text
stringlengths 44
776k
| meta
dict |
|---|---|
Google Reader - RIP. Now go try something new - BenStroud
http://www.thewhatnoise.com/2013/03/google-reader-rip-now-go-try-something.html
======
buddylw
I'm actually getting a bit tired of having to evangelize google reader and RSS
in general. I personally don't believe that this is the end of the world, and
I believe that the most harm was actually done by Google when they neglected
reader for years so that it couldn't grow along with the internet.
That being said, I'm getting the feeling that these bloggers don't understand
how these social sites, and the internet actually work. There is a point in
time before your story is on reddit or HN where it will eventually get most of
it's eyeballs. At this point your content still needs to be discovered. You
have only a few options:
1.) I check my RSS feeds and read your story (not necessarily skim - unless it
sucks)
2.) You post a headline on twitter (definitely skimming here) AND I happen to
be watching the stream the moment you post.
3.) You get lucky and facebook doesn't hide your hard work from me, or you pay
facebook to distribute it.
4.) I happen to see the post during my bi-annual checking G+.
From a user perspective, RSS is hands down the most reliable way to keep up
with sources that I really care about. Everything else causes me to miss
articles from sources that I love all together.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
GREATS Is Building The Next Great Footwear Company - Ataub24
http://www.forbes.com/sites/alextaub/2013/10/03/greats-is-building-the-next-great-footwear-company/
======
sunsure
Is there a great demand for hipster shoes?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Making Time: Does it matter why we help others? - simonbrown
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24457645
======
namenotrequired
_Behaviour in some animal species is indeed genetically determined, he says,
but with humans "that certainly isn't the case". He argues that culture sets
us apart from animals in that respect, and points to the huge variance in
social norms in different countries, and over short periods of time._
There's no clear line here. Many animal species have been shown to have
certain elements of culture, that are learned rather than inborn. Findings
that local dialects can be found in different species are examples of this.
And on the other hand, many culture elements can be rationally explained as
natural responses to different circumstances.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
A Twitter Decision - timf
http://www.randsinrepose.com/archives/2009/02/09/a_twitter_decision.html
======
moe
Twitter twitter twitter twitter twitter twitter twitter twitter twitter
twitter twitter. A new twitter story every week. Will the hype ever end?
I'll freely admit: I don't get twitter. I tried it, looked around, followed
some twitter-crazy friends for weeks. I wanted to like it. Even sent a few
tweets myself. It didn't stick. I can't see the revolution. To me it was just
noise from the beginning and remained noise until I quit. Maybe I'm old (28)
or in the wrong business (IT). I normally spent a large part of my computer-
time trying to optimize the signal/noise ratio. I use RSS feeds, tweak my mail
client filters, actually put myself on "unavailable" in skype sometimes. I
fail to see how twitter can help with that. In fact, I envy people who
apparently have such a great SNR that they can pollute it with twitter and
even benefit from it.
You may hate me now and throw tomatoes at me.
~~~
timf
I don't use it right now. But I need to learn about participating in it for
micro-isv, that article helped my ignorant self.
Without using an account presently and just having Google alerts etc. with
some keywords, I have continually seen there is a lot of information tucked
into people's Twitter comments (especially regarding my current research
field).
So in some sense, I'm stuck with it whether I even participate or not. And in
the future with a consumer product, I think it is a great idea to respond to
people's comments about the product (positive or negative) if you can get
alerts as they happen.
Regarding finding helpful information there, I guess it really depends on how
intensely you're tracking certain topics (and how much the speed of knowing
new developments matters).
Agreeing to constantly and actively participate by adding comments (especially
not @ someone)? That's a different thing...
~~~
timf
This company sent a lady flowers after she announced on twitter that someone
stood her up:
[http://blog.mrtweet.net/how-freshbooks-built-an-army-of-
evan...](http://blog.mrtweet.net/how-freshbooks-built-an-army-of-evangelists-
starting-from-one-special-tweet)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Show HN: Subreddit-based Product Recommendations (weekend project) - nathan_f77
http://www.youshouldbuythese.com/
======
nathan_f77
Have been waiting all day to post this.. I built it over the weekend, using
Rails 4 and Zurb Foundation.
------
mindcrime
This looks really cool, and of all the "personalized product recommendations"
sites I've seen, this seems like possibly the most useful one yet. I could
actually see using this. Except for one thing... I logged in with Reddit, and
after that it just sat there spinning for about 6 minutes before I got bored
and closed the tab. I never actually got any recommendations. :-(
~~~
nathan_f77
Sorry about your experience, it should be fixed now if you would care to try
it again.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Why Google is Right to Fear Windows Phone More Than iOS - kristiandupont
http://www.reddit.com/r/windowsphone/comments/20kb5e/whats_wrong_with_search_in_the_windows_store_in/cg4680p?context=10
======
valarauca1
The real problem for Google is that corporate business and windows are
attached at the hip. Even if Google released the best thing since sliced
bread, the operating system. It would still take Corporate America 7-10 years
to transition to that platform, at which point Microsoft would have cloned
most of its features, or even 1/4 of its features.
Then the decision would be settled by legacy application support. Which
windows would likely win.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Have 2 private GitHub repositories for the price of one. Documentation + Coding - mgonto
http://www.blogeek.com.ar/2013/02/07/have-2-private-github-repositories-for-the-price-of-one-for-example-documentation-coding/
======
mgonto
2 private repositories are awesome!
------
mgonto
:)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
How to make Google index AJAX content (with Django) - pornark
http://blog.pornark.com/ajax-indexing-with-django
======
mmavnn
I'd love to read this, but unfortunately my work firewall blocks your domain
as a 'sex' site!
Yet another aspect to bear in mind when choosing domain names, I suppose.
Between IE6 and the 'domain filtering for your safety' corporate IT has an
amazing capacity to make life harder for the rest of us.
~~~
pornark
Really ? this is the technical blog from the developers of a porn website (no
porn in that page anyhow of course).. so actually your firewall is doing a
good job.
We may chose another name for the technical blog. I think if you try
<http://pornark.posterous.com/ajax-indexing-with-django> posterous should
redirect you to the same address so.. can't solve it right now :( sorry
~~~
mmavnn
Ha! Given the context I just assumed a false positive. It's not like it
doesn't throw enough of those.
No worries, I'll just read it from my home machine at some point. Most stuff
at work is .net anyway, but I've used a little Python at times and like to
stay in touch.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Models vs. Modules - brm
http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/1553-models-vs-modules
======
raganwald
Reminds me of... _Favour object composition over class inheritance_ , only we
are talking about mixin inheritance instead of class inheritance.
------
zepolen
Summary: Object oriented beats monkey patching.
~~~
jamis
Actually, the two are orthogonal. You can monkey-patch an aggregation into a
model as easily as you can monkey-patch anything else in.
Also, modules aren't monkey-patching. :)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkey_patch
Lastly, the modules referred to in the article were added statically, not
dynamically. We don't use a lot of dynamic module inclusion (though we do it
some).
------
diN0bot
in django i separate model components into different files and then mixin in
the relevant fields and methods. for example, suppose i define models Blog and
Post in blog.py, and Rating and RatingMixin (extends object not base model).
I'd give Rating a method, say Initialize, that gets called when importing the
whole models folder. Rating.Initialize() would then mixin all the fields and
methods in RatingMixin to the specified models. In this case, it might be
useful to give Blog and Post the method "average_method".
Is this good practice?
Also, what's the advantage of keep lots of data in a single row versus
multiple tables? Does it effect performance that much (esp with caching)?
------
namcos
Simple question, why not have a db backed Avatar model instead?
~~~
jamis
It is db-backed. It's just that the fields exist on the people table, instead
of in their own table.
~~~
namcos
Thanks, I never noticed model aggregation before. Looks really useful.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
FDA warning brings young-blood transfusion company to a halt - mips_avatar
https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/19/fda-warning-blood-transfusions-ambrosia-medical/
======
duchenne
I am now reading "Red Star" a 1908 utopian novel by Alexander Bogdanov, where
another advanced Humanity is living on Mars. In this Utopia, people frequently
transfer blood one from another. The author presents blood donation as one of
the greatest form of Fraternity.
Interestingly, Bogdanov founded one of the first blood transfer institute with
only volunteering donors. At that time, most blood donations were paid. Later
on, thanks to better conservation techniques, less blood was needed, and
volunteering became generalized world-wide.
Bogdanov also believed that blood donation could rejuvenate people. His wife
said that he looked 7-10 years younger after his experiments. But, in the end,
he died, because he received malaria-infected blood.
That is interesting to know that some 2019 issues already existed more than a
century ago: blood transfer, paying for blood, rejuvenation, etc..
~~~
Pristina
they are actual non-problems.
If you own your body, you own your blood. You should be able to sell or do
whatever you please with it.
If some people think they can become younger by bathing in young blood, let
them. It's their money and time, and blood too, as long as they buy the blood
legitimately.
~~~
raquo
Be careful what you wish to turn into a commodity because in increasingly
deregulated capitalism there is often no way back.
That would be yet another way to increase inequality.
Do you really want to force people to pay down loans with blood, skin and
kidneys? Because that will inevitably happen if allowed.
~~~
hippich
I can see issues with the widely available market for blood donors, but I
disagree about "paying down loans with blood, skin, and kidneys".
If you do physical work you already destroy some muscles, and if work is
stressful you destroy your kidney trying to get relief by drinking yourself
out. The skin on your hands also gets damaged from hard work. Or skin on your
body after constant exposure to the sun.
We should strive for a society where we do not have to work ourselves out to
pay off the loan, and not focus on preventing people from paying off loans
destroying their bodies specifically, no matter if it is blood donation, or
herniated disks, or destroyed lungs, or anything in between.
~~~
raquo
> We should strive for a society where we do not have to work ourselves out to
> pay off the loan
When we have such a society we can reevaluate. But right now we don't, and in
the current environment creating more ways for inequality moves us away from
such society.
------
BurningFrog
How can plasma transfusions not have gone though rigorous testing? Has it not
been done routinely millions of times for decades?
I understand it's not been proven to have any health benefit. But the _safety_
of the procedure must be extremely well known.
~~~
ianhowson
For a treatment to be granted 'FDA approval', the FDA needs to see evidence of
two things: safety and efficacy. Even if a treatment is demonstrated to be
safe, if there's no evidence of therapeutic benefit, they won't approve it.
~~~
BurningFrog
Yeah, if you parse out the words, that is all they're actually saying.
"There is no proven clinical benefit" and "there are risks associated with the
use of any [...] product".
~~~
ianhowson
They're also _not_ saying "Ambrosia Medical must stop administering this
treatment". They're just saying "we don't approve". So this thing on the
Ambrosia website:
> In compliance with the FDA announcement issued February 19, 2019, we have
> ceased patient treatments.
doesn't quite make sense, because the FDA hasn't publicly asked Ambrosia to
stop, and the FDA never _did_ approve transfusions for the purpose of life
extension or anti-aging. They're not complying with anything, because that
announcement wasn't a 'cease treatments' notice.
So we don't really know why Ambrosia has chosen to stop.
------
dswalter
In the wake of the Theranos debacle, I would expect to see the FDA take a
stronger stance against medical startups that are taking actions that have
real potential impact without evident clinical support.
~~~
mc32
At least theranos had real, good scientists doing real research work. Of
course we know management went awry [failing to admit defeat and pushing on
despite the problems] and threw everyone under the bus, but they had real
researchers.
This company here from the outside looks closer to quackery. [and can't
imagine them having a good team of scientists behind it].
~~~
theli0nheart
Management never "went" awry. The whole thing was a fraud from day one.
And hiring "real researchers" to front your fraudulent operation as a way to
hide what's going on behind the scenes shouldn't be reason to look the other
way. In some ways it's worse than the alternative, since there's not just
fraud, but activity intended to take attention away from it.
~~~
Fricken
It wasn't a fraud from day one, Elizabeth Holmes was a teenager when she got
started on Theranos, she had no idea at that time that it had no chance of
working. Uncle Tim gave her $200k in seed funding and she ran with it. Shit
got progressively more fucked up along the way.
~~~
SilasX
Yes, and she bought into the “fake it till you make it”, “no one knows what
they’re doing”, “all self doubt is impostor syndrome” mentality that’s so
popular on this site and which inevitably leads to idealistic people doubling
down on fundamentally confused ventures where they should have realized
they’re out of their depth.
~~~
Fricken
Are those attitudes really that popular on HN? Most of the comments I see are
pretty cycnical about emerging technologies and longshot bets.
The thing is, after she got that $200k in branded VC capital from family
friend Tim Draper, Holmes went knocking on the doors of all the big silicon
valley VC firms and all the big bio-sciences VC firms. They consulted with
blood scientist type people who informed them device had zero chance of living
up to it's promise. All of them said "Sorry Elizabeth, we must politely
decline your invitation to flush our money down the toilet."
The money she did get after that seed funding was from fly-by night wannabe
VCs, and the bandwagon effect took off from there. Who did their due
diligence? Nobody. I'm not shedding any tears for Rupert Murdoch, but there
were hedge fund managers in charge of people's pensions who gave Theranos 100s
of millions of dollars without looking into what it was they were spending
other people's money on. It baffles me that anyone that stupid can get to be
in charge of that much money in the first place.
~~~
SilasX
Every time I bring up the impostor syndrome overdiagnosis and “no one knows
what they’re doing” meme in the context of Theranos, the replies take umbrage
at the reference, and insist that HNers and VCs in SV saw through Theranos the
whole time.
Which is true! But also, very beside-the-point.
The point is, that some people really are impostors. Some people really don’t
know what they’re doing, _in a much deeper sense_ than the usual “oh I
struggled over a judgment call yesterday while doing 90% of my job the routine
way”.
From the inside, it’s hard to know whether you have excessive self doubt, or
you’re an Elizabeth Holmes. _And it’s a pretty freaking important distinction
to make._
The HN/SV mentality I’m criticizing is the one that jumps straight to “oh
that’s impostor syndrome” rather than giving concrete tests for whether the
self-doubt is justified. Who swears that every expert engineer, manager, and
businessperson occupies the same epistemic state that Holmes felt, who equates
the occasional judgment call with knowing nothing about the core problems of
the domain you’ve entered.
So yeah, you called Theranos early on. Good for you!
Now, for your victory lap, stop telling the next 100 Holmeses to double down
on their “faking it” on the way to the inevitable “making it”. Help them
determine whether they’re a Holmes or just worrying too much.
~~~
dwild
There's a HUGE difference between self doubt and others peoples doubting you.
One is inflicted on our self without evidence while the other is inflicted by
others, often with evidence.
Impostor syndrome is caused because you believe you aren't good enough, but
how can you know that when you are still new in a domain? Why would someone
that better in that domain would pay you to works on that? Because he has
evidences that suggest that you can do what's required in that job.
Now if experts tell you that your idea already exist and doesn't works for X,
Y, Z, it's no longer self doubt.... it's actively ignoring evidences.
> So yeah, you called Theranos early on. Good for you!
Which make it no longer a self-doubt.
Faking until you make it was never about faking results or evidences, it's
about faking confidence. Confidence is a great motivator, it's a great way to
push beyond, but it doesn't replace real evidence.
The real issue here is that theses VC didn't require more than confidence to
invest that much money. The fact that plenty of expert called out that scam
early on show how an easy due diligence weren't done correctly.
------
kkarakk
Has there been any research on what happens when you pump "old-blood" into
young people? any gains in wisdom/maturity/dementia?
~~~
jokowueu
On mice only
------
DKnoll
I think a good enough reason to forbid it would be to prevent companies from
paying donors more (or at all) and diverting blood that could be used for
necessary medical treatments.
~~~
mips_avatar
I don’t think this should be allowed as a treatment, if it’s efficacy hasn’t
been established. But I wish there were a trial. I want to be able to live
healthily to 100.
~~~
nradov
There is zero scientific basis to expect that this would allow people to live
healthily to 100. We have limited resources for clinical trials and those
resources should be focused on areas more likely to produce useful results.
~~~
ibeckermayer
And what precisely gives you (or the bureaucrats running the FDA) the
authority to decide for everybody in America what is the best use of _our_
blood?
I should be free to decide for myself what to do with my own body, and which
authorities to trust on matters beyond my domain of expertise. If you have a
good argument for why this is a waste of resources then _make the argument_ ,
don’t legistlatively prohibit me from thinking for myself.
~~~
rscho
There are things that are a public necessity and indeed collectively-enforced
rules simply because they won't work if too few people agree to it.
Another example of this process is vaccines. If herd immunity is too low, then
vaccination cannot work, although it is a perfectly good solution if everyone
is on board.
A second point is that you probably are no expert on the topic of human
plasma. This could motivate the enforcement of rules under certain
circumstances, given that you are unable to personally judge if the use of
such precious material is a waste or not.
I personally, think that your opinion is the epitome of selfishness.
~~~
krageon
It is true that not all vaccinations work 100% of the time and that herd
immunity helps protect the people for who they have not worked. It is very,
very wrong to say that this means that "If herd immunity is too low, then
vaccination cannot work".
~~~
rscho
Oh yeah? Please expand on this, I'm curious.
If that is your point of contention, you could replace "cannot work" by "may
do more harm than good at a social level".
~~~
krageon
I don't know what to expand on, as I don't understand how it wasn't clear from
what I have already told you - can you indicate roughly where I stopped being
clear?
~~~
rscho
You mentioned I said something very very wrong, but it's not clear to me if
this is a language or fundamental issue.
For instance if I say, as I have tried to enunciate above, "if herd immunity
is too low, vaccines may do more harm than good at a social/epidemiologic
level", does that still seem very very wrong to you?
To be clear, your above comment gave the impression that you thought that a
low herd immunity could not increase deaths due to disease compared to no herd
immunity at all, which is wrong and was probably the reason why you were
downvoted.
------
rscho
For some reason, the only appropriate name that comes to my mind for such
companies is "Bathory".
~~~
porphyrogene
Dr. Acula would like a word with you.
------
CaliforniaKarl
The company mentioned, Ambrosia Medical, has been on HN before.
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14470314](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14470314)
From the Vanity Fair article that the above linked to, it seemed it was run by
Jesse Karmazin, with Peter Thiel either as a booster, or maybe providing
funding? The article isn't clear on that, although he's mentioned (and quoted)
multiple times.
------
jfultz
It's like the company used Normal Spinrad's "Bug Jack Barron" and the goofy
sci-fi premise invented by its mustache-twirling villain as an operating
manual.
------
ErikAugust
No JavaScript, etc:
[https://beta.trimread.com/articles/92](https://beta.trimread.com/articles/92)
------
dmourati
I'm reminded of the title of a distributed systems post the original appears
to be no longer working but here's a HN link:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12245909](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12245909)
------
kfwhp
Are there any actual, proven benefits to these blood transfusions, or are they
just something rich people like to do for the sake of it?
------
transfire
I'd rather hear from the people brave enough to have tried this to gain their
perspective.
~~~
hannasanarion
Why do you think that someone who would literally suck your blood out of your
veins so that they can live forever would bother to tell you what it feels
like?
Why are we pretending this is anything but horrifying? We have multiple works
of dystopia and horror fiction about this very premise: The Golden Compass,
The Waterworks, Get Out, The Supernaturalist, Unwind...
~~~
sanxiyn
> someone who would literally suck your blood out of your veins
Blood is renewable. You aren't losing blood you donate (or sell).
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Making Sense of Super Smash Bros. Melee - panic
http://planetbanatt.net/articles/ambistats.html
======
jpk
Interesting article, but this stood out to me.
_It frustrates me to see people in the smash community treat measures like
elo as "the truth" because they "don't have any human input". This simply
factually incorrect - these so-called objective measures have as much human
input as anything else, codified into the constants and design choices of
their algorithms. Designing these things is as much an art as it is a science,
and the choice on how to weigh placements, upsets, losses, consistency, peaks,
and the like are all just that - choices, made by a human sitting in a chair
with Sublime Text 3 open._
I feel like this is applicable nigh everywhere. From social media timeline
sorting, to industrial processes, to Melee rankings. Using an algorithm
doesn't eliminate the human element from a system, it only abstracts it away.
~~~
rspeer
There is a large contingent of radical empiricists in machine learning who
assume "big data + automation = truth", especially on HN, and this is a
message they need to hear more of.
People have been advocating radical empiricism in some increasingly
uncomfortable contexts recently, and I hope it's just that it's the only thing
they were taught and the only way they know how to think about their craft.
The alternative is that an increasing number of people really do want machines
to triumph over human judgment and morality.
~~~
bo1024
This might be a case where classical econ ("social choice") can give some
helpful perspective. Arrow's impossibility theorem is the most famous
impossibility result in this area; it says that no algorithm can take in a set
of rankings (e.g. match outcomes) and produce an aggregate ranking in a way
that satisfies a small set of fairness criteria. This is classically
interpreted as saying that any aggregation method must be "unfair" in one way
or another.
~~~
thaumasiotes
> Arrow's impossibility theorem is the most famous impossibility result in
> this area; it says that no algorithm can take in a set of rankings (e.g.
> match outcomes) and produce an aggregate ranking in a way that satisfies a
> small set of fairness criteria.
Ignoring the parenthetical "e.g. match outcomes", this is a correct
description of Arrow's impossibility theorem. I don't see how match outcomes
could possibly be an example of a set of rankings in the sense of the theorem,
though.
~~~
bo1024
Yeah, that was unclear. I'm thinking of a match outcome between teams A and B
as a partial ordering on all the teams. Classically Arrow's deals with only
total orderings as input -- I'd been thinking that it extends to partial
orderings, but hmm, I'm not sure what research says about if we restrict the
inputs to be just pairwise orderings/outcomes.
------
kendallpark
> For our purposes, Bloodgood serves as a great example of "closed pool"
> rating abuse. You get inflated ratings by being the best player in your
> playerpool, even if your playerpool is a relatively weak one.
In Melee there people that end up as local kings that don't do well in
nationals. There are also people that are exceptionally good on a national
level but simply don't travel (aka "Hidden Bosses").
Nintendo is very hands-off with Melee so tournament organization remains in
the hands of the community. There is no single major overseer of Melee
tournaments. Anyone can hold a tournament and throw the bracket onto Challonge
or Smash.gg. I imagine if ELO was implemented as part of seeding, people would
start gaming the system.
> The way seeding gets done is that players get placed into broad tiers, and
> then those tiers are then fed into pools, attempting to avoid region
> conflicts or repeat matches from recent tournaments.
This is where the human-in-the-loop part of seeding shines. Mid-tier players
are entering national tournaments for the experience. They will not win, and
their reg fee is essentially donating money to the winner's pot. But what they
gain from the experience is tournament matches with players that they are not
familiar with. Many of them will only get two games in-bracket, so it's a huge
waste for them if they end up playing against buddies from their own region.
The community actively polices good seeding. There is often an outcry if say
too many Nor Cal players get shoved on the same side of a bracket.
~~~
slphil
Hidden Bosses always get exposed at nationals because no matter how good or
talented they are, they will get destroyed by players who are used to
competing against other national threats. We've encouraged our local hidden
boss (#1 in TN) to attend more nationals, but work schedules get in the way.
Just like in chess, Melee is only profitable if you are one of the best in the
world, and life gets in the way.
------
slphil
I also play chess at a competitive level (>2000, Expert in the US) and play
Melee at a low competitive level (playing in local meetups, winning a few
matches). I've had many arguments about ranking systems, ELO, etc with my
fellow Smashers, and I reached similar conclusions. This is a great writeup.
There are huge differences between the Swiss system used in chess (which works
great for ELO, since seeding is done by rating and players are not eliminated)
and the double elimination system used in Melee tournaments. I don't think
it's possible to have an objective ranking system in Melee because of the
intricacies of this issue (seeding influences final placement, low-seeded
players will hit a wall where they lose to high-seeded players earlier, etc).
~~~
gowld
And Elo, optimized for pencil+paper calculations, is obsolete for computer
games. Glicko supersedes it.
------
mcguire
Am I old? For a second there, I thought they were talking about _Melee_
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melee_(game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melee_\(game\))),
"... a simple man-to-man combat boardgame designed by Steve Jackson, and
released in 1977 by Metagaming Concepts."
(With _Wizard_
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizard_(board_game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizard_\(board_game\)))
and _The Fantasy Trip_
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fantasy_Trip](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fantasy_Trip))
(Yay, 1970s!), _Melee_ made up the best fantasy role playing game. The only
competition is the Hero system; GURPS is definitely a victim of the second-
system effect.)
Edit: Yes, I'm apparently old. I'll return you now to your regularly scheduled
discussion.
~~~
aidenn0
How complex is TFT? 1980 is a bit of a nexus for RPGs with too-many rules
(e.g. the first edition of rolemaster was published that year).
~~~
mcguire
Fundamentally, it is (was?) very simple---the basic rules were in two pocket
games. Characters had three basic characteristics, strength (also a proxy for
endurance and damage tolerance), dexterity, and intelligence, plus skills and
assorted other
The TFT wiki page says, " _A revival of TFT and associated MicroQuest
adventures is underway
at[http://www.darkcitygames.com.*"](http://www.darkcitygames.com.*") The
"Legends" rules
([http://www.darkcitygames.com/docs/Legends.pdf](http://www.darkcitygames.com/docs/Legends.pdf))
[PDF] there look a lot like the basic mechanics of TFT.
I managed to miss Rolemaster, although I liked the titles, particularly "Claw
Law." :-) But I know what you mean about complexity; too much "realism" leads
to things like Ben Sergeant's Car Wars cartoon (lower left, here
[https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/HSYAAOSwTglYlP-b/s-l300.jpg](https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/HSYAAOSwTglYlP-b/s-l300.jpg)):
"My goodness! 08:00:06, already?"
------
moultano
ELO is a stochastic gradient descent approximation of logistic regression.
You can do much better just by actually running the logistic regression over
the games. In this framework, incorporating any per-game bias such as the
characters chosen is a trivial variable to add to the model and fit jointly.
Our ranking systems are holdovers from a time when the calculations had to be
done by hand. If the whole set of games fits in ram, there's no need to use
ancient optimization methods.
~~~
gowld
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glicko_rating_system](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glicko_rating_system)
~~~
moultano
Even that is still assuming you can only update parameters once per game, and
only for the players in the game. If I've played a large number of games
against someone, and the win-rate is 50/50, and then that player plays in a
tournament, my skill should move up or down in accordance with their
performance in that tournament.
~~~
dmoy
Not necessarily. At least I don't know how this works in smash, but in
competitive fencing I'd see people go 50-50 consistently locally, but one
would always do _drastically_ better at nationals, year after year after year.
Right like there are A rank fencers, and then there are A rank fencers who
actually have a shot at placing on the points table.
I'm not sure why.
~~~
YokoZar
If you told me these facts about a random video game I'd guess the following:
\- A high rank player can consistently execute a strategy that wins against
the majority of players most of the time ("beats the meta")
\- The above has a counter strategy, but this strategy often fails against the
majority of the players ("loses to the meta")
When these two players meet, they go 50-50, but have very different results in
tournaments. Alternatively, one player is generally bad but exploits a
particularly hard to observe weakness in the first.
I know nothing about fencing, but I suspect something similar is going on
here.
~~~
dmoy
Yea I suspect you may be right. The ones I saw who did better in tournaments
tended to have more controlled, standard style. Nothing too fancy.
------
aquova
A very interesting read. I only somewhat follow competitive Melee, but the
lack of a formalized "chess-like" ranking system has always been interesting
to me. I was surprised about the author's discussion about the double
elimination system. I don't know much about ranking systems, but I must
imagine by now someone has developed some sort of system that supports double
elimination. All-in-all a very interesting and well written piece.
------
swolchok
Title would make more sense if it was "Making Sense of Super Smash Bros.
Melee". Not everyone plays this game.
~~~
dang
OK, we've added that. Thanks!
------
Anderkent
> You can also try predicting it match by match and use percent chance to win
> (which is what online chess clubs like ICC use), but this leaves a lot to be
> desired in practice and also simply misses the point entirely: ELO is
> structured around players having a roughly equal number of games each
> tournament, and double elimination means that placements and number of
> matches played are always different. ELO, and it's commonly used variants
> like Glicko-2 or trueskill simply aren't well-suited for the format used in
> Melee tournaments.
I can't follow this argument; the point of doing this match-by-match and
percentage-to-win -wise is exactly so that the number of games and placement
do not matter. You won a round against someone with higher ELO? Your elo
increases, their decreases. Doesn't matter if this was one game out of 20, or
three.
~~~
joshuamorton
Essentially, it rewards players who lose early over those who lose late. In a
double elimination tournament, two people, one in losers and one in winners at
the same point, the loser will play 2x the games of the winner.
So if a player wants to optimize for ranking, its actually in their best
interest to throw round one of a tournament, play more games, and have their
skill update more times.
The number of games matter because with more games you have more chances to
win and update your score.
~~~
kendallpark
This exactly. I play an online game that uses ranking, and your best bet for
breaking a 1500 is actually playing the game at odd hours when there are only
a small amount of players online. Because of the distribution of the player
pool, you're more likely to match with lower-ranking players (as there are
limited number of similarly-ranked players). Then you slowly but surely creep
up your ranking with very little risk.
~~~
Anderkent
'Breaking a 1500' and maximising rating are way different goals though. If you
want as high a rating as possible, playing lower-rated players is probably not
going to get you there - you're only getting a small increase per game.
~~~
kendallpark
But you're taking on less risk. If you play other people around your ranking
it's easy to actually lose.
~~~
Anderkent
Sure; you're reducing variance at the cost of reducing expected gains in
ranking.
------
cthor
Has this been tried?
(1) Figure out a matchup discrepancy matrix
e.g. Peach vs Puff winrate is 0.43
(2) Use an Elo head-to-head variant where the Elo update function takes
matchup discrepency into account
e.g.
\- A vs B has an expected 0.9 winrate
\- A is Peach and B is Puff
\- Elo update is done expecting A to have a winrate of 1 - (1 - 0.9) * (0.5 /
0.43) = 0.884
~~~
joshuamorton
The problem is that the matchup disparity matrix is difficult to derive. For
example, Puff-Fox is widely considered to be fox favored, possibly as much as
60/40 (this is fairly big, peach-icies, a ridiculously bad matchup is
considered 70-30, and peach-puff, considered near-unwinnable, is 80-20, yes
these ratings are bad) in general. However, Hungrybox, the current rank-1
player, plays puff, and has a positive winrate over something like all of the
top 20 Fox players in the world.
The next best Puff player is #38, and doesn't have any wins against top 10
foxes. Is HBox just the best player ever, consistently winning a "bad"
matchup, or is Puff a better character than people commonly believe? Who's to
say?
~~~
cthor
> The problem is that the matchup disparity matrix is difficult to derive.
Well, TFA had no bones about calculating one.
> Is HBox just the best player ever
The current data says pretty definitively, yes.
If other players can learn how to get his winrates vs Fox, then the matchup
matrix would end up reflecting that. The matchup matrix doesn't need to
reflect the perfect ("objective") state of the matchup, just the current one.
(The system I'm talking about would look more suspicious if HBox _wasn 't_
considered the best, because it would probably put him at #1 anyway.)
~~~
joshuamorton
What is TFA?
I didn't do a good job of clarifying what I meant. Hbox is obviously the #1
player right now. The question is if he's just totally on another level of
every other player, or if we're underestimating puff as a character.
Note that this is a really deep question. There are strong arguments (parry)
that in the "20XX" _yoshi_ would be the most viable character right after fox.
Given that, is Amsa overrated because he's underperforming how his character
should, or underrated since he's overperforimg the "average" Yoshi player?
The system you describe basically just ends up rewarding above average players
who use unusual characters. Should Abate be ranked top 20? Probably not, but
considering how much he outperforms the "average" luigi (same thing for Amsa,
does he deserve to be, say, top 10), he probably would be.
~~~
cthor
TFA is slashdot slang: the f'ing article
It really depends on what you want the ranking to mean.
If you want it to mean: "If all the players in the world played in a
tournament, what would the expected result be", then a normal Elo-like rating
system (e.g. glicko-2) should be fine, because all the data available is from
real tournaments, and it's not really feasible for players to strategically
dodge bad matchups to pad their ratings.
But one criticism TFA has of this method is matchup discrepancy. I'm not sure
that's _actually_ important (players choose their mains freely), but if it is
can't you just correct for it?
I think you're right that this correction would create an undesirable result.
That just means that the matchup discrepancy criticism isn't good.
------
soyiuz
What about a ranking system similar to Tennis or Downhill skiing? It basically
awards points for tournament results (rewarding active, top-placing
participants), unlike chess where all ranked games count.
~~~
gilcardenas
I personally was thinking this too. I think the main obstacle to this is that
there is no main organizing body for melee.
Because anyone can host a tournament, that makes it very tricky. You can
assign a points breakdown for points for the top 64/128 based on number of
entrants, prize money but that could inflate people's rankings for doing well
in an easy region.
For example, there are very few top 100 ranked players in Europe. Under this
system, the 4th-8th best players in Europe could get a huge rankings boost
over American counterparts that perform worse in American tournaments where
there are many more skilled players. Tennis benefits from that fact that top
50-100 players are usually required to play in most major tournaments. There's
not enough money in melee for that to even be a possible requirement for
players. (Another example would be small strong regions like Florida or SoCal
would be treated equally to weaker regions like Texas/Arizona for local
events)
Invitationals would also throw things off, as they often have a large prize
pool, but only 16 players invited. With melee, these would need to be treated
as an exhibition (worth no points) which would probably lower the stakes for
players, lower seriousness, etc. or only sanction certain well known
invitationals which might reduce outside investment in Melee.
Another common complaint to this is how it favors seeded players. Although
this would have some impact initially, I think this would level off over time
once an official ranking was adopted by all tournaments and individual
tournament organizers lose seeding powers. In fact, I would expect this to be
even less of a factor than in tennis, since in tennis being a top 100 player
gets you auto invited to most major tournaments. In smash, anyone can compete
at any major tournament, regardless of rank.
------
lakechfoma
A little OT but I'd like to know what part about getting map info is too
difficult to automate. Are they lacking the recordings or what? I'd love to
see the maps included in the dataset.
~~~
joshuamorton
Yes, most matches aren't recorded (at Genesis 5, a recent tournament, there
were ~1400 Melee singles entries, for ~2800 matches. Of those, maybe 10% were
recorded, most of those among the top 128 players attending.)
------
ReverseCold
I actually implemented glicko-2 as an 'elo' system for my school's competitive
melee group.
This is making me reconsider, although one thing of note is that you choose to
play who you want in our setup.
Overall I think this leads to fair rankings, since 'worse' players lose to
'better' players most of the time. As such, the people we think should be in
the top and bottom spots have them at the end of the season.
~~~
broodbucket
One thing I noticed when I did the same thing for my region is that players
wouldn't enter tournaments if they were just going to sandbag, because they
didn't want to hurt their ranking.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Teoria: JavaScript music theory framework - DanielRibeiro
https://github.com/saebekassebil/teoria
======
MichaelAza
By and far one of the most creative projects I've seen on HN. Kudos.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Moving Fast with Software Verification - ot
https://research.facebook.com/publications/422671501231772/moving-fast-with-software-verification/
======
omouse
I like it, finally someone is talking more about real-world user-facing impact
of software verification. Facebook is using OCaml and their partnership with
INRIA is awesome
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Is there a CMS system designed primarily for the developer blogger? - aligajani
======
Wyndsage
Try Orchard CMS, it has a built-in blog from the default installation and
takes a slight bit of customization to work, plus it can run on Microsoft
Azure cheaply
------
thegreenroom
You sound like a lazy developer. Plus what requirements would you have that
non developer wouldn't?
~~~
notduncansmith
If "lazy" translates to "wanting to work with tools that make things easy",
then I'm as lazy as they come. I wouldn't characterize that as a negative
trait.
@OP: I'd recommend Jekyll, and GH Pages is great for hosting if you don't mind
your blog being open-source (I use it).
~~~
thegreenroom
Your fired.
------
kttmrt
Something like Umbraco?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Secretive fusion company claims reactor breakthrough - sparrowlisted
http://news.sciencemag.org/physics/2015/08/secretive-fusion-company-makes-reactor-breakthrough
======
carapace
I keep wondering why this talk doesn't get more traction?
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rk6z1vP4Eo8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rk6z1vP4Eo8)
Published on Aug 22, 2012 Google Tech Talks November 9, 2006
ABSTRACT This is not your father's fusion reactor! Forget everything you know
about conventional thinking on nuclear fusion: high-temperature plasmas, steam
turbines, neutron radiation and even nuclear waste are a thing of the past.
Goodbye thermonuclear fusion; hello inertial electrostatic confinement fusion
(IEC), an old idea that's been made new. While the international community
debates the fate of the politically-turmoiled $12 billion ITER (an
experimental thermonuclear reactor), simple IEC reactors are being built as
high-school science fair projects.
