Show HN: We made a better way for landlords to manage rental applications - <AUTHOR> http://www.zora.io <comment><USER2> How is Z score calculated? What are the demographic factors used and have you checked whether discriminating on those bases is legal in the jurisdictions where you operate?

</comment><comment><USER3> Well, that's some interesting Terms of Service!

>9.) We don't screen properties or listings or offer any guaranty or advice regarding the suitability of properties, landlords, or potential tenants. Nothing we say should be construed as such advice, and you agree not to rely on us in making decisions on anything at all.

Nice to see they'll stand behind their service. Filled with confidence right now.

> 11.) You must be at least 18 years old to use Zora and you must be a citizen > of United States, Canada or European Union.

If I rent out a place through this website, are prospective tenants required to "use Zora" in order to apply? Does that mean that I am now discriminating against potential tenants based on citizenship? Which happens to be prohibited in various jurisdictions, for example NYC?

<comment><AUTHOR> 9.) Legal liability. The same way that the accounting software still tells you to go and talk to a certified accountant in their terms.

10.) Our customers are landlords. As a tenant, you can apply from anywhere. But we cannot pull the data for "anywhere" so you will have no score.

<comment><USER3> Actually, accounting software doesn't say this. It has a disclaimer of 'no guarantee of being fit for purpose' but it doesn't have a self-dismissable line about 'you agree not to use us to do tax calculations'. If a lawyer wrote that, you should ask another lawyer.

And exactly what data are you trying to pull? Did you know there are people who have lived in the USA for decades who are not citizens? Are you really conflating citizenship with residence? Wow.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> Interesting idea. I'd like to check this out as a tenant, but I can't seem to find a sign-up link for that.

<comment><AUTHOR> You have to be invited by a landlord to apply as a tenant (as you get associated to a property/unit)

</comment></comment><comment><USER5> I see your company and this...

[https://entercastle.com/experience/](https://entercastle.com/experience/)

...on same day. You compete with them? And, if so, what would you say are the advantages of your offering against their specifically?

<comment><AUTHOR> They are focused on physical property management. We are trying to build a tool that would eliminate a need for property manager (for the most part at least).

In a way, we are complementary to each other.

<comment><USER5> Appreciate the clarification. That makes your company even more interesting.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> This is amazing. I really hope you do well and start making better people better while punishing bad people.

I'm just wondering who are the landlords who will use this kind of app.

<comment><USER7> How do you define bad people? Should bad people have less access to housing?

<comment><USER6> Yes.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> Do you operate in a market where a landlord mostly self-manages their own properties as opposed to go through an agency?

<comment><AUTHOR> Correct, but the market pull we are seeing is from the mid-sized property management companies.

</comment></comment><comment><USER9> Beautiful site. Nice images, definitely gets the subliminal point across.</comment>


The WHY of WAT - understanding why 'JavaScript is Crazy' - <AUTHOR> http://blog.caplin.com/2012/01/27/the-why-of-wat/

<comment><USER2> > ... he pokes fun at some apparently crazy behaviours in Ruby and Javascript.

I am sorry, but that still is crazy behavior. You can excuse it with a historical perspective ("well it had to hide errors from users") or by explaining "the why" like you do, that still doesn't make that behavior less crazy.

<comment><USER3> Not trying to defend the craziness, but, when you are trying to do []+{} and "foo"-1, you can kinda expect unexpected results if you know that JS does type coercion.

<comment><USER4> That is not the problem here. The problem is that this might by the code piece "x + y" where x and y is in your scope and happens to be [] and {}. The resulting value is then highly confusing to a programmer. A language that enforces explicit type conversion (some call these strongly typed languages) would not allow this, but require you to write something like "string(x) + string(y)" if you _really_ wanted such behaviour.

I think it is rather bad semantics actually.

<comment><USER5> I can't imagine a single situation where you expect variables used in a sum operation to be arrays/objects. _That_ would be highly confusing.

You always have the option to use

        Number(x) + Number(y)
        (+x) + (+y)
        String(x) + String(y)

<comment><USER6> "I can't imagine a single situation where you expect variables used in a sum operation to be arrays/objects."

That's precisely the problem. You don't expect them, but there's nothing to prevent it from happening, so it does.

Your proposed solutions don't solve the problem, they occur too late. By the time you're adding together two non-numbers (and non-strings) you've already lost, trying desperately to cast them to numbers first is also wrong, along with so verbose that nobody will ever do it.

<comment><USER5> Yeah, that was stupid.

What I mean though is I can't imagine code that gives chance for this to happen. Putting an array where a number should be is a very visible mistake.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> This is not "WHY", this is "HOW exactly". I bet the reason why JavaScript has these behaviors is due it being developed as a browser scripting language. Authors didn't want the entire script terminating because some part of it was buggy. This could have been handled by some clever isolation and error- recovery mechanism, but it wasn't. Probably due to time constraints.

These kinds of things are one of the reasons why I really don't like the idea of everything (including server-side and standalone apps) being written in JavaScript.

<comment><USER8> That's fair, but PHP has the same level of WTF, and is (I'd argue) less elegant than JS.

<comment><USER9> Sorry, I'm missing something. Is the grandparent a big advocate of PHP? Why is PHP being brought into this?

<comment><USER8> It's a language that is heavily used for server apps, which the top post was saying JS shouldn't do. My point was, quirks like these haven't outweighed the advantages of PHP, and I don't think they should for JS either.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> This is only part of the why. The other part is the valueOf function which you can specify in order to control what the value of an object is when coerced.

So for instance:

        var arr1 = [1,2,3], arr2 = [1,2,3,4];
        console.log(arr1 + arr2); // "1,2,31,2,3,4"
        arr1.valueOf = function () { return this.length; };
        arr2.valueOf = arr1.valueOf;
        console.log(arr1 + arr2); // 7

</comment><comment><USER11> text only cache, courtesy google: [http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://...](http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://blog.caplin.com/2012/01/27/the- why-of-wat/&hl=en&strip=1)

and a duckduckgo tip

        !cache http://blog.caplin.com/2012/01/27/the-why-of-wat/

<comment><USER12> Full version cache, so the lines aren't unreadably long:

[http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://...](http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://blog.caplin.com/2012/01/27/the- why-of-wat/&hl=en&strip=0)

</comment></comment><comment><USER13> The original presentation was nicely done, but knowing how things work in JavaScript (even though I don't know Ruby) meant I didn't exactly have that WTF-experience. This article explains it nicely to those who had.

<comment><USER14> I think this kind of misses the point. Even if you understand _why_ JavaScript behaves this way, it doesn't mean that the behavior is sane.

JavaScript without type coercion would have been safer and saner in my opinion.

<comment><USER15> Type coertion is a language feature just like some other risky-yet-helpfull features. Take for example pointers: any programming language without pointer is safer†, but pointers help you express certain things concisely and thus avoid some classes of bugs. Heck, a knife with dull blade is safer just as well, but that doesn't increase its overall utility.

Compare with:

 _> UNIX was not designed to stop its users from doing stupid things, as that would also stop them from doing clever things._ — Doug Gwyn

\--

†except that you can generate NullPtrException in the pointerless Java. Ask yourself, WAT?

<comment><USER7> That's awfully generic and doesn't address the criticism. What are the examples of useful type coertion? What do they achieve? Are there no better ways to achieve those same goals without introducing bug-prone, WAT-inducing behaviors?

For example, string concatenation could have been handled by a separate operator.

<comment><USER16> To be fair, Eich was required to imitate java and finish in a couple of weeks for marketing reasons, and string + int -> string was one of java's mistakes.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER17> Well i'v never understood the problems with JavaScript but maybe it's because i haven't done things how other languages do it. But js is very "open" and bound free. Especially with functions and objects. They make sense to someone who is new to OOP. maybe its not follow how things are usually done in other languages but that does not mean its necessarily a bad thing. If you think something doesn't make sense that does not mean its wrong. i am learning c and i have to say typed variables must be faster but they are difficult to gasp at first. In fact its a nightmare to make variables of a certain type, it limits my thought process when i have to think what the variable's type is after every line of code. Strings look like a huge deal. The fact that i have to predetermine the length of a string is laughable. Its my string and it can be as long as i want it to be anywhere in my code. (yes i now sound immature but this is my experience until now, call it a rant if you may) Alot of things need to be known before we can write a meaningful program. Thats not the case with js or even with php to some extent.

<comment><USER18> These difficulties in C are not "craziness", they are for very good reasons.

Unbounded strings have much more complex and potentially less optimal semantics than bounded strings, need to be allocated in different ways, etc. C makes tight resource control possible, and to do that it sacrifices a lot of ease. You have to think about resources when programming. In many scenarios, this is a good thing.

<comment><USER19> _> C makes tight resource control possible, and to do that it sacrifices a lot of ease._

I'm not a C programmer (yet), but I would say that depends on what you define as "easy" or "simple". What I am is an Arch Linux user, and I embrace KISS - Keep It Simple, Stupid. Arch understands "simple" as "technically elegant and uncomplicated", but that doesn't mean it's easy to understand or foolproof to use - for the inexperienced user, that is. C is an incredibly powerful tool exactly because it is this kind of simple.

What I also am is someone who learned programming with Python, and I initially couldn't understand the appeal of C-oid languages either. But I've since realized it's all about using the right tool for the job. A programmer is a mechanic, and a mechanic that only knows how to use a hammer is a pretty useless mechanic (in general, of course. If all you deal with are nails then it's not an impediment to your abilities).

<comment><USER18> There's of course the view that a programmer is a mathematician :-)

But I agree we need various tools to cover the necessary ground.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER20> >Error establishing a database connection

Does anyone have a mirror?

<comment><AUTHOR> Yes, sorry, Caplin server's didn't expect the load! It's being worked on.

</comment></comment><comment><USER21> > It can be a prefix 'this number is positive' operator where it operates on a > single number.

`+` in this context is the "Unary + Operator" which coerces a value to a number via the internal `toNumber` method of the operand.

