skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
The timing of this is eerily appropriate for me. Some of you may be aware that Andrew Lange, a professor of physics at Caltech, committed suicide last week. (His NY Times obituary is here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/science/space/28lange.html) I taught Physics 1 with Andrew for three years when I was just starting grad school, and knew him not only as a brilliant scientist and excellent teacher but also as an incredibly warm, supportive, and positive person. I would never, in a million years, have guessed that he would someday take his own life.

I was nowhere near as close to Andrew as Tom was to Dan, but for the first time I understand, in a small way, the pain and confusion Tom must have endured (and, in diminished form, must still be enduring). Thank you, Tom, for sharing Dan with us.
I'm happy to see this happening. I pitched this same idea to a few friends last year and have wondered for a while why entrepreneurs don't commonly exchange equity simply to reduce the risk of entrepreneurship, and why there aren't funds like this.

What would be a good way to catalyze more of this type of activity? Does anyone have insight into the legal requirements of trading equity for equity?

If entrepreneur equity exchanges became common, I believe it would have hugely positive impact on entrepreneurs and might even end up offering a better way to finance ventures.

Let's say you had a ton of autonomous entrepreneur-to-entrepreneur equity exchange funds (or a market, who knows). Basically, funds where entrepreneurs recruit other entrepreneurs to participate in trading equity. Probably some would develop reputations as being where all the best entrepreneurs go and they'd become exclusive, like the best VCs currently, and those would be hard to get into. But there'd be no real limit on how many companies could join even the best, only how many promising ventures there are. (At least that's my guess, because there probably wouldn't be the same kind of overhead for accepting a new member as VCs face when making a new investment).

Once you have a group of quality entrepeneurs who each own a bit of the pooled equity, individual entrepreneurs could simply sell some of their shares in the fund to raise money for their own ventures. Rather than selling shares in my company, I'd be selling shares in a bunch of companies just like my company. An entrepreneur could probably find a much better deal (just like VCs currently do) because the risk would be so much lower. The fund could also sell shares directly to investors and disburse it to members, but that might get a bit tricky.

It seems to me like the best kind of organization to run this kind of fund would be a non-profit trade organization or some such. Or it could even just be a co-op where all the entrepreneurs are members.

Obviously these funds would be cheaper for LPs to invest in than going through VCs, and entrepreneurs would get better terms if they were able to access a new class of investor.

It also seems like a good idea for VCs and angels to set these up, though, because it aligns the interests of the participating entrepreneurs with that of the VC. As a VC, I want you to go for the big wins. As a member of the pool, I want everyone else to go for the big win, and by reducing my risk, it makes me more comfortable going big.

I kind of thought this was just another of my somewhat ridiculous ideas until seeing this article. I'm happy to see it validated, at least in some small way.
Perhaps the fact that I only prefer to drive manual transmission cars is a good indicator of why I am not overly thrilled about iPad. I have often wondered about the ratio of automatic/manual drivers of the HN crowd.
Oracle's ambitious plans for integrating Sun's technology
Subtle Encouragement Toward Correctness
Running Ubuntu LXDE on N810
Thanks for sharing the article. In looking at the data, one notices a clear cyclic pattern but also a subtle general upward trend in temperature and downward trend in ice cover (i.e. the temperature lows are higher and the highs are higher) over time. But I'm no climate scientist.

With respect to the polar bears, I searched around and found many articles which state that the population in the 60's had been diminished because of hunting and that, currently, the plurality of polar bear populations are in decline because of climate change. The one article I found that supports your argument was from Fox News (no bias there ;-)).
It's a device focused almost entirely on content consumption.

