skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
This has more to do with staffing and hiring than with getting us our mail in an optimal way. Most people don't like to work on Saturday unless they're getting paid overtime.
Although not a website specifically, ICQ had this functionality in 1996 (though you could still directly send messages to a given ICQ number) - it's now owned by AOL.

AIM also had 'friending' functionality in '97.

LiveJournal also originated the term 'friending,' and was launched in '99.

EverQuest had 'friending' functionality - if you friended someone, you would be notified when they signed on/off, and could easily message them.

So has pretty much every MMO since.

I'm not certain, but I'm willing to bet that there were BBS's and MUDs that had this functionality.
Advanced Prostate Cancer - Surviving With Advanced Disease | Prostate Cancer
Not only that, but Saturday is the only time I'm home when the mailman arrives, in case of the need to sign for a delivery. By eliminating any intersection between the mailman and I, it greatly complicates the delivery of signature-requiring mail.
my cable or internet provider, my private healthcare, and my cell phone company

These aren't exactly archetypes of free market competition, being oligopolies, at best. I can't speak for NJ, but, in California, I consider it telling that they all have a state regulatory agency.

Number portability has improved telephony competition, but I don't think we're yet free of the effects of the old A/B cellular duopoly in the US.
I must have written this before I had my coffee and now it's past the edit period. "Right answer" was only agreeing with the first sentence of the parent post. The rest I think is wrong for the reasons stated.
Images of Internet Explorer 9's new interface leaked: it's minimal, it's Metro
The window buttons on the left side work out well for me - my monitor has a high resolution and most of the time my focus is on the top left of a window. Now there's no need for me to get my focus the top right.
Last I paid attention the USPO claimed the spam was making them money, and I tend to believe it. The "subsidy" is just a price break for large customers, which many businesses do.
That would have been a good article. It's too bad that the only content here is "IMVU uses memcached and it reduces database load". Not exactly earth shattering. I have no idea why this is getting upvoted.
But why not just slap a mobile stylesheet on the existing site?
In the actual paper, they clearly state that their predictions for the opening weekend are based ONLY on the tweets that occur BEFORE the actual release. But I generally agree with you--prediction markets will be useful even months ahead of time, tweet rate is probably not.
Pittsburgh Told Google, Now We Wait
Yeah, that's crazy to me. I bring snacks to my office, and when I'm fine with people eating the things I bring, I make it explicit - I tell everyone, or I leave a note. Same thing with taking food - I'll ask if it's fine if I take a few slices of pizza home.

How is taking your food not outright theft?
The essential service here is mail delivery, not mail delivery "under a dollar."
(subsidies without regulation) == Corruption
I'm interested to see what a 37signals bugtracker would look like. Every time I use Bugzilla or Mantis, I cringe.
If you did use a dedicated client-side app, it could be made more secure than HTTPS for those who don't trust the CA system. The explicit trust of all CAs (and there are many, scattered throughout the world) makes HTTPS a lot weaker than the algorithms alone would suggest.
I've heard that Andy Grove is a huge fan of the book. Forbes had a cover with Grove and Christensen and the sentence: "Andy Grove’s big thinker: Clayton Christensen tells how to survive disruptive technologies"
I really want to work on it, too, though.
Plus businesses would complain that they don't get deliveries and pickups on all of their normal working days.
My experience is that you'll find more front end developers that bridge the gap than designers.

Personally, I'm frustrated that the majority of designers won't pick up such simple things as XHTML and CSS when developers are expected to know such a vast array of languages, conventions, and photoshop to boot.

