MurphyA/hacker-news huggingface dataset:
by MailleQuiMaille | 2025-06-21 07:26:12+00:00
And now, I disagree with you ;)

> Humans being manipulated is not, in and of itself, a hint that things are going wrong. If a car can be stolen, should it be stolen ? If a dog can be beaten, should it be beaten ? I don’t think because something is fragile that it should be broken, on the contrary. We should recognize the delicacy of our species and design around it. That’d be a sign of evolved behaviour , I’d reckon.

> the #1 enemy of most people is their own mind Again, define the « mind ». Is it really the mental space people live in that is the problem or the culture, teachings, bullyings and programmings that have been thrown at them since birth that are maladaptive ? I’d argue that the mind is fine, given what it can do and that it is just a tool. It is what we do with it that matters and since birth, we’ve been hijacked to fit in society.
by briffid | 2025-06-21 07:26:20+00:00
I had a similar feeling. But I think this is indeed a glimpse to the intrinsic structure of reality itself, not just a promise of seeing reality. Like we can have a blink of turning around in Plato's cave. I think the patterns of the Mandelbrot set is a similar thing. And there are only a handful of other things that shows the very basic structure of reality. And the encouraging thing is that it seems the core of reality is not an infinite void.
by ineedaj0b | 2025-06-21 07:26:20+00:00
it sold well because i've bought a copy on every console. i'd play for 30 mins, get bored, and quit. it finally took after i played for 5 hours straight. i finally got 'it'. try playing it on break at work. you've really got to get a few hours in because the game's first level is basically a huge tutorial.
by usrusr | 2025-06-21 07:26:44+00:00
Just about everybody I know uses both. The pattern I see is that groups associated with some entity like a company or a club are on signal, because at some point (before Musk took over as chief billionaire villain) it became a thing to not have your brand associated with Meta, while many groups on the more the friends&family end of the spectrum remained on Whatsapp. And 1:1 conversations are simply on whatever messenger they started on. Which is super convenient, because of the way the Android multitasking model works (and I suspect it's similar on the other side?). Far more convenient to switch between a Signal, a Whatsapp and the occasional Facebook Messenger than between two WhatsApp groups, worse if those are Whatsapp groups with a channel hierarchy.

(Telegram: even just having it installed would be seen as a political statement, it's where the weirdos congregate to antivaxx and flatearth and reinstate monarchy or whatever they do)
by WhereIsTheTruth | 2025-06-21 07:27:10+00:00
If you are from the U.S. sure, serves the interests of your country

If you are not from the U.S., then no, it's not a replacement for WhatsApp, it's the same

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CLOUD_Act

"but E2E encryption my dude"

You have forgotten about RSA, my dude

Why Signal, why not X, Y, Z? ask yourself why something from Cali always gets picked up and talked about, but people's favorite? nevaaaaaaah
by ttctciyf | 2025-06-21 07:28:10+00:00
> Humans being manipulated is not, in and of itself, a hint that things are going wrong.

Well, if this is meant to counter the abstract's claim that:

> Modern smartphones are designed to manipulate the attention and behaviour of users in ways that further the interests of the corporations that built them. In this they are importantly different from resources typically associated with the extended mind—such as notebooks, Scrabble racks and maps—which are not designed to manipulate or exploit users

I think it falls a little short of refuting a claim that in this particular case things are going somewhat wrong.
by sylwester | 2025-06-21 07:28:37+00:00
Several new features added:

* Multiple AI Providers: Choose between Google Gemini, OpenAI (cloud) or Ollama/DeepSeek (local) for translations * Multi-File Support: Process multiple files with automatic deduplication to save API calls * Incremental Caching: Only translates new or modified strings, dramatically reducing API calls * Batch Processing: Intelligently batches translations for optimal performance * Path Preservation: Maintains exact JSON structure including nested objects and arrays * Cross-Platform: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux with automatic cache directory detection * Developer Friendly: Built-in performance statistics and progress indicators * Cost Effective: Minimizes API usage through smart caching and deduplication * Language Detection: Automatically detect source language instead of assuming English * Multiple Target Languages: Translate to multiple languages in a single command * Translation Metadata: Optionally include translation details in output files for tracking * Dry Run Mode: Preview what would be translated without making API calls * Format Preservation: Maintains URLs, emails, dates, numbers, and template variables unchanged
by nicbou | 2025-06-21 07:29:41+00:00
My current favorite is a 1 meter retractable USB C to C cable. Combined with the smaller GaN charger and the lower power requirement of newer MacBooks, I can pack really light, and that's great for bike and motorcycle travel.