So is a book.
Here's something: "But the really eye-opening thing about Wednesday's presentation was just how much Oracle actually had to say about Java. I expected superficial affirmations like Ellison gave at OpenWorld; what I got was almost too much to process." http://infoworld.com/print/111021
I'm guessing that you'll need to sync it to iTunes first before you can use it, but I may be wrong.
Who is Dan and where can I learn more about him?
Why would an iPad be more convenient on a plane? Well, cramped conditions make it almost impossible to use a laptop in cattle class. But no such problem for a smaller device like an iPad (or, I find, a netbook - 2x3hr batteries for my netbook meant I could spend most of my SFO-London flight hacking, writing e-mail and drafting blog posts - I do use mutt and vim: if I were using Word and Outlook, a 1024x600 netbook with a crappy little trackpad might have been a bit too restrictive for me).

If the iPad gets the ten hours it claims, it may be perfect for frequent flyers who want their own music, video and books, and a bit of e-mail reading and document perusal on the side.
VoFi Is Coming - Are You Ready?
As I read through this (really excellent analysis), it makes me realize, even more, that PGs (and many others) thesis that it isn't so much the _idea_ that matters, but the execution. The concept of a "User friend interface that creates a themepark for the users" didn't occur to Apple first - But, amazingly enough - Microsoft. The idea of turning a computer into a themepark was basically the foundation for Microsoft BOB - From Wikipedia: "The user interface was designed to simplify the navigational experience for novice computer users."

Apple certainly seems to be executing on that vision in a entirely different manner than Microsoft did.
That mill looks pretty damn serious Jacques! A four axis machine would be awesome... I used to work for a company that had 2 6 axis machines that were more than 20 feet long! They used them to machine parts for acoustic guitars...

I sent you an email with the rest of the info you were after!
-A
Don't they already do this with the iPhone. :-)
I generally agree with you, but then where would the world be if people didn't go out of their way in both asking for, and providing help.

This is a new experience for me, being the first time I've felt compelled to take my assistance to the level of asking others to help if they can and it's certainly changed my perspective a bit on the whole topic.

If you felt your friends were in a situation where they really needed the help, I hope you would reach out to as many people as you could to get them the help they need.

Why involve HN? Why involve anyone in anything? It's a community of generally good people that I'm involved in that may have the means of offering a little assistance to someone in need.

Maybe someday you'll find yourself in a position of wanting to help someone, but not being able to do it all yourself.
And I still don't understand what anybody would need an iPod for (MP3 Player I mean). Unless you are a commuter with > 45 min time per direction. I like music, but I have decided that it's silly to shut out the world while being outside.

Have iPods really changed the world, or have they just sold well?
* http://ticketstumbler.com/blogs/new-stuff/2009/10/03/a-terri...

* http://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=fallentimes

* http://ycombinator.com/dan.html
Good reply!
I hadn't thought of visiting a hackerspace as a way of getting info on this. There is a hackerspace relatively close to where I live so that would definitely be worth a look!

Once I get the machine up and running I will be using it for small batch manufacturing of custom knives as well as prototyping all of my crazy ideas :-p
That's how we should make our choices, but (sadly) most of us aren't that clear headed when we buy. The purchases we make are informed by how certain brands resonate with us.

You could argue me this point, but I'd only ask when you last ordered a cola that wasn't a Pepsi or a Coke. The fact is, brands are powerful.
What data do you use to generate User Comment Clusters?
Sweet:

"All that hype for an MP3 player? Break-thru digital device? The Reality Distiortion Field™ is starting to warp Steve's mind if he thinks for one second that this thing is gonna take off."
Ask HN: Is my business idea viable?
Hey guys,

I respect your opinions so much that I am somewhat nervous to submit this but I would really like some feedback on a site I recently launched.

www.sponsrme.com is an email list that connects potential sponsors with people seeking sponsorship. It works pretty much like helpareporter.com If you are signed up to the sponsor list you get 1-2 emails per week with sponsorship requests. Right now I am focusing on niche events and podcast sponsorships. The way I add value is by screening incoming requests to make sure sponsors only get quality requests.

The larger idea behind this project is to get people to think about micro sponsorships as advertising opportunities that are cheap and might be more profitable than other forms of online advertising.

Now my question for you: Is this something you would use as a company? As someone looking for sponsors?

Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
Also, this is the machine I just bought:

https://www.machinetoolswarehouse.com/xcart/catalog/X3-p-162...

