skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
Thinking this guy is a 'Ruby person' and branding him as one to try and make some point is just not even wrong. It's completely besides anything near reality. Check out some of his others posts before climbing on your favorite hobbyhorse. He is as much a C programmer as you are.
Scott McNeally was an endless source of fun. He should start a new company solely dedicated to make fun of Microsoft.
NOD32:

20/09/2010 18:17:42 HTTP filter	file

hxxp://replicatorinc.com/blog/2010/09/design-secrets-of-threadless-com/HTML/ScrInject.B.Gen

virus connection terminated - quarantined
The two of you seem to be using different definitions of "shortly afterward". Two seconds after chocolate cake you feel better, two hours after chocolate cake you'll probably feel worse. Sugar affects different people in different ways, though.
Books are more dense, more random-access, and you can go through them at your own pace. They're also easier to understand (assuming literacy) and less disruptive to people around the user.

It can be nice to have videos going over difficult parts of a book--working through my graph theory textbook would be pretty obnoxious without going to lecture--but I would really only use them as supplementary material, not the main material.
Amazon Web Services Blog: Run Oracle Applications on Amazon EC2
Much love for Github, but if I put my OSS projects there, I do not feel that I get value from them comparable to what I give up by not hosting it on my site. I also think hackers overestimate how many people will read your code (and if it were on your site, you could measure this).
Of course you are right, but there are also several shows that spend a lot of camera time on up-close shots of the food and the food preparation process, only occasionally showing the host. Those are the ones that I was referring to.
"Like apple usb"

In what way did you mean that?
Thanks for the info. Never even realized. :)
However, just because you might not get diarrhoea from eating wheat does not mean that the lectins in grain aren't causing you problems.

And just because you can't see tigers doesn't mean they're not nibbling you in your sleep.

I can sell you a rock to solve that problem...
http://bit.ly/9Q3qTE
Scribd is not that miserable. They used the free model to pull a lot of buzz and funding.
Totally agree, identity is self-illusion at best.
One idea: host a simple document conversion service. Pay money, upload a PDF, download an HTML5 page. Lots of documents on the web are better hosted on the creator's servers, like restaurant menus and research papers. I see they have an embeddable API, but (A) they don't push it very hard, and (B) it has a higher barrier to entry than just downloading a webpage.

Another idea: Cut out the middleman and sell a "print to webpage" plugin for Windows.
You make a good point. I wonder if the time frame between writing the encrypted data, and reading it back has anything to do with it. Because if it were possible for the time frame to be long, then the application would be required to persist the signature for a while.
>libraries need to cease being book warehouses and start becoming community centers and resources.

Yes, exactly! I actually disagree with you that library goers aren't the HN types that want computing hardware... perhaps they are and just don't know it. TO me, giving community members access to hardware is the exact same thing as giving them access to books has been for the last 150 years or so. Books were traditionally something that most people couldn't afford, but would be good for the community to have, so people go money together and bought them. I think that computers are the same way now. Yeah, I personally might have some decent compute hardware in my house, but most people probably don't even know this type of thing exists. I would love to see more people exposed to what I personally think is the future of...well, everything so that they can learn about it.
I recently started building a machine, just as an exercise. I've spent 2-3 weeks researching parts now because I've been so far out of the loop.
While I generally agree with your points, I don't think they are particularly apt to this article. The guy isn't saying Scribd owes him anything, he even states that he understands they never promised him a free service in perpetuity.

But when you make a service available for free and take pride in that fact, harvest your users content, and then suddenly flip over to a paid service without even giving your users adequate notice or tools to opt out I can completely understand how users might feel cheated.

Isn't the company partly responsible for creating the sense of entitlement you're talking about?
Interesting; I'm looking forward to comparing/contrasting this with my current favorite - Celery (http://celeryproject.org/) which supports a variety of backends.
Exodus Ultima 3
I don't care if they want to establish a paywall, that's there perogative, what I don't like is taking my content, which I uploaded under the belief I'd be able to host it there at no cost to end users (persumably subsidised by ads) and then charging my readers for it. I post my content (mostly slides from talks and such) for readers, I'd probably even pay to put my content there, it's rather convenient.
You already know the answer. Get professional help (psychologist.) This is a board where people can post anonymously. Assume that nobody here is qualified to help you.
Only when made redundant. There's no mandatory payment for dismissal. However, it's common for people to leave "by mutual consent" - the employer pays off the employee to leave quickly, rather than go through the formal procedure of establishing incompetence.
>Private industry is pretty much devoid of pensions for new workers now and my best guess is that government isn't very far away from that.

You may very well be correct. I think it depends on how long and deep this recession is, and how much debt we are willing to take on to support the public sector workers and unions.