It doesn't make the number positive:

        node> +-1 // -1

</comment><comment><USER22> Automatic type coercion feels like a double-barreled shotgun, with one of the barrels pointed back at you:

0\. Is only marginally useful 1\. You have to be careful with what are you loading, and where 2\. Will sooner or later blow up in your face

</comment><comment><USER23> The syntax doesn't bug me too much. Most of it is documented fairly well. The craziest thing about JavaScript is a lack of any good online reference for their classes and methods. JavaScript documentation usually just resorts to a key example or a brief description without covering all the details.

<comment><USER24> Mozilla's MDN is great: <https://developer.mozilla.org/en/JavaScript/Reference>

<comment><USER25> Add "MDN" to any javascript-related google query to get the MDN page at the top of the results page. Examples: "operator precedence mdn", "string mdn", "slice mdn".

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER26> don't explain it! you are killing the fun...</comment>


Do We Really Know What Makes Us Healthy? - <AUTHOR> http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/16/magazine/16epidemiology-t.html?ex=1347595200&en=ce44168aa0044276&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss

<comment><USER2> First olive oil was good, then bad, then good again. It seems that they can find negatives about any food. People have to just stop avoiding and start living. Power to the brain.

<comment><USER3> I've started listening to my body more than the experts. After all, it has alot more experience than they do.</comment></comment>


GitHub Android app - <AUTHOR> http://codehum.com/stuff/android/

<comment><USER2> nice app</comment>


Ask HN: Should I do a "Show HN" or a "Review My Startup"? - <AUTHOR>

I see a mix of folks asking for feedback on their projects. Some do a "Show HN" which is often a link. Others do a "Review My Startup" which is often just text. Is there a best practices recommended by the community? I am getting ready to ask for feedback of my own! <comment><USER2> Show HN feels more natural when you are launching something – you are wanting people not only to review and provide feedback, but also to sign up and become users of the product. This is just my understanding having been lurking on HN for over an year.

<comment><AUTHOR> Thank you that's helpful! And totally makes sense.</comment></comment>


Show HN: Create a Personal Store to Sell Digital Products & Virtual Events - <AUTHOR> https://popvend.com <comment><USER2> Beautiful. A bit more links to dive deeper in what you have to offer more than a shop would be nice. Like telling a story...</comment>


Ask HN: What YouTube channels are you subscribed to? (Linux servers) - <AUTHOR> I am fairly good at server administration at this point, want to move forward. Amongst other things, I found YT videos to be pretty interesting, anyone know of channels that are worth subscribing to? <comment><USER2> .... Is this a thing?

Honestly I find _video_ a terrible way to cover pretty much anything technical, certainly topics around server administration/ops.</comment>


Rainbow for Firebug brings javascript syntax highlighting to Firebug - <AUTHOR> http://xrefresh.com/rainbow

<comment><USER2> Looks nice, but I can't afford anything that slows down firebug - it's so so so slow as it is.

</comment><comment><USER3> Why is something that is so simple & fast in almost everything else is so slow in firebug?

<comment><USER2> Because firebug enables firefox debug mode which is very slow.</comment></comment>


Sean Parker and Tim Scott, Partners Behind the Investing in Opportunity Act - <AUTHOR> https://www.politico.com/interactives/2018/politico50/sean-parker-tim-scott/ <comment><AUTHOR> Here's a fact sheet on the act:

[https://medium.com/the-investing-in-opportunity-act/the- inve...](https://medium.com/the-investing-in-opportunity-act/the-investing-in- opportunity-act-factsheet-c068deba2b2e)

Surprised this isn't getting more attention in the tech press.</comment>


Why freelancers should be picky and be paid what they're worth - <AUTHOR> http://thenextweb.com/dd/2013/11/02/freelancers-picky-paid-theyre-worth/

<comment><USER2> I've got to agree. Some clients aren't worth their weight in gold. The worst part about these clients is that you come out with nothing to show. they were stubborn and wanted something built their way and not the right way. Too many hours, too little money, and a crap final product.</comment>


Blogging for HuffPo Is Like Writing Open-Source Software - <AUTHOR> http://gigaom.com/2011/04/14/blogging-for-huffpo-is-like-writing-open-source-software/

<comment><AUTHOR> before anyone gets too upset, I realize this analogy is not perfect -- as plenty of people have already pointed out. But I think the similarities are instructive.</comment>


CircleCI now supports Git Tags - <AUTHOR> https://circleci.com/docs/2.0/workflows/?utm_content=bufferb6e45&utm_medium=SCC&utm_source=Twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer-Csy#git-tag-job-execution <comment><USER2> Wow great timing. I just picked up v2 this last weekend and waited until this feature to push forward.</comment>


Wedding at Scale: How I Used Twilio, Python and Google to Automate My Wedding - <AUTHOR> https://www.twilio.com/blog/2017/04/wedding-at-scale-how-i-used-twilio-python-and-google-to-automate-my-wedding.html <comment><USER2> Twilio is interesting -- for example, take a talk [1] on Twilio about how to have your dog text you selfies. I need to find an application like this for Twilio...

[1]: Given by Greg Baughes at PyOhio 2015, [http://pyvideo.org/pyohio-2015/how-i-taught-my-dog-to- text-m...](http://pyvideo.org/pyohio-2015/how-i-taught-my-dog-to-text-me- selfies.html)</comment>


Oracle vs. Google: Android P Is for Poisoned Platform - <AUTHOR> http://www.zdnet.com/article/android-p-is-for-poisoned-platform/ <comment><USER2> Is this a sponsored content article Oracle paid for?

Fuck this guy for not knowing a damn thing he's talking about, and Fuck Oracle too.</comment>


Working from Home Is About Perspective and Focus - <AUTHOR> https://www.zdziarski.com/blog/?p=8168 <comment><USER2> I've been working remotely for over a decade and it takes as much discipline as working for yourself (I've done both).

Most people aren't disciplined enough to get all of their work done without the possibility of a manager/boss/coworker overseeing their work habits.

On top of that, many people forced to work from home just don't have the space to work without getting distracted.

I feel like productivity will plummet during this time and companies will use that as an excuse to prohibit remote working in the future.</comment>


Python Dataflow Programming  - <AUTHOR> http://www.thensys.com/index.php?title=dataflow_programming <comment><USER2> Very cool. Have you seen Pyphant? [http://www.fmf.uni- freiburg.de/service/Servicegruppen/sg_wis...](http://www.fmf.uni- freiburg.de/service/Servicegruppen/sg_wissinfo/Software/Pyphant/pyphant-a- python-data-analysis-framework/view?set_language=en)

There's also Vision, which uses Python: <http://mgltools.scripps.edu/packages/vision/overview>

I have used Simulink (with Matlab) before, and I think that for certain applications, visual dataflow programming is an extremely useful tool. Would be good to have some mature software for doing this with Python. For example, I could create a custom block with two sockets, name it "foo", double click on the box, and write the source code, i.e.

def foo(arg1, arg2): ....

<comment><USER3> makes me think of twisted's deferreds for asynchronous network programming: request some data over a network, attach a "worker" callback (and an exception handling callback), and your application can move forward without waiting for the response. very awesome for things like parsing <n> rss feeds at a time.</comment></comment>


Truffle: Finds business deductions in your personal spending history - <AUTHOR> https://www.gotruffle.com/ <comment><USER2> Is it just me or is anyone else bothered by Plaid privacy policy on the information they collect? I want to use this app but reading through that privacy policy is the stuff of potential nightmares. "collect information including: account numbers, routing numbers, names, balances, history, loan info etc etc..." pretty much everything. Umm no thank you.

<comment><USER3> Don't they need that info to perform the basic functions of the service? Or are you concerned about it being stored long-term?

<comment><USER4> >Don't they need that info to perform the basic functions of the service?

That is a limitation of the OFX version 1 protocol that is used by banks to exchange that data. OFX v2 does away with real account numbers in the api in exchange for account identifiers. The problem is that not all banks have switched to the new api, which was only finalized back in 2006, so give the big FIs a little time to get with the program.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER5> Great idea. I personally just hate the stereotypical "customer" (in this case, Karen T.) with a quote that is probably fake. Even if it's not fake, I hate the "category" so much that I end up disliking the service on that front. Note that I might be rather peculiar in my hate for these "business quotes", and please take this feedback with a grain of salt :)

<comment><USER6> Can you elaborate here? Testimonials, case studies, reviews, and other forms of social proof definitely have a huge impact on conversions, so I'm curious about how it can be done better in your view, or if the entire idea is anathema to you.

<comment><USER5> For me personally (and probably NOT for customers in general), seeing a $FIRSTNAME $LASTNAME.charAt(0) is a negative (e.g. Laura T., Tom B., Frank S., etc), and seeing something that looks like a stock photo is also a negative.

These two things combined together make me doubt that the customer reference might be fake (and nobody is ever going to challenge it!).

Instead, tell me something like "$RealFirstName $RealLastName, VP Product, $RealCompany", and I immediately believe you.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> Great idea. Any hints on what a typical freelancer is forgetting to expense? $13K sounds crazy high.

I'm a freelance software consultant working remotely and there isn't much I can expense as far as I know (working from home costs, hardware, software, insurance, accountancy fees, mobile bill).

<comment><USER8> Agree with this. Unless you're frequently traveling for business or making big work-related purchases, I'm finding it hard to believe that you could provide a compelling argument to the IRS that you have $13k in expenses. "Meals" is not a deductible expense, that's a personal expense and the IRS will nail you for it.

<comment><USER9> I guess that depends on the country.

I live in NL and (I checked with my accountant), I can deduct the cost of coffee I get at the cafe where I work, provided that I drink it while working.

<comment><USER7> In the UK, it's along the lines of you can only expense food and drink if it's an expense that occurs while traveling away from your normal place of work for business purposes.

Without travel expenses, purchasing lots of hardware or online service costs for running a project, I'd be interested in what people are expensing if their expenses are above say £5K a year.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> I helped make Truffle. Here to answer any questions and thanks for stopping by!

