Ask YC: What would it take to create a viable alternative to Evite.com - <AUTHOR>

Evite's been around forever and has hardly seen any serious competition. There's renkoo and mypunchbowl etc but nobody's made a dent in Evite. I am wondering what ingredients a compelling alternative will need.<p>I am tempted to give it a go myself but wanted to ask to see what others think... <comment><USER2> The brand awareness evite has is something I wouldn't want to compete with. Making something technologically superior wouldn't be hard. Making people aware of it and trust it would.

</comment><comment><USER3> There are a number of well funded and executed takes on the idea in addition to the ones you listed:

<http://www.socializr.com/> <http://going.com/> <http://eventbrite.com/>

Perhaps the problem is that none of them are a 10x improvement over Evite. Perhaps MySpace/Facebook are diminishing the space's potential. Maybe this is just one of those things that will take years.

<comment><USER4> It's part of the vernacular: "Did you get the evite?" - "Send me the Evite!" "Did you get the upcoming link for the event?" "Did you get the 'going'... " are both awkward. Renkoo is another. With all respect, if I'm having a party, what am I going to do, Renkoo you? Granted, they just got another $6m - let's hope they figure that out ;)

</comment></comment><comment><USER5> A few more features added to Wufoo.

</comment><comment><USER6> this was our yc app idea for quite awhile. we spent months on analyzing competitors, trends, current practices, drafted up use cases, wireframed an entire site, programmed out some functionality, made a screencast demo, and got denied. i have a 1 Gb folder of due diligence for this but ultimately the conclusion was this probably isn't worth pursuing. the dynamics involved requires more than just better technology.

<comment><USER7> Not a bad process to go through regardless of whether you pursued the idea.

I am actually working on something similar-ish, but since I am in stealth mode I won't say what the differences are, and I am definitely aware that it is a difficult area to get into. You need a recognizable brand and a certain starting size to get it snowballing.

I have the luxury of doing it for my own personal enjoyment, so I don't have any concerns :)

<comment><USER6> well i've rejected from yc 5 times in a row now. my project folder just grows bigger and bigger. but i guess it goes with the territory of thinking i'm an entrepreneur.

<comment><USER8> Dude, if you've been rejected from YC five times, you absolutely just need to bootstrap and get going. Take one of those projects and just keep coding in your spare time, etc.

Try maybe Prosper? Or ask your friend engineers? The money at YC's levels can be found just about anywhere. The YC 'bump' with expertise, connections, etc, is likely of very high value, but zillions of people get by without it.

It sounds like your ideas may not align with YC-- maybe it's them and not you?

If you've proposed 5 times, you've got more gumption than a lot of entrepreneurs-- just keep moving.</comment></comment></comment></comment>


Mobile Safari bookmarklet to enable AirPlay video for web content - <AUTHOR> http://andrewgleave.github.com/airplayerjs/

<comment><AUTHOR> Hi, author here :)

The bookmarklet seems to work best on content which uses the <video> element rather than <embed>. I'm not clear why, as Apple's documentation says it should work with embedded content (see [http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#releasenotes/General...](http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#releasenotes/General/WhatsNewIniPhoneOS/Articles/iOS4_3.html%23//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40010567-SW2)) but it seems more fragile.

Hope you find it useful. Comments welcome!

<comment><USER2> Very cool. I found that AirPlaying Vimeo video from an iPad works wonderfully, while doing it from an iPhone (both on 4.3) only allows audio to AirPlay.

Any ideas why they would be different? Do you know if this bookmarklet works for Vimeo on iPhone (haven't had a chance to try it yet, but will)?

<comment><AUTHOR> I've just tried it on the WiFi light painting video posted here last week (<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2270878>) and it worked fine. You need to stop the video first, run the script, and then you're good to go.</comment></comment></comment>


My new code startup: Tell me what you think - <AUTHOR> http://www.snippetrepo.com/

<comment><USER2> Looks like a cool idea. If you can solve the chicken and the egg problem by filling it with some useful snippets before launching you'll be able to pick up a user base quickly.

Edit: Another startup from Brisbane, nice! I live not far from there.

<comment><AUTHOR> Thanks Rex. I appreciate your support. I've got many useful code snippets sitting in files ready to import into the db.

The main reason I created it is to have an organised place for snippets for myself and my coding friends and the idea grew from there.</comment></comment>


A Lens on Racism - <AUTHOR> A lens on racism.
Gotama Bhudda, when he was a young prince, was oblivious to to the suffering of the world. There was a prophesy about him, that when he saw an old man, a sick man, and a dead man, he would be set on his way to enlightenment.
His parents were fearful of this prophesy, and worked hard to shield him from these things, and with abundant wealth, they did it very well.
To release Gotama, the latest of the Buddhas (according to the Mahayana sect), many gods crawled out of the sky to become the old, the sick, and the dead.
One god also became a hermit, to provide the prince with a functional path.
The many gods did this because they too wanted release and enlightenment, and in so doing, the Bhudda of our time left his home to fulfill his destiny.
Tonight, I passed a man who was not of my race, not of my skin color, but his eyes were full of tears. I don't know why. He wanted to shake my hand, and I extended it to him gladly. He walked on, and after a few seconds, I called after him, "I'm sorry." He did not pause.
It drew this parable to mind.
John 10:34: Is it not written in your law, I said: "You are gods?"
Who are you in this parable, the parent, the god, the unaesthetic, or the prince?
As for myself, I don't know. <comment><AUTHOR> The four noble truths of Bhuddism:

All of life is sorrow.

Escape from sorrow exists.

Escape from sorrow is attainable.

Escape from sorrow is nirvana.</comment>


Operation Easy Chair: How a Company in Holland Helped the CIA Bug the Russians - <AUTHOR> https://decorrespondent.nl/3789/Operation-Easy-Chair-or-how-a-little-company-in-Holland-helped-the-CIA-bug-the-Russians/106823277-f4300cc3 <comment><USER2> I love these stories, I would have liked more details on the operation, but also the personal story is nice to read.

</comment><comment><USER3> Technical info about 'the thing': [http://www.cryptomuseum.com/covert/bugs/thing/index.htm](http://www.cryptomuseum.com/covert/bugs/thing/index.htm)

</comment><comment><USER4> It is widely well known that most European Countries are just lapdogs for the monster called "United States foreign policy"</comment>


Every single step I took to get my side project to $1k/month - <AUTHOR> https://bookmarkos.com/growing-side-project-1k-month/ <comment><USER2> This article is great. It's not sensationalist like other articles of this ilk. It doesn't have these unmentioned or glossed over factors like having an existing audience like you mention. And it has a level of tactical detail that I think others lack. It's honest and shows perhaps a more realistic / representative sample of what it's like to actually be a indiehacker. Thanks for sharing!

<comment><AUTHOR> Glad you found it useful!

</comment></comment><comment><USER3> Great article and was interesting to hear the different steps taken and the associated success and failures. In particular, it seems that the most success of the product could be attributed to the competitor closing.

I wonder how the increased price impacted existing customers, especially when the price doubled at the end of the article? Were users notified of the change with the option to cancel? It seemed that a portion cancelled given the revenue: $750/month at $12 per user vs $1000 at $24 per user.

It would also be interesting to know how many new customers were there after the price change?

Did existing users have to agree to a new ToC when you made the price change or was this automatic, i.e. $24 taken out of their account the next month without their permission? What's the standard practice for this?

<comment><AUTHOR> Oh, I should have specified this. I didn't change the price for any existing customers. I just changed the price for new customers.

<comment><USER3> Yes, please do! Really highlights the impact. Great work Jack

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> "I ended up trying out a PR service called Publicize for $500, which essentially has some lower level PR people come up with a pitch and then mass emails a list they have."

I've always gotten these emails and thought of them as spam. Great to hear your experience using one for real

<comment><AUTHOR> Yep. I think PR can be effective but you really need to pay a lot for it. At the higher rates, PR people have connections they can leverage.

</comment></comment><comment><USER5> "Update 08/10/2020: this was written almost a year ago and I have since quite freelancing to work on my side project full time. As a result it is no longer a "side project," but all the info here is still relevant!" \----- I think it's worth mentioning that this has since turned into a full-time project (as the article mentions).

</comment><comment><USER6> I'm in the same boat right now as author was in the start. Like, it's just a free service that I built as a side project that is clearly very useful to _me_ and a few users that absolutely love it, yet alot of people don't see it useful right now. Definitely learnt some lessons from this article.

</comment><comment><USER7> Great article. Unrelated; I'm always interested in the corporate decisions solo developers make for their projects - did you start an LLC? sole proprietorship, etc. Care to expand on that if you can?

<comment><AUTHOR> Just did an LLC. Was the easiest option.

</comment></comment><comment><USER8> Can you try blog marketing next? like adding blog with "tips" it seems such blogs are industry standard, and I always wondered if they work

<comment><AUTHOR> Yep. Going to try that along with general content marketing.

</comment></comment><comment><USER9> What was the reason behind getting someone prominent to post on Product Hunt on your behalf? Is there some benefit over submitting it yourself?

<comment><AUTHOR> At the time, when a user submits to PH it shows somewhere for all of their followers. So if they have a large following, it helps. Think it still works the same but not sure.

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> Great write up. Would love to hear what it feels like to run your own product. Does it feel like it was worth the risk and effort?