Dr. Robert Bussard, former Asst. Director of the Atomic Energy Commission and
founder of Energy Matter Conversion Corporation (EMC2), has spent 17 years
perfecting IEC, a fusion process that converts hydrogen and boron directly
into electricity producing helium as the only waste product. Most of this work
was funded by the Department of Defense, the details of which have been under
seal... until now.
Dr. Bussard will discuss his recent results and details of this potentially
world-altering technology, whose conception dates back as far as 1924, and
even includes a reactor design by Philo T. Farnsworth (inventor of the
scanning television).
Can a 100 MW fusion reactor be built for less than Google's annual electricity
bill? Come see what's possible when you think outside the thermonuclear box
and ignore the herd.
Google engEDU Speaker: Dr. Robert Bussard
~~~
jerf
Edit (whack entire previous post): See
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polywell#History](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polywell#History)
, which is current up to January of this year. That includes a link to a
presentation in January 2015 to Microsoft Research:
[http://research.microsoft.com/apps/video/default.aspx?id=238...](http://research.microsoft.com/apps/video/default.aspx?id=238715&r=1)
I just found out about that video in the course of checking this comment out,
so I have not watched it. No idea what's in it.
Edit edit: Digging around an ethusiast forum at [http://www.talk-
polywell.org/bb/viewforum.php?f=10](http://www.talk-
polywell.org/bb/viewforum.php?f=10) , I see there's also a paper at arxiv.org
from Jun 1, 2015:
[http://arxiv.org/abs/1406.0133](http://arxiv.org/abs/1406.0133)
~~~
snarfy
I've watched both the 'Should Google Go Nuclear?' and Microsoft Research
videos on this topic.
Both are pretty good. The Google video has Bussard in it and was made not long
before he died.
The Microsoft paper talks about, well a lot of things, but I recall one of the
key research items was cusp confinement. The problem with using magnets to
control a plasma is the plasma will reject the magnetic field as its density
increases. The wiffle ball shape of the resulting plasma of the polywell
allows the field lines to penetrate the plasma even at higher density.
------
nine_k
In short: Tri Alpha demonstrated plasma confined for 5ms. So their concept
works.
Their next step is burning D-T fuel (needs 10x temperature increase). Their
goal is burning H-B fuel which requires much higher temperatures, but has
numerous advantages.
Update: "Tri Alpha is backed by Sam Altman, among other things." -> not at
all.
~~~
sama
::shudders:: Tri Alpha is not backed by me.
Helion is though, which I think has a much better chance of producing
commercial fusion power!
~~~
zamalek
Regardless of who eventually nails it, it's something that Earth desperately
needs _yesterday._
~~~
sama
That part I can agree with!
~~~
humbleMouse
Are you backing any thorium reactor projects?
~~~
sama
UPower will be able to use thorium.
~~~
humbleMouse
Very interesting, thanks for the tip.
------
rubidium
They showed a "stable" reaction of 5 ms, which is quite good.
The video was quite nicely done. I recommend watching.
Caveat: As with all fusion companies, they're only 10-20 years from being
ready to market : )
~~~
chetanahuja
_" Caveat: As with all fusion companies, they're only 10-20 years from being
ready to market : )"_
And always have been ;-)
~~~
rquantz
No no, for the longest time it was 30 years.
~~~
guenthert
I do recall that it was said to be 50 years out and that was at an industry
fair in the mid eighties; so we _are_ getting closer ;-}
------
guimarin
Fusion is one of those areas that would benefit greatly from Public R&D. It's
really sad that we've spent almost nothing on fusion research for the purposes
of producing affordable electricity in the last 20 years.[1][2][3]
1\. The NIF is and always has been a sideshow for the Nuclear Weapons
development research that goes on there.
2\. US last serious investment was the TFTR back in the 90s.
[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/20/fusion-energy-
react...](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/20/fusion-energy-
reactor_n_6438772.html)
3\. IMO ITER is a joke, too large scale.
~~~
oldmanjay
You have a fantastic mindset in that you can call multiple billions of dollars
"almost nothing"
Presumably, the operative fact here is that it would mostly be other people's
money, and no one minds spending that wildly
~~~
dntrkv
Yes, it is almost nothing when you look at the estimated spending required to
achieve fusion:
[http://i.imgur.com/FR0TsYF.png](http://i.imgur.com/FR0TsYF.png)
~~~
adwn
That graph is dug out whenever the feasibility of fusion is discussed. It's a
prediction from 1976 – you should know how credible decade-long predictions on
the progress of unproven technologies are.
~~~
noobermin
How does this address the graph? It probably doesn't predict the current
situation, but it certainly is consistent with it, that fusion funding is
below the "fusion never" line, and look, we have no fusion.
~~~
valhalla
I could be wrong, but the projections are extrapolations based on _obviously_
overly optimistic assumptions about the a) the federal government's desire to
fund large, multiyear scientific projects b) the ease of creating an
economically scalable fusion reactor
------
phasetransition
The summer of 1999 on the way to E&M class I rode the same bus to the physics
building as Dr. Hendrik Monkhorst. He is one of the founders of Tri Alpha
Energy, and I remember chatting with him about about aneutronic fusion. It was
very eye opening for a 19 year old undergraduate. I remember him espousing
commercialization within ten years, which now seems like prototypical
professorial optimism. It is an exciting milestone to see them have successful
confinement for a solid length of time.
------
ck2
Dumb question but since they are still only working on how to contain the
reaction, how exactly do you extract power from fusion?
~~~
jessaustin
Same way you produce electricity from any heat source: steam turbines.
~~~
_rpd
Interestingly, that isn't necessarily the case with aneutronic fusion ...
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneutronic_fusion#Methods_for_...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneutronic_fusion#Methods_for_energy_capture)
------
arcanus
Fusion: only twenty years away. Always.
~~~
dntrkv
Those estimates might have worked out if funding wasn't continuously being
cut.
[http://i.imgur.com/FR0TsYF.png](http://i.imgur.com/FR0TsYF.png)
~~~
andy_ppp
Wow. We don't even spend a billion a year on Fusion research...
------
amelius
Perhaps a stupid question, but why does the plasma need to stay confined for
long periods of time? If you can devise a process that performs a full power-
generating cycle, then no matter how long (or short) that cycle takes, you
will get net power out of it.
~~~
antognini
I believe there are two things:
1\. Ions in the plasma need to interact with each other for enough fusion
reactions to occur. For this to happen, the plasma needs to be somewhat dense
and the temperature needs to be very high. If the plasma escapes, the
temperature and densities fall off rapidly, and the nuclear fusion rate drops
quickly. (Nuclear fusion has an incredibly steep temperature dependence ---
the triple alpha process, for instance, goes as T^28 or something like that).
2\. When the plasma escapes, it interacts with whatever is containing it and
can destroy it very quickly.
But I'm an astrophysicist, not a nuclear physicist, so I could very well be
wrong. Plasma confinement is much easier in stars. Just let the gravity do the
work for you. :)
~~~
amelius
1\. This is, I would say, still no reason why the whole cycle can't be
performed in a very short time-frame.
2\. If the plasma escapes, I would say you could dump it into a large tank
(like a reservoir of water), and extract energy from it.
~~~
mng2
I forgot to address this in my earlier comment, but you don't worry about the
plasma escaping -- it is very delicate, generally orders of magnitude less
dense than air. Rather, keeping it alive is the difficult part. If the plasma
hits the wall of a fusion device in an uncontrolled manner, it will dump all
its energy into it. If the plasma picks up too many impurities, it will
radiate energy away in the form of bremsstrahlung. It is hard to keep the ions
hot enough to fuse while there are many phenomena conspiring against you.
------
danmaz74
> hydrogen-boron fusion, which will require ion temperatures above 3 billion
> degrees Celsius
3 billion degrees... that blows my mind.
~~~
junkblocker
Reminds me of this BBC infographic on hottest temperatures in the universe,
[http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbc.com/future/bespoke/20131218-tempera...](http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbc.com/future/bespoke/20131218-temperature/assets/images/temperature.png)
, very enlightening.
~~~
FiatLuxDave
Great infographic, but unfortunately it misses my favorite juxtaposition of
temperatures:
Surface temperature of a red dwarf star (e.g. Wolf 359) 2500 C
Melting point of tungsten: 3400 C
I find the idea of making balloon-like objects out of tungsten and gas, with a
density less than that of the star's photosphere, and floating them around on
the surface of a star to be intriguing. It would be a great location to put a
heat engine. A totally sci-fi idea, I know, but still interesting to think
about.
~~~
yongjik
Umm, actually, a "heat engine" needs both the source of heat and a place to
dump the waste heat into, so the surface of a star would be a bad place to
build one.
The only way of dumping heat would be to radiate it out to space, but
"radiation" is a very inefficient way of losing heat. Unless I'm missing some
really clever trick, soon your radiator will become about as hot as the
surrounding gas, at which point the efficiency (= (T_hot - T_cold) / T_hot)
drops to near zero.
* Not a physicist, so I might be wrong. :P
~~~
FiatLuxDave
You are correct that a heat pump needs both a heat source and heat sink.
However, radiation is quite effective at transmitting heat at high
temperatures. Black-body radiators emit as the fourth power of the
temperature, although real objects never emit quite as efficiently as ideal
black-bodies. It works pretty well for stars, though, since radiation is how
they lose the vast majority of their energy.
If the photosphere above the heat engine was opaque, then the heat engine
would not work. So it makes sense to keep the heat engine near or above the
top of the photosphere, without going high enough to overheat near the top of
the chromosphere.
It's mainly just a fun idea. I have no plans of trying to build one in the
near future. :)
* I am a physicist, but that is no protection against being wrong. ;)
~~~
marktangotango
FYI David Brin explored this idea in the novel 'Sundiver' (1980)[1]. In the
novel a laser is used to radiate heat out into space. This is the first book
of the Uplift Trilogy. Incidentally, the second book, 'Startide Rising' is
really great imo, and won a bunch of awards.
[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundiver](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundiver)
~~~
FiatLuxDave
Aye, actually Sundiver is my favorite of David's books. I think his writing is
better in later books, but I enjoy the audacious technical ideas and the
classic 'closed room mystery' plot.
I met David earlier this year at the NASA NIAC symposium, and spent a nice
afternoon hanging out with him and Joe Haldeman and his wife. Very nice
people! We toured the Swampworks and launch sites at KSC, and talked about
practical methods for moving planets. It was a very enjoyable day.
~~~
marktangotango
Very cool. You seem to be familiar with him and his work, so I'll ask this; I
seem to recall that him and Vernor Vinge have sidelines doing 'scenario
planning' for government agencies, is that something you've ever heard of?
I've always wondered what that consisted of. Maybe I'm just searching for a
reason to explain Vinge lack of productivety and imagined that?
~~~
FiatLuxDave
I'm sorry. but I don't know much about that. However, you could ask them about
it. Most sci-fi authors I have spoken with are very open to answering
questions, as long as they are addressed in a respectful manner. I don't know
about Vernor Vinge, but I know that David Brin has a website that you could
email him at.
------
eli_gottlieb
Call us when they're not so secretive.
------
ogrisel
The cure for cancer and the solution to climate change announced on HN on the
same day! ;)
~~~
mason240
Come back tomorrow and you can experience it again!
------
DrNuke
If only any of these passes the lab stage to start with engineering... ITER is
the only fusion machine 10-20 years away from demonstration, in 2015, and it's
too big to fail.
------
onion2k
A 23m long machine is far too big to mount on a Delorean. They'll need to fix
that.
~~~
iwwr
While that is somewhat in jest, there are potentials for fusion to first make
it as a power source for spacecraft.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusion_rocket#Electricity_gene...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusion_rocket#Electricity_generation_vs._direct_thrust)
This has the advantage of not needing a power recovery system and the actual
power can be external (like solar) and the fusion engine would act more like a
souped-up ion engine (with correspondingly ultra-low thrust).
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Bitbucket Pipeline now in beta - eloycoto
https://bitbucket.org/product/features/pipelines
======
SanDimasFootbal
That escalated quickly..... unlimited repos and CI.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
PostgreSQL's Powerful New Join Type: Lateral - craigkerstiens
https://blog.heapanalytics.com/postgresqls-powerful-new-join-type-lateral/
======
ak39
T-SQL has this as CROSS APPLY and OUTER APPLY.
Like pgsql’s LATERAL JOIN, CROSS APPLY has been a game changer in the way you
think iteration in sets. Highly recommended.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
U.S. Patent Office Cancels Redskins Trademark Registration - kanamekun
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/19/sports/football/us-patent-office-cancels-redskins-trademark-registration.html
======
Alupis
Previous discussion here:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7910168](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7910168)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
What Programming methodology is this? - YDude
What is the programming methodology where only one person, at the time, is writing code while others developers, DBA, even the client are behind of him providing ideas or corrections, rotating the person who is writting code.<p>Months ago i read an article here at Hacker News about this, but i can not remember the name.
======
Rannath
It seems like a team building exercise. Everyone sees how everyone else works,
and helps them grow. The 'client' is there to provide feature requests to see
how whoever's on the hot-seat implements those and responds to
changes/criticisms.
Note: In this scenario the client might just be a senior programmer,
pretending.
------
mihaipocorschi
Mobbing?
[http://benjiweber.co.uk/blog/2015/04/17/modern-extreme-
progr...](http://benjiweber.co.uk/blog/2015/04/17/modern-extreme-programming/)
------
ankurdhama
Probably "Cheap programming" as you can't afford to have more than one
computer, everyone gets chance on that one computer in round robin way.
------
JakDrako
It's the "Convince-your-competitors-to-use-it" methodology.
------
olgeni
Burnout driven programming.
------
gjvc
search google for "pair programming"
~~~
informatimago
Well pair programming is when there are two programmers working together on
one terminal.
When you have the whole team waiting behind the guy at the keyboard, I would
call this methodology "Dumbest".
------
lou_ibmix_xi
extreme programming ?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Rebuilding Rails Build Your Own Ruby Web Framework - conorwade
http://rebuilding-rails.com/
======
nalidixic
I'm willing to up vote anything that is being bootstrapped by one hard working
person! Cheers!
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Instagram Proves Santa Is Real And He's A Narcissistic Techie [Infographic] - altryne1
http://visual.ly/instagram-proves-santa-real
======
jumpwah
[http://xkcd.com/838/](http://xkcd.com/838/)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
New Orleans' Tech Scene is Not on Bourbon Street - mollyoehmichen
http://siliconbayounews.com/2012/01/27/new-orleans-is-more-than-bourbon-street/
======
mohene1
Ok, but how do we readers act upon the article?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Street Art View with Google Street View - mgrouchy
http://streetartview.com/
======
microtherion
While there are some excellent pieces of street art, a lot of it just seems to
be puerile vandalism, and by giving this a worldwide platform, I'm concerned
that this will just motivate vandals to deface more walls.
For instance, what's the point of <http://streetartview.com/v/NjUzOQ==> and
who could possibly like this enough to promote it except for the losers who
"created" it in the first place?
------
mgrouchy
This is done by Redbull but its pretty cool regardless.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Languages For Every Sysadmin - duck
http://commandlion.com/2012/06/03/every-sysadmin-three-languages/
======
gingerjoos
I often find it difficult to talk about problems to some sysadmins because
they don't understand how the MVC model works (I am a web dev). They point to
a URL and ask me, "So where is this file/directory" and I have to oversimplify
rather than explaining what frameworks do with URLs and routing and all that.
It would be so painless if they got what I was saying! I say this as a dev who
occasionally needs to handle deploy scripts and maintain servers.
------
spydum
Well put, especially the last line section: at least be familiar and competent
enough in the language your product or company uses. As he says, no need to be
an expert, but be able to at least understand it.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Tensions Flare as Hackers Root Out Flaws in Voting Machines - humantiy
https://www.wsj.com/articles/tensions-flare-as-hackers-root-out-flaws-in-voting-machines-1534078801
======
humantiy
Since it's paywalled: [http://archive.is/f8S0K](http://archive.is/f8S0K)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Getting Tech into the Boroughs - PretzelFisch
https://avc.com/2019/12/getting-tech-into-the-boroughs/
======
greenyoda
The biggest obstacle to locating any business outside of Manhattan is the
transit system. Most subway lines run between the outer boroughs and
Manhattan, and the regional commuter railroads (LIRR, NJ Transit, PATH and
Metro North) all terminate in Manhattan (or primarily in Manhattan, since LIRR
also has stations in Brooklyn and Queens). Thus, locating a business outside
of Manhattan greatly reduces the area from which it can recruit employees.
------
PretzelFisch
The op is a VC and I am not sure what their angle is. But when tech jobs came
to San Francisco, there was gentrification how is that really a benefit to the
current community? Where is the proof that most of the promised 25, of jobs
won't go to new community members that put pressure on the current residents
to move out?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: Developer to pitch idea for side project? - throwawayrtc
Hello HN.<p>Where are the best places to pitch developers, so that they may take on a side project in their spare time?<p>I'm looking for an experienced backend webrtc developer, that knows Golang and is well versed in Video and Telecom.<p>It's probably a few months work and I want to negotiate on payment as well. (to make things a bit more complicated)<p>Does anyone know of any sites where developers are looking for a challenge?<p>Rather not use upwork, freelancer.com, etc.<p>Thanks!
======
riston
Well, you can find some developers from Slack rooms example for Golang
[https://invite.slack.golangbridge.org/](https://invite.slack.golangbridge.org/).
In most Slack rooms there are jobs channels where you might find people for
your project.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: How can HTTP/2 be used to get GraphQL like performance? - lostPoncho
I am new to these stuffs. So as I understand HTTP/2 comes with some improvements over HTTP/1.1. So how can HTTP/2 be used for data intensive request without needing to use GraphQL?
======
PaulHoule
HTTP/2 is just a transport that GraphQL and other http-based protocols can
use. It may reduce the overhead of round tripping and multiple concurrent
connections a little, but it is no substitute for protocol design that
drastically reduces or eliminates round tripping (as can GraphQL)
~~~
lostPoncho
Oh okay. Thanks. :D
------
brad0
Hi and welcome to HN.
Could you clarify some things?
\- what do you mean by data intensive requests?
\- what caused you to look into HTTP2 in the first place?
~~~
lostPoncho
Thanks. :D
By data intensive I meant something where we have to make multiple requests
for similar data, but not quite the same. If I understand correctly, graphql
is there to help with such cases. But, I may be wrong, I am new to this.
Just curiosity.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Electric or Not, Big SUVs Are Inherently Selfish - CaptainZapp
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/m7q7eb/electric-or-not-big-suvs-are-inherently-selfish
======
timwaagh
It might all be true, I don't know. Still I think this comes from the wrong
mindset. Rather than celebrating the fact that there will soon be an electric
option for those who like masculine militaristic aesthetic, or holding a
reasoned discussion on the risks of various cars, this is all about portraying
those who will drive this car in a very negative light. I hope Vice will do
better next time.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Microsoft mocks Internet Explorer haters in new ad [video] - vsloo
http://venturebeat.com/2012/11/29/microsoft-mocks-internet-explorer-haters/
======
JoeCortopassi
This ad isn't about the merits of IE as a browser, this ad is about building a
preformed thought in the common users mind whenever they hear someone bash IE.
IE hasn't been the victim of bad PR, it has earned it's reputation through
years of blood/sweat/tears by the hands of developers. Microsoft recognizes
that they won't be able to change this attitude in the developer community,
but that they can lessen the weight a developer's opinion has amongst non-
technically minded people, which is a much larger share of users.
Like it or not, a lot of people will think of this ad first (and what it tells
them), the next time one of us tries to warn them about IE
~~~
WayneDB
With all 300 views...I doubt it will change anything at all.
(EDIT: MY opinion will say the same until that view counter says a million and
I highly doubt it will even get close. The only people who really care anyway
are the "trolls" that Microsoft is talking about!)
~~~
JackWebbHeller
Usually a video with 301 views means it's suddenly exploded virally. YouTube
'stops counting' temporarily at 300 views whilst it verifies that a video is
being legitimately viewed by many people in a short space of time, rather than
people artificially inflating their viewcount by whatever methods they can.
In a matter of minutes or hours that number will suddenly increase
significantly.
So it's an anti-spam measure. There's a short explainer here:
<http://www.seroundtable.com/youtube-301-views-15347.html>
~~~
thesis
Further confirming this, the video has 301 views and over 1800 likes, 400
dislikes.
------
laumars
As I said in the other IE submission, most of the criticisms that have been
levelled against IE are technical in nature and very real (dragging their feet
on web standards, breaking their own compatibility guidelines from version to
version, etc). So portraying IE haters as having the IQ of the average YouTube
commenter just loses any credibility in the message (plus the way they fell
back on badly judged kitten memes was just cringe-worthy)
Nobody is disputing that IE has come along way. The issue isn't whether the
latest version of the browser is capable, but rather whether we'd want to get
back into bed with Microsoft given their past history. And thankfully there is
so much choice in the market now, that people can choose not to use browsers
for even the seemingly trivial reasons; such as historical prejudice.
Thus as long as there is competition in the market, I'm going to support the
platforms that have a history of promoting a free and open web.
------
CrossCircuit
IE hate is well deserved. How many hundreds of thousands or millions of
productive hours have been lost due to incompabilities, bugs, etc?
That being said, Microsoft is full of talented people and they do create some
fantastic products. IE is slowly getting to a more respectable point and
hating on it so harshly seems juvenile.
~~~
fruchtose
Microsoft is attacking a straw man. The people Microsoft needs to worry about
are not trolls with too much time on their hands. The people they need to
convince are web developers frustrated by 10 years of IE that refused to
cooperate with standards and held everyone back. Even IE 9 has problems with
JS features that Firefox, Chrome, and Opera implement. Microsoft did this to
themselves, and I believe it is one of the reasons why developers are reticent
to develop for Windows Phone 7 and Windows 8.
------
martin_bech
I actually kinda like the ad, because the guy could be me in a heartbeat, i
even own the same keyboard xD.
However the hate in me burns with the power of a thousand sons, when it comes
to IE. The almost constant changes of MS standards with each new version of
IE, inevitably breaks something, and will often require separate CSS styling..
And dont get me started on maintaining an app, that was built on IE6..
If I was in a room with Hitler, Osama bin Laden and the devlead for IE6, and
had a gun with only 2 bullets.. I would shoot the IE6 lead twice..
That said and done, i really hope they start to embrace the "real" standards,
as the the new development team proclaims.
~~~
Zirro
"I would shoot the IE6 lead twice.."
That's a little bit harsh, isn't it? While I would never defend it's usage
today, it wasn't that horrible at the time it was released.
However, as Microsoft decided to kill off development it soon grew too old for
it's own good.
~~~
_pferreir_
> While I would never defend it's usage today, it wasn't that horrible at the
> time it was released.
I think it was bad even considering that it was released in 2001. Not
supporting PNG alpha channel is just an example.
But I do agree that Microsoft taking so long to release IE7 made things even
worse.
------
rickmb
For me, IE is like landmines. Built as weapon to break the web rather than to
do anything constructive, and then abandoned after the war to create more
havoc for years.
Maybe MS should have given the new generations of IE a new name. Rebranding
would probably have been cheaper and more effective than marketing campaigns
trying to make IE respectable.
~~~
craigvn
Sorry, you are wrong and trying to rewrite history. But this is Hackernews.
------
nitochi
The thing about IE is that once they gain some market share, they start trying
to push their "own" standards, even if the community is moving in the opposite
direction. That is just the way it has been since IE6.
The ad targets haters that convince "regular users" that IE sucks...haters
needed to do that because regular users couldn't totally grasp how much their
web experience is affected for using that crappy browser and how many features
they were missing.
The fact that a lot of them do not realize how awful their experience is, is
due to countless hours of near-suicide frustration from programmers and coders
around the world trying to make IE compatible applications.
------
beatpanda
Ha ha, yeah, I know, the way some people carry on, you'd think Internet
Explorer had crippled the web and added hundreds of hours to web development
projects everywhere for over a decade, or something. Jeez!
------
joejohnson
Yeah, the detractors of IE are just mindlessly posting "IE SUCKS" over and
over for no reason. It's not that the browser is seriously lacking, or that
it's been behind for so long and actively blocking open standards. It's that
the internet is dumb and people just love to hate.
~~~
jiggy2011
To be fair for every web developer with legit gripes about IE there probably
are about 100 people posting "IE SUXX" on youtube.
Most discussion of technology on the internet is just noise written by people
who don't have the slightest clue what they are talking about.
~~~
tthomas48
You forget the other side, though. There are tons of people like my in-laws
who used to get all sorts of malware thanks to IE, and once they switched to
Firefox or Chrome no longer do. There's a pretty large group of non-technical
people out there who have found not using IE makes their life more pleasant.
------
marknutter
This ad might have a point if it was actually IE10 that people hated. People
hate IE 6, 7, 8, and 9, because they stalled web progress and MS did nothing
proactive to try to filter them out of the marketplace. Talk about missing the
point entirely.
~~~
wiredfool
I liked IE4 because it was pretty damn good.
I liked IE6 because it got me out of the hell that was IE4.
I liked IE8 because it got me out of the hell that was IE6.
I suspect I'm going to like IE10 because of IE8.
I'm going to hate IE10 because it's not Webkit/Gecko.
------
jiggy2011
So internet explorer is good because it is the best browser on a platform
(xbox360) that didn't have a browser before and where it doesn't have any
competition because there are no other browsers?
------
forgottenpaswrd
I have to admit that I had something personal against IE:
When I stated as an entrepreneur, the banks forced me to use IE as using any
other browser will be full of incompatibility bugs. They made them on purpose.
So they forced me to use a Windows machine when I worked with Unix. I had to
spend a thousand dollars so I could use my ebank and read-write my customer's
Office documents(because MS also made very hard for Office documents for being
standardized).
When I created my site I had to spend a lot more money so it worked on the
main browser: Explorer. It was kind of hard to understand why it was so
difficult to make something that worked in all browsers, it was always
Microsoft fault there.
I calculated that I doubled my expenses because of non expected stupid
incompatibility bugs on my web site. The people that made it really cursed the
Redmon company.
The moment I could jump ship and work without Windows or Explorer I
experienced an Enlightenment, a liberation: Now I just don't hate them, I
simply don't care because I know the only reason they are doing the right
things is because they lost the monopoly in some areas and had been forced to
react.
Good for them, I prefer "don't be evil" than "embrace, extent, and extinguish"
for now.
------
konstruktors
Did you guys notice the OS X hand cursor when he tweets? Here is a screenshot:
<http://imgur.com/ll0fq>
------
IanDrake
Did you notice this in the ad?
<http://www.karaokewebstandard.org/>
~~~
jeremiep
I did notice, but didn't care enough about karaoke to look it up ;)
It's all great that Microsoft is trying to push the web forward again, they
used to before IE6, but I'm not sure I like this new direction. WebGL, WebRTC
and other APIs being pushed by every other major browser vendor looks much
more promising and useful. Karaoke isn't making the web more practical,
although it's a nice feature for entertainment.
~~~
alexpenny
I believe it is a continuation of the joke. Mimicking the look of w3c
standards. It's also interesting to point out they are using google analytics
------
_pferreir_
"Sucks less"? Well, that's totally going to make me feel tempted to give it a
try...
Seriously, I started my web dev career at a time when IE had a market share of
80% and... I'm OK now.
I'm glad that Microsoft decided to embrace web standards and is committed to
make IE easier to develop for but they'll have to do much more than this if
they want to be taken seriously again.
------
digitalpacman
I used to love IE simply for OnMouseEnter and OnMouseOut... made JS dragging
techniques super easy, compared to other browsers, but still couldn't use it
cause they were the only ones so, pfft. I stood by them till Chrome came out.
I preferred Microsofts decisions of how the web should be rendered over w3c.
~~~
acchow
I'm a fairly young developer so managed to avoid the IE6 problems.
Can you elaborate on which MS decisions you preferred over w3c?
~~~
jakejake
The infamous IE box model is one thing where you could debate that one or the
other was preferable.
~~~
TazeTSchnitzel
Thanks to box-sizing we can finally have both, but thing haven't always been
like this.
~~~
jakejake
didn't know that one - thanks!
------
antihero
I think a good response to this would be a four hour live-coding session of
trying to get shit to be backwards compatible with 6, 7, and 8.
Oh wait, I can't test your browser without a VM because I didn't buy your OS?
Fuck you.
------
untog
Where is this ad going to be shown? Because, honestly, IE isn't that vilified
outside of tech circles. My parents and friends happily use it without a
second thought.
------
27182818284
It is an example of a symptom that has presented itself because of an
underlying disease rotting away the core of Microsoft.
~~~
stephengillie
Do you mean the constant chorus of individuals who enjoy putting down MS for
fun?
Or do you mean an internal cause?
~~~
jeremiep
I think both sides are equally bad here.
Bashing MS just for fun isn't very smart (for all their sins, there's a few
good things coming out of Redmond - and Microsoft Research is just fantastic
for the most part), but Microsoft is just lowering itself to the level of
their critics here.
While a large part of the public has a biased opinion of Microsoft, Microsoft
also has a biased opinion of their users - otherwise their marketing wouldn't
feel so out-of-touch. I don't see any winners here.
~~~
vsloo
Found it interesting how they chose to portray the person doing the hating as
well.
------
_sentient
Follow up video is here, just for kicks:
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=d...](http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dAecpAcyFCw)
------
leecGoimik7
wishful thinking, MS... nobody gives a damn about your browser anymore
~~~
Zirro
As I understand it the problem they're trying to tackle here is the opposite.
That is, that some people still give too much of "a damn" about their browser
and convince normal users to move away from it.
~~~
glenra
When I see an IE ad my first reaction is: "Wait, MS is still making a browser?
How odd. Did not know that."
The reaction after that is: "Hmph. I wonder if it runs on any OS I run. (brief
google) Nope, I guess not!"
------
SkyMarshal
Lmao:
_> IE implements HTML6.
> and 7, 8, and 9._
Oh, if only.
Good ad though, but they're still not there yet.
------
mobweb
So the message of this ad is that the new IE sucks _less_ than it's
predecessors? That's what I took away from it.
------
JagMicker
If you can't beat 'em, mock 'em!
------
CamperBob2
"Comments are disabled for this video."
What else is there to say, really?
------
mtgx
This was just submitted a few hours ago:
[http://cbateman.com/blog/whats-missing-in-internet-
explorer-...](http://cbateman.com/blog/whats-missing-in-internet-explorer-10)
That's probably not even the full list of what's missing in IE10, as html5test
puts IE10 way below the others in HTML5 features:
<http://html5test.com/results/desktop.html>
I wouldn't hold my breath for WebGL appearing even in IE11. Whatever Microsoft
is saying, the "security" of WebGL is not the main reason why Microsoft is not
the adopting it - not even close. Just like security is also not the main
reason why Apple is not allowing other JS engines on iOS.
The security reason is used mainly as a "reasonable" excuse to cover for the
_real_ reason why they aren't implementing it (they obviously don't want
OpenGL to gain anymore traction that it has already gained in mobile and
Linux). If security would be an excuse to not implement something, we'd
probably still be in the dark ages of the web. Consider Flash, it's one of the
least secure pieces of software out there, and yet it's also what enabled
video on the web for everyone. It's the reason Youtube exists today.
The lack of support for XP, which is still like 40% of the market, means
Chrome is still by far the most secure browser on XP, which is something
companies who aren't going to get new PC's and Windows licenses anytime soon
should start considering.
No full screen API, no Web Audio API, and no WebRTC (and no Opus either) are
also very regrettable omissions from IE10, and it will be another year or two
before it will get them. Who knows how far ahead Chrome and Firefox will be by
then.
~~~
warfangle
I'd bet that they will never support webgl in IE -- it competes too directly
with the windows/xbox360 directx gaming ecosystem.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
ArtistPage.me - ArtistPage
http://www.artistpage.me/
Create an electronic presskit as an artist or dj that looks professional and is always up to date. Be the first to know about our launch. The first 100 signups get a pro account for free.
======
ArtistPage
It's about.me for artists and dj's!
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
What does HN think about Oracle APEX? - dalacv
https://apexea.oracle.com/i/index.html
======
dalacv
Followup question: Has anyone seen anything similar to this?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
What Great Artists Need: Solitude - jseliger
http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2014/02/what-great-artists-need-solitude/283585/?single_page=true
======
jseliger
See also "Solitude and Leadership:" [https://theamericanscholar.org/solitude-
and-leadership/](https://theamericanscholar.org/solitude-and-leadership/)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
How Postgres Makes Transactions Atomic (2017) - dmitryminkovsky
https://brandur.org/postgres-atomicity
======
rosser
Submitter, or a moderator, please edit the title to re-add the word "How".
That's done automatically, but sometimes it's wrong. It's especially so here.
Also, this remains as fantastic an article on PostgreSQL's MVCC nature as it
was previously:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15027870](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15027870)
~~~
draw_down
I've noticed that too. In what cases is that useful? It seems unnecessary and
actively harmful at times, like in this case.
~~~
Deimorz
It's a very common style of headlines recently, and a lot of the time you can
remove the "How" without changing the meaning. For example, if I look down The
Verge's recent posts, the first one starting with "How" is "How sampling and
streaming are changing the future of music" [1]. Titling that "Sampling and
streaming are changing the future of music" works fine.
I don't know that it's particularly _useful_ most of the time, it's usually
just unnecessary. An example where it actually should have been removed that I
remember was this article on The Guardian a while back: "Suburb in the sky:
how Jakartans built an entire village on top of a mall" [2]. There's nothing
in the article at all about how they built it. It's just a trendy headline
style for some reason, and gets used even in cases where it doesn't apply,
like that one.
[1]: [https://www.theverge.com/2019/9/17/20870347/sampling-
streami...](https://www.theverge.com/2019/9/17/20870347/sampling-streaming-
despacito-charli-xcx-music-dani-deahl-future-of-music-vergecast)
[2]: [https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/aug/05/suburb-in-
the...](https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/aug/05/suburb-in-the-sky-how-
jakartans-built-an-entire-village-on-top-of-a-mall)
~~~
thom
Perhaps this cheapening of the word 'how' explains the prevalence of the
academic literary tic 'the manner in which' in its place.
------
teej
From the previous discussion, I discovered that the author used Monodraw to
create the diagrams. I'm excited to check it out -
[https://monodraw.helftone.com/](https://monodraw.helftone.com/)
~~~
onemoresoop
Mac only?
~~~
diroussel
If you want cross platform ascii diagram editor, then look at jave. It’s old
but still works.
[http://www.jave.de/](http://www.jave.de/)
------
sarah180
The "How" at the beginning of the title is important: this is clickbait
without it.
~~~
kfrzcode
How is it clickbait rather than just a less than precise a description of the
material?
~~~
ghusbands
As a headline, "Postgres Makes Transactions Atomic" would be read by many as
being a new feature. Adding "How" removes that reading.
------
romaniitedomum
It's a minor typo, but in the first paragraph under the heading Defensive
programming this sentence occurs:
> I won’t go into subcommits in any detail, but it’s worth nothing that
> because TransactionIdCommitTree cannot be guaranteed to be atomic
From the context I think the word "nothing" should be "noting", as in, "It's
worth noting".
~~~
bgentry
Author accepts PRs via GitHub :)
[https://github.com/brandur/sorg/blob/master/content/articles...](https://github.com/brandur/sorg/blob/master/content/articles/postgres-
atomicity.md)
------
yvan
It might be a newbie question, but for my own culture, what is the impact of a
given snapshot if the database is really big ?
I guess it all depends on what data we are touching, but let imagine I want to
update all the rows for a table with 1 billions entries, wouldn't the snapshot
be giantic ?
Or maybe I misunderstood what is a snapshot.
~~~
petereisentraut
A snapshot is actually just a struct with a few transaction IDs (xids) and
some other bookkeeping that describes which slice of the physically stored
data is supposed to be visible to a transaction. The article shows the details
of that. So the size of a snapshot is unrelated to the size of the database.
~~~
yvan
Thanks for the information. I read the article but didn't understand it well.
------
del_operator
Interesting coincidence that early yesterday I found this blog when searching
for transaction patterns. I skimmed the transactions for idempotent apis
(2017) and its part ii. Hadn’t heard of it before but liked the diagrams
------
_pmf_
Interested in how the author created the images; they have a beautiful, clear
retro look.
~~~
ololobus
AFAIK Brandur uses Monodraw [1]. It's so cool, I even purchased a license for
myself, although the author of the app stopped its active development [2].