I had to buy a beefy one because I will be mainly machining tool steel and aluminium.
http://www.sponsrme.com
Free Royal Feline Health Nutrition
Agreed. Also, as much as a lot of rational discusion about what the target audience is and if it will success, all I can feel is sadness. I really have no arguments, but I only feel like in the presence of a pretty but completely stupid woman. It¡d be at least more tolerable if there was a single story to avoid.
"Powers of 10" sliders like this are kinda fun. This is easily one of the better ones I've seen (though it's really a "Powers of 1000").

Just wish it had a smoother way to zoom, the slider is a bit jumpy when it's small.
Small note:

Secondary investors such as Millennium Technology Ventures have plaid a role

Should be 'played a role'
SGI is still around, http://www.sgi.com/. They were recently purchased by Rackable who took the SGI name.
Innovative Technique Can Spot Errors in Key Systems
Mark Cuban: Talking the IPad, Kids, Making Money and Video
A set of scraped comments, indexed to get the English terms. This is basically the same stuff I used in the 'Similar Hacker News Users' tool from a couple of weeks ago:

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1046301

Except now it is user -> personalized list of submissions, instead of user -> similar users
If we want to blame someone for the emergence of walled gardens in technology it should go squarely on the developers of malware, crackers, exploiters, fraudsters, etc. They've made the open computing experience terrible for the average user.
I thought it was meant to be a netbook replacement? I would be surprised to see it attract that segment of users. I'm wandering around a university campus now, where netbooks are quite popular. When I look at people's screens, the most common activities seem to be IM, facebook and email. Would these users rather be thumb typing their messages? I doubt it. I love my iPhone, and I can type reasonably fast on it, but I don't think I've used it to send an email longer than 3 sentences in the 18 months I've had it. I do agree it has a place in living rooms, though.
That Grant-Thornton piece linked to in the article has an interesting perspective. For example:

"The market impact [to the advent of online brokerage firms], unforeseen as it may have been, was devastating. Stock spreads narrowed, and the economics to broker-dealers continued to erode"

In summary: Broker dealers were priced out and therefore no longer provide quality research and liquidity support for small stocks which include IPOs. Therefore, no IPOs.

The remedy? Bring back quotes in 1/8s so trading frictions can increase again and therefore, somehow, IPOs come back. Can we give their argument a fair shake somehow? It's not making sense to me.
Seems easy to fix the "too many files touched to fix a bug" problem: just write the whole code in one big file. Lot's of languages allow you to do that.
Thanks for sharing and glad to hear you're dealing better with your loss. It actually makes me want to work on a loss I haven't been able to deal with after many years.

I'll keep treating life as the game it is

And I find that we should all remember this. We easily get caught up in whatever we're doing, discussing why the iPad is great or a disaster, while, maybe, we should just relax a bit and have people over this week-end…
The Kindle has 3G (current iPad doesn't, but apparently a version with it will be announced in 30 days).

Kindle 3G is free.

Kindle has 1 week battery life (iPad has 10 hours) - but probably doesn't matter, because people are used to recharging daily.

Kindle has an e-ink display.

Kindle weighs 290 grams (iPad 680 grams).

Kindle costs $260 (iPad costs $499).

The iPad, unlike the Kindle (or the iPod), is a general-purpose machine. It's packed full of ideas and features - instead of uses. Yet it's aimed at the mainstream (who value uses), instead of us techies (who value ideas and features).

I can't see it going anywhere, unless someone finds a specific compelling use for it. I think it's more of a stepping stone to something else, perhaps to discover specific uses, or for Apple to get familiar with the new tech (and to stake a claim in the marketplace).
.
I can't say that I necessary disagree, but the thought that my future freedom depend upon Microsoft rubs me the wrong way.

But at least I will now have a reason to join the evil empire.
I think this is absolutely something that has potential.

What I would like to see are some examples (fine if they're hypothetical at this stage) that subtly promote the benefits of using the service, both as someone looking for sponsors (which seems fairly obvious) and as somebody who might sponsor an event.

