skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
I think there's a distinction between "apps" and "tools"; I doubt anyone would spend years of their life and thousands of dollars in UI testing trying to make, say, an accounting package, and then give it away. On the other hand, many people write useful tools — even business-critical things like rsync and ssh — and give them away freely.

As somebody who has contributed to a few open-source projects, and even put up some code of his own (that nobody else is ever likely to look at or use - but at least it's out there), the main reason I do it is because I like to master skills and concepts - the code is just a reside, a side-effect that proves to other people that I've understood the topic at hand. It makes much more sense to advertise my skills to as many people as possible than to try and make people pay to see how good I am.

A second reason is that nobody should ever have to re-solve a problem with known solution (unless they really want to). When I can see somebody struggling with a problem I know how to solve, keeping the answer to myself, or (worse!) extorting the other person is jerkish behaviour; I hate when it's done to me and I won't do it to others.

Finally, actually making a product and selling it involves a whole bunch of skills and responsibilities that are largely alien - sales, market research, management, etc. I could go out and learn all those things, but that's time I'd much rather spend on helping people out, and becoming a better programmer.
Source-IP based persistence on the layer 3/4 load balancer solves that very easily. The src-ip cache merely needs the same timeout as the webservers' ssl cache.
Excellent point, that's certainly part of it.
One of many.
An Example of a Literature Review
Writing literature reviews is often the most difficult task of writing any type of paper. However, with a good example of a literature review, this can be handled easily. The example will provide students with the much needed assistance to submit a good literature review.
The best solution is to just make the currency very difficult to counterfeit, eg. see Australian money which is plastic, textured and has a transparent section; alas, this software still detects Australian notes.
I don't mean to be disagreeable, but my experience really doesn't bear that out. People want a Web browser, but selling one is a loser's game — even Opera has given up. Ditto for word processors and media players.

Your second point is exactly what I was getting at — what you need for a successful product is product-marketing and SEO skills. But that's totally orthogonal to making good software and charging money for it.

(Edited thanks to beoba's correction.)
The biggest fundamental issue with performance and SSL is that it us end to end, and defeats stuff like network cache, transcode proxies, etc. Everything else can be solved by more CPU at both ends, which is cheap and only involves parties with a direct interest.

Networks are more expensive to upgrade and limited by physics...especially wireless systems e.g. Cell and satellite. Smart caches can help a lot here, but not if everything is ssl.
Ask HN: How to start coding my product?
I'm currently employed and working as a Ruby on Rails programmer for 3 years now, and I have decided that I want to start coding my product that I have been planning ever since I got interested with web applications, but when it comes to making it happen, I just can't do anything, I can't start working on it, I can't begin coding... I just lost enthusiasm on my own thing. But when my employers ask me to create a web app (website, ecommerce, internal apps, consulting apps), I responded enthusiastically and delivered it right on time (and beyond their expectations).

What's wrong with me?, I have everything already set, I bought my domain, I bought a VPS, S3, and has the technical skills to make it happen, but and I just can't find any interest on doing things for my own's sake, it's easier for me when my boss says "hey do this", but when I comes to myself to do something for myself I failed miserably. The last time I visit my VPS is back on September 2010, and I haven't touched it eversince...

Can someone give me an advice?
Two years isn't really that long. I've been doing what I do for 14 years and I still have a lot of room for improvement. I can't imagine what it would have been like to start a company based off my first two years of programming and design experience.
Neil Tyson on human intelligence
If you can code, create a few good paid apps and start generating passive income.

This is certainly one way (and a valid way), to do it. But not everyone wants to/can sell. Its a completely different skillset and not everyone is good at it.

Writing good (free) apps, is good for one's portfolio, which helps in freelancing/job market.
I'm curious how you make a living from giving out free software?
This is a fair criticism: I've now updated the examples so they don't involve method_missing so as to not needlessly complicate the issue.
The question was pretty annoying. But why are you getting mad with the OSS guys? Rather than flat-out dismissal of the open source guys, I think you'd find a lot more understanding and less whining if you made it clear that in the event of your death, or loss of interest in the software, or an upgrade to a system where most of the potential users would have such a need for the software that you don't feel like moving your software to, then you would in such cases have a mechanism to release the source. Free is useless if it doesn't work, raw source always has a use. I'm also sure you're aware that OSS doesn't take away any attribution so I don't understand that complaint.

As two other datapoints, the Minecraft dev has stated he will open source his game when sales die down, i.e. he has no use for keeping it closed anymore. It's similar with the Wolfire group who have open sourced Lugaru and will probably open source Overgrowth some time after it's finished.
I don't. :)

I basically work two full-time jobs, one that pays and one that doesn't.
The point of a resume is to generate sufficient interest to get talking, ideally an interview but even a screening phone call is better than being ignored.