My point was just that, at least for people retiring now, the pension doesn't seem 'meager' - if you can get the deal the people retiring now are getting, it seems like pretty good deal. (Though yes, I don't know if if that will be possible in the future.)
SOPHISTICATED FINANCE: Is Google dying?
I added HNdroid to Hacker News's Resourcey page. Please upvote it if you like it: http://www.resourcey.com/site_details/2/news.ycombinator.com...

(If you don't know it, Resourcey is a small webapp I made to help keep track of resources like this.)
Did you go to their signup page? They had one that said "watch this ad clip to reveal the security code" and you had to watch the video to get the code to enter.

Interesting idea, but I would never watch an ad clip to signup for something nor would I want my users to have to.
For me, new code never goes into a public repository.

I use a private repository in addition to a public one. All partially finished ideas, quick prototypes, etc, go into the private one. If a project ever gets into decent shape, I move it over to a public one.
Did you even read some of the other articles on his website?

GCC Optimisations that fail:
http://timetobleed.com/gcc-optimization-flag-makes-your-64bi...

Symbol tables on Linux and Mac OS X and how to hook them:
http://timetobleed.com/dynamic-linking-elf-vs-mach-o/
http://timetobleed.com/dynamic-symbol-table-duel-elf-vs-mach...

Building a Ruby memory profiler:
http://timetobleed.com/string-together-global-offset-tables-...
http://timetobleed.com/rewrite-your-ruby-vm-at-runtime-to-ho...

Hooking inlined functions:
http://timetobleed.com/hot-patching-inlined-functions-with-x...

He even spoke at DefCon 18:
http://vimeo.com/14951625

What have you accomplished? What knowledge have you posted out there for the rest of the world to use?
From the post:
"In the coming months, we’ll also be offering this same security to our hundreds of millions of individual Google users."
Diggin' the app :) My OCD took over and couldn't stand having the simple HN icon in my launcher so I took the pleasure of making one :)

I did two variants. One is a bit more traditional, while the other matches the name of the app more.

V1: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/104495/HN/hndroid_app_icon.png

V2: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/104495/HN/hndroid_app_icon_variant_2...

In the spirit of open source, here is the PSD:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/104495/HN/hndroid_app_icon.psd

By the way, I've never actually made a production Android app icon before so I don't know if you can just drop it in or not but enjoy :)
If anyone is having problems with anti-virus, you can also see the slides here:

http://www.slideshare.net/josephflaherty/threadless-designse...

On an admin note, how do I tell what on my site is causing that warning? I use Google's Webmaster tools and it says no Malware is found? I also cleaned up comment spam and removed some widgets, any guidance would be appreciated.
> If you start a free service, and then try to establish a pay system afterward, your users will feel tricked and trapped and they will rebel loudly.

If you lock behind a paywall things previously available for free, sure. And they'll be right too.

An other option is to add features which are only behind a new paywall. Issue then is providing additional services of value and a way for users to discover them.
مسلسل لالولا الحلقة 4 
مسلسل لالولا الحلقة 4
I think the idea is an excellent example of how to think creatively but it would take me a long time to find the ad version of a captcha since I would see it as an ad and ignore it.

In any case I'll be watching their progress with this idea.
RubyPay has zero transaction fees.

I like the way you've worked around the transaction fee issue by offering different rates for buying and redeeming. The cheapest points are $0.00769 to buy and redeeming gets you $0.00667. So, on average, for every $57.69 coming in (or more, if people buy in smaller amounts), you're paying out $50, plus any interest you earn on parked balances.
I can still clearly remember being amazed when I first saw Deluxe Paint running on the Amiga in the late 80's. Poring over the latest edition of Amiga Format became a favourite weekly ritual. Those were the days!
That's not realistic at all. If Facebook really did that to your car, they wouldn't leave the note.
The core idea is certainally a good one. Creating a closer connection between the voters and the politicains is needed. If politicians are willing to take it seriously then it has great potentional.

Some initial impressions is I wold second it dosn't seem fully polished. The left menu wasn't actually links in IE8 and the most apparant search is a search for other users. It would seem most beneficial to have it be searching for Elected Officials. I did see the search in the top right that would search Officials, Candiated, and users which is of help. I also noticed that the summaries on Legislations is showing as straight text so you are seeing HTML code.

It also would be beneficial to have some filtering options. Such as sorting by Legislation Type(what it effects), Where a candidate/Official is located and what level of the Government are they apart of.

With a little UI work it can grab the users and has great potential. However these little things can stop from getting a more casual group which is what the site will need to reah that potential.

Just some initial impressions.
Ah, see the joke now. Monday morning and all that. :-(
How do you mean? The themes are pulled from a fairly large sample relative to the # of shirts in the total collection.
I don't use it myself, but reasons people I know have used it:

1. They don't have webspace and want to put a PDF somewhere online.

2. They do have webspace, but are worried, possibly unnecessarily, that it'll cost them too much money if they send out a link to a big PDF to a large-ish mailing list.