<comment><USER11> Don't people normally just use separate credit cards / bank accounts for business vs personal expenses?

<comment><USER12> > _Don 't people normally just use separate credit cards / bank accounts for > business vs personal expenses?_

Every year my accountant tells me to do this. And every year I lose cards and get distracted by promos.

<comment><USER13> right I have two cards, but hey I misplaced one card whatever am I to do with this necessary expense right now?!

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER14> Already did my taxes this year but saving this link for next year. I spent a good amount of time this week categorizing expenses for my taxes.

Unfortunately, I also used HSBC last year which sucks at integrating with places, but I just switched to Azlo which is supported well.

FWIW, my feedback - I need a way to filter larger amounts of transactions at a time. I just connected all my credit cards. 100% of my uber and hotel usage is personal - it looks like as is I'd have to select each one instead of being able to search "uber" and check all to remove them.

<comment><USER10> Thanks for the kind words, friend.

</comment></comment><comment><USER15> Your site looks just as beautiful with NoScript on! Thanks.

</comment><comment><USER16> Looks like a cool app.

But what is stopping an application like Mint or Truebill to offer this?

<comment><USER17> In the case of Mint, Mint is stopping Mint. They've essentially been on life- support and have added no new features in that last ~decade, afaik.

<comment><USER18> in terms of the features that are there now, what would you recommend using which has more active development? Mint's UI is hot garbage, but it does what I need it to do...

<comment><USER19> [https://www.personalcapital.com/](https://www.personalcapital.com/)

<comment><USER20> You can use it as a Mint replacement without any of their Wealth Management offerings? How do they make money? What are the hidden costs?

<comment><USER19> The aggregator is a loss leader. You do not need to use their wealth management offerings. There is no cost.

I've tried to give them money just because the aggregator is so good, and they said no thanks.

Disclaimer: Just a happy user of a financial tool.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> Seems like finding employee expenses that were missed (where you could recover 100% instead of your marginal rate) is another use case here.

If I miss a few Ubers and a few airport meals that I should have filed expense reports for, that's real savings to me as well. That might be a harder use case (separating the fly shit from the pepper in terms of personal vs business).

<comment><USER22> A few Ubers? That's going to make the difference between taking the standard deduction and itemizing for you? Interesting...

Also for the meals it doesn't really help much unless you already keep every receipt.

<comment><USER21> Scenario I posted was: As a W-2 employee, I may have failed to file an expense report for a company-related Uber trip (where I need to file an expense report to get all of it back).

I generally have iPhone snaps of any receipt that is a business expense. I just don't always get around to doing the paperwork afterwards...

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER20> I have my (rather messy) taxes done by a professional accountant every year, and he saves me a ton of money by doing things like this. I'll have to see if this report can help him with a more accurate picture of my expenses.

First thought is I wish there was a way to bulk edit transaction.

I also have my rent which it picks up as a "utility," and which should be partially deductible as a home office. Doesn't seem to be able to handle that slightly more complex use case yet.

Taxes are complicated…

<comment><USER10> This is great feedback. We'll add bulk edits soon!

</comment></comment><comment><USER23> Assuming this doesn't work for Canadians?

<comment><USER10> No, it does't yet... Sorry.

</comment></comment><comment><USER24> So has anyone used it ? It seems like a great, well thought out idea. I just want to make sure before I drop $40 and give save a few hours of accountants costs.

<comment><USER10> If you're not satisfied we will refund you.

</comment></comment><comment><USER25> Great idea! However, there wasn't a whole lot in my account's analysis. I can't seem to find the delete button. How do I delete my account?

<comment><USER10> Just send us a message on chat.

</comment></comment><comment><USER26> I've been wondering.... Are bank records like this good enough to replace receipts? Or do you still need to know how to get the actual receipts?

Great brand BTW

<comment><USER10> It looks like bank statements are sufficient but I'd check with your accountant: [https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self- employe...](https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self- employed/what-kind-of-records-should-i-keep)

<comment><USER27> No, it doesn't look like that to me at all. Bank statements do not usually contain nearly enough information on what was purchased. They are proof of payment. That's why they are listed on that page among other supporting documents like invoices.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER28> Love how readable your Privacy Policy is.

</comment><comment><USER29> The website looks like got ruffle, but this looks cool!

<comment><USER10> haha that's funny! Now that you say it, I can't unsee.

</comment></comment><comment><USER30> This idea is amazing. I always use my personal credit card to make business purchases. I'll try this before tax season!

</comment><comment><USER31> Definitely using this during tax season this year!

</comment><comment><USER32> Love it!!! Saving so much money, as a engineer I pay way too much in taxes!

</comment><comment><USER33> This is why I find Mint so terrible! It had such potential to enable things like this, but just never did anything after being bought by Intuit. This is also another reason why I think Bitcoin / crypto will be huge, because a company like Truffle could get implemented without needing crazy integrations with every existing financial institution. It could just use open-protocols. I already use a product in the same space called [http://cointracker.io/](http://cointracker.io/) which I'm able to give my public keys to and it can do my taxes.</comment>


Face detection in JavaScript/HTML5 - <AUTHOR> http://neave.com/webcam/html5/face/

<comment><AUTHOR> Unlike this version <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4028419> it doesn't require WebSockets or Jetty. Just good ol' JavaScript/HTML5. Nothing more.</comment>


Astroids: Space Game of the Year - <AUTHOR> http://astroids.tv <comment><USER2> One of the truly, indisputably _classic_ concepts in gaming.

What's it built with?

<comment><AUTHOR> It's built using our own 3D engine, which is custom built and written in C++, using OpenGL.

</comment></comment><comment><USER3> Is it real 3D gameplay or it will be 2D?

<comment><AUTHOR> We are still working on the gameplay. Currently it basically works in two dimensions, but we are moving towards adding the depth as the component of the gameplay as well. You should be able to move in front or behind the objects in the game. So, in the end the gameplay should be happening in something that can be called 2.5D.

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> What platforms is this going to target?

<comment><AUTHOR> Windows first, Linux & OS X later. Eventually we are going to release the game for iOS and Android, but it's too early for that now.</comment></comment>


History Is a Tree - <AUTHOR> http://ideasintosoftware.com/history-is-a-tree/

<comment><USER2> How does Vim support this concept? I mean what does happen when you go back 30 steps then type something new?

I've been using Vim for a few years now but never heard of this before. This interesting to me.

<comment><AUTHOR> It stores your undo history as a tree so you can have multiple "heads". Check out [https://github.com/sjl/gundo.vim](https://github.com/sjl/gundo.vim) to see a screenshot, I'm sure you'll understand then.</comment></comment>


Show HN: Financial calculator for a subscription business(SaaS, PaaS,or similar) - <AUTHOR> https://www.businesscasecalculator.com/ <comment><AUTHOR> Hey there!

Over the years I've tried to do the math on metrics in the SaaS companies I founded and I noticed that many of these metrics come with many moving parts and formulas. Hence, in my experience it's not easy to produce a solid business case for a subscription business from scratch.

As such, I worked out a calculator which can produce these metrics based on a few or many parameters. I'm curious to learn if this can help founders who run a subscription business to do the math quickly.

I'm curious to learn if this is helpful and am also looking for feedback on how to improve this calculator.</comment>


How the wrong cat litter took down a nuclear waste repository - <AUTHOR> https://cen.acs.org/articles/95/i20/wrong-cat-litter-took-down.html?h=-472621416 <comment><USER2> Missing from this article is the most fascinating thing about this story- why someone thought it was a good idea to make the cat litter substitution that made this whole mess possible.

In Los Alamos, those charged with repackaging the waste were hearing a speech by an expert on the matter. The expert warned they should be using "INorganic cat litter", which they already were. What a member of the group heard was "AN organic cat litter".

The two look very different in print, but when spoken, they're often indistinguishable to a non-chemist. When the discussion made its way to memos and emails, the die was cast.

<comment><USER3> They may be indistinguishable but common sense still applies when asking for clarification. For example, I work with folks of a certain intellect where I have to ask very specific and pointed questions that do not contain substantial detail in each question in order to clarify something or to get an answer I need.

When that conversation happened, it should have ended with, "just to clarify, I should, or should not, use organic cat litter?" That would have cleared it up.

Furthermore, "It would have been much clearer if they had said an inorganic zeolite sorbent," Hobbs says.

Wouldn't one argue that a better way to explain it would be to specify nonorganic kitty litter since that would clear up any confusion whether written or spoken?

<comment><USER4> How about not sending a non-expert to the grocery store with a post-it note for supplies when packaging radioactive material for long-term storage. Besides, "organic" when in the grocery store means something completely different any way -- ironically, the organic (wheat-based) product could easily be "non-organic" (meaning not certified to avoid certain pesticides, fertilizers, etc.), while the non-organic (clay-based) product might be labeled "organic" (meaning no pesticides).

Really, how about having a specific written signoff procedure in place, where all supplies must be checked before purchase by a trained expert who knows the difference between organic and inorganic / clay vs wheat, signed off in writing against a checklist developed by experts, then checked again by a separate trained expert when delivered with another signoff, then checked again by a third export when actually used.

<comment><USER5> > how about having a specific written signoff procedure in place, where all > supplies must be checked before purchase by a trained expert who knows the > difference between organic and inorganic / clay vs wheat, signed off in > writing against a checklist developed by experts, then checked again by a > separate trained expert when delivered with another signoff, then checked > again by a third export when actually used.

Multiple inspection is a known failure point. A thinks any errors they make will be caught by B and C. B thinks A knows what s/he's doing, and thinks any errors that slip by B will be caught by C. C thinks A and B know what they're doing and so no errors will have reached C.

The boss that recruited A, B, and C to their position pulled the most accurate workers from the shop floor - because you need the inspectors to be better than the shop floor.

Thus quality of product supplied to inspection is reduced; the inspectors are now very busy; and that leads them to shift product through (someone else will catch it; someone else has already caught the problems).

