MurphyA/hacker-news huggingface dataset:
by vhtr | 2026-01-12 11:15:22+00:00
Oh man, something to watch and listen to in the evenings to come, thank you!

I don't have experience with the LotR Online outside of small clips here and there, but for the past 5 years or so I have been enjoying a bit more retro LotR "mmorpg", a free-to-play MUD that has been in development since 1991 or something: https://mume.org/

In MUME (Multi-Users in Middle Earth) getting from Bree to Mordor by walking won't take you 10 hours, but maybe 10 minutes at most. However, the trip and the destination will be full of dangers, whether it's from pve or pvp side of things.

As a side note, MUME is being developed by volunteers, and I believe the game itself is still ran on some Swiss University servers, where it all began, heh.
by kace91 | 2026-01-12 11:15:54+00:00
AI has a lot of potential as a personal, always on teaching assistant.

It's also an 'skip intro' button for the friction that comes with learning.

You're getting a bug? just ask the thing rather than spending time figuring it out. You don't know how to start a project from scratch? ask for scaffolding. Your first boss asks for a ticket? Better not to screw up, hand it to the machine just to be safe.

If those temptations are avoided you can progress, but I'm not sure that lots of people will succeed. Furthermore, will people be afforded that space to be slow, when their colleagues are going at 5x?

Modern life offers little hope. We're all using uber eats to avoid the friction of cooking, tinder to avoid the awkwardness of a club, and so on. Frictionless tends to win.
by Cthulhu_ | 2026-01-12 11:17:02+00:00
I don't think our profession was writing code to begin with (and this may be a bit uuhh. rewriting history?); what we do is take an idea, requirements, an end goal and make it reality. Often times that involves writing code, but that's only one aspect of the software developer's job.

Analogy time because comment sections love analogies. A carpenter can hammer nails, screw screws, make holes, saw wood to size. If they then use machines to make that work easier, do they stop being carpenters?

It's good if not essential to be able to write code. It's more important to know what to write and when. Best thing to do at this point is to stop attaching one's self-worth with the ability to write code. That's like a novelist (more analogies) who praises their ability to type at 100wpm. The 50 shades books proved you don't need to either touch type (the first book was mostly written on a blackberry apparently) or be good at writing to be successful, lol.
by timr | 2026-01-12 11:17:19+00:00
The world will be greener in a high-CO2 environment. There’s no legitimate argument over that fact.

Where you go wrong is in misrepresenting the argument as “more plants and food”. That’s a straw man. Certainly it’s more favorable for growth of plants that make food, but that doesn’t mean that existing patterns of food production will exist unchanged, or that adaptation won’t be required. But we’re also talking about a 100+ year change timeline. People who tell you that this year’s weather are indicative of urgent, rapid change are exaggerating.

You seem to be willing to accept wild extrapolations of doom without evidence, while rejecting scientifically well-founded statements of fact, so I’d challenge you to examine your priors.
by theshrike79 | 2026-01-12 11:17:24+00:00
A work colleague had a tedious operation involving manually joining a bunch of video segments together in a predictable pattern. Took them a full working day.

They used "just" ChatGPT on the web to write an automation. Now the same process takes ~5 minutes of work. Select the correct video segments, click one button to run script.

The actual processing still takes time, but they don't need to stand there watching it progress so they can start the second job.

And this was a 100% non-tecnical marketing person with no programming skills past Excel formulas.
by senko | 2026-01-12 11:17:26+00:00
I think many people reading your comment and making a cursory glance at what Linus wrote will conclude he's against AI in kernel development. He may very well be, but the post you link to is in in response to this:

I'm just saying that we should highlight that:

1. LLMs _allow you to send patches end-to-end without expertise_.

2. As a result, even though the community (rightly) strongly disapproves of blanket dismissals of series, if we suspect AI slop [I think it's useful to actually use that term], maintains can reject it out of hand.

Point 2 is absolutely a new thing in my view.

What Linus is saying in his response to the above, is that if people use AI to produce slop and submit that, the documentation saying "don't do that" won't discourage them, therefore there's no need to pollute the documentation with that.