[1] [https://monodraw.helftone.com/](https://monodraw.helftone.com/)
[2] [https://blog.helftone.com/monodraw-maintenance-
mode/](https://blog.helftone.com/monodraw-maintenance-mode/)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Silicon Valley turned true innovation into an overhyped delusion - libraryofbabel
https://www.fastcompany.com/90546794/how-silicon-valley-turned-true-innovation-into-an-over-hyped-delusion
======
libraryofbabel
A review of a new book called _The Innovation Delusion_ by Lee Vinsel and
Andrew Russell
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Heimcontrol.js – Home Automation in Node.js with Raspberry Pi and Arduino - jsingleton
https://ni-c.github.io/heimcontrol.js/
======
balloob
For the people that prefer their Home Automation to be in Python, have a look
at Home Assistant [https://home-assistant.io/](https://home-assistant.io/)
------
onaclov2000
If you dont want to open your network ports, you could setup an amazon aws or
something (or firebase, disclaimer im a firebase torch/fan) to allow control
from outside your house
~~~
StavrosK
I've solved this problem for myself, and I suspect that many other people have
it, but nobody has shown any interest in my solution so far:
[https://github.com/skorokithakis/gweet](https://github.com/skorokithakis/gweet)
It's a command queue that allows your Raspi/Arduino to listen to commands and
your control apps to issue them. I use secret keys for the commands, but you
can also use crypto to sign the requests. It's been working very well for me,
and with very low latency (the DNS query and TLS setup are the slowest parts,
it seems).
~~~
anonbanker
posting as breadcrumbs. I'll need this in the next two months.
~~~
StavrosK
It should also be on the first page if you Google "message queue internet of
things".
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
The Tyranny of Structurelessness - xwvvvvwx
http://www.jofreeman.com/joreen/tyranny.htm
======
ghotli
Key takeaway, structure is emerging whether or not you want it to, so take
care to put in place a minimum viable structure that is malleable. One such
list of properties of what she considers an effective structure is proposed at
the bottom and is worth a read. Directly applicable to modern organizations
and not just a historical essay from the earlyish days of the women's
liberation movement
------
danielvf
This is one of the fifty greatest essays ever. Don’t be distracted the talk of
Feminism or the New Left. This stuff applies across every organization I’ve
run into.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Torvalds and Theo harsh quote battle - sberder
http://torvaldsortheo.com/
======
ScottBurson
Cute. I did better than one might have expected considering I don't know
either of them well. But once it started recycling questions I got bored.
(What? No score?)
And why not "Linus and Theo"?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: What new website/platform do you think is useful to have? - 123user
======
bobsadinook
platform or website for what
~~~
123user
a new website or platform useful for you.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Hundreds More Artists Whose Tapes Were Destroyed in the UMG Fire - Anechoic
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/25/magazine/universal-music-fire-bands-list-umg.html
======
jumelles
This is a follow-up to an article that was previously discussed here:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20154327](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20154327)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
April 28th in Menlo Park – Mattt Thompson of NSHipster.com and Kat Li of Stripe - blake_lucchesi
I wanted to let everyone know about an upcoming tech talk that we'll be hosting at SendHub in Menlo Park on Monday, April 28th. We have two great speakers lined up for the event along with free food and drink (and a few raffle items). The speakers are:<p>- Mattt Thompson (iOS/Mac developer, author of AFNetworking and NSHipster.com) sharing "Secrets of Objective-C"<p>- Kat Li (Growth and Community Development at Stripe, previously at Quora) will be speaking about building a loyal community to drive growth and build your brand<p>The event will be at 7:30pm on Monday, April 28th in Menlo Park, below is a link to sign up along with the more details about the event. (Be sure to register early as spots will be limited.)<p>http://try.sendhub.com/techtalk/
======
morkfromork
The register button does not work with my Firefox OSX 28.0. Works with Chrome.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Show HN: Level-Up "game" for people trying to lose weight - AznHisoka
Our first iPhone app is finally out: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/slimkicker-calorie-counter/id512812753?ls=1&mt=8 . We also got a website: slimkicker.com for those without iPhones.<p>As the title suggests, we try to apply gamification for people trying to lose weight. We use a points system similar to Weight Watchers, except in reverse (the more healthy the food, the more points).<p>Some people have commented we're similar to another site: Fitocracy (their app also is out today). But we're reaching a different audience: people who want to lose weight or live healthy, but don't know how/where to start. We offer 7-30 day challenges that help people build long-term habits such as "quit soda for a week". The point is to break down the abstract goal of being healthy to smaller subgoals, and winnable games.<p>We're also working on providing concrete, personalized advice based on your activity too. Tracking and gamification are nice, but it's useless without actionable advice.<p>Links:<p>http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/slimkicker-calorie-counter/id512812753?ls=1&mt=8<p>http://www.slimkicker.com
======
AznHisoka
Clickable:
[http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/slimkicker-calorie-
counter/id...](http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/slimkicker-calorie-
counter/id512812753?ls=1&mt=8)
<http://www.slimkicker.com>
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Aks HN: What requirements for downvote activation? - erikb
I know this question was often here. I read before that you need 100 karma to be able to downvote. Now I have 201 and never saw a downvote button anywhere. What other requirements are there?
======
reemrevnivek
According to the FAQ, downvote arrows only occur after you reach _a certain
karma threshold._ A long time ago, this was bumped to 200, and about a year
ago (October 31, 2010), that was again increased to 500:
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1853529>
I believe that the marker is still at 500.
~~~
erikb
Okay, thanks.
------
byoung2
I guess this is no longer accurate (Feb 2009):
<http://ycombinator.com/newsnews.html>
_We've also doubled the karma threshold for downvoting comments (to 100)_
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Apple Reports Q4 Results, $108B in annual revenue, $26B in earnings - acak
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2011/10/18Apple-Reports-Fourth-Quarter-Results.html
======
mpakes
To me, the biggest news here is the 1QFY12 guidance of $37 billion. Guidance
of 30% above their best recorded quarter ever. Wow.
~~~
jcdavis
Yes, a monster guidance. And remember this is Apple's estimate, which is has
always been a lowball recently (even for this quarter, which was a little
disappointing). $40B is definitely possible.
Certainly the iPhone sales this quarter weren't that great, but given the
circumstances (most people knew the 4s/5 was coming), as well the 4s sold 4
million units on its opening weekend (almost 1/4th of all of last quarter's
sales), I don't think it was that bad at all.
Obvious disclaimer: long AAPL, may buy more tomorrow
~~~
kprobst
Lowballing quarterly earnings seems to have been a Jobs thing. With Cook on
the saddle I'm guessing this will be the pattern going forward.
------
DavidSJ
The headline could plausibly, and amusingly, be: "Apple Disappoints With 52%
Year Over Year Profit Growth"
~~~
lefthem
Note that apple, which has >50% YoY growth, is trading about about 16.5 P/E
(ttm). Stock dropped about 6% after hours. As a point of reference, Yahoo also
announced results ( revenues down 5% YoY), has a P/E of 17.5, and it's stock
ROSE after-hours. Boggles the mind.
~~~
apaprocki
I'm not convinced the stock shift is fully explained by "missed estimates" as
you notice here. The highest open interest was piled into the ~390 puts for
most of the day and look where the stock wound up. This is relevant because
the monthly options all expire on Friday. Earnings hasn't happened before
options expiration in a while so there could be a lot of institutional play in
the market to zero in a particular price to prevent options exposure in both
calls/puts. Keep in mind only 0.95% of AAPL stock is owned by individuals[1].
[1] Checked holdings on a Bloomberg earlier out of curiosity.
EDIT: Some related theory:
[http://www.aaplpain.com/Site/Home/Entries/2011/10/18_Apple_O...](http://www.aaplpain.com/Site/Home/Entries/2011/10/18_Apple_Option_Pain__Step_1__Acceptance.html)
------
Jayasimhan
Apple missed streets expectations. Please sell your stocks... so I can buy :)
------
37prime
Anything Apple does these days always disappoint analysts. Well, most analysts
are overpaid for what they do anyway.
Financial Analysts has been underestimating Apple since 2004. This time
they're pumping up the expectations.
Overall it is still a spectacular Quarter for Apple.
~~~
seven_stones
I just read about how the stock tumbled because the results were less than
expected.
"Highest September Quarter Revenue and Earnings Ever" and it's a
disappointment.
This is like the market equivalent of "eh, her knees are too pointy".
Scumbag stock market. Why not forget IPOs and stay private?
~~~
function_seven
The reason the stock fell is because the expected results were built into the
price. So when the numbers didn't meet the market's expectations, the price
adjusted accordingly.
The expectations have nothing to do with where they were last year. Rather,
they're built on forecasts of how the market (and Apple) think they _will_ do
in the future.
~~~
seven_stones
As already mentioned in this thread, expectations of how it WILL do for this
quarter are astronomical. Sales numbers that are already in back this up.
Also see here: <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3128143>
So, no, this shift is _not_ explained by how anyone thinks Apple will do in
the near future.
~~~
function_seven
Good link. I'm not sophisticated enough to consider those aspects. I was
really only referring to the spectre of beating YoY numbers by %50, and it
still being considered "below expectations"
------
krobertson
I am curious if the expectations had taken into account the slipped release.
There is probably no doubt the slipped release hurt them, but typically, the
new iPhone comes out June/July and probably fuels a large portion of their Q4.
With the 4S just coming out, it will fuel their Q1 instead.
Additionally, if they did try to account for the late release, they probably
had more people than expected holding off for the new phone. That could prove
beneficial in Q1. Most of the articles call out that the dip in expectations
will likely be short lived, pointing to the sales in the first days of the
release.
------
buckwild
The price seems to be dropping. $422.24 at close today and $393.74 after hours
(@3pm pacific 10/18/2011)...
[http://www.google.com/finance?client=ob&q=NASDAQ:AAPL](http://www.google.com/finance?client=ob&q=NASDAQ:AAPL)
~~~
forrestthewoods
Analyst expectations missed. <http://www.cnbc.com/id/44908357> Seems likely
due to iPhone 4S shipping later than their normal cycle? That'd also be why
guidance for the next quarter is so high I imagine?
~~~
mikeryan
Apple always lowballs guidance (note Apple beat its own guidance by about 2B I
believe) so its up to the street to set their own view of what Apple should be
making (on top of Apple's estimations). Of course they're just guessing based
on past results so its way less accurate.
Its a bit of Apple's fault however. They're noted for low balling revenue
guidance which is why the street likes to tack a few billion on whatever Apple
says.
------
phil
Gross margin was down 1.5% over last quarter. Anyone want to guess what lower
margin products they sold more of?
I'd guess Macbook Airs, but there are certainly other contenders.
~~~
chugger
You don't compare numbers against the previous quarter, you compare numbers
against the same quarter, the previous year.
Apple's gross margin this quarter was 40.3 percent, compared to 36.9 percent
in the year-ago quarter
~~~
phil
That's true of revenue, but as far as I know there's not as much annual
cyclicity for margins.
~~~
DrJokepu
I don't know much about consumer product sales, but I wouldn't think that it's
entirely impossible that different products have somewhat different seasonal
sales patterns.
~~~
erikpukinskis
People buy lots of laptops in August/September for back to school. People buy
lots of iPods in December for gifts. People buy lots of iPhones in whatever
quarter they launch a new iPhone in.
------
alexknight
I only have two words to say: Truly staggering.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
How I could have hacked any Facebook account - phwd
http://www.anandpraka.sh/2016/03/how-i-could-have-hacked-your-facebook.html
======
cphoover
Frankly I think the amount being award by these companies is minuscule when
you compare it to the amount of damage this information could have caused
Facebook in the wrong hands.
~~~
dsacco
This has been discussed many, many times on HN before. This bug would not
cause Facebook much damage; in fact, Facebook and Google tend to overpay
rewards for bugs for the purposes of goodwill and recruiting.
Let's examine the facts:
1\. A Facebook vulnerability is dangerous to Facebook. A WordPress
vulnerability is dangerous to a quarter of the internet. Facebook is not a
high value target, relatively speaking.
2\. A Facebook vulnerability will be patched once it is widely used.
Facebook's security team is one of the strongest and most sophisticated of any
company, and their processes would quickly catch this once it was used. The
total impact of the bug would be negligible. You'd lose the ability to
compromise accounts as soon as you tried to do it in any meaningful or
lucrative way.
3\. A vulnerability in Facebook might last a week before being patched, but a
vulnerability in PHP will persist on the internet for years. No matter how
many individual sites patch their servers, you'll still be able to pop a
lonely server with social security numbers chugging along in a closet
somewhere.
There really isn't much more to say about this. People claim bounties awarded
by Facebook/Google/et al are undervalued every single time a bug bounty hits
the front page of HN. Every single time, someone who is in the security
industry patiently explains why it's not that valuable.
If someone tried to go to a blackhat group or go to the "black-market" (a
shadowy, lucrative place that never seems to be very well-defined in these
conversations), he would not even be able to find a seller, let alone one who
would pay a lot.
What do you imagine someone would pay for this on the black-market? They'd
need to profit from it. How much profit is worth their time?
Say they buy it for $20,000. Do you really think someone will derive $20,000
of profit from this before it's caught and patched by Facebook?
The only vulnerability worth $15,000 or more is one directly impacting a
language, a widely used development library/framework or a widely used piece
of software.
For further reading on bug bounty valuation:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7106953](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7106953)
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9302188](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9302188)
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9040855](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9040855)
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9041017](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9041017)
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8563884](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8563884)
~~~
arcticfox
What are you talking about? Facebook is not a "high value target" and "this
bug would not cause Facebook much damage"?
For example, if you wanted to monetize it, I have to imagine TMZ (or someone
even less scrupulous) would pay a lot of money for dumps of A-list celeb and
athlete Facebook accounts.
You don't think Facebook having "The Fappening Part 2" on their hands is worth
more than $15k to prevent? Or having every US Government FB account
simultaneously posting ISIS propaganda?
The PR for any number of scenarios like those would be an absolute nightmare
for Facebook.
~~~
dsacco
Your comment does not reflect how vulnerability sales work in the real world.
In the real world, vulnerabilities are sold to blackhat groups who want to
make a profit by attacking as many websites as possible. Generally, these
websites will have valuable credit card or other information that can be
stolen from a compromised server.
Compromised user accounts (not even the server! just users!) on a single
website do not constitute a valuable target.
The idea that TMZ would pay a significant amount of money for this is a
Hollywood plot, nothing more. Vulnerabilities are not valued highly just
because you can come up with a contrived scenario in which it would be
valuable to someone for some reason.
This is a market, and like any other market there are buyers and sellers who
dictate supply and demand.
~~~
bcook
>Compromised user accounts (not even the server! just users!) on a single
website do not constitute a valuable target.
That statement is just plain wrong. With over a billion Facebook users, surely
_some_ of them are high-value targets.
~~~
JetSpiegel
But what can you really do with the Facebook login of, say Obama? Not
provoking WW3, that's for sure. The only thing you can realistically create is
a PR kerfuffle for Facebook, but considering the way to spread it would be
(wait for it) on Facebook itself, there's not much money is this.
~~~
georgeglue1
You simply log into the Bloomberg/AP/NYTimes account, post some fake economic
or political news, and then call in some options you purchased the week
before.
If done intelligently, this is incredibly difficult to trace. There is risk
(rather than a straight-up sale), but the expected returns are probably an
order of magnitude higher.
~~~
argonaut
Given that the risk is you go to jail, I'm not so sure.
~~~
bcook
I thought most blackhat activities already implied the threat of jail-time...
------
sandGorgon
BTW - Anand is a security engineer working for Flipkart and is one if India's
smartest security experts. This is not the first time he has found bugs.
[http://yourstory.com/2015/10/techie-tuesdays-anand-
prakash/](http://yourstory.com/2015/10/techie-tuesdays-anand-prakash/)
------
jdcarter
Good reminder here that _all_ publicly-visible services are part of your
overall attack surface, including beta sites and other things you never expect
people to look at. The DROWN vulnerability from last week was similar: people
disabled SSLv2 on their web servers, but not their mail servers.
Very nice find: super simple but super effective. I'm glad Facebook paid up
promptly.
------
dsmithatx
This has me thinking about another possible attack. Say I don't want to hack
all of Facebook or a specific account. What if I used a botnet to reset
passwords and then use the six attempts randomly on each account I reset. Sure
I'd only get a small percentage but, I would easily start hacking FB accounts.
It's things like this that make me use 2FA as much as possible on personal
data.
~~~
orionblastar
2FA is nice unless you lose your cell phone or it gets stolen. If you ever
lose your job or go homeless and can't afford a cell phone then you are locked
out of your accounts.
I am disabled and struggling if I miss payments I go homeless or can't pay my
bills and things get shut off. For me 2FA might not work if I am down on my
luck.
~~~
ladzoppelin
Authy is really good. [https://www.authy.com/](https://www.authy.com/)
They need a Firefox extension but its allowed me to do 2FA on my personal and
work accounts without fear of being totally locked out if I loose my phone.
~~~
voltagex_
Don't Authy store some of your secrets server-side?
~~~
rtpg
You can choose to store some, yes, but it's encrypted by your backup password.
At least that's my understanding of it.
------
haser_au
A great example of responsible disclosure, and the company acknowledging,
fixing and rewarding the bug and finder. Great job to both Facebook and Anand.
------
mcone
How do companies evaluate the severity and impact of the vulnerability? I
don't work in security, but it seems like this is worth more than $15,000.
~~~
dsacco
Companies evaluate severity based on impact. There are different tiers of
vulnerability.
A vulnerability that affects a particular website is significantly less
valuable than one that affects many websites.
Companies like Google and Facebook actually overpay for vulnerabilities
because 1) they're flush with cash and can, 2) it's excellent for goodwill in
the industry, 3) it's an excellent recruiting tool and 4) it augments an
already strong internal security program.
If you hypothetically tried to go to the black market with this vulnerability
you wouldn't even find a buyer. When Facebook patches this, it's useless, and
you'd have to derive more than whatever you paid for. At this point it's a
betting game - do you think you can earn back $100,000 using this exploit
before Facebook catches wind of it?
Conversely, vulnerabilities that are very highly valued tend to affect large
numbers of websites in a format that is not easily patched. For example, many
websites don't update WordPress often, which means that a vulnerability in
WordPress is going to instantly get a CVE and a widespread push for awareness.
Even so, it will be actionable for years.
------
s3arch
For these individual hardworking security analysts, Facebook awarding cash
prices of "any real value" is much worth than some news article reporting it
as "...simple security flaw...".
[http://www.zdnet.com/article/facebook-fixes-simple-
security-...](http://www.zdnet.com/article/facebook-fixes-simple-security-
flaw-which-let-you-take-over-any-account/)
------
moonshinefe
A whole $15k? This could have cost them hundreds of thousands if not millions
in lawsuits. That's a pretty crappy incentive, I'd imagine a lot less moral
security researchers getting exponentially more money out of something like
this by just selling the 0day.
I wonder why the reward is so low. This is literally the amount a code monkey
gets paid after 3-5 months of work with minimal skills.
------
thrownn
On the subject of rate limiting, what is the best way to apply it across all
endpoints, APIs and resources, external and internal, with minimal effort?
Usually, I see this implemented only as an afterthought, and only on endpoints
deemed 'dangerous', waiting for a disaster like this to happen...
~~~
noir_lord
It's a defense in depth scenario but most webservers have modules for it,
Apache certainly does as I've used it not sure about nginx still not used that
in production.
------
technion
beta.facebook.com and mbasic.beta.facebook.com
Certificate Transparency has an interesting impact on some of the less-public
servers.
[https://crt.sh/?q=%25.facebook.com](https://crt.sh/?q=%25.facebook.com)
A host of servers turn up in that list, which may similarly be less security
tested than the main facebook.com site.
~~~
nly
I'm surprised an organisation as large as Facebook don't have their own CA,
and just don't issue the semi-secret stuff off the record.
~~~
evgen
Running a CA is a major pain, adds auditing and other requirements that are
ongoing pain, and prior to the past year or so Facebook did not issue enough
certificates to make the cost worthwhile. Doing this right means adding a lot
of logging and access control around a few parts of the infra stack that would
manage this, so why not pay someone else to deal with the paperwork and
bother? All FB certs are on the CT logs as a matter of policy, so that there
are no loopholes in our current statement that if a Facebook cert is not on
the CT logs you should not consider it valid; we will accept the loss of
secrecy (and people launching new stuff hate it but have learned to adjust) if
the end result is making it harder for someone to slide a dodgy cert into the
chain.
------
unknownzero
Anyone know what tool he was using in the YouTube video? This stuff is super
interesting.
~~~
fatlasp
Looks like Burp Suite. Sweet web proxy tool --
[https://portswigger.net/burp/](https://portswigger.net/burp/) Free for 14
days I think.
~~~
unknownzero
Awesome! Thanks for the link. It looks like they have a limited free forever
version as well, gonna have to play with this.
~~~
fatlasp
hmm yea my memory might have adjusted it to a trial period -- looks like many
of the most useful features are crippled in the free version.
------
beshrkayali
Regardless of this being Facebook or not, but forget to throttle your API and
this is what you get, some dude toying around with a tool just to poke holes
in your thing, but I digress.
If in any twisted, unrealistic, straight out of Homeland scenario where anyone
high profile enough would make use of this "vulnerability" and successfully
create a media "splash", and assuming Facebook security team is on top of
their game, this would get patched in a week tops. Keeping an eye on average
number of requests coming to their API end points, especially sensitive ones,
is part of their job, not a nice-to-have. I'd even think this would actually
get patched within 24 hours (since the fix isn't really that difficult). I
have absolutely no care or sympathy for Facebook but yeah, 15K is a lot for
something like this. It's a nice catch, that's all.
------
debacle
Good on Facebook for being so quick to reward Anand and fix the issue.
------
annnnd
I would love to know if someone has exploited this bug - should be fairly easy
to learn that from logs (this attack is far from stealthy). I guess FB will
never tell. :)
------
adam12
Anyone else have trouble with that webpage? It froze my browser (Chrome).
------
010a
Hacker News: Where comments can be six paragraphs long and say absolutely
nothing.
~~~
dang
We detached this subthread from
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11249116](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11249116)
and marked it off-topic.
------
msie
Surprised that the well-paid developers at Facebook missed this vulnerability.
Should inspire confidence on anyone who didn't get a job there. :-)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
How to Fail - tdavidson
http://www.unstructuredventures.com/uv/2008/09/23/how-to-fail-25-secrets-learned-through-failure/
======
wildwood
Aren't the first two points mutually contradictory? It seems to me that
'making decisions early' is roughly the same as 'planning'. Why not plunge
ahead with a design approach, and give yourself permission to fail?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: Why won't Go compile with unused imports? - fhood
I am very curious as to why this particular "feature" was implemented in the language. I find it very annoying and was wondering if there was a logic to its inclusion in the language.
======
detaro
[https://golang.org/doc/faq#unused_variables_and_imports](https://golang.org/doc/faq#unused_variables_and_imports)
Keeping code clean. If you can't compile with unused imports/variables, you
can't forget them.
~~~
fhood
I was hoping for something more fundamental. That feels like sacrificing
function for form
~~~
jameskilton
I don't understand. What's being sacrificed? Of what use is a list of imports
that aren't used?
~~~
fhood
You have never commented out a section of code that was the only place an
import was used for debugging?
~~~
imauld
Sure. I also use Atom with gofmt installed (the Atom gofmt package allows you
to use goimports as a formatter). Comment the line and hit save and the import
goes away. Uncomment and hit save and it comes back. Tools exist to make
dealing with this requirement painless.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Microsoft, Google and the Bear - Flemlord
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/26/microsoft-google-and-the-bear/
======
gamble
This is basically what I've been saying about Android since it was announced.
The iPhone comparisons and controversy over 'openness' were inevitable, but
Google's motivation for Android was always to prevent Microsoft from acting as
a gatekeeper for mobile search. I don't think they anticipated how quickly
MS's position in mobile operating systems would deteriorate.
------
ShabbyDoo
"That’s fine. But what are you going to do as your music experience? What will
you do for your photos experience?" [Asking this question of carriers, not
consumers]
Either this MS exec was just FUD-ing, or he really doesn't get the benefit of
an open mobile platform. Users don't want all their X "experiences" coupled
with their decisions about device and carrier (presuming that everything works
together as advertised). I want an Android phone because it keep Verizon from
limiting functionality as a means of attempting to maximize monthly
revenue/subscriber. If the market is big enough, there will be twenty good
music apps from which to choose.
What will the carriers do? Probably offer up a suite of open source apps as
defaults or sell "space" on the out-of-the-box phone to 3rd party devs who
have compelling apps. By selecting Android, carriers have already opted out of
the user extortion game, so why would they be worried about a photo
"experience"?
~~~
Maascamp
"Users don't want all their X "experiences" coupled with their decisions about
device and carrier (presuming that everything works together as advertised)"
Isn't that what made the iPhone so popular?
~~~
ShabbyDoo
I guess this is partially correct as Apple doesn't allow apps that compete
with core services. Loopt (which I have never used) is an example of my point.
Would I prefer to buy a device that is limited to a particular locate-people
service or would I like to buy a device which can run any of N competing
services?
------
joezydeco
Microsoft is looking at it from the wrong angle.
Google has been honest about the goal of Android from the beginning: to
address the billions of non-PC owning people out there that aren't using the
web and, consequently, not using Google and it's services.
Google couldn't care less if they make a red cent off of the Android platform.
What they DO care about is cornering the eyeballs and advertising dollars on
mobile platforms. Since Microsoft's core business doesn't involve selling ads,
it's totally off their radar.
~~~
GeneralMaximus
> ... to address the billions of non-PC owning people out there that aren't
> using the web and, consequently, not using Google and it's services.
Then they're doing a pretty bad job.
Here's what Google is missing. Most of those non-PC owning people broadly fall
into two categories: (1) those who live in 3rd world countries and/or cannot
afford computers and (2) people who are just afraid of technology or have no
use for it.
Selling to (2) is useless. (1) is where the money is.
Now consider a country like India. Back here, cellphones are bigger than
computers, penetration-wise. Reason: a large number of competing carriers
which results in dirt-cheap calls (the phone I use costs me about $7 a month
since most calls I make are completely free) and affordable GPRS. MTNL and
BSNL, who have a penchant for utterly destroying competitors on pricing alone,
just launched dirt-cheap 3G services. I think we all know what happens next.
What is the only barrier in the way of cheap mobile Internet? The handset. To
be precise, a 3G handset that is fast enough to render web pages and a few
basic apps. This is where Android fails. Cheapo handsets from small
manufacturers, cheap J2ME phones from LG/Samsung/Sony and Chinese clones of
high-end smartphones are pretty big here. Why buy a Rs.30K Android phone when
you can get similar functionality in a 10K unbranded Chinese phone? Or even a
15K HTC phone with Windows Mobile?
Unless Android can run on cheap, low-end handsets, I don't see it ever
becoming big with the non-PC-owning crowd.
~~~
krschultz
Today's high end handsets are tomorrows cheapo ones.
~~~
joezydeco
Ding! Give that man a cigar.
------
ellyagg
Pretty brilliant, really. Google doesn't want to be the gatekeeper, but they
don't want anyone else to be the gatekeeper either.
------
seldo
I'm not sure I buy the premise that all of Android is just a blocking move to
Microsoft. Microsoft had 10 years to make a dent in the mobile market and
failed against Nokia and RIM, and that was before Apple jumped into the game
and stomped everybody else. There was no danger of Windows Mobile, sorry,
Windows Phone getting anywhere.
If Android is a loss-making strategic move against any company, then it's
Apple -- having an open development platform in place from a credible company
like Google keeps Apple honest and open, when they would otherwise tend to
lock things down.
~~~
wmf
Google bought Android before Apple announced the iPhone, although it wouldn't
surprise me if Google changed their strategy to target Apple after seeing the
iPhone.
~~~
netsp
The point is still a good one though. The market was fractured when they
entered. It is still fractured & it doesn't seem to need Google to stay that
way.
------
roc
Google seems to be applying that strategy across several of its more-puzzling
projects. E.g. Android, Chrome, Chrome OS
------
Quarrelsome
Does Windows Mobile really end up costing so much? I'm pretty sure at the
business end of things, especially in larger deals the costs become
negligable.
The fact that these manufacturers are so eager to try out Android pretty much
illustrates how disappointed they are with WinMo/wince. It's alright but it is
kinda meh.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Flickr to delete free accounts with 1000+ images - kodisha
https://twitter.com/s10wen/status/1081467383796195328
======
ChrisGranger
They're not deleting the _accounts_ , but any content above and beyond the new
1000-image limit.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: Seeking General Marketing Feedback - 100-xyz
Our product is a platform (called 100) for local information via Wifi. If a user sees a Wifi SSID that starts with 100-, she knows 100.here will get him to the business's page (menu, about us, recipes, hair styles....)<p>Our website - http://100-xyz.com<p>Our product has a wide range of uses. We looked at restaurants, bars, households and specialty stores.<p>We have strong interest from a live translation startup that will use our hardware. Its probably a niche application.<p>Looking at the broader market, we are focusing on restaurants as our target group.<p>Talk to a few restaurants, understand their problems well and tweak the product so they love it.<p>We've already talked and installed our system in a few.<p>Among all our features (menu, ordering system..) the thing that restaurants find most appealing is stealing customers ie. customers in neighboring businesses see their web content and are customers on the next visit.<p>On most new smartphones, the restaurant page will pop up on wifi connection (for internet log in). On some it wont. Additionally, the pop will disappear after log in. This is a problem that our product faces.<p>We prepared small cards with two simple steps to get to the restaurant web page. However, we found restaurant staff was reluctant to hand these out.<p>Second problem: logs show that people are landing on the web page without the need for any prompts. However, the restaurant staff has no way of knowing this.<p>We came up with an idea. Create SSID with an offer eg: 100-Johns_Bistro_Coupon. Users get to the site, find the coupon and take a screen shot and on their next visit show it to get a discount or something free. This way, the staff also knows its been effective and the users are also likely to spread the word, because its beneficial to them.<p>We are about to do implement this idea. Any suggestions, comments or other things we could try?
======
100-xyz
Also, we will be in the SF area in Dec and Jan. We are looking for restaurants
that would agree to be our guinea pigs. We will do all the work (creating the
web pages, menu...) for free.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Hackers Were Inside Citrix for Five Months - feross
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2020/02/hackers-were-inside-citrix-for-five-months/
======
arminiusreturns
One thing I have learned as a sysadmin who has had the privledge to see the
inside of hundreds of companies from medium sized law firms to F500 oil
companies:
There is a lot more incompetence than you would ever want to believe, and it's
not always where you think. I've traced most of it to a failure of
connection/communication between IT departments and C-levels/boards. The
CTO/CIO and the person immediately below them (and the person immediately
below them) are the "buck stops here" people for these kinds of issues, but
often are either one of two types. 1) Too much MBA, not enough tech. 2) Too
much tech, not enough MBA.
Both tend to have pretty similar results.
~~~
BiteCode_dev
I work with a F500 oil company from time to time.
Half of the devs from there that I was in contact with were not capable of:
\- googling a solution to a problem efficiently. When they hit a wall, they
turned to me with an empty look like they were lost.
\- read an error message to troubleshoot. A stack trace is utter mystery.
\- use effectively the UI of their laptop. Some can't even Ctrl + S to save,
they look up the "save" entry in the menu.
We are talking about people writing code every day, in several programming
languages: fortran, c, c++, java, Python...
Because I'm a freelancer, I don't care. I'm paid extremely well to be very
nice to them and solve all their problems.
But I'm very glad I don't have to be held responsible for anything those
people end up putting in production. And I have no reason to believe it's
different in their security department.
However, and this is a good lesson to all of the geeks like me that think work
is about doing the right thing: the output they produce is good enough in our
society. Its cost/value hits the sweat spot. Business is not about doing
things right, it's about being profitable.
If you have one scandal a year, but it costs you less than making sure you
have a secure system, and you are not legally challenged, then you are golden.
In fact, the chances to have even one scandal are very low. Actual risks of
failure or attack are low. And consequences in case of crisis are low too.
People don't care that much about privacy, cyber-security, etc. And policy
makers won't enforce their laws anyway, at least not to any extent that will
endanger the company.
So if the software allows people to do their job IRL at a reasonable price,
under an acceptable deadline, good enough.
In fact, David Goodenough is a very funny French meme:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ho4W5LnFl6s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ho4W5LnFl6s)
~~~
PopeDotNinja
I used to work with a brilliant chip designer who couldn't find the start
button on a Windows machine. We all suck at something. Personally, I think CSS
is the devil and should we should nuke it from orbit.
~~~
neltnerb
True, I have a Ph.D. and am very skilled with electronics and embedded
programming. If you handed me an iPhone I would have no idea how to read text
messages (actual situation).
Same with the people I help technically at work. They're all brilliant
scientists. They get confused by the difference between VGA, DisplayPort,
HDMI, and DVI. Or get extremely frustrated when a button on the UI moves.
I think software developers don't quite understand how big a deal it is to a
70 year old when the button to do something moves. Probably a quarter of my
day is often just figuring out how to reconfigure things to their liking or
else spend an hour retraining them because of some unnecessary UI change in
Windows 10, after which they will still forget and ask for help again.
God forbid you break apart an application into multiple programs or have
online activation or a license server. I think I hear at least a daily rant
about how you can't just _buy_ software anymore and now you can only rent it
for a bit.
We have versions of software that are 13 years old because the publisher
switched from an unlimited permanent license to a per-seat per-year license
model. Rarely worth it when the instructors get confused by new software
anyway.
~~~
PopeDotNinja
> They get confused by the difference between VGA, DisplayPort, HDMI, and DVI
Back when there were RS232 (aka 9 pin) connectors on PCs, my dad's computer
had two mail connectors, one CGA and one serial port (I think it was a serial
port, but I'm not sure, as those connectors were usually female). I took the
VGA cable and accidentally plugged it into the serial port. When I turned on
the computer, I heard the startup chirping noises, the screen was black for a
few seconds, and then white smoke started pouring out of the power supply. I
turned it off REAL fast :) Somehow the computer still worked after that.
EDIT: changed VGA to CGA
~~~
anonsivalley652
VGA is DE-15 (3 rows), DE-9 (erroneously called DB-9) is 2 rows. ;)
Interestingly, VGA only really needs 6 pins to operate: R G B VSYNC HSYNC &
GND, and monochrome only needs 4.
I don't see how that's possible without really crushing it in there. Also, CGA
& EGA were the same connector as serial (DE-9), which would've been easier to
confuse.
It could've been worse: I knew a guy in high-school who plugged a parallel
printer into a Mac classic's SCSI DB-25 (the same physical connector as a
parallel port, female on the computer; DB-25 serial is a male connector on a
PC) and baked it into "apple pie" with that "lovely" magic smoke aroma.
~~~
PopeDotNinja
Yup, you are right, it was CGA. Fixed.
------
streb-lo
> In March 2019, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) alerted Citrix they
> had reason to believe cybercriminals had gained access to the company’s
> internal network. The FBI told Citrix the hackers likely got in using a
> technique called “password spraying,” a relatively crude but remarkably
> effective attack that attempts to access a large number of employee accounts
> (usernames/email addresses) using just a handful of common passwords.
Pretty bad when the FBI has to step in and alert you that someone has brute
forced their way into your servers.
~~~
basch
Weird timing that Dec of 18 they forced a password reset to most of its
Sharefile "customers." (aka including anyone who has ever received a file from
someone through sharefile, and accidentally signed up for a service they didnt
want.)
[https://krebsonsecurity.com/2018/12/a-breach-or-just-a-
force...](https://krebsonsecurity.com/2018/12/a-breach-or-just-a-forced-
password-reset/)
“This is not in response to a breach of Citrix products or services,” wrote
spokesperson Jamie Buranich.
I want to know if they knew already in December, and if they lied to the
public and their customers. Maybe they could argue that "yes a breach
happened, but this password reset was completely unrelated" but thats a load
of livestockwash, if thats the case.
Edit: maybe i should read the article. Looks like they were in back in
October! Jamie is likely just a sacrificial lamb, who is there so they have a
head to roll, but somebody on the executive team should be in trouble for that
kind of lie, unless there were government gag orders.
>Citrix’s letter was prompted by laws in virtually all U.S. states that
require companies to notify affected consumers of any incident that
jeopardizes their personal and financial data.
Excuse my French, but thats fucking bullshit that they are just admitting to
this a year and a half later.
~~~
dublinben
As Matt Levine would say, this is probably securities fraud.
------
jens-h
On its own website, Citrix is using the real costs of a data breach as an
argument to buy its products: [https://www.citrix.com/de-de/products/citrix-
workspace/resou...](https://www.citrix.com/de-de/products/citrix-
workspace/resources/weighing-the-risks-infographic.html)
But because of the widespread use of the software, a recent Citrix
vulnerability puts 80K companies at risk: [https://www.infosecurity-
magazine.com/news/citrix-vulnerabil...](https://www.infosecurity-
magazine.com/news/citrix-vulnerability-puts-80k/)
It is always dangerous if a single company has a monopoly.
------
anonsivalley652
I worked at a big name university in the IT department for housing and dining.
Long before I got there, one of the Oracle database servers for meal-related
activities had been pwned for years because it hadn't been behind a firewall
and it had a routed public IP address. It was running Windows so it had
accumulated a number of interesting malware including obscure rootkits with no
antivirus patterns. I once booted it up off of clean media, ran some forensics
tools and found a warez dumpsite on it. This box "couldn't be down" so all the
happened to it was it was place behind a bidirectionally-restricted firewall.