3. For Mac users, where PDFs don't load in a plugin in the browser by default, they want to be able to link to a PDF that opens in the browser instead of popping up an external viewer.

4. And, yes: They have a PDF that is at best gray-area which they want to distribute without hosting it themselves, like a scan of a book chapter for a reading group.
This means it's time to change employers and get your 30% raise.
If common lisp were obscure and not something that was very common knowledge you would have a point. I had never heard of this ability that he brought out in the open, because of having this posted on HN I now learned something new today, something I can take with me and teach others or use in my daily job.

That in and of itself is fantastic and exactly why I like posts such as the one he made.
So You Wanna Be a Chef - Anthony Bourdain
>People need to rethink this undue loyalty they have been giving to
>companies in exchange for a meager pension after 30 years.

I do not see the loyalty that you speak of. I see a craving for security. I see a strong desire to stay at one place for 15 years (or 20, or 30). I know a lot of people for whom work is not the #1 priority. (I am not judging these people. They are all healthier, happier, nicer and more sane than I am.) For some of the younger ones, there priorities might be:

1.) education

2.) romantic partner

3.) family

4.) social life

5.) hobbies (motor cycle racing, video games, knitting, yoga, jogging, sailing, fishing, etc)

6.) work

For some of the older ones, their priorities might be:

1.) children

2.) romantic partner

3.) parents (if parents are still alive)

4.) social life

5.) hobbies (motor cycle racing, video games, knitting, yoga, jogging, sailing, fishing, etc)

6.) work

Work is nowhere near their top priority, though the money it provides forms the basis of everything else they do. But their focus is on the "everything else" rather than the work.

To jump around from job to job usually means that work is your #1 priority (or maybe #2). It means you need to keep your skills razor sharp and up-to-date. It means you constantly confront the realities of the market. A great surfer doesn't daydream when they are riding a dangerous wave - that would get them killed. Likewise, a successful freelancer doesn't ignore the market - that will get them killed financially.

But, again, when I say all this, I'm not being judgmental about the folks for whom work is the #5th or #6th or #7th priority. I've several friends in that category, and they are all healthier, happier, nicer and more sane than I am.

But I do not see the loyalty you speak of. To be truly loyal, these folks would make work their #1 priority and would give 100% of their energy to the corporation. There are exceptions, but that is not what I generally see. In the last 10 years, I've twice worked stints in big corporations. What I saw were a lot of people who would work a strict 9-to-5 schedule, and they would be gone by 4:30 on Fridays. They gave the corporations the minimum effort to keep the job, rather than giving 100% of what they were capable of. That is not what I would describe as loyalty. However, the corporations were in no way loyal to the workers, so the worker's lack of loyalty was wholly rational and entirely justified.

The relationship between big corporations and their workers can get dysfunctional. I see that as one of the big problems that big corporations need to wrestle with - possibly the biggest problem that large organizations face is this problem of motivation. Small companies have a different set of problems.
I would flip that around on you: I think it is time that companies reach a point in their understanding of users' reaction to the bait & switch.

The value of your service to a user isn't going to increase simply due to the passage of time or growth of your site. If they wouldn't pay for it on day 1, the odds are they won't pay for it after 2 years of using the service. If, in the process of trying to monetize your service, you "hold hostage" a portion of the value that the user has contributed to your site, they are going to be pissed.

This has all happened many times now. I think companies trying this route in the first place will be easier to change than peoples' reaction to it.
(map of Pyongyang subway) http://debrisson.free.fr/images/dprk/metro22.jpg
I converted a while ago, am significantly happier (and so is my skin). I've also managed to convert my wife to not shaving her legs - no more prickles, no more bumps, and waaay less wasted time and annoyance. She's much happier :)
I stand corrected, it does look like you can log in via openid.

However, I attempted to log in via google, and I was taken to this site called clickpass.com, which then asked for access to my google contacts. No thank you...

Is HN using some sort of 3rd party to accomplish openid logins with google? If so, why? It's very easy to implement google openid logins.
Do all these points only apply to software then?

If startups are so great then what are the civil engineers, accountants, financial analysts, lawyers, botanists and other top-tier professions in the world doing with the idea? Surely they are bored and uninterested in their jobs too right. I'm sure that among the million employed in those professions, some might have budged and become interested in the idea right?

Does that happen?

And if it doesn't, then is everyone in a profession other than software just that? Boring, lackluster and exhausted, slaves to 'the man'?

Or are we, the 'computer guys', so self-centered in our approach to believe that everything a workplace offers us is boring in lieu of our own pursuits. Are the workplaces genuinely boring, or have we just gotten used to path of least tolerance?

