080 screen is the best PC laptop I've used. Works great with the Dell dock, where I have two Ultrasharp 21.5 inch monitors in 1080p, with the laptop screen flipped open; three usable screens.

I still (slightly) prefer my Mid-2014 13 inch Macbook Pro though, but it's very close.

</comment><comment><USER40> They didn't fully learn the lesson of the Superfish fiasco:

"X1 Carbon is available with Microsoft Windows 10 Pro Signature Edition. No more trialware or unwanted apps. No more distractions—and easy provisioning for IT pros."

So do that with every version, and stop feeding people "unwanted apps" altogether. You just admitted that nobody wants them, and this irresponsible attitude is exactly why you got bopped for pre-installing the Superfish MITM malware.

<comment><USER41> "Signature Edition" is a Microsoft concept, not a Lenovo one. [0]

And there will always be trialware and unwanted apps as long as the company gets money from including these. Because who doesn't want free money?

[0]: [https://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/cat/Signatu...](https://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/cat/Signature- Edition-PCs/categoryID.69916600)

<comment><USER42> You're missing the point. Yes Signature Edition is an unadulterated Windows install, nfoz is asking why they're selling anything else given "nobody wants them, and this irresponsible attitude is exactly why you got bopped for pre- installing the Superfish MITM malware"

<comment><USER41> Yes, to which I replied "Because who doesn't want free money?"

Companies don't give a shit as to who wants them or who doesn't, because they get free money for each install that includes the bloatware, and that's all that they _really_ care about; maximizing the profits.

Microsoft's profits are probably negatively impacted by the bloatware in the form of a bad experience, and probably pays the OEM some amount to offset the removal (I don't work in sales, I have no idea how those deals are made or what they contain) so that users have a better experience with Windows.

OEMs can choose to go that route, or not, and the reason why most computers are not is that they probably get more money from having the bloatware in there; otherwise, we'd see Signature Edition as the default.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER43> I have the 2016 model running Arch Linux. The machine is a great piece of engineering. Light as a feather, and feels durable. The carbon fiber body feels great in hand. Performance wise, I have the i7 model 16G RAM and 512GB NVMe SSD. The only slight negative would be battery life. I expected more, but it does last me a full 8hr day of work with screen dimmed. I'm looking forward to purchasing new in another year or so.

</comment><comment><USER44> I think it is super important to have honest discussion between developers, with as little flame possible about machines we are using.

I am using 5 yr old Macbook Air for development, it works well. I always imagined that I will use ThinkPad /w some Linux distribution in future. It is not trivial to use Linux on your laptop. While a lot of things will be faster, browser most likely will be slower and there will not be as many tools. What I would mostly miss is photography tools, Lightroom is essential for processing photos. I can't not do it.

Let me add one more thing to this fairly random post :). I think X1 is better then Macbooks and Airs at the moment, docking station makes a lot of difference.

<comment><USER9> Writing this from a Lenovo X1 running Linux...

The keyboard is great so if you do a lot of writing (e.g. you are a developer) this is a very good machine. But if you are doing other stuff then maybe this is not the machine for you.

With that said, checkout darktable ([http://www.darktable.org/](http://www.darktable.org/) ) which was discussed a few days ago on HN.

<comment><USER44> Thank you. It is good but can't replace Lightroom. However, there are ways to go around it and I am thinking it through. I can leave one Mac or do dual boot for Win for Lightroom and few games I can't have on Linux.

Again, thank you for reference.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER45> As someone who is considering moving from a MacBook Pro 2015 to a Linux laptop, the keyboard and, in particular, the trackpad on PC models are the biggest disappointments. Apple has spent so much effort on the tactility of their laptops, while PC manufacturers still seem to be stuck in an earlier decade. I was a little bit shocked to discover that Thinkpads still have that terrible little mouse nipple, which I hadn't seen in about 10 years.

The laptop with the most promising keyboard/trackpad combo, that I have found, is the Dell XPS (it has physical trackpad buttons, but at least they're located at the bottom), which is probably not accidental; it looks a lot like a MacBook, too.

<comment><USER46> Counterpoint: I still use only Thinkpads _because_ they have TrackPoint. For those of us who prefer it, it is vastly superior to trackpads.

<comment><USER47> Toshiba have it as an option on their keyboards.

<comment><USER9> is it as good as the ones on the thinkpads?

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER48> I desperately want exactly this in a Macbook Pro: "The X1 Carbon delivers up to 15.5 hours of battery life. And if you're running low, the rapid charging feature provides 80% capacity in just an hour."

Specifically the rapid charging. Hell I'd be fine with current battery life (6-10 hrs depending on usage) if it could recharge fast.

Same goes for the phones.

<comment><USER49> I just desperately want a full 88 key keyboard in a top spec MacBook Pro.

</comment></comment><comment><USER50> Love the Thinkpad hardware. Hate Windows 10.

If something like the current generation Thinkpad hardware (T or X series) could run OSX, it would be what the Macbook Pro used to be... Remember the first generation Intel macbook pro in 2006 which had a full complement of ports? Everything relevant and needed except RS232.

</comment><comment><USER51> Now need to wait until Linux is installable on it.

<comment> joatmon-snoo Thinkpads are designed to support both Windows and Linux. Dunno what you're saying.

<comment><USER52> Thinkpads are not better than other laptops when it comes to Linux support.

Just look at the broadcom wifi chipsets: if you mistakenly buy a thinkpad with one directly from their website (and they _obviously_ don't advertise it as such when configuring the hardware), and then ask their support to get it fixed/changed (even on your own dime) they'll just stonewall you. Once they got money out of your pocket, you mean nothing for them.

The only solution is to buy a supported (intel chipset, for the wifi) FRU aftermarket (and good luck finding it, since Lenovo's support won't tell you that information).

At least, with a Dell or a Chromebook I have a recurse if the hardware they sold me has incompatibilities with the Linux version they shipped it with

Moreover: I won't support a company with such an horrible and embarrassing security track record as lenovo

<comment> joatmon-snoo Ah. I guess personally this is less of an issue because I stick to after market laptops, not new ones, and I know where to look to replace stuff like the WiFi module (had no idea Broadcom chipsets didn't have Linux drivers). Can't justify the price.

On the security point, SuperFish was on a different product line - Ideapads, Lenovo's consumer line (with quality that parallels Dell's consumer stuff) - and I would have no trouble believing that some idiot SVP in the chain of command who had nothing to do with Thinkpads made that decision.

For me it's honestly the TrackPoint and the modularity of the laptops. There's just nothing else out there that comes close to what Lenovo figured out 10 years ago, unfortunately.

<comment><USER52> > had no idea Broadcom chipsets didn't have Linux drivers

Actually, it was a Realtek chipset (I'm not currently using that laptop, so I remembered incorrectly). The driver was available, but it was severely unstable, dropping connections and packets, and even triggering kernel panics a few times (once it even happened during a coding interview!)