<comment><AUTHOR> Yep, it feels totally worth it. The product is something that I wanted to use myself and I use it just about every day, so just that makes it worth it.

</comment></comment><comment><USER11> Did you email a lot of reporters about your product?

How did you make the list of reporters to email?

Did you email them pre-made articles?

<comment><AUTHOR> I emailed some reporters a while ago. Found articles about similar apps and then got their emails. I didn't email them anything pre-made. I don't think reputable tech blogs would want pre-made posts but I could be wrong.

</comment></comment><comment><USER12> The '200 million SaaS businesses in the world' is a typo right? Where did that stat come from?

<comment> hydroxideOH- It's a hyperbole.</comment></comment>


Sharethebus (YC W16) Makes It Easy to Organize a Charter Bus Trip - <AUTHOR> https://blog.ycombinator.com/sharethebus-yc-w16-makes-it-incredibly-easy-to-organize-a-charter-bus-trip <comment><USER2> I was in charge of running buses between our college and rival school for "the game" each year. We had a student run organization where we kept 60% of the profits. We shuttled 2,000 people on ~30 buses, all through one bus company. We literally had to do nothing except send emails... the bus company handled all the complicated logistics.

It was a great gig. Very profitable. I can only imagine doing this at scale will bring some nice $$$.

<comment><USER3> This is awesome! We started doing this with one festival where we did buses from our home city to the event. From there we scaled and started launching different routes. That's where it started getting more complex :)

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> Cool! Two suggestions:

\- make it clear on the main page where you currently operate (I see from the FAQ that it's Can/US).

\- provide quote estimates for both types of bus, since it's hard to figure out even a ballpark of what it would cost

<comment><USER3> Good call! We actually operate across North America, definitely something we'll make more clear.

We're on the verge of rolling out automatic pricing for both types of buses right away. But will make sure to include it for both buses.

Thanks a lot for your suggestions!</comment></comment>


What hackers can teach 'greenies' - <AUTHOR> http://faircompanies.com/blogs/view/what-hackers-can-teach-greenies-and-sarah-palin-as-eco-model/

<comment><USER2> Perhaps resistance to the Green movement be a combination of

1\. Plans for change are coopted by the government as a means of consolidating political power.

2\. Plans for change are coopted by business as a means of rent seeking.

3\. So many of the alternatives that are advocated are really no help at all (e.g., pollution due to production of the high-tech materials)

4\. Recommendations are obviously stupid (e.g., contra the green movement, CF bulbs do not save energy during heating season, so are net polluters)

5\. "Green" has become a meaningless buzzword, rather than indicating that anything of moment is being accomplished.

When people see these things happening, is it any wonder they become jaded?

<comment><USER3> "e.g., contra the green movement, CF bulbs do not save energy during heating season, so are net polluters"

Not so much:

"""It's true that incandescent bulbs give off heat that can help to keep your home warm. But, Rubinstein[0] points out that it's only a tiny amount. There are a number of factors that can impact the amount of money and energy you save by switching to CFLs (or other more efficient lighting).

If you live in a cold climate (in an insulated house), losing ambient heat from those old inefficient incandescent bulbs may increase your heating bill slightly, but you'll save more on overall energy costs because of the electricity you'll save on lighting. If you live in a warm climate, you might even rack up more savings since you won't need to use as much air conditioning. Rubinstein's bottom line: You're almost always going to save money when you replace an incandescent with a CFL, but you may not save quite as much during the heating season in a cold climate."""

[http://green.yahoo.com/blog/the_conscious_consumer/70/three-...](http://green.yahoo.com/blog/the_conscious_consumer/70/three- cfl-myths-busted.html)

[0] <http://lighting.lbl.gov/>

<comment><USER2> Do you have a better citation than Yahoo!? Because this one offers absolutely no explanation. And since it flies in the face of what I know about conservation of energy, I think it needs a pretty darned good explanation.

You'll note that your citation says "energy costs", rather than "energy consumption". This is likely true because the cost of energy is higher when delivered in the form of electricity than when delivered in the form of fuel oil. But that's a pure cost saving question. It says absolutely nothing about how "green" this is: the net effect on the environment of using the two types of bulbs _independent of costs_.

There is the possibility that the heat generation by my furnace is much more efficient than that from the electricity by way of the bulb, but I doubt that is significant (unless I have a heat pump and live in a temperate area where that can work very well?).

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> An entire article about waking up to the reality that people respond better to a depoliticized environmentalist narrative, bookended with Sarah Palin as linkbait in the title and punching bag in the closing paragraph. Brilliant.</comment>


Put Callback Logic Into Callback Objects [Rails] - <AUTHOR> http://miloshadzic.com/2012/03/08/Put-Callback-Logic-Into-A-Callback-Object/

<comment><USER2> This strikes me as being similar to extracting bits of a model out into modules that then get included back into that model. It looks like you're reducing the complexity of the model, but in fact you're just hiding it elsewhere, without making it any easier to stub things out.

<comment><AUTHOR> You're right that it's similar to extracting it to a module since (in this example) HashGenerator.new is evaluated with the class and in my Request spec I can't exactly stub HashGenerator.new to return a double.

How would you do it?

<comment><USER3> Create a RequestFactory which is responsible for creating valid requests, put the hash generator in there. Then use the factory in the controller instead of directly creating the model.

That way you don't have the indirection of an ActiveRecord callback and you have your process of creating a request and assigning it a unique hash in a straightforward single process.

<comment><AUTHOR> This makes sense. Thanks.

<comment><USER3> I've learned this the hard way. I have an app which has callback chains through 5+ models and it's basically impossible to figure out what's going on.

-C

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> Shameless plug here. If you use the Aspector gem I created, you could move validation logic into an aspect and test it. And apply aspect is very easy. Here is what the code will look like.

class Request < ActiveRecord::Base

end

class RequestValidation < Aspector::Base

      target do
        def has_unique_hash_id?
          exists?(:hash_id => hash_id)
        end
      end

      before :create do
        hash_id = SecureRandom.hex(12) until has_unique_hash_id?
      end

end

RequestValidation.apply(Request)

</comment><comment><USER5> You may run into race conditions when two processes end up saving an object with the same hash_id. The check and the object creation should both happen inside a transaction.

<comment><AUTHOR> Good point. Thanks.

</comment></comment><comment><USER6> I'm kind of curious why you use SecureRandom.hex and then check for uniqueness, rather than just using SecureRandom.uuid?

Edit: Nevermind, I realize now that SecureRandom's uuid isn't really a uuid, in that sense. It's just random.</comment>


PayPal CTO Resigns - <AUTHOR> http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1633917/000163391716000110/a8-kbarrese.htm <comment><USER2> PayPal's redesigned their UI two or three times in the past decade or so. None of those redesigns have made it to business accounts yet. I still log in and see the same site I did in the early 2000s. I really, really understand that their business is enormously complex, operating in hundreds of different markets, but... you'd think some of the improvements would trickle down _eventually_. It's a real challenge for their support staff that has to figure out which of several completely different interfaces a customer is seeing before they can provide any help with it.

[http://i.imgur.com/a1pYK8a.png](http://i.imgur.com/a1pYK8a.png)

<comment><USER3> Tangentally, does anyone know how to show a running balance in PayPal, similar to a bank statement. I can get a list of transactions, but there doesn't seem to be a 'Balance' column, and it's not obvious which transactions affect the balance.

<comment><USER4> No. You'd have to roll your own using nvp TransactionSearch api with BalanceAffecting transaction. Also you'd have to do currency conversions on your own

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> Adopters of the 'new' PayPal interface can probably attest to the poor quality, redirects and unexplained errors that have been popping up. After talking on the phone with two service reps, one of whom refused to let me talk to a technical expert as to why my email confirmation token wouldn't work and another who had to enable automated billing on my account manually (because it's totally broken in the client interface) I can only conclude the problems are widespread and currently still at large. I'm not surprised they have made a high-profile canning.

<comment><USER6> I transitioned back to the old interface almost immediately. The search interface for past orders is less powerful because you now need to know when an order was placed in addition to having the transaction ID. The old interface can pull up an order without having the approximate order date as long as you can provide either your own txnid or the customer's txnid. Additionally, I was no longer able to pull up orders using the customer's txnid. So, that was a bummer.

<comment><USER7> Same here. They probably have an index on the txn ID, search is pretty quick that way, but on the new interface where they force you to search within a time span, it takes forever when its more than a few days. So the decision to force people to pick a time span is probably hurting their DB select as much as it is hurting the user experience.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> The role of CTO varies so greatly from company to compan . Some are hands on making major decisions. Others are almost academic; looking 18+ months out and responsible for understanding big trends et . Not sure which is the case here. Does anyone know?

<comment><USER9> I can at least agree that it varies greatly company to company. I've got some blog posts lined up relating to being a CTO, but it really is a varied position, and interchangeable with being a VP of Engineering.

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> Zenefits just canned their CEO (ironically, over a benefits dispute), while their COO steps up to take over that role. Maybe James is leaving Paypal to become COO of Zenefits?