I also have a set of USB adapters that plug into each other and let me charge anything with the same cable. Again, less stuff to pack.
by djaychela | 2025-06-21 07:29:49+00:00
>Only one desktop/computer can be linked to Signal desktop.

Absolutely not the case. I've got 2 at the moment, right now. Had 4 running when I had 4 computers I was using.

>Can't move from iOS to Android (and vice versa) without losing your chat history because backups aren't compatible.

Yeah, this is a real pain which I wish they had solved years ago. For personal reasons my daughter has her old android phone with our Signal messages on it, as it's the only way she can keep them as far as we're aware at the moment. It was a pain when I moved from Android to iOS for this reason.

>Can't automatically save pictures to Picture Roll, Google Drive, Dropbox for integration with your other pictures.

I would think this is by design. Signal is designed to be private.

>why can't they try to at least match WhatsApp in core functionality

I would imagine 'funding' and 'privacy' cover a lot of it.
by motorest | 2025-06-21 07:30:33+00:00
> So, sure, some people are just natural born whiners who will never be happy. But some people just have good taste or instincts and can tell when stuff is broken. I'd say ignore them at your own risk.

Here's some food for thought: whiner communities create a conservative feedback loop that preserves existing problems and singles out for attack those who try to do anything about them. The primary output from these communities is creating a chilling effect that dissuades everyone from acting upon a problem, as doing anything about anything singles you out for attack and criticism.

If you fix a problem, people stop whining. There are no praises, victory laps, or any recognition though. There is only bitching about issues.

That's the problem with whiners. It's a culture based on not fixing problems and attacking those who dare do anything about anything. That's why you must stay away from whiners and complainers. They don't build up, they thrive in tearing others down.
by BiteCode_dev | 2025-06-21 07:31:07+00:00
It's not a replacement, since it doesn't have the same feature sets or ergonomics.

Don't get me wrong, I use signal a lot and I love it, but presenting signals as an alternative to whatsapp is only going to disappoint people.

Telegram is closer, but neither e2e encrypted nor open source.

Still, I would say if you are in America and not dealing with state or industrial secrets, getting spied on by russians is better than by meta.

Basically, I use both: signals for my privacy oriented friends that will go through the ordeal of using signal, and telegram with the normies so that at least they get of the zuck train.
by foresto | 2025-06-21 07:31:20+00:00
Some things that keep me away from SimpleX:

- No multi-device support.

- No group calls.

- Establishing a contact requires sharing a large link or QR code, which is often inconvenient.

- Message queues drop messages if not retrieved within a relatively short period. Last time I checked, it was 21 days, which is shorter than some of my off-grid vacations.

- I couldn't find clear information on who runs the message queues, so I have to assume most are controlled by a single organization. This makes it effectively a centralized service with respect to privacy and resilience.

- Funded almost entirely by venture capital, making its longevity questionable, and the likelihood of future exploitation relatively high. I'm not comfortable depending on such a service to keep in touch with people.
by tikhonj | 2025-06-21 07:31:40+00:00
A problem I've seen in programming too: understanding and articulating the value of quality is necessary but nowhere near sufficient for actually doing good work! So you end up with folks who've gotten past the initial hurdle—developing taste and confidence—but, either individually or in an organizational context, are only able to do okay quality work. Not awful but not especially elegant or insightful either.