> On the security point, SuperFish was on a different product line

Unfortunately, SuperFish was not the only fiasco that Lenovo plagued its devices with:

[http://thehackernews.com/2015/09/lenovo-laptop- virus.html](http://thehackernews.com/2015/09/lenovo-laptop-virus.html)

[https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150812/11395231925/lenov...](https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150812/11395231925/lenovo- busted-stealthily-installing-crapware-via-bios-fresh-windows-installs.shtml)

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER53> Still running my 2012 x1 carbon... One thing that has kept it going is that it's very serviceable. I hope the new model is as friendly towards component replacement, as I've had to swap out the DC power harness and cooling assembly so far.

</comment><comment><USER54> I owned a first generation X1 for a while. Eventually sold it because it only had 4GB of RAM, and there is not much of a source of the proprietary SSD. The battery was down to 3 hours, and I wasn't going to replace it if I couldn't put at least 8GB/512GB into it.

I really liked the Lenovo X1. From 2012 to now I've went from the MacBook Pro to MacBook Air and now the MacBook Pro Retina. With the Lenovo, the touchpad wasn't quite as good, the power adapter wasn't quite as compact, the battery life wasn't quite as good (but all were good enough).

The screen and keyboard were very good. The trackpoint is a nice addition. The Mini DisplayPort worked with my 27" Apple Cinema Display without issues in both Windows and Linux (Ubuntu worked perfectly BTW). Build quality on the machine was great. Didn't run hot or anything, had all the ports that my Mac did.

Later on they sabotaged the function key row and ruined the touchpad. After a year of customer complaints they put it back, but the things were so expensive I just stuck with a Mac. If I needed a Windows/Linux machine however, they would be my first choice.

<comment><USER9> The first gen X1 came with 8GB of RAM and standard SATA interface (is was quite bulky for that very reason).

Maybe you are thinking of some other device?

<comment><USER54> I was speaking of the X1 Carbon - which the article is talking about

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER55> Please support the idea of building a better planet for our children and do not buy laptops where you can not replace the battery - managers in companies that build these kind of products have to learn that they are acting against human interests and need to change their way of thinking.

Of course this applies to all Laptops where you can not change battery.

Thanks and have a better 2017!

<comment><USER56> It is fairly easy to replace the battery. All you need is a screwdriver.

<comment><USER55> Ok, that makes it much better - I had the impression that the battery is soldered or fixed in a more anti-hackable way, but just a few srews are ok! Hopefully they keep that design!

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER57> I wish HQ CPUs were an option (quad not dual core) - I work primarily with compiled languages.

I wish they ditched SATA option for m.2 only and used the extra space for more battery (or cooling for HQ cpu)

</comment><comment><USER58> Asus ZenBook working well for me with linux for the last 3 years. I've always had good linux support from thinkpads too. The Asus replaced an apple macbook pro, the model where apple shipped broken GPUs and didn't recall, so that one is a very expensive web-browser that constantly panics and reboots, giving me the opportunity to write a sentence to apple about how I feel about their miserable company that I'm sure nobody will ever read. "The Donald Trump of Computing Companies." Apple really are amazing though. Top comment is an apple fan boy desperate to continue to believe in apple and affronted by the existence of other laptops while other kool-aid drinkers up vote even though it's got stuff all to do with the ThinkPad X1 Carbon. Probably hasn't even got an apple logo shaved into his head!

<comment><USER9> I love everything about the ASUS laptops expect one thing: the mushi keyboard. Press the keys in the middle of the laptop and the keyboard flex with as much as 4-5mm.

</comment></comment><comment><USER59> As someone looking to replace my 2013 13" MBP this is almost exactly what I want.

Enough has already been written about the new MBPs and why many of us will no longer consider them. I've already tried the Kaby Lake Razor Blade Stealth but returned it due to shocking quality and support issues. I considered the Asus Zenbook but it has too few ports to be a serious contender and the HP offerings all have screens with a lower resolution than I want.

I've always avoided Lenovo, party because Apple were building machines I wanted and partly because my experience of Lenovo to date has been low end cheaper models which suck. I'm willing to give them a chance at the upper end with this though. The sooner to market with this the better

</comment><comment><USER60> I've had the X1 Carbon 3rd gen (Refurbished) for a few years now as my personal laptop. I don't do much heavy lifting with it, mostly League of Legends, Counter-strike, and some side programming. But it's my favorite laptop I've used. The 14" size is perfect for me and I like the feel of the rest of it. Performs well and didn't break the bank.

(I've always owned windows PCs, though I've used MBP at work for 2 years now, and have had a MacBook Air that I resold because it was too small and didn't have a niche to fill after my ultrabook and my ipad.)

</comment><comment><USER61> I use a thinkpad every day, my current model I'm typing this on is a T460. It's entirely user-serviceable(all batteries, ram, hdd, etc) by anyone with a screw driver and the ability to read a manual.

The frame is carbon fiber(according to lenovo), and the outside is matte plastic. It doesn't bend, creak, or otherwise make me think it's cheap. It doesn't feel as "solid" as the 15" MBP on my shelf, or the 15" MBP(with touch bar) on the shelf next to it. And before you ask - work buys all this kit, not me.

So, in summary...I use one every day(the t460) and it doens't feel cheap. Compared to the 1st gen X1 carbon(also on my shelf, but not 2nd or 3rd gens), it feels significantly heavier, but not any more or less sturdy.

</comment><comment><USER62> The real issue with non-Apple hw is the OS. Linux is great for development but sucks on pro media/audio support.

</comment><comment><USER63> I don't think I'm alone in saying I'm disappointed by the new MBPs, and also haven't found a reasonable alternative. I buy for a small office (<100 people) and it's a constant challenge to find decent quality and performance.

In a city of 5mm I also can't find a brick & mortar store where I could even evaluate what's on offer. Any place selling laptops these days are all targeting home users, and sifting through online offerings isn't much better.

Maybe my expectations are unrealistic, but I'm convinced we've taken a step backward in the last year or so.

</comment><comment><USER64> What happened to the Carbon touch? This would be my next computer except it doesn't have touch. As a developer I use Chrome dev tools emulator with my Thinkpad W510 to perform touch testing. Plus it is fantastic for annotating presentations (Ubuntu, Compiz Annotate plugin).

<comment><USER64> Okay, here we go, 5th generation Thinkpad X1 Carbon just announced at CES 2017. This is a dream machine.

[http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/x-series/x1-yo...](http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/x-series/x1-yoga)

16GB ram, 14" WQHD OLED Touchscreen (300 nit), 1TB SSD, Intel® Core™ i7 vPro, Trackpoint (touchstick), retractable keyboard in convertible mode, rechargeable & dockable pen, WWAN (Project Fi free data only sim), touch fingerprint (not the swipey kind), Thunderbolt 3, USB-C (docking is amazing now), WiGig docking.

All starting at 3 lbs. (my W510 is 6 lbs w/extended battery).