It still kept limping along with funky malware because they didn't want to
spend time or money fixing it. _Sigh._ If it were my box, it would've been an
immediate disconnection, image hardening, wipe and reinstall from backups
(data-only).
I remember sending some binaries and other deets over to Mark Russinovich at
then SysInternals, who's now the CTO of Azure.
~~~
doublerabbit
Wouldn’t even do backups, you couldn’t trust them.
If a box is hacked, it’s hosed. Cast fire and rebuild start again.
------
euroclydon
How much source code was committed in that span? Time to audit it all. Plus
the binaries and other resources that are pulled off network shares at build
time. Plus the compilers...
~~~
jmiskovic
You already hinted at it, but anyone interested in computer security should
read Ken Thompson's short but majestic "Reflections on trusting trust".
------
jokoon
Well, no official government-supported agency have even stepped in to
establish a list of norms involving software security, to force large
corporations to abide by them.
While the private sector is the sole responsible for their own cyber security,
and while the NSA wants to keep the upper hand in cybersecurity by holding a
cyber-weaponry supremacy, events like these will keep happening.
Cyber chaos will continue because the NSA is obviously holding massive
advancements in cyber weapons. The day the NSA will have an adversary that can
be at least 50% as good as the NSA, you can be sure you will see cyber
security standards being passed into law.
If you think about it, having cyber supremacy is a good way to have total
power over the world. When you have all the information, you have everything
you need to do whatever you want. That sort of describes the US right now.
~~~
xp84
>list of norms involving software security
These norms are already well-known. However they are never followed 100%
because they all rest upon a sandy foundation of:
__" Don't be clueless." __
Social engineering /phishing will always eventually work on _someone_
somewhere in a company with more than 20 employees.
Not to mention the other part, where passwords are allowed to be a vital link
in the security chain, yet software vendors like Citrix simultaneously
discourage password managers by getting in the way of using them and by
forcing perfectly good passwords to be cycled endlessly. Resulting in people
using passwords like Citrix20! (will change to Citrix21! in 90 days... iron
clad security there guys.)
------
H8crilA
Isn't this normal? I mean after you break in keeping a low profile and staying
undetected for as long as possible sounds like a no brainer to me. I wouldn't
be surprised if some APTs were inside some "worst" companies for even 2 years
at a time.
Edit: from the Wikipedia page on Advanced Persistent Threats:
> _The median "dwell-time", the time an APT attack goes undetected, differs
> widely between regions. FireEye reports the mean dwell-time for 2018 in the
> Americas is 71 days, EMEA is 177 days and APAC is 204 days.[4] This allows
> attackers a significant amount of time to go through the attack cycle,
> propagate and achieve their objective._
------
moepstar
What i find particularly embarrassing for Citrix (although only marginally
touched in the article) is the amount of time taken for them to close the hole
that was in their Netscaler/ADC components.
I mean, this is not a one-man show and an open-source project....
~~~
thedance
How do you know? There are lots of commercial products that have no staffing
at all. "1 man" might even be above the median staffing.
~~~
montalbano
Citrix had 8200 employees as of 2018 according to Wikipedia.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citrix_Systems](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citrix_Systems)
~~~
thedance
I meant the NetScaler project in particular.
~~~
frollo
They still have nearly 10k employees and are a big, affluent company. None of
their project should be a one-man project, but, even if it were, they should
still be able to find enough engineers to work on it in case of emergencies.
If it can be done by a small startup with a total of 3 devs in the entire
company (and I have seen it done), it can be done by a company the size of
Citrix.
~~~
thedance
I guess you'd be surprised at how easy it is for an organization to just de-
staff a launched product.
~~~
throwiay987
why are we defending gross incompetence and laid back attitudes again?
~~~
mynameisvlad
Who is defending, exactly?
thedance is pointing out that we have no idea of the inner workings of Citrix,
and how they staff their projects. It's not completely unreasonable to believe
a non-core project has minimal staffing levels.
------
noident
I was relieved to see that only internal employee information was impacted.
You don't even want to know how many banks, hospitals, and power plants rely
on Citrix Receiver for remote desktop access.
~~~
tyingq
_" I was relieved to see that only internal employee information was
impacted"_
Believing that puts a lot of credence in their analytical/forensic/security
skills. Which doesn't align well with _" inside Citrix for Five Months"_.
------
jerry1979
I have always felt very uneasy about Citrix in the workplace, especially
around PHI.
~~~
Swtrz
I know of...three major HI providers in the midwest using citrix
------
tomrod
I look forward to seeing this covered on Darknet diaries. Just found the
podcast and it rocks!
Having used Citrix this really, really doesn't surprise me.
------
amaccuish
I've always found Citrix perform way better than RDP (feels more responsive,
handles multimedia better)
I don't understand how after all these years and being originally based on the
same tech, how RDP hasn't caught up.
~~~
Spooky23
Microsoft does a mediocre job with RDP because windows pc was the cash cow.
Pretty sure that Citrix invented RDP and licensed it back.
Now they are changing, and are partnering with Citrix and VMWare in Azure.
Eventually, they’ll crush both.
~~~
LilBytes
PCoIP has been a huge shift in the landscape for remote access protocols for
this reason.
------
Stierlitz
If the hack was conducted through the use of account hijacking then why didn't
anybody at Citrix notice. Unless once the hackers got in they migrated within
the network using as yet unknown vulnerabilities. Makes one wonder of there
are backdoors in all networking equipment. So as the various state security
entities can keep an eye on us.
------
aSplash0fDerp
So instead of the old days of having a sign that says "We haven't had a
workplace accident in XX days" they need "We haven't had a security breach in
XX days".
How times change...
~~~
stef25
Not sure if there's more breaches or just more exposure because people started
caring. Reading the The Cuckoo's Egg at the moment, apparently it was common
in the 1980's for military networks to have guest/guest logins, or even ones
with no passwords at all.
------
blintz
I hope we can move to a world with ubiquitous two-factor and hardware roots of
trust (FIDO2, U2F, etc) across enterprises. That is the only way I see things
like this ending.
~~~
anonsivalley652
The core of OSes need to be treated more like read-only firmware that only
gets updated as-needed and is unable to be over-written by itself, e.g., send
a request to the BIOS to look for a valid public-key signed image file to be
applied on reboot.
Flash is so cheap, 64 GiB mirrored SSD devices should be available for
operating system images on system boards. Leave OS images as signed squashfs
files on a dumb flash FS like exFAT. Delta updates can be applied by
stripping-out entropic-metadata, patching and recompressing a previous release
to arrive at the valid signature of a complete latest release.
Mixing operating systems, configuration, programs and user data in together is
a recipe for fail.
------
PaulHoule
People still use Citrix?
~~~
westmeal
Honestly, you would be surprised how many giant companies still use Citrix.
Mostly medical. Terrifying.
~~~
dman
And financial companies
~~~
gyc
And law firms big and small.
~~~
jacquesm
And places that use RDP like setups for development because they don't want
their employees to walk out with the crown jewels on their laptops.
~~~
PaulHoule
Why not just use RDP? It is because it as hard to get an enterprise to stop
paying for a software license as it is to get one to start?
~~~
jcrawfordor
Citrix XenApp or whatever it's called this week is a lot better marketed to
enterprise and offers a lot more integrations than Windows MultiPoint/Terminal
Server. But a lot of is history, Citrix was a close partner of Microsoft and
so Citrix essentially _was_ RDP in this context for some time before Microsoft
decided to try competing on their own. Microsoft's entries have never really
caught up in terms of adoption or features - for one, Citrix supports just
about every platform there is for the receiver while Microsoft only has an
officially supported RDP client for a couple.
------
justlexi93
Networking software giant Citrix Systems says malicious hackers were inside
its networks for five months between 2018 and 2019, making off with personal
and financial data on company employees, contractors, interns, job candidates
and their dependents.
------
tinus_hn
From what I’ve heard their advice on securing servers running their software
used to be to ‘make good backups’.
I’m not surprised by an incident like this happening to cowboys.
------
s_dev
Stories like this really show Citrix and Cisco are so far behind Huawei.
If Huawei chips were similarly vulnearable the CIA and FBI would be disclosing
this as vocally as possible.
~~~
vb6sp6
The FBI or CIA would keep any vulnerabilities secret. But here is a recent
example: [https://www.businessinsider.com/us-accuses-huawei-of-
spying-...](https://www.businessinsider.com/us-accuses-huawei-of-spying-
through-law-enforcement-backdoors-2020-2)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Real Email Validation - pythonist
http://www.djangotips.com/real-email-validation
======
roc
The only E-Mail validation involves sending an actual email with a response
link.
Because even if people happen to give you a _functional_ email address, it
isn't necessarily _their_ email address.
And I say that as someone who has come to regret registering a first-initial-
last-name gmail address. And it's not even a particularly common last name.
~~~
vincentkriek
I think the purpose of this validation is to help people who mistype their
emailadress, not to check if it is their emailaddress.
~~~
cincinnatus
Right but on a large system it is possible to mistype it to a valid address
that isn't yours.
------
baudehlo
This is just awful. A quick scan of the code brings up the following problems:
* It fails to deal with the case where there is no MX record for the domain (fall back to A record)
* It fails to sort the MX records, potentially falling foul to tarpits
* It fails to connect to each A record lookup of the MX host on failures
* It fails to deal with transient failures (such as 4xx responses)
That was just from a quick scan.
Connecting to MX servers in a web environment (especially one using blocking
I/O like Django) is generally a really bad idea. Many MX servers use delays
and slow responses to combat spammers, and you're passing those slow responses
on to your users.
Just check it looks vaguely like an email (the regexp fein posted is good
enough most of the time) and send a confirmation email - it's the right thing
to do.
~~~
greyboy
Additionally, doesn't it rely on the truthfulness of the SMTP server? That's
not a good assumption - it's common to accept anything and null-routes bad
addresses.
~~~
baudehlo
Indeed it does - the only way to truly validate is to get that confirmation
email through.
On the flip side I do think there's some value in a service which provides a
check on the domain - that way you can prevent someone typing in
[email protected] by accident. But you'd have to actually implement it
correctly.
Would people be interested in something like this as service?
------
jodrellblank
And I'll still give you [email protected], it will pass every check
you can throw at it, including sending an email and getting me to click a
link, and it still won't be a _real_ email address.
Still your move, e-mail harvesters.
Checking that I haven't mistyped it or put the wrong thing in the wrong field
is a basic sanity check. Beyond that, the only way to actually get a real
email address that I read is to _be a service I care about_.
~~~
Swizec
For me the trick isn't to get my real email address, I give that to anyone.
But kudos to you if you can make it into my "Important and unread" inbox and
remain there. It's the only part of my email that I actually check.
Some services are _so great_ I let their daily reminder emails go there and
_enjoy_ reading them. That's right, there are services out there (I only know
of one) whose daily "You should use us" email is so awesome I enjoy reading it
every day.
~~~
npx
Out of curiosity, what service has such a great daily e-mail?
~~~
Swizec
750words.com
------
martinp
Making your app connect to random SMTP servers every time it needs to validate
an email address doesn't seem like a good idea.
Shared domains (gmail.com etc.) might even get you blacklisted if you flood
the same SMTP servers over and over again.
~~~
healthenclave
Is there a work around ? How about using proxy but I guess that adds another
layer of complexity
~~~
SudoAlex
Use a queue processor - but that's probably going too far for simple email
validation.
The simple work around - don't do it. This code is susceptible to Denial of
Service problems similar to the URLField verify_exists option
[https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2011/sep/09/security-
re...](https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2011/sep/09/security-releases-
issued/) \- a malicious SMTP server could tarpit all your SMTP connections
from Django leaving your site with no workers to process other requests.
The email validation from an EmailField is designed to ensure that it could be
a valid email address, not that it's a valid mailbox. Live with the limitation
instead of trying to be too smart.
------
tomwalsham
The best way to improve email delivery is to understand that email addresses
represent humans. Address validation and long-term deliverability is primarily
a problem of social engineering, not technical.
Ordinarily I'm in favour of things that can improve data quality with minimal
user friction, but in this case while it looks like an attractive solution,
it's both dangerous _and_ broken.
It's dangerous because if you repeatedly open empty SMTP sessions with major
ISPs (and some neckbeard boxen) to validate addresses, you will rapidly fall
onto blacklists. Furthermore existence of an address says nothing of the end
user's ownership of that address.
It's broken because of the myriad crazy responses that mailservers return -:
5XX errors for soft-bounces, 4XX errors for permanent failures, deliberately
dead primary MX server... The web's email infrastructure is so massively
fragmented and quirkily non-RFC-compliant you just cannot rely on technical
solutions to these problems except at scale of an ESP (disclaimer: I work at
PostageApp.com, a transactional ESP, and we tackle this problem on a large
scale)
Finally, it fails my 'Spammer Sniff Test': If you think of a clever trick to
improve email delivery/opens/responses etc, it's been thought up 10 years ago
by spammers and long since added to blocked behaviours in email protection
infrastructure.
Check for '@', and craft your email verification process to incentivize
following through. For long term delivery (to bypass the mailinator issue)
provide value, pure and simple.
------
mmmooo
Greylisting is pretty common, and this would obviously fail:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greylisting>
------
bambax
As an aside, would there be some value in providing an email validator API?
Something exactly like this: <http://mythic-beasts.com/~pdw/cgi-
bin/emailvalidate>
but which would respond in an easy-to-parse way (JSON|XML).
It could be enriched by detecting common spelling errors ('gmial' or 'g-a53'*
instead of 'gmail' for example).
*: gmail when typed on a European laptop with numlock on.
------
alexkus
Will also fail to allow addresses that purposely soft bounce (4xx) the first
attempt (or attempts within a certain time limit) to deliver to them.
------
bambax
('SMPT' is used throughtout instead of 'SMTP'.)
What does django.core.validators.EmailValidator actually do?
Validating an email address with a regex is surprisingly hard: see
<http://www.ex-parrot.com/~pdw/Mail-RFC822-Address.html>
I wonder if EmailValidator does this, or something simpler?
~~~
baudehlo
That validates RFC822 addresses, which is the full syntax of the From/To/CC
headers. You don't want that for validating an email address on a web form.
------
fein
Here's a secret:
regex: /^(.+)\@(.+)\\.(.+)$/
maxlen: 254, minlen:5
Aside from sending your verification email, that's all you need.
~~~
noneTheHacker
That excludes TLD emails like postbox@com
I have never come across someone using one but it is valid. I would actually
hate to see someone try to use one. I come across enough issues trying to use
'+' in my gmail email address.
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Email_address#Valid_email_addre...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Email_address#Valid_email_addresses)
~~~
nicktelford
It's not just TLDs. Machine aliases are also perfectly valid in e-mail
addresses, e.g. "root@localhost", "fred@finance" etc.
This might not be practical in a majority of applications (you're hardly going
to sign up to 3rd party services using an alias to a machine on your local
network) but if you're building a _generic_ e-mail address validation library,
it's an edge case you cannot ignore.
------
makethetick
Could be easily modified to verify email lists too, very handy if you haven't
sent for a while and want to avoid bounces.
------
jpadilla_
This is pretty awesome! Wonder how much time would it take to validate. Last
thing I would want is to make that signup process even slower. I guess you
could still let the user pass and then run an async task to check "if the
domain name exists, ask for MX server list from DNS, and verify that SMPT
server will receive a message to that address" and then maybe set a flag
somewhere.
------
healthenclave
Very helpful thanks !!
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Codec2: A Whole Podcast on a Floppy Disk - ericdanielski
https://auphonic.com/blog/2018/06/01/codec2-podcast-on-floppy-disk/
======
dahauns
Aside from the seriously impressive WaveNet based results, I think the article
doesn't do the codec itself enough justice. I mean, low-bitrate speech codecs
have been around for some time (hey, vocoders are the oldest kind of audio
codecs in history!), and I grew skeptical when they started to compare with
mp3 and opus.
But looking at this page Codec2 really holds its own when compared to AMBE and
especially MELP, two of the most prominent ultra low-bandwidth speech codecs
used today: [https://www.rowetel.com/?p=5520](https://www.rowetel.com/?p=5520)
~~~
gourneau
Here is a fascination video history of the vocoder. Complete with coverage of
the early room size machines. [https://video.newyorker.com/watch/object-of-
interest-the-voc...](https://video.newyorker.com/watch/object-of-interest-the-
vocoder)
------
bcaa7f3a8bbc
The article failed to mention the original reason why Codec2 is invented.
In digital amateur radio communication, currently the most widely-used codec
is AMBE. But AMBE is a proprietary codec, covered by patents, unhackable - the
counter-thesis of amateur radio. Codec2 was born to bring freedom to digital
amateur radio communication, and technically even better than AMBE.
~~~
boomlinde
The article does mention why Codec2 was invented, under "Background".
------
MrRadar
Codec2 is also fully open source and patent-free, in contrast to virtually
every other ultra-low-bitrate voice codec (which are proprietary and have
expensive patent licensing attached). He has a Patreon if you want to support
him in the ongoing development of Codec2 and his SDR modems to enable use of
it in amateur radio:
[https://www.patreon.com/drowe67](https://www.patreon.com/drowe67)
~~~
gwern
Codec2 might be patent-free, but Codec2 with a WaveNet decoder isn't because
WaveNet (convolutional neural networks for generating audio sequence data) is
patented:
[https://patents.justia.com/patent/20180075343](https://patents.justia.com/patent/20180075343)
~~~
merinowool
When it was patented? When I was working with AI about 15 years ago I was
experimenting with conv nn to generate audio. I wouldn't have expected for
this to be patented as this is so friggin obvious thing to do. It is like
patenting 2+2=4 once you discover numbers.
~~~
andai
[Serious question] Does your prior art invalidate the patent?
~~~
merinowool
I am not a scientist, just I was very interested in that space and it would be
a long way to create scientific paper out of my experiments. Since patent law
has been created for the privileged to reap profits I wouldn't stand a chance
contesting that.
------
corruptio
Having grown accustom to MP3 artifacts, it's strange to hear artifacts that
are natural, but just aren't quite right. More specifically, in the male voice
sample: "sold about seventy-seven", I received it as "sold about se _th_ enty-
seven".
~~~
mrob
If we're abandoning accurate reproduction of sound and just making up anything
that sounds plausible, there's already a far more efficient codec: plain text.
Assuming 150wpm and an average 2 bytes per word (with lossless compression),
we get about 5bps, which makes 2400bps look much less impressive. Add some
markup for prosody and it will still be much lower.
This codec also has the great advantage that you can turn off the speech
synthesis and just read it, which is much more convenient than listening to a
linear sound file.
~~~
peterbmarks
Speech to text is certainly getting better but it makes mistakes. If the
transcribed text was sent over the link and then a text to speech spoke at the
other end you'd lose one of the great things about codec2 - the voice that
comes out is recognisable as it sounds a bit like the person.
A few of us have a contact on Sunday mornings here in Eastern Australia and
it's amazing how the ear gets used to the sound and it quickly becomes quite
listenable and easy to understand.
~~~
andai
Could you elaborate on "a contact"?
Are you using Codec2 over radio?
~~~
baobrien
Yeah, the main use case for codec2 right now is over ham radio. David Rowe,
along with a few others, also developed a couple of modems and a GUI
program[1]. On Sunday mornings, around 10AM, they do a broadcast of something
from the WIA and answer callbacks.
[1] - [https://freedv.org/](https://freedv.org/)
------
Ambroos
That is very impressive! I wonder if a WaveNet decoder could be built for
phone calls, as those still sound awful. If it's possible to do this only on
the decoder side you don't have to wait for your network to start supporting
HD voice or VoLTE to get better quality audio!
~~~
IshKebab
Actually if you're lucky and make a phone call with HDVoice, or whatever
they're calling it, the quality is excellent. It makes a huge difference.
Unfortunately the place where you really want good quality is call centres -
it's often hard to hear people and half of the reason is the shitty POTS
quality - and call centres will probably get HDVoice in about 40-50 years.
Maybe.
Edit: nm should have read all of your comment before replying!
~~~
gsich
What do you mean with "HDVoice"? On landline connections this usually means
G722. G711u/a is definitly not "HD".
~~~
IshKebab
I don't know what technology it is specifically, but it's a brand name they
used for actual high quality calls. Think, 128 kB/s MP3, rather than the
standard cups-and-string quality.
It only seems to work on mobile.
~~~
gsich
I know the difference, used G722. On mobile its G722.2, a totally different
codec, but with the same ~7KHz range.
But there were some companies that advertised a lower frequency range as "HD".
------
childintime
Everything spoken in a whole life could fit on a 128GB pendrive (assuming 5%
talk time). Astounding.
~~~
JetSpiegel
Black Mirror is now technically possible.
------
tommoor
Make sure you get to the end and listen to the WaveNet samples, amazing stuff.
------
ksec
Let say we have Codec2 with WaveNet, its 3.2Kbps now does similar to may be
16Kbps EVS. ( EVS being the codec used in VoLTE, which is slightly better then
even Opus in Speeches. )
What "value" / "uses" does this bring us?
It cant be used in podcast because as shown it isn't very good with Music. And
many podcast has Music in it.
While Codec 2 with WaveNet can have a 2-4x reduction in bitrate. I cant think
of a application that benefits from this immediately.
The other thing I keep having in my mind is convolutional neural networks on
Codec in general, Music, Movies, etc. What sort of benefits it bring us.
~~~
perlgeek
> What "value" / "uses" does this bring us?
Maybe not too much for "us" with LTE and 128GB storage on our phones, but in
cases of low bandwith (think digital police radio), or when you have low
storage availability, that's really awesome.
------
mmastrac
Seriously impressive and game-changing results, especially when you take
Wavenet into account. I'm curious to see how Wavenet would perform w/Opus.
------
sbr464
I've become almost entranced with the concept of comparing things to the size
of a Floppy Disk. I'm actually planning to get a tattoo of one on my right
forearm. I've been working on a large business management platform for the
last couple of years and noticed that after investing $500k (salaries/etc) and
building a huge amount of functionality, the frontend and backend codebases
are still under 1.5mb. Pretty amazing.
~~~
calabin
I actually got a floppy disk tattoo on my foot in a moment of spontaneity
(bottomless mimosas).
[https://imgur.com/a/slCG519](https://imgur.com/a/slCG519)
~~~
sbr464
nice haha
------
jancsika
Would be a fun experiment to use something like 3 or even 1 sine to get
unintelligible speech, but then pair it with subtitles where each syllable of
the text is animated synchronized with the speech. (Like the "follow the
bouncing ball" song lyric animations.)
By pairing the audio with the text, you would almost certainly convince the
listener that they can understand it.
Edit: typo
~~~
carapace
;-)
Sine-Wave Speech Demonstration
[https://youtu.be/EWzt1bI8AZ0?t=74](https://youtu.be/EWzt1bI8AZ0?t=74)
> Sine-wave speech is an intelligible synthetic acoustic signal composed of
> three or four time-varying sinusoids. Together, these few sinusoids
> replicate the estimated frequency and amplitude pattern of the resonance
> peaks of a natural utterance (Remez et al., 1981). The intelligibility of
> sine-wave speech, stripped of the acoustic constituents of natural speech,
> cannot depend on simple recognition of familiar momentary acoustic
> correlates of phonemes. In consequence, proof of the intelligibility of such
> signals refutes many descriptions of speech perception that feature
> canonical acoustic cues to phonemes. The perception of the linguistic
> properties of sine-wave speech is said to depend instead on sensitivity to
> acoustic modulation independent of the elements composing the signal and
> their specific auditory effects.
~ [http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Sine-
wave_speech](http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Sine-wave_speech)
~~~
andai
To anyone who listens to this, I recommend rewinding to the segment starting
at 1:23 a few times and not letting it reach the spoilers. After a few rounds,
my brain adjusted to the distortion and I could make it out perfectly, without
ever hearing the original.
------
mwcampbell
The WaveNet demos are indeed impressive. But I wonder if the WaveNet decoder
needed to be trained for those specific voices.
------
_emacsomancer_
On a related note, I wish more (any!) podcasts were distributed in opus.
~~~
geofft
As far as I know, enough podcast apps require MP3 (and not even VBR!) that you
have to use MP3, and you can't have multiple <enclosure>s, so how would you do
this? A separate RSS feed for Opus, linked only on the website and not
submitted to aggregators?
~~~
CharlesW
> _As far as I know, enough podcast apps require MP3 (and not even VBR!) that
> you have to use MP3…_
Nope! Podcast episodes can be encoded using AAC (which is as ubiquitous as
MP3) without issue.
That won't realistically possible with Opus until Opus hardware decoding has
available in mobile devices for 5-10 years.
~~~
Hello71
I highly doubt there are any devices that are capable of accessing the modern
web, with all its JavaScript bloat, yet cannot decode a simple audio codec.
Even when Apple was installing AAC hardware decoders, they were already almost
obsolete by modern embedded CPU development (especially the rise of medium-
power ARM SoCs). I highly doubt any devices released in the past 5 years have
any sort of fixed-function audio decoder. Maybe an _en_ coder, possibly some
general-purpose DSPs, but not a format-specific decoder.
~~~
floatboth
Yeah, the last time hardware audio decoders were relevant was like... back in
the Nokia N-Gage days.
The N-Gage QD removed the MP3 decoder that was present in the original model.
And you could install a software player, and it would struggle with bitrates
above 128kbps :D
Modern phones can decode _video_ in software (sucks for battery life, and
framerate/resolution are more limited than with hardware, but it's _possible_
). Audio is _nothing_ for them.
~~~
CharlesW
> _Yeah, the last time hardware audio decoders were relevant was like... back
> in the Nokia N-Gage days._
I guess it's irrelevant you feel overwhelmed by how long your phone can go on
a charge. Plus, low-power/low-CPU requirements are an order of magnitude more
critical in devices like smartwatches.
------
WhiteNoiz3
The Wavenet stuff sounds great, but I'm curious how big the model is. The
audio files may be tiny, but you may need a huge neural network to decode
them.
------
Apocryphon
"The man behind it, David Rowe, is an electronic engineer currently living in
South Australia. He started the project in September 2009, with the main aim
of improving low-cost radio communication for people living in remote areas of
the world. With this in mind, he set out to develop a codec that would
significantly reduce file sizes and the bandwidth required when streaming."
What do you know, it's sort of like Pied Piper without the magical compression
or cloud handwaving.
~~~
LeonM
I've been reading David Rowe's blog [0] since 2008, there are some other
really interesting projects and products on it. One of my favorites back then
was his home build electric car.
[0] [https://www.rowetel.com/](https://www.rowetel.com/)
------
codedokode
I noticed that when you listen to compressed audio first you hear the
unnaturality of voice and clicks (probably when one frame's ending doesn't
match next frame start). But in a few seconds you adapt to it and now voice
sounds pretty clear.
It is impressive how far one can compress speech.
------
dredmorbius
I read, and listemn, to this, and am impressed.
Then I think of the possible negative applications.
a noation of 100m people, talking an hour per day on phone or other audio
channel, could be stored on 100m * 365 * 1.5 MB of storage annually: 54 PB.
In raw storage, that's less than $2 million. Far below national actor budgets.
------
samps
> However, where it starts to get more interesting is the work done by W.
> Bastiaan Kleijn from Cornell University Library.
The authors are not from Cornell. I think the author made this mistake because
the paper is posted on arXiv, and that’s what’s it says at the top of every
page?
------
mr_donk
This is amazing! With this codec and enough processing power, you could do
this bidirectionally and have enough bandwidth to stream a two way realtime
voice chat using 2400bps modems over a standard analog phone line!!! ... Oh...
Wait a minute...
------
bitwize
The plain Codec2 decoder sounds like a TI-99/4A (and works on somewhat similar
principles). If I hook a TI-99/4A to the WaveNet decoder, will it sound
natural?
------
gigatexal
But this guy a beer. What a feat!
------
hatsunearu
Side note: I'm still waiting for an open source, cheap way to do FreeDV/Codec2
on VHF either with a dongle that goes between a raspi/SBC or a laptop and a
cheap ass radio like a baofeng, or an inexpensive radio with Codec2 support.
~~~
baobrien
I think 2400B support is coming to the FreeDV GUI soon. I've seen some work
done on that. That'll let you use a cheap FM radio and a laptop to get on the
air with something codec2 based. I'm slowly chipping away at a TDMA mode for
SDRs, but that's still probably a ways off.
------
madengr
Would be interesting to combine this Codec2 with LoRa modulation. Of course
the latter is patented, but it combines both chirped and direct sequence
spread spectrum to yield some very resilient modulation.
------
danschumann
"Enhance" \- said every movie guy ever.
------
smooc
Ikzmjzn nsh
------
mockery
None of the audio samples play for me (In neither Chrome nor Edge... Other
sites play just fine.)
Makes it very hard to evaluate claims of codec quality, which seems like the
primary purpose of the blog post. :(
~~~
jimnotgym
Working on Firefox Android
~~~
S3raph
confirm, works fine on latest Firefox stable Android
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Troll Submits Game to Steam Greenlight Without Developer's Consent - kaushalkpr
http://www.dominantwire.com/2015/06/SteamGreenlightTrolledFollowingKickstarterScam.html
======
Zekio
at least those games now get a lot of free publicity, for when they apply
themselves to Steam Greenlight.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Jonathan's Card Experiments And Outcomes - robryan
http://sam.odio.com/2011/08/13/jonathans-card-experiments-and-outcomes/
======
Terretta
This post stil feels disingenuous. Part of the experiment? Odio came along and
scraped all the carbohydrates out of the Petrie dish, to give to ants
_outside_ the lab.
As pointed out by HN readers, _absolutely everyone here_ knew the experiment
could be broken, so nothing was proven or gained by doing what any of us could
have.
I was given an EcoSphere (a glass ball containing a supposedly self-sustaining
ecosystem) as a boy. For a kid, it's a fascinating experiment to see if it
works over time.
"One possible outcome" is to drop the glass ball on the floor. Not a
particularly inventive or interesting outcome, and if you do that in front of
a class of kids, you'll get the same reactions.
A lot of people were enjoying being kids again, watching the glass ball's
energy supply surge and fall, till Odio broke open the EcoSphere protesting
that's valid science too. In a large enough classroom, there's always at least
one.
~~~
Terretta
Addendum – Came back at the end of the day to add this clarification:
Nothing in Sam's comments about this lead me to believe he's a bad guy, just
that he's missing something about this particular scenario. On the contrary,
spotting rules begging for breaking is a very helpful trait for an
entrepreneur – as most here know, the YC questionnaire asks for examples of
"hacking the system for your own gain". (Though the PG "no jerks" rule[1]
implies hacking that's not at someone else's expense.)
”There's always one“ who's constantly challenging conventions, and when that
one zeros in on the line between audacious and antisocial, 20 years later he
often winds up running things.
For more human background, this Washington Business Journal profiles the Odio
brothers.[2]
1\. <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1632477>
2\.
[http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2010/10/11/foc...](http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2010/10/11/focus1.html)
------
philk
I know this is going to be unpopular and I know Sam has been remarkably tone
deaf[1] when it comes to dealing with people but I'm disturbed by how much
damage one stupid, somewhat douchey action is going to do his reputation.
[1] Yes, and even this latest pseudo-apology is poorly handled. He should have
just stuck to a simple _"didn't think that through, sorry to those I've
offended, I've cancelled the auction and will return the money to any
starbucks card Jonathan nominates"_ message but sometimes it can be hard to
admit you've screwed up, particularly when you're getting a kicking for it.
~~~
TillE
Well, it's a good lesson in thinking about the consequences of your actions
before you act. What you choose to do matters.
Not sure that would've helped in this case, though, since Odio still doesn't
seem to get it.
~~~
equalarrow
Agreed. I felt like his post still seems to talk about the experiment as a
whole and his action in the experiment vs. the 'why'.
I felt immediately that I got the why and a co-worker and I used two drinks on
the card. We talked about it and the concept of the goodwill behind it. We
definitely didn't feel like yuppie developers and we talked more about how
different the world would be if more things were like this. Even about
startups along these lines and what bigger ideas like these could change the
world. Yes, a fantasy, but we felt that's what this was about.
Anyway, Odio's OP felt very much like business as usual in a cynical world vs.
JC's actually doing something positive (even if it is just yuppie coffee).
Odio's recent apology seems hollow and in my mind the damage has been done.
------
Tichy
I must say, I can relate. The discussion almost sounds as if Jonathan's card
would have saved the world (transformed us all into happy altruists, drinking
free coffee ever after) if only Sam hadn't ruined it.
Maybe the "hack" was not such a good idea after all, but I am willing to
believe that it was not done in a mean spirit, but simply to experiment.
Come to think of it, perhaps in this way the whole experiment (Card+iPad hack)
brings out other, more ugly facets of humans than the desired altruism. Like
the tendency to gang up on other people - and sometimes people who want to
make the world a better place are the most aggressive ones.
~~~
overgard
I do think you have a good point with the ugliness of ganging up on this guy.
My feeling is: if this was actually an "experiment", as people claimed -- and
not some lame attempt at proving people are really fluffy teddy bears inside
-- then what happens in context of that experiment should stay in that
context. We shouldn't be making stabs at this guy's character for doing
something that was basically part of the game.
The experiment was asking "what will happen if we do this". We got our answer:
"someone will take advantage of it". At least the guy that took advantage of
it was willing to fess up, and we all (should have) learned something.
------
DevX101
Without enforcement of the social contract, society would quickly collapse, or
transform from something very different from it is today. We all want to
believe that people are all good, but the sad truth is we're not...at least,
not all of us. And it only takes a few renegades to disrupt this whole thing
we call society in the absence of enforcement.
I don't ascribe any particular moral judgment on Odio. He was a part of the
experiment and his actions only confirmed my belief that any exploitable
system will be exploited.
An interesting additional outcome from this social experiment to me was how
'the community' reacted to Odio. Like adultery, what Odio did was one of those
rules that he wasn't _supposed_ to do, but he did anyways. We can't throw
people in jail for cheating on their wives. So what do we do and have done for
thousands of years? We shame them. And that's exactly what's been happening to
Odio here and I'm assuming on Facebook too.
~~~
lotharbot
> Without enforcement of the social contract, society would quickly collapse
When you're dealing with strangers' money, an unspoken "social contract" is
_entirely inadequate_. You need an explicit contract, real enforcement, and
oversight. This is why charities have things like mission statements,
operational guidelines, and independent audits, and why the law gets involved
when there's misappropriation of funds. This is why we have things like
Charity Navigator.
When you don't have those things, you get a situation like this -- funds get
directed to causes the donors did not intend. As misappropriations go, this
one was relatively tame; rather than giving coffee money to starving children,
someone might use "feed the children" money to bomb a bus in the Middle East,
or "stand up for the Constitution" money to fund McVeigh type domestic
terrorism.
Some sort of abuse was inevitable with the way Jonathan's Card was set up. I'm
sad that Sam chose to abuse it, since he's a valued member of this community
and it sucks to see him alienate so many. But I'm also glad that he's the one
who abused it, as many others would've actually bought themselves an iPad
instead of sending the money on to charity.
------
trotsky
I'm sure that this outcome was inevitable, even if Sam had never been born. I
even think there are a few good lessons here. If everyone managed to calm down
a bit we might even come out better off.
I'm pretty sure it looked like the card had been running for a good while,
maybe a few weeks, before it went viral. It looked like it was working out
pretty well. A few hours in, I checked out the twitter feed again and it was a
mad house. $30 would show up one minute and be gone the next, donors were
getting thanked long after the money was spent, and people were chatting about
how you could turn it into a money laundering scheme or if it was all gorilla
marketing. I imagined people rushing up to the counter shoving their phone at
the barista before it got emptied again. It felt as unsustainable as a
politician on a coke binge.
Now I'm sure lots of you didn't see it that way, and I'm not saying I'm right.
But it was that same feeling that made me feel like throwing a wrench in the
gears somehow, and I'm sure I'm not completely alone. Internet wisdom says
you're pretty lucky it didn't end up with someone taking the money, loudly and
publicly donating it to the KKK then inviting half of 4chan over to rub it all
in.
One insight might be that wild, unchecked growth can end up really hurting
things. I wonder if it was going a fair bit slower would Sam have bothered? Or
maybe he'd have just gotten $70 and that would have felt like an easier thing
to just shrug off. Maybe Jonathan would have split it into a few cards, so it
could all be a little less chaotic and more personal. For me I associate that
pretty strongly with the 90's tech boom. My friends worked at netscape and my
gf at a yahoo purchase and people were paper loaded. The vibe was sketchy but
it all rubbed off and I left a profitable old school startup for what turned
out to be a worsening series of disasters culminating with watching $260M get
turned into a $20M firesale with nothing much to show for it. And predictably
the place with real, lame customers managed to make it through the downturn
without laying anyone off.