Which...makes sense?
by hliyan | 2026-01-12 11:18:15+00:00
I'm fond of saying that most problems in the software world are due to one thing trying to do two things, or two things trying to do the same thing. In this case, it feels like the former: getting the same implementation to cater to both desktop and mobile is obviously the most efficient solution from a development perspective, but not an end user (and ultimately business) perspective.
by nicoburns | 2026-01-12 11:18:59+00:00
This table is informative as to exactly what lightpanda is: https://lightpanda.io/blog/posts/what-is-a-true-headless-bro...

TL;DR: It does the following:

- Fetch HTML over the network

- Parse HTML into a DOM tree

- Fetch and execute JavaScript that manipulates the DOM

But not the following:

- Fetch and parse CSS to apply styling rules

- Calculate layout

- Fetch images and fonts for display

- Paint pixels to render the visual result

- Composite layers for smooth scrolling and animations

So it's effectively a net+DOM+script-only browser with no style/layout/paint.

---

Definitely fun for me to watch as someone who is making a lightweight browser engine with a different set of trade-offs (net+DOM+style/layout/paint-only with no script)
by jijijijij | 2026-01-12 11:19:17+00:00
You are using it wrong.

Just install the SuperTyping app. It's sooo good and intuitive. Totally worth the $189, if you consider how often you need to type something.

I also recommend Little Snitch as firewall and Parallels for virtualization.

Does anyone have a recommendation for bootloader or filesystem app? Preferably subscription model for intuitive accounting.
by tetek | 2026-01-12 11:19:25+00:00
I'm building KineVision, a sport video analysis app for iOS. Something like Coach's Eye.

I wanted to have a more difficult project and learn more about AV and Liquid Glass. I try not to vibe-code.
I keep it 100% free for now, I'm looking for power users and retention. I won't monetise until I feel that this is a helpful tool.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/kinevision-video-coaching/id67...
by dspillett | 2026-01-12 11:19:33+00:00
I think here “to the user” is referring to the end user, not the programmer (the user of the coding style). There is a comprehension benefit for the team working on the code, but there is no direct¹ benefit to the end user.

--------

[1] The indirect benefits of there possibly being a faster release cadence and/or fewer bugs, could also be for many other reasons.
by piker | 2026-01-12 11:19:33+00:00
A lot of the design changes over the last decade seem largely Jobs-ian marketing driven. The round corners and friendly surfaces were useful in bringing the mass market into computing. Now that computer use is ubiquitous, it will be interesting to see if we start migrating back to the way the original programmers envisioned things like always-visible scrollbars and obvious click targets.

We've spent billions. Are UIs a lot better off than Windows 3.1?
by roryirvine | 2026-01-12 11:19:37+00:00
The draft Online Safety Bill was first published in 2021, was substantially re-written and re-introduced in early 2022, was amended over the course of the next 18 months, and eventually passed into law as the Online Safety Act in October 2023.

Peter Kyle was in opposition until July 2024, so how could he have spearheaded it?
by haspok | 2026-01-12 11:19:47+00:00
Perhaps thinking about AI generated code in terms of machine code generated by a compiler helps. Who maintains the compiled program? Nobody. If you want to make changes to it, you recompile the source.

In a similar fashion, AI generated code will be fed to another AI round and regenerated or refactored. What this also means is that in most cases nobody will care about producing code with high quality. Why bother, if the AI can refactor ("recompile") it in a few minutes?
by menaerus | 2026-01-12 11:19:55+00:00
> If you didn't like working with <insert anything>, then you ...

This type of argument can hold for any profession and yet we aren't seeing this pattern much in other white-collar professions. Professors, doctors, economists, mechanical engineers, ... it seems like pretty much everybody made the wrong choice then?

I think this is a wrong way to look at it. OP says that he invested a lot of time into becoming proficient in something that today appears to be very close to part extinction.

I think that the question is legit, and he's likely not the only person asking oneself this question.