For someone who's interest is in working in design and development this is a very distinctive marketing document. Yes it could be improved, but the fact that it is attracting attention means it worked.
Hey thanks for easybcd - it's awesome!
I have written free, non-open source software for a non-profit organisation (the software was meant for clients and not a website or a custom application). Your comment got me thinking: what is the point of the secrecy?

I've never really understood not sharing ideas (source code in this case) if it doesn't harm you in any way. It reminds me of classmates who refuse to discuss an assignment or share their ideas. It always seems there is a certain fear that their ideas will be "stolen" or that others are not worthy of them.

I can somewhat understand long-term cost-benefit analysis. My classmates might be right in thinking that others might cheat off them or exploit their ideas. More cynically, allowing others to fail might give you better job prospects. However, it doesn't seem that releasing your source code would have harmed you.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm going to make some assumptions about what you just said. You say that you don't write the software for profit(presumably, you don't plan doing so in the future either). Your main objection is that other people will have access to your "years of hard work, [and] research". Consequently, you fear that others will develop other software based on your work.

You appear to be a generous and helpful person by providing the program, and if you really have no commercial interest in your project, I have troubles understanding why you would care. Is it because you want acknowledgement?

Please forgive me if I angered you (based on your post, you really don't seem to like this question). However, I just can't understand your philosophy.
Open source protects the code, not the concepts. People are free to use my years of research to understand how certain mysterious super-low-level stuff work. Big companies (and there are many who want this tech), would be able to find out how I automate dual-boots of Windows XP and Windows Vista, etc.

I have thought of what would happen to the company in case I disappeared off the face of the earth, and I'm definitely not averse to making concessions to ensure that my software will remain useful in case of my death or whatnot.

Again, there's a difference between open source where what you're open sourcing is the CODE and open source where what you're open sourcing is the TECH and research. I'm not saying one shouldn't open source the tech, but I'm just saying I'm not that generous.
Some people like writing it, and gain value out of it being used. Some people believe an OSS portfolio is a strong asset for advancing their career.

Some people are pressured into giving away for free what could be sold by savvy businesses who like getting free things from people with poor business soft skills. Some people succumb to peer pressure because they think having business soft skills is frowned upon in their community.
Responsible Social Business Model
It was a comment here, not an essay. I can't find anything with a search, but this is a really hard one to Google for since I'm paraphrasing and don't remember his exact words.
How to make most of ANT in Java
I don't mind the question at all. What angers me is the attitude where people are convinced I'm wrong to withhold the code, regardless of my reasons.

As I explain in the sister post, my software contains years of research. It's not the code that I'm keeping secret, it's my hundreds of hours of testing and researching and experimenting to find out how certain inner-system mechanics work. I want to help people achieve these, but I like being the reference for this.

There are already people that have stolen (early versions of) my source code (and I mean that literally) and are selling it for profit: http://www.vistabootpro.org/

I don't want people to be able to do anything like this. I love the control that I have, and yes, it is a great responsibility. I could abuse this control and charge exorbitant rates for the software and technology, but I don't. While I'm not looking to make money off of my knowledge and prefer to distribute these tools for free, it doesn't mean I don't mind others making money off of MY hard work and research. Whether it's a big company or a small-time get-rich-quick jerk doing the capitalization on my efforts, I really don't want it.

I guess it also does have to do with acknowledgement: I want people to know that someone worked hard and is giving this away for free. The minute I give up the source code, the ideas are let loose and anyone can monetize/abuse them. In a way, giving up this measure of control would dilute the value of it.

tl;dr I don't want anyone getting rewarded (money or attribution) for my hard work and research. Yes, it is a selfish principle, but I think I'm allowed that much given that everything else I'm doing is selfless...
Twenty reasons why it's kicking off everywhere.
You're welcome. Thanks for using it. :)
Nitpick: Even opera is free (not Free) these days.
The cost of feature testing (screencasts)
What deep thoughts by Mr. Handey...
Again, there's a difference between open source where what you're open sourcing is the CODE and open source where what you're open sourcing is the TECH and research. I'm not saying one shouldn't open source the tech, but I'm just saying I'm not that generous.

If I can download your program, I can learn your tech and your research if I'm willing to put in the effort. Don't naively think that "keeping it closed-source" keeps anything away from prying eyes except possibly your code comments. Most likely, if nobody steals your ideas, it's because they don't care, not because they can't.

I work on the ffmpeg project, which contains literally dozens of video and audio decoders for proprietary formats, many of which were based on nothing but symbol-less closed-source binaries. Not releasing code simply makes the job take an extra week or two.