Crazy growth can feel amazing but it can also make you lose sight of things,
and the psychology of a crash can be that much worse. Switching gears, society
operates within a complex system of morals, laws and customs. Those aren't
symbols of the weakness of humanity - I think they show our ability to
organize and keep our faults in check, allowing us to achieve more together.
Most rules and disincentives exist to help good people stay good. The lock on
my neighbors door wouldn't stop a determined burglar, but if it wasn't there
people would get nosy from time to time and sneak in guiltily. Jonathan's card
looked to expose a bit of whimsical generosity and faith in humanity. But with
no checks in place and a growing volume of cash it instead became a test. With
one person able to fail the test for everyone it was practically inevitable
that it all would end in tears.
I think you could see the experiment as a pretty decent success. Pretty much
everyone turned out to be good, even the great villain seems more good and
misguided than evil to me, I believe his plan really was to help folks who
don't have enough. Plus scumbags don't stick around apologizing and asking
where the money should go.It'd be easy to turn this story from a tragedy to a
triumph. The best way to demonstrate people's continued faith in humanity and
generosity would be to come back with just as much positive energy.
It was classed as an experiment, and you shook out a bug. Maybe if you could
retain the fun and spirit but with a bit of a safety net. Say two cards
existed one getting donations and transferring manageable amounts to the
public card every few minutes. Maybe encourage a picture or thought from
people who got a cup, just to humanize it a bit and make a few connections
while discouraging abuse.
(PS I hate starbucks)
~~~
niklas_a
Of course, there is always a bully that will ruin the fun for everyone. The
experiment showed that the bully was Sam Odio.
------
pathik
Well, as someone tweeted, "Odio is just another variable in the experiment".
It wasn't really a fair experiment if you wanted the outcome to be positive.
This is how it works. There might have been many who were gaming it; Odio is
facing the backlash only because he admitted to it.
~~~
raganwald
There are two different things to judge here, and your comment appears to
conflate them. First, we can judge whether Sam’s action was “Part of the
experiment.” Second, we can judge whether Sam’s action was repugnant.
I think that it is possible to believe that Sam’s action was part of the
experiment and also repugnant.
~~~
chrischen
But I'm sure Sam's actions were contingent on it being an open experiment. Had
Jonathan openly requested people not scrape the service do you think Sam would
have broken that request to prove a point?
It would only have been repugnant if Jonathan requested people not to do what
Sam did. But the game had no rules and what is deemed a good or bad outcome is
purely subjective. Who's to say free coffee for some is better than charity
with this _experiment_?
Just because the majority dream this specific experiment to be something that
it isn't doesn't mean someone who comes along and dashes those dreams is an
asshole.
If you want his actions to be deemed repugnant, then setup a new Jonathan's
Card experiment, define the rules the way you want with the no-scraping
clause. Then wait until Sam breaks those rules. Then you can call his actions
repugnant.
EDIT: I'll admit it's probably not the nicest thing to do if he knew that
people (wrongly) assumed their donated money would go to buying coffee for
others. But the risks were clearly defined and anyone donating money _should_
have realized that their money is actually going to the experiment, and not
necessarily to buying coffee for someone.
~~~
raganwald
If I do business with you and I’m an asshole, is my moral defence really that
you should have realized I would be an asshole?
We have to disentangle asshole/nice guy from legal/illegal. Being an asshole
in business is legal. But that doesn’t mean it’s not _repugnant_. Sure, we can
say that Sam has not broken Jonathan’s law, and we can argue that he doesn’t
need to reverse his transactions legally.
We can also argue that he was or was not acting like an asshole. Perhaps he
wasn’t. But the question of whether his actions were in accordance with the
“rules of the game” has very little bearing on whether they are repugnant.
~~~
chrischen
If you do business with me, and you're an asshole, your moral defense can be
that you didn't know you were being an asshole. I'd personally give you the
benefit of the doubt. Of course the next time you do the same thing it'll be
clear.
>But the question of whether his actions were in accordance with the “rules of
the game” has very little bearing on whether they are repugnant.
If you break an explicit rule or request, then it's clear that you _knew_ you
were being an asshole, doing things other people don't want. When that rule is
not explicit, it's hard to say if you knew you were being an asshole. The
rules weren't explicit, and could have very easily specified not to scrape.
If Sam took advantage of anyone it would have been naive experiment
participants who donated money under the false assumption it would be used for
a specific purpose. But even then, Sam's actions could be interpreted as Robin
Hood-esque by some.
There is _NO DOUBT,_ from the view point of the supposed victims that Sam's
actions are repugnant because they go against what they wished, but so did the
people who Robin Hood robbed from I bet. However, from a more global
perspective, who's to say they're repugnant? Assume some of that Stark Card
money actually reached some unfortunate children in the third world and made
their lives slightly better... Would a non-victim really believe that to be a
worse appropriation of that money than buying coffee for some first-world
person (assuming the money actually reached those kids)? Many would argue that
is a better use of the money, regardless of what the original experiment
participants expected the money to be used for, because the experiment
participants wrongly assumed in the first place.
------
shiven
It seems like Freshplum is a YC company and what Odio has done clearly puts
him over and across the "No Assholes" rule that pg talks about.
(I don't know how that correlates contextually, but I feel there should be a
connection).
Regardless, Odio acted like an utter douchebag, IMHO. And he is just making it
worse with his un-apology apologies.
------
andrewcooke
here's a free tip: apologies should be near the start and unqualified. put the
self-justification and excuses afterwards.
this reads like he's working for airbnb.
~~~
wisty
Still, it works. The tone here has gone from "Sam eats babies alive" to "Sam
was wrong, and maybe committed a crime, but he's was honest about it, and
people are taking it _way_ out of proportion".
A little more "I understand now why so many people were pissed off", and a
little less "someone else would have done it" would work better, but maybe
he's writing what he thinks, and not just what he thinks the best PR move
would be. It's hard to honestly admit you were wrong.
------
flocial
According to the other post (Q&A), if Jonathan reported it as theft it would
become a police matter. I think that sums it up in moral terms. If he bought
himself $625 of coffee probably not. A nasty prosecutor might treat each cash
transfer as a separate case of wire fraud.
At the end of the day I just ask myself "what the hell was that about?" and
the idea of donating an iPad to the poor is the most idiotic use of diverted
coffee money. With all that philosophy you're going to give one kid an iPad
and add to the bottomline of one of the richest corporations in the world.
Much better than strangers buying each other coffee. Way to change the world.
~~~
darklajid
Are you sure that you followed the whole story?
"With all that philosophy you're going to give one kid an iPad and add to the
bottomline of one of the richest corporations in the world." seems to indicate
that you believe that he's buying (or bought) an iPad to send it off to the
3rd world. That's - erm - quite wrong.
From all I can tell he
\- wrote a script to tell him that more than $ X is on the card
\- transfer money to a gift card by going to the counter (he was sitting in a
StarBucks)
\- repeat - he said he got $625 (on two cards, it seems those top out at $500)
His initial blog post used the iPad 2 as link bait and said 'You could buy an
iPad with that cash!'. Afterwards he put these gift cards on eBay and claimed
he'd give the return to charity.
No iPad in sight. No money to Apple.
So - posts like yours are showing that this is a very emotional thing. It's
not helpful to jump in and bash people though, especially if you misunderstand
the situation. Correct me if I failed to understand you?
~~~
flocial
Thanks for the correction. The $500 card is going for $510 now. I've donated
to Save the Children before and no doubt it's a good cause. Can't argue that I
find this mildly offensive. I guess it's the violation of implicit rules of an
experiment that gives false hope on anonymously reciprocated altruism.
------
nhangen
I don't believe that he's sorry; I believe he's sorry that he was demonized.
He apologized, but kept the money. That's silly.
------
aymeric
This Sam Odio seems to have ruined his reputation in one hack.
~~~
pygy_
He made a name in one hack.
Now that he's in the spotlight, if he manages to leverage his new found fame,
the coffee incident will not matter much.
This post is already a step in the right direction.
~~~
hluska
With all die respect, I don't agree with you. Personally, in light of his
little hack, there is no way I would trust him or any company he is affiliated
with with my personal data. Heck, I can't even bring myself to tweet out a
direct link to his apology!
I wish him all the best, but I cannot become a customer!
------
tung
It's easy to lash Sam Odio, but doing so robs us of some really interesting
questions and answers.
First, why was the idea so popular to begin with? Collective funds aren't new,
nor is using Twitter as an API for tracking things in the real world. I don't
have any good guesses here.
Second, why has the community reacted so passionately? Even here on Hacker
News, mostly made up of people who put reason over emotion, have been
extremely upset. One: Having the money taken broke people's faith in the
greater good of humanity, so indignation naturally follows. Two: Diverting
funds was akin to telling people what to do, and nothing makes people angrier
than being forced to do things against their will.
People got very emotional over what, in perspective, isn't that much money.
$625 could get you an iPad... or a really lousy computer. If somebody had that
much stolen from a home break-in, that wouldn't even make local news, let
alone Hacker News. It's very curious. Also, it shows money not just as a means
of gaining goods and services, but as a way for people to make a mark on the
world; 'voting' for things they believe in by giving money, and denying it
from things they don't.
I don't approve of what Sam did, but it's better to step back and really see
what's going on here, rather than just being a mob about it.
~~~
blhack
Despite what the common perception of hackers is, we're actually _highly_
community driven. Look at places like HN. Look at the concept of the
hackerspace, or the computing clubs that preceded them.
Jonathan's card was in the same spirit as a hacker space, which is [bluntly]:
if we all pitch into this, and we're all nice about it, we can have something
that's pretty freaking cool.
Assume that instead of a starbucks card, we were talking about a hackerspace.
What Sam Odio did was the equivalent of showing up, then taking a bunch of the
the tools so that he could sell them and donate the money to homeless people.
To take it a step farther he then used his website to encourage other people
to do the same thing.
He tried to destroy the community (and succeeded). Hackers love communities,
and they tend to hate the people that destroy them.
~~~
gruseom
In fact, Sam Odio is a very community-minded person. He started the original
Hacker House in Palo Alto (<http://hackerhouse.bluwiki.com/>). He was an early
enthusiast for the Hacker Dojo in Mountain View
(<http://wiki.hackerdojo.com/w/page/25442/Incubees>). More significantly, when
other people were offering advice to an unemployed hacker, it was Sam who
offered his couch for a few weeks
(<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2827635>). I'll add a personal data
point: he once insisted on giving my co-founder and me a ride to the train
station even though it was completely out of his way and we had only met a few
minutes earlier. Trivial, yes, but trivial indicators of decency are often the
most reliable, especially when no one is watching.
My 2¢ is that Sam seems to process social norms in an unconventional way and
it occasionally gets him into a pickle. It also leads to good things. More
good than bad, I'd bet.
~~~
blhack
I'm sure he's a great person. I'm not speaking against his character, just
explaining why hackers would be upset about this.
~~~
gruseom
You did speak against his character. You said he tried to destroy a community.
That is not the action of a "great person".
You began from the assumption that Sam is not one of us, the " _highly_
community-driven" hackers. That's factually wrong. He's practically a
prototype of the community-minded hackerspace type which you extol.
I don't agree with you that people are upset because they care about
communities. A readier explanation is just garden-variety sanctimony. (I'm not
referring to your comment here, but others.)
------
mattdeboard
I'm about as uninterested as possible in hearing any more about this,
especially from Sam Odio.
------
dustineichler
You take a penny, you leave a penny. That's it, that's the unwritten rule.
------
niklas_a
He is very inconsistent. In his original post he states that "yuppies buying
yuppies coffee is uninteresting" and he goes on to say that he will instead
take all the money to his own card and donate it to charity.
Now he is saying that it was all just an experiment and he didn't understand
the outcome of his actions.
Which one is it gonna be Sam?
------
BSeward
This would have happened. The odds that it would have gone to a charity and
not to an iPad are pretty small.
I see a lot of irate comments on Jonathan's blog and the card's Facebook wall
from people who likely cannot appreciate the ease with which money could be
siphoned from this card. As far as I'm concerned Sam demonstrated an obvious
and intrinsic security hole and then owned up to it, but most of the
complaining crowd are convinced that his Evil Genius alone is the reason their
feel-goodery has to come to an end. The alternate conclusion I see is that
unknown agents would take advantage of this card until the experiment because
too unpleasant to continue and then no one would feel anything.
------
Tichy
I haven't followed J's card too closely, but wasn't it set up in a very
lenient way? How about creating a more "secure" system, for example without
the possibility to get money out of the card other than by drinking coffees?
------
molbioguy
The negative comments and name calling against Sam Odie is way out of line.
Jonathan made an "experiment" and launched it. It was wildly successful and he
got lots of data about how people react to the experimental situation he
created. Real experiments don't have outcomes that are pre-ordained. Let it
go. Learn and move on.
~~~
SoftwareMaven
This was never an experiment. Where was the hypothesis? Where was the control?
It was no more an experiment than me "experimenting" with Elbonian food is an
experiment.
To write off somebody's lack of understanding of social mores because "we were
all just ants" is disingenuous.
That said, this whole thing has actually been very interesting to watch from
the outside, and there is little doubt Odie made it far more interesting (if
not somewhat dishearening).
~~~
molbioguy
From a CNN article quoting Jonathan Stark:
_"Jonathan's Card is an experiment in social sharing of physical goods using
digital currency on mobile phones ...," he wrote on his site._
------
wzdd
I completely agree with Sam's analysis here. People were not interested in the
experiment qua experiment, but were attached to one particular outcome. The
most interesting part, for me, was reading people's angry reactions
afterwards, phrased in the flowerly language of altriusm and community --
about a card that lets rich people buy overpriced coffee for other rich
people! (And let's be completely clear, if you are in the position either to
use Jonathan's card or have it used for you, you are almost certainly quite
well-off.)
Jonathan's Card was only succeeding temporarily because it was novel. People
behave differently around novel things. If these things worked long-term, then
there would be more of them around.
Edit: Downvotes without comments? Pretty uninspiring, HN.
~~~
glenra
You're missing the larger picture. Things like this _do_ work in small scale.
There are restaurants that let you "pay whatever you want"; there are
musicians that make a decent living selling music that one can get for free
either from them or from third parties. People obey traffic signals even when
nobody is around to enforce them. Churches survive despite the option of
stealing from the collection plate as it goes by. So this sort of thing _can_
work and in many places _does_ work. The main question here is whether one can
establish a social norm that encourages more cooperation than defection. For
that to work, defection has to garner shame and social disapproval. Hence the
reaction you see here.
> about a card that lets rich people buy overpriced coffee for other rich
> people! (And let's be completely clear, if you are in the position either to
> use Jonathan's card or have it used for you, you are almost certainly quite
> well-off.)
The exact thing being shared is irrelevant to the principles involved because
if you got it work, it could _scale_. Something that _starts_ by providing the
public good of coffee-sharing might grow to provide other public goods. If the
idea isn't strangled in its crib by a wise-ass.
Related analogy: _the internet_ might once have best been described as
something that _"lets overeducated rich people talk to other overeducated rich
people! (And let's be completely clear, if you are in the position to make use
of the internet or have it used for you, you are almost certainly quite well-
off.)"_
When I used to use "mapquest" to print directions or use "google" to find
answers to some question, that was once a novel thing that only strange nerdy
people did. But because the people who used it benefited back then, _everyone_
benefits today. Almost _every_ new innovation helps "the rich" or well-
connected before it helps the masses. At the time silk stockings were
invented, the queen of england was among the few who could afford them. TVs
were only for rich people when they were invented; ditto VCRs, radios,
microwave ovens, cars... So saying "this only helps well-off people!" as an
excuse to dismiss an innovation is something most nerds just intuitively
reject. So obviously wrong as to be not worth explaining. Hence (I suspect)
your downvotes.
~~~
wzdd
Thank you for the response! I was quite disappointed with the downvotes.
The examples you give do not convince me that my statement, "this only works
because it is novel", is not correct. People obey traffic signals out of habit
and / or fear that there may in fact be someone around (and even if they
didn't, it would be out of concern for safety, nothing to do with this give-
some-get-some principle); the "pay what you want" restaurant in London was a
month-long promotion (and it now charges again), and many other incarnations
struggle (see this NY Times article for information on several failed versions
of the scheme: <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/21/us/21free.html>); the vast
majority of church funding (millions of dollars!) does not come from
collection plates, and, even if it did, collection plates are dissimilar to
this example because everybody watches what you do with the plate -- the
social cost of stealing is far more obvious and pronounced (and, unlike
Jonathan's Card, taking from a collection plate is unequivocally stealing,
making the example even less relevant); and, finally, if there are musicians
who make "a decent living" out of selling free music (as opposed to a
profitable sideline) then I don't know of any. One counter example is
Radiohead's "In Rainbows", where 62% of the people downloading paid nothing at
all (see: [http://www.globalnerdy.com/2008/10/16/radioheads-in-
rainbows...](http://www.globalnerdy.com/2008/10/16/radioheads-in-rainbows-
experiment-was-a-success/)). The album still made money, due to Radiohead's
brand power, but they have not continued the experiment with new albums.
There are no good examples of a Jonathan's Card-type scheme working for any
length of time in the real world.
The problem with the response in general, and I think your response in
particular as well, is this quote from you:
> If the idea isn't strangled in its crib by a wise-ass.
The very fact that the idea _was_ strangled in its crib by a wise-ass, coupled
with the dearth of similar ideas out there in the real world, seems to
demonstrate fairly well that this is not a good idea.
You then give a bunch of examples of _expensive technology_ which eventually
became cheap technology (stockings, the Internet, cars, etc). This is a
completely unrelated to Jonathan's card -- nobody is going to deny that
expensive technologies become cheaper and, in doing so, benefit more people!
However, Jonathan's card doesn't rely on expensive technology -- it relies on
all participants being altruistic. And in the real world, given a sufficiently
large number of participants, not all of them will be altruistic. Jonathan's
Card is particularly bad in this respect because one "wise-ass" can take so
much value from the system -- contrast this with a hypothetical successful
musician putting her album online, where the worst that a single defector can
do is take the album for free.
~~~
glenra
In addition to Radiohead, I was thinking of Jonathan Coulton. Many of his
songs are _still_ available for free, but enough people choose to buy them or
to pay to see him perform live that he grossed half a million dollars last
year. For instance, here's one of his songs with three options: (1) buy the
song, (2) download the mp3 (without charge), (3) send a donation:
<http://www.jonathancoulton.com/wiki/Chiron_Beta_Prime>
> The very fact that the idea was strangled in its crib by a wise-ass, coupled
> with the dearth of similar ideas out there in the real world, seems to
> demonstrate fairly well that this is not a good idea.
Whether something "is a good idea" depends on context, which _changes_. This
wouldn't have been a good idea a few decades ago because the technology wasn't
there to enable it. As society gets wealthier and smarter we can afford to
support more free-riders and it becomes less and less important to rigorously
charge for stuff. "serve yourself" soda refills is an example, as is the
institution of unlimited free napkins, toilet paper, and use of the restroom.
Any of those could be crippled by wise-asses too.
> a hypothetical successful musician putting her album online, where the worst
> that a single defector can do is take the album for free.
Something a single defector can do that's worse than that would be to (1) take
the album for free, (2) put up a website encouraging others to do the same and
expressing contempt for all the suckers who choose to pay, (3) get this
website highly ranked on social media sites.
If that happened and nobody spoke out against it, it would significantly harm
the prospect of name-your-own-price albums. That's basically what happened
here.
~~~
wzdd
The examples you give are always so consistently different from Jonathan's
Card that I can't help but wonder if others feel the same way, with the same
examples, and that this disconnect between made-up examples and the reality of
Jonathan's Card is the cause of the outrage.
Jonathan's Card is nothing like free soda, free napkins, or free restroom
time. If someone sits in McDonald's and repeatedly takes all the napkins from
the dispenser, he will be asked to leave, and if he persists he may have to
deal with the police; the economic cost to McDonald's is minimal, and the
inconvenience to other customers minor and localised. Ditto someone choosing
to sit in the restroom all day, someone coming in and siphoning all the soda
out of a machine, etc. For each of these examples, there is minimal economic
cost or inconvenience to other patrons or the business involved, but a _lot_
of inconvenience for the defector -- he has to physically gather up the items,
sit in the restroom, etc, for minimal benefit to himself (what, he's going to
eBay a million napkins?)
Compared with this, the Jonathan's Card scam provided an effective income of
$130 per hour, at a cost of sitting in a comfy couch at Starbucks drinking
coffee. There is no immediate social censure (unlike what would happen to a
dedicated napkin-grabber) and indeed the defection is undetectable unless the
person involved chooses to blog about it. And, as hinted above, it is easy and
convenient to convert Starbucks gift cards into money.
These circumstances make defection a _lot_ more tempting. Let's recap:
1) No social censure (unless you decide to tell people)
2) The return is not just fungible but is easily converted into actual money
3) Low effort required
4) Low time investment
5) High per-hour return
The confluence of these factors makes Jonathan's Card a bad idea -- far worse
than free soda.
~~~
glenra
Part of what makes this particular defection so egregious, I think, is that he
didn't just _take_ the value in the card for his own use. Doing that might
almost be understandable, at least if the person doing it had (a) no better
income options, (b) few personal scruples. But going to the trouble of taking
the money just to piss it away on some random charity does _not_ constitute,
as you say, "getting a high per-hour return" on one's effort. In exchange for
destroying $650, all Sam got is the warm fuzzy of knowing he's "done something
nice" in giving to charity. Offset with the cold pricklies of knowing he's
"done something rotten" in stealing money from others for a use the donors
didn't intend, it's at best a wash. He inflicted a cost of $650 on others
without them _or him_ receiving any compensating benefit!
Which brings us back to the analogy: A committed vandal could _easily_ do
$130/hour worth of damage to random companies or people with minimal risk -
if, as Sam did, they had no intent of personally profitting from it. That's
what Sam was: a vandal, more than a thief. Like the teen who throws a rock
through a window when nobody is watching or destroys bathroom fixtures.
An awful lot of what makes civilization work is our tacit agreement to the
code immortalized by Wil Wheaton: "don't be a dick." The fact that you _can_
do something nasty and damaging to other people doesn't mean you _should_. The
fact that in some circumstance it's particularly _easy_ to steal from others
doesn't give you a moral obligation to do so; quite the reverse.
Some people are very trusting. They might leave doors unlocked or purses
unguarded. They choose to go out in public without armed guards and trust that
a random stranger on the street isn't going to be a mugger or rapist or
kidnapper.
When somebody who is especially trusting gets taken advantage of by someone
unscrupulous, people generally find that _especially_ worthy of criticism. The
first thing we think of isn't to blame the victim for being too trusting, but
to blame the scammer or thief for taking unfair advantage of trust.
------
alexandros
Since the context was human (online) society, the backlash is part of the
experiment too. Also, the experiment continues. I personally wonder if the
experiment will produce a regret reaction from the publicly non-cooperating
participant. For the moment it seems to be producing a 'deflect / damage
control' reaction.
~~~
darklajid
Feeling kind of weird being on the defensive side here, but - wouldn't you
consider
"For those who are hurt, angry, or frustrated with the role I played, I
sincerely apologize. Had I known so many were so invested in this, I would
have certainly done things differently."
a "regret outcome"? That's part of the blog entry and the 'sincerely
apologize' part is bold and hard to miss.
~~~
alexandros
Fair point. I must admit I only skimmed through. I guess the answer to my
question is yes.
------
akkartik
How does getting notified of a certain balance help take money off the card?
Does starbucks allow people to transfer money between gift cards?
~~~
pentryslampan
He just bought giftcards instead of coffee, then transferred it into one with
500 and another one with 125. The hack just read Jonathans open api and
started itunes when the balance reached a certain amount. There were better
hacks for displaying the account balance. Everyone knew you could buy
giftcards but i believe not many people did. I run a café too (not a
Starbux...) and we also have a plate with coins where you may take or leave
some. Buying giftcards with these isn't ok.
------
lubutu
Aside from all the hatred for Odio, in utilitarian terms this outcome may have
been better than if the experiment were just to continue. One can complain
that it's all about higher horses, but I doubt the children who may be fed or
clothed as a result will care.
I know, I know, Odio's moralising is irritating. But people are acting as
though he's taken our capability for altruism. I assure you, people are able
to be nice without Jonathan's instruction.
------
sliverstorm
_To be clear, my apology is intended to be complete, sincere, and unqualified.
I'm sorry_
Sorry enough to make a new card, and fill it with the money you lifted?
------
urbanjunkie
And once again, he demonstrates that he doesn't understand what's going on.
A lot of the backlash focuses on his dubious claim to the moral high ground.
I, once more, invite Sam to explain how much of his OWN time and money he
donates to charity. Being a moralising prick is easy, after all, when stacked
up against children starving in Somalia, almost any other use of money that
doesn't pertain to basic survival can be viewed as frivolous.
His apology post is basically nothing more than a "Sorry you all got upset
about it, if I'd know you cared that much I wouldn't have done it". In his
mind he hasn't really done anything wrong - he feels that if he doesn't agree
with the aims or the social value of something, he can suborn it to his own
ends.
There's nothing wrong with being nice to other people - it might not save the
world, but one of the issues we face in the so called developed nations is the
erosion of basic social courtesies - the ability to be polite to each other
and not act like dicks.
EDIT: I also stand by my offer to hook Sam up with some contacts in Uganda who
would love to have time with a geek to help with real problems.
------
Kwpolska
> In that light it would be hard to understand the negative reaction to my
> participation. After all, it's an experiment and isn't finding interesting
> new uses for the card fair-game? Even after Starbucks shut down the card,
> isn't the experiment living on? Why the outrage?
Because the card would likely still be alive if you wouldn't act like a dick?
> For those who are hurt, angry, or frustrated with the role I played, I
> sincerely apologize. Had I known so many were so invested in this, I would
> have certainly done things differently.
A hint for you: create Asshole's Card with the $625 you stole and continue the
experiment. You shall add even more funds and give some back to Jonathan
himself.
~~~
darklajid
While I disagree with his actions: His post was moderate, he apologized and
promised a longer reply and explanation in the future.
Please stop the name calling.
~~~
Thangorodrim
He did not apologize for his actions.
He apologized that silly emotional people got upset at the obvious outcome of
this entire stunt.
A sincere apology takes three words. When those three words are buried in
hundreds of words of qualifications and context its no longer an apology.
The entire thing is redolent of a condescending tone. Sam, you see, is a
scientist! Anyone who questioned his behavior is just an having an emotional
reaction and does not understand the _real_ world - where there is always a
Sam to piss in the well.
The thing is, most of use knew this already, and his demonstration did not
teach anyone anything other than about Sam's character.
EDIT: Oh, I don't care about the gift card. I am simply commenting on the
'apology.'
~~~
darklajid
Fair enough. I guess you can read that from the article.
For me, I can't see these things. Someone else already said that he should've
apologized first, unqualified - and I agree that this would make a difference.
On the other hand, I'm not sure if I'd have started like that - it feels
natural to me to explain first, reason about my actions and end with an
apology. We're not talking about a company here (see the AirBnB comparison),
we're talking about a random guy as far as I'm concerned.
Lastly: I guess a lot is getting lost in translation for me. Lots of advices
on this forum are hard to get for me, because they are about nuances of
English words, implied meanings, 'tone' and cultural rules. While it might
very well be possible that you/most of the posters and Sam are sharing the
same standards and therefor 'better' understand the content or see a subtext:
I cannot.
~~~
stock_toaster
> it feels natural to me to explain first, reason about my actions and end
> with an apology
Apologies that start with an explanation are very often more of a personal
justification (coping mechanism) than a real apology. It frames the
conversation in a way so as to reduce the cognitive dissonance between your
actions and the social norm you violated (reason for apology), as well as
reducing the discomfort in the act of apology.
It also makes people think you are apologizing to appease, instead of
expressing genuine regret.
------
napierzaza
It's nice that Odio gets to call the outcome on the experiment.
Secondly, is he still stealing money from it?
------
nestlequ1k
Would have been much funner if Odio just bought himself an ipad and used it to
write a detailed blog post about the glaring flaws with the premise of the
experiment. I would have respected that quite a bit. Instead he tried to
donate other people's money to charity. That takes the cake for douchbaggery.
I thought Jonathan's card idea was funny, but unbelievably stupid (in the
common tragic kind of way). Being morally outraged at the result reminds me of
those of you who like to say Communism should work in theory, then point the
finger after the mass murders, saying it could have been different if it
hadn't been for that one guy who ruined everything.
------
chrischen
If you hate Sam Odio for this, just ask yourself if you think Sam would still
have done it if Jonathan had explicitly requested people not to scrape it.
What Sam done was inevitable and no doubt crossed Jonathan's mind as a
possible outcome of the experiment (there was even an API to simplify the
process)...
If the answer is no, then it should be clear that there was no malice in Sam's
intent because it was clearly within the rules and clearly recognized by him
as so.
I'm sure lots of people are angry that they made donations assuming it would
go to the specific purpose of buying coffee for others, but the risks were
clear and the experiment rules were laid out. Granted, Sam probably knew this
and still appropriated the money to charity which was probably a bad move.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Bill Gates: Responding to Covid-19 – A Once-in-a-Century Pandemic? - bjourne
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2003762
======
gowld
Bill Gates is an epidemiologist?
~~~
paulddraper
Surprisingly, no. He's founder and ex-CEO of Microsoft.
Popular public figure, plus famously finances medical research and charity
work.
~~~
coribuci
> Surprising, no. He's founder and ex-CEO of Microsoft.
> Popular public figure, plus famously finances medical research and charity
> work.
YMMV. A lot of rich people finance medical research ( some because they are
sick) and charity "work" helps them avoid taxes.
~~~
anonsivalley652
In general yes and no, in this case no. I think he sees it as a personal moral
obligation by how he was raised.
In general, there are some extreme examples:
\- The Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF) is a non-profit with a
multibillion endowment. It's how many American billionaires get tax benefits
immediately while transferring assets later. And, the SVCF doesn't do very
much community work except for donors' pet projects that may or may not be for
the public good.
The previous maybe some ostensible philanthropy, but that's not how every very
rich person operates: Patriotic Millionaires (calling for more taxes) and The
Good Club (Bill Gates, Oprah, Warren Buffett, Ted Turner and more) are
definitely counterexamples to the stereotype.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Battery Optimization for Android Apps - vinnyglennon
http://www.slideshare.net/MuratAydn3/battery-optimization-for-android-apps-devoxx14
======
kec
One other thing this deck doesn't go into but has a huge impact (for games at
least) is frame rate. Higher frame rates require the GPU to get the work done
in a shorter amount of time and make it less likely that the GPU will be able
to switch to an idle power save state.
A good example of this in action is the game Threes. The developers
implemented a "power save" feature in the game which simply cuts the frame
rate in half[0], causing the app to consume noticeably less battery.
0: [http://asherv.com/threes/support/](http://asherv.com/threes/support/)
~~~
corysama
I worked on a mobile FPS that was able to run at full-rez, 60fps on an iPad3.
Unfortunately, doing so drained the battery faster than the wall charger could
refill it! So, we shipped locked at 30fps and provided a "battery hog mode"
option to the user.
~~~
snuxoll
What level was the battery at? Past 80% most Lithium Ion or Lithium Polymer
battery controllers will change to a trickle charge which could explain it.
~~~
corysama
You could drain the battery completely while charging.
~~~
voltagex_
Ingress will do this on a Nexus 5 - except for wall chargers that are
delivering the full ~1.7A (which are very very very few)
~~~
fixedd
Ingress can do this on a Galaxy Nexus with a 2A external battery pack (or, ya
know, car). I was only able to help with about 1/2 of an Interitus event cause
my phone kept dying and I'd have to wait a bit to bring it back online.
I hate my phone.
------
zxcvgm
I thought this slide deck would cover the improvements introduced by Project
Volta [1] in Lollipop. They introduced a JobScheduler API that developers can
use to perform the batching that he described, as well as the Battery
Historian for better power profiling.
[1]
[https://developer.android.com/about/versions/android-5.0.htm...](https://developer.android.com/about/versions/android-5.0.html#Power)
~~~
christop
On that topic, this is a much better talk:
[http://commonsware.com/presos/8469_Murphy.pdf](http://commonsware.com/presos/8469_Murphy.pdf)
------
dkopi
I really hope Google one day adds a "battery usage" and "network usage" rating
for apps in the play store. Common users are pretty helpless when it comes to
figuring out which apps are killing their phone.
~~~
edude03
Better yet, I hope google exposes "battery historian" via the battery menu on
android phones.
~~~
shitlord
Yeah, the fact that we Android users need to use apps like Better Battery
Stats is pretty telling. They could at least stick it in the developer
settings somewhere.
------
yardie
Why is any of this even necessary at this stage. Android has been around for 7
years, 5 major versions, and many more subversions. Power management should be
solved by now. The OS should be managing this. All power management options
should be applied to all apps and only those that need an exemption should
code around it.
~~~
cryptoz
It's a balancing act between giving devs power over their code and managing
battery. You could say that Apple 'solved' the problem by preventing
developers from doing really cool things, whereas Google/Android still have
battery concerns but devs have built awesome apps that depend on that
flexibility.
This isn't something than can be 'solved'. All the time, Google will make
improvements to the OS (like JobScheduler in Lollipop) and devs will get
better at managing their resources. Slowly we'll all get better battery
performance.
I make PressureNet, which runs in the background on Android in 10-minute
intervals to get GPS, barometer measurement, and network lock. Maintaining a
good battery life isn't easy, but it is possible.
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ca.cumulonimbu...](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ca.cumulonimbus.barometernetwork)
~~~
lpsz
Devs can still have all the power, as long as excessive battery usage is more
transparent to users. I'm not sure about iPhone, but OS X has an indicator
with "Apps Using Significant Energy." [1] as well as a more detailed breakdown
[2]. Very useful. Often turns out to be a stray tab in Chrome. Would like to
see something like that.
[1] [http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT5873](http://support.apple.com/en-
us/HT5873)
[2]
[http://support.apple.com/library/content/dam/edam/applecare/...](http://support.apple.com/library/content/dam/edam/applecare/images/en_US/osx/yosemite-
activity_monitor-energy.png)
~~~
dbaupp
Android does have something similar:
[http://imgur.com/a/d2nCb](http://imgur.com/a/d2nCb)
------
joosters
An ad/tracker/stats blocker sounds like it might give your battery life a huge
boost here. Think of the network traffic saved!
------
voltagex_
Also [https://developer.android.com/training/monitoring-device-
sta...](https://developer.android.com/training/monitoring-device-
state/index.html)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Is Google Glass Dying? - RyanMcGreal
http://gizmodo.com/is-google-glass-dead-1659023012
======
RyanMcGreal
With apologies to Ian Betteridge for the headline, which is taken from the
original article.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: How did you deal with depression? - welldepressedaf
I am starting to get a little bit hopeless on this one. Once I had passions and stuff I wanted to do, I learnt enough JS to build a small app that has proven to be incredibly useful for my family. Then came university and almost all my passions have gone, I am a good student but as of lately I have been struggling with the courses I liked in the past.<p>Nothing excited me anymore, and not that I am sad. I still can crack a joke I still can smile but nothing seems to make me happy anymore. I think I might have depression. I play games and procrastinate all day and it doesn't make me feel any good it is just a getaway.<p>Sadly I live in a 3rd world country, where mental illness is not an illness. I can get little help from people. Our healthcare system simply doesn't work at all. So HN crowd, how do you deal with these feelings?
======
throw_away_555
This won't get a lot of votes, but it ended up as diet and exercise for me.
When I dropped caffeine and alcohol my anxiety went away. When I exercised my
depression went away.
I tried a lot of things, but it ended up figuring out that I wasn't eating
well or working out.
Now I do crossfit. I know, I know. It's a cult blah blah. But go try it. You
need to be exercising every day to get all that endorphin goodness and plus,
you meet a lot of fun people at crossfit. The community keeps me coming back.
I don't get that biking (which I love) so I don't do it as much as crossfit.
And I hate running. The key is to keep doing it, and that social component
works magic. If you can work out at a home gym every day - good for you - but
I lose interest and stop, then I get fat and lazy and depressed again.
As for food, I'm not a fan of cooking. But I found paleo then keto. And I
avoid all the stuff you're told to eat. "healthy" grains, for example. I don't
drink coke. Basically avoid all sugar. I'm basically paleo to paleo-keto end
of the spectrum.
I really didn't think it would work but there it is.
~~~
jawilson2
I second this. I started keto and my depression went away, and although there
is still anxiety, it is much lower, and it feels like I can DEAL with it,
whereas before I felt helpless.
I was a neurology professor at a children's hospital in my previous job, and
there is a ton of research being done studying the neurological effects of a
low-carb diet, and they are, across the board, incredible. A common treatment
for kids with epilepsy is the keto diet, so we had a lot of research and
expertise in this area. Half of the department was on the diet, and I have
been for close to two years now. I will never stop it. My wife and kids as
well (though the kids are more paleo, since they have closer to 75-100 g
carbs/day)
~~~
throwaway129
can you talk about what a typical keto diet is like? what foods does someone
on a keto diet eat?