Mmmmmmmmm, now that is a sexy machine!!! Only thing better is if it would come with Ubuntu pre-installed and everything working out of the box.

I am gonna get one of these and install Ubuntu or Apricity on it!

</comment></comment><comment><USER65> _> Plus we managed to keep the 14" display in a 13" chassis. Now that's innovation._

Dell XPS put a 13" display in 12" a chassis and a 15" display in 14" a chassis.. But a 14" display in a 13" chassis. Now that's innovation.

</comment><comment><USER66> Does Lenovo's history with malware give anyone pause when considering this laptop?

I'm just interested in general - I'm a Mac owner now, but used to be a happy thinkpad owner back in the day.

<comment><USER9> X1 is business series, I think their "malware" was some analytics they installed on the cheap consumer laptops.

(not that it makes it any better)

</comment></comment><comment> fiji-flo Page is down :/

Here's an image of the page: [http://imgur.com/szPrPuN](http://imgur.com/szPrPuN)

</comment><comment><USER67> I spent a year waiting for the Yoga x260 thinking I had found the perfect machine, after 11 months I am getting ready to send it in for the 3rd time for a "freezing" trackpad, remedied only by plugging in an external mouse. Also, lack of Linux support is insane for a company selling a working man's machine like this, going back to Dell after this :(

</comment><comment><USER68> Am I correct that "Signature Edition" means no Linux?

Source: [https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/53ri0m/warning_micro...](https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/53ri0m/warning_microsoft_signature_pc_program_now/)

<comment><USER69> Read the top comment...

<comment><USER70> Please do not reference "top comments" as comment order is usually in flux for a while.

<comment><USER69> It's a three month old thread.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER71> These look nice, I'm only able to afford like the first generation but I look forward to buying that.

If only they were fanless.

</comment><comment><USER72> I have a gen 4 X1 carbon. top 16gb ram 1tb hard drive all in. Is the best machine from last year.

</comment><comment><USER73> I have an X1 gen 3, and it has a dongle for the ethernet port. Given the thickness of it, I don't see how this new gen machine can hold a 'native rj45'. Perhaps it's one of those hinged ones that opens out?

<comment><USER13> It's native because it is not over USB. The "dongle" is only a cable to go from the "mini" RJ45 to the regular one.

<comment><USER73> Ah, thank you. Yes, it's mildly annoying having to carry a dongle around if I want ethernet, but I've survived so far :)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER74> I have a second generation X1 Carbon and I absolutely love this computer!

</comment><comment><USER75> Anyone know if this will have precision touchpad?

</comment><comment><USER76> What do these usually go for? Does anyone know?

<comment> joatmon-snoo [http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/x-series/x1-ca...](http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/x-series/x1-carbon/?menu- id=thinkpad_x1_carbon_gen_4)

</comment></comment><comment><USER77> > we managed to keep the 14″ display ... in a 13″ chassis. Now that's > innovation.

Indeed. I'm not sure what they mean here.

<comment><USER78> Probably 'a chassis comparable in size to other 13" laptops'.

As in, a smaller screen bezel.

</comment></comment><comment><USER79> id upgrade to one of these in a heartbeat if i could afford to but right now thats not an option, thankfully my current gen2 x1 carbon is still an excellent machine that can handle most everything i throw at it

</comment><comment><USER80> The trackpad is off center (to the left), what's up with that?

<comment><USER81> It's centered relative to the keyboard (the middle of the trackpad is below the 'g' and 'h' keys)

</comment></comment><comment><USER82> ... But if you drop it won't it still rattle loose?

</comment><comment><USER83> > WQHD IPS (2560 x 1440) 300 nits

Is this their OLED screen?

<comment><USER84> No, IPS is a variant of LCD displays.

</comment></comment><comment><USER85> Looks solid. I like the Snapdragon included.

</comment><comment><USER86> will it bend?

<comment><USER18> If it's anything like the 2016 model I have, no. It's solid and can take abuse well.

<comment><USER86> thx. i'm worried a little because this laptop is really thin. especially compared to lenovo book which is also thin but not as wide as carbon.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER87> Only 16GB, no Quad-Core option (i'd take an underclocked one at this point :( )... i need more threads and ram on the go, why is that not an option outside of the alienware 13 monstrosity?

<comment><USER24> You must be trolling. Look at the size of it. The thermals for the quad core chip don't make sense and they can very likely only fit 16gb of ram.

The T series is what you are looking for.

Try find any laptop of that size with 32gb ram and quad core option. It doesn't exist.

<comment><USER87> Thats my point, it doesn't exist, but for arbitrary reasons. The RAM chips in an Alienware 13 aren't more or larger than in the X1 Carbon, its just that they opt-to not offering this. The Intel i7-7500U is capable of driving 32gb, so there's no limit there, even if I would have to compromise on the quadcore.

But the Thermal Restrictions of the quadcore are imo manageable aswell, as they only have to dissipate about 20W of heat more at peak. The Alienware 13 mostly needs the additional cooling performance for its beefy graphics processor, which is not necessary for most dev use-cases.

The smallest T-Series that would fit the bill is the 14 inch ThinkPad T470. For some reason i cannot fathom the T470s only supports up to 24gb of ram, as per their press release.

The T470 is needlessly heavy, has more ports than I need and is larger than I want.

13 inch is my personal maximum, i'd rather have something between 10-12 inch. I'm lovin the dimensions of my Surface Pro 2, i just need something with a quad-core and more ram. I can compromise at the quadcore, but it boggles the mind that theres nothing below 14inch with 32gb. The Alienware 13 is the only machine that currently fits the bill, but that graphics chip and ridiculous chassis makes it unnecessary heavy.

<comment><USER88> >they only have to dissipate about 20W of heat more at peak

That's a hell of a lot of extra heat in a thin laptop. Especially if a big chunk of the market values silence. An office full of laptops all sounding like airplanes isn't ideal.</comment></comment></comment></comment>


If Facebook really is building a phone, it should buy Skype first - <AUTHOR> http://thenextweb.com/mobile/2010/09/24/if-facebook-really-is-building-a-phone-it-should-buy-skype-first/ <comment><USER2> Please god no, Skype is probably one of the best developer collaboration platforms I have used. It is an essential tool in my team of freelancers arsenal, I do not want FB anywhere near that data. FB is too loose with their privacy protection for a communications product like Skype.

I would be much happier if they licensed the technology and let Skype be. Besides they don't need the brand they just need the tech, a licensing agreement would give both parties what they want, FB would get the tech they need and Skype would get a payday as well as be compatible with FB's phone.</comment>


Entertain users with your progress bar - <AUTHOR> http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/progress_bars

<comment><USER2> One reason no ones does this is that a game company (3D0?) got a patent in the last 90s on playing a game (I know their game was PSX) while waiting through a loading screen. It was broadly-written enough that they forced a Linux distro (Red Hat?) to remove a game (tetris?) that you could play while waiting on your initial system install. Sorry I can't recall proper particulars or dig up links, anybody remember more precisely?