And so we get people making totally reasonable arguments about the value of design and then producing polished but tasteless and shallow corporate products. Or we get people who start understanding the value of maintainable, understandable code, but get stuck on design patterns, "clean code" rules and "best practices" rather than conceptually clear, coherent and effective code design.

I have some sympathy. Getting past that initial hurdle rests on skills and tacit knowledge that take time, practice and mentorship to build after you've developed an appreciation for good taste. And, especially in a corporate setting, you have to get most of that practice and mentorship in public.
by k_bx | 2025-06-21 07:31:42+00:00
Yeah, it says "go find linux suitable for beginners". I googled "linux for beginners" and Google currently gave me such a mix bag of articles with options including Kali Linux. Crazy.

Also, who googles now anyways? Ask your local ChatGPT haha.

Jokes aside, ideally would be to make a decision and recommend Ubuntu (or PopOS).
by djaychela | 2025-06-21 07:31:54+00:00
>I think we can only hope for regulation to keep it safe and force interoperability with other chat apps.

Never going to happen unless legally forced to. Which is not happening any time soon in the USA.

>WhatsApp's call quality is second to none. Never had a problem with Signal - in fact I've had situations where it's been a better option than anything else available to me.
by scoofy | 2025-06-21 07:32:33+00:00
>And dont "creators" me. It is about google earning more money for their stockholders and managment collecting their rewards, not about "think of the children".

Classic consumer-only socialist. You have no model for production except business is bad. If you care about labor then you care about labor getting paid. So far you've demonstrated that you have no model of paying content creators. You would rather they go away then actually pay for their services. You pretend you should be able to get it for free. If you have no model of production, then you have no model.
by johan914 | 2025-06-21 07:32:56+00:00
As a young person, I get perfectly normal corporate advertisements on YT, with the very rare porno dating ad. My parents on the other hand, get a never ending stream of the shittiest scams, AI voiceovers of Joe Rogan and Zelensky, dick pills. It's clear their tracking targets elderly users with scams. I would never pay for YT premium.
by zdp7 | 2025-06-21 07:34:44+00:00
No that isn't the real point. This...

>Lastly to me the greatest reason to oppose is that the laws pretty much all cover intentional unauthorized access. CIPA as it is exempts pretty much the only businesses I would want granted the access to intentionally access unauthorized communications. Everyone else can ask me for permission, if I refuse they don't have to do business with me.

That's what I have been saying pretty much the whole time. I'm not sure, but do you know that the section they are modifying is Chapter 1.5 Invasion of Privacy. It literally talks about placing a wiretap on a communication device. This change removes criminal charges for businesses when they have a business purpose which includes a lot of things I don't want businesses to be able to do to me.

Your argument is that the might be other laws that make it illegal. You are right there is another law that 'probably' applies. The federal wiretap laws would apply. I see some problems with that. First someone for some reason thinks it's a good idea to change this law in California. You say 'Doesn't matter, it's probably still illegal' That makes it sound pretty dumb to bother changing the law. Still illegal, so why bother. I don't know if it were me, I would only bother to change it if I planned on getting the other laws changed also. And if they managed to get the other laws changed, it's 'probably' legal.

Next, even if the federal law doesn't change, now only the feds can prosecute it. I see lots of problems there. Maybe the feds don't want to prosecute it. Maybe the feds do want to prosecute, but someone grants a pardon for the federal crime. Do you know that the President's pardon powers can't pardon state crimes?

I just don't see any reason to make it so California can't prosecute businesses for invading my privacy. I find it profoundly unwise to give businesses rights that I don't want them to have based on probably and maybe. The only logical reason to try to make the exemption in California is if you plan on making the exemption on every law.