What you need is to give an accurate instruction, and to give people to halt if they're unclear what's meant.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> Confusion about choosing the chemically appropriate kitty litter comes up more frequently than one might expect. While a zeolite clay based litter is the best choice for nuclear waste, the message here isn't that it's the best choice for all purposes. It turns out that different applications require different kitty litters!

Oyster mushrooms can be grown on lots of "plant based" substrates. One easily available substrate is kitty litter made from recycled newspaper, such as the "Yesterday's News" brand. If you to use a zeolite based litter here (even if it had organic certifications) your mushrooms would grow poorly if at all: [http://www.namyco.org/docs/grow_oyster_mushrooms_on_kitty_li...](http://www.namyco.org/docs/grow_oyster_mushrooms_on_kitty_litter_illustrated.pdf). But for bonsai, both clay and recycled newspaper would be a disaster. Here, you need a litter made from "diatomaceous earth", such as Tesco's "Low Dust Lightweight Catlitter": [http://www.bonsai4me.com/Basics/Basicscatlitter.htm](http://www.bonsai4me.com/Basics/Basicscatlitter.htm). Tomato seedlings have about the same requirements as bonsai: [http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=22329](http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=22329).

I mention these partly as a joke, but there actually is a deep commonality here. All of these are real world situations where the specific type of cat litter used has implications, and in all of them, despite the authors' strong desire for precision and clarity, you find forums full of people who take the "shortcut" of using the wrong type of cat litter and then complaining that it doesn't work. I'm not sure what the solution is, but in the future it sure would be great if we could troubleshoot the instructions in the mushroom, tomato and bonsai communities rather than jumping straight to nuclear waste disposal.

Does anyone have examples of other communities making odd uses of specific types of kitty litter?

<comment><USER7> Litter made of bentonite clay can also be used as a refractory clay for cheaply lining the inside of a DIY blacksmithing forge! [https://aaapirateblacksmith.com/2012/09/12/building-the- tren...](https://aaapirateblacksmith.com/2012/09/12/building-the-trench-forge- and-a-dirt-cheap-clay-recipe/)

<comment><USER8> It also makes an OK "green sand" replacement for casting metal.

<comment><USER9> I've heard similar claims of that "magic sand" or whatever it's called when you mix fine sand and silicone oil. The results seem to speak reasonably well of the method, if AvE's attempt [1] is any guide.

Might save some grinding, at any rate.

[1] [https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sEc5Jak9jsg](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sEc5Jak9jsg)

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> The whole story can be shortened down to two sentences:

> Investigators traced a series of internal communications in which the > specifications for "kitty litter/zeolite clay" were transformed into "kitty > litter (clay)," the report says. Combined with inadequate technical review, > this resulted in LANL workers filling waste containers with a mixture of > nitrate salts and sWheat Scoop, a cat litter that is 100% wheat, according > to its manufacturer.

<comment><USER11> Removing "zeolite" is consistent with just about every popular piece of advice on how to write:

1\. Don't use jargon.

2\. Remove unnecessary words.

3\. Write a third grade level.

So someone comes along and sees the phrase "kitty litter/zeolite clay" and decides that its author does not know how to write based on its author not following the rules and applies syntactic rules without understanding the semantics (in this case the semantics of nuclear chemistry).

<comment><USER12> you'd think that at the level of nuclear chemistry, "kitty litter" would be considered a pretty inexact term for a very serious role.

<comment><USER11> Traditionally, it has been exact. Physicists are ordinary people and use ordinary language to talk to other physicists. It became inexact when the low bidder bought wheat waste and called it "kitty litter" and ignored "(clay)".

<comment><USER13> Um -- as someone who has bought Swheat Scoop for my cats for almost 20 years -- I can assure you it's not the low-cost option. Clay is much cheaper.

<comment><USER11> I'm not disagreeing. However, I would not be surprised if the price ratios at retail differ from those at bulk wholesale and at moments in the spot market. My suspicion is based on some experience with the spot market for fill dirt and the evidence here that kitty litter made from wheat byproducts was supplied by the low cost bidder and the premise that the low cost bidder was a rational economic actor.

<comment><USER6> _My suspicion is based on some experience with the spot market for fill dirt and the evidence here that kitty litter made from wheat byproducts was supplied by the low cost bidder and the premise that the low cost bidder was a rational economic actor._

Your suspicion sounds plausible, but looks to be directly contradicted by the Department of Energy's post-investigation report. To the contrary of this being a decision made by the low cost bidder, the problems with the process started with a mistake in the specification that was produced by Los Alamos National Security LLC, the private company specifies the proper operating procedures at the national lab:

"When LANS began using this procedure to process nitrate salt wastes in September 2011, it did not perform a USQD [Undetermined Safety Questions Determination], as required, because the change from inorganic to organic absorbent was incorrectly determined to be an administrative (minor) change."

"In one particular instance, a conduct-of-operations SME [subject matter expert], working outside of his/her area of responsibility, added new text to DOP-0233 that included using organic kitty litter as an absorbent, as opposed to the inorganic zeolite material discussed previously in technical team meetings."

"In the previous example, the SME's addition of the text to DOP-0233, Section 10.6, which included the word 'organic', was submitted informally as a 'minor' comment, rather than an 'essential' comment that would have required explicit concurrence from the entire SME team."

Unless the report is wrong, or unless the SME who made the change was actually working in deep cover for a kitty litter producer with a surplus of wheat, this looks to be an error of knowledge and process, not a cost-cutting measure by a low bidder.

[https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2016/02/f29/Posting%20co...](https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2016/02/f29/Posting%20copy%20LANS%20PNOV%202-18-16%20%28NEA-2016-01%29.pdf)

<comment><USER11> It appears that organic was added alongside inorganic. Which means that the low bid was for organic litter. Having written specs, alternatives to established specifications are often proposed by vendors.

Normally for government specifications, opportunities to enjoy pitches by vendors to have their products added to the specification are not allowed due to the potential appearance of a conflict of interest. On the other hand, an LLC might not have quite as rigid a protocol...and establishing an LLC might even be done to avoid having rigid protocols around bidding and vendors.

Now I could be completely off base and a low level employee went cowboy all on their own due to some previous knowledge of organic kitty liter and the economics of its bulk availability. The center of the distribution when specs get changed to allow an alternative technology is more commonly customer eduction by vendors.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER14> Kind of funny that I have actually had the same problem. I collect succulent plants and when you get to a certain point you need to start making your own soil mix.

One of the best ways for that is to use soil and hot-fired clay / diatomaceous earth. Which is not really easy to find as a product. Funny enough cat litter can be just that. However, there are many cat litters out there which are made from a wide variety of things. So it's really difficult to eek out the right stuff.

Like the article says it can be organic material, or it can be clay that turns to mush when it gets wet. There are other materials out there though, like Turface, which is always high fired clay, or oil-dry materials from auto supply stores, which varies a lot like the cat litter.

Either way it kind of seems insane that they are acquiring this material instead of finding a direct and reliable source for the exact material they want.

</comment><comment><USER15> It's a wonderful example why people should be educated far beyond their pay grade. Any mildly trained chemist would know that combining nitric acid and organic material is setting oneself up for an explosion. They should have reached for the Andon cord right tbere.

</comment><comment><USER16> This mistake cost over half a billion dollars!

"An October 2014 report from the Department of Energy's Office of Inspector General points to a change in the packaging procedure at LANL that specified organic cat litter, when an inorganic sorbent was likely intended. Investigators traced a series of internal communications in which the specifications for "kitty litter/zeolite clay" were transformed into "kitty litter (clay)," the report says. Combined with inadequate technical review, this resulted in LANL workers filling waste containers with a mixture of nitrate salts and sWheat Scoop, a cat litter that is 100% wheat, according to its manufacturer. "It would have been much clearer if they had said an inorganic zeolite sorbent," Hobbs says. "It's been a very expensive mistake, costing at least half a billion dollars."

</comment><comment><USER17> > We need to tell the story so that hopefully it won't happen again.

And I'll need to bookmark this just for the lack of points and the deafening silence, for the next time I see some grandstanding on HN about luddites being paranoid about nuclear waste and dumb one-off accidents.

> LANL generated nearly 700 drums with a similar waste mixture that includes > the organic cat litter. Drums with similar mixtures were isolated and are > monitored, DOE says.

> "Why didn't more than one drum react as that drum did?" Hobbs asks. "Never > to my knowledge did we firmly establish that there is something completely > unique about 68660."

It's an interesting puzzle, but not one for you and me to worry about. Vote Vault Tec.

<comment><USER18> Suppose the drum broke. How many people would die?

<comment><USER19> 99.9% of the time, none. They are stored in a bunker far from people.

A large part of why nuclear power is so expensive is because safety is considered so important. It's hard to get good numbers, but chances are more people have died constructing reactors and mining / refining ore etc. than from nuclear accidents. The difference is simply what people are less concerned when a heavy object falls on someone else.

<comment><USER20> And how many people have died inhaling fumes from coal fired plants and mining coal?

<comment><USER21> In 2010 it was around 13,200 deaths/year from particulate emissions[1]. This is actually a big improvement, stricter regulations brought it down from 30,000 deaths/year in 2000 [2]. I should say that these numbers are surely not exact, there are big uncertainties both in the atmospheric modelling (how far the particles propagate) and in how dangerous the exposure is. But it's probably the right order of magnitude, there is a different report from the National Academy of Sciences in 2010 which arrived at a similar (but slightly lower) number [3].

The deaths from particulate emissions are not even necessarily the biggest problem with coal: if you price out the externalities, the cost of climate change (from CO₂ emissions) is the biggest item [4].