I think you'd have an easier time if you specified you're looking for a frontend developer with skills in design. Just ask for work samples, I'm sure they're up to par.
I recommend everyone take 15 minutes and look up a guide to configure a 6to4 address on any interface they have with a public IPv4 address. Try with the anycast address first, and if that doesn't work get a tunnelbroker account. My opinion is all these problems can get solved over time only when everyone is first connected to the network. (there are some guides to setting up a gateway for your 'private' hosts, like this: http://74.125.93.132/search?q=cache:gX-Stzp_WdgJ:www.anyweb....)
Three words: Google Apps HTML5
Amazing stats in their footer:

With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $68 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 28th in the 2009 Fortune 500.
Most businesses want delivery (and pickup) during working days.
> People in the US pick up after their dogs, I find this great!

Tell that to the giant pile of dog shit I found right outside my door with a shoe-print in it.
Funny, I always hated the Roadrunner cartoons, and for the same reason: It was the same blasted joke told over and over again with slight variations. As if those would make it funny again.
Yes. That's actually an important observation about the process; just because a billion-dollar-practice (called "GM") has keeled over dead doesn't mean that the economy automatically takes a billion-dollar hit. First, the billion dollar value clearly wasn't there in the first place (and acting as if it is is dangerous to the economy; the current economic crisis in a nutshell is "bad valuations"), and second, assets remain in existence that can be reused by more effective entities.

But people are hurt, jobs are lost (even if only temporarily and ideally with more recovered in the end), and there's still displacement that occurs. It's just that it's vital to understand that the alternative is far, far worse.
Agreed. Inflation and opportunity cost are almost never mentioned in casual conversations about investments.
maybe the famous ars tecnica duke nukem forever review wasnt such a joke after all...
The Coolest Address In The Universe — 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino, Calif.
I wonder how many people will bother to carry their iPad AND their notebook/netbook on the train or air plane. Maybe iPads will kill off netbooks, but at the moment I still doubt it somehow.
> No need to handle the spam, simply stop subsidizing it with a bulk mail discount.

The USPS claims that bulk mail more than pays its way. In fact, there's a federal law requiring that.

Yes, bulk mail does pay a lower rate. However, it must obey certain constraints which the USPS claims result in significantly lower costs. In other words, bulk mail is supposedly profitable even though they charge less for it.

If you're going to argue that they screwed up the accounting, you should show your work.
What are the odds again that we'll ever see widespread adoption of Java 7?
> The five-day delivery proposal is part of comprehensive plan announced March 2, “Delivering the Future,”

Government program names just kill me sometimes.
Damn, the mind behind Altair is dead?. I loved Assassin's Creed!... oh, nvm.
Could it just be the result of efficient advertising, though?

Arguably iPods are very useless things, too (except for the iPod Touch maybe), yet they sold like hot cakes. Again I suspect it's because of advertising. Marketing is something Apple is REALLY good at.

Also iPods were good for displaying status (maybe the only real use) - the same isn't true for an iPad you keep at home on your couch.
A coworker has been transitioning our stuff to IPv6. It has been an eye-opening experience. It's not just IPv4 with a bigger address, it's not even just IPv4 with a bigger address and some stuff, it's a new Internet.

When you understand that, the sluggish rate of deployment goes from "What the hell?!" to "Yeah, of course this has taken time!" In fact I'm sort of coming around to the "what were they thinking?" point of view and beginning to think that IPv4.5 (IPv4 + bigger address packet and minimal changes to make that work) may yet have been a good idea. "Everybody" said "hey, we have to have a new protocol so let's like design it to be the awesome!" but it remains to be seen whether the problem of "running out of addresses" can actually carry the weight of all the other wishlist that has been encoded into IPv6. (I'd say "probably yes, but it was closer than it should have been".) Reminds me of some of the (X)HTML standards that basically failed for the same reason... "well, as long as we're rewriting the standard language of the web, let's go nuts and embed all kinds of stuff..." unto death, as it turned out in XHTML2.0s case.
I like the nice succinct description of claims. Thanks!
doesn't that require flash?
The key phrase in this article is "when you pick it up".

Just think of how important it really is to be able to set your laptop down in front of you somewhere. Anywhere. What about holding a cup of coffee while browsing? Or writing?