<comment><USER11> Definitely related, from [http://venturebeat.com/2016/02/08/zenefits-ceo- parker-conrad...](http://venturebeat.com/2016/02/08/zenefits-ceo-parker- conrad-resigns-coo-david-sacks-takes-over/) / [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11061992](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11061992)

>Also today, Zenefits announced that venture capitalist and PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel has joined the startup's board of directors. In addition to relinquishing his role as chief executive, Conrad has also given up his board seat.

<comment><USER12> Definitely not related. David Sacks and Peter Thiel are best friends from college.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER13> PayPal had good earnings last quarter ([http://techcrunch.com/2016/01/27/paypal-shares-up-on- earning...](http://techcrunch.com/2016/01/27/paypal-shares-up-on-earnings- revenue-rises-17/)), so bad performance may not be the reason.

<comment><USER14> He was CTO, why would infrastructure guy ever be held responsible for poor overall performance? It's not rocket science, nor F1 team

<comment><USER15> Shit flows downhill and they needed a scapegoat to make the board happy. The general public doesn't know what a CTO does so problem solved nice and neat.

<comment><USER16> I would disagree along the lines that the general public didn't even know there was a problem. I'm still not even sure what the issue was, myself(besides the usual complaints about paypal).

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER17> Worst ever support i have experienced. I do not contact support unless there is something i can't operate myself. They just copy paste things from their support FAQ... didn't receive answer to my question ever... Such incompetence.

</comment><comment><USER18> New Money needs a New CTO

<comment><USER19> When you call their tech support and their own tech support gives up on their products and just recommends the now PayPal owned Braintree...well that wasn't the only bad sign I guess.

<comment><USER20> BT has much less technical debt and thus more modern design. Most new merchants are encouraged to use v.zero (BT's xo product)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> Couldn't happen to a nicer sleazeball. I have nothing but disdain for Paypal (and Square, at this point), their customer service is terrible, their limits (even for businesses) are laughably low, and their processes for increasing the limits are slow, opaque, and unable to be appealed. Nothing but the back of my hand for these chuckleheads, I hope they trip and fall on their megayachts.

<comment><USER22> I know of a lot of valid complaints against PayPal (bad support, poor policies, many unjust closures) but I haven't heard a whole ton about Square—certainly nothing to drop them into the same bucket as PayPal. Mind expanding on that a little?

</comment></comment><comment><USER23> It's hard to read between the lines here.

\- 2 months is a odd notice period (one would expect three). So was he pushed?

\- the role is being split in two from his departure. This usually means the role had more power than was comfortable.

\- but it's still two Months. Any signs of gardening leave?

<comment><USER24> Senior VP Payment Services and CTO seem to be two roles that one person may have been right to fill in a special case (with a very special person), but where _usually_ the best person to fill one wouldn't be the best person to fill the other.

</comment></comment><comment><USER25> I switched to Google Wallet. PayPal would take forever to send money and has done nothing for years to innovate. All they do is buy startups (Braintree). I think this is entirely true - when the founders leave, companies stop innovating.

</comment><comment><USER26> [http://recode.net/2015/08/31/top-paypal-executive-hill- fergu...](http://recode.net/2015/08/31/top-paypal-executive-hill-ferguson-out- in-management-shakeup/)

> Hill Ferguson, a top executive and officer who was SVP of PayPal's consumer > business, has stepped down, he announced in a post on Facebook earlier > today. Bill Ready, who was Ferguson's counterpart for the merchant side of > PayPal's ecosystem, is gaining more control and will now run product and > engineering for the entire company, a spokesman said in a statement.

[http://www.zdnet.com/article/paypal-cto-james-barrese- resign...](http://www.zdnet.com/article/paypal-cto-james-barrese-resigns/)

> William Ready, the company's Global Head of Product & Engineering, will take > over the "payment services functions" currently handled by Barrese,

Is it really that big a mystery what is happening?

<comment><USER27> Well, it's a mystery to me. What do you see?

<comment><USER26> politics? power grab? the new guys coming in and pushing out the old?

even battlehack, which started in 2013, which is probably one of the best things PP did for developers in recent years is awfully quiet now

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER28> Oh, finally. For a couple years, I can't pass authentication of PayPal on my iPhone no matter how I tried. While almost all the credit card and banks are now using fingerprint on iPhone, I need a hardware token device to really get in PayPal on iPhone. According to the rep the logic is I can use my phone number to receive 2 factor text code, then why advertised it.

The new web has been continued puzzled me often prompt to go back to old UI for more details. This is in 2015, decades after online banking started and PayPal is not a government agency. However you put it, it doesn't add up.

<comment><USER29> In my case using SMS for 2FA only works within their new interface. Whenever an online shop is redirecting to PayPal, it's the old login page (and doesn't notice when already logged in on PayPal), so I basically never receive 2FA codes in that step.

Not sure if just broken or they are using a different SMS gateway that has a problem with my country. It also doesn't really help that 2FA is still only known as hardware tokens within their documentation. It doesn't raise any trust for the PayPal website either.

</comment></comment><comment><USER30> PayPal is being really obnoxious lately (like banning payments to VPN services and such). Or were they always that way?

<comment><USER31> They have been like that from the start. I don't blame them, there was a lot of fraud going on and it meant they had to develop a very defensive attitude to things just to stay in business. It's hard to shake those things off once they are established.

</comment></comment><comment><USER32> About that Paypal stability... [https://i.imgur.com/PCkXnQu.png](https://i.imgur.com/PCkXnQu.png)

</comment><comment><USER12> So who's more senior after this? The new CTO or Bill Ready?

</comment><comment><USER33> Tomorrow's top post: Zenefits CEO, Yelp CFO, PayPal CTO team up to Big Data the Internet of Things

<comment><USER10> It'll be an insurance company that holds hostage provider payments until you delete your negative review.

<comment><USER34> You win!

I literally laughed out loud for what seems like a while.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER35> "Pop." [https://twitter.com/djcapelis/status/696869166960095232](https://twitter.com/djcapelis/status/696869166960095232)

<comment><USER36> Am I very dense or is this a reference to the tech bubble?

<comment><USER37> Congratulations you got the reference. Gold stars for everyone!

<comment><USER16> I assumed people would be drawing this conclusion when I saw the top 3 threads right now. How do we know that is the case and not just statistical anomaly, though?

<comment><USER38> That was just a joke, for now.

The idea that we're in a bubble on the cusp of collapse has been building over the past year, spiking when the feds raised interest rates, but there's no concrete evidence of a bubble popping. Yet.

Get worried when we see (multiple) high-level execs also resigning from Facebook/Twitter/etc. Especially if it's of their own accord...

<comment><USER39> Multiple high-level execs left Twitter about two weeks ago - four at once.

[http://recode.net/2016/01/24/twitter-ceo-jack-dorsey- confirm...](http://recode.net/2016/01/24/twitter-ceo-jack-dorsey-confirms-key- executive-departures/)

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER40> He was pro "Old Money"

</comment><comment><USER41> Is this coincidence or what? Yelp CFO also resigned. Two executives from two different sinking ships.

Paypal is getting murdered by Stripe. Yelp thought it could raise stock prices by buying traffic. Something had to give, someone has to take the blame.

<comment><USER42> In the first down market Stripe will no longer exist. They are losing money at an incredible rate and no where near profitable. They are losing money at a rate of about $100MM per year, and having to raise the same.

Perhaps they can make it to IPO, but even at a 3.5B valuation, they have to find profitability very quickly, a 3.5B market cap can turn into a $250M market cap very quickly, just ask GroupOn.

When you are losing more per year than you can book in revenue, this is not a good business, and certainly isn't going to take over the market.

This is doubly true if Paypal is firing their CTO, who is in the end responsible for their situation, poor usability, and very poor APIs. If Paypal wakes up and starts fixing their issues, they are closing the one and only thing that is giving companies like Stripe an opening.

<comment><USER43> > They are losing money at an incredible rate and no where near profitable. > They are losing money at a rate of about $100MM per year, and having to > raise the same.

Do you have a citation for that? I couldn't find anything when I tried searching.

<comment><USER44> Indeed. A lot of people reading HN surely have some sort of business interest that uses Stripe, so if they are really in such a fragile position then that would be a significant risk for many here. And yet this is the first suggestion I've seen of it at all, never mind the huge burn rate claimed.</comment></comment></comment></comment>


Apple's First Foray into Original TV Is a Series About Apps - <AUTHOR> http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/25/business/media/apples-first-foray-into-original-tv-is-a-series-about-apps.html <comment><USER3> I find the concept of a TV show that can only be seen on certain devices and OSes to be sad.

I guess we've been trending in this direction for a while (no Amazon Prime Streaming app on Apple TV, for instance).

<comment><USER4> I find the concept of a TV show that can only be seen with certain cable subscriptions equally sad. It's just exclusivity contracts, just like pay-per- view and channels like HBO and sports channels, and video game exclusives, and applications only being available on specific operating systems, etc.

<comment><USER5> > _just like pay-per-view and channels like HBO_

It's not like that, because HBO doesn't cost as much as an Apple device. You can subscribe to HBO, watch whatever you want, and unsubscribe. You _only_ paid for the content.

> _sports channels_

The most popular sports in the US are available on the networks. Minor sporting events are available for a small extra fee, regardless of your cable or satellite provider. Many are streamed over the internet by ESPN. Again, you can watch what you want without spending as much as an Apple device would cost.

> _video game exclusives_

It costs far more to port a video game than it does to simply stream your video content to other devices.