When we talk about the social security dilemma, super inflated housing rates and no health benefits, here's something to chew on:

I'm guessing at least some may have realized that I am not speaking with the perspective of an American. I was born and raised in Bombay, India.

Now this is where it's interesting. Messed up real-estate rates, bad workplace benefits, long hours and the like have been the accepted norm here for quite a while now - almost longer than my parents time.

I'd like to make apparent that neither I nor my parents grew up with the expectations that our employer would provide for health and dental, that housing would be affordable(especially in one of the most expensive cities on the planet) and that 40 years down the line if we still weren't able to be a productive employee the company would still muster up the decency to keep us employed.

If any of that happened, it was a bonus. We live amongst unimaginable competition where getting a job is not a given; it's a privilege that you earn. And creating a job i.e. entrepreneurship - good luck.

We live in those conditions. We thrive in those conditions.

Conditions that I'm sure many other parts of the world have mirrored. The same conditions that have just recently hit the shores of America, after a century of undisputed security.

My parents took the safe approach and they succeed. Even with the inflated housing and no health benefits and all that. I'm sure numerous other people from around the world had similar parents: ones who learned to save effectively, be frugal when required, and not bite off more than they could chew.
I think that means that all code you expose to the public should have the date it was created and last modified preferably in the files themselves. If your later code is better than the earlier code, it shows you're learning to program better.
Let's go through some of your "points".

The comparison with Torvalds is bizarre. Linus has done an enormous amount of self-promotion (warranted as it is), and even admits to having an ego the size of Joe's biceps. So I don't know what point you're trying to make there.

Next and most importantly. While you (a bastard love-child of Kernighan perhaps) may find this feature banal, a decent number of C programmers aren't familiar with this method; and if they are, they haven't done shit with it. So hating on someone for actually writing free code that makes a bunch of dev's lives easier is, well, just kinda jealous.

Lastly. If a comment like your comment, does, in fact, generate a large number of 'U Mad' replies -- well, that is strong evidence that you are, in fact, mad.

(btw, Joe is not 20 years old. "20" actually refers to the number of women Joe sleeps with in a typical night.)
A jumplist menu doesn't support the content that an HTML menu lets you author. It's only a superficially sensible idea.
The last part: Absolutely. They got it the wrong way. I mean - okay - they have the right to establish the paywall.

But they are scare off the wrong people: the readers. Why use a service to pay for reading something that the publishers WANT to give me for free? Not enough: Many publishers would pay for it, as it is convenient and absolutely user friendly.

This won't work. Well no, actually it will work - but not as a service that proclaims "show your work to the world for free".
Best part is that if you use LauncherPro, you can edit the icon on your home screen to use one of these images instead of the one specified by the apk. :)
Google Voice, C64 BASIC, and now this! Yay Apple!
The throughput numbers on the chart would have seemed a bit more valid if the task had not included stuffing the result into a protobuf given the notoriously slow performance of the standard python protobuf implementation that would have been used by Celery and PyInvoke. If they wanted to impress, or at least be honest, the data would have stayed in JSON the whole way through the stack and the worker task would have been a simple string manipulation of something similar.
Exactly. How can he call this "not much of a response?" As you pointed out, the message said, "I'd also like to extend an open invitation for you to come in and meet the team." To me, that sounds like a free trip to give direct user feedback and have a real chance to make a positive change.

Instead, it sounds like Mr. Goldman just wants to bitch. He feels like Scribd used him? Did he not use Scribd? At least Scribd provided value to him (as he indicated); whatever value he provided Scribd, he is now trying to destroy it with this blog post.

There was a submission on here last week: If you are not paying for it, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold. (http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1684732).

I never use Scribd, and I'm not really concerned either way with how successful they are. But I'm starting to get really annoyed with everyone's sense of entitlement these days. Louis CK hit it on the nose with his remark, "How quickly the world owes him something he knew existed only ten seconds ago." (http://barefootmeg.multiply.com/video/item/56 - it's a great clip if you haven't seen it)
Let me make sure I'm understanding you correctly: You're saying that the Linux kernel's ability to easily run arbitrary code when a core dump occurs is fundamental knowledge that all reasonably experienced C programmers (and most HN readers) possess?
For a while last year, and into this year, the Denver Post newspaper would put a little side-bar by Krugman columns, advising people that the "Cafe Hayek" web site could provide an anti-dote to Krugman's editorial.

They did this for no other editorials. After reading this column, I finally understand why.
It's about time somebody did a study like this. I don't know how many times I've sat at a red light with no cross traffic thinking about how much gas is wasted in such situations.
>if they were really that poor...

Unfortunately, this ignores the power of good advertisement. For example: the entire fashion industry relies on generating desire to have something, not on any intrinsic value.