Just because people "want" one doesn't mean they are going to get "used".

A lot will be purchased, sure, a lot of apps will be sold, but will it change personal computing forever? Nope. People will realize the laptop keyboard and form factor is a pretty sweet thing.

Imagine trying to type your comments on HN using that keyboard on the iPad? Hmm.
Probably very good for traveling salesmen, who can use it to draw up fancy charts for their clients.
This article follows nicely on the heels of Clay Shirky's post that touches on why complex societies fail. The current system of patents desperately needs simplification, but bureaucratic and legal complexity hinder this.
:) Well, it grew on me. I didn't like it as a kid, even though that's who (I assume) it was originally targeting. I think I saw it as a series of bad things happening to the Coyote.

Now, I really like the cartoon because of the way the writers examined every situation, then interrupted the apparent inevitability of the scenario by finding a clever, ironic, and appropriate way for the scenario to unwind unexpectedly.
precisely...there is so much money in finance, that the "1 million dollar exit" that a lot of entrepreneurs would salivate over is peanuts to them
If the USPS would make it legal to deliver small pieces of mail.
2011 Chevy. That is "The CAR"
Camaro, Corvette, Volt, Spark, Cruze, Aveo, Cobalt, Orlando and more.
"We" the USA did pass the peak of oil production in the 1970's. "We" the world are almost certainly at the peak of oil production today.
Optimizing Your Wife
"Ten years ago, the average household received five pieces of mail every day. Today, it receives four pieces and by 2020, that number will fall to three."

It ain't linear, buddy.
I don't think anyone is saying they don't make money off of spam, just that they shouldn't be encouraging it. If spammers had to pay full price perhaps we'd see less of it, or if not then the postal service would make more money.
The biggest problem with the Hollywood Stock Exchange, if my memory's right, is that it's not for real money. If there was a way to make some meaningful cash off of it, the Twitter data (and a lot of other data sets) would have already been factored into the HSX prices by smart people trying to make a buck.
Agreed, but a small form factor netbook shares many more similarities with the iPad than a full-fledged laptop. My 9" EeePC is light and comfortable to use on the couch, in bed or even standing in line at the DMV. The keyboard is too small to do a lot of typing, but it's fine for quick emails or chat. The screen is too small and the processor too slow for Photoshop. Granted the iPad surely has a nicer screen. And if a netbook keyboard isn't being used, it's "dead weight" so to speak. But I've also used my netbook for work in a pinch (ftp, notepad++, vnc). So I suppose my EeePC falls _between_ an iPad and a laptop, which is good enough for me.
I don't think the keyboard issue is really there- if you read the reviews thus far, most brand it as either good or acceptable.

Apple is lightyears beyond anyone else in virtual keyboards, which will be shown off big time with iPad.
In the long run I don't see that as a problem. People should pay a premium if their lifestyle takes up more resources like that.
With the dramatic drop in mail volumes, hasn't the market (businesses and citizens alike) "voted" that traditional first-class letter (USPS only monopoly) is not a "fundamental component" of our society?

If we haven't quite reached that point yet, can't you see we will?
There is a big difference in ibanking between analysts, associates, and the guys who are at the higher levels.

The bottom pole hates their lives, because they tend to work a lot. And are the glorified excel junkies as you put it. On the upper level, you don't do the busy work, and you spend your time going around the world doing deals.
interestingly enough, for a while i lived in a place that didn't have mail on saturdays.

i now live in a place that delivers and picks up mail twice a day, including saturdays.

i don't notice any difference.
> Subscribers will have limited access to archives of Times articles and features dating to 1980, and will be able to copy articles to their own computers for $1.95 each, Mr. Nisenholtz said.

I wonder how that worked out for them?