------
AndrewMock
1\. Get medicated.
2\. Set one small baby-step goal each day. (set an appointment today, etc.)
Change the goal every time.
3\. Change your environment. Move cities or schools if need be.
4\. Exercise. Start with one rep on day 1, two reps on day 2, etc. Baby steps.
5\. Ask for feedback on stuff. Any positive feedback helps motivate you to
learn and do more projects.
6\. Seek a healthy relationship.
7\. Be vulnerable. Let somebody else that cares about you know of your state.
8\. Be spiritually-curious. I'm christian and that inspires a lot.
9\. Realize when your "objective observations" are not objective. Don't be
blindsided by emotion.
10\. Vent your emotion in a healthy and controlled way.
11\. Write one sentence about your week every week. Again, baby steps.
12\. Never do drugs. This just amplifies your problems.
13\. This includes no smoking.
14\. If you make lists and spreedsheets, track the frequency you leave the
house.
15\. Make alarms on your phone.
16\. Volunteer once a week.
These are mostly based on experience and personal observations.
~~~
0tiger1
Sure, you shouldn't rush to get medicated, but you should be open to
medication as an option. I believe depression is often chemically caused, and
if you've tried healthy living, meditation, etc., there are many good,
relatively benign, well tested medical options out there.
~~~
TeMPOraL
Indeed. Medication are not silver bullets and usually won't solve problems
alone, but a right pill may be just what's needed to enable you to deal with
the problems. Personally, I'm on SSRIs and (despite getting a common side
effect) I'm very happy with them - even though I still suffer from depression
symptoms, they're nowhere near the level I had before getting those pills,
which pretty much restored my ability to hold my head above water.
------
zamalek
It was hard at times: when you hit a slump you want to stay in that slump - it
was hard fighting my way out, but it can be done.
"Stop and smell the roses." Take the time to notice the beauty in things
around you: both nature and concrete. I'm talking about the most sublime
things. I first noticed it one night when I was driving home - the lights were
reflecting off this dirty little dam of no significance, but for some reason I
noticed it and for some reason it was beautiful. For a very long time after
that I would make a point of noticing that little spot every day on the way
home. Out of that habit I then started noticing more and more things. When you
become depressed use that happy place as an anchor and hold onto it.
I realized that I used to think the same way as a kid: everything in the world
was wondrous and happy - I think everyone forgets how to see the world that
way. Re-learn that mindset.
Be very respectful toward alcohol, cannabis and caffeine. Too much of any will
set you back.
Finally, something like 80% of the human race has a 5-MTHF deficiency (for
genetic reasons, Google it). It presents as vitamin B deficiency and is
therefore often misdiagnosed as depression and some learning disabilities
(including trouble concentrating). If you can't get it from a chemist (I
can't, 3rd world too) check herbal/homeopathy stores (which is how I get it).
Speak to your doctor before taking it and ask for advice, you'll need to take
it for quite a while before you start noticing a difference - 2 to 4 weeks at
least.
Believe in yourself because I believe in you, I know you can do it. If at all
possible get meds.
~~~
Tossrock
What a bunch of hooey. Just 'deciding to be happy' is nonsense for someone
with major depressive disorder (the medically accepted name of the disorder,
as opposed to the term 'clinical depression', which people without experience
tend to use...) I'm glad things worked out for you but this is not helpful
advice for someone who is actually depressed. It's like telling someone who's
short to just decide to be taller.
~~~
zamalek
I guess you're right. I'll just remove that one paragraph. If you are at a
doctor you are more than welcome to weigh in on the 2 opinions I had at 10
after being bullied for 3 years. I might not be able to remember all the
terminology, but I do remember not being able to get out of it. I do remember
not being able to have more than 1 friend up until I was 20. I do remember
drinking myself into a pit at 22 (2 six packs a night, alone for a year, sound
healthy?). I do remember digging myself out of it, alone, without help.
Because for some reason I can't explain I started believing that I could. I am
now happy. The only thing I have left is excruciating existential anxiety, can
I beat that too? Fuck yeah.
Bunch of hooey, though.
I can tell you one thing: OP isn't going to win by believing it's impossible
because even the best meds only provide symptomatic relief. They don't fix the
underlying problem. It's like giving a short person a mirror that makes them
look taller. Meds can help you win, meds are good. I would never recommend
someone to avoid them. All irrelevant: OP indicated depression is not an
illness in his country. He/she supposedly can't see a doctor. No meds. All
that's left is will power.
Knowing someone else did it makes all the difference.
Finally, as an expert on the matter, where is your advice? Or are you here
tear OP down? I _know_ OP can do it, all you know is what a major depressive
disorder is.
~~~
TeMPOraL
I don't think you really should have removed that paragraph :). Yes, it jumped
on me too, but after thinking about it for a second, I actually appreciated
it. I've never been able to think myself out of something like you did, but I
found it reassuring. I actually envy you that skill; myself I was also
drinking myself every night for almost a year; at some point I run out of
money for cheap beers, stopped drinking, realized that I like being sober and
never returned to the habit. So in my case this seems more like random walk
around the potential gradient, with hope that at some point I'll accidentally
escape the local minimum.
If you have any tips about "excruciating existential anxiety" (of which I've
been suffering for half the decade already, recently successfully moderated by
SSRIs) I'd be more than glad to hear them. Right now the only coping strategy
I have is to ignore it, but it interferes with my ability to concentrate and
plan for the future - I'm literally unable to plan for more than a week-two in
advance without getting serious emotional pains.
~~~
zamalek
> If you have any tips about "excruciating existential anxiety"
I've found that the more I think about it the worse it gets - which makes
sense: it's habit-forming. Try this:
1\. Stay on the SSRIs - they can help you learn how to break the habit.
2\. Pick a "safe topic." It doesn't have to be interesting (although that
probably helps), but should just have a good chance of _not_ leading to
existential issues.
3\. Next time you start thinking about existential issues, start thinking
about your topic instead.
I have no idea if it works in the long-run but it's what I am doing right now.
I'm not sure if the underlying cause for the anxiety will ever go away, but if
I can habitually stop thinking about it then it might as well no longer be
there.
Also, it's usually worst when I am trying to go to sleep. I put on YouTube
with brain-numbing content face-down next to my pillow: nothing stimulating
(interesting or humorous).
------
bit2mask
One time I got on to a bus and sat in front of an old gentleman who kept
looking up at me occasionally. When he got off the bus and walked passed me he
said: "Whatever it is, don't let it beat you kid.". I must have looked
physically wrecked that day. Ever since then those words have stayed with me.
Chin up, OP.
------
andriesm
I've battled a life-time of depression and ADHD and here is what I've learned.
You need to engineer your entire life to suite your personality, life style
and mental shortcomings.
This takes time and trial and error.
Whenever a depression spell hits, I prepare myself for battle.
Sometimes I am as helpless as simply knowing there is not much else I can do
but wait a few weeks for it to pass, and aim to minimize the amount of long
term disruption to my life and goals.
Accepting it, accepting that at times you can be powerless and totally in the
grip of this beast, but also that it will definitely pass again.
Most depressive spells pass relatively quickly but I've had 1-2 year spells.
Yet today at 38, my life is happy, fulfilling, satisfying and challenging.
I also am prescribed medications for both my conditions, and I can say that if
you are on a med that doesn't work for you it is really bad, and when you are
on a med that accords well with your particular chemistry it's like a major
life turn-around. This involves trial and error with the best Psychiatrist you
can afford.
I sometimes do take breaks from my anti-depressant to effects, but on balance
I cannot imagine my life had I never discovered these meds.
Therapy has not been helpful to me overall. But spending a lot of time
learning emotional skills, re-evaluating beliefs and feelings, and getting
deeply in touch with what motivates me, what kills my motivation, what my
emotional needs are etc all helps a ton.
Feel free to email directly on andries dot malan at gmail dot com if you
looking for someone in tech entrepreneurship with plenty battle scars to share
experience with.
I wish you all the best - and wish to tell you that you can definitely learn
to find a happy and fulfilling life no matter how shit things look and feel
for you at the moment.
------
hemantv
Action seems to be best treatment. When I start doing things (yes I know its
lot difficult) I build a stair out of black cloud hanging over my head.
Look for easiest project you can do and steps you can do to make that project
work once that's done look for your next project. These small projects build
your stairs / steps to rise above dark cloud and see the daylight once again
:)
------
DanBC
You can try cognitive behaviour therapy. Ideally this would be face to face
with an experienced therapist. But if there are no therapists available you
can either do computer guided CBT or self guided from a book.
Moodgym is a respected website:
[https://moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome](https://moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome)
Mind Over Mood is a respected book.
[http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/0898621283/](http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/0898621283/)
If you've tried CBT and it's not working you may want to see a doctor and get
some meds.
------
rubicon33
I'm going to start with a fact that you likely won't want to hear: There is no
magic bullet. Non-situational depression is something you will wrestle with
your entire life. There is no cure, only treatments. That said, you can do a
lot to alleviate the symptoms. Ranked in order of importance:
1\. Sleep
Get good sleep. Research circadian rhythms, and try to understand your own
'sleep physiology'. Within the constraints of your work, try and sleep at
optimal times for YOU. For me, going to bed late, waking up late, is best. I
feel more rejuvenated on 4 hours of sleep within my 'sleep window' than I do
of 8 hours of sleep outside of it. Find what works for you.
2\. Intense, social, exercise.
Other's have mentioned cross fit, but boxing is great too. It has to be
INTENSE and there needs to be a SOCIAL component to keep you motivated. You
should leave your workout feeling completely destroyed. In my opinion, just
going to the gym doesn't work. You need to be part of a fitness community. The
social aspect, combined with the intense workout, can work wonders. Go
regularly.
3\. Diet.
Avoid junk food. Cut out hard drugs, obviously. Cook for yourself, if you can.
4\. Purpose.
Find something in life that excites you, and pursue it. Find a community of
people that are also interested in that and join that community. Contribute to
that community, whenever you can. Form relationships with others in that
community, as you pursue your passion.
\----
Discipline, and regularity, are vital to success. If you do these 4 things,
you'll find with time, that your depression weakens it's grip on you. Be
patient with point number 4. Don't be discouraged, if right now, you don't
have a calling, or a purpose. Let life happen, and go where the wind blows.
------
thaumaturgy
I make myself adhere to my usual daily habits as much as possible. Depression
makes it really attractive to lounge around all day. I try to get up and
shave, and shower, and dress even if I have nowhere to go. It usually happens
more slowly, but I also usually feel a little better afterward. I'm never
happy with myself if I forego those daily habits.
I try to sit outside a little bit if I can. There's a lot of evidence at this
point that exposure to sunlight in the morning is a good way to help improve
your sleep, which is a major component of depression. I never want to sit
outside, but I make myself do it anyway.
I try not to be too angry or upset with myself. To some extent, what I'm
experiencing is outside of my control. I'm sick, just as if I had the flu. So
I try to relax a little. Beating myself up never makes me feel better.
I try to remember something I used to enjoy, and I try to do that thing again,
only I try to take it easy. For example, reading: I never have enough time to
read anymore. I won't be in the mood for a novel, but maybe one of my old
Robert Asprin books would be nice.
I try not to let my diet get _too_ awful, but, like being sick, I give in a
little. I can't will myself into making three square meals a day, but I can
make one good meal a day and not eat my way through a brand new bag of
cookies.
I try to pick one little thing and finish it. Sometimes it's the laundry,
sometimes it's the dishes, sometimes it's yard work, sometimes it's the pantry
that's been under construction for a bit. I definitely don't pick anything
ambitious. I need a victory, so I go and find the smallest, easiest little
battle, and I win that one, and then tomorrow I'll look for another one, and
keep doing that until I feel better.
If it's really bad, I contact a friend. I don't have many friends, but there
is one that I can call whenever I'm in really bad shape, and he'll drop what
he's doing and come over and we'll talk and get ice cream and play cards or
something. (And I'll drop everything for him too.)
Those are a few of the things I do, anyway. Hope you find something there that
helps.
------
cpncrunch
It sounds like you might be burned out by university (depression is a symptom
of burnout).
Some suggestions that helped me and might work for you:
\- See whether there is anything in your life that might be causing the
burnout/depression. Do you have any emotional issues in your life (i.e.
something in your life causing anger/resentment)? Do you have excessive
stress/responsibilities? Are you doing what you really want to do with your
life?
\- Do more enjoyable, motivating, goal-oriented activities, both physical and
mental.
\- Get sufficient sleep.
\- Give up alcohol and caffeine, as well as any other psychoactive substances.
------
bcoughlan
For me it got to breaking point at my job. I quit and moved to a cheap country
for a few months. Ditched the laptop and smartphone and just relaxed,
exeecised, read and cooked. Diet and exercise played a huge part, but I
couldn't have got them in order while being depressed and stressed out. Being
stressed meant always taking on a bit more than I could unload, and that
feeling of being at max capacity constantly lead to neglecting day to day
tasks such as eating well, shaving, exercising, socialising. This feeds back
into the stress and it all can get out of control so quickly.
I'd like to say that's the end of the story but I ran out of money and moved
home and got another software job. At first I tried not to work too hard but
stress slowly accumulated again. Soon after I felt that deflated feeling in my
stomach every morning. I do yoga, run and cycle which is a huge help but it
goes through phases and is really the prevention, not the cure. I'm convinced
now that I need a radical permanent change to stop slipping into burnout and
depression. I love programming but 40 hours a week kills me. Your
circumstances may differ but its good to examine if prolonged stress is at the
core.
------
Const-me
A1. First, if you are from Russia — run ASAP. It will never get better. I did
4 years ago, never had anything resembling depression since that.
A2. If your country is OK (e.g. suicide rate there is less than 15 per 100000
people per year), I think you need to search for the intersection between
things you have passion for, and things that are paid well. After you will
find that intersection, I think you will get better. You see, when you was a
kid, just following your passion was enough for happiness. In the adult world,
however, you also need some financial independence for that.
A3. There are other things, like alcoholism or herbal medicine, but I
generally do not recommend those to young people.
------
yitchelle
Something I read in HN recently, maybe two months ago, resonate with me. It is
about having guaranteed small wins. It is something that I starting to apply
to most things that I do, and it has change the way I see things around me.
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9782083](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9782083)
Also came across this list, the items about happiness are great suggestions.
[http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/60-small-ways-
to-...](http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/60-small-ways-to-improve-
your-life-in-the-next-100-days.html)
------
protomyth
If I read this right, your still in college and hitting the wall. Its fairly
normal as a lot of people turn get burnout during college.
The diet and exercise suggestions are probably the best. Taking some walks and
changing your daily scenery would probably help. Do you eat in the same place
everyday? Pick a random book from the library and read it. If there are campus
activities that seem interesting, go do them instead of playing games.
Don't freak out if your passion is missing for a while. Its just an ebb and
you need to recharge. You'll already shown inspiration, you need to let it
come back.
------
ankit1911
I have been dealing with thing since 8 years now. I have tried to escape this
with drugs/alcohol but that won't help. I can tell you everything that I've
done but that won't be of any help to you.
What I think is, there is no hard coded way to deal with this issue.
Understand your situation and keep fighting and there will come a time when
something will push you over the brink. Honestly, if you ask me I really don't
know what thing in particular helped me curb my depression, things started to
change over time.
However, eating healthy food, reading books and exercise is a must.
------
Smushman
I am family of a psychologist. This comes from latest research.
Usually skipped but most critical, is simple trace minerals and vitamins.
Our food is entirely missing so much in the current day, because the same
plots of land are farmed over and over (think 25-50 years for the same land).
Himalayan Sea Salt has the trace minerals, and supplementation with Vitamin D,
Magnesium, and B-12 have specifically helped mood and energy.
You can get blood tests for these levels, but even in cases where levels are
normal supplements have been shown to help.
------
miesman
I struggled with depression for YEARS. I tried everything I could find.
Exercise helped a lot. Coffee helped. Meditation helped. All of these things
worked but I was still in really down. Finely after years I decided what have
I got to lose and went on antidepressants.
It was the best thing I ever did. The world opened up for me. I was able to
make a lot of changes that were very healthy in my life. I finely had outside
interests other than work and sleep. It was like night and day.
------
dreyfiz
Exercise. Read "The best exercises for mental illnesses":
[http://www.thementalrunner.org/p/the-best-exercise-for-
menta...](http://www.thementalrunner.org/p/the-best-exercise-for-mental-
illnesses.html?m=1)
(Via the "exercise out of depression" subreddit:
[https://m.reddit.com/r/EOOD/](https://m.reddit.com/r/EOOD/) )
~~~
DanBC
The evidence for exercise as a treatment for depression is weak at best.
You should probably not recommend exercise as a treatment for depression.
Of course, exercise is important and everyone should be exercising; and it
might help with "resiliance".
[http://www.cochrane.org/CD004366/DEPRESSN_exercise-for-
depre...](http://www.cochrane.org/CD004366/DEPRESSN_exercise-for-depression)
> When only high-quality trials were included, exercise had only a small
> effect on mood that was not statistically significant.
~~~
Symbiote
> The evidence for exercise as a treatment for depression is weak at best.
That's what the link you give says...
> You should probably not recommend exercise as a treatment for depression.
But it doesn't say that.
It does say "When compared to psychological or pharmacological therapies,
exercise appears to be no more effective, though this conclusion is based on a
few small trials.", in which case, can anything be recommended?
The NHS still recommends exercise for treating depression, at least in some
cases: [http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-
depression/pages...](http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-
depression/pages/exercise-for-depression.aspx) &
[http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Depression/Pages/Treatment.aspx](http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Depression/Pages/Treatment.aspx)
------
pocketstar
Before medication try Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Read: Feeling Good: The
New Mood Therapy by David B. Burns
~~~
djokkataja
Seconded--actually I highly recommend The Feeling Good Handbook by the same
author (David Burns). I've found it very helpful for dealing with
procrastination as well.
------
EugeneOZ
Fall in love. Forget about development for a couple of weeks.
------
kordless
Hey buddy! I won't make any claims against other's opinions here. We all
_chose_ what we chose for ourselves.
Depression is the indirect result of cognitive dissonance. Cognitive
dissonance is the result of holding conflicting beliefs and feelings inside
yourself. That could be "I'm suppose to finish college" and "I want to go live
in Thailand and code for a year", for example. When you hold two opposing
beliefs, your brain attempts to resolve those beliefs through a series of
rationalizations of your feelings. Rationalizations are excuses, but just
sound better, as they are intended to resolve the dissonance so you can
function somewhat normally emotionally. The more you attempt to avoid
resolving these beliefs, the stronger your dissonance will be. All of this
results in suffering. A little suffering now, resolving things and stating
your real feelings, can help alleviate the symptoms of dissonance and the
larger suffering you are experiencing today. Accepting a little ongoing
suffering will eventually resolve the dissonance, but a choice will have to be
made. BTW, a lot of people are challenged with undestanding how they actually
feel emotionally. Celebrate the fact you already know you are sad. It's a
helluva thing to be able to do that!
Buddhism, or more specifically the 8-fold path, is essentially a mind recipe
for what I describe above. It goes something like this (with my spin on each
step after the colons):
1\. Right view: understand the problem behind a given dissonance you hold (you
may have multiple ones)
2\. Right intention: set intent to resolve one of the dissonances
3\. Right speech: talk about resolving it to others and don't represent
actions or thoughts that attempt to keep the dissonance in place
4\. Right action: put the thing you are saying into action. don't just talk
about it. do it.
5\. Right livelihood: don't let the important parts of your life keep your
dissonance in place. jobs and school are livelihoods
6\. Right effort: keep plugging at the different dissonance bits you hold
inside of you. never stop resolving them.
7\. Right mindfulness: learn to meditate, basically. there are a thousand ways
to meditate. find one that works for you.
8\. Right concentration: don't let your brain fuck with you. you, your
consciousness, is in control, not your brain. show it who's boss.
Good luck dude. I have faith you'll be just fine. You are here, after all.
That's the first step.
------
hengheng
* A daily routine is incredibly powerful -- /whatever/ the routine is and /whatever/ it is that you do. If you find yourself playing computer games for two hours every night, then that might be how you learn to concentrate again. Don't fight it before you look at yourself appreciatively.
* Do anything you need to find back your cognitive strength. You will be less intelligent while your brain chemistry is broken. That shouldn't drag you down because it's absolutely normal and natural, but it's frightening if you are a student and programmer, and used to measuring your self-worth in how well you can concentrate.
* Sleep deprivation helps supress depression for a day. Might help you get back into gear every now and then.
* St John's Wort is worth giving a try. People discuss whether it's more helpful than antidepressants, but then again it often doesn't even count as medicine. Took six weeks to kick into my own brain, and cured its chemistry back up to a point that I could sustain myself. The way back out of depression was an existential rollercoaster of emotions and attitudes with increasing frequency: Weeks at first, hours at the end while I got more stable. Some medicine might be useful for dampening, but only for that.
* Don't insist on keeping social contacts. Depressed you is somebody else than healthy you, and you can rebuild all truly good connections even after a couple of years in case they break apart. Similarly, don't insist on keeping anything else in your life if you find it doesn't work out at the moment. This is where you change careers, majors, hobbys, as well as losing your girlfriend. Keep as many things as you comfortably can a constant however, just to make it easier on yourself.
* Cognitive behavioural therapy. There's a good book on it called Feeling Good that told me /exactly/ the lessons I had missed in life, but your mileage may vary.
* Do whatever feels good to you. Your major job in life now is to make yourself feel good. After all, most people feel better than you, so it's well within your right to ignore others (and others' expectations) while focussing on yourself.
------
Nomentatus
Very strong evidence now exists, including a mouse model of bipolar illness
controlled by light exposure, that extending your photoperiod is the principle
driver of depression. You require total darkness (but red light is okay, see
last line.) And rigid hours of darkness. Sleep is important for depression,
but only affects the aldosterone cycle. If you sleep into the morning light,
you're still killing your melatonin-controlled cycle. The pRGCs that control
our clock were only discovered rather recently, so it will be perhaps a
generation before you hear this from a front line doctor.
pRGCs cannot detect red light.
------
rebelidealist
Think about how your talents can be used to help the needy. So many life
saving nonprofits and ngo can use your help even at the volunteering capacity.
You can also mentor someone who desires your skills one on one.
------
ironicaldiction
I had pretty bad depression for my whole 3rd year as an undergrad, and the
only thing that has helped me is making changes when things weren't working.
The hard part is that you don't want to make any changes, you just want to be
sad (at least I did).
What I did was lighten my course load and try to do some stuff for fun. This
meant doing more development for fun, seeing friends more often, having more
new experiences, more exercise.
It's not easy, but it's worth it. Give it time, and on the really bad days,
just know you're not alone and it gets better.
------
danmaz74
> Sadly I live in a 3rd world country, where mental illness is not an illness.
> I can get little help from people. Our healthcare system simply doesn't work
> at all
My first suggestion would be to try and find professional help there, even if
it's difficult. Did you search? Even if the healthcare system is bad, this
doesn't mean that there are no good psychologists at all. If you've got nobody
to ask, you can search for a professional association or for a college where
clinical psychology is taught, and start from there.
------
hownotwhy
I was depressed at university. The courses weren't interesting, my neighbours
were verbally abusive, and my long distance relationship was ending badly. I
ended up going to the university psychiatrist and just cried my eyes out. I
didn't pass with the grades I wanted but I got through it. If I'd do it again
I'd just talk to people. Not everyone will understand but if you're lucky
someone will. Other than that all I can say is "this too will pass"
------
lambdasquirrel
Meditation has helped me more than anything else, maybe even therapy. For
years I did it "wrong." You can meditate to train focus, and you can meditate
to dive through the layers of the mind. What helped me is the latter. The
former helps you get work done, but it actually either makes the depression
worse, or cuts you off from the world.
I don't know what the quality and breadth of instruction is, where you are in
the world, so YMMV.
------
SFjulie1
I was bankrupted so medications were not an option.
I was aware of it did not make me feel better.
a girl said let's fuck because I am also depressed and it makes people
depressed feel better. (she was bipolar)
She was lying, but I was kind of in love with her, so it made me feel better,
but not her.
In fact it works. At least for me, even if I cared more about her than me.
Just loving people heal depression a lot, I guess.
Ho! And my parent's cat was nice with me. Maybe that was the key. But who
knows?
------
cha-cho
Exercise and sunlight are scientifically proven to reduce depression. Indulge
in each for at least one hour a day. Two books (with very long titles) that
may be helpful in understanding and combatting the illness are: "The Depths:
The Evolutionary Origins of the Depression Epidemic" and "How to Stubbornly
Refuse to Make Yourself Miserable about Anything--yes, Anything!"
------
NTDF9
Socialize. Get out of the tech bubble. Seriously!
One of the biggest problem of HN type folks is that they don't try to live a
balanced life. Even the most hardworking people in the world try to balance
things out.
Take some time out to meet some friends every week. Reach out to old friends
and make new ones. Go live.
Counter-intuitive as it may sound, you'll soon see that your productivity has
increased.
------
throwdep
If your procrastination is causing or deepening your depression, consider this
book: [http://www.amazon.com/The-Now-Habit-Overcoming-
Procrastinati...](http://www.amazon.com/The-Now-Habit-Overcoming-
Procrastination/dp/1585425524) It helped me understand and break the
procrastination cycle.
------
izolate
Truth be told, I'm forever 2 weeks of inactivity away from a depressive
episode.
I have to keep moving (exercise; running 2 or 3 times a week) AND keep my mind
occupied by not concentrating on myself too much, otherwise I begin to shut
down.
This is my trick, YMMV. I do believe you can do this without medication, and
it does get easier to control as you get older. Good luck.
------
dchistov
I had the same feeling at last year. Now I'm optimistic & full energy. What
did I do?
1\. I had a rest.
2\. I had read the great book "Unlimited Power"
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unlimited_Power](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unlimited_Power))
3\. I had done all practics from that book.
And my life was changed!
------
facepalm
It's possible that your courses are boring. After a while at university I was
craving for measuring myself against the real world, not just against
artificial problems set by the teachers.
Perhaps you could try doing something entirely different every once in a
while?
------
ysleepy
Seems to be consensus here, but exercise really helped me to stabilize my mood
and bring back my positive stoicism. Still have trouble getting motivated, but
at least I have these days where I passionately follow some new thing into the
rabbit-hole.
------
sergiotapia
Exercise. Scientifically proven to make you feel happier. Whenever you're
feeling down bust out some reps. After a few months you will feel great, sleep
like a baby, and look amazing too!
------
johngalt
Get enough sleep and physical activity.
In my experience the brain follows the body. An active mind is generated by an
active body. Likewise a sleepy and listless mind can be created easily.
------
panjaro
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9873664](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9873664)
------
kawera
Walk. Exercise and light will help you immensely.
Walking is an art form, like poetry, and will bring you exercise and light and
awe.
It gets better.
------
jarnix
If you know that you are depressed and can talk about it, that's a good step
and you should be glad to be aware of this.
It's difficult to quit playing games and procrastinate even when someone's not
depressed...
Meeting new people and finding a project seems a like good thing, at least it
worked for me. You should also try and going out for like walking, biking, or
whatever.
And you should avoid medicine, alcohol or drugs.
~~~
ithrewthisone
I'd argue that admitting your depression on the internet anonymously holds no
additional value whatsoever. It is the same as admitting it to yourself. I
know because I've been there, done that.
Rest of your advice is sound though.
~~~
jarnix
Many people do not even begin to admit they are depressed, that's what I was
saying: it's admitting it.
------
gesman
Refocus on something else.
Rusty car can still move to beautiful destination.
Once you start moving - rust will gradually drop off...
------
analog31
Daily vigorous exercise might help.
------
Douceur
Depression for me is like walking on a tightrope, it really is that easy to
fall. But worse than falling is spiralling. If you feel yourself falling,
command yourself to get up. If you can't get up, command yourself to drag your
body. If you can't even do that, command yourself to move _anything_ , even if
it's lifting a finger. The important thing here is that you must make sure
that your mind can at least obey direct survivalist commands like this.
I realise that this sounds a little surreal but when I was depressed, what was
in my head was much more real than the real world. In fact the real world
seemed more like a ghost. I did that exercise mentally, then gradually moved
to physical, such as commanding myself to sit up on bed after lying down for
so long. Now I don't know how deep you are in, but if you are, start with
this.
The guys here have been helpful with their suggestions but for me checklists
didn't work. Checklists were actually bad for me, because I would realise that
I couldn't do some/most of them - and then I would feel worse. There was a
time too when I was so detached from the real world that checklists looked
vague, silly even. Focus on forcing your body to obey simple, direct commands
first.
I personally don't believe in medication. In one of my bluest episodes, I
considered taking a drug like Aderall, just anything so I can pass my final
year. I'm glad I didn't. I personally believe that depression doesn't come out
of nowhere, but from a fundamental dissatisfaction buried deep inside. Do not
start digging now though. Your mind is already chaotic/empty and you do not
want to tangle things any further. Be gentle with yourself, be sensitive, and
uncover them one by one, and keep assuring yourself that it's OK and mistakes
are very OK. Again I'm sorry if this might sound surreal.
Contact with the real world is very important, but you must keep your circle
very tight and very few. When I was depressed, the world seemed fast and
cruel. But you must always tell yourself to give people a chance. I realised
that I had an almost-subconscious prejudice against a certain type of people,
namely those who seemed mild and mundane - in other words, boring and
characterless. But it was those people who helped me the most, because when
the world seems fast and cruel, 'boring' characters are refreshing and smiles
give hope. I also had a difficult relationship with my mother, but I took a
big decision to ignore my (mis)conceptions and confide a few things with her
anyway. That was life-changing, because it repaired our relationship and I
could finally see her as she is, and not someone who wants to trip me up (I
had a childhood trauma based on embarrassment, and it was one of the root
causes of my unhappiness). I'm not suggesting that you do exactly as I did
here, but keep your circle small and tight so that it can eventually become a
sort of haven.
The real world can sometimes be so overwhelming that you are not only scared
of it, you freeze on the spot. Do not be so conscious of the real world, let
it trickle in gradually. Though strip yourself bare first. Actually, we all
live in bubbles and we forget quite a lot of things that are already around
us. Beautiful and impossible things, that when you really think about it, it's
a miracle that they exist. When you look out of the window, behold the sky!
And the ships of cloud. And that child daisy-chaining since afternoon. The
tastelessness yet purity of water. The way the light scatters through the
blinds. Your hands that seem pinky-transparent when you hold them up. The
world is a miracle and you're extremely privileged to witness it.
That's my story anyway. I believe that I've recovered but I know that I'm
still on the tightrope, and it's so easy to lose balance. I absolutely loathed
those years, I considered self-destruction so many times, but sitting here
right now and typing this, I'm glad that I had the experience. It made me feel
more human. And suddenly, lots of things don't actually matter, even failures
- and I have plenty of those in my portfolio. Because being alive is a
privilege. I'm not a survivor, I've been made new all over again. _But with a
faculty for compassion._
(Another consequence of depression is my new ability to rattle off abstract
things, and I've never been good at that ... oh well.)
So stay strong, listen to yourself and trust yourself. You can do this. Just
keep getting up again because above all, you do not want things to spiral
down. You're procrastinating, which is a good sign, because you've still got
your feet anchored to this world. But do the things as I told you. You can do
this. You can do this.
Keep safe :)
------
cylinder
Good weather, sunshine.
------
m1k3r420
Coke.
------
ithrewthisone
Hey OP,
I'm 24, Male and living in a first world country. I've been suffering on/off
since I was 15 - so almost 10 years, wow actually. I remember vividly when it
started to come over me. At the time, all I wanted in my life at the time was
a decent computer to play games. I saved every single penny and once I got the
PC - I began getting depressed. Over the last 9 years it has gotten
progressively worse. Perhaps the PC was just a coincidence; I really don't
know.
Anyway, I have no reason to feel this way - I feel stupid. I feel like; how
dare I feel this way when there are so many other people worse off than me.
I'm so fucking privileged it would make others sick to their stomach to hear
me complain about my feelings. I made it through the education system - even
through my masters, and received top grades too (bar my first standard BSc.
before I learned how to study properly and game the education system).
I am now employed and on a nice salary for my age (€40k starting, with free
health insurance, and bonus). I drive a nice car (inherited). I have a
girlfriend of 2 years (she knows - hardest thing I've ever done), and to top
it off I know her about 20 years. Yes I know, almost my whole life.
I had my first major breakdown last year. It was actually sparked from a fight
with my girlfriend I think. I was doing my masters and started a company on
the side. It was a lot to take on, and my girlfriend is full time - if you
know what I mean. So I broke.
I saw a counselor (sorry don't know how to spell that one, even being native
English speaker), for about 3 months I think it was. I had a very limited
budget when I was in university so I could only pay her €10 a week - which was
so embarrassing as I pulled up in my 2008 BMW coupe. I felt so ashamed, but
she understood my rare circumstance and was very helpful and I am so grateful
for what she has done for me.
I was also suffering from an eating disorder at the time. I was borderline
standard bulimic - and had full on exercise bulimia (arguably still do). I
work out 4 times per week, but love bodybuilding so I guess that's a gray
area. I was benching 100kg during my exam periods for my masters, and coding
everything for my startup at the same time. Stupid amount of work. No wonder I
was fucked.
I don't really know where I'm going with this, but I do know that you cannot
let it get the better of you. I look at what I've achieved while dealing with
the issues I have and I know that I am a driven person - no matter what. It
may hold me back a bit, but it doesn't define me or change my determination.
Keep on keeping on is such a true statement. I make myself get up out of bed
and worry about putting my pants on after. I isolate my thoughts to get
through. I just drive to the gym, nothing else. Once I'm there, I just get out
of the car, that's it. Before you know it, you are in the gym and you didn't
miss another work out. Same goes for the rest of the things you want to
accomplish.
My two parents also have alcohol addictions, which obviously doesn't help. My
Dad was suicidal when he was my age, and had a brief stay in rehab within a
mental hospital. My Mum is recently out of surgery due to years of dietary
abuse, but continues to drink daily. I'd say if she went cold turkey - it'd
kill her. I don't talk to my parents much anymore since I moved away. I'm OK
with that, but I wish it didn't have to be this way.
Keep on keeping on.
------
dominotw
zoloft
------
kelukelugames
Moved.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask YC: Oh no, I think I have serious competition - What do you guys think of this? - edw519
http://www.geticeberg.com/
======
sanswork
This types of products always fail because the more you dumb it down the less
control you have and the less like what you want you will get. Thats ignoring
the performance issues and design flaws non-professionals will make. I've
worked on a number of very expensive consulting jobs where my only role was to
fix an in house application that Jenny from sales wrote and the company now
depends on.
I just listened to the short video intro as well as I suspect it will have the
target audience(non-programmers) saying "WTF?". Iceberg makes it easy to
connect your objects to your forms. Great but will your audience know what an
object is? Will they understand why this is useful?
~~~
edw519
Thank you, sanswork. That's exactly what I was thinking.
Aside: That's 2 _excellent_ responses to comments I made today. Please be kind
enough to put an email address on your profile or contact me offline. Thanks.
------
jsjenkins168
I'm having difficulty understanding exactly what it does... And I'm a
technical person.
If your product does a better job of being simple, you can beat them.
~~~
edw519
It's supposed to be a way to build web apps without programmers. But the more
I look at it, the more it looks like another Visual Basic IDE.
------
ejs
Excuse my ignorance but what is your app?
~~~
edw519
I have spent the last several years writing apps for small and midmarket
businesses (accounting, inventory, order processing, etc.) I want to convert
my service business into a product business; that is, an app that does what I
do.
I know, it's a tall order. It also looks like what these people are trying to
do.
~~~
mcxx
OK, once again - what?
------
gnaritas
That's good, it means your not building something nobody wants, there's a
market. If there is no competition, there's probably no market.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Beaqn.in – Organized list of front end tools and websites - orange_juice
http://beaqn.in/frontend/
======
thunderbong
Why isn't there any mention of Sencha in these lists ever?
IMHO they are a very mature Javascript front-end MVC framework. Sencha ExtJs
is now almost 8 years old and Sencha Touch is over a couple of years old at
least.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Funding a website without selling user data or advertisements - dyladan
I have been reading hacker news for quite a while and love what I've found on this site. I am thinking of starting a website but I am having a funding problem. I do not want to sell user data and I really do not like advertisements. I would like to be able to offer the service for free but I also need to be able to pay the bills. Has anybody had any success with alternate funding models? How would I go about making this work?
======
joosters
Donations. Sell stuff that people will pay money for. Get a 2nd job.
Kickstarter project with overblown promises.
Really, we'd all love to do something and have all the costs magically paid
for, but there's no magic solution.
------
samfisher83
How about a freemium model. Some services are free and for some better
services you charge something,
------
ireadqrcodes
read this [http://www.getelastic.com/7-business-models-for-
monetizing-d...](http://www.getelastic.com/7-business-models-for-monetizing-
digital-content/)
what is your website about?