The skill of the developers who have this expertise is staggering and should never be underestimated. One of them, for example, reverse-engineered a neural-network adaptive image resizer and created his own implementation -- generating bit-identical output -- in a mere 11 hours. He then spent 2 weeks optimizing it to make it 4 times faster than the original, and published it -- which led to the original author (of the closed-source version) releasing his source.

I also work on the x264 project, which is literally covered in "tech" and "research" that's been open-sourced. Curiously none of our (usually much-inferior) proprietary competitors have ripped off our algorithms (and yes, I actively check for this). My guess, from talking from people in the business, is that they're so deathly afraid of the GPL that they aren't even allowed by their managers to look at our code.
Being French too and _even more_ pedantic, I have to point out it's actually spelt "voilà", not "voila".
Internet is easy prey for governments
I am a founder in the current paris session also. What I like most is : Framework + Camaraderie.

Details :
- framework : many courses lead by great mentors, assignments to make you think about specific points of your project, many guides and videos on the website, office hours to report progress ...
- camaraderie : through the working sessions, I met very cool entrepreneurs and they gave me costless customised advice on my business.
Ahh, thanks for clarifying, I get your position a lot better now. Of course, to play devil's advocate a bit more, unless you're worried about the patent system falling down soon you could always patent your tech and release the code under a restrictive "here, you can look at the source only" license. ;)
I wouldn't call it `cleaner and more modern' either but I really don't care. The best thing in Debian is that you don't have to visit their website often (or at all), because everything works in it, and everything works from command line.
Clever ARM instruction validation for Chrome Native Client
It's even more impressive than this. He actually started on Januari 1st 2010, but got injured and kept doing marathons with a handbike. If you don't discount his injury period (during which he still was doing marathons, but not running), he did 401 marathons in a row!
The effort it would take to reverse engineer my code is the same as the effort it took me to reverse engineer the Windows code in the first place, to allow me to extend it in the way that I have. not against people putting in the effort and learning for themselves. I'm against people making a quick buck by downloading my source code and getting a ready-to-use framework to build on.

I have been approached by backup companies (for "universal restore"/"bare-metal restore") who wanted to license this tech for free and have had source code stolen and being resold by "competitors."

I think that should clear up my concerns.

EDIT:

Read your update, and completely concur. There are people in the open source world that can do crazy, impressive, and amazing things. People like that, I can and do respect. I've shared my code with a few others before, and someone like that I wouldn't hesitate to say yes to. But to let it out in the wild..... it's just too hard for me.
The BEST Presents for GIRLS:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ovdO1QV2Jg
I know that situation well. I figured out it's because I strongly prefer working in a team. Solo-founder is never going to work 100% for me. I do work individually great, but if there isn't at least one smart person to bounce ideas off, and who reflect back some real enthusiasm, I'm burned out after a few days.

If anyone figures out how to trick yourself then I'm all ears!
You can release source without giving up all rights. For example, to prevent all the stuff you said you didn't want happening, there's a Creative Commons license that requires attribution for any uses of the work and disallows commercial use. (Not trying to talk you into anything. I'm just not sure if you're aware of that kind of license, since it didn't sound like it and those licenses get less attention than the more radical GPL.)
Thanks for taking the time and the link. But I'm not sure that thread answers any of the above concerns, really.

"We have a shoe-string budget, no equipment beyond our own personal phones and laptops, no office space beyond what we can borrow for free. None of us are paid for our work on Sukey and many of us also have full-time careers."

I wont point out the benefits of actually being "open" in then. Limited resources can traditionally be overcome with collaborative development.

Again, I commend the effort. But I continue to urge nobody to trust a protest tool until these concerns are properly addressed.

These are not difficult questions and the continued absence of answers only confirms my fears for the project.
Isn't that true for just about anything (at first) original and novel?
Your social life is largely what you make of it. I haven't hung out much at Stanford, and I'm not sure what the parent considers to be a normal social life, but as an MIT student, I would advise the OP to not let such stereotypes deter him from considering MIT or Caltech or any other top school.
I think rather than feeling pressured by peers into hiding their "business soft skills," probably more people just don't believe they have those skills at all.
You can get it from the experimental repo.

http://packages.debian.org/experimental/perl

More info on it: http://wiki.debian.org/DebianExperimental
Cut back scope, pick something you can deliver in your typical attention span, then sit down and do it. If you have one little feature that makes lives better enough to pay, then just a wee bit more work adds the ability to charge for it. Just a wee bit more work gets you the first cut of a marketing site. ... repeats ad nauseum
> I'll just leave this here:

> http://www.vaclib.org/sites/debate/web1.html

Ooh, is that a rabid anti-vax site? Let's look at the home page...