My take on the question is ability to adapt and learn new skills. Some will succeed some will fail but staying in status-quo position will certainly more likely lead to a failure rather than the success.
Show HN: Two-line change, 30% RAG boost
by snasan | 2026-01-12 11:20:16+00:00
While graph-based vector retrieval algorithms like HNSW and NSG are highly favored for their excellent retrieval speed, it is often overlooked that they are designed for Euclidean space vector retrieval. "Metric mismatch" can be devastating in many scenarios—vector data better suited for maximum inner product retrieval, when paired with Euclidean vector algorithms, often leads to "retrieval results semantically irrelevant to the query." Looking back at the field of maximum inner product retrieval, there has yet to be a groundbreaking algorithm comparable to HNSW or NSG. Many previous works performed well only on certain datasets but suffered severe degradation when applied to others. To address this, in collaboration with Zhejiang University, we have successfully elevated maximum inner product retrieval research to the same level as Euclidean space retrieval. Our innovative method—PSP—can boost maximum inner product retrieval efficiency by 30% with minimal modifications to existing graph algorithms!
by seethedeaduu | 2026-01-12 11:21:05+00:00
> 1) It's a medical condition. Better activism doesn't lead to better patient outcomes. It just puts conflicting pressures on already overtaxed doctors that make it hard for them to treat patients properly. See what's happening to trans folks for an example.

What? Activism by trans people is directly responsible for the improvement of the lives of trans people (see informed consent for example).
by Cthulhu_ | 2026-01-12 11:21:12+00:00
Same how we do it now - look at the end result, test it. Testers never went away.

Besides, your comment goes by the assumption that we no longer know (intimately) how to program - is that true? I don't know C or assembly or whatever very well, but I'm still a valuable worker because I know other things.

I mean it could be partially true - but it's like having years of access to Google to quickly find just what I need, meaning I never learned how to read e.g. books on software development or scientific paper end to end. Never felt like I needed to have that skill, but it's a skill that a preceding generation did have.
by maciejzj | 2026-01-12 11:22:18+00:00
TBH, it all feels like a huge gamble at this point. Neither skills, education, institutional ties, nor current employment can guarantee a stable foundation for life.

This hits harder depending on how much money, social capital, or debt you accumulated before this volatility began. If you’ve paid off your debts, bought a house, and stabilized your family life, you’re gambling with how comfortable the coming years will be. If you’re a fresh grad with student debt, no house, and no social network, you’re more or less gambling with your life.
by Strawhatoofy | 2026-01-12 11:24:13+00:00
That’s a fair concern and I agree. If it turns into AI slop, it’s just doomscrolling again.

It’s not video based. Think of it more like scrollable text cards. Short, structured, and meant to be interactive rather than something you just consume endlessly. The content isn’t raw model output either, it’s constrained by templates and reviewed.

Copyright is something I'll look into after this grows.
by drekipus | 2026-01-12 11:24:15+00:00
That's so funny, i made the same thing. Looks to function exactly the same.

https://quickfit.dre-west.workers.dev/projects.
(click "signin as guest" -- the signup doesn't work so don't worry about that. a friend added it so I could save and access on different computers but we ended up not finishing it)
by Cthulhu_ | 2026-01-12 11:24:38+00:00
The unpredictable part isn't new - from a project manager's point of view, what's the difference between an LLM and a team of software engineers? Both, from that POV, are a black box. The "how" is not important to them, the details aren't important. What's important is that what they want is made a reality, and that customers can press on a button to add a product to their shopping cart (for example).

LLMs mean software developers let go of some control of how something is built, which makes one feel uneasy because a lot of the appeal of software development is control and predictability. But this is the same process that people go through as they go from coder to lead developer or architect or project manager - letting go of control. Some thrive in their new position, having a higher overview of the job, while some really can't handle it.
by neya | 2026-01-12 11:25:16+00:00
Building DesignFlo - https://designflo.ai

Build Enterprise-grade applications with real backends - APIs, databases, auth, and business logic. Secure, scalable, and ready to launch in minutes.