<comment><USER3> I remember some Commodore 64 games that let you play Space Invaders while the game was loading off tape: [http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=151312&cid=126...](http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=151312&cid=12693198)

<comment><USER4> When I was a kid, I saw a disk copy program on Apple II's at camp that let you play pong while copying disks. (So the counselors wouldn't know you were pirating games.)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> "Imagine a progress bar that involved Dogbert using a mallet to pound the Pointy-Haired Boss into the ground" - I'm sorry Scott, but this just smacks too much of the hugely-reviled clippy. Treating your users like idiots might amuse a few, but will completely alienate the rest. Those of us with an IQ greater than a handful of salt might take the time (while the regular progress bar is creeping up) to do something else, more productive. Like read HN :)

</comment><comment><USER4> The old Defender game would be perfect for playing inside of a horizontal progress bar. Instead of having a radar display, you could just have the whole planet inside the progress bar, just like you have Defender in the favicon of this website.

[http://www.p01.org/releases/DHTML_contests/files/DEFENDER_of...](http://www.p01.org/releases/DHTML_contests/files/DEFENDER_of_the_favicon/)

</comment><comment><USER6> First post, broken patents again. What about a little program that immediately connected you to a chat session with other people who were waiting for load bars.

<comment><USER7> "...And Jimmy, that's the story of how your mom and I first met."</comment></comment>


Tektronix Smalltalk Document Archive - <AUTHOR> http://www.wirfs-brock.com/allen/things/smalltalk-things/tektronix-smalltalk-document-archive <comment><USER2> > H-P looks upon their Smalltalk-80 effort as an evaluation of the system as a > personal computing environment for _non_-accomplished programmers. He also > mentioned that they view Smalltalk-80 as a product usable by non-hackers.

This vision of personal computing has been lost. Today we have the scribes and everyone else, and industry is not at all interested in making systems that permit true "literacy"</comment>


Ask HN: How do you test for analytical skills? - <AUTHOR> From what I can tell, most skilled jobs these days require "strong analytical skills". How does one go about evaluating this?<p>What if the candidate has no work experience to speak from? Do you provide him with math problems or logic questions? <comment><USER2> I'm not qualified to say recommend you do this when hiring or being hired, but, I tend to look at someone's hobbies when judging their analytical skills.

People with hobbies that they have invested lots of time in often understand their hobbies' domain space in a very specific way, and can demonstrate their analytical ability when presented with a problem related to their hobby. An example might be to present a photographer with a challenge one how to get a given picture, or a collector with the challenge of spotting a fake, or a rock climber with a particular problem/route.

I don't think this really provides a foolproof methodology, but when people have strong extra-curricular domain knowledge, I find that they are often able to answer higher level questions about those areas. This is a good proxy for general analytical ability, and helps get past the problem of testing them on something they may know nothing about, which doesn't really highlight analytical ability at all.

The downside to this is that you have to know about their hobby to ask a good question, and you have to put in some effort to ask a good one. This is good, since even casual effort on your part can give a boost to the level of your "test".

Source: I am an Analyst, with lots of hobbies. I have found my own hobbies have prepared me very well for being an analyst that deals with multiple subject matters at a time.

Note: I am referring to analytical abilities as reasoning, judgement, intuition, etc. Not to be confused with skills in Analytics which refer to math/statistics/data science.

</comment><comment><USER3> If you are interested in testing for analytical skills, look into Consulting domain. The Consulting domain is primarily based on analytical abilities in addition to inter-personal skills. The hiring and interview practices of consulting industry, specifically case based interviewing, can offer you good insight.

Identify the analytical skills that are important in a role. Find parallel scenarios where such skills are also needed that a person most likely to encounter either as hobby or in another familiar personal/professional settings. See how the person approaches the scenarios. After reviewing the resume and information available about candidate before interview, you most likely will be able to come up with certain line of questions that may give insights into specific analytical skills required for the role while not being unfamiliar scenarios to the candidate.

For example, once a candidate during interview mentioned setting up his own home network for Internet connection. After discussing more details about his home network, I just asked him about how he will investigate "Page not found" message in a browser on a PC on his network. The responses and ensuing discussion told me a lot about the candidate capabilities in investigating and resolving problems that was the requirement for the role. Another time, a candidate mentioned liking Chess and American Football. After discussing chess and football with him for while, I just asked him to compare and contrast chess and football. The discussion told me a lot about the candidate capability in finding similarities between two seemingly unrelated situations and able to take lessons from one and apply to other.

</comment><comment><USER4> I'm curious why you put strong analytical skills in quotes. It reads like you are using a definition outside the standard one (the typical use of scare quotes). But putting that aside for a moment.

Analytical skills are simply the ability to develop new information and insights from a mix of information that is present and identifying and acquiring information that is necessary and not present.

You say "Mary went to the movies, how much did she pay?" Analyst questions is "Is there any thing special about Mary?" Interview question is "What characteristics of Mary do you consider special?"

Now if the interviewee can come back with the typical spread of movie prices (child, adult, student, senior) that is the minimum response. They get more credit if they also include matinee vs prime-time shows, they get still more credit if they test the assumption that Mary was going to a theatre that required payment, and full marks if they want to be sure that Mary does not own, or work at the theatre where the movie is being shown.

Analytical skills are, in my mind, being able to identify all of the variables that might bear on the solution of the problem, ranking them in order of how likely they are to come into play, and constructing alternatives based on the most likely combinations of variables. And doing that quickly and methodically without losing track of the variable expansions in the process.

The reason I prize those skills in an employee is that it gives them the capability to solve poorly specified problem tasks. Flipping my question around, as a manager I would much prefer to tell my employee "Give Mary money for the movie tonight." and be assured that they will expand the variable list, talk to Mary if necessary to fill in missing gaps, and then disburse the funds. But if they either freeze up unable to break down the variables into an action plan, or if they simply provide the "typical" money needed without figuring out if that will be too much or too little, then I know that managing them will take too much of my time. HTH

<comment><USER5> I loved this response until the end. When the absolute cost is actually really low relative to the cost of the analyst's time then skip the expansive analysis, use a reasonable heuristic and be done. I get frustrated with analysts who are so caught up in their analytic prowess and technique that they lose sight of the business context and basic ROI.

Despite my objection at the end, I really did like this example as a way to explore a person's ability to ask good questions.

</comment></comment><comment><USER6> Pose relevant practical problems for discussion vs more standard Q&A.Keep questions broad as you want to give them room to show where their thinking takes them.

E.g. When hiring a marketing role I'll give someone some campaign materials before the interview (when they arrive so they don't discuss it with friends/family) with instructions to tell me how they would improve this. There's no correct answer but I want to see how they approach and consider possibilities. I'm more interested in the 'why' they say something than the what. Combine this with an Excel or relevant technology test and you should have a good idea of if they can use critical thinking and logic to meet goals. Another question I've used is what business in another industry do they think is looking to change the market. Then challenge their views and see where they go.