~~~
dyladan
If you want to check it out you can at symposium.dyladan.me
I don't have any ssl yet though so i'd be wary of putting in any passwords you
share with other sites if you are going to sign up.
------
Mz
As I understand it, Dwarf Fortress survives entirely on donations and
Hyperbole and a Half survives entirely on selling products. The author of the
second isn't comfortable with either donations or ads.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Show HN: I'm building a blog on how to build a remote team - dmonn
https://nohq.co
======
nickfromseattle
I'm building a remote team and I would pay for fantastic content and would
absolutely pay $19/month for this, probably more.
However, after clicking around I wasn't able to justify it.
\- No social proof. There isn't any information on your skills at building
well running remote teams. Why are you qualified to provide this?
\- Lack of value. #1 could be ignored if the content added value, but after
reading through your blog posts the content is quite thin, and I didn't learn
anything I didn't already know - and I'm only at one remote team member.
If you haven't built a remote team, you could have easily provided more value
than you currently have by simply researching and curating how other companies
are doing it - paying someone to curate this and surface it to me is worth
$19/month.
Look at the type of content orgs like Buffer and Zapier are posting about
their remote team building / culture for ideas on how to improve the level of
detail and value.
Start interviewing founders and leadership of remote first teams.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Why You Should Learn JavaScript in 2016 - kpthunder
http://knpw.rs/blog/learn-javascript-2016/
======
egwynn
I think JS is a pretty bad language. It’s a down-and-dirty language that was
in the right place at the right time 20 years ago. But if you want to do web
stuff, then you absolutely must know it.
In all, that’s no big deal for folks who already have a decent arsenal of
languages under their belts. We can just suck it up and deal with the stuff we
don’t like while we’re writing JS. But for newcomers, it’s trickier.
Beginners pick up cues from the language (and its community) about how
development _should_ be done. They’ll think semicolons _should_ get
automatically inserted in ambiguous places, that all numbers _should_ be
floating points, that there _should_ be only two scopes for variables, etc. To
me, that’s a bad way to get started.
I worry that people who pick up JS won’t end up with enough perspective to
reflect critically on JS itself. I worry that we’re expecting the future of
web programmers to put up with too many of the hasty/bad decisions that were
made in the 1990s. I worry that they’ll jump into a half-baked development
vehicle and think they need to start reinventing wheels in order to get
anywhere.
In the end, I wouldn’t tell someone NOT to learn JS in 2016, but I would give
them a heft warning that there’s a lot more to programming and “software
engineering” than JS can offer right now.
------
dozzie
> The biggest thing [...] is its universal nature: being able to write an
> application once that runs everywhere without modification.
The same was said about Java, although on a slightly different axis. It never
really worked, and similarly, it doesn't work this way with JavaScript.
And your point of view is very, very narrow: only web applications. There are
plenty of other applications of programming that have nothing to do with web
development, barring semi-statically displaying some results. For those
applications, JavaScript is a very bad fit.
> A massive, diverse, and vibrant community.
The same that produced tons of abandoned libraries, probably even more than
lay abandoned in CPAN, which is much, much older and more mature. It's not a
sign of a healthy community.
Also, your glorious React didn't exist three years ago. Why should I expect it
to be still developed three years from now? It doesn't sound like a very
transferrable skill.
> Getting Rid of `this'
> [...] purely-functional programming is becoming more popular in JavaScript.
Why not learn functional programming language for functional programming? It's
not like JavaScript could do even decently. Just throwing bunch of functions
to other functions is not quite functional programming yet; there's much more
in this paradigm. And one has to go way, way out of his way to use this
paradigm for real in JavaScript.
And so on. Overall, it's better to spend time learning several different
languages of different levels and paradigms than to try to fit round peg in a
square hole with JavaScript. JavaScript should be approached only after
already learning three or four other general purpose languages (and twice as
many DSLs, like make or SQL).
~~~
kpthunder
> only web applications.
I talked about native mobile applications as well.
> Also, your glorious React didn't exist three years ago. Why should I expect
> it to be still developed three years from now? It doesn't sound like a very
> transferrable skill.
Facebook is dogfooding React in a way not seen in other libraries in use on
the web. Sure, Google uses Angular here and there, but nowhere near to the
extent that Facebook uses React -- both on the web and native mobile.
> Why not learn functional programming language for functional programming?
That's not really the point I was trying to make. JavaScript is already widely
adopted on millions of devices. I can deploy functional JavaScript anywhere.
> And one has to go way, way out of his way to use this paradigm for real in
> JavaScript.
I mentioned libraries that encourage this paradigm. Including lodash-fp which
makes a point of making everything in lodash auto-curried, iteratee-first, and
data-last.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
WSJ journalist John Carreyrou shares year-long Theranos investigation [video] - bakztfuture
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSgwJA-GOlg
======
w1ntermute
I really liked the point made about how Carreyrou being an NYC-based
investigative journalist (with a focus on healthcare, not tech) who is largely
disconnected from SV has enabled him to approach this story in a way that SV
tech journalists would be afraid to, because it could jeopardize their
careers.
Carreyrou was part of a WSJ/NYT team that received a Pulitzer last year[0] for
a series of pieces on Medicare billing[1]. That's one of the reasons why I'm
surprised some prominent Valley personalities didn't take his articles more
seriously from the beginning[2,3] - he's not some two-bit tech blogger with an
axe to grind. There's a world of difference between investigative journalists,
like Carreyrou or Bob Woodward, and tech bloggers like Michael Arrington or
Sarah Lacy.
0: [http://www.poynter.org/2015/for-the-wall-street-journal-a-
pu...](http://www.poynter.org/2015/for-the-wall-street-journal-a-pulitzer-
long-in-the-making/337879/)
1: [http://graphics.wsj.com/medicare-
billing/](http://graphics.wsj.com/medicare-billing/)
2: [http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-19/early-
ther...](http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-19/early-theranos-
investor-remains-supportive-even-without-answers-ifydlf03)
3:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzI763-NPug](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzI763-NPug)
~~~
jonas21
> There's a world of difference between investigative journalists, like
> Carreyrou or Bob Woodward, and tech bloggers like Michael Arrington or Sarah
> Lacy.
Or, for that matter, Jason Calacanis. It was really uncomfortable watching
parts of the video where Jason would go off on speculative tangents and John
Carreyrou would have to bring things back to statements supported by facts.
~~~
CPLX
Jason's a personality and pundit, that's sort of his job, much like objective
and sourced facts is Carreyrou's job.
------
danso
FWIW Carreyou and his WSJ colleagues were awarded the Pulitzer for
Investigative Reporting last year for a project on Medicare fraud:
[http://www.pulitzer.org/winners/7226](http://www.pulitzer.org/winners/7226)
The work they published to win the award was great, but he'd been fighting
that fight for many years...and his dogged pursuit led to the CMS agreeing to
publish the reimubrsement data in full, for the first time ever:
[https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-
systems/sta...](https://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data-and-
systems/statistics-trends-and-reports/medicare-provider-charge-data/physician-
and-other-supplier.html)
If you're interested in what the data contains, it's only a couple of GB as a
flat table, but contains Medicare reimbursements for every doctor, for every
type of reimbursed procedure, which allows for a lot of interesting analysis
about healthcare in general...I wrote up a walkthrough that explains how
Carreyou arrived at his numbers for the lead story in the investigation:
[http://2015.padjo.org/tutorials/sql-walks/exploring-wsj-
medi...](http://2015.padjo.org/tutorials/sql-walks/exploring-wsj-medicare-
investigation-with-sql/)
I've never met him or asked him how he did his work...but it underscores what
a great thing he and the WSJ managed to accomplish: producing an important
investigative story and pushing for the release of the data so that anyone
else could reproduce it.
------
icpmacdo
I thought this was a great conversation. There right about the strangest part
of all of this is the CEO mixing it up on Twitter while the company is
obviously suffering from some serious issues.
------
v3gas
Any TL;DR?
~~~
achow
It’s recap of all the news & revelations on Theranos till Walgreen’s shutting
down its Theranos Wellness Center (i.e., till yesterday).
John Carreyrou just summarizes the events in chronological order through his
answers to the interviewers questions.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
IPv6: What Are They Really Thinking? - sarfralogy
http://www.patexia.com/feed/ipv6-what-are-they-really-thinking-20120608
======
macavity23
_And it should go without saying that all of that now-unnecessary NAT hardware
tends to provide firewalls and other security measures that will no longer be
a protective gateway._
It shouldn't go without saying, because it's not true. When using IPv6, you
will still have some kind of box that sits between your home network and your
ISP, it's just that rather than a Router/Firewall/NAT device, it will just be
a Router/Firewall. Users will not notice any difference, and will not face any
increased risk.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
MSDN Blogs Have an Interesting View of Time - BudVVeezer
http://blogs.msdn.com/b/default.aspx?PageIndex=28842
======
ChrisInEdmonton
I don't get it. You've linked to page 28,842 of the Latest Blog Posts index.
It shows articles more than ten years old. So what? What am I missing?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
We Studied 6,452 SaaS Companies. The Findings Will Make You Grow - constantinum
https://www.chargebee.com/blog/saas-business-growth-findings/
======
smt88
tl;dr Use our product
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Show HN: Ambient background noise mixing on web, iPhone and Android - gabemart
http://asoftmurmur.com
======
gabemart
The iPhone app was released today. The interface is made with react-native and
the audio-playing part in objective-c.
Happy to answer any questions.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Wiring a Generator to Your House - savrajsingh
http://blog.wattvision.com/wiring-a-generator-to-your-house
======
dsr_
This bears repeating:
If you try to wire your generator to your breaker box as a DIY project, you probably will not be in compliance with local electrical codes. Also know that it's extremely dangerous. For example, if your ground wiring is not done properly, you may inadvertently put 200+ volts on 120 volt lines, immediately frying bulbs and electronics connected to those lines, and potentially starting fires. Don't do it.
In addition to all that, don't use a double-male cable to just plug a
generator in to your house. Don't. You can kill people that way.
~~~
dholowiski
Yes, that need a bigger disclaimer. A huge one in fact.
As well as the extreme importance of having a 'generator interlock' -
something that physically disconnects your house from the power grid, so you
aren't electrifying external power lines (lines that people expect to not be
electrified when the power is turned off).
~~~
electromagnetic
It's also important to remember if you're DIYing the project, that if your
neighbour didn't use a generator interlock, your wiring may have enough power
to make you need a trip to the hospital.
Seriously, speaking as someone who has worked as an electrician. Unless you're
experienced, don't play with it.
~~~
dholowiski
Yeah, this is a bad project to DIY.
~~~
electromagnetic
It's literally only DIYable by someone who has enough experience that they
could do it professionally. Installing your own generator interlock is no easy
feat. Installing companion wiring for a generator, again, is no easy feat.
Easiest permanent DIY job would be to wire a dedicated outlet to your fridges
and freezers and any important electrical equipment, and switch them to the
generator outlet when you need it. No crossing circuits, no real problems.
If you have no electrical experience, deal with the extension cords.
------
phasetransition
Personal background: 10+ years as a moonlight freelancer in live concert
production in addition to the two engineering universities. Have instructed
more than one "licensed electrician" about production power from panels and
generators.
Two clarifications on the article: 1\. A L15-30 is a three phase delta
twistlock connector. The author means the L14-30.
2\. "For example, if your ground wiring is not done properly, you may
inadvertently put 200+ volts on 120 volt lines, immediately frying bulbs and
electronics connected to those lines, and potentially starting fires." - What
the author means to refer to here is accident lifting of the neutral
connection. See this excellent thread (complete with demonstration video) on
the professional sound forum:
[http://soundforums.net/lighting-electrical/4812-why-open-
neu...](http://soundforums.net/lighting-electrical/4812-why-open-neutral-
kills-120v-devices.html)
If you're interested in a general understanding of generators and grounding,
you can read a post of mine, also on the professional audio forum:
[http://soundforums.net/lighting-electrical/5216-running-
gene...](http://soundforums.net/lighting-electrical/5216-running-generator-
boat.html#post36225)
If you've got any specific questions on the topic of generators, I'm happy to
give them a go.
~~~
rdl
It's always interesting in audio (or lab/automation) how you want to filter
out noise (isolated ground, etc.), but naive ways of doing that can cause
serious problems.
~~~
phasetransition
Yes, naive ways cause big problems. While I've seen people do many ill-advised
things in home and studio audio, professional concert audio is decidedly more
buttoned down:
Grounding is not isolated, but NEC-compliant star grounded (See NEC 400.8,
520, 525, 530 (movies), and 640 (carnivals) )
Loop area is actively minimized
Signal transmission is via instrumentation amplifier topology (i.e.
differential)
Shielding is designed to minimize shield current induced noise (SCIN)
These Rane tech notes gives a good overview on some of the topics above:
<http://www.rane.com/note165.html> <http://www.rane.com/note166.html>
The AES standard for audio interconnects is here:
[http://www.aes.org/publications/standards/search.cfm?docID=4...](http://www.aes.org/publications/standards/search.cfm?docID=44)
------
MattRogish
A few years ago I had to wire a generator up to a distribution warehouse so
that goods could still be shipped in event of a power loss. The actual wiring
process wasn't too difficult (have a properly licensed electrician do it. NO
EXCEPTIONS!) but the process of wiring it up to the building natural gas we
hit a snag. We had a 25kW generator spec'd but using natural gas required more
pressure than the utility could supply. We switched to propane (which is less
efficient) and used building gas as a last-ditch failover (if I recall
correctly it only had enough pressure to supply half load or something).
Note that disel and plain old gasoline generators push out really noisy power.
Do not hook up electronics to gas generators without a line conditioner or UPS
in the middle (and the UPS will probably complain about voltage sags and/or
lack of grounding).
If you're going to make it a permanent fixture to your home that you can
actually rely upon, you really ought to make it run on natural gas and/or
propane (as a failover). Quieter, cheaper, and less likely to be a shortage
(most homes without power in NY/NJ still have natural gas and a modestly sized
propane tank could run our generator for a whole week at full load, and we had
contracts with multiple firms to bring propane).
Also, make sure you test and condition the generator periodically, as any oil-
lubricated engine left idle will eventually freeze up.
Finally, you want to oversize the generator just a touch, as running them at
100% is a great way to burn it out relatively quickly. If you can keep it at
about 80%, it'll increase the longevity of the unit, and also give you some
fudge factor.
~~~
ars
> The actual wiring process wasn't too difficult (have a properly licensed
> electrician do it. NO EXCEPTIONS!)
Why no exceptions? This isn't really that hard to do, as long as your have
some knowledge, and you researched in advance what to do.
Obviously if you are unsure of your skill and/or knowledge level don't do it.
But you don't have to be licensed to know what to do.
~~~
MattRogish
Because if you do it wrong and kill someone or burn your house down or any of
the other innumerable bad things a 5+kW combustion engine device can do, it's
your fault, and your insurance _may_ not even cover it (not to mention any
legal issues). Having a properly licensed/bonded electrician do it, generally,
will keep the liability out of your hands.
Given how cheap it was for the actual labor, I'm not comfortable taking that
risk. YMMV.
~~~
ars
Do you know how many things you can do wrong and kill someone?
This is way down on the list. Hire someone if you want, but don't tell people
"no exceptions" there are plenty of quite handy people who would have no
trouble doing this properly.
Like you said: It's not really that hard.
~~~
oconnore
Those people also know enough (or know too little) to ignore advice on the
internet. For everyone else, disclaimers are good.
------
leoedin
This is a nice article, but I think it really managed to miss the point that
should be made. I always find it amazing how little power you actually need to
live a near-normal life. With 0 power, you definitely notice it. Once you have
enough power to cover some low level lighting and entertainment (perhaps a few
hundred watts), the value of any additional power is greatly reduced.
The author is right in saying that they don't need a 23kW generator. They
probably also don't need a 5kW generator. If they actually investigated the
cause of the various power peaks, I bet they could disable or replace that
usage with something else. A graph is nice, but a few labels ("this is where
we turn the kettle on", "this is when we get home from work") would provide so
much more information.
Just a little power management could probably cut peak power down to a couple
of kW, and slightly more effort could get it lower still. Beyond heating
(which is woefully inefficient if electrical), there's very little that a
person (or family) need at any one time that draws above a kW.
~~~
Dove
The big ones -- at least around here -- are the clothes dryer, the range, and
the dishwasher. They're all a kW or more, and it would be a significant
inconvenience to do without them.
Oh, and the microwave.
~~~
marquis
>clothes dryer, the range, and the dishwasher
I've worked and lived under emergency conditions with no power, running off a
generator, and the clothes dryer, range and dishwasher were the last things we
cared about. Light, telecommunications (we had long-distance antennas) and
phone charging were the most critical needs.
I've also spent time in 100%-self-powered villages, and with good solar and
wind power you can indeed have your dish-washers etc, just not in an emergency
when you need to conserve and share energy (people running around sharing
newly-charged battery packs was a common sight).
Generating electricity isn't really an issue if you have a good solar/wind
pack: it's battery. I've often found running a converter from a car has been
more efficient than relying on someone's home-built battery pack.
~~~
Dove
Sure. I've gone camping, too.
I'm just saying trying to live _normally_ on a peak power of a couple kW might
be optimistic. The dryer alone draws two or three.
~~~
leoedin
I have never owned a dryer. In the UK owning a clothes dryer is quite unusual
- clothes drying racks work quite effectively.
I suppose if you decide that you must live a "normal" life, then you can't
really change anything about it. If you decide that you want to live a
comfortable but low impact life, then there's plenty of things you can do to
reduce your peak power.
~~~
krzyk
Same here in Poland, I would have never seen clothes dryer if I weren't in the
US few years ago. Doesn't the use of such dryer make ironing harder?
~~~
Dove
I suppose it might! All the clothing I have that should be ironed is also dry-
clean only, so it never sees the dryer.
I do have some clothes that I dry on a rack, and they always come out very
stiff compared to the stuff that goes through the dryer. I feel like I should
hit those sweaters with a rugbeater or something before I wear them.
------
tomfakes
One thing that needs to be mentioned is ventilation for the exhaust gasses of
these things.
The Pacific Northwest had a similar (but smaller) storm to this in 2006. We
had much less sea damage, but more wind damage from trees falling over. Power
out for 10+days for some people.
14 people dead in WA state, but 8 of these came from CO poisoning - 5 in 1
family because they ran the generator in their garage!
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah_Eve_wind_storm_of_2006>
My in-laws used a generator for this time. They were out for 10 days, and
needed to walk 2 miles each way (due to downed trees) to get gas for the darn
thing. No-one thinks about the gasoline infrastructure needed to keep vehicles
and generators going if the power is out for multiple days. New Jersey is
finding this out right now!
------
ChuckMcM
One of the things we did, before we put solar panels on our house, was a power
survey. We actually measured the power draw of our house every day for a year
by reading the power meter and keeping a notebook (great for power disputes as
well :-). We discovered that we were using 23.2 kWh per day, or just under
1kW. But like the author our peak loads were higher (we don't have air
conditioning or a pool so those power suckers aren't an issue). We also found
that a 5.5kW generator would cover our needs.
So when the wiring was under modification for a kitchen remodel, we had the
electrician install a transfer switch on which we put our 10 most 'useful'
circuits. Then when the power went out we could fire up the generator outside,
plug it into the transfer switch and transfer power from the AC 'mains' to the
generator.
That works fine but you have to be careful because the power generated by Home
Depot generator is pretty crappy power. The computer systems were protected by
using a UPS system that used AC primary power for battery charging and ran the
load off an inverter. At some point I'll find a datacenter throwing out an old
AC line conditioner and I'll get that.
------
brasmasus
I'm seeing a lot of generator hookup DIY naysayers in here - and caution is
warranted - but c'mon this is HN; and it really isn't complicated stuff if you
have a good reference. Get 'Wiring a House' by Rex Cauldwell and start with
Chapter 14: Standby Generators. It's all in there. I put 4 circuits (well
pump, fridge, server, entertainment) on a three way switch panel and we've
been using the generator as needed for the last 3 years. I'd recommend using
the quietest, smallest inverter generator you can get away with.
------
jpdoctor
Would love to hear recommendations for easily purchasable generators that are
reasonably quiet. I got one from HomeDepot that wakes the neighbors and causes
babies to start screaming, all for want of a decent muffler.
(Yes I could get one welded on. I have a need for additional generators, and
for some reason noise level seems to be a state secret with those things.)
~~~
phasetransition
For small, consumer-facing generators, the quietest model I am aware of is the
Honda EU6500. These, and the rest of the Honda EU line, have the added
advantage of being inverter generators that output a very clean sine wave.
In both the live concert and movie production worlds the Eu6500 is a frequent
fixture on site as the small generator of choice. I also have good experience
with the smaller EU3000. The line can be found here:
[http://powerequipment.honda.com/generators/inverter-
generato...](http://powerequipment.honda.com/generators/inverter-generators)
Yamaha also makes a line of low noise inverter gensets. They also have a 4500
watt class model. A friend of mine choose one of the Yamahas over the Honda:
[http://www.yamaha-
motor.com/outdoor/products/modeloverview/c...](http://www.yamaha-
motor.com/outdoor/products/modeloverview/cat/2007/55/model_overview.aspx)
Please note that both the Honda and Yamaha lines are much more expensive, and
put out much cleaner power, than the typical construction generators
prominently featured for cheap at the big box retailer. Buy once, cry once.
Since you indicate you are considering multiple generators, you could move up
the food chain to one larger enclosure-mounted installed generator. There are
many choices, but my personal recommendation are the ones from Onan, who
dominate the recreational vehicle (RV) generator market:
<http://cumminsonan.com/residential/>
For perspective, a common "small" portable generator for technical show power
is the Multiquip (MQ) DCA45. It is a 45KVA-class generator with equivalently
sized diesel prime mover: <http://www.multiquip.com/multiquip/DCA45SSKU.htm>
~~~
jpdoctor
Many thanks. My plural-of-generator comment meant only that I am investigating
for parents and friends too.
The smaller Honda 3000 (wheels are good) seems about right. 57 dB (A) is 1.
advertised (hooray!) and 2. very acceptable. Ordering such beasts from the web
gives me a case of the willies, hopefully I can find distribution nearby.
Thanks again for your answer.
~~~
phasetransition
Welcome,
The Honda generators are as nice as the price would indicate :) In general be
wary of generators that give sound levels with out a distance and weighting
curve specification.
------
anovikov
You only forget the difference between active and reactive load. If you have
active loads on your system only (i.e. light bulbs) than your calculations are
valid, reactive loads (like electric motors found in a/c units, fridges etc)
then they are not: you have to budget for several times their power in order
to make them able to start up. So the guy selling you 20KVA (they are labeled
in KVA, not kilowatts, which isn't same thing!) unit is probably not all that
wrong, this is 14KW and is just right for you when you say, have a peak load
of 4.8KW of which 3.6KW is active and 1.2 is a conditioner that you are
starting up at this moment - it will make an equivalent on 10KW or so load. So
20KVA is just right or only slightly more than you need.
~~~
phasetransition
You are combining two concepts here, though the overall point is a good one:
1\. The starting current of a motor, which is higher due to multiple factors
(e.g. no back emf, "starter winding" current, charging motor starter
capacitors, etc.).
2\. The concept of power factor, which represents the fraction of in-phase
current traveling in the circuit (i.e. the current actually performing
mechanical work)
Generators give output ratings in KVA to reflect the total amount of power
that they can source from their prime mover without no consideration of power
factor. Most larger generators also give a "real" power rating in watts that
de-rate for the power factor. See this small commercial genset as an example:
<http://www.multiquip.com/multiquip/DCA45SSKU.htm>
Only the current and voltage that are in phase perform work on the device
under power. If the power factor is 1 (i.e. completely in phase) then the KVA
and KW ratings would be the same. This, as you say, is the case for purely
resistive loads.
For loads with a reactive component, there is a current fraction that remains
in quadrature is bounced back and forth between the source and the load. Since
real world conductors and generator windings also have ohmic resistance, the
quadrature current fraction is partially dissipated as heat, and lost
outright.
Many municipalities mandate a certain power factor for the industrial
customers. Typically 0.9 or greater. This is to minimize the ohmic losses in
transmission lines from the reflected quadrature current. Industrial
facilities are typically inductive in nature, because of the large number
motors. So, at the outlet of the facility they will install some shunt
capacitance to offset the phase angle of the motors inductive character and
bring the current back in phase.
The worst-case power factor I've ever personally seen was on cruise ships.
Since those things are essentially one giant mechanical plant (motors galore),
and have multi-megawatt electric propulsion they have a power factor of 0.7,
or even slightly less!
------
ry0ohki
tldr; Call an electrician - oh and I run a company that has something to do
with saving you electricity
~~~
falcolas
It's good, practical advice, and pointing out how his service provided some
real world value (saving money purchasing a generator) wasn't at all
contrived.
What's the problem?
~~~
ry0ohki
The title of the article was "Wiring a Generator to Your Home". The crucial
part missing from the article was "How to Wire a Generator to Your Home",
which he says an electrician should do. Just feels like blog spam to me.
~~~
Dylan16807
The title was fine. The article talked about what and why rather than how.
------
forgotAgain
What about the peaks when motors turn on. I'm thinking blowers cycling for hot
air heating or the mentioned pump for the well. If you're measuring for
wattage you need to capture the peaks which will only last a few seconds.
You also need to account for multiple motors turning on simultaneously which
you may not catch with a simple measurement. You need to understand what the
demands for power are as well.
~~~
ars
Most generators can handle short peaks of around +25%.
They are even rated that way 3200/4000 is a typical rating.
Size for the normal load, and let the peak rating handle the startup currents.
------
tocomment
So I just bought a 4000w portable generator and there's a little bolt you're
supposed to attach some kind of ground wire to.
The instructions completely didn't say what to do with it. When I looked it up
online people are saying you need to have an 8 ft metal rod going into the
ground?? Who's going to do that for a portable generator.
What do you guys do for grounding? And if you install a transfer switch does
that change the grounding needs?
~~~
mindslight
(Disclaimer: I'm an EE who has done non-for-hire house wiring, not an
electrician. It is up to you to decide for yourself if my opinion concurs with
anything else you've read, common sense, the laws of physics, etc. I presume
you've obtained a generator at _this time_ because you are indeed out of power
and looking to get up and running quick, not for an ideal or best-prepared
situation)
I personally wouldn't worry about a grounding rod if I was just running a few
extension cords from the generator to power a _handful_ of necessary things.
The important thing is for all of the devices to be grounded back _to the
generator_. This means 3 conductor cords for 3 prong devices, 4 conductor
cords for 4 prong stove/dryer. 2 conductor non-polarized cords should be fine
for modern 2-prong "double insulated" devices. In NO circumstance do you want
to be using a 3-prong to 2-prong "cheater" adapters or anything similar.
Once you start talking about transfer switches and wiring it into your house,
the picture completely changes. Unless you have experience doing house wiring,
are up for dealing with live non-current-protected wires, _and_ are open to
learning something new while meticulously checking yourself, you really do
want to talk to an electrician
~~~
tocomment
I think I would hire an electrician but I'd still like to know the right way
to do it. If you install a transfer switch could the generators ground be
connected to the houses ground?
~~~
mindslight
Generator's ground would definitely be connected to the house ground. I have
not read the NEC in relation to generators. I would guess that neutral and
ground should not be bonded together at the generator (this is a modification
from how most generators come) and that if the generator is an appreciable
distance from the service panel, another ground rod should be driven at the
generator/interconnect.
------
wglb
To really do this right, check out ham radio publications such as
[http://www.arrl.org/shop/Emergency-Power-for-Radio-
Communica...](http://www.arrl.org/shop/Emergency-Power-for-Radio-
Communications).
There is much more to it than the article might imply to you.
------
ph0rque
_How about deep-cycle 12 volt batteries? You can buy a single battery for
~$130. This battery produces 55Ah and contains 660 watthours of energy. you'll
need about 22 of these batteries, and it will cost about $3000_
So for a 3-day supply, you would need $9k in batteries? Not bad...
~~~
dholowiski
I think he's over-estimated the cost of batteries. I'm pretty sure you could
get 55Ah 12V lead acid batteries for about 1/2 that. This is relatively common
for people running off of solar power.
~~~
savrajsingh
After some further investigation, I discovered that my calculation exactly
matches the upper bound stated by the National Renewable Energy Lab's
estimates on cost, "$200/kWh"
<http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy02osti/31689.pdf>
But yes it looks like you can also manage about half that cost for a similar
system (their stated range is $80-$200 per kWh).
------
herge
With regard to the environmental costs, specifically in terms of greenhouse
gases, 15 kwh per day in electricity in New Jersey will set you back 6.5 kg of
CO2, while your 4 gallons of gas per day will emanate 36 kg, so almost 6 times
more.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Should FB be blocking friend sharing with G+? - nathantross
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoR0lirqRWE
======
nathantross
Here's a another hacking example of how to get all your FB friends onto
Google+, but the question I'm wondering, should FB even care? I've seen a few
things here and there that FB has set up to block things like this. Thoughts?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Coming soon: First pictures of a black hole - swombat
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20227091.200-coming-soon-first-picture
======
jsonscripter
Black holes are visible, but emit less radiation than the cosmic microwave
background. It's therefore possible to take a picture of one if you have very
_very_ sensitive instruments.
However, the article is talking about taking a picture of a shadow, which
isn't really the same thing. Yes, it's impressive, but it really should read
something like "First Picture of Black Hole's Direct Effects". We've already
taken pictures of gravitational lensing caused by black holes, so we've seen
some indirect effects.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Google Pay app for Android - bdcravens
https://blog.google/topics/shopping-payments/say-hello-to-google-pay/
======
photonios
In Europe, the availability of contactless payment has been growing like
crazy. I live in Eeastern-Europe and even here I can pay contactless almost
everywhere. And with almost everywhere, I really mean almost everywhere. Even
really tiny stores tucked away in a corner that didn't even support card
payment at all until contactless was on the rise. And with contactless, I
mean, you just tap your card on a reader and that's it. I am not really sure
why I would want to do this with my phone. I'd have to take it out of my
pocket, unlock it to approve the transactions etc. Instead I just put my card
on a read for half a second and I can walk away.
In my home country (Western-Europe), some supermarket chains even support
complete self-checkout. You just grab what you need, scan your items with a
handheld scanner and then pay contactless at one of the payment terminals and
then you're good to go.
Can somebody explain why I'd prefer using my phone over this system?
~~~
what_ever
So that you don't have to carry all of your credits cards everywhere. Credit
Card rewards are much better in US than in Europe and it makes sense to use
certain credit card to make certain kind of transaction. e.g. one of my card
given 3% cashback at restaurants but only 1% at grocery stores. While other
gives 2% at grocery stores.
Plus, if you lose your card/wallet it is a pain to change numbers everywhere.
While you don't need to do that if you lose your phone as real card numbers
are not stored in the pay apps. Besides whoever finds the phone needs to go
pass your lock screen to get anywhere near that.
~~~
photonios
As another comment here points out. People don't really use credit cards here.
Everyone has a debit card which supports contactless payments without a pin up
to €20. Which is enough for most use cases.
Even better, in the country where I live, almost all debit cards have a number
and a Cv2 code. So you can pay online at any place that accepts credit cards.
Transactions are free and instant. Within a second of paying I can see the
transaction in the mobile app of my bank. Hell, it sends notifications for
every transaction if you want.
~~~
hadrien01
> Even better, in the country where I live, almost all debit cards have a
> number and a Cv2 code.
You don't have this in every country?
~~~
photonios
Not in my home country. All banks give out Maestro cards. While the country I
live in right now gives out Visa Electron cards.
------
FreakyT
_" It's identical to Android Pay in essentially every way, but it has a fancy
new name!"_
Of all these "$company_name Pay" services, the only one that ever offered
anything unique was Samsung Pay with its ridiculous magnetic-card backwards
compatibility system. I never used it, but from what I read it was apparently
pretty neat, and allowed you to use the phone to pay on any legacy payment
terminal.
~~~
thisisit
I use Samsung Pay for some of the services. So I was surprised with that the
post sounded like it has been discontinued. Though it seems the service isn't
used that much in US.
~~~
kurthr
"Samsung’s mobile payment platform is built upon a technology from a company
called LoopPay, which was acquired by Samsung in 2015."
I haven't seen actual statistics, but with the MST (magnetic secure
transaction?) capability, I'd guess that it was bigger than AndroidPay for
point-of-sale.
I don't think it's going away since it's based on a different technology and
is a separate app.
[https://thedroidguy.com/2018/01/heck-difference-samsung-
pay-...](https://thedroidguy.com/2018/01/heck-difference-samsung-pay-android-
pay-1059094)
------
voycey
I use Android Pay currently for everything here in Australia, it is just
seamless! We have a fairly large uptake of contactless here by merchants so it
is a good fit! The only thing they need to work out now is contactless ATMs
working with it, then I can ditch my card for good!
~~~
terrantech
I use the CommBank app for touch payments and I'm constantly surprised by how
good uptake here in Oz is. I've barely touched cash or any other payment form
in the last year+, and mixed use going back way further than that. Even if
it's a coffee from a coffee cart at the markets, everyone here takes paypass.
I regularly go out now with nothing except my phone (and license in pocket
with phone if I'm driving), with no fear of getting stuck needing cash/card.
It's so nice not carrying a wallet.
I can also go to ATMs using their Cardless Cash option in the app, which
solves your other point.
------
sparrish
Why do they keep saying 'faster way to pay'... It's always slower for me to
pull out the cell phone, unlock it, open Google Pay, choose the card,
click/swipe/acknowledge/etc then wait for it to process. I'd rather pull out
my wallet; toss out the cash.
~~~
no_carrier
You don't need to open the app or even unlock your phone. With Google/Android
Pay, you only need to have the screen switched on. It can be on the lock
screen and still work fine. You don't need to press a single confirmation on
the screen.
~~~
Godel_unicode
For anyone who sees this and is as confused as I was, this is apparently true
for small transactions. I've always had to unlock however, not sure what
"small" means here.
From the docs
([https://support.google.com/pay/answer/6289406?hl=en](https://support.google.com/pay/answer/6289406?hl=en)):
"To make most purchases, you need to unlock your phone. You won't need to
unlock your phone for certain small payments."
------
genpfault
Like Android-Android or Google Play Services-Android?
------
sumedh
Why is it so hard for Google to stick to one name, why keep on changing names
of different services. What are they trying to achieve?
~~~
fh973
This is an artifact of the Google promotion process: people are incentivized
to switch projects and launch new things. Hence not continuous improvement,
but relaunches.
------
_o_
Sooo, on a top of spying on us over mobiles amd internet, they also want to
spy our financial transactions. I don't need any additional finance service, I
was listening once some really old guy saying "the one who uses credit card
doesn't value the money". And it was smart comment, with all the transaction
details shared with data brokers (including google, microsoft, apple,...)
maybe the "hard cash" is not a bad idea.
~~~
Mashimo
I see your point, but with cashless pay being so simple and effortless I doubt
cash will be around for a long time.
It's almost gone in some Nordic Countries. I don't have to bring my wallet.
Cash is a hassle for me.
------
rahoulb
I see Android Pay signs and stickers and logos all over he place. That’s a lot
of branding to throw away and replace.
~~~
petepete
Don't worry, sending mixed messages about their services is part of Google's
grand strategy.
------
mudil
Sorry, but I don't trust Google, and you shouldn't either. Google is a deeply
unethical company because it follows you from your work to the restaurant to
your bedroom, literally. Google knows everything about you: your sexual
orientation, your friends, your hobbies, your political orientation. And
Google does this invasion of privacy so they can show you an ad! Imagine any
other multinational doing this, and there would be riots on the streets! But
now Google also wants to know what you buy and when you buy it.
PS I consider Google to be the most unethical tech company in SV, for the
following reasons: blatant invasion of privacy and monopolization of internet.
No one is forced to use Facebook. On the other hand, Google reaches into every
website and into every process that happens on the internet.
~~~
dylz
On the other hand, so is Facebook: their conversion pixel tracking, JS SDK
(like button, login, pervasive as hell) is arguably significantly worse than
Google Analytice.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
GDPR: By far best explanation by Tim Walters - _o_
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-stjktAu-7k
======
_o_
I have read most of the text on internet about GDPR but this explanation is
for an order of magnitude better, it is a bit long but it covers most of
conceptual questions that might rise implementing it.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Apple took out a CES ad to troll its competitors over privacy - bdcravens
https://www.engadget.com/2019/01/05/apple-ces-2019-privacy-advertising/
======
deadmutex
I applaud Tim Cook being a privacy advocate, though there is an elephant in
the room:
[https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/25/18020508/how-china-
compl...](https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/25/18020508/how-china-complicates-
apples-chest-thumping-about-privacy)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Tired of twitter and facebook? Here is one of my idea's. - Sthorpe
I would love some feedback on my project, GettingPopular. I don't want to make a bajillion dollars. I just like building things. I hate the fact that facebook shares all my information with everyone. If I want to do that I have twitter.<p>So, I built a system where you can add points to a relationship. NOT A PERSON. I know this sounds really bad at the start. But I think its a positive interface that actually helps you in the long run.<p>I created a video explaining my thoughts and showing how it works.<p>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEMXHVX69vc<p>I am just interested in feedback about the _idea_. The site still needs work.<p>Just want to know if there is any interest out there.<p>Thanks.<p>Here is the site:
http://www.gettingpopular.com
======
kyro
A friend and I had a conversation related to this last night. We were speaking
about how Facebook has seemed to become the dumping ground for acquaintances
that you'd like to keep in contact with, but never will, and who you're not
really comfortable texting. It's a problem I've had with Facebook for a while.