[1] [http://www.catf.us/resources/publications/view/138](http://www.catf.us/resources/publications/view/138) [2] [http://www.catf.us/resources/publications/view/8](http://www.catf.us/resources/publications/view/8) [3] [http://www.ourenergypolicy.org/wp- content/uploads/2012/06/hi...](http://www.ourenergypolicy.org/wp- content/uploads/2012/06/hidden.pdf) [4] [http://xhxhxhx.tumblr.com/post/157192261427/alright-two- impo...](http://xhxhxhx.tumblr.com/post/157192261427/alright-two-important- corrections-first-the)</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment>


Show HN: Gitdash - GitHub dashboards for staying on top your projects - <AUTHOR> https://gitdash.pro <comment><AUTHOR> I built the guts of this about a year ago to help keep on top of my team's tasks, track sprint planning, and keep on top of pending code reviews. Definitely targeted more towards Tech Leads and Product Managers. I found it useful to use every day, so I spent the time to productize it a bit more formally. Since, more people on my team at work have been using pretty much daily and found it useful. I hope you do too!

This is my first side-project I've taken the time to productize and I could definitely use your feedback!

      - Would you use this? If so, would you pay for it?
      - If not, what do you use to stay on top tasks now?
      - What other problems do you have with project management that isn't already being addressed by the gazillion tools out there?

If you do try it out, I'd love to hear more about any UX issues you run into! (I'm sure there's plenty)</comment>


Why Teach English? (2013) - <AUTHOR> http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/why-teach-english <comment><USER2> Quite a topsy-turvey musing and not at all bad. Really tries to get into the meat of the concept of an English major. However, I find the following rather funny in simply how wrong it is:

> _And so with English departments: if we closed down every English department > in the country, loud, good, expert, or at least hyper-enthusiastic readers > would still emerge. One sees this happening already, in the steady pulse of > reading groups and books clubs which form, in effect, a kind of archipelago > of amateur English departments._

From what I've read (ha!), long-form reading is steadily on the decline and shows no sign of slowing down. Sure, there are a few prestige outlets experimenting with formats to engage audiences, and investigative journalism is still a worthwhile pursuit, but those are sidebar discussions to what's being asserted above.

No, with technology, now audiences don't have to bother with reading for instruction or entertainment. Simply look at the history of music, and now that entire libraries of material can be put in one's pocket, the scarcity and effort factor of pursuit is nearly extinct. Books were portable. They were cheap to access.

Well, now that multimedia is not only portable but cheap too - streaming audio services, free-to-watch or subscription video services, and user-content generated platforms like Instagram/Twitter/Facebook - I see the long-form reading and thinking avenue on the out.

It makes me sad. It's a lot like the argument against learning to write cursive - sure, it's hard, but it's a challenge that spurs mental development. Long-form reading and critical thinking are inter-twined. Reading for pleasure, in modern times, is drooling over click-bait headlines, and it's not going to turn around anytime soon.</comment>


YouTube's paid subscription offering takes shape - <AUTHOR> http://www.theverge.com/2015/4/8/8371131/youtube-paid-subscription-offline-video <comment><USER2> Finally. Call me sentimental, but ad blocking makes me uncomfortable, especially on a site like YouTube where most creators seem to really struggle to earn a reasonable amount of compensation for their effort. Yet a short while back, I finally lost patience with the ever-increasing duration and prevalence of YouTube's video ads and installed a blocker; to me, personally, their demand on my attention was starting to bring back bad memories of ad- festooned TV shows and just feel truly obnoxious and disrespectful. I will be happy to turn off the blocker and switch to paying with money, which I do not value as much as my brain.

<comment><USER3> I wonder if ads will come back for the subscribers anyway, as happened with cable. Especially once advertisers start pointing out to google that the only people they actually want to advertise to are the subscribers.

<comment><USER4> If they did, why would they subscribe at all? Okay maybe they get special subscriber only videos, but if a channel wanted that Patreon already has that feature.

<comment><USER5> Maybe people would subscribe so they could actually find what they're looking for. Good luck finding a specific movie or a series episode right now. It just doesn't work.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> It's great, but very late. I'm unsure about the pricing - $10 is very pricey (I pay ~$20 for internet). I would've /thought/ about it if it was $5, though, to be fair, I'm not a huge Youtube user.

<comment><USER7> $10 is Netflix money. I can't really make sense of it in proportion to lack of premium content. Especially since YouTube have been awful at stringing together a smart way to build a station/feed to watch people regularly.

$5 would make a lot more sense.

<comment><USER8> There is a lot of music there, the article sounds like this would be music key + everything else. That would make it an extra cost of $2 for all non-music videos.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER9> _" And YouTube's carrot comes with a stick — creators are required to participate in the subscription offering, or every video on their channels will be set to private, sources said."_

Does this mean that uploading free videos to YouTube for free viewing is dead?

<comment><USER10> Isn't that a similar issue [1] to what Zoe Keating went though not long ago?

[1] - [http://zoekeating.tumblr.com/post/108898194009/what- should-i...](http://zoekeating.tumblr.com/post/108898194009/what-should-i-do- about-youtube)

<comment><USER4> Not really, she was required to release her entire back catalog and any future releases too.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER8> Something particularly interesting there is the way the money will be split:

> Individual partners' cuts will be apportioned based on how much time their > viewers spend watching their channels

This could provide a nice incentive to have longer videos rather than shorter ones (for quick views). Particularly for full episodes of something.

I wonder if that's the route they're hoping to go down? If they had a good selection of films & tv shows then this could be quite nice (much more so with offline viewing!).

<comment><USER4> It will mean minute physics will get very little and any random let's play will get a lot more.

<comment><USER8> That's one side, but a very specific example.

If you pay for views rather than duration you incentivise _short_ videos, if you pay for duration you incentivise _long_ videos.

If you go for duration the risk is that you have lots of long easily made videos getting money instead of short hard to make videos. Is that going to harm more things than paying for views?

I think I'd rather have a 10 minute lets-play earn 10x more than one minute physics video than have a playlist of the ten funniest 6s cat videos earn 10x more than one view of minute physics.

<comment><USER11> Thing is though, making one minute of lets-play costs a lot less (time / money) than making one minute physics or crash course or you name it.

Also, I probably watch hundreds of hours of youtube every month so the amount that ends up at each channel will be extremely small 5.50 / monthlyHours * oursPerChannel isn't going to be very much in the end.

The biggest winners are going to be MCNs (Multi Channel Networks, which most Let's Plays are part of) which take another 20-30% of the revenue generated by each of their partnering channels.

If you want to support single channels, something like Patreon is still going to reign superior in terms of actual money received at the other end.

<comment><USER8> > Thing is though, making one minute of lets-play costs a lot less (time / > money) than making one minute physics or crash course or you name it.

Well yes, as I say it's a tradeoff. A 10s video of a cat falling off a chair takes less time and money to make than any of those.

<comment><USER12> Here's a way they could solve it: give ability to donate money directly to channel(s). So let's say I want to give $1/month to MinutePhysics - I donate, and get this channel ad-free. Or maybe I want to donate $10/month to be split in half between MinutePhysics and Scott Manley, so I do that, but since I'm over $10, I get the whole no-ads plan as well.

YouTube will take an ad fee anyway, and the current option could stay as the default ("I don't care about any channel in particular, I just want no ads!").

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER13> Next step: [http://research.microsoft.com/en- us/projects/singularity/](http://research.microsoft.com/en- us/projects/singularity/)

</comment><comment><USER10> But they will still track and log everything I do no matter what kind of subscription I have, won't they. And the site won't become any less bloated.

Well, at least it's a step forward.

</comment><comment><USER14> Or you could just use a script like youtube-dl and not deal with ads or tracking cookies or anything of the sort. And, y'know, actually get to keep the video.

<comment><USER10> Yes, but I like to reward people whose content I consume regularly and not everyone is on Patreon, sadly.

<comment><USER15> Changetip? Find out their email and then Paypal to them?

Seriously, I mean they have to have a path to accept money somewhere if you wish to push money at them. Or, "You can lead a content creator to money but you can't make them accept teh cash". ;3

<comment><USER10> Never heard of anyone using Changetip and not everyone has Paypal. Also not everyone is using their public email as their PP email.

I know some people who refuse to accept "donations" for some moral reasons that are unfathomable to me. TotalBiscuit is one of them, actually.

[https://soundcloud.com/totalbiscuit/maybe-subbablepatreon- is...](https://soundcloud.com/totalbiscuit/maybe-subbablepatreon-isnt-the- magic-bullet)

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> That's a giving steep price they are demanding, good luck with that.

Netflix is cheaper and has more content of a higher quality.

</comment><comment><USER5> There was a time when search worked on YouTube. Then came Google, the world champion of search. And search got worse and more nonfunctional by the day on YouTube. Now they want me to believe that search will work again, after I throw money at them? "Don't be evil" my hind foot. I already drastically decreased my YouTube usage in the past. I guess I will avoid it entirely in the future.

</comment><comment><USER16> Now that ad free is premium feature, how will youtube treat ad blockers?

<comment><USER17> The better question is how will Google treat adblockers in the Chrome store (especially now that you can't install extensions from outside the store anymore)? Google has already banned adblockers on the Play Store. I don't think that will be an easy thing to do though, so I doubt they will actually try that, unless they can come up with a really "good reason" to do it (the NSA gets you through the adblocker!...or something).</comment></comment>


Switch from Issue Tracking to Feature Tracking - <AUTHOR> https://zepel.io/blog/feature-tracking/ <comment><USER2> You can use epics, stories ad tasks to group issues that have the same overarching theme, like a feature. But if you just do feature tracking how do you handle bugs?

<comment><AUTHOR> If a bug is related to a specific feature, it could get added into the feature. If it isn't, it could get added into a separate list, pushed to a board or get added to a sprint for it to be worked upon.</comment></comment>


MuslimCoin, the virtual crypto currency of muslims - <AUTHOR> http://muslimcoin.blogspot.com/2014/01/muslimcoin.html

<comment><USER2> This is not very well thought out, but I find it interesting that as a use case specification for a currency that forbids loaning at interest and speculation.</comment>


Skyfire for iOS sold out in 5 hrs - iphone/ipad users DO want flash video - <AUTHOR> http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/03/skyfire-disappears-from-itunes-app-store-due-to-technical-diffic/

<comment><AUTHOR> If you are wondering how it can 'sell out' if it's just a browser...

