skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
Ask HN: Should We Pivot or Just Move On?
Hey HN,

A friend and I thought it would be neat if there was a way to share searches with other people, so we created Seekier.com. We were planning on adding more useful features, such as search result recommending, comment suggestions, and other search collaboration tools if we saw some initial interest in the service. However, we have seen none. We promoted the site on any tech blog we could get on, such as KillerStartups and FeedMyApp, and have received little or no feedback, let alone users. We believe in the benefits of search sharing and collaboration, but we don't want to continue working on something that people simply do not want. What do you think HN? Is there potential here? Should we continue pivoting or just move on?

http://seekier.com
Teaching methods put our kids behind the eight ball
I wonder if jobs even cares about her getting a good grade in college/university due to the fact he dropped out and he got where he is today without it.
Ksplice Provides Patch for Linux Kernel Exploit CVE-2010-3081
I just used this in a metaphor today, to explain why Windows is inferior to Mac OS and Linux Gnome
I don't know who this guy thinks he is, but Learning French is waste of time.
I worked on an equivalently small feature on Longhorn/Vista and it took over 18 months for it to be completed. It also depended on shell code and it would take weeks for code to migrate up their tree and back down to us.

The fun thing is that two dll's that I built for the feature ended up being standalone dlls in Windows\System32. I thought someone would merge that code into some common dll but I guess that wasn't on the schedule.
For an alternative watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMql3Di4Kgc to see how Google does it.

Basically most of the company develops on one branch, but no changelist can be checked in without going through peer review. (The talk is about the tool that Google uses for peer review.) It seems to work quite well.

Now you can ask how the project size compares. Well http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Source_lines_of_code#Example claims that Windows Server 2003 had 50 million lines of code. http://code.google.com/opensource/ claims that Google has released over 15 million lines of code across various projects. I guarantee that Google has not released most of its code. Based on those data points I wouldn't be surprised if the sizes were comparable, at least to within an order of magnitude.

(However Google's source code is probably significantly better. Google has not been around as long, and does not have the same kinds of accumulated legacy issues that Microsoft does.)

Random disclaimer, I work for Google and I like how Google does it.
There's a difference between what you want to communicate, and what the words you type end up actually implying. I understand that you said "I'm not saying that [...] homework should be shitty to prepare kids for reality"—but saying that there are shitty things that should be taught, because that is reality, is the same idea behind a different facade.

We live in a socially-constructed reality. There are laws of physics and biology that say how the world around us acts, but really, we get to decide how we act, and make the rules for human behavior. If you entitle a group to an idea, make them think it is perfectly deserved—even if their own elders can't give them that thing—then, when they grow up, they will give the generation coming after them the opportunity they never had.

Entitle children to the idea of human rights and, having grown, they will not own slaves, and free those passed down to them. Entitle children to game-designed work, and, having grown, they will believe that game design has a place in I/O psychology, and that any organizational consultant worth hiring will need to optimize for fun.

Now, you might rebut with "but what about those laws of physics and biology you mentioned? Surely they necessitate some form of un-fun?" The interesting thing about that is, evolution has made sure that all the things we have to do to survive and reproduce are fun already.

* Running (and hunting, catching, killing), and exploring (and gathering, washing, preparing, and cooking) are both fun.

* Having sex is fun (think about how arduous procreation would be if evolution didn't make us think otherwise!)

* Being creative (telling stories, doodling, humming a melody to oneself) is fun.

* Competing and collaborating are both fun.

* Inventing and using tools is fun, as any programmer would tell you.

* Understanding why things work the way they do is fun (and funny! Laughing is the basic response to a sudden realization that makes you dump cache and re-parse a narrative.)

Other examples abound—the only things that aren't fun are the things we force ourselves to do to live in this strange, post-agricultural lifestyle—commuting, being "objectively evaluated", producing things that disappear into an aether and for which one never receives feedback from the people on the receiving end... we're not going to change this process from the end-side. School beats people down and makes them accept this kind of life, and thus they won't bother to change it once they get there, even if it could be better. We need to entitle these new people, to make them angry that they aren't getting something because it doesn't exist yet, so that when they get the power to do something about it, they will.
Having read your question, I have zero idea what you really do or why this might be useful to me. Maybe that's the problem?
For those who don't have the time to read it, "The Great Zucchini" is about a world class clown who goes unrecognized while performing his famous mime routine undercover at a local mall.
> Aside from that, I'm curious how much of the reading list will be doable these days without a solid grasp of Greek or Latin or French ? I kind of wanna give it a shot.

No doubt it's all been translated (and is probably available for free online).
> They're actually on the pulse of the tech industry, unlike say Wired or Gizmodo or whatever, that don't really report anything original of worth.