Imagine v0, Lovable, but it actually does real backend that scales. Not prototypes. Real production quality code. The philosophy is simple - Algorithms first, AI second. Opinionated code always.

AI is decent at following instructions, but bad at being consistent, reliable. Fortunately, those problems are solved by algorithms and opinionated architecture.

The codebase generated uses Elixir for backend, Svelte for frontend. It uses best practices and opinionated algorithms to consistently produce reliable code that works the first try, doesn't waste your tokens and generates exactly what you want.

You also get finer controls - drag and drop visual designer and an ERD diagram editor (if you really want to architect the backend yourself). Code export is available as well.
by theshrike79 | 2026-01-12 11:25:23+00:00
Do you enjoy the process of creating a solution more than the actual solution?

This is the main difference why people argue against LLMs in programming.

I'm in the "I want to solve a problem" end of the spectrum. Many others are in the "I want the code to be elegant, maintanable and beautifully crafted - oh, yeah, the problem might be solved too" end.
by eloisant | 2026-01-12 11:25:24+00:00
That reminds me of the time where 3GL languages arrived and bosses claimed they no longer needed developers, because anyone could write code in those English-like languages.

Then when mouse-based tools like Visual Basic arrived, same story, no need for developers because anyone can write programs by clicking!

Now bosses think that with AI anyone will be able to create software, but the truth is that you'll still need software engineers to use those tools.

Will we need less people? Maybe. But in the past 40 years we have been increasing the developers productivity so many times, and yet we still need more and more developers because the needs have grown faster.
by erbesharat | 2026-01-12 11:25:35+00:00
Root Sustainability | Senior UX/UI Designer | REMOTE/The Netherlands (or hybrid) | Full-time | Seed-stage + equity

We’re Root Sustainability, helping retail brands to turn scattered, incomplete operational data into auditable, high-granularity sustainability insights, and we’re doing it from the bottom up. Think tens of millions of data points, messy ERP exports, complex supply chains, and sustainability logic that most tools can’t handle. Our goal is to make all of that feel simple, clear, and usable for the people who rely on it every day.

Role:

You’ll own UX/UI end-to-end: research, flows, wireframes, prototypes, and polished interfaces that make complicated domains feel obvious. You care about usability, accessibility, and simplicity in the face of ambiguity. You work closely with product and engineering, not as a service, but as a partner shaping what we build next.

What you’ll do:

Lead design for key features: mapping, dashboards, workflows.

Turn fuzzy sustainability domain problems into clear, user-centered interfaces.

Build prototypes and run lightweight user testing to validate assumptions.

Maintain and evolve a design system (Figma, etc.).

Collaborate closely with engineers, you’ll be shipping frequently, not just handing off specs.

You should apply if:

You have ~5+ yrs experience in UX/UI with a strong portfolio.

You’re pragmatic: prioritize clarity over trends, iteration over perfection.

You thrive in early-stage environments where priorities shift quickly.

You know design systems, user research, and can defend your decisions.

Bonus: data viz experience, sustainability passion, accessibility chops.

Perks:

€60,000 – €70,000 gross per year with stock options.

Remote-friendly / hybrid with occasional meetups.

Direct impact, your work shapes product direction.

Flat culture; work with a small, mission-driven team.

How to apply:

https://root-sustainability.homerun.co/senior-ux-ui-designer...
by falloutx | 2026-01-12 11:26:03+00:00
> "I need a website for my restaurant" kind, or the "I need to aggregate data from these excel files in a certain way" kind

I am afraid that kind of jobs were already over by 2015. There are no code website makers available since then and if you can't do it yourself you can just pay someone on fiverr and get it done for less than $5-50 at this point, its so efficient even AI wont be more cost effective than that. If you have $10k saved you can hire a competitive agency to maintain and build your website. This business is completely taken over by low cost fiverr automators and agencies for high budget projects. Agencies have become so good now that they manage websites from Adidas to Lando Norris to your average mom & pop store.
by tripzilch | 2026-01-12 11:26:14+00:00
had to scroll far to find the problem description

> AHC058, held on December 14, 2025, was conducted over a 4-hour competition window. The problem involved a setting where participants could produce machines with hierarchical relationships, such as multiple types of “apple-producing machines” and “machines that build those machines.” The objective was to construct an efficient production planning algorithm by determining which types and hierarchies of machines to upgrade and in what specific order.