> _applications only being available on specific operating systems_

Again, much more expensive and time-consuming than just opening up streaming options for users.

<comment><USER6> HBO's online streaming thingy is $15/month. For someone who doesn't have a cable subscription, that would be pretty steep to watch one or two shows.

> _You can subscribe to HBO, watch whatever you want, and unsubscribe. You > only paid for the content._

You can buy a used Apple TV on ebay for $20–30. You can buy one, watch what you want, and then resell it for approximately the same price you paid for it. On balance, you'll be out the cost of one-way shipping. (This is assuming it doesn't break in between. If it breaks, you can still resell it for $5–10 for parts.)

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> Ew. This sounds very tasteless.

How about doing something creative and that's not navel gazing or better yet use this money on OS X.

<comment><USER8> Why is this tasteless? App discovery is a huge problem in the app store with the amount of apps out there. I don't know the premise of the show, but I could see it being really cool if they brought some of the small teams behind apps to light and told their stories. Who cares who the host is if he does a good job? I for one think it has the potential to be an interesting show that is different from whats out there already.

<comment><USER7> I think this is a good counter to my gut reaction. I think that would be an interesting show to watch as well but I don't think that'd appeal to a broader audience at all and the particular host also speaks to that direction being unlikely. I'd love to be surprised.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER9> If they want ideas for shows, how about life at uni, in the us, for the year 2016. Over here in Europe, we either get the view that it is like back in revenge of the nerds movies, or worse, stuff like this:

Http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-03-24/emory-students-scared-pain-after- safe-space-violated-word-trump-written-chalk

Hopefully it is not like revenge of the nerds in 2016, and hopefully it is also not full of students crying in "safe" spaces.

Might even be interesting!

<comment><USER10> You're getting downvoted because Trump is anti-intellectual, anti-small- business, and anti-American.

 _Everyone_ should feel violated by even knowing he exists. He is everything America isn't. If he becomes President (very unlikely), say goodbye to the Valley, say goodbye to every startup scene in this country, and watch the money flee to pro-business nations.

Side note, I expect to be also downvoted for my view (and for discussing politics on HN at all), but I don't really care.

<comment><USER11> > Side note, I expect to be also downvoted for my view

If anything, I expect you're likely to be downvoted for your statement that ' _Everyone_ should feel violated by even knowing he exists', rather than because you don't support Trump.

I don't support Trump, but I don't feel violated for knowing he exists.

<comment><USER12> It's hate speech. Misogynist, racist, anti-intellectual and isolationist with bonus lying and flip flopping. If you don't feel violated, do you at least feel offended?

<comment><USER11> I feel offended by a lot of what he says.

He is not the first, and neither will he be the last U.S. politician (or even presidential candidate) to make me feel that way.

In any case, the answer to offensive speech is _more_ speech that educates, not shrill denunciations of the person making that speech.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER13>
      Apple announced on Thursday that it was working with the
      entertainer Will.i.am

Welp, this is going to be a trainwreck.

<comment><USER14> I don't follow music pop culture, can anyone explain why? Has Will.i.am been in scandle or been unsuccessful in the past?

<comment><USER13> In my opinion, he's used often as a prop by companies who want to try to inject 'hip'-ness in to a product, and it screams r/fellowkids. He has tried to promote a bunch of products that have ended up complete failures (2 smartwatches so far), but is bandied about as this 'tech celebrity'.

Intel made him a "director of creative innovation" for no reason whatsoever. 3D Systems made him "Chief Creative Officer".

He tried to sell a $475 iphone case that added a lens and made it look like an old digital camera:

[http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/feb/01/william- ip...](http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/feb/01/william-iphone- camera-accessory-macworld)

Basically, he is used to confer some artistic legitimacy to stogy corporations (not to say he isn't an artist, he has done very well in music) and in return these companies confer unearned tech legitimacy upon him, creating this cycle of forced legitimacy.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER15> Why can't Apple just stick with what it's good at?

<comment><USER5> I'm not sure what Apple's good at anymore. Hardware, I guess? Maybe?

<comment><USER16> Apparently they can push FBI around like it's a little baby. The list of entities who can do that is pretty short...

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER17> I'm reminded of the incredibly bad "Silicon Valley" (not the HBO one, which is amazing - but the one by Randi Zuck...) and how REALLY REALLY bad that was - <USER2> doubt Apple will fail that bad, but we will see.

</comment><comment><USER18> Will.i.am got Apple boom boom pow.

</comment><comment><USER19> If this isn't Apple jumping the shark I don't know what it would be....</comment>


Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian calls Google to talk privacy - <AUTHOR> http://SaveYourPrivacyPolicy.org

<comment> at-fates-hands "Google, Twitter, and Facebook are three of the biggest companies on the web and they house a massive amount of information on their users. It's important that users constantly remind them how much we care about our privacy."

Seriously? While I'm sure there are still some romantics out there who believe this stuff, if you actually look at what a company does as opposed to what it says in press releases, it couldn't be further from the above statement.

I'm more worried about the Google and Facebook then I am about the government at this point.</comment>


Code:deck - <AUTHOR> http://varianto25.com/code-deck.html?ref=producthunt

<comment><USER2> I really like this idea, but I think it's a shame they included Brainfuck. A deck of cards with programming snippets could be a great appropriate-for-all- settings way to promote interest in programming, but once you put Brainfuck on there (which aside from being crude is entirely impractical), the deck is only usable in certain circles. I can't use it with my young kids. I can't use it with more conservative friends.

It's like you took one card from Cards Against Humanity and mixed it into your Apples to Apples set (the original, family-friendly game on which Cards Against Humanity was modeled). Suddenly, you can only play Apples to Apples in situations in which you could also play Cards Against Humanity.

There's little to be gained from the inclusion of Brainfuck and a lot to be lost. If they wanted to include an esoteric language, there were plenty of others to pick from.</comment>


What afl-fuzz is bad at - <AUTHOR> http://blog.regehr.org/archives/1238 <comment><USER2> I wish there was an afl-fuzz like tool for fuzzing network traffic. By afl- fuzz for network traffic I mean a general purpose network fuzzer; not protocol specific fuzzer like the codenomicon ipsec fuzzer. Does anyone know of anything close? Remotely close?

There seems to be a significant overlap in what you would want from a network protocol fuzzer and a tool to reverse engineer a network protocol. Netzob is the only protocol RE tool that I know of and it seems that development has stalled.

<comment><USER3> But what exactly are you fuzzing without being protocol specific as you start fuzzing? How do you eliminate false positive? You can be generative with grammar or with some learning capability (as "dumb" as aligning similar traffic as a cluster for example).

<comment><USER2> I am not sure how you are distinguishing my theoretical protocol agnostic fuzzer from afl. Is afl a jpg/png specific fuzzer? One of the things that is great about afl is that it is not targeted towards a specific file format it can work with a small corpus or thorough dictionary of the target format. eg I can give afl-fuzz a snippet of two of markdown and it will go nuts or if I want to be exhaustive I can feed afl the afl "dictionary" from the commonmark testsuite.

How do you ever eliminate false positives when fuzzing? And what constitutes a false positive?

<comment><USER4> having only read about the usage and successes of AFL, I'm curious what you would "feed" this network protocol debugger. a grammar file (something like BinPAC++ [0]) or something else entirely?

[0] [http://www.icir.org/hilti/binpac/intro.html](http://www.icir.org/hilti/binpac/intro.html)

<comment><USER2> A PCAP file of captured traffic?

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment> vezzy-fnord I don't see why afl-fuzz needs to be turned into a general-purpose Swiss Army Knife framework. It excels quite well at mutation-based techniques that train themselves on resulting outputs. For problems that involve specifically triggering code branches, then a tool that employs symbolic execution methods via constraint solving should be used instead, as the author implies.

<comment> f- (afl-fuzz author here)

The basic idea for AFL is that it's supposed to be reliably better than dumb fuzzers without requiring you to think too much about the problem space, fuzzing settings, grammar definitions, harness design, etc.

Anything that makes it retain these properties while improving results is probably worth pursuing. Conversely, anything that sounds cool but ultimately doesn't meet that criteria is probably a better fit for other tools.

<comment><USER5> The "without requiring you to think too much about the problem space" is pretty huge and it is where solver-based testing currently falls over (in my experience).</comment></comment></comment>


The Economics of Legal Tech - <AUTHOR> https://www.artificiallawyer.com/2020/05/11/the-economics-of-legal-tech/ <comment><USER2> >All of this has to be balanced, and it's not a simple equation. There are a lot of moving parts here.

The challenges in legal tech are rarely technical; it's largely in the hands of the practioners themselves to want to change and to adopt new technologies. Evenb low-hanging fruit tools like e-mail and word processors took time to catch on; while seemingly no-brainers like e-signatures are still looked upon warily. So where does that leave even more robust solutions?