A great example would help me get the product, if that makes sense.
My goal was for as few files as possible in each commit, and as few commits as possible for each file. One big file solves the former problem at the expense of the latter.
Hmm, this sounds as if it's markets routing around (†) Sarbanes Oxley. Some of the recent PE deals that have been going through are larger than dot-com era IPOs.

† http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=414520
Actually, the negative-option book club is an entirely different business model from Amazon. Book of the Month, moreover, contracted for special printings; they were an aggregator/publisher, not a reseller.

The Hemingway point is really unconvincing; by "truck", of course, I mean the changing economies of direct interstate shipment of bulk items. When Hemingway was born, moving mass economically meant either water or rail transit; when he died, trucks were careening down interstate highways to deliver parcels for a fraction of what they cost in the 19th century.
How come Wireless Voice is Vo-Fi and not Wi-Vo? I can see the connection between Hi-Fi, which went wireless and becomes Wi-Fi, so why do we lose the Wi(reless) now?
Microsoft would be foolish to not give away free developer tools. You don't need to purchase anything to use .NET; you can download an ide that comes with a C#, VB.NET, C++/CLI compilers off the bat:

http://www.microsoft.com/exPress/

And besides that, you can get compilers for F#, J#, IronPython, IronRuby, etc.
I wonder why OpenLaszlo isn't used more often. It lets you write projects in their own specific language and then can compile them into Flash and DHTML. Seems ideal for creating these kinds of interactives as you could serve one version to mobile devices and another to Flash compatible/older browsers without much extra work.

I've played around with it a bit and it seems quite powerful, but it doesn't seem to be used in many places or well known at all.
It's sad that things have changed so little in 10 years.
Hi Frossie,

What do you mean by your zip code was empty?
I think the challenge might be in setting the valuation of these funds. With so many startup's, there is bound to be information asymetry. I wouldn't really wAnt to trade my equity based on a 'feel' or PR of the member startups. But I agrees with your general thesis- it's a great idea.
Wellness Spa Packages
Real world use of XSRF/CSRF against a web interface to IRC
So... this guy is angry at people who like to spend time tinkering instead of something else?
Save Wikileaks -- donate now or lost it forever
Whats also big is the exclusion of flash. The reason is obvious. No flash. Far less streaming over 3G. Less streaming over 3G means less bandwidth consumed. Less bandwidth consumed means ATT can offer a GREAT price on the 3G data service. I personally have never had problems with the ATT Network. The limits on 3G streaming probably means I wont going forward either. Thats a good thing.

I don't think that's the reason. The primary provider of streaming Flash video is YouTube, and despite the iPad's lack of Flash, it ships with a built-in YouTube player.
Shameless self promotion, but:

I use this keyword/tagging plugin that I made some time ago, and it visually highlights articles that are relevant to my interests.

http://taitems.tumblr.com/post/312274510/hacker-news-tagging...
I think there's probably a ton of one-man businesses out there that want to buy advertising, but don't have the technical or financial means to do AdWords (or similar) effectively. If those people could risk $50-$100 on sponsoring some content to see what kind response they get, I think some would.

If you can make it so people can generate sales by spending $50-$100 at a time that would be of great value.

A newsletter seems like a very good idea, although I doubt you should restrict yourself to that. Also, I think many (not all) small businesses will want to advertise locally. You should make sure businesses only see requests for sponsorship they might conceivably sponsor.

I don't like the domain at all. I think it'd be much better to find a single made up word that's brandable, or a multi-word domain that's not a misspelling.

I don't know how you're planning to make money, but I don't think anyone would complain if you took a cut of the ad buy.
"Less bandwidth consumed means ATT can offer a GREAT price on the 3G data service."

My understanding is that the iPhone, with it's "no flash" and concommitant "far less streaming", is crippling AT&T's rusty 3g network as we speak.
If a Board Meeting was like the State of the Union
Excellent. I found that when I started working from home that I felt like I had less time to think than when I would daily commute to my job. I became frustrated more easily. Then I finally decided to force myself to take time and just think.