... so not a CRUD app but it beat humans at Cookie Clicker? :-)
by giancarlostoro | 2026-01-12 11:26:27+00:00
The real question is what existing language is perfect for LLMs? Is Lisp? ASM? We know some LLMs are better at some languages but what existing language are they best at? Would be interesting to see. I know one spot they all fail at is niche programming libraries. They have to pull down docs or review raw code pulled down for the dependency, issue is in some languages like C# those dependencies are precompiled to bytecode, Java too.
by habinero | 2026-01-12 11:27:37+00:00
No, I'm still saying something very practical.

I don't care what text the LLM generates. If you wanna read robotext, knock yourself out. It's useless for what I'm talking about, which is "something is broken and I'm trying to figure out what"

In that context, I'm trying to do two things:

1. Fix the problem
2. Don't break anything else

If there's something weird in the code, I need to know if it's necessary. "Will I break something I don't know about if I change this" is something I can ask a person. Or a whole chain of people if I need to.

I can't ask the LLM, because "yes $BIG_CLIENT needs that behavior for stupid reasons" is not gonna be a part of its prompt or training data, and I need that information to fix it properly and not cause any regressions.

It may sound contrived but that sort of thing happens allllll the time.
by JoachimS | 2026-01-12 11:28:25+00:00
I see this sentiment sometimes, but don't buy it. What I do buy is that customers, as well as investors expect the company to keep developing new products, create new releases and version. To drive sales.

Companies don't build things to motivate having developers - Remember they are the "cost center", while sales are the creators of value. The developers are a necessary burden and would be axed as soon as they don't provide what is needed.

Old products are boring. New products are interesting. Customers likes new thing. Media writes about new things, even writes negatively if updates are slow to come.

Compare to cars, skis, tennis rackets even dishwashers, new coke, new christmas special of somesuch not the same as last Christmas. Things that have new models every year or season, every six months etc. We create newness, not because it is really needed, but it drives sales.

Moving to a once a year makes Apples products guaranteed to get buzz, sales repeatedly. And investors can predict when that will happen. All are happy. Almost.
by Cthulhu_ | 2026-01-12 11:28:35+00:00
But there's a limit to that. There's (relatively) very few people that can explain the details of e.g. a compiler, compared to for example React front-end developers that build B2C software (...like me). And these software projects grow, ultimately to the limit of what one person can fit in their head.

Which is why we have lots of "rules" and standards on communication, code style, commenting, keeping history, tooling, regression testing, etc. And I'm afraid those will be the first to suffer when code projects are primarily written by LLMs - do they even write unit tests if you don't tell them to?
by alecco | 2026-01-12 11:28:50+00:00
For at least a year, GPT is known to work with shorter specs/prompts and is capable of figuring out-of-spec decisions well more often than not. Claude is more likely to make wrong decisions on those.

While both are for iterative programming, Claude has/needs shorter iterations and GPT goes on long ones. Both approaches have pros and cons. For example, if GPT picked a wrong decision for something out-of-spec, you might've wasted 30'. YMMV
by jarosan | 2026-01-12 11:29:27+00:00
Building Kiiro — training analytics for Apple Watch runners.

Got frustrated with Apple's Fitness app being too basic and third-party apps creating anxiety with made-up "recovery scores." Wanted something in between: proper training load tracking without the daily judgment.

Uses 42-day EWMA for chronic load, 7-day for acute. HR-based rather than rTSS since most people don't know their lactate threshold. Zone breakdowns, route comparisons, the stuff that actually helps you see if your training is working.

Free, no ads: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6749277384

Would love feedback from anyone who trains with an Apple Watch.