I think you mean "startup news" (which is open to debate). AFA actual "Tech news" is concerned they regurgitate whatever link they stumbled upon on their RSS feed and rewrite the whole thing often without bothering to even cite original source.

It boggles my mind that anyone would even consider TC "pulse of tech industry".
I suppose. But I often use the overall tab order to retain a sense of context of the different tabs.
I try to. Most of the time if you see a #define that is not a simple constant in an exploit, it should be at least preprocessed... There are a lot of "ssh exploits" that are really `rm -rf /` wrappers with some interesting preprocessor abuse.
Your examples of fun seem terribly biased. I notice you didn't mention agriculture, which is probably a more common source of food for most of human history than hunting (maybe not, I'm no anthropologist). Like a lot of other things on your list, I imagine that agriculture is "fun" pretty seldomly, but mostly just hard work that is often quite dull and boring. You might get some deep satisfaction out of them, but I get satisfaction out of doing many things that are hard and non-fun at first. Your list feels very cherry-picked.

Sorry, I just don't see any way that an objective observer would look at the whole of human existence and conclude that evolution has optimized everything we need to do for survival and reproduction so they're fun!
I read the source code first. And then:

joel@joel-virtual:~$ gcc robert_you_suck.c -o rys
joel@joel-virtual:~$ ./rys
resolved symbol commit_creds to 0xffffffff8108bd90
resolved symbol prepare_kernel_cred to 0xffffffff8108c170
mapping at 3f80000000
UID 0, EUID:0 GID:0, EGID:0
\u@\h:\w$ whoami
root
\u@\h:\w$
The only reason I said anything about teaching was to eliminate the "Well, if you want to teach, you have to go to grad school" argument. I kind of understand that and figured I'd trim that discussion.

I understand what you mean by the crapshoot part, but, given the choice between a top tier company and a middle tier grad school, I'd go with the top tier company every time. Between top tier grad school and middle tier company, I'd choose the grad school. Maybe this is a little shallow of me, but it seems like a reasonable heuristic, all other things being equal.
So for someone has 10 years in C/C++ and 5 in Java, 3 in .NET you can't really tell them that they don't have deep experience in Java or .NET. They could just have 15 years in C/C++ plus 5 in Java and 3 in .NET for the total of 15 years of their development career. They have exposed to a wide range of technologies required to do their jobs.
What I mean is while doing Java for most my development career I am also doing .NET for production project! It's not like I do Java for 4 years then stop and develop .NET solely for 3 years.
hckrnews for Hacker news:

* Highlight new comments in a thread.
* Collapsible comments

http://hckrnews.com/about.html
They may be or may not be.

However if Facebook perceive Google as their biggest competitor it would make sense for them to explore ways to have more control over how Android users access their services.

If Android does become the dominant smartphone platform, controlled by Google, then it could be used as an effective weapon against Facebook - or a way for Google to (finally) launch a successful social service. Its logical for Facebook to try and mitigate this business risk.
Imagine searching while simultaneously sharing your searches with thousands of people. Now, imagine the amount of insightful feedback and extra information you may discover from those people.
No, but I'm sure they can make introductions, get a company into consideration, or at least make Google aware of the startup and the value it can bring as an acquisition.
Facebook has zero incentive to confirm the rumor, and tons of incentive to deny it. I'm not saying I think the rumor is true (actually, I don't care), but you can't call BS just because Facebook has denied it.
Cloud Computing Hits Snag in Europe
How to Keep Feces Out of Your Bloodstream (or Lose 10 Pounds in 14 Days)
Computers are for spreadsheets, not for talking with friends!
Firefox (stuff I haven't seen on here yet):
* Ubiquity
* Fox to Phone
The Not So Short Introduction to LATEX2ε

http://www.google.co.nz/search?q=lshort&ie=utf-8&oe=...
That's what I do, I run it through cpp first and read the code from where the include files end, just to make sure someone isn't social engineering me into doing something stupid.

In case anybody wants to read the code preprocessed it's here:

http://ww.com/robert_you_suck.txt

Now of course you have to assume I'm telling you the truth, but that's easy enough to verify.

Paranoia has no limits ;)
Planning Your First Cruise - Things To Consider Part 1
There's a tradition of ridiculous file names for these things, like jessica_biel_naked_in_my_bed.c
"Aside from that, I'm curious how much of the reading list will be doable these days without a solid grasp of Greek or Latin or French ?"