TLDR: It would be insane to allow this exemption. It currently as is works just how I want it to. Business never ever needs intentional unauthorized access to my communications.
by theGeatZhopa | 2025-06-21 07:35:32+00:00
Lol I'm from Germany and i think it wouldn't be a problem as normalos typically don't own mobiles in the kindergarten already. The "unnormalos" with mobiles - yes - but, if you're the kindergartener, then you dictate. But no lol - it's a pain. The mouse cant bite of the thread.
by smeeger | 2025-06-21 07:36:30+00:00
london isnt even cold compared to the US. i was amazed to learn this but its true… and these idiots dont take into account that most people in norway are not only driving in warmer conditions but almost always in the city… whereas in the US we are driving across vast frozen tundra hundreds of miles away, the literal width of norway on either side, from any kind of help. EVs barely make it during summer time
by burnt-resistor | 2025-06-21 07:36:44+00:00
I hate to break it to you, but essentially all Android and Apple devices on US carriers can (potentially as a capability, but it's extremely unlikely in the real world) be remotely screenshotted, location tracked, and microphone and cameras activated by US intelligence agencies because they can get whatever they want inserted onto endpoints (phones and other SIM devices) by the carriers. This probably happens in most countries. State actors therefore don't really need RCE or local priv esc 0days to break into any phone or backend, social engineer an engineering shop, or plant a spy software developer to gain in-app access. WhatsApp maybe good enough, but it leans heavily towards MAANG feudalism while Signal doesn't currently. Signal won't help this massive endpoint vulnerably either, but it's backed and design is more trustworthy. Only an audited FOSS hw/sw stack that doesn't agree to carrier and local regulations requiring unknown, untrusted code loaded on a user's device would. And, honestly, I'd like a phone that can switch to e2e voip automatically should the other party have Signal or similar installed rather than making a conventional call. IDK if Silent Circle's Blackphone 2 did this or not, but the Silent Phone app that replaced it defeats the whole purpose of a Blackberry-like device.
by Manuel_D | 2025-06-21 07:37:26+00:00
The same criteria used to approve patients for puberty blockers were used in the study. Heck, the author of the study helped write the DSM criteria for gender dysphoria. This is not at all "debunked", as much as activists try to insist that it is

Transition is indeed something that should be avoided if a patient can become comfortable in a same sex gender identity, because even with a suppressed puberty trans people have negative health outcomes across a variety of measures. To say that transition is best avoided if possible isn't a moral judgment against trans people, it's an accurate statement about the disparities in health outcomes.

This is a simplistic model, but imagine trans people have 10% risk of suicide if they don't get blockers, 5% if they do, and cis people have 1%. If I have a cohort of 10 patients with gender dysphoria 8 will desist and 2 will persist without prescribing blockers. And if you do prescribe blockers all of them will persist and transition. The former achieves the optimal health outcomes for the group as a whole. Again this is hugely simplistic, as suicide is not the only healthcare outcome we care about, but it illustrates that desistence rates are relevant to measuring whether blockers improve overall health outcomes.

Of course ideally we'd be able to know which patients will and won't persist. Psychologists attempted to do this for decades, but were never able to reliably predict which patients would and would not persist. People like to point to the extremely low rates of desistence among people prescribed puberty blockers as proof that psychiatrist are predicting correctly. But of course it's also consistent with blockers serving as a determining factor in persistence, and not merely offering "time to think".
by akoboldfrying | 2025-06-21 07:37:30+00:00
> any such device is disallowed to put cryptographic or other restrictions on what software the user wants to execute

Won't this also forbid virus scanners that quarantine files?

> This pertains to all programmable components on the device, including low-level hardware controllers.

I don't think it's reasonable to expect any manufacturer to uphold a warranty if making unlimited changes to the system is permitted.
by Corrado | 2025-06-21 07:38:32+00:00
I completely agree, though with a twist. Google knows everything about me and yet I get ADs for things that I would never purchase. Just because I'm a middle aged male I see trucks, and beer, and football advertisements all day long. Those are irrelevant to me. If Google would only use their immense knowledge of me and what I like, I might be more amenable to watching their ADs. Where are the ADs for geeky movies that I might enjoy (is there a new Superman movie coming out)? Or books by my favorite authors? Or video games or computer equipment or electric cars? Hell, I have grandkids so stuff for them might work on me.