For soft skill roles basic logic is seriously under-rated. Also finding someone that can look beyond the obvious. Look for someone that sees the world differently, like a Karl Plinkerton, but with some more common sense of course. I personally don't want hive-mind in a team. I want people that can respectfully disagree at all levels, provide options but then crack on with whatever decision is made. Its surprisingly hard to find this.

</comment><comment><USER7> There are two things that clue me in - attention to detail and the ability to follow directions. I give a test that has explicit instructions and it works every time. The test has both math and non-math problems but is mostly logical. The questions are more broad so that I can see their thought process.

I also weed candidates out immediately in the job description by throwing in a sentence in the middle that instructs them to send their resume with the subject line "entropy" or some other key word. When I get emails with resumes I simply delete those that don't have the key word.

<comment><USER8> I don't see how this measures analytical capabilities.

For example, people with mild ADHD will probably fair poorly on your tests. Now, if you are hiring for something that requires profound attention to detail (dispensing medicines in a hospital), keep on. If you are trying to measure analytical abilities, you should try measuring that, not some proxy that has little to do with analytical abilities.

(and the reverse also applies - I know people with great attention to detail but that I wouldn't rate particularly highly on analytical skills).

</comment></comment><comment><USER9> Interviewing for abstract qualities is horse shit.

If they have paper experience (or a solid github), pick apart their decisions and lessons from the experience. Look for strong opinions.

If they're "Jr" and have no paper experience, summarize some problem that your company faces every day and ask them how they would solve it.

For Hacker News, that might be how they'd store a comment tree in the database and how they'd render it to the user. Did they forsee any problems? Were they self-aware and recognized what they didn't know?

</comment><comment><USER10> When applying for coding-related positions, you are usually given a language- agnostic online test made of 3-5 tasks to be solved in 60-120 minutes. Not sure it proves anything more than your ability to game the testing system but, hey, that's what analytical skills are in their eminence.</comment>


Beer Gets Musical - Multi-Use Products - <AUTHOR> http://www.geekosystem.com/musical-beer-tuned-pale-ale/

<comment><AUTHOR> Multi-purpose products are an excellent driver of word-of-mouth marketing. Novelty meets utility. I would expect the 'fretted' beer bottle to inspire a viral youtube video that seeds this brand all over the place. (And I mean all of that despite the jargo-speak.</comment>


Retailer uses 3D QR codes and the Sun to time limit discounts - <AUTHOR> http://www.springwise.com/retail/seoul-retailer-3d-qr-codes-sun-deliver-discounts-quiet-times/ <comment><USER2> Very creative.

I would expect the biggest win for this campaign to be in the very beginning when the novelty attracts people.

I don't think this would be sustainable, because the QR code sculptures would require continual adjustment throughout the year to account for the procession of the sun. And clouds.

<comment><USER3> At 1:09 in the video you can see the sculpture get pivoted on a horizontal axle. That is sufficient. At some point during the day (near noon if it faces south) the left/right alignment will be correct, at that point you can tip it on the axle for optimum legibility.

The angle will vary by season, but if it is legible for an hour a day, there is a fair degree of slop available.

It should be intuitively human adjustable, simply maximize the square pixelation nature, or if you want something more explicit, make the bottoms of the long vertical dark spots line up with adjacent short vertical dark spots.

It is near June and they appear to be vertical. In the winter, with a lower sun, it will need to be tipped down and people will need to hold their phones lower and perhaps come closer. Good thing they didn't build it like this for winter. Then in the summer people would have to sit on a friend's shoulders to take the pictures.

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> IMO this is a PR move, meant to garner publicity, but not really workable. The sun changes positions throughout the year, then there are clouds, it doesn't make sense.

<comment><USER5> "Sorry, offer not available in Seattle." ;)

<comment><USER6> It would require hard shadows... since clouds defuse light resulting in soft shadows it wouldn't work if there are any clouds covering the sun.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> The box on the delivery made has some questionable spelling on it. There is a Team America joke in here somewhere.

<http://i.imgur.com/BG7mxl.jpg>

</comment><comment><USER8> Very cool. A variation on this might be the create a QR code that can only be seen from a particular orientation - a bit like the 4 on the UK TV Channel 4 interludes. You could use it to ensure people were looking in the right direction or perhaps or at the right thing.

<comment><USER9> One of the Channel 4 logos in question, for non-Brits: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R94X1M7r1SU>

<comment><USER10> Here's the April Fool's version, where they removed the CGI effects from the video <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEgmhwP7XWc> :)

<comment><USER9> Oh that's clever. Although it's less of an April Fool, more of an April prank.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER11> Appears to me that Koreans are fighting a lot in Retail space. Earlier, Tesco (Home+ in Korea) launched Virtual Grocery store which is a big hit. Now its competitor came up with this innovative idea. More innovations in pipeline ;)

<comment><USER12> The 2D (virtual) shop you are referring to: [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile- phones/8601147/...](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile- phones/8601147/Tesco-builds-virtual-shops-for-Korean-commuters.html)

<comment><USER13> This service would be even more awesome with self driving vans optimizing logistics. Now to solve the delivery from van to door problem - as usual the last 1% takes as much effort as the previous 99%.

<comment> j-b That's an interesting idea. I'm coding Direct Store Delivery software that manages inventory through wireless handheld devices. The problem is that a lot of shipping is from vendor to store directly and the receivers are required to validate the shipment has the correct products, quantity, cost/deal invoice details and then work it out with the vendor delivery driver as needed. There are companies that strategically attempt to offload certain products that the store doesn't want at that point in time but will save the vendor $ if they can ship today vs. next week when different cost/deals take effect.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER14> When I read the headline I thought I was going to see a QR code printed in UV- sensitive ink. This is much more creative.

Like people have said though, this probably isn't as maintainable as a UV- sensitive one might have been.

</comment><comment><USER15> For a more technological solution to the copied image problem, and also the reorientation necessary throughout the year, I think you could perhaps build a very large Pin Grid[1], with actuators for each pin, able to extend or retract them to the required position.

Then you can figure out different patterns which are valid when lit from a particular direction, as well as altering the actual data it encodes, synchronised with updating the coupon code that merchants will accept.

Could be kinda pricey for that number of actuators though, but if you were willing to have very slow update frequency, a single 2-axis adjustment head (think plotter or laser-cutter) with a smaller number of push/pull elements could move around, changing only X pins at a time, maybe with a friction lock to stop them moving once it progresses onto the next group.

[1] <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pin_Art>

</comment><comment><USER16> It will be an interesting challenge to write a program that can 'scan' the QR code at all time.

</comment><comment><USER17> Impressive. But you know what would be more impressive? Build a sculpture that yields different, _valid_ QR codes in every season.