And this isn't even taking into consideration clients, who have the bargaining power to also drive some of the change but are often afraid to do so because everyone likes "having a lawyer" once they're significantly large enough to be able to afford the services of one.</comment>


LHC computing grid pushes petabytes of data, beats expectations - <AUTHOR> http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/08/lhc-computing-grid-pushes-petabytes-of-data-beats-expectations.ars

<comment><USER2> Dupe: <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1646148>

<comment><USER3> Dupe: <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1286580>

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> Moral of the story: If you give a physicist a cookie...</comment>


Show HN: English syntax highlighter using part-of-speech tagging - <AUTHOR> http://english.edward.io/ <comment><AUTHOR> Hi HN! This was inspired by the top comment from this thread: [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11294026](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11294026)

> It would be interesting to see the major parts of speech (nouns, verbs, > adjectives) colored. Instead this is a coloring of fairly random words. A > bunch of short words are grey, but they don't belong to any particular part > of speech. They include some articles, prepositions, conjunctions and a few > verbs...

<comment><USER2> Could you please add a legend to indicate what the colors mean?

<comment><AUTHOR> Sorry for the slow response, I've implemented this already.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER3> It's strange to me that we call these things "syntax highlighters", given that they don't really seem to colour things differently according to syntax,† but rather by the category of token. Perhaps "lexical highlighter" would be a better term for these?

Because of this, unfortunately "English syntax highlighter" has two possible interpretations to me: [English [syntax highlighter]], where _syntax highlighter_ is a noun having the idiosyncratic meaning it has in a programming context, i.e. a tool that highlights different tokens according to their category, and [[English syntax] highlighter], a tool that would presumably highlight parts of a sentence according to their syntactic function. The latter would be more exciting, but also more difficult.

† There are some exceptions to this, but it does seem to be true for most of the syntax highlighters I've used.

<comment><USER4> Your observation seems plausible at first. However when I gave it a second thought I have concluded otherwise.

In the natural language context, a part of speech is actually determined syntactically. "Type" of a token in formal languages by comparison is also syntactical. Any highlighter must recognize the syntactic structure of its target language and work like a _parser_ , that is, not like a _tokenizer_. You have to "push" something to the stack, if you know what I mean.

To give a bad, but intuitive example, if a highlighter assigned "gray" to every "=" character it comes across, it would not be able to highlight the same characters _inside_ a quotation mark.

<comment><USER3> > Any highlighter must recognize the syntactic structure of its target > language and work like a _parser_ , that is, not like a _tokenizer_. You > have to "push" something to the stack, if you know what I mean.

How often does syntax matter in "syntax highlighting"? Most highlighters I've used don't even try to recognise syntactic structure.

> To give a bad, but intuitive example, if a highlighter assigned "gray" to > every "=" character it comes across, it would not be able to highlight the > same characters inside a quotation mark.

The problem with this example is that strings are a single token.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> "Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo." is just orange :/

<comment><USER6> It does ok at other phrases, though.

        Never hide hides.
        The sound sounds sound.
        Flies fly.
        It's the right right, right?
        The key key is this one.
        It's an objective objective.
        In May, May may make out with me.
        Compared with the last one, this is a fine fine.
        The man we saw saw a saw.
        The first second was alright, but the second second was tough.

<comment><USER7> My standard test is "A machine learning to do machine learning." And it works here.

<comment><USER8> Sentences like these lead you down the garden path sentence.

<comment><USER7> This was just "verb vs a part of a compound noun". For a garden path sentence I would go with "A machine learning machine learning.".

<comment><USER8> But that can be validly parsed two ways: "A machine-learning machine, which is learning" or "A machine which is learning machine-learning".

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER9> My only request would be to make the highlighted parts of speech configurable. For me it's too active with 11 different colors/things demanding attention.

But it would be awesome to be able to hover my mouse over a "palette" and see the matching parts of speech highlight. Or even just turn the parts on/off to see what I want to see.

</comment><comment><USER10> That's beautiful! I wish that someone could make that for Chinese. I'm trying to learn Chinese now, and I think it would be easier in colour.

Also, is there a way to run this script on a large collection of text files? Specifically, the Bible. I'd be curious to split out all the names/places/etc.

<comment><USER11> I imagine people learning Latin might find it useful as well. And have a mouseover for conjugation / declension.

<comment><USER12> I made a tool that does a form of that:

[http://latin.milesokeefe.com/?s=disce+quasi+semper+victurus+...](http://latin.milesokeefe.com/?s=disce+quasi+semper+victurus+vive+quasi+cras+moriturus)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER13> Are there plans to open source this or does anyone know of OS projects that does this? Thanks!

</comment><comment><USER14> It's very odd - I can barely work without syntax highlighting when programming, but this does absolutely nothing for me in English. I wonder why this is.

I'm tempted to say that it's because generally when reading in English, I'm not "jumping around" as much - I'm just reading left to right and processing everything into a thought. It could easily be, though, that it's just that English is my native language and I already do a better job immediately understanding the syntax of sentences than an automated tool would anyway.

</comment><comment><USER15> Very interesting. I've toyed around this idea myself and come to the conclusion that coloring on part of the speech level is not that useful for the educational aspects I'm interested in. If you could take this to the next level and visually display the grammatical sentence structure then I think this would be a really useful tool for people studying English as a second language.

<comment><USER16> There are plenty of tools that can draw a variety of tree structures over English text.

[https://displacy.spacy.io/displacy/index.html?full=Click+the...](https://displacy.spacy.io/displacy/index.html?full=Click+the+button+to+see+this+sentence+in+displaCy).

</comment></comment><comment><USER17> I think this is kind of neat for structured English as opposed to prose. Prose tends to look like vegetable soup, but I pasted a very regularly phrased and structured todo list in here and it looks great. Things like the standard Agile "as a user, I want X so I can Y" formalised story descriptions just make sense with this kind of syntax highlighting.

</comment><comment><USER18> I made a proof-of-concept of this a while ago ([http://www.mrspeaker.net/2012/03/24/syntax-highlighting- for-...](http://www.mrspeaker.net/2012/03/24/syntax-highlighting-for- writers/)) - my "writer-friends" weren't into it (what do they know!)... but then there was a post on HN a few years later where someone had patented the idea! I can't dig up - does anyone else remember this?

EDIT: Ah, this was it: [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6966528](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6966528). An update on the blog says the company it was about tweeted "We will drop our patents pending. Thank you @dhh for clearing our minds."

<comment><AUTHOR> I'm not sure why you were downvoted, your demo is really cool.

</comment></comment><comment><AUTHOR> Server load too high! I'm going to restart the server. Apologies for the downtime. In the meantime, here's a screenshot: [http://i.imgur.com/493smt7.png](http://i.imgur.com/493smt7.png)

<comment><USER19> Hello! Are you open sourcing this? If so- can I use your library?

</comment></comment><comment><USER20> I actually really like this, and I wonder, if it were made an extension and made to do more subtle color shifts of the underlying font, whether it might be a very useful tool for people with some types of learning difficulties, and aid effective reading in general.

</comment><comment><USER21> I think a highlighting that helps parse the sentence structure would me more useful.

</comment><comment><USER22> On Iceweasel (Firefox) 44.0.2 I only see "undefined" in the text area.

<comment><AUTHOR> Thanks for the report. It seems like Firefox 45 has implemented the innerText function ([https://developer.mozilla.org/en- US/docs/Web/API/Node/innerT...](https://developer.mozilla.org/en- US/docs/Web/API/Node/innerText)). I'll see if I can polyfill it.

<comment><USER23> use textContent instead of innerText, works both on chrome and ff

<comment><AUTHOR> textContent doesn't preserve newlines correctly. I found a polyfill, so Firefox <45 should work now.

<comment><USER22> I confirm it does. Thanks!

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER24> It does seem to have issues wit garden path sentences - in "The old man the boat", it colors "man" as a noun rather than a verb.

<comment><USER25> Yup.

      The old man the boat.

      The complex houses married and single soldiers and their families.

      The man whistling tunes pianos.

      Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.

      The cotton clothing is made of grows in Mississippi.

      I convinced her children are noisy.

Gets all of 'em wrong.

</comment></comment><comment><USER26> You should post some examples of highlighted literature to see if different writing styles look different because of the syntax highlighting.

</comment><comment><USER27> This seems like it would be useful for education. I don't see how it helps reading, which is the purpose of highlighting source code.

</comment><comment><USER28> Source?

</comment><comment><USER29> It's really great to see advances in English syntax highlighting (an oft- neglected 'language' when it comes to code editors).

However, I get a feeling this is a sort of hype-train at the moment, because I swear I've seen three English syntax highlighters in the past week alone (being posted to HN).

Could this be the latest, albeit welcomed and intelligent, project exercise obsession à la Flappy Bird / 2048? :)

<comment><USER6> Well, OP said posted in a comment that it was inspired by the top comment from the post from 2 days ago...

</comment></comment><comment><USER30> Very cool! Could you change the colors so as to make adverb vs noun easier to tell apart?

</comment><comment><USER11> I tried it with:

        The red car
        This red car
        Your red car

And it marked "Your" like "red" and not like "The" or "This". Surely "your" is a determiner and not an adjective? I mean, you can't say *"The your car".

</comment><comment><USER31> A case against syntax highlighting: [1]

[1] [http://www.linusakesson.net/programming/syntaxhighlighting/](http://www.linusakesson.net/programming/syntaxhighlighting/)</comment>


The Peculiar Power of Plane Mechanic Simulator - <AUTHOR> https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2019/02/08/the-flare-path-plane-mechanic-simulator-review/ <comment><USER2> Reminds me in a way of my favorite sim game: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Summer_Car](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Summer_Car)

<comment><USER3> Odd, reading that just made me want to go work on my project car. But irl. I wonder how many people get into mechanics from these games, and how many current mechanics fill their time virtually turning wrenches...