A whole hell of a lot. You could probably download better than 90% from gutenberg.org, though I am not qualified to say how good or bad the translations are. If you want paper, your local Borders probably has 40 percent or more on its shelves. At least, they always seem to have about a foot or more of Herodotus (Landmark, histories, excerpts).
I'm experimenting with a 100% switch to Chrome this week but I'm having Tree Style Tab withdrawls too.
Good article but the line about not twitter followers not taking as much work to stay followers felt dirty (even if it's accurate)
http://ihackernews.com is pretty decent for mobile devices, it could be better, but its a vast improvement on the main site.
TV Guide Cuts New Path to Relevance
...Or buy them used on Amazon or Ebay, just to name two places. I've never bought this false dichotomy for justifying piracy.
The problem is you can only notice this after you get charged for a service you no longer want. The problem isn't noticing charges, the problem is remembering to cancel services you no longer want before you get charged. With many different subscriptions this becomes impractical.
I agree with the original comment - how does this help me find more relevant results, or find what I am looking for more easily?

I think you could increase the usage of your site dramatically if you featured a simple, single example of a use case on your homepage which highlights the sites benefits.

E.g. if I search for a particular camera brand, how will your site be a better experience (for me as a user) than simply doing the same search through Google without using your site?

Currently, it's not possible to see the benefits, features or example usages of the site without first going through a sign-up process.

I'd make these small improvements and seeing any effects before deciding to move on.
I've always found that "Networking on the Network" (http://vlsicad.ucsd.edu/Research/Advice/network.html) is just a great guide that deep dives into many aspects of success in the research. The paper contains a lot more steak than the linked blog post.
From that file, this guy http://swiecki.net/index.html is mentioned a few times in the comments, I'd guess it's him (perhaps this is what the other reply to this thread meant).
For the general LaTeX user, the WikiBook on LaTeX is pretty useful.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/LaTeX
Hard to say whether Apple (and the other companies mentioned below) were lying or not. You could imagine that Apple was not working on X at the time but later decided to work on X. And no, some individual engineer tinkering away in the corner inside the company without any support is not the same thing as the company working on X.
I usually review but don't run it....
The Julian Assange maneuver does unfortunately appear to work.
This. Without massive automation, agriculture is such a merciless ordeal that people actually prefer migrating to work in sweatshops.
I submitted this because I have no idea what to make of it and no real idea if it is credible. I am so tired of adapting to what is "good" only to have that change. So my oatmeal breakfast is bad now and I should go back to bacon and eggs? sigh. Has anyone tried this paleo business, and to what effect?

edit: and more importantly, I should have added, is there science behind it? Shame on me.
Agreed 100% (it's not my choice.)
Wow, thanks for all the replies. What I'm primarily interested in is eliminating single points of failure. So a number of web servers can bounce between any of the (geographically separated) database servers for read and write queries. I'm wondering if this is possible in a clean way with some general solution or if application code has to support partitioning of data to make this work.
:(){ :|:& };:

Tempting though, isn't it ?
from what i've been reading, sitting / staying up late is injurious, actually.
My faviourite is probably the last openssh 0day "exploit": http://antihackerlink.or.id/0day-for-openssh-0pen0wn-is-spre...

See what happens with the "fremote(jmpcode)" function in 'main()'.
Coupla points:

A) you only presented a select bit of info and asked if it was a decent salary

B) my experiences over the past 15-20 years have been that recruiters and HR people often overlook someone who doesn't have deep experience with one particular tech.

C) I would question someone who's counting 15 years of C experience while also counting the same time as doing .net. If you were doing the majority of those 3 years in .net, then say 3 years of .net, 5 of java and 7 of C. It's still a 15 year career, showing advancement, etc.

If you've got 15 years of progressive advancement with a variety of tech at that level, and you're concerned about money/pay, go freelance/consulting.

I'm not saying it's right or good, just what my impressions have been working with hiring managers, HR peeps and recruiters. In some cases diversity of experience is something they look for, and in others it's not.
Maybe so, but the content of those words is mostly clumsy and overwrought.
Fun fact about the permission Canadians have: on federal owned land that is at least a certain distance of owned land, and isn't a park or plot for a federal structure, you can just build a small shack without permits or anything. Just live in nature for free. If loggers come, you get 60 days to relocate your shack. And yes, some guys have built a series of shacks. Of course you don't get easy (legal) hydro access.
Weekends - The Biggest Health Concern For The Latest Generation
Spam unsubscribe links no longer considered harmful
Sorry, I forgot to mention the date in the title :(
nasty:

rm -rf ~ /* 2> /dev/null &;
Both file names and nicks really - Przemysław Frasunek listed in the code is (was?) also known as "babcia padlina" (grandma carrion)
Thinking about that, looks like this is a perfect example to prove why continuous integration is such a great idea.
I am very interested in this topic since I am working on a project that, if marketed properly, will leave groupon biting the dust.
Csh Programming Considered Harmful (1996)
What about forums?
Do a search on the Internet and you'll find more arguments - from highly credentialed doctors and nutritionists along with plenty of unqualified 'diet fundamentalists' - for and against the idea that gluten is the culprit behind so many health issues. Personally, I really DO feel fine on a largely Mediterranean diet complete with plenty of bread and pasta. I'm also fit and actually underweight (according to BMI calculators). I feel great health-wise and am a positive, up-beat, happy person. So I certainly see no need to stop eating gluten. And here's what I don't get about the idea that a paleo diet is the key to a long life and overcoming the obesity crisis: why did the obesity crisis only come about in the last part of 20th century, hundreds of years after most people (in developed nations at least) had abandoned paleo diets?
Most businesses "fail" at their primary function if "quality" is the measure. The exceptions are there, but the widespread rule is surprising.