Online in 1996, that seems pretty cutting edge to me...
There's a danger of letting the perfect becoming the enemy of the good when you start to analyze capitalism. There's a lot of "Capitalism has a problem -> Capitalism isn't perfect -> In theory, social structure X doesn't have that problem -> Social structure X is better!" that goes on, but there's two obvious problems with that: Theorizing about most commonly debated social structures is mostly unnecessary now as somebody has tried it and odds are pretty decent social structure X does in fact have that problem in practice, and of course you can't slam the question of which system is better down to just one attribute.

I bring this all up to make the specific point that while it is absolutely true that a bureaucratically adept person can game the system in a capitalistic society/company, I don't know of a single alternative social structure where a bureaucratically adept person has less power. Excepting maybe anarchism (not advocating, just pointing it out). Bureaucratic-adeptness is rewarded roughly in proportion to the centralization of authority. Most people's solution to the problem seems to involve more centralized authority, which seems actively inimical to solving this problem.
Heh. It is a very Western attitude to think that you should talk to the person.

My brother lived for many years in Taiwan and now lives in China. There it would be impolite to criticize someone to their face, so the polite way to criticize them is to tell your friends who tell their friends, who tell them. Politely.

Unfortunately Westerners who are put in that environment often respond with, "If anyone has a beef with me they should talk to me directly." Then don't change. And refuse to understand that they are being rude to dismiss polite feedback, and are compounding their mistake by demanding that other people be rude as well.
Why can't I get/pay for a USPS.com email address of my physical address?

123MainSt.MyCity.State.Zip@usps.com?

Anything that is emailed to this address must pay postage, but the message body or attachment can be printed, certified and delivered to my physical location?

Maybe this isn't the perfect idea, but if the USPS would just embrace technology and innovate a little, they could really increase their revenues.
Feet on the table can make people sick. Farting can't.
But... the icons have rounded corners. And unlimited 3G is only $30 a month. Don't you see that this is revolutionary?
Why I Won't Buy an iPad (And Think You Shouldn't, Either)
Extreme Commuting (2005)
Dunno about this. Most of the spreadsheets I look at on a regular basis don't even fit onto a 30" display. "Real work" does not happen on 10" tablets.
Wait, what? Useless? They play music. Or at least that is what I used mine for. YMMV.
You're being way too kind to the author. He never tries to demonstrate any of the ways in which a personal computer is "optimized for work-related tasks." He just takes it as a given: "you can’t kick back and relax with a laptop." It's just bullshit, not an analysis.
How to use game mechanics in social software
I never understood how swearing could be offensive. Actually, I find people that find words offensive, offensive.
The JVM is going to spread quickly as it will (or at least, should) offer performance advantages for the many various dynamic languages that run on it. As for Java7 - it will be slower to spread but I think the addition of closures will be decisive in garnering developer support for it as a wealth of new APIs (or reworking of old ones) will quickly appear that will have everyone wanting to upgrade. So it will happen for most server side code within a couple of years I would expect.
This was the first thing I thought of when I read the article. Do you think they don't get the reference to the movie?

P.S. This is a grab from a movie called "The Pirates of Silicon Valley." This guy is supposed to be Steve Jobs and he's interviewing a guy in a suit who works for IBM.

I can't find the quote; but this was funny -- From wikipedia:

Steve Jobs indirectly commented on the film during a practical joke at the 1999 Macworld Expo. This involved actor Noah Wyle (who portrays Jobs in the film). Wyle impersonates Jobs during the keynote speech, something which only becomes apparent when Jobs himself appears on the stage (to the wild applause of the audience). He corrects Wyle's interpretation of him and tells the audience that he "invited [Wyle] here today so he could see how I really act and plus because he's a better me than me." Wyle responds, "Thank you, thank you, I'm just glad you're not mad about the movie." Jobs laughs and states, "What? Me upset? Hey it's just a movie. But you know if you do want to make things right you could get me a little part on E.R." Then as Noah Wyle goes away, he turns and asks Steve "Are you still a virgin?" quoting a part of the film where Steve asks this to a guy who is being interviewed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_Silicon_Valley
How do you explain FedEx and UPS?