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> I think we live in a golden age of $n simulators. There seems to be one for everything, allowing people to escape their realities and become the truck driver or farmer they've always wanted to. I wonder what the replay ability of those is though.

And it all started from original flight and train Simulators. At least with those simulators you can get various plugins to really expand the environment and gameplay.

<comment><USER5> There's more in it than you think, it's not just about escapism.

Driving a train usually needs an engineering degree in real life, it's about managing the momentum of a thousand ton vehicle up and down hills.

Reversing a truck with a trailer takes a ton of practice.

Flying aircraft, especially over long distances requires a lot of knowledge and skills in aviation and navigation.

Farming simulator may sound mundane, but it's about driving heavy vehicles, managing economy and getting to understand farming.

There's a lot more to these games than meets the eye. I've thoroughly enjoyed all of them. There's no way I'll ever be a train engineer, a pilot or a farmer but I get a glimpse into what the job is like in an entertaining gaming session.

<comment><USER6> > Driving a train usually needs an engineering degree in real life

I'm dubious of this claim, but am happy to be proven wrong. I don't really see how an engineering degree would be necessary, or even helpful at all for this; I quite agree that it definitely requires a lot of skill, but an engineering degree is an academic qualification which is really an assessment of intellect as opposed to trained skill.

Building on that last claim, I would say that a significant minority, if not a small majority, of _professional_ engineering jobs (in the traditional sense, and excluding train drivers) do not actually require a degree in practice, instead requiring only a certain aptitude and the ability to skill up as necessary for the specific job.

<comment><USER5> I guess I should have been more specific. In my country, train drivers still have engineering degrees. Maybe not everywhere any more.

Back in steam engine days the job was more difficult, and needed higher education than today.

And train simulators reflect this, operating a steam locomotive is really difficult. Although the diesel electrics are hard, steam locos are a whole different game. I still haven't been able to complete a route without running into trouble with pressure, water levels, fire mass or fuel.

Train sims are fun, challenging and entertaining. If you're into slower paced and more strategic gaming, give one of the train sims a go.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> What I find interesting is that a lot of today's games have become photography simulators. Many include either a photo mode where you can edit the paused game state or a live in game camera (in GTA V your character has a smartphone with various apps and an instagram clone).

I've frequently had more fun with these features than with the actual game.

<comment><USER8> The deadendthrills blog has some great examples of this. "No Man's Sky" is a particularly good game to do this in, but I've also had fun in the Witcher.

It raises the question of whose "art" this is; photography is normally considered to be the art of the artist, but game scenes themselves are the product of artists. The art director will even have set up certain shots for the player to see - and take screenshots of?

Various games (e.g. Zelda BOTW, World of Warcraft) have a "selfie" mode, which can be hilarious.

</comment></comment><comment><USER9> this is incredibly detailed.

how long does it take to develop a game like that, and what skills are needed (and what tools are used)?

Is that even realistic for one person ?

I would like to play one for motorcycle parts mechanic (like a Norton or a Triumph or a Honda Goldwing).

</comment><comment><USER10> This is awesome, the first game I've found myself wanting to play in years.</comment>


Australian Startup Index - Dec 08 - <AUTHOR> http://www.technation.com.au/2008/12/15/australian-startup-index-dec-08/

<comment><USER2> Guys, guys, guys

It's time to start it all over again

Lets face it, there are no cool names left!

<comment><USER3> What is strange is that even the superstars that were early in the game have unusual names (e.g. Google, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo).

<comment><USER4> Amazon is not unusual, but I agree that the others are (Cisco, Micro-Soft, Linux, Debian, etc).</comment></comment></comment>


Windows Media Center and "to the cloud" - <AUTHOR> http://callumj.com/post/microsoft-marketing.html

<comment><USER2> I had the same two reactions to the ad: (1) no way that's going to work (i.e., not look like crap) on airport wifi; and (2) what in the world does watching streaming TV on your laptop in an airport have to do with cloud computing?</comment>


DIY Solar Leaf Project Shows the Untapped Potential of Solar EVs - <AUTHOR> https://cleantechnica.com/2019/07/23/diy-solar-leaf-project-shows-the-untapped-potential-of-solar-evs/ <comment><USER2> with regenerative braking the range could be even higher</comment>


Help me distribute $100,000 to new entrepreneurs in Africa - <AUTHOR> http://paulbuchheit.blogspot.com/2014/03/help-me-distribute-100000-to-new.html <comment><USER2> Neat idea. I love that the repayments are going back in to funding Zidisha itself - a unique way to raise ~$100k! Congrats on the funding round Julia :)

</comment><comment><USER3> Note: Kiva has a program called Kiva Zip where you can make direct loans to entrepreneurs in Kenya at 0% interest: [https://zip.kiva.org/](https://zip.kiva.org/)

</comment><comment><USER4> I think this is a great idea. (Disclosure I have been a supporter for Zidisha for a while). This is a great best-of-two world approach of GiveDirectly (pro borrower) and traditional Microfinance (pro intermediary/lender).

The traditional microfinance has been a mess because it creates a lot of over powerful institutions and the usurious rates don't necessarily make lives in Africa better.

The GiveDirectly's direct handout model can be easily abused on the borrower side.

Zidisha bridges the gap between the two with technology. I think it's great disruption.

I do think the international aid microloans need to be subsidized so their rate is affordable but it's good for borrowers. I think even American small business loans need to be subsidized too. It would be very expensive if you make everything determined by market forces. That's why OnDeck and Kabbage get away with their 50% APR loans. But I think it's bad for the small businesses and bad for the economy.

</comment><comment><USER5> A few facts about Zidisha and Kiva that got erased from Paul's blog yesterday, so reposting here for the benefit of the community.

Kiva launched a new model a few years back: KivaZip.org. Like Zidisha, it allows you to make direct loans to underserved businesses. Starting in Kenya and the U.S., you can make 0% interest loans directly and converse with the entrepreneur.

Unlike Zidisha, the repayment rate is much higher (90% ontime repayment on KivaZip vs. a 40% ontime repayment on Zidisha) and Kiva Zip has nearly double the loan volume through which risk management can be refined.

Both models are early stage.

Further, when you lend through Zidisha, there's a chance that you will not be able to withdraw your money (given SEC regulation). Kiva Zip has been cleared by regulators since it does not let you earn a rate of return, but you can withdraw your principal.

Both models are early days, but nonetheless important factors to consider when thinking about Kiva and Zidisha. Want to applaud effort by Paul, YC and the community to direct more talent, energy and resources to great problems of the world.

</comment><comment><USER6> You should be aware before putting money into Zidisha that current non- repayment on Zidisha is ca 30%, and that to break even when lending on Zidisha you need to charge flat interest rate to 32% break-even.

Zidisha is also giving huge credit bonuses to borrowers who invites new borroers, this also gives a danger of increasing default rate.

So I advice not to put more into Zidisha than you are prepared to loose.

</comment><comment><USER7> Julia,

Awesome work.

Paul, great that you recognized it and contributed.

I sometimes despair about how much negativity and nit picking there is around people who are doing, or at least trying to do, things that really change the world.

In my mind this is way ahead of Whatsapp getting all the money, yet there was very little negative reaction to that event.

</comment><comment><USER8> Loans are way much better form of helping, but investing with a partnership and advisors is a better option. Money is the key ingredient, but the some ventures do require lot of knowledge. Are loans preferred due to regulatory issues? How do you overcome "This is just money from rich western guys to dump the guilt" mentality? Are you going to build alumni network in similar vein to YC?

<comment><USER9> Hi lukasm, an online investment / advising service that bridged the international wealth divide would add immense value. We did not attempt it at Zidisha due to the difficulties in monitoring and policing such a system at scale.

Most of our borrowers seem to feel a strong obligation to repay their lenders despite the disparity in wealth and culture. Maybe this is because they see the lenders as individuals like them.

Our members, borrowers and lenders, communicate with each other regularly through the website, and sometimes meet in person as well - for example, Zidisha members in Nakuru, Kenya, held a conference last week. It would be interesting to try to develop that into a network more focused on sharing advice and help, like YC.

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> You could try sending some email around. Something like this:

"Hi, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Paul, and I have recently come into a large amount of money that I would like invest in your country as soon as possible. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I am unable to invest this money myself, and seek your partnership in order to invest the money profitably. I ask your complete discretion so that the money does not fall into the wrong hands.

Please, sir, kindly treat as urgent and strictly confidention. I assure you that this is a 100% risk free transaction."

</comment><comment><USER11> Why not just give the entrepreneurs the $200?

The money they would be paying back they could use to build up their business.

I doubt anyone would do this investment for a return.

<comment><USER9> Hi wehadfun, that is a valid question. There are a few reasons we facilitate loans instead of gifts:

1\. Loans once repaid can be lent out repeatedly, thereby helping many more people.

2\. Repaying a loan at a reasonable interest rate puts lender and entrepreneur on a more equal footing, and is therefore more dignified for both.

3\. Loans encourage a proactive and independent mentality on the part of the entrepreneur, rewarding success rather than neediness.