</comment><comment><USER18> It would be interesting to hack this and augment the sculpture to produce a URL under your own control. By changing the heights of the various protrusions, you could alter the shadows and thereby alter the code. Hopefully someone would be able to do this in an easy to reverse manner by taping on foam pieces rather than literally hacking pieces off.

</comment><comment> Digit-Al I wonder if you could hack it with a spotlight?

<comment><USER19> You could just take a photo of the sculpture and paint it on your phone with a cheap editing app. You would just need to infer the shadow areas and paint them black, and the sunny parts white squares. QR codes were made to be very resilient to noise, and I can attest that you can mess with them quite a bit before they won't decipher. My boss asked me to take a QR code linking to our website and to try and rearrange some of the squares to be our initials. I got a few to work, and learned that the Reed Solomon encoding duplicates the data so much that this egregious manipulation was still acceptable.

<comment><USER20> Of course by doing this, you remove some of the error correction. Your mutated QR code is less likely to be scanned by a camera which is lo-res, at an angle, in dim light or affected by some other imperfection. People who test customised QR codes almost certainly only test them under close-to-perfect conditions.

<comment><USER19> Nope.

My test conditions were transferring them to a black t-shirt with an iron-on printer sheet, and then taking a jpeg of my wife wearing it in the kitchen with an iphone and using a QR code recoder app.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> This is very clever. Of course, they will need to move the signs slightly every day, as the alignment of the 12-1 o'clock hour will change with the seasons. Also, what's preventing someone from taking a picture at the proper time and posting that photo on the internet?

<comment><USER22> The article, in fact, does this. So nothing. It's just an ad.

</comment></comment><comment><USER23> a statue is a permanent installation right? how do they prevent one guy scanning it and sharing the URL(?) to everyone?

or just bookmark the url and open it again next day without scanning the statue again.

<comment><USER24> I assume it goes to a URL which is only valid between noon and 1pm. The QR code is probably scannable during a time period slightly wider than that, depending on the time of year.

It looks like the QR "statue" pivots to correct for the changing path of the sun across the sky, but the positioning doesn't have to be accurate to the point of working exactly from 12:00:00 to 13:00:00 local time. You can also add enforcement on the web server.

</comment></comment><comment><USER25> So if you increase sales during certain hours, does that mean you make some sales that you otherwise would not have made or are you just shifting customers around different time slots?

<comment><USER26> I'm sure it's a little of both. Sounds like they recruited a lot of new email subscribers, which is valuable. But, even shifting demand can be good if you can level out demand -- may mean fewer staff at peak times, shorter delivery queues, etc.

</comment></comment><comment><USER27> Korea must enjoy fine sunny mornings I presume..</comment>


Interviewing: Done Right - <AUTHOR> http://josephbulger.com/technology/interviewing-done-right/

<comment><USER2> I wouldn't expect somebody doing a small (15 min) program do it with TDD. If they will do it - it will be a plus, but it's not that important.

BTW: What is your position versus the person you interview? (Are you on the same table looking at the same monitor or are you behind him looking at the code?)</comment>


The Bobby Fischer Defense, by Garry Kasparov - <AUTHOR> http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/mar/10/bobby-fischer-defense/?pagination=false <comment><USER2> Addressing the theory that Fischer was afraid to play again after becoming world champion Kasparov writes:

"Brady's dismissal of this theory misses the point: 'What everyone seemed to overlook was that at the board Bobby feared no one.' Yes, once at the board he was fine! Where Fischer had his greatest crisis of confidence was always before getting to the board, before getting on the plane. Fischer's perfectionism, his absolute belief that he could not fail, did not allow him to put that perfection at risk."

That applies to much more than just chess. In fact I found the whole article not just very well written but poignant on many levels.

</comment><comment><USER3> In case anyone's wondering about the title (the article is about Fischer, but not about anyone defending him from anything, nor about any chess opening that bears his name, nor about how he defended in a difficult chess position), I'm pretty sure it's an allusion to Nabokov's novel "Luzhin's Defense" (the English translation is simply titled "The Defense"), about a gifted chess player who gradually falls into insanity as the novel progresses.

(It doesn't entirely fit Fischer, who seems to have done most of his going-mad after retiring from his chess career rather than during it, but never mind.)

</comment><comment><USER4> _In his play, Fischer was amazingly objective, long before computers stripped away so many of the dogmas and assumptions humans have used to navigate the game for centuries. Positions that had been long considered inferior were revitalized by Fischer's ability to look at everything afresh...

...Fischer's modern interpretation of "victory through clarity" was a revelation. His fresh dynamism started a revolution; the period from 1972 to 1975, when Fischer was already in self-exile as a player, was more fruitful in chess evolution than the entire preceding decade._

We need some more of this objectivity in programming. The programming domain is so complex, it's easy for people to create dogmas and defend them with verbal salad. Some more "victory through clarity" would be beneficial.

<comment><USER5> I've been thinking about this in recent months, because I've had the good fortune to have worked with some great programmers in the past -- and they didn't read or write blogs or magazine articles or anything of the like. They instead simply showed up to work, treated it like a job, did it, and went home. They didn't care what language they worked with. And, often, they wrote extremely clear, good code, on a foundation of simple concepts -- the kind of concepts which get argued back-and-forth to death on the internet every day.

I've believed for years that most of our great programming talent is completely unknown and completely unheard-of, working on antiquated database systems for some company somewhere.

Programming "culture", so much as it has one, could benefit a lot from arguing less and doing more.

<comment><USER4> _Programming "culture", so much as it has one, could benefit a lot from arguing less and doing more._

Unless we share data about what we're doing, there's no way to grow this "culture." A way of arguing less and accomplishing more would be to share more objective data.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> I liked this insightful comment:

"Then on January 17, 2008, he died in Reykjavík after a long illness for which he had refused treatment. Even this was somehow typical of Fischer, who grew up playing chess against himself since he had no one else to play. He had fought to the end and proven himself to be his most dangerous opponent."

It seems like Fischer was playing against himself all his life. That being said, I don't think today's cold, database driven world of chess (e.g. see [http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/03/21/110321fa_fact_...](http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/03/21/110321fa_fact_max)) would have had much use for his individuality, had he stayed the course. He probably would have lost to the new breed of players.

Good for him, then, to stay a legend, albeit a disturbing one.

<comment><USER7> There was a great New Yorker piece a few months back about the new generation of computer-raised chess players, typified by present-day wunderkind Magnus Carlsen. The piece is concerned primarily with Carlsen and his rise to fame in the chess world -- but, being a New Yorker article, it's also quite discursive and takes a few fun tangents along the way. One of which is a dissection of computer-age chess players _and_ chess-playing computer algorithms.

The general consensus among chess grandmasters is that the best algorithms out there are undeniably impossible for a human to defeat -- but yet, they play "ugly" chess. They're using a brute-force style of AI and can beat a human player down through sheer speed of calculation, and/or perfect recall of vast databases of former games. Someone like Kasparov would argue that a computer chess master is no more the intellectual superior of a human master than a calculator is the intellectual superior of a human mathematics PhD.