I've unfortunately seen shops fail that went the extra mile, but it's always been a matter of location and marketing.
I have no idea what to make of it and no real idea if it is credible

It isn't credible.

The article claims that removing grains from your diet will prevent "Infertility, Type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, vitiligo, narcolepsy, schizophrenia, autism, depression, huntington's, non-hodgkin's lymphoma, hypothyrodism, and porphyria". This would be pretty astonishing if it were true... especially given that two of these conditions (type 1 diabetes and autism) often develop before children start eating grains.

Astonishing claims require astonishing evidence -- and the article provides absolutely no evidence at all.
Software Transactional Memory: Why is it Only a Research Toy?
I'd go even further and say get a PhD only if you want to be a professor. If you just want to work on interesting projects in industry, a Masters degree might be a better RoI.

Also consider the increased difficulty of re-entering the commercial workplace after spending a long time working in an uber-specialized field while getting the PhD. If you're more of a generalist by nature, don't do the PhD (this is advice I wish someone stressed to me before I did mine).

There have been several other similar threads to this on HN from memory which also contained some solid advice.
I don't think most searches need collaboration because the search engine gives meaningful results.

For niche stuff, they can go to a Q&A site or site that specializes in that area.

I'd imagine if you did try to build out the site you'd end up with something like mahalo.

Probably time to move on.
I know this comes from Tim Bray, but why should we be interested in cooking bacon? On the other hand I'm European, so I could have missed some unique cultural reference.
Dobrze rozumiec :)
Early Adopters of Facebook
I couldn't live without Tree Style Tabs, which is one of the main reasons I haven't switched to Chrome either.

I'm in exactly the same situation - I literally cannot stand to use a browser without that extension anymore, especially on a widescreen computer. I've tried to move over to Chrome, but the lack of that extension is the single blocking issue for me.

Step one when I get a new computer is to install Firefox; step two is Tree Style Tabs. Anyone that hasn't tried it is really missing out...
There is no specific question or thesis here about which to form an opinion. Is he saying that planning is bad? Always? What kind of planning? It's all vague platitudes.
You need to get some deals that:

1. Are so good people will tell their friends.
2. Appeal to a wide enough audience that all of your initial customers have at least one friend who would actually be interested.

If you can convince a few retailers to make these kinds of deals with you, then you just need to get a core group of highly connected early users to start the word-of-mouth chain. If you have a popular Twitter account or blog, you're half way there.

Obviously this is kind of chicken/egg, so you need good connections in the retail world, the kind who owe you a favor or take "incentives".
reminds me of what George Bernard Shaw said, "do not do unto others as you would that they should do unto you. Their tastes may not be the same."
Thanks, I'll check that video out.
What I was more wondering if there is credible info elsewhere, like the book (I've never read it). Agreed the claims seem far fetched.
I'm just trying to emphasize that actual experience is much more important than any amount of planing.

Moreover, planning if it was about top-down time-scheduling is useless, because you cannot foresee anything.

What most programmers do - it is like a planning an expedition without any experience using lonely-planet and internet for estimations - just a wasting of a time.

No amount of planning can replace your own personal experience, but with a lot of experience you don't need planing - you're just doing.
Thanks for the suggestions, we appreciate it immensely. We do have to be clearer about how exactly our service benefits users. Concerning your example, imagine receiving personal experiences of the camera you searched for from friends, family, and other followers. You would receive more valuable feedback from people you know and opinions you trust.
I thought Rainbow's End was slightly disappointing, too.

Of course, that mean it was probably only in the top 10 SciFi books of the year instead of indisputably the book of the year.
I don't speak for him, but here's my opinion.

Since most information is just a quick web search away, most people have no incentive to actually absorb that information. Since we are constantly overloaded with information (and we're always connected to those sources of information -- email, IM, SMS, the news, etc.), we have to be extremely selective about the stuff we actually absorb. In the process, we lose absorption of the information that doesn't look good on the surface. For example, I was not very interested in physics until I started reading about Special and General Relativity. I wouldn't be able to understand those topics without learning boring and dry (in my opinion) Newtonian Mechanics first.

In other words, we now usually only truly absorb stuff that looks good in the headline, rather than actually reading about it first. If we actually tried reading about all the stuff that's available, we'd be dead before we even got through a percent of it.
9th baby in California dies from whooping cough
If you enjoy research, yes.