</comment></comment><comment><USER12> Please click on my zidisha link below>[https://www.zidisha.org/microfinance/loan/Nellyjpkrr/6136.ht...](https://www.zidisha.org/microfinance/loan/Nellyjpkrr/6136.html)

</comment><comment><USER13> I like the idea of p2p financial services. However everything development related is complicated qnd the stories describing projects are often romanticised.

There was a great podcast recorded during the initial microfinance boom. One surprising conjecture is that most small like ans are for consumption, not seed capital and that this is rational.

[http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2011/04/munger_on_micro.htm...](http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2011/04/munger_on_micro.html)

<comment><USER9> I think the use of loans depends a great deal on the location and microfinance program in question.

At Zidisha, we don't restrict the purpose of loans (other than requiring that it be legal and ethical). The vast majority of applications nevertheless feature small businesses. This may be because the applicants are simply telling the lenders what they think the lenders want to hear, but the business uses of the loans have usually been confirmed when our volunteers visit the borrowers. (See this blog kept by an intern in Kenya last year for some good examples [http://talkingstorykenya.wordpress.com/.](http://talkingstorykenya.wordpress.com/.))

When funds have not been used for revenue-generating purposes, this is usually due to an unplanned contingency, such as a health emergency in the family or a time of financial scarcity coinciding with school tuitions falling due.

I personally would not object to more loans being used for purposes such as tuition or home improvements, but understand that it is often too risky for individuals without regular sources of income to use debt to finance assets that do not generate revenue.

</comment></comment><comment><USER14> You normally see requests for help distributing money the other way around...

</comment><comment><USER15> This is a fantastic thing to do. I do have one question. Do you plan to do the same thing (maybe in a smaller scale) in the US? Say, help people in some impoverished area of the country with some small funding to help them get micro businesses going. Not arguing against the choice to do so in Africa (its great), just interested if there would be a push to do it "locally".

<comment><USER9> Hi bliti, we do not have any plans to offer lending services in the US. Not because Americans are less deserving, but simply because it is not our area of expertise or focus.

If you would like to lend to entrepreneurs in the US, I would recommend checking out Kiva Zip, which does lend to Americans as well as Kenyans. [https://zip.kiva.org/](https://zip.kiva.org/)

</comment></comment><comment><USER16> Hi Paul,

First of all, I would like to commend your worthy contribution to the good work the people at Zidisha are doing.

There is something I want to draw to your attention to(searched and did not find your email)

I am wondering how to balance the stereotyping to the "African Entrepreneur" while at the same time not forgetting the millions of small scale business owners in Africa.

When I first saw the headline, I was excited that finally, a top tech investor would be investing in African startups. Only to look and see yet another (VERY COMMENDABLE)but "charity like" donation.

In general, you do not see VCs from the west investing in African startups. That door is almost always closed. When they do it has to be under the category of impact investment and/or a "social enterprise"

Why do you think this is so?

Two years before the WhatApp acquisition, a Ghanaian startup SAYA [https://www.saya.im/](https://www.saya.im/) came for disrupt but they could not get any funding. Even with hundred thousands waiting signups. Almost like they were not worthy to tackle high tech.

I am very certain that if these guys had built an SMS app to remind farmers of prices in the market (or something along that line) they would have got funding.

Thankfully, things are changing a bit as Dropifi [http://www.dropifi.com/](http://www.dropifi.com/) (from Ghana) got funding from 500 Startups.

PS: I want to make it clear that what you are doing is very worthy and commendable and this is not meant to be a criticism of you or this action in ANY way.

PPS: I will be in SF from Wed-Sunday this week and would be very happy to chat with people who want to learn about the tech scene in Nigeria (yes and that includes 'Nigerian scams' et al :)).

Oh. I also do not mind surfing on your couch if available too :). You will be paid in Nigerian beer (I brought some).

my email is in my profile.

<comment><AUTHOR> Part of what I like so much about YC is that we are open to entrepreneurs from anywhere in the world. In fact, the latest batch has founders from 23 different countries: [https://twitter.com/paulg/status/411897120572989440](https://twitter.com/paulg/status/411897120572989440)

I think we've had Nigerian founders in the past, and I'd love to see more African entrepreneurs in the program. I believe it benefits everyone to have a more diverse set of perspectives in the batch.

Obviously the big problem for many is getting past the American immigration system. We'd all like to reform that system, but unfortunately those changes take a long time. Maybe some day we'll expand the program to a location that has better international accessibility.

<comment><USER17> It would be great to see more programs targeted at entrepreneurs from developing countries actually in those countries themselves. There seems to be a big gap in FDI in developing countries between support for lifting micropreneurs out of poverty and major infrastructure projects supported by multinationals or the World Bank, and I doubt it's one which is generally well supported by local financial institutions or investors. And I suspect it's the smart _ambitious_ locals that could generate the highest returns on that support if they got it. Ultimately the resulting business models may look different - fewer exit options than SV but also drastically lower medium-term funding requirements and untapped regional markets.

Then again, reforming the business environment in many developing countries to make it an attractive destination for modest-sized equity investments in SMEs might prove a even bigger challenge than reforming US immigration...

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER12> [https://www.zidisha.org/microfinance/loan/Nellyjpkrr/6136.ht...](https://www.zidisha.org/microfinance/loan/Nellyjpkrr/6136.html)

</comment><comment><USER18> Sure! I'll make sure it gets to them. Where can I pick up the money?

</comment><comment><USER19> How incredibly cool!

</comment><comment><USER20> Wow this is awesome. Love the charity:water esque updates idea.

</comment><comment><USER21> Adding your enterprise to the list: [http://bit.ly/africa- hackpad](http://bit.ly/africa-hackpad)

</comment><comment><USER22> Just a note that the default tweet is actually too long and needs to be manually edited.

<comment><AUTHOR> Oops. Fixed! I've never been good with that 140 character thing :)

thanks

</comment></comment><comment><USER23> Interest is the worst thing you can use in a continent like Africa.

Why didn't you guys opt for the profit-sharing philosophy?

Contract laws in some countries can turn some entrepreneurs insolvent because of interest, but profit-sharing won't have such a devastating impact.

I'd help, but not under compound interest restrictions.

<comment><USER9> Hi phantom_oracle, we've investigated profit-sharing models, and consulted with some experts in Islamic microfinance about the feasibility of implementing a profit-sharing form of financing for Zidisha. This was attractive to us because it addresses the unfairness of being left to repay a debt when one's business investment has failed.

We did not end up introducing profit-sharing at Zidisha because even in consultation with experts, we did not manage to come up with a viable way to ensure the profit verification on which this model rests. Zidisha is purely an online service, without local loan officers, and our understanding is that applications of profit-sharing models to microfinance rely on extensive personal monitoring of the funded businesses.

<comment><USER23> >Zidisha is purely an online service, without local loan officers, and our understanding is that applications of profit-sharing models to microfinance rely on extensive personal monitoring of the funded businesses.

Based on this, I would think that giving entrepreneurs money isn't the only way to help them become successful. Most successful startups in the US(especially SV) rely on much more than just money to be successful. Those "old boy" networks, mentors, etc. all play a big role in building successful companies. So why not give stranded African entrepreneurs the same opportunity?

I'd be more than happy to make out a profit-sharing loan and nurture an entrepreneur who hasn't had the luxury to get an advanced education in some field.

Perhaps money isn't all they need...

<comment><USER9> I certainly agree that entrepreneurs need more than money to succeed.

Our concern with a profit-sharing model is that there seems to be no practical way to enforce truthful reporting and sharing of the profits. Relying on self- reporting alone would result in a system where honest people are penalized (by having to make payouts based on their honestly reported profits) and dishonest ones are rewarded. At best, it would degenerate into a simple handout program.

If we at Zidisha had a way to provide advice and contacts that are sufficiently localized as to be useful to the entrepreneurs, we certainly would do so. However, my experience is that Western business advice is useless or nearly so to most people surviving on a dollar or two per day in Africa or Asia. The best results I have seen come about when people are connected with resources in a market system, and allowed to decide for themselves how to leverage those resources.

<comment><USER23> Valid counter-arguments. I cannot disagree on those scenarios.

It will definitely be a mission to get honest reporting done (as you will have to "yak shave" to get to that point).

The only method I could think around it, would be to assist an accounting startup and make the local entrepreneurs form a cooperative, so that their 'books' are in order.

I wish you guys all the best :)

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER24> "Distribute" or "Invest"?

<comment><USER25> Well, Zidisha appears to mix those two.

Lenders are encouraged to charge an interest rate they find acceptable, but the average interest rate is lower than the default rate... so that means lenders (as a whole _) are losing money! This would not be a particularly good investment, but it may be an excellent way to do donations.

_ \- the lenders who select more reliable recipients and those who charge more will make more income, so I am sure many lenders are actually making a profit even if the sum total of the loans by Zidisha is not.

</comment></comment><comment><USER26> I love the idea, but I have one concern, which may or may not be real.

I think 5% is below market rate for what you are doing. By establishing 5% as the rate, you crowd out any local investment options which would need to charge above 5% (but not 60%). By making the subsidy non explicit, you make it even harder for local lenders to compete.

I don't know what a market rate for this kind of loan would be, but in the US, it would be more like 10%. Some kind of explicit discount due to social benefit or something like that, or marketing to launch a new business, or whatever, could make sense, but I really don't want to see the same situation where USAIS dumps free or subsidized goods and services and crowds out the local producer.