GRAPHICAL EVIDENCE SHOWS VACCINES DIDN'T SAVE US

HISTORICAL FACTS EXPOSING THE DANGERS AND INEFFECTIVENESS OF VACCINES

DOCTORS AND SCIENTISTS CONDEMN VACCINATION

WHY VACCINES ARE INEFFECTIVE

WHY VACCINES ARE HARMFUL

WHY VACCINATION CONTINUES

THE BENEFICIAL NATURE OF CHILDHOOD INFECTION

Yep, looks like it.
What proportion of web requests are served from a shared network cache? Whenever network cache is brought up in relation to SSL, I always wonder. Surely it's only a few percent max?

I think the security gained from adding SSL far outweighs the efficiencies lost by losing a shared network cache.
Try working on your briething. I've never run very far let alone a marathon(though I have played football non-stop for several hours many times when I was younger)... but 've found that by taking deep breathes while I run/jog means I can go for longer and without discumfort(until I stop) as opposed to when almost panting like a dog, it's as-if it has physchological effect and my body just refuses to work.
I'm actually glad you replied with your perspective. Now I can see where you're coming from.

> Not at all, you're one instance of a class of plague that furthers the disinterest and apathy of talented people in startups and entrepreneurialism. They will peruse HN or similar communities for a time, run into non-content such as you post, and run screaming. Your existence and those of your ilk serve to harm the startup industry and give the corporations more leverage to hold onto the truly good hackers.

So, you're commenting is because you think my blog is harming the startup industry and giving corporations more leverage against hackers.

I don't think that's the case - I'm all for for self-employment and people doing their own thing. I pretty regularly encourage people to do just that, and offer to lend a hand to anyone who has questions or I can help, and I've done a fairly large amount of free work for people here to lend a hand.

Personally, I've contracted or ran my own company in 3-4 different fields, had employees, negotiated contracts, done large-ish deals, and lived/worked/traveled through 40+ countries.

I share those experiences. Also, I share what I'm learning on tracking time, building habits, I review books, write lots on history...

But you know what, I'm open to a dialog here. You've got a serious aversion to me, and I feel like it's really uncalled-for. I haven't done wrong by you, and I work to make myself valuable, serve people, and do my writing to the best of my ability.

But, what would you look for more of? What's missing? For instance, in this post here that you don't seem to like - I'm looking for the link that makes someone good at getting money in a self-employed/business context. I explored a few things, and I think one of the biggest is having no hangups - being willing to shovel snow even after being a multi-platinum selling artist. Or starting a valet parking company even though you know nothing about it.

I think there's some interesting stuff in this post. Apparently others agree, because it's at #1 here. But you disagree. What would you prefer differently? Share your take and I'll listen - maybe I can learn here and improve.
I enjoyed your post and could relate with some of your points until the last paragraph. I thought you were talking about free software [1] as in libre software, not free software as in gratis software or freeware. Just pointing that out, because it's a completely different perspective then.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software
In most recent C compilers you can turn on warnings for at least missing return values from functions and not having a default: in a switch.

It is good practice to compile C/C++ programs with high warning level, and fix all the warnings before shipping.
But those little changes are also where opinion comes into play a lot of the time — minor punctuation niggles, regional spelling differences, two spaces at the beginning of a sentence, etc.

People really will suggest very odd, highly subjective edits. I rejected one yesterday where a new-ish user wanted to add "Thanks" at the end of somebody else's question.
A methodology for software engineering or a methodology for programming? Not necessarily the same, as I see it.

You may have one methodology you use for your overall engineering. A framework for supporting your problem analysis, architecting your system, and doing system design.
You may have another methodology for detailed design and implementation of the parts of the system that goes into programs. It may of course be advantageous if the latter support the paradigm of your programming language. The former less so.

A software based system has three main dimensions, state, event streams, and functionality. Your methodology should support all three dimensions evenly. If it does not, you should be aware of that and do your own compensation.
Do you not have it in source control already?

"git push origin" doesn't seem like it will take too long.

What's the difficulty with license? (other than the App Store's incompatibility with the GPL).
Just revise your thoughts. You're not doing it 'for yourself' but you're doing it for a future audience, for future customers. The reason why you work so well for your boss is probably because you like to impress him. But it's difficult to impress yourself. When you think about your product, think about what positive reaction you'll get from your future customers.

Also, this mode of seeing things will help you to deliver a better software experience to your end-users as you will always remind yourself that going for quick and dirty solutions (during development) might work if you use it, but not if others use it.

Also, in order to gain additional enthusiasm, you should find a good friend with whom you can talk about your project, and brag from time to time. Then you feel obliged to continue working on it because you don't want him to believe that you've failed on it.