The broswer relies on Skyfire's servers to re-render and steam the flash video to your device - so once they reached the maximum number of serveable users, they removed the app until Skyfire could be sure they will provide a good video experience for all users.

[http://www.skyfire.com/press/blog/68-skyfire-reaches-top- gro...](http://www.skyfire.com/press/blog/68-skyfire-reaches-top-grossing-app- on-iphone-app-store-within-5-hours-sold-out)</comment>


Facebook Cuts Off Access to Voxer - <AUTHOR> http://allthingsd.com/20130118/exclusive-facebook-cuts-off-access-to-voxer-over-competition-concerns/

<comment><USER2> Maybe this has something to do with Voxer's contact privacy and security issues: [http://www.petergmcdermott.com/2012/01/voxer-contacts- privac...](http://www.petergmcdermott.com/2012/01/voxer-contacts-privacy- concerns/)

and

<https://support.voxer.com/entries/20864097-security-bug>

</comment><comment><USER3> Facebook will now start acting more and more like Twitter: "If you are building anything on our platform that we _might_ want to build in the future, then you'll get thrown off the platform eventually."

<comment><AUTHOR> It's really starting to feel this way. I think it's still ok for developers building apps/games that uses Facebook platform but for a platform or any startup with some sort of social graph might want to think twice about it.

</comment></comment><comment><USER4> How much was Voxer paying for the access?

<comment><USER5> It's not about how much Voxer was paying, it's about how much users were paying.

How much is a Facebook user's personal information worth?

Users provide facebook a certain amount of information in return for access to the Facebook service and platform. (That includes apps like Voxer that can integrate with it.)

By denying Voxer access, Facebook is effectively making their service less valuable to its users. One day, they'll shut off access to a service enough Facebook users value that users will no longer value Facebook.

Twitter is going to learn this lesson the hard way too.

<comment><USER4> Good points. Though given todays market, if Voxer goes down another Facebook integrated clone of it will take over and the cycle is repeated.

I dont think people use Facebook primarily for outside service integration. They use it to keep in touch, see family/friends photos, hang out, and gossip. When Facebook goes down (if it even goes down) it will be due to something that violated the user norms. Not their privacy, but their use pattern. I know the tech industry is used to startups lasting one to five years, but Facebook is back by all the right players, and will be here for a while.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> I don't mind. Voxer has been constantly sending me useless "messages" whenever my Facebook friends join Voxer. I get at least 1 or 2 every week.</comment>


Ask HN: Stock Quote REST API - <AUTHOR>

I am working on a commercial iOS application for displaying stock information.  What some cheaper options for a REST API to get the stock quote information? I've already looked at solutions like Xignite, but they are too expensive.  Google finance is shut down and Yahoo doesn't allow you to use financial data through YQL in commercial applications. <comment><USER2> You can use Yahoo finance. It's not RESTful though.

<comment><AUTHOR> Can you explain how you can use Yahoo Finance commercially?

As stated on the below link, "Data available on the Yahoo! network (e.g., Finance, Weather) is not approved for commercial usage via YQL, unless mentioned otherwise in the Terms of Service."

[https://developer.yahoo.com/yql](https://developer.yahoo.com/yql)</comment></comment>


FAA Traffic Management Anticipates Flying Cars - <AUTHOR> https://semiengineering.com/faa-traffic-management-anticipates-flying-cars/ <comment><USER2> Probably not going to happen for a long time. It's just really energy inefficient and costly to maintain an aircraft. There is a greater likelihood of self driving cars becoming so prevalent that "manual" driving will become illegal.</comment>


Ask HN: Pursuing a STEM masters program in the post-trump US? - <AUTHOR> Given the stance Trump has taken, does it make sense to pursue a STEM masters in the US? Will it be possible to recover the costs (from an international student's perspective) and find work? <comment><USER2> Trump's opposition to the H1B program was purely tactical, as Rubio had pushed to lift the visa cap during the 'Gang of Eight' immigration negotiations in 2013 ('Mark Zuckerberg's favorite Senator'). There would be zero support from Republicans in Congress to dismantle the program.

</comment><comment><USER3> Obviously I can't speak for Trump, but I think it's accurate to say that the criticism of H1B visas is that they've been abused by tech companies wanting to hire foreign workers for _entry-level jobs_ at low wages. The intent of the H1B was originally to attract real talent that we couldn't produce locally, such as specialists, PhDs, and experts with proven talent. The implication for you might be that, if H1B visas are reformed, you'll be less likely to get an entry level job after the masters degree, but should be better able to get a visa and a job in the USA as you advance in your career.

</comment><comment><USER4> Trump's position was the "Intel, not Infosys" one, where people like you wouldn't likely see a change, except possibly for joeclark77's point about entry level jobs.

</comment><comment><USER5> I am so interested in answers to this question....

<comment><USER6> same here</comment></comment>


Comparing the EU GDPR and California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 - <AUTHOR> https://www.mofo.com/resources/events/180920-privacy-across-atlantic.html <comment><USER2> This seems to lack any content besides that California now also has privacy regulations and that this page won't tell us anything until 2018-09-20.</comment>


In choosing a tablet, first try it on for size - <AUTHOR> http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/17/technology/personaltech/in-choosing-a-tablet-first-try-it-on-for-size.html

<comment><USER2> A 7" 16:9 tablet has less than half the area of a 10" 16:9 tablet. <http://www.displaywars.com/7-inch-16x9-vs-10-inch-16x9> This is a big difference in portability and visibility.</comment>


Show HN: Get IP Geolocation Data with Confidence - <AUTHOR> https://smartip.io <comment><AUTHOR> SmartIP.io is the IP Geolocation API which allows for fast lookup, consistent response time worldwide and extremely detailed JSON response.

I tried my best to define a pricing structure which would suit as many customer segments as possible.

What you guys think?

<comment><USER2> This is your fourth (fifth? sixth?) Show HN for this product. I doubt opinions have changed.

<comment><AUTHOR> We pushed major upgrades to our infrastructure, that's why I created a new submission.

Would be nice to know your opinion to our product..</comment></comment></comment>


An attack on publisher freedom and the power abuse/misuse by npm Inc. - <AUTHOR> https://medium.com/p/271013ff33c5

<comment><USER2> You seriously cant see how having one thing named npm which manages JavaScript packages and a completely different thing named npmjs has the potential to confuse people? The standard format for googling a JavaScript library that might have other meanings is [libray]js.

You, the author of npmjs, created this problem four years ago by not exercising due concern for the namespace commons you were polluting and being lazy in not choosing a descriptive, unique name for your package. This situation is 100% your fault, and you should feel shame for what you did not indignation for someone else cleaning up your mess.

Open-npm-central. Npm-client-abracadabra. Pure-js-npm-client.

[domain]-[descriptor]-[giberish] is an easy algo to quicky name your stuff in a responsible way.

</comment><comment><USER3> Dude just change the name! Can you imagine if you uploaded an app to the apple App Store that contained "Apple" in the name? They'd insta-shut you down.

</comment><comment><USER4> It really IS confusing. You should rename it and everybody would benefit from it.</comment>


It sounds like buying Nest has been a total disaster for Google - <AUTHOR> http://bgr.com/2016/03/24/google-nest-acquisition-tony-fadell/ <comment><USER2> [https://daringfireball.net/misc/2016/03/the-information- tony...](https://daringfireball.net/misc/2016/03/the-information-tony- fadell.pdf)

PDF Link to article ^^ it is worth reading.

</comment><comment><USER3> "Total disaster" sounds like hyperbole. None of the bullet points justify that description. It might not be as successful as Google might have hoped, but they probably had the appetite for such a risk.

</comment><comment><USER4> Correction: Tony Fadell is a total disaster for Google.

</comment><comment><USER5> I flagged this in the hopes that URL is changed to what user _kennyasare_ posted.

In the meantime...I read the PDF. Meh, internal squabbles I care nothing about. What I do suspect, as an owner of the first-gen Nest thermostat and a Nest camera, is that they're a one-hit wonder. The thermostat is okay, and it continues to do the task for which I bought it. However, where's my Apple HomeKit integration? Guess that went out the window with the Google purchase.

Nest cam? Well, to start with they bought DropCam, which is fine. But the product? Meh, nothing special that isn't made by a dozen other name-brand companies. When I went go buy another camera, I thought I'd try another brand and ended up with a Withings. Head-and-shoulders above Nest in features and usability, and aesthetics if that's important to you. Integrates with other stuff, including HomeKit. Don't need Flash running in your browser to view the camera (unlike Nest). Much more responsive iOS app.

The smoke detector is so lacking in improvements over a standard wired detector that I just skipped that one.

In summary, I was fired up about the potential of the Nest thermostat, and was happy enough with it that I blindly bought the Nest cam. But the honeymoon is over, and as a customer I don't give two poops about their internal drama, Nest needs to step up their game on the product side or they'll be just another commodity gadget manufacturer.

</comment><comment><USER6> That is not an article that is a teaser for some paywalled content.

</comment><comment><USER7> I think total disaster would have been widespread adoption preceding a devastating exploit.

</comment><comment><USER8> My nest cam is a cool device but hardly functions the way it should. Super frustrating. Not really very surprised by learning all this.

</comment><comment><USER9> Google got hustled. Nest was a disaster from the start. They are barely even a one-off. The best thing Google got out of their 3.2 billion dollar purchase was a patent troll.

These silicon valley companies made these horrible buyouts in the billions, and they have yet to feel the effects.

Or.. Maybe they are just working on their thug life portfolio? A bit sidetracked at best.</comment>


Ask HN: Recommendation for noise cancelling headphones? - <AUTHOR> Preferably some that will cancel-out office chatter. <comment><USER2> The Wirecutter noise-cancelling headphone guide [1] is pretty good.