At the same time, sacrificing the (not yet extant) p2p lending sector in Kenya might be ok if it helps enough other businesses -- similarly communication and security being subsidized might be a net good.

<comment><USER9> Hi rdl, the question of which interest rate will result in the best social impact is one of the most frequently debated topics among Zidisha users.

We allow borrowers to offer any interest rate they wish, up to a maximum of 25%. Lenders are then free to fund the loans at any rate up to the maximum offered by the borrower. Many lenders opt to fund loan applications at well below the offered rate, resulting in an overall average of around 5%.

We have not taken a position on the "optimal" interest rate, other than limiting it to no more than 25%. It will be interesting to see whether the average interest rate changes over time and as we continue to grow.

<comment><USER27> 25% is still pretty usurious.

<comment><USER9> I think many people would feel the same way. We usually see 25% rates offered for small loans for new members, which are only held for a short time. For example, a new borrower may request $50 at 25% interest and hold it for one month, and total interest payments would be $1.04. Even then many lenders normally opt to fund the loan at less than the rate offered.

<comment><USER26> I don't think the percentage rate is that big a deal, even at 25% (although I'd probably go for ~15-20%, assuming 10% default rate and 5% cost of capital) -- the area where I'd try to subsidize or otherwise avoid passing through cost/profit is fees.

I'm fine with short term loans at 25%. As you say, $50 at 25% for a month is $1.04. The problem is when a $1-5 fee is applied on top of that, giving interest rates >100% annualized. That's the kind of usury which has been common in the US payday advance industry (although better now in most states after regulatory action), rent-to-own, etc.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER28> I find the effort here commendable, but it will probably not take a very long time for these guys to realize that "Africa is not a country" . I'm Nigerian, and I have been to a few African countries. First of all the challenges you have to overcome while doing business in Nigeria alone, varies wildly from one City to another. Now comparing that to East Africa for example, the difference is night and day. It may serve these guys well to begin their venture in one African country they find most familiar / friendly, then expand their efforts from there.

<comment><USER9> Hi nanijoe, we have not yet had the chance to offer a program in Nigeria, but hope to soon.

We chose Kenya as the first country to pilot Zidisha, largely because it was the world leader in mobile phone-based payments, which we use to disburse the loans and receive payments electronically. Also, internet and Facebook penetration was especially high in Kenya, and that made it easy for many people to adopt and share our service.

We currently offer loans in these countries:

Benin Burkina Faso Ghana Guinea Indonesia Kenya Niger Senegal Zambia

<comment><USER29> Julia,

One thing to note is Kiva has been doing direct lending in Kenya for about 2 years now using M-PESA via Kiva Zip. Zidisha still has some differences, but I'm surprised at the confrontational tone a lot of Zidisha posts have taken towards Kiva. We're both trying to solve some of the same problems, would be great if instead of negativity, we could work together on doing that, share learnings etc. Anytime I get the chance, I share learnings or offer to help Watsi, and I'd like to think I could feel the same way towards Zidisha.

<comment><USER9> Hi nowarninglabel, I did publish a post last week comparing our service with Kiva Zip: [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/julia-kurnia/zidisha-vs- kiva-z...](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/julia-kurnia/zidisha-vs-kiva- zip_b_4854516.html)

I wrote this to provide greater clarity to our users and the public, who frequently asked how our services were different. Some readers had the impression that the post was meant to attack Kiva Zip. That was not my intention.

In fact, Kiva Zip and Zidisha have helped each other, and exchanged lessons learned, for over two years now. See [https://zip.kiva.org/blogs/4](https://zip.kiva.org/blogs/4)

<comment><USER30> Was just reading up on Kiva and Zidisha on Wikipedia, and noticed this on the Kiva talk page. Looks like someone at Zidisha (from a Mountain View IP) edited Kiva's Wikipedia page to add criticism of Kiva and plug Zidisha. Is this part of the "help" you're referring to above?

<< Zidisha Edits

Removed the lengthy section spotlighting a known competing organization, Zidisha from the interest rates section. The information is consistent with Zidisha marketing language and the editor IP is attached to a series of edits inserting Zidisha into other pages. Seems like clear COI: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Contributions/67.188.17...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Contributions/18.104.22.168)

IP is also in Mountain View, where Zidisha is working this quarter [http://www.ip-adress.com/reverse_ip/18.104.22.168](http://www.ip- adress.com/reverse_ip/188.8.131.52) [https://www.zidisha.org/forum/threads/zidisha-launches- at-y-...](https://www.zidisha.org/forum/threads/zidisha-launches-at-y- combinator.572/) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Djbrusca (talk • contribs) 17:01, 3 March 2014 (UTC) >>

<comment><USER9> Hi kanamekun, thanks for bringing up the point about Zidisha being a competing organization with Kiva. Do you think it would be better for readers if they were not aware of Zidisha as an alternative way of addressing the high interest rates charged by Kiva partners?

<comment><USER9> I see now that somebody has removed the mention of Zidisha as a lower-interest alternative and left a discussion of Kiva Zip in its place.

<comment><USER30> It looks like someone reverted your conflicted edits, and posted about the edit to the Talk page:

[http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kiva_(organization...](http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kiva_\(organization\)&action=history)

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Kiva_(organization)#Zidish...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Kiva_\(organization\)#Zidisha_Edits)

That's pretty much spot on policy for Wikipedia.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER9> Dear all - I'm Julia, the founder of Zidisha. I'd welcome comments and questions from anyone who would like to learn more about our P2P microlending platform.

If you'd like to hear more about my own journey and the experiences that lead to the founding of Zidisha, see [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/julia- kurnia/why-i-founded-zid...](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/julia-kurnia/why-i- founded-zidisha_b_4885629.html)

<comment><USER31> In the Huffington Post article, you wrote: "Years of working with NGOs and government aid programs were convincing me that handouts are a dead end, temporarily soothing the acuteness of the injustice but taking donor and recipient down a path of dependence that ultimately makes the international wealth divide even wider."

Do you feel that way about a universal basic income? Does your statement only refer to single-recipient donations, that tend to cause dependence? I can't claim any personal experience, but from what I've read in e.g. [1] and [2], an unconditional basic income has positive effects on the community. The lesson I've taken from such pilot studies is that direct, conditionless donations are a very effective way to help the poor. I'm curious if I've learned the wrong lesson, and the benefits only appear if it's happening for a large population (or perhaps even that's not effective, and the studies are flawed or misleading).

[1] [http://www.bignam.org/BIG_pilot.html](http://www.bignam.org/BIG_pilot.html) [2] [http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/4100](http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/4100)

<comment><USER32> In the pilot studies, about 10% of people who would otherwise be working choose not to work and instead become dependent on the BI. So the BI pilot studies do agree with Julia's impression.

[https://decorrespondent.nl/541/why-we-should-give-free- money...](https://decorrespondent.nl/541/why-we-should-give-free-money-to- everyone/31639050894-e44e2c00)

<comment><USER33> That is a gross misrepresentation of the results:

> The total amount of work hours decreased by only 13%. Breadwinners hardly > cut down on their hours, women used the basic income for a couple of months > of maternity leave and young people used it to do some extra studying.

> Forget's most remarkable discovery is that hospital visits went down by > 8,5%. This amounted to huge savings (in the United States it would be more > than $200 billion a year now). After a couple of years, domestic violence > rates and mental health also saw improvement. Mincome made the entire town > healthier. The basic income continued to influence following generations, > both in terms of income and health.

<comment><USER32> You are correct - it was hours worked, not # of workers. Thanks for the correction.

I'm not sure how it's a gross misrepresentation - Julia's impression was that free money induces people to become dependent and work less. How does the distinction in hours worked vs # of workers change that?

<comment><USER33> Taking care of a baby for a few months or getting back to studying is hardly becoming dependent on free money.

Also, notice the last sentence: "basic income continued to influence following generations, both in terms of income and health." That was long after the pilot ended.</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment>


Ask HN: How can Amazon degrade delivery while not refunding prime? - <AUTHOR> Called Amazon rep today to complain about the delivery timelines for our orders.  Orders, if they show up at all, are 1-2 weeks longer than the date shown while placing the order. I asked for a partial refund on prime, due to obviously degraded service, and was offered nothing.<p>I fully understand the impact of Covid - but I paid for a membership that offered one thing, and now it's totally different.  Can that even be legal? <comment><USER2> Here's what you paid for: [https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=...](https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=20191078), [https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=...](https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201118050). It includes clauses like this:

> Prime shipping benefits depend upon inventory availability, order deadlines, > and in some cases the shipping address.

There's no commitment to provide Prime on 100.0% of eligible orders, or even 1% of them. It's a best-effort service. It's always been a best-effort service.

Regarding legality, this would be a civil issue (questions of contract law between counterparties), not a criminal one (enforcement of a jurisdiction's written laws). However, in this case Amazon didn't claim "We absolutely guarantee you'll receive all <X> packages within <Y> days" or anything like that, so it's not even a civil issue.

Of course, you might reasonably prefer that they provide a credit as a nice thing to do, since they're not providing the service you hoped to receive and that you probably have received in the past. They declined to do that. If you feel that's inadequate, you should cancel and/or stop purchasing from them.</comment>