They just don't differentiate the relationships I have with people enough. And
because almost everyone is on the same level, I'm hesitant to share
information and act as I would if it were just me and my close ring of
friends. Often times, others will just post things to garner attention because
they're posting to the world, and so my news feed is usually cluttered with
garbage I'm not really interested in.
Anyway, I think adding points to relationships, or even people really, is a
good way to go about differentiating friends. Come to think of it, I can see a
Facebook app where you have 3 tokens to choose your top 3 friends to be pretty
successful. Throw in an option to let people buy more tokens to add more best
friends, and you'll have a bunch of teenagers buying tokens so as to not make
the 4th and 5th best friends feel left out. :P
~~~
Sthorpe
Thanks for the feedback. Really good to know you are having this same problem.
I've had this problem to. Some information you just don't care about. However,
you do care about some of it or you wouldn't have "friended" them. My system
will allow you to see as much as you like, with a type of valve on the
relationship.
I don't want to encourage adding points to people. I could see it becoming
more of a who's better than the other person. Which is a system I don't want
to be apart of. I would rather build tools that will help us strengthen our
friendships and help us to appreciate our differences.
I think facebook apps are dead. However I think facebook connect and twitter's
api are very useful and more applicable.
Thanks again.
------
wgj
i watched your video. It's a cool idea, and I've thought about just using CRM
software to manage all my contacts (including friends.) That's basically what
it seemed you were describing: an organized priority system for how people
should get your time and attention. And that's what good CRM or contact
management systems already do.
One thing those other solution do not do is let people see your evaluation, or
create network effects based on everyone's evaluations. Maybe you are thinking
in that direction, but the video didn't say much beyond just setting
priorities using a point system.
Good luck with it!
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask YC: Games programming, JavaScript or Flash? - Tichy
On the one hand, it seems to be golden times for flash games, with casual gaming booming and platforms like kongregate mkaing them popular. On the other hand, flash is still flash, and JavaScript seems to become an alternative.<p>So if you were designing a game that could be implemented with either technology, which one would you choose?<p>Do you expect there will be something like kongregate for Javascript games?
======
LostInTheWoods
Flash is definitely the way to go. Flash's capabilities as of Flash 9 are
astounding, and from what I've read about Flash 10, its only going to get
better.
There are also other plugin platforms to look at. Shockwave for example.
With that in mind, there are some games that simply can't be produced in an
online format. So make sure that a web browser is the right channel for your
game.
------
noodle
i would probably design the game and figure out the best technology to get the
job done.
~~~
Tichy
What if "being playable on the web" is an integral part of the plan?
Otherwise, sure, some other technology would be much more suitable than Flash
or JavaScript to create games.
~~~
noodle
there's still quite a few levels of being playable on the web.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Introduction to Julia – Part 1 - Anon84
http://pyvideo.org/video/2754/introduction-to-julia-part-1
======
EvanMiller
I met David at JuliaCon a couple weeks ago -- he's a physics professor at the
National University of Mexico and a charming interlocutor. I haven't made it
through this (4-hour) tutorial myself, but the word among the core developers
on the Julia mailing list is that it is very, very good.
As others have posted, the 3-hour second part is here:
[http://pyvideo.org/video/2753/introduction-to-julia-
part-2](http://pyvideo.org/video/2753/introduction-to-julia-part-2)
------
countersixte
Direct YouTube links (pyvideo.org loading is slow at the moment)
Part 1:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWkgEddb4-A](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWkgEddb4-A)
Part 2:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3JH5Bg46yU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3JH5Bg46yU)
------
StefanKarpinski
David did a phenomenal job with this tutorial and I highly recommend this as a
starting point for anyone who wants a good, digestible (and entertaining)
intro to Julia.
------
platz
While I thought this language was tailored for numerical computations, I've
heard of people using it as a fast general purpose language too for those that
want c like performance but don't want to write c
------
Anon84
And part 2: [http://pyvideo.org/video/2753/introduction-to-julia-
part-2](http://pyvideo.org/video/2753/introduction-to-julia-part-2)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: Little Snitch but with centralized rules? - dcf_freak
We use little snitch in a small (10 people) company and everybody is running macbooks. I love little snitch, but for the non-technical persons in our company its near to impossible to identify "good" from "bad" connections.<p>Question: Does anybody know something like little snitch (application firewall) but with centralized rules support (something we can "push" to every macbook?).
======
sd8dgf8ds8g8dsg
Now, what would a non-technical user even benefit from Little Snitch?
Also, what are you trying to protect against using Little Snitch in this way?
Are you a paranoid group of journalist dissidents who are suspecting targeted
spyware, or are you just frustrated that installed apps "call home" to check
for updates and whatnot?
Perhaps you should better invest in setting up a traditional firewall on the
lan for central configuration. Then you also have the option for other IDS
systems, such as [https://www.snort.org/](https://www.snort.org/)
~~~
dcf_freak
Non-technical people benefit from the application-level firewall just as well
as technical users. Indeed the calling-home and also as an extra layer of
protection against generic nastyness.
Of-course we also have a "traditional" firewall on the LAN. But this is not on
the _application_ level but on the network level.
~~~
sd8dgf8ds8g8dsg
> Non-technical people benefit from the application-level firewall just as
> well as technical users.
This can't be right, as you yourself originally stated `for the non-technical
persons in our company its near to impossible to identify "good" from "bad"
connections.`.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
HTML5 vs Flash - pixelcort
http://html5vsflash.tumblr.com/
======
mortenjorck
Guys. This isn't funny anymore.
HTML5 is a set of markup standards that, in conjunction with other open
technologies, can be used to create dynamic, standards-compliant web
interfaces.
Flash is a virtual machine. It is good for a lot of things you would use a VM
for. It is not good for a lot of things you wouldn't use a VM for.
Some hardware manufacturers don't want virtual machines in their vertically-
integrated ecosystems, and somehow this turned into a holy war between things
that have no reason to be at war.
~~~
maw
Many people hated flash years before the iPhone came out. Our reasons still
hold.
~~~
mortenjorck
To me, the only reason to hate Flash is that Adobe has continued to market it
as a platform for things it's just not appropriate for.
A VM is not appropriate for banner ads.
A VM is not appropriate for a restaurant menu.
A VM _is_ appropriate for a complex RIA such as <http://www.audiotool.com> .
I think there would be a lot less hate for Flash if Macromedia and later Adobe
had stuck to promoting it as an RIA environment and not as a solution to
everything else.
~~~
olihb
I think Adobe is starting to get it with Flex. Flex is really nice to develop
BI widgets and dashboards. We use it to present interactive data to our
clients. I can whip up a dashboard binded to a DB in a matters of hours.
I'm not sure that's possible with html5 or javafx. I'm not talking about the
end result but the time frame.
But yeah, flash for banner ads, simple video players, etc. sucks.
------
coderdude
Sigh. How did a markup language get pit against a vector-based animation
plugin? I know that literally it is not, and that we're talking about _canvas_
here, but the Web is being flooded by this misinformation. I can't even think
of analogy for what this is akin to.
Edit: I just thought about this, but SVG qualifies as a markup language. So
it's not inconceivable for a markup language to compete (at least in part)
with Flash, just in this particular case it is erroneous.
~~~
wmf
Flash is hardly a vector-based animation plugin, although animation and video
do comprise 99% of its usage. Likewise, HTML5 is not just canvas; it's
<video>, <audio>, websocket, local storage, etc.
~~~
coderdude
I think you've made a good point there. Coupled with JavaScript, perhaps HTML5
as a whole can in fact present itself as competition for all that Flash does.
------
est
this demo didn't reach Flash's full capabilities
I'd like to see HTML5 version of these:
[http://blog.alternativaplatform.com/ru/files/2008/04/bunker....](http://blog.alternativaplatform.com/ru/files/2008/04/bunker.swf)
[http://blog.alternativaplatform.com/ru/files/2009/02/hero.sw...](http://blog.alternativaplatform.com/ru/files/2009/02/hero.swf)
[http://blog.inspirit.ru/wp-
content/uploads/fluids3d/FluidSol...](http://blog.inspirit.ru/wp-
content/uploads/fluids3d/FluidSolver3D.swf)
~~~
pufuwozu
The first two have already been solved by WebGL:
[https://cvs.khronos.org/svn/repos/registry/trunk/public/webg...](https://cvs.khronos.org/svn/repos/registry/trunk/public/webgl/sdk/demos/mozilla/spore/index.html)
The last one is capable of being run in WebGL shaders (using the GPU).
Now, I don't think HTML5 solves everything (manipulating binary data, for
example) but the above are all solved by WebGL.
------
BoppreH
HTML5 is not up to Flash at this time. There's no decent IDE, it's sluggish
and it's not even a standard yet. I don't doubt its capabilities, but for
_NOW_ it's not doing enough to deserve the hype.
So, please, stop making this silly comparisons, especially because you are
comparing different PRODUCTS, not only different platforms as you advertise.
You are just hurting the image of the platform.
I'll be glad to use HTML5 in all my works when it's finished, but for now my
answer is "hell no."
~~~
ItarPeyo
If HTML5/Canvas is slugish Flash is a corpse.
------
pedrokost
This is just amazing. THis is what i needed. It clearly shows how FLash uses
less CPU and runs smoother than HTML5. Maybe HTML5 will perform like Flash
today in two or three years, but till then Flash will also improve.
~~~
chc
It's hard to tell since there isn't always 100% parity between the two
examples (look at the difference between the Javascript Asteroids and the
line-based Flash one!), but performance seems to be about equal in most cases,
adjusting for the one that looks simpler usually using a bit less.
~~~
mikeleeorg
I would love to see a comparison of apples to apples, where someone duplicates
the same functionality & features using both technologies.
~~~
targz
Did you see the "Yummy Raspberries" demo on this site? It's a pretty exact...
well, raspberries to raspberries comparison. Unless one or the other was
poorly implemented it's the same demo on both sides, again with Flash
outperforming.
------
ryan-allen
One difference I suppose is that in order to create these kinds of Flash
applications is that you have to purchase an IDE for the tune of (here in
Australia) about $1200 AUD.
Now, that's not too big a deal given computers cost more than that usually but
Flash is a very unstable and barely useable IDE. I liken it to spending over a
thousand dollars to get slapped in the face.
Disclaimer: I worked with Flash, a lot, for over 3 years. Haven't worked with
it in over 4 years, never been happier!
~~~
Sindisil
Wrong.
There are several free (and open source) tools for creating flash content.
~~~
BoppreH
Not for .fla files, which I think was what the GP was referring to. FLA is a
closed, proprietary format and as far as I know the only way to create or edit
it is using Adobe Flash.
And I have to admit it is quite unstable.
------
edkennedy
This seems like it's designed for fun, not a serious comparison. That being
said, this is what I expect from a tumblr blog: fun!
------
bloodnok
Argh... all this makes my head hurt.
Nowadays it seems silly to have to have 3rd party plugins for simple
audio/video. HTML5 is good for that.
Then we have a markup language for rendering content for
screen/print/whatever, a fluffy interpreted script language and a
90s-throwback framebuffer emulation trying to pass itself off as the be-all
and end-all of cross-platform application development. Then it gets itself
into a war with a single-vendor browser plugin known for its lack of speed and
gaping security holes.
I choose neither. EndOfRant.
------
Yaggo
I'm sick of this. Really. (Because of:
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1423903>)
------
Encosia
The winner was obvious, viewing that on my iPad.
------
est
While HTML5 can do the same things as Flash, now let's compare the file size.
I present you the 64k Flash demo
<http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=53656>
64k is not enough for the html markup alone. Regardless of audio, graphics
recourses, SFX, and animation.
------
chipsy
These "comparison via demo" examples seem popular, albeit a bit empty. I did a
feature-by-feature list some months back:
<http://www.ludamix.com/archives/2010/02/entry_5.html>
------
juanefren
The comparison is missing :) html5zombo.com and zombo.com
~~~
BoppreH
You mean the 7th demo?
------
jgg
_You’ll need to download Safari to view this demo._
Ahahahaha.
~~~
Flow
Yeah, almost as bad as "You need to install Flash Player 10 to view this".
~~~
jgg
When YouTube tells me to install Flash, it isn't on a page with the words
"HTML5 and web standards" as the header.
------
grails4life
Why is it always HTML5 vs flash? What about using both flash and HTML5? There
is fabridge.js, after all. Its not all or nothing. Granted dependency on
plugins sucks, but for now I see Flash as a supplement to a web application
where I need things like audio, sockets and advanced graphics to work across
browsers.
------
c00p3r
What this page missing, is compare of insecurity, portability and speed
issues. =)
btw, no one think it is enough of flame? After Apple's explanation, after all
those security holes, inability to deliver a working product to platform other
than win32, inability to address performance issues on linux32 and do on.
Isn't it obvious, that flash is poorly designed, non-portable, insecure and
outdated technology, the unnecessary artificial layer which should be replaced
due to evolution of modern web browsers and open standards?
Why I need separate javascript engine when it implemented in browser along
with separate, unoptimized and buggy rendering engine as a some binary blob
which crashes all the time? Because of crappy banners or stupid primitive
games? Hardly.
So, flash will stay around as an optional add-on for windows browsers, but
obviously not as something 'standard', leave alone 'cross platform'.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Study: Noise During Sleep Impairs Morning Performance - cwan
http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/007242.html
======
lallysingh
The 2nd Ave subway line started construction a few weeks after I moved in
here. Just a few days sleep during a vacation made me a new man. A jackhammer
makes a terrible alarm clock -- even if it's on the time you want to wake up
at.
If anyone's doing a startup involving maps (e.g. google maps or earth), please
put in estimation methods for ambient noise in an area.
~~~
cema
You live in the default city, right?
~~~
illicium
Default City's in Russia :p
~~~
cema
:-)
------
mikeleeorg
I wonder if it's the dissonance & unpredictability of this noise that
contributes to the sleep impairment. Or if it's the duration of the sounds
throughout the sleep period.
I make this assumption because music is known to aid sleep:
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4228707.stm>
~~~
yesimahuman
Or perhaps why a loud fan (that doesn't click or make strange noises) is great
for sleeping, in my very sound sensitive experience?
~~~
mikeleeorg
Perhaps that loud fan is generating enough gentle white noise for you. A quote
from the below article states:
"Some people benefit from white noise, or fans. Make sure you have effective
blinds, or earplugs, if they help. It's all about reducing distractions and
sending a message to your brain about your safety."
[http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-
families/...](http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-
families/features/dont-sleep-longer-ndash-sleep-smarter-1994018.html)
Interestingly, as I was doing my "research" (well, just some web searches
really), I came across studies that claimed white noise can impair brain
development in sleeping baby rats:
"When baby rats listened to white noise for prolonged periods of time, a part
of the brain responsible for hearing, called the auditory cortex, didn't
develop properly. However, when the noise was taken away, the young rats'
brains were able to resume normal development."
[http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/97/white_noise_may_dela...](http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/97/white_noise_may_delay_babys_speech/index.html)
I haven't found any articles showing whether or not this phenomenon has been
tested on humans yet.
I suppose one takeaway from all of this research is that we need to continue
doing more research.
------
jrockway
I sleep with earplugs every night. It's very relaxing.
------
DenisM
It's not clear from summary if you get used to it after prolonged exposure.
It does, however, tempt me to get earplugs...
~~~
chaosmachine
On the other hand, what are the long term effects of blocking up your ears at
night?
------
kragen
3.6ms? Your reaction time increases from about 500ms to about 503.6ms? I'm
amazed they were able to measure that at all — it must have been a huge study
— but why should we care? Too bad the article didn't link to the paper.
------
lelele
That confirms my own experience. I currently live in a noisy flat. When I
started sleeping with earplugs, I started waking up way more alert and ready.
------
fretlessjazz
Maybe this is why my wife hates the fact that I snore like a table saw?
------
d_c
Who would have thought that...
Earplugs ftw or pay double the rent.
------
greenlblue
False. For the last 3 weeks I've been sleeping in a place where the clock
chimes on the hour and every half hour and there is constant car traffic. I
feel better in this environment than I did at my old and quite place.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
What can Jevons' Paradox tell us about energy law? - Homunculiheaded
http://www.questionable-economics.com/jevon/
======
nvader
One positive way of looking at this is we can get Jevon's Law to work for us
by applying it to renewable energy sources: something that we see right now.
As the price of solar energy in the home falls, we'll see increasing adoption,
and it will be put to more uses. At some point, it will fall to the point that
it becomes attractive to commercial users.
I'm not trying to imply that this will happen automatically, of course.
However, there's ample opportunity to get a virtuous cycle of efficiency and
increasing demand for renewable energy.
------
SixSigma
Except it isn't counter-intuitive at all, even to undergraduate economists.
All the interesting economic decision activity takes place at the margin,
efficiency improvements move the margin and the unprofitable becomes
profitable.
It's not even paradoxical.
~~~
SilasX
But it's extremely counterintuitive to the general public, which favors energy
efficiency mandates (even more than energy taxes or cap-and-trade) as a means
to reduce energy usage, without realizing that such measures may actually
increase energy consumed, while leaving you with worse products.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Show HN: I made an app to make it easier to use Google image search - samfisher83
I think Google image search is great. It helps you find out where a particular image comes from and sometimes images related to it. Some forums use attachments and you can't necessarily see if you aren't logged in, and that Google can't access. You have save this image and then upload it to Google. Sometimes you also have images in power point or word documents that you wonder where they came from. Most every OS has some sort of print screen functionality to easily capture pictures from any application or even from a movie. In Windows its print screen or alt+print screen if you want to capture a single window.<p>I wrote a small web app that allow you to paste an image and crop it so you can search for that part of an image. It stores the image in memcache so you don't need to worry about the image being stored well except by Google.<p>It only works on chrome and Firefox since AFAIK the other browsers seem to have issues with copy and pasting of images.<p>http://gimagesearch.com
======
samfisher83
clickable link: <http://gimagesearch.com>
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
DigitalOcean broken droplet. Cannot recover - smith2008
Yesterday DigitalOcean made an update on their nodes in NY3 location. After that one of my servers got broken. I received very limited support from them and still cannot recover it. I lost tons of user data and do not know what else I can do. Is there anyone who could advice? Please.
======
nanis
In my case, I had them mount the rescue/recovery environment, and booted into
that. I think I had to mount the HD image, and configure networking, but I was
able to create an archive from the available data, and transfer it out.
I had never encountered a problem like this with any other VPS providers. To
this date, my favorite is [https://www.nu42.com/2015/06/linode-kvm-
upgrade.html](https://www.nu42.com/2015/06/linode-kvm-upgrade.html) where,
over the years, my VPS went through several free upgrades performance upgrades
without any hitches.
So, assuming you can still stop the droplet, do so. Contact DO, ask them to
mount the rescue recovery environment. See what you can see at that point.
Good luck.
~~~
smith2008
Thanks, I did that and got to the droplet. It is running different kernel and
my drive was mounted to it ( or at least I think this is the case ). I am
still stuck and cannot export my Mysql DB. Any ideas about that one?
~~~
nanis
Of course, that's the point: You are running under the rescue kernel.
Is the path to your database directory still the same? If not, edit your
configuration to point to the new location, try to use mysql tools.
If you cannot use mysql tools, you need to provide very detailed and ample
diagnostic information to for anyone to be able to help you diagnose why you
can't use them.
An alternative is to create another droplet with the exact same configuration,
install the exact same MySQL version on it, use the exact same configuration
file, and copy over the data files.
Good luck.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Health Care Just Became the U.S.'s Largest Employer - ourmandave
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2018/01/health-care-america-jobs/550079/?single_page=true
======
dv_dt
First the article notes on the difficulty of replacing line medical workers
with automation, but then it mentions this:
"Recently, the growth in health-care employment is stemming more from
administrative jobs than physician jobs. The number of non-doctor workers in
the health industry has exploded in the last two decades. The majority of
these jobs aren’t clinical roles, like registered nurses. They are mostly
administrative and management jobs, including receptionists and office
clerks."
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
The calls to reign in Mark Zuckerberg have never been louder - johnshades
https://www.fastcompany.com/90346111/calls-to-reign-in-mark-zuckerberg-facebook-have-never-been-louder
======
throwawaysea
This is yet another clickbait article artificially amplifying the voices of a
minority group of activists attacking [a tech company]. How many of these do
we need to prop up on HN or Reddit or wherever? Writing something critical of
Facebook is the lowest risk, least interesting piece a journalist can author.
The reality is that Zuck has done a fantastic job in bringing Facebook to
where it is, and uncritical thinkers are laying blame at Facebook’s feet for
what largely is human nature or differing values/opinions across Facebook’s
customer base. And of course mixed in with various charges from these groups
are the usual garden variety shareholder proposals that are just the far-left
progressives weaponizing a corporate governance process for political ends.
~~~
thwythwy
The reality is your subjective take on Facebook? HARD PASS on your steaming
hot take.
~~~
throwawaysea
My subjective take is no more valid or invalid than others' personal opinions.
I don't think Facebook is without flaws, by the way. But I do think they're
doing a lot correctly as well, and that Zuckerberg is smart enough to navigate
the company carefully through very difficult decision points. It is easy for
armchair activists to rant about Facebook en masse but there are no easy
solutions, and at some point they have to square with the fact that yes,
Facebook serves a lot of people who aren't themselves and who think
differently from themselves.
When I see the constant stream of one-sided articles that offer no nuanced
intellectual take on Facebook or operating such platforms neutrally, it does
make me write off those journalists and those groups of activists whom the
journalists feature. And the reason really is that they comes off as willing
bad-faith participants in a political power dynamics struggle (who can foment
the most outrage!) rather than people pushing for a principled outcome that
fairly serves everyone, including those they disagree with.
~~~
kall1sto
Is breaking the law by selling and breaching the data of millions of users
what you are referring to when you say that "Zuckerberg is navigating the
company carefully through very difficult decision points" ?
~~~
throwawaysea
That's under the "I don't think Facebook is without flaws, by the way"
------
marsrover
Too bad for all those calling for it he was smart enough to keep voting power.
I might not care for Zuckerberg particularly, but I hope if I ever own a
company I have the foresight to never give up control.
------
gipp
*Rein in.
I know it's in the actual article, but man that one really gets to me for some
reason.
~~~
ncmncm
Why do I feel like this tells me all I need to know about the article?
I despise Zuckles as much as the next peon, but is he really the problem?
Without him, would FB aspire less to evil, or just get more craftily (and
overwhelmingly more) evil like Google?
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
TRS-80 Trash Talk Episode 4 – Model I Buyer's Guide - pskisf
http://www.trs80trashtalk.com/2016/04/episode-4.html
======
PaulHoule
The Model I was a piece of trash. Why get a Model I if you could get a III?
~~~
davelnewton
Because history. And, because when I got my Model I, there was no such thing
as any other TRS-80.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Mitt Romney Has A Santorum-Like SEO Problem - sbashyal
http://searchengineland.com/now-mitt-romney-has-a-santorum-like-bing-google-problem-111061
======
sbashyal
Here is the HN thread for Santorum's SEO problem for those who missed it:
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3426319>
------
paulhauggis
Right. And when there was a monkey image of Obmama's wife, it was taken down
within a week. It just goes to show you who is in bed with the government.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
An oldy but a goody – BLAST - slyrus
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2231712
======
slyrus
It's too bad that while the implementation has been free all these years, the
paper is still behind a paywall.
~~~
GFK_of_xmaspast
There are literally dozens of copies of the paper available with minimal
effort.
~~~
slyrus
Sure, but it's the principle of the thing.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
With Graph Search, Can Facebook Kill LinkedIn, yelp--even Google? - EFathy
http://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthof/2013/01/15/with-graph-search-can-facebook-kill-linkedin-yelp-even-google/
======
general_failure
Not sure about google but Its definitely going to kill Forbes. I can now get
all news from Facebook with simple search like 'what is happening in
Paraguay?'. Or 'which news site should I not read since its filled with
hyperbole s?'
------
taylodl
In a word, "no." LinkedIn is professional, Facebook is personal. Two totally
different aspects of my life that I treat separately. So LinkedIn isn't going
anywhere. The power of Yelp is derived through crowdsourcing. I don't have
nearly enough Facebook friends to capitalize on the long tail crowdsourcing
requires. So Yelp isn't going anywhere. And google? As if - I don't have
enough time and space to explain why that isn't going to happen!
------
recurser
From the article:
"So, to answer the question in the headline: No, Facebook won’t kill any of
these companies, certainly not anytime soon."
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Get Paid Quickly and Securely - serferkid
http://conffirm.com/
======
serferkid
Hi guys,
I launched Conffirm to solve a problem I had working with clients esp new
clients. I found it frustrating working with clients who had an issue paying
upfront (or 50%) or were extremely late on payment. The only other option was
Escrow.com, but their fees were INSANE esp since most of my jobs were under
$500.
Would love your feedback and ideas on how I can improve! Keep in mind this is
an MVP.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
A Sobering analysis of the current Android market share - jbrennan
http://nearthespeedoflight.com/article/a_sobering_analysis_of_the_current_android_marketshare
======
grayrest
The network isn't the only reason to pick an Android phone, though AT&T's lack
of coverage in my apt completely eliminated the iPhone for my consideration.
Android, as a platform, is less polished than the iphone. The UI guidelines
and interaction patterns are less developed and therefore less consistent. The
market is weaker and junk filled, so you have to get app suggestions from some
external source.
The plus side is that the google stuff is really, really cool. If you use your
phone to look stuff up, being able to long-hold the search button on the phone
and say "Directions to 23rd and Broadway" and have it work is truly amazing.
Getting a Google Voice account and using it for text messaging allows me to
drop texting off my monthly bill. I've never been able to do the whole two
thumbs virtual keyboard thing, so replacing the default system keyboard with a
swipe keyboard (SlideIT in my case) gets me up to 30wpm from 5-10wpm. The news
reader I use overrides the volume buttons on the phone so I have physical
buttons to flip through the 400 news items I read every day. My phone
automatically turns on/off the wifi and other radios and sets the ring
depending on where I am and the time of day (e.g. wifi on, vibrate when I'm at
work and silent between midnight and 9AM but only if I'm at home and my family
isn't calling).
I started off thinking "yeah it might not be an iphone but at least I'll get
coverage" to preferring the experience over the numerous iphones I've tried
out. I just wish the apps were better but I'm hoping that's a problem that
will solve itself over time.
------
bradfordw
He's right, I'm a Motorola droid owner; it's a fantastic phone first and a so-
so "device" second. The Android market has lots...and lots of crap. The game
selection is simply dreadful compared to the app store.
The signal to noise (decent apps to cookie-cutter garbage) in the Market is
minimal at best.
The phone is absolutely reliable, the gps is fantastic. The app selection,
unless you're some crazy who needs 12 apps to tell you about "stuff around
you" or you want a puzzle of every pixar/disney movie ever made, is in need of
some serious house cleaning.
------
pasbesoin
Remember when Yahoo, with its tree structure of topics/directories, was the
market leader (for "finding stuff")? Remember when an upstart Google came on
the scene with unrestricted, algorithmically selected results?
It wouldn't be the first time Google's taken down a "walled garden" (being a
bit unfair to Yahoo's state -- and attitude -- then, for the sake of the
analogy).
However, it will depend upon whether Android evokes their serious, long term
commitment. And _someone_ will have to provide a better consumer support
environment than either Google or the wireless carriers have provided up to
this point, and a more open wireless marketplace than the carriers (I'm
looking particularly at you, Verizon) have provided.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Yuval Noah Harari: ‘The idea of free information is extremely dangerous' - peterlk
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/aug/05/yuval-noah-harari-free-information-extremely-dangerous-interview-21-lessons
======
AnimalMuppet
> Liberalism is based on the assumption that you have privileged access to
> your own inner world of feelings and thoughts and choices, and nobody
> outside you can really understand you. This is why your feelings are the
> highest authority in your life...
I'm not an expert on the humanities, but that's sure not what _I_ think
liberalism is.
BTW, the headline is extremely misleading. The quote from the article is, "The
idea of free information is extremely dangerous _when it comes to the news
industry._ " Well, yes, it is.
~~~
nanis
> that's sure not what I think _liberalism_ is
I haven't read the article, but he is probably referring to Classical
Liberalism[1].
Up until around 1900, this ideology was generally known
simply as liberalism. The qualifying "classical" is
now usually necessary, in English-speaking countries at
least (but not, for instance, in France), because
liberalism has come to be associated with wide-ranging
interferences with private property and the market on
behalf of egalitarian goals[2].
[1]:[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism)
[2]:[https://mises.org/library/what-classical-
liberalism](https://mises.org/library/what-classical-liberalism)
~~~
AnimalMuppet
Actually, "classical liberalism" is what I thought, too. But from the
Wikipedia article:
> Classical liberalism is a political ideology and a branch of liberalism
> which advocates civil liberties under the rule of law with an emphasis on
> economic freedom.
From the Mises article:
> "Classical liberalism" is the term used to designate the ideology advocating
> private property, an unhampered market economy, the rule of law,
> constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion and of the press, and
> international peace based on free trade.
To me, neither of those looks very much like "Liberalism is based on the
assumption that you have privileged access to your own inner world of feelings
and thoughts and choices, and nobody outside you can really understand you.
This is why your feelings are the highest authority in your life..."
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
What's on the stack? - oskarth
http://experiments.oskarth.com/unix02
======
oskarth
It took me a while to understand how the stack works on a low-level, so I
wrote this. I hope someone finds it useful, and if you found something
confusing please let me know and I'll try to clarify!
The second part in this series, _What is a shell and how does it work?_ , was
posted on HN here:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9794081](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9794081)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
A World of Hardware Startups - nickpinkston
http://upverter.com/hardware-startups/
======
pedalpete
Would it make sense that companies in more than one location show up on the
map in more than one place? NinjaBlocks main base is Sydney, but they have an
office in SF, so they show up as SF.
Showing virtual offices and workers might do more to show how truly global
hardware startups are.
------
nrmn
You're missing Thalmic Labs in Waterloo! They are the makers of the Myo! (
[https://www.thalmic.com/en/myo/](https://www.thalmic.com/en/myo/) )
------
alexenzoperon
A new version of the map has been deployed. We receive lots of emails with
more startups to include, they're pinned. There is also a full screen mode
now, and links to the coolest hardware newsletter. Hope you enjoy!
------
Qworg
There's also at least a few companies on here that aren't startups - both Kiva
Systems and Bot & Dolly jump out as startups that are now part of big
companies (Amazon and Google respectively)
------
bsilvereagle
The small discussion happening on reddit is convinced upverter is using this
as a lead generator.
[http://www.reddit.com/22sflo](http://www.reddit.com/22sflo)
~~~
nickpinkston
Bad link - got another?
I think it's fine if they're doing it as a lead generator. If only more pro-
social things would yield profit so that they would actually happen.
Or maybe, they did like we at CloudFab did, and opened up our hard-won
supplier database of 3D printing shops after using it internally:
[https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zkIlt1cSAfh4.kskl...](https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zkIlt1cSAfh4.ksklRQVJ0zJ4)
~~~
bsilvereagle
Link is fixed, missed a 2 when I copied it over.
I'm not necessarily agreeing with the discussion, just food for thought.
------
nickpinkston
For real - I'm super excited there's 1500+ of them!
Hardware is going crazy right now!
~~~
delinquentme
The SF density is incredible ! ... But I'm guessing there's some selection
bias here ...
~~~
nickpinkston
Not really selection bias. It's the biggest scene in the world, so it's to be
expected.
Still though - the density throughout the world is more amazing to me!
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Spotify is hiring Joe Rogan, one of the world’s most popular podcasters - pbui
https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/5/19/21263967/joe-rogan-spotify-exclusive-deal-podcast
======
LinuxBender
He said they are not hiring him. [1] He is just moving to their platform and
utilizing his existing production team.
[1] -
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8bVqI2j8o4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8bVqI2j8o4)
------
jaygeek
Wow, that’s a nice hire. He has a huge following
------
timonoko
What is Spotify? I googled that and it wanted to install some Cryptic Crap
into my linux box. Fuck you Joe Rogan and _Good Bye_.
~~~
whateveracct
Joe Rohan fans are a hoot is what I've learned reading the reaction to this
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Physics-Based Animation - bssrdf
http://www.physicsbasedanimation.com/
======
batty
FWIW, I created this site 7 or 8 years ago during my PhD, just as a way to
keep track of and organize all the papers coming out in my research field.
Happy to answer questions or comments if you have any.
------
santaclaus
Nice aggregation of papers. It would be extra nice to have embedded youtube
videos for each of the papers. Half the fun of these graphics papers is the
crazy videos they make.
~~~
hacker_9
You're not wrong; every title on that page is crying out for a video! The
images in the papers seem to have been taken from animated models too :( Plus
it would give a lot more context to the reader and really display how good the
algorithm is.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: My kayak conundrum - wheresclark
I've got a problem I'm hoping some of you may have a solution for. I've got a sea kayak that I store in a shed near Sydney Harbour. What I want to do is rent it out to five or so people who can all chip in x amount of money each month and get access to my kayak whenever they like. The problem with this is controlling who gets access and when. I can easily build an online app where each person can check in and out when using the kayak so the others know when it's available or not. The shed it's stored in is padlocked and has other kayaks stored in there as well. What I'm hunting for is a padlock that you can lock and unlock via a swipecard and that you can remotely give access (or deny access) via the internet. This may not be the best solution, and I am open to suggestions.<p>Does anybody know of a product that will let me give and control access to the kayak to various people depending on their online booking.<p>I imagine something like this already exists for car sharing services and other sharing companies, but I can't find the right solution anywhere.<p>Any help would be ridiculously appreciated.<p>Clark
======
koopajah
Did you look at lockitron: <https://lockitron.com/preorder> ? I'm not exactly
sure it would fit your need but it seems close event if you might need an
extra app/website for people to "book" the kayak?
I think that's how some airbnb hosts give access to their flat without having
to meet you in person. At least I've seen it advertised during my last
research for an airbnb booking.
~~~
wheresclark
Thanks koopajah. Lockitron may be the best solution out there. I was hoping
for a padlock that did pretty much the same thing, but with some tweaks I
might be able to make the lockitron work for my needs. Perhaps using it in a
metal box with a key to the shared kayak storage shed inside.
------
Pwnguinz
You might get more views/replies if you prefixed your post with "Ask HN:".
Unfortunately, I can't offer any help in regards to your core question.
~~~
wheresclark
Good tip. I've updated the heading now. Thanks.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Ask HN: What's the single best decision you made as a founder? - dglassan
Mine would have to be re-writing Disrupt.fm using the CodeIgniter Framework. Although I had already been live for about a month, I knew if I wanted to scale and add new features, my spaghetti code wouldn't hold up. I had read horror stories about code re-writes but I went for it anyways.<p>It's almost ridiculous now how fast I can add a new feature to Disrupt.fm...What used to take days now takes hours, and the site is much more secure, stable, and structured for easy maintenance.<p>So HN, what's the best decision you've made regarding your startup?
======
Cherian_Abraham
Since I dont have a rich history of startups, my opinion would boil down to
this.
The single best decision I made was to be a founder for my startup.
The next best decision I made was knowing who my co-founders will need to be.
The people I ended up choosing were chosen due to their work ethics, their
drive, their commitment, their tenacity and their deep expertise and
willingness to pivot.
With those two things, the willingness to step out of my comfort zone and
lassoing two brilliant and ethical minds around my product idea, I dont care
if I fail this time around. Eventually We will succeed.
------
answerly
Applying to Y Combinator.
~~~
dglassan
did you get accepted?
~~~
answerly
Yes- we were accepted in the Winter 2010 batch a little over a year ago. We
weren't planning on applying at first, but did so on a lark at the last
minute. It has, without a doubt, been the best decision we ever made for our
business.
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Show HN: Visualizing Our Git Repository Activity - marclave
https://medium.com/@marclave/visualizing-our-git-repository-activity-eb8842ecc174#.7bvx5yin7
======
marclave
A visualization of our git repo from the beginning to launch of
[http://launchaco.com/](http://launchaco.com/) using
[http://gource.io/](http://gource.io/)
| {
"pile_set_name": "HackerNews"
} |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.