The Bose QC35 is commonly recommended for open office work. They recently released a new Series II ($350). They aren't too different from the Series I which is discontinued but you may still be able to find some places for less.

Bose also has variants on this model, such as a wired one, as well as their top end in-ear headphones that are similarly recommended.

One thing to note is that active noise-cancelling in general isn't super great for conversation type noise. You'll probably have to combine active noise cancellation and/or noise isolation with some sort of audio playing to really not hear the office talk.

Anker also just came out with an ANC over-ears that look competitive for our use case for $100. I haven't tried them myself yet but am planning to.

[1]: [https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-noise-cancelling- head...](https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-noise-cancelling-headphones/)

[2]: [https://www.amazon.com/Soundcore-Wireless-Cancelling- Headpho...](https://www.amazon.com/Soundcore-Wireless-Cancelling-Headphones- Playtime/dp/B07BBNS8N5)

</comment><comment><USER3> After losing my beloved QC-25s on a plane years ago, I picked up some creative HN-900s on the cheap. They aren't as good, but you can also pick up a set refurbished set for under $40 at Amazon. If I ever end up flying a lot again or back at a noisy office I might upgrade back to some Bose headphones, but the creatives have largely gotten the job done and the other brands I've tried (mono price on ear, an audio technica set) weren't as comfortable.

If you are trying to cancel out office noise, definitely go with over ear headphones. They are more comfortable for long wear periods

One thing to consider as you are deciding- in my experience noise cancelling headphones block out distractions better when actually playing audio. If you want to work in total silence, even the higher end Bose's won't get you there, as you can still make out the noise.

</comment><comment><USER4> You can still frequently find the old corded Bose QC25 on fire sales for around $150-$170.

They work pretty well at blocking out sound and use a removable AAA battery and use a user-replaceable cord, so they should last you a bit longer than a few years.

</comment><comment><USER5> I use Bose QuietComfort 35 [https://amzn.to/2M3nXGY](https://amzn.to/2M3nXGY) and it keeps me sane.

I'm thinking of experimenting with 3M Peltor X-Series Earmuffs [https://amzn.to/2AL91c7](https://amzn.to/2AL91c7) though these are earmuffs, not headphones. It may be a nice backup for when there's just too much noise.

Noise cancelling headphones do a good job with "regular" noise; not so great when your neighbor is hammering something in his garage. Earmuffs are better for that kind of noise.

</comment><comment><USER6> If you do not want to spend upwards of $300 on headphones, I would recommend cowin E7. I am using one everyday for last year or so, and I love them.

[https://www.amazon.com/Cancelling-Bluetooth-Headphones- Micro...](https://www.amazon.com/Cancelling-Bluetooth-Headphones-Microphone- Comfortable/dp/B019U00D7K?crid=391XDAVONCO68&keywords=cowin+e-7+wireless+bluetooth+noise+cancelling+headphones&qid=1533261531&sprefix=cowin&sr=8-4&ref=mp_s_a_1_4)

</comment><comment><USER7> Another upvote for QC35. I had cheaper noise cancelling headphones before and they worked well.

But when I got QC35, it changed my perspective on what was possible with noise cancelling technology. Also they are really light and comfortable. I wear them 6+ hour continuously at office. And with music at very low volume I cannot hear anyone in the office.

</comment><comment><USER8> I have a QC35 (the google assistant version) and it does keep away the noise and is super comfy.

If comfort is a big reason when you pick your headphones, if you have big ears or glasses like I do, then this is the way to go.

Audio quality is meh. I tried out my friends Sony WH1000XM2 and it has way better audio quality.

<comment><USER9> same here. I want NC but don't want to trade audio quality. Ended up with the Momentum Wireless HD1

</comment></comment><comment><USER10> I use the Sony WH-H900N (h.ear 2) and absolutely love them, since I bought them (and a second set for my wife recently) three different colleagues ordered one after trying mine for < 10 minutes :-)

They cost around €220,-

</comment><comment><USER11> I have the Bose QC35 and they are excellent.</comment>


AWS X1 instances – 1.9 TB of memory - <AUTHOR> https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/x1-instances-for-ec2-ready-for-your-memory-intensive-workloads/ <comment><USER2> Does anyone have numbers on memory bandwidth and latency?

The x1 cost per GB is about 2/3 that of r3 instances, but you get 4x as many memory channels if spec the same amount of memory via r3 instances so the cost per memory channel is more than twice as high for x1 as r3. DRAM is valuable precisely because of its speed, but the speed itself is not cost-effective with the x1. As such, the x1 is really for the applications that can't scale with distributed memory. (Nothing new here, but this point is often overlooked.)

Similarly, you get a lot more SSDs with several r3 instances, so the aggregate disk bandwidth is also more cost-effective with r3.

<comment><USER3> Not sure I quite understand your math here. The largest R3 instance is the r3.8xlarge with 244 GB of memory. 4 times of that would only get you to 1 TB. Also, this: "DRAM is valuable precisely because of its speed", is wrong ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_random- access_memory](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_random-access_memory)).

<comment><USER2> 1\. 4 of those R3 instances cost less than the X1 but offer nearly double the bandwidth. The X1 is cheaper per GB, but much more expensive per GB/s.

2\. If DRAM was not faster than NVRAM/SSD, nobody would use it. "Speed" involves both bandwidth and latency. Latency is probably similar or higher for the X1 instances, but I haven't seen numbers. We can make better estimates about realizable bandwidth based on the system stats.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER4> This is probably a dumb question, but what does the hardware of such a massive machine look like? Is it just a single server box with a single motherboard? Are there server motherboards out there that support 2 TB of RAM, or is this some kind of distributed RAM?

<comment><USER5> Don't know what hardware AWS is using, but Ark has server boards supporting 1.5TB, which is close enough to make 2TB believable: [http://ark.intel.com/products/94187/Intel-Server- Board-S2600...](http://ark.intel.com/products/94187/Intel-Server- Board-S2600WTTS1R)

Edit: Supermicro has several 2TB boards, and even some 3TB ones: [http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Xeon1333/#201...](http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/Xeon1333/#2011)

(Disclaimer: AWS employee, no relation to EC2)

<comment><USER6> This would require expensive 64GB DDR4 LR-DIMMs though.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER7> As a reference the archive of _all_ Reddit comments from October 2007 to May 2015 is around 1 terabyte uncompressed.

You could do exhaustive analysis on that dataset fully in memory.

<comment><USER8> Your point is accurate, but I'd like to point out that the dataset isn't actually all the comments on Reddit -- it's inly what they could scrape, which is limited to 1000 comments per account. So basically it's missing a lot of the historical comments of the oldest accounts.

I only point this out to try and correct a common error I see. You're absolutely right that it is awesome that the entire data set can be analyzed in RAM!

<comment><USER7> Are you sure? The dataset is from here: [https://archive.org/details/2015_reddit_comments_corpus](https://archive.org/details/2015_reddit_comments_corpus)

Looking at the thread from the release, I see no explanation of how he got the data, but I see several people commenting that they finally have a way to get comments beyond the 1000 per account: [https://www.reddit.com/r/datasets/comments/3bxlg7/i_have_eve...](https://www.reddit.com/r/datasets/comments/3bxlg7/i_have_every_publicly_available_reddit_comment/)

<comment><USER8> It looks like they got clever, so what they are doing is getting 1000 links from each subreddit, indexing the comments and linking it back to the user. So yeah, they did figure out how to got back more than 1000 comments for some users, but they'll still be limited by 1000 links per reddit per sort. So for a very active reddit, you can't get really old comments.

<comment><USER9> IIRC you can use the search API to enumerate 1000 at a time, using a "created_at>=..." restriction to move the cursor starting position. I had to poke in the code to find out how to talk Amazon's search syntax directly

<comment><USER8> Yeah, that might work too. That would be pretty clever.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER10> That is pretty remarkable. One of the limitations of doing one's own version of mass analytics is the cost of acquiring, installing, configuring, and then maintaining the hardware. Generally I've found AWS to be more expensive but you get to "turn it on, turn it off" which is not something you can do when you have to pay monthly for data center space.

It makes for an interesting exercise to load in your data, do your analytics, and then store out the meta data. I wonder if the oil and gas people are looking at this for pre-processing their seismic data dumps.

<comment><USER11> Why does everyone(really!) compare aws to colocation ? I've never head an aws- believer ever mention dedicated servers.

Why don't you compare aws to building your own cpu?

<comment><USER10> I suspect it is because "everyone" (which is to abscond with your definition) believes that colocation is an alternative to AWS (well the EC2 part anyway). I would be interested to hear how you seem them as not being comparable.

On your definition of "aws-believer" is that someone who feels that AWS is a superior solution to deploying a web facing application in all cases? Does your definition include economics? (like $/month vs request/month vs latency?)

Can I assume that you consider comparing AWS to building your own CPU as an apples to oranges comparison? I certainly do, because I define a CPU to be a small component part of a distributed system hosting a web facing application.

<comment><USER11> by "everyone" I mean >90% of comments on this forum comparing aws to an alternative (90% of cases it's straight to colocation)

Building your own datacenters is also an alternative to aws-ec2, but you go to that step by step (I think?) (dedicated > colocation > datacenter). In some cases when you have crazy growth you can skip a/some steps (ex: dropbox going from aws to their own datacenter)

They don't even compare them in whatever $/request/latency/$metric since they don't even mention them. And dedicated has also many options from low- price+no-support-shitty-network to high price/good-network/support etc.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER12> Spot instances are about $13 - $19/hr, depending on zone. Not available in NorCal, Seoul, Sydney and a couple of other places.

<comment><USER13> Do you mean on-demand instances? The announcement says "Spot bidding is on the near-term roadmap." And $13 / hour is the on-demand price in US East.

<comment><USER14> Indeed, doesn't look like it's there yet. Based on that I guess the spot prices will be around $1-3/h - not bad, if you have a workload that can be interrupted.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER15> Going to comment out the deallocation bits in all my code now.