Finally, the article did confirm a suspicion held among some AI theorists and neuroscientists these days, which is that a combined human/AI "team" can defeat any lone human or lone AI. In the case of folks like Carlsen, the thinking is that this new generation will soar to new heights precisely because it has trained with and against computers, thus piecing together a best-of-both-worlds approach.

<comment><USER8> _"Someone like Kasparov would argue that a computer chess master is no more the intellectual superior of a human master than a calculator is the intellectual superior of a human mathematics PhD."_

Except that there's a lot more to being good at math than just being good at calculation and memorization; not so in chess (at least not against computers).

Computers have proven that they've got what it takes to win the game. And, ultimately, that's all that really matters in chess as it is presently designed.

Of course, there are plenty of chess variants (not to mention games like Go) which are a lot harder for computers to play well. It is quite likely that that's where most serious chess players will migrate to over time.

In fact, for the last decades of his life, Bobby Fischer himself refused to play anything but Fischer Random Chess (also known as Chess 960), a variant which made it practically impossible to memorize a significant portion of opening theory, since in this variant there is not just a single opening position as in regular chess, but 960 of them.

<comment><USER9> Do you think chess players will migrate to Go because they don't like playing a game that they can't win against a computer?

I'm nowhere near good enough to pretend to understand the motivations of a chess master, but this does kind of make sense to me. Somehow, it kills the vibe to know that computers will always win.

Funny, humans still enjoy sports even though a human sprinter will never run as fast as a motorcycle. Maybe it's because we've always been physically less capable than animals, maybe it hurts more to be bested intellectually. Horses have always run faster than us, so we're primed to see the motorcycle as a tool rather than a challenge. In sports, maybe we're better at celebrating human achievement without comparing it to something else.

Like most people, I don't actually think humans really were bested by computers in chess. There is a huge difference, of course - the computers are winning by following a completely different "thought" process than a human. It's an astoundingly impressive accomplishment to build a program that can beat chess masters, but because the way a human plays is so different, I think that I understand what the calculator analogy is getting at. In some ways, the "victory" shows the severe limitations of computers - a human chess grandmaster, capable of holding and evaluating maybe a dozen positions, is capable of playing evenly with a computer that evaluates hundreds of millions of positions a second. And in Go, that dozen or so positions combined with intuition, strategy, and other mental processes we consider almost subjective is so effective that a billions of positions a second computer can't even come close to winning.

If go eventually falls because computers are now capable of evaluating trillions of moves per second, but the approach is still essentially number crunching, well that's an impressive engineering feat, but "human intelligence" won't be any more defeated than it was the first time, with chess.

Now, if a computer can beat a human by evaluating _fewer_ moves, ok, maybe then we've been bested.

<comment><USER8> _"Do you think chess players will migrate to Go because they don't like playing a game that they can't win against a computer?"_

I don't think most chess players will migrate to Go. It's the serious chess players which will probably migrate, and they'll probably migrate to a variant of chess rather than to Go.

Go is just too different for most players who are fascinated with chess to switch to (though they might appreciate both).

Many chess variants, on the other hand, tend to be similar in many ways to regular chess. So if you enjoy playing regular chess, you'll likely enjoy playing a variant just as much (maybe even more).

In fact, "regular chess" is itself actually a chess variant, as the rules of chess have changed over the centuries. What we call "chess" today differs in some ways from what was known as "chess" even just a couple of hundred years ago. And the further back in time you go, the more differences there are.

Chess is not a game whose rules are set in stone for all time. It changes and develops with the demands and interests of the ages. And it seems likely that the demands of our age will change it once again.

 _"I'm nowhere near good enough to pretend to understand the motivations of a chess master, but this does kind of make sense to me. Somehow, it kills the vibe to know that computers will always win._ "

It's not so much that humans somehow resent the dominance of the machines in chess, but that computers (and the study of chess in general) have radically transformed the game in a direction that many players are unhappy with.

For instance, it used to be that if a tournament game lasted too long, it would be adjourned (ie. the players would take a break for a while) until the game could be resumed. In the meantime they could think over the adjourned position and use what they thought up when the game resumed. Because of computers, that's no longer done.

The problem is that either player could now secretly use a computer to analyze the adjourned position for him, and from that point on the result of the game becomes more of a matter of who has the strongest chess computer rather than of which human is the strongest chess player.

Another problem that computers (and the study of chess) have brought about is that the memorization of previously analyzed moves has become a major part of the game (especially at the more competitive levels). This was true even in Fischer's day, before chess computers were useful, but is much more true today.

The consequence of this is that the person who's memorized the most chess moves can have a great advantage (though this is a bit of an oversimplification, as many other factors enter in to play as well). Many people are really not very fond of playing against what amounts to a database of chess moves rather than against another human being.

That's why chess variants like Fischer Random Chess are appealing: to a very large extent, they take away the usefulness of memorizing chess moves.

Of course, one of the advantages that computers have over humans is that they have a "perfect memory" (though not a limitless one). So when playing a chess variant like Fischer Random Chess, the playing field is leveled against computers as well.

Another problem that computers have brought to chess is the possibility of cheating using computers. Accusations of cheating with computers have plagued even the highest levels of chess, and certain types of chess ("postal chess" and internet chess in particular, where you can't see who you're really playing against) are very vulnerable to such cheating.

Playing a variant of chess that's harder for computers to win would solve this problem as well.

 _"Funny, humans still enjoy sports even though a human sprinter will never run as fast as a motorcycle."_

Well, the thing is that a motorcycle doesn't actually run.

It'll be interesting to see what happens to sports like sprinting and boxing when humanoid robots get advanced enough to be able to actually compete in these sports.

I don't think they'll be quite as catastrophically affected as chess has been, since study with the robots isn't likely to give nearly as much of an advantage to players in those sports as studying with chess computers has given to chess players. But it'll still be interesting to see how they react once robots can actually beat them at their game.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> There's an interesting piece about the potential Fischer-Karpov match where Kasparov notes: "This includes testimony by Karpov himself, who said Fischer was the favorite and later put his own chances of victory at 40 percent."

This is the same Karpov that a few matches earlier ceded that Spassky would win that current candidates cycle, and then Karpov goes on to beat Spassky quite comfortably in the semi-final match.

I think this speaks for Karpov's public-facing modesty and pragmatism, rather than an objective examination of playing strengths.

But still, a Fischer-Karpov match could have been absolutely epic, perhaps potentially surpassing the previous Spassky-Fischer match.

</comment><comment><USER11> It is worth noting that the USA has produced two world champion chess players, both abandoned the game and went crazy. (The other was Paul Morphy: see <http://www.edochess.ca/batgirl/Morphygoescrazy.html> for one contemporary report of his insanity.)

Actually Kasparov's grasp of reality is somewhat questionable. For instance read <http://www.revisedhistory.org/view-garry-kasparov.htm> where he demonstrates an astonishing lack of understanding of basic history. (For the first major mistake, see <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Agricultural_Revolution> for why his naive projections of population growth are clearly wrong.)