I think GP's claim is not that private parcel services cannot exist, but rather that if they were to deliver first-class mail, they would charge more than $1 per letter.
Correction: "can't find my away around with it" = "can't find my way around without it". Sorry.
It has iWork. You can create documents, slideshows, emails, and plenty more with other apps (including blogging apps).

Not only is your definition of a computer narrow, it's not even accurate with regards to the iPad.
Actually, given how many dogs are in New York I'm often pretty surprised at how little dog shit there is on the street.
They sold well because of ADVERTISING? Please tell me you are kidding. They filled a niche and were stylish. That's kind of the point of a good product. Sure, Apple has good advertising, but contrary to what some geeks think advertising isn't brainwashing.
Isn't their logic confusing latency and throughput?

Not enough mail to deliver suggests less mail volume, so less need for throughput, therefore we can hire fewer postal workers per post office.

Cutting out one day of deliveries reduces throughput and increases latency. For example, Netflix becomes a worse deal. A power user could once cycle 2 roundtrips of DVDs in one week and is now down to 1.5.
an undervalued currency shifts domestic demand away from imported goods to domestically-produced goods, and so increases domestic employment

This isn't necessarily true. Given that labor is a scarce resource, and that a worker chooses him employment on the offered compensation, increasing demand for domestically-manufactured goods may shift employment to manufacturing, and away from pursuits that may be more productive in the big picture (by way of the law of Comparative Advantage).

To answer the question posed by the article, here's a way to raise the US savings rate: don't penalize savings (i.e., investment) so heavily. The scheduled increase in the tax rate for capital gains, and the double-taxation on dividends (viz the tax on corporate earnings, which also happens to be one of the highest in the world) make the potential gains from savings lower. If the incentive to save is lower, then less will be saved. Hence, if you want to increase savings, then you must decrease the penalty.

The OP acknowledges this: like it or not, if you want Americans to save more you must agree that either it must make production relatively easier, or consumption relatively more difficult, or both.

A greater incentive to invest is the same thing as saying "make production easier". Investments will wind up going toward a better answer than something else -- else why would anyone want to do it. It'll pay for a new, more efficient factory, or a new business that builds a better product, etc.

In essence, the OP is arguing to hobble production as a way to let savings catch up. It seems to me that allowing production to improve through more investing would be the better approach.

I'm always wary of policies being built on the basis of arguments from Krugman. He's a brilliant economist, but he's parlaying on top of that to make arguments for specific policies, and he's really bad at that part. Economics is value neutral, and doesn't tell us directly what we ought to do in the world; it just illuminates the choices. Krugman blurs this line, pretending that economics actually does lead to policy. And he's even willing to compromise his economics to make an argument -- see http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405274870391520457510...
Welcome To Chess Stars
I like the angle that it's not just ignorance that keeps us away from early customer contact (and therefore facts about product fit) but the perhaps unconscious attraction of fun and lack of constraints. There is a comment directly about that (part 2, 4:30 in): when you are free of the burden of knowing how your product fit is wrong, it is very entertaining to be creating in this blank world where you have only your own cleverness as a design opponent. This seems really dangerous, especially if one of your motivations to start a venture is to not feel so constrained.
Doctorow: Why I won't buy an iPad
I'm not particularly interested in the Ipad myself but my mother was over yesterday asking to send some emails and reminded me I had still not setup my old desktop pc for her.

I said she should just get an Ipad and showed her the video on Apple's site.

She went bonkers for it.

Absolutely loved it.. started saying "I want a MomPad!!" along with lots of "ooohs" and "ahhhs" and a few "oh my gods!"
I like that you can just throw the helpers into Sinatra, it looks like a good set.

http://www.padrinorb.com/guides/standalone-usage-in-sinatra#...
True, after all, there is an iWork suite of apps for the iPad.
Correct. Most bulk mail must arrive at the post office presorted, which saves the USPS from having to do it.