Full writeup here: http://bootstrapd.me/?p=534
Flagged. This is not a post for HN.
This really is an amazing opportunity for Amazon.

If they were to drop DRM and allow third party applications on the Kindle, they could blow Apple out of the water.
I can fit my Macbook Pro in "cattle class." And I figure since a Macbook and Macbook Air is much smaller they'd be much easier to fit. For watching movies the small trackpad wouldn't really matter. But hey, the iPad would probably be more suited to watching a movie on a plane, if only slightly more. But chances are if you're traveling, you've got your laptop with you anyways.

It would have been better if they had all the fancy touch controls on a macbook air size device that could flip open 350 degrees into a tablet, and flip back into a normal laptop.
Those books were startling when they came out, both in content and style. They were so influential they have been imitated thousands of times; their themes and styles have permeated popular culture until now they have become cliches.
It is no longer possible for a contemporary reader to experience them as the original readers did.
Casino Eurogrand
I tried being a VIP player at one of the many online casino websites. I am just wondering what I will have if I will become one. To become a VIP player you have to gain points first and meet some certain levels to qualify. You just have to keep on playing to earn points.

Being a VIP made my horizon larger than what I used to have. The games are much challenging than the usual game and stakes are much appealing. Casinos really captured my heart since day one until now.
I think these are the oldest .com names, but I'm pretty sure there were plenty of older .edu names.
Has anyone had an experience using MonoTouch in general? As a .Net developer I'm very intrigued.
The point of having an iPod with that much storage isn't so you can listen to more than one CD on your commute, it's so you can leave for your commute and THEN choose which 20-40 minutes of music to listen to.

When I had a discman and I wanted to listen to music, guess what I had to choose from? One burned CD if I was lucky, and Mutter by Rammstein if I was slightly less lucky. When I have an iPod or iPhone and I want to listen to music, I can choose any song I own.
The ten commandments [pdf]
I created a pdf that was identical to the one in the book (The little Schemer). Print it out and hang it on your wall, enjoy=)
You're right, I don't think Flash has anything to do with the 3G streaming issues. On the plus side for iPad users, they should be very happy with their contract-free 3G service, because it will never drop a call.
The Expression Problem
Putting aside whether I believe this is accurate or not momentarily, look at these conversion rate.

1% Response rate for unsolicited direct mail ('spam' - heck, I used to have that response rate doing real estate direct mail with actual letters!)

5% Conversion rate from responders to 'clients'

Average 'sale' $7,500

So 100,000 spam emails generate 100 responses, which is 5 'clients' and $37,500 in revenue. Return per email is 37c - with a negligible cost to harvest and send it's little wonder my spam filter works so hard.
I'm tired of the comparison to the iPod or the iPhone. The iPhone had tons of innovations on day 1. The iPod had some innovations to begin with (your music library in your pocket), but other key ones -like the click wheel and the iTunes store- came later. The iPad doesn't really have anything innovative in it today.

Yes Apple may add more innovations later, and it may succeed even without them (coz of iPhone users moving up, Apple's brand & marketing, etc.) but the 'Apple will succeed because the iPod+iPhone did' argument is getting old.

I absolutely believe in a simpler less-general-purpose device for casual home computing, and a lightweight tablet seems like one of the top contenders for the form factor, but the iPad itself is a pretty weak product.
Ask HN: Recommendations for Java Hosting?
I am looking for a good java hosting provider. Can you recommend any?

I tried using AppEngine for my Java app, but it has many restrictions at the DB level. Didn't try AWS yet. I am looking for a good hosting provider where I can use MySQL along with my JSPs.

Any recommendations?
That story always messes with me when I read it. It is almost like it overwhelms my senses and I'm not a very big fan of catcher in the rye but Franny and Zooey was interesting.
But.. Netbeans is good and JDeveloper is terrible, isn't the clear thing to do to promote Netbeans and let JDeveloper fall by the wayside?