<comment><USER12> A lack of knowledge of British history is hardly grounds for questioning someone's grasp on reality.

<comment><USER11> I'm questioning his grasp of reality because he believes that about a thousand years of recorded history didn't happen, and there is some plot among historians to cover this up.

In this particular case a lack of knowledge of British history is a lack of knowledge of world history. The British Agricultural Revolution resulted in major increases in food supply, that allowed populations to grow rapidly. What Britain discovered got exported to the rest of Europe, and European colonies. The result was a greatly expanded carrying capacity for the human population, which enabled a world-wide population explosion.

Now granted, most people don't know about this. But if you're curious about the history of population growth in Europe, it really is easy to find out what historians have to say about it. And when you do so you should run across this fairly quickly.

<comment><USER13> I do agree, that article is slightly nutty. It has the usual air of a very smart guy getting outside his area of expertise -- one simple observation plus one leap to a rather world-shattering conclusion minus a few key pieces of knowledge which anyone in the actual field should know about.

It's not quite the same thing as having a tenuous grasp on reality. It's more like listening to Einstein (or Chomsky) on politics -- very good in one field, rather over-confident in another.

<comment><USER14> > It's more like listening to Einstein (or Chomsky) on politics -- very good > in one field, rather over-confident in another.

Chomsky is very careful to heavily reference and back up his political opinions, so I'm a little confused as to how he is over-confident in the field? I assume you simply disagree with him?

<comment><USER15> It must be noted that what Chomsky is famous for, his deep grammar, has never been shown to be anything more than a particularly elegant theory, not representative of actual real linguistics - and that is what he is good at, assembling beautiful arguments ultimately based on nothing. He's an extremely skillful rhetoritician and orator - but the acid test is, _does this work?_

<comment><USER14> I'm not informed enough about linguistics to be able to determine whether what you say is true or not, but it is certainly irrelevant to what we're actually discussing - Chomsky _does_ supply evidence to back up his political claims.

<comment><USER15> Mmm yes, like I say, he's very good at _being convincing_ and selective use of references is a part of that, but his conclusions are reheated anarcho- syndicalism, a system that was tried and failed in the 1930s. It doesn't matter how elegant your theories are - what matters is what actually happens when the rubber hits the road.

Just like a good (in the sense of skill) salesman can sell you a product you don't actually want by producing all the evidence you need...

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER16> Here is a link to the famous 'Game of the Century' by Bobby. <http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1008361>

</comment><comment><USER17> Kasparov is a surprisingly eloquent writer

<comment><USER15> Why surprising? Because he's Russian?

<comment><USER17> Pleasantly surprising. I wouldn't naturally associate a smooth pen and lingual beauty with a chess champion

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER18> Really great: "The ability to put in those hours of work is in itself an innate gift. Hard work is a talent."

</comment><comment><USER19> As an addendum, the final round of the current world championship candidates matches are starting. See <http://kazan2011.fide.com/> or This Week In Chess <http://www.chess.co.uk/twic/>

</comment><comment><USER20> Once it hits video I highly recommend watching Bobby Fischer Against the World. I'll have to read this book even though the author of the article points out that he wishes there was more meat on the early life of Bobby.

In the movie, his life was pretty depressing to see. Much like other child prodigies who have a great beginning, years down the road you're wondering what ever happened to them.

His awkwardness and ignorance had to have a great affect. I imagine a lot of it came from not having a father figure (or guidance in general) and becoming entirely consumed by chess at such a young age. He really closed himself off in his own world.

</comment><comment><USER21> Great article. I am always amazed by how well K writes.</comment>


Why is there no CR1, and why are control registers such a mess anyway? (2010) - <AUTHOR> http://www.pagetable.com/?p=364 <comment><USER2> Context: [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13126858](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13126858)

</comment><comment><USER3> You have to love comments that spawn links. "Why _is_ that a thing?"

</comment><comment><USER4> The tl;dr:

      > The i486 added a few more control bits, and some of them
      > went into CR0. But instead of overflowing the new bits
      > into CR1, Intel decided to skip it and open up CR4
      > instead – for unknown reasons.

a.k.a. :shrug:

<comment><USER5> Spaces in front of your >s make your quote a raw formatted block that's really hard to read on a mobile device. :/

<comment><USER6> Instead of email-style quotes, just add an asterisk before and after the quoted text. _That puts it in italics_ and makes it obvious that it's quoted material but it will wrap properly on various screen widths.

<comment><USER7> I wish HN would simply support quoting with `>`. It's a recurring pain. That way it could be made to look good on mobile too...

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> My suspicion is that some application in the 286 - OS/2 days was found to expect an 'invalid opcode' fault from CR1, so that's why it had to stay reserved.

<comment><USER9> This reminds me of how INT 0Fh had to stay reserved because of a Pentium Pro errata.

</comment></comment><comment><USER9> The original 486 did not have CR4. It was added when Intel backported VME and later PSE to later 486 processors.

</comment><comment><USER10> For those working closer to the metal than I: are these special instructions dispatched to dedicated circuitry, or are they actually microcoded?

</comment><comment><USER11> > This entry was posted in archeology, trivia, whines on July 2, 2010 by > Michael Steil.

So I guess (2010) is appropriate for the title.

<comment><USER12> It was already old in 2010, nothing has retroactively changed in the text.</comment></comment>


Show HN: iGeek.at, Our Yahoo HackDay India App - <AUTHOR> http://igeek.at

<comment><AUTHOR> This is the app we made for 2011 Yahoo hack day India. Its basically a usesthis.com for everyone. The idea is to showoff apps that you use and discover more apps.

You can basically build and browse profiles like these - <http://igeek.at/deryldoucette>

We have a bunch of apps right now but we wanted to put it out on HN and see what people think about this. If you want to see some app added, please let us know. Also, we would appreciate any feedback. This is a side project right now but if there is a lot of interest, we are certainly keep on working more on this.

</comment><comment><USER2> about.me for the geeks. Cool. <http://igeek.at/satyajit>

</comment><comment><USER3> This is pretty nice! But is twitter sign-in a first step or will it always stay like this? Could be nice to add a small post explaining why we love a specific app! And on the same idea, could be nice to say the app we will NEVER use again !

<comment><AUTHOR> We used Twitter sign in because we wanted to make it super easy to try out the app. We just ask for read permissions.

Thanks for the suggestions. We'll keep this in mind when working on the next revision of the app.

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> Isn't this basically iusethis.com ? (random profile: <http://osx.iusethis.com/user/arne>)

</comment><comment><USER5> Is this sorta like Wakoopa? ( <http://social.wakoopa.com> )

<comment><AUTHOR> Yes. I think Wakoopa does something similar. I had never seen it before. iGeek is more inspired by usesthis and about.me so we are focusing more on profiles that you can use in your email signature/twitter profile etc.</comment></comment>