To be clear, it's not only Google, all the big providers have so much information on all of us, but they don't seem to take advantage of it at all. I've turned the AD "customization" on/off for all kinds of things and it doesn't seem to matter in the slightest. Nearly everything I see is irrelevant to me.
by djaychela | 2025-06-21 07:39:31+00:00
>I think you might be an outlier.

I may well be. But outliers are important. It is possible.

WA has massive network effects, of course. It's embedded. And I agree it's unlikely to change without a combination of legal controls and societal awareness (both of which seem extremely less likely than say a year ago).

But if everyone gave up when faced with such a situation, the world would be in a worse place than it is today. And Meta are relying on exactly that happening.
by amatecha | 2025-06-21 07:41:42+00:00
I've had a broken Signal account for like a year. I migrated from an older phone and the process didn't work because apparently the version of Signal I had on the old phone was "too old" or something? (why didn't the new destination phone's copy of Signal tell me this?) ... I've been waiting, hoping they fix the issue where I can re-register my phone without having to delete the app and lose all my message history with photos from family etc. For a while, I could receive messages but not send them (yes, seriously). Recently a "re-register device" button appeared, but when I try to go through that process, I get the SMS with the verification code, I enter it, and the app crashes. Now I can't even access the message history because the app forces me to resume the "re-register" flow, but it doesn't work. I'm holding out hope that yet another app update will eventually fix THAT crash and I may indeed one day be able to use Signal again. Not that I want to, I'm not impressed with my experiences with it. :\
by hnlmorg | 2025-06-21 07:42:06+00:00
Sega is one of those companies quietly pumping out content for a loyal fan base. They don’t get as much limelight as Nintendo do with their IP, which is a shame because Sega’s games are definitely on a par with the stuff Nintendo release.

> It’s amazing how valuable of an IP Sonic is. It still sells consistently well after all those years.

It’s not as surprising when you consider Sonic is also mascot who they’ve ploughed millions into.

The movies will have definitely reignited some interest into Sonic too
by imiric | 2025-06-21 07:42:20+00:00
> It seems to me it’s hard to match reality—for example, books, book shelves, pencils, drafting tables, gizmos, keyboards, mouse, etc. Things with tactile feedback. Leafing through a book typeset on nice paper will always be a better experience than the best of digital representations.

There's nothing tactile about a glass pane. It's simply a medium through which we access digital objects, and a very clunky one at that. Yet we got used to it in a very short amount of time.

If anything, XR devices have the possibility to offer a much more natural tactile experience. visionOS is already touch-driven, and there are glove-like devices today that provide more immersive haptics. Being able to feel the roughness or elasticity of a material, that kind of thing. It's obviously ridiculous to think that everyone will enjoy wearing a glove all day, but this technology can only improve.

This won't be a replacement for physical objects, of course. It will always be a simulation. But the one we can get via spatial computing will be much more engaging and intuitive than anything we've used so far.

> I will never be able to type faster than on my keyboard, and even with the most advanced voice inputs, I will always be able to type longer and with less fatigue than if I were to use my voice—having ten fingers and one set of vocal cords.

Sure, me neither—_today_. But this argument ignores the improvements we can make to XR interfaces.

It won't just be about voice input. It will also involve touch input, eye tracking, maybe even motion tracking.

A physical board with keys you press to produce single characters at a time is a very primitive way of inputting data into a machine.

Today we have virtual keyboards in environments like visionOS, which I'm sure are clunky and slow to use. But what if we invent an accurate way of translating the motion of each finger into a press of a virtual key? That seems like an obvious first step. Suddenly you're no longer constrained by a physical board, and can "type" with your hands in any position. What if we take this further and can translate patterns of finger positions into key chords, in a kind of virtual stenotype? What if we also involve eye, motion and voice inputs into this?

These are solvable problems we will address over time. Thinking that just because they're not solved today they never will be is very shortsighted.

Being able to track physical input from several sources in 3D space provides a far richer environment to invent friendly and intuitive interfaces than a 2D glass pane ever could. In that sense, our computing is severely constrained by the current generation of devices.