<comment><USER16> JonL White actually wrote a serious paper about just this idea in 1980: [http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=802797](http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=802797)

<comment><USER17> Full paper:

[http://3e8.org/pub/scheme/doc/lisp- pointers/v1i3/p17-white.p...](http://3e8.org/pub/scheme/doc/lisp- pointers/v1i3/p17-white.pdf)

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER18> Question for those who have used monster servers before:

Can PostgreSQL/MySQL use such type of hardware efficiently and scale up vertically? Also can MemCached/Redis use all this RAM effectively?

I am genuinely interested in knowing this. Most of the times I work on small apps and don't have access to anything more than 16GB RAM on regular basis.

<comment><USER19> Postgres scales great up to 256gb, at least with 9.4. After that it'll use it, but there's no real benefit. I don't know about MySQL. SQL Server scales linearly with memory even up to and past the 1TB point. I did encounter some NUMA node spanning speed issues, but numactl tuning fixed that.

I setup a handful of pgsql and Windows servers around this size. SQL Server at the time scaled better with memory. Pgsql never really got faster after a certain point, but with a lot of cores it handled _tons_ of connections gracefully.

<comment><USER20> I've very successfully used shared buffers of 2TB, without a lot of problems. You better enable huge pages, but that's a common optimization.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER21> Finally, an instance made for Java!

<comment><USER22> I dislike developing in Java. I am not a fanboy by any stretch of the imagination. That being said, someone who takes the time to understand how the JVM works and how to configure their processes with a proper operator's mindset can do amazing things in terms of resource usage.

It's easy to poke at Java for being a hog when in reality its just poor coding and operating practices that lead to bloated runtime behavior.

<comment><USER23> For a long time I wondered if it was a failing of the language or the culture.

After spending 4 days trying to diagnose a problem with hbase given the two errors "No region found" and "No table provided" and finally figuring out it was due to a version mismatch I now believe it is the culture.

At the very least you should be printing a WARN when you connect to an incompatible version.

<comment><USER24> Definitely the culture. It seems to be a Java axiom that you should never use one object when eight will do.

I've never seen another community that would actually have a builder for the configuration for the factory for the settings for a class.

<comment><USER25> I assume you've never had the pleasure of configuring a Sendmail installation?

<comment><USER26> Actually configuring sendmail is a piececake these days thanks to Google and countless engineers documenting in excruciating detail the problems they faced.

</comment></comment></comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER27> A bit under $35,000 for the year.

<comment><USER28> If you paid hourly (instead of using a reserved instance) it costs $116840.88 per year (13.338 per hour * 24 * 365). A 1 year reservation + hourly charges for a year is $67197.96 (all up front).

<comment><USER29> You can buy a server from Dell with 1.5 TB of RAM and four beefy processors (80 cores) for about $60K. You can power and cool it for a year for maybe $4K.

Every time I look at AWS, it just doesn't make sense from a financial standpoint (even after you add another machine for redundancy, and remote hands -- you're ahead after 12 months).

<comment><USER28> I'm sure there are companies that will run this instance type 24/7 for years. But you can also spin one up for a short period of time, use it to do things you would normally need to do across a bunch of machines and then tear it down.

Having this type of instance available via an API call is within seconds is really cool.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER30> Recompiling tetris with BIGMEM option now...

</comment><comment><USER31> I'm curious about this AWS feature mentioned: [https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/new-auto-recovery-for- amazo...](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/new-auto-recovery-for-amazon-ec2/)

We've experiemnted with something similar on Google Cloud, where an instance that is considered dead has its IP address and persistent disks taken away, then attached to another (live or just created instance). It's hard to say whether this can recover from all failures however without having experienced them or even work better than what Google claims it already does (moving around failing servers from hardware to hardware). Anyone with practical experience in this type of recovery where you don't duplicate your resource requirements?

</comment><comment><USER32> How does this thing still only have 10 GigE (plus 10 dedicated to EBS)? It should have multiple 10 Gig NICs that could get it to way more than that.

</comment><comment><USER33> Funny how the title made me instantly think: SAP HANA. After not seeing it for the first 5 paragraphs or so, Ctrl+F, ah yes.

Not too surprising given how close SAP and Amazon AWS have been ever since SAP started offering cloud solutions. Going back a couple years when SAP HANA was still in its infancy; trying it on servers with 20~100+ TB of memory, this seems like an obvious progression.

Of course there's always the barrier of AWS pricing.

</comment><comment><USER34> The pricing is surprisingly enough not terrible. Given that dedicated servers cost $1-1.5 per GB of RAM per month the three year price is actually almost reasonable.

That being said, a three year commitment is still hard to swallow compared to dedicated servers that are month-to-month.

<comment><USER35> It's not just the commitment, but the fact you have to cough up $52,000-$98,000 up front.

</comment></comment><comment><USER36> Wow! [http://codegolf.stackexchange.com/a/22939](http://codegolf.stackexchange.com/a/22939) would now be available in production.

</comment><comment><USER37> Hmm around $4/hr after a partial upfront. I'm guessing that upfront is going to be just about the cost of a server which is around $50k.

</comment><comment> micro-ram What happened to the other 16 threads?

18(core) * 4(cpus) * 2(+ht) = 144

<comment><USER32> Some fraction has to go to the physical host for its resources.

</comment></comment><comment><USER38> I'd be guilty if I ever used something like this and under utilized the ram.

"Ben we're not utilizing all the ram."

"Add another for loop."

</comment><comment><USER39> I'm taking it this is so people can run NodeJS or MSSQL on AWS now? Heh, sorry for the jab - what could this be used for considering that AWS' top tier provisioned storage IOP/s are still so low (and expensive)?

Something volatile running una RAM disk maybe?

</comment><comment><USER40> ~$4/hour???

Thats amazing.

<comment><USER41> Only if you reserve them for three years, which carries an upfront cost of ~$98K.

<comment><USER35> Partial upfront is _only_ $52,166, and over the life of the reservation, only costs an extra 2%.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER40> 16GB of ram should be enough for anyone.

Edit, y'all don't get the reference: famous computer urban legend...

[http://www.computerworld.com/article/2534312/operating- syste...](http://www.computerworld.com/article/2534312/operating-systems/the-- 640k--quote-won-t-go-away----but-did-gates-really-say-it-.html)

<comment><USER42> We detached this subthread from [https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11723858](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11723858) and marked it off-topic.

<comment><USER40> A joke about an ancient myth in our tech community is "off topic" \- you guys are too stringent with this. I think it's lame.

<comment><USER43> The joke doesn't make any sense because the Bill Gates quote refers to personal computing, not development.

</comment></comment></comment></comment><comment><USER36> Encouraging folks to write more inefficient code?

I'd be interested in hearing what Gates [1] has to say about it, though.

[1] "640 kB ought to be enough for anybody"

<comment><USER35> Too bad no one has a real source for that quote, probably because he never actually said it (though like "Beam me up Scotty" which was never quoted in the original Star Trek, he may have come close, but it's not nearly as memetastic)</comment></comment>


[ANNOUNCEMENT] GDB 7.8 released - <AUTHOR> https://sourceware.org/ml/gdb/2014-07/msg00032.html

<comment><USER2> Awesome: GNU Guile scripting support. GDB already has Python scripting support. But it seems most people are unaware of it. GNU Make also recently added support for GNU Guile.

A pretty good talk about GDB from FOSDEM [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwDA3oIOtWw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwDA3oIOtWw)</comment>


New Photopoll App: Better Than Instagram - <AUTHOR> http://www.tmcnet.com/topics/articles/2013/01/24/324244-new-photopoll-app-better-than-instagram.htm

<comment><USER2> This app may be very good, but that website is horrid. They even misspell collage. I couldn't look at it anymore. I am very sorry.</comment>


AdTaily wants to help publishers turn readers into advertisers - <AUTHOR> http://eu.techcrunch.com/2010/04/22/adtaily-wants-to-help-publishers-turn-readers-into-advertisers/

<comment><USER2> This certainly looks disruptive, however I wonder if advertiser market really long tail? I am not doubting it but simply curious how many blog readers actually want to advertise.

Plus, are there any stats on the effectiveness of 125x125 format? Blogs usually cram 12-16 such tiny ads, and together the whole bunch looks rather unappealing.

<comment><AUTHOR> Hello Paras, the blogs that have good communities of returning readers have best results in terms of monetization. So the answer to your question would be long-tail yes, but high quality one. And you are absolutely right that the quantity dilutes the quality. Fortunately most of our publishers are very reasonable when it comes to that :)

</comment></comment><comment><USER3> The premise is similar to www.buysellads.com, but the on-page purchase is definitely an improvement.</comment>


Show HN: Simple Binary Data Visualization in R - <AUTHOR> http://martin.varela.fi/post/simple-binary-data-visualization/ <comment><USER2> For the observation toward the end that compressed files seem highly uniform, this makes sense intuitively. If there were any visible patterns, that would imply that the data is further compressible, which would mean the compressor didn't do it's job very well.

</comment><comment><USER3> > as.tibble(cbind(x,y,z)) %>% na.omit()

Why on earth would anyone write that instead of na.omit(as.tibble(cbind(x,y,z)))? Baffles me.

<comment><USER4> Alternatively,

        x %>%
          bind_cols(y, z) %>%
          as.tibble() %>%
          na.omit()

Makes the order of execution a little clearer (and uses more dplyr conventions). I still nest functions when working interactively with a REPL, but for code I'll have to reread in the future, the pipes save me much head scratching. Death to the pyramid of doom.

<comment><USER5> For emphasis, bind_cols is a dplyr function (meaning it gets the speed boost from using Rcpp, albeit not much difference when adding a few columns), while cbind is a base function which does not.

dplyr nowadays obsoletes most of the basic building blocks of data frame construction, although they are hidden in the docs.

</comment></comment></comment><comment><USER6> thank you for sharing this! i'd like to try and recreate this in R.

<comment><AUTHOR> Hi, author here. You can use the code in there as a starting point, it's rather simple!</comment></comment>