skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
The entrepreneurs were the exact opposite of the kids today seduced by the promises of Y Combinator, easy cash of super angels and lure of TechCrunch headlines.

Is she talking about the same Digg that had the founder on the BusinessWeek cover?

Edit: Fascinating, this very writer of the blog post put him on the "controversial" cover. And then she wants to talk about a time when kids weren't seduced by "easy cash." Defies logic, really.
Don't worry, I'm sure that after this disaster is over, the Japanese will build a better robot for this situation.

Necessity is the mother of invention. We're fighting two wars where IED's are a big problem so we happen to be better prepared at this time.
looking at this site almost made me regret already having a really awesome internship lined up for the summer.
Ideas, Free and Unfree: A Book Commentary
I learned Clojure with Joy of Clojure, the early access version, coming from a Python background with very little practical experience in Java or Lisp. It's an excellent book.

The biggest advantage for my coding has actually been in my day-to-day Python work, where I'm much improved at designing functionally, parallelizing with multiprocessing, and building decorators and context functions to remove boilerplate code. So my Python is faster and cleaner; this is all thanks to being able to to think better about code design after working in Clojure.

For a good example of "why Clojure" take a look at Cascalog:

https://www.assembla.com/wiki/show/d9Z8_q-Omr35zteJe5cbLr

which leverages Hadoop/Cascading Java libraries and combines them with a Lisp-style custom query language.
The problem is that anyone who has foo.com has right of first refusal on foo.xxx, so .xxx will mostly end up as a mirror of a subset of .com.
> Q1. I still don't get the use case for db storage on ephemeral storage.

We're still not sure either, so we're investigating to see if it makes sense. One possible option will be to have the master on ephemeral disk with a hot backup on EBS so there is no data loss.

Another option is use ephemeral for the master and all but one slave, so we got hot backups without a slowdown.

Still need to look into it more.

The one that we are doing ephemeral right now is Cassandra with continuous snapshots to EBS. Everything in there can be recalculated, and with an RF of 3, if we lose one node we can run a repair.

> Q2. If EBS is the problem why are you migrating to S3 backed EBS boot vols? The problem with this is still the time in between snapshots even though it will be shortened.

They are just easier to use. The root volume is rarely accessed after it is booted, so the EBS slowdowns aren't really a problem in that case.

> Some Comments: It will only be a matter of time before S3 disks and hardware start dying like EBS...en masse

I don't think so. It is a totally different product built by a totally different team with a different philosophy. S3 was build for durability above all else.

In response to the rest of your comments, you are absolutely right, there are other options. We will certainly be investigating them.
Honestly I think this has as much to do with the process of news publishing and the systems and software they have in place to manage it.

I worked at a newspaper for 5 years, and their editorial system - this would be the software that reporters write their stories in, editors edit the stories in and proof readers and copy editors lay out pages in, not to mention ad placement, classified pagination and much more - was pushing 10 years old when I started. It wasn't integrated with the website content management system. It was slow, outdated and very annoying.

But it worked, everyone new how to use it, and we knew that we would be able to publish multiple publications every day, 365 days a year. The fact that the system wasn't fully integrated with the CMS meant it was difficult to add links to stories, usually requiring going into the CMS and hand-coding links, after waiting for the publishing scripts to grab the story and post it, a process which could take up to 30 minutes, depending. Typically an online editor or copy editor, far removed from the research and work the reporter had done, would manage this for the entire website, since it makes more sense for the reporter to be out on the street doing actual reporting.

So the 'simple' task of adding a link isn't as simple as it seems when placed in the context of a fast moving newsroom. Typically the battle isn't "why isn't there a link to that source document?" but rather "what do you mean you can't get anybody to speak on the record" or "we need a story for the 1A centerpiece now."

And then the next day the same battles start all over again, the process repeats and another newspaper is printed. It's difficult to change the process because the process is so critical to meeting print deadlines to be able to deliver papers on time.

To add to this, newsrooms are getting cut down at the same time they have to do more. My newsroom once had ~60 people at a time when all they did was print the paper. When I left, it was about half that size and we were posting regular online updates, tweeting, linking to stories from facebook, monitoring comments online, posting photo galleries, shooting video and creating interactive flash presentations on top of it all.

So, yea, if the reporter has time, he reads the report. If it's a story about calf length, it's more likely he'll skim it to be able to bang out a space-filling (or traffic driving) story. And since it's a light human interest story, and not something that's likely to get the paper sued, it gets a quick once-over proofread, then posted to the internet ASAP, then printed, and everyone is on to the next big story to feed daily monster that is daily publishing.

I still think some of these organizations will get there. The New York Times is leading the pack, but the slower publishers will take awhile to replace their antiquated systems and change the daily process that has been refined and perfected since the dawn of the printing press. Of the ones that don't, new organizations that can manage the digital realm will replace them.
The title could not possibly be more wrong. I don't usually presume to speak for Peter Thiel, but pretty damned sure this is his viewpoint as well. Not just Silicon Valley but human civilization needs more people building real companies that generate large amounts of new economic value and push the borders of what we do with technology, because five-dollar iPhone apps and ad-supported blogs are not going to sustain human progress or the growth of the world economy.

There's something to be said for betting on many different people, but someone has to be willing to bet large amounts on the ones who get early traction; and if you want a billion dollars you should be making those bets on many people with big ideas, not little ones.
Digg died long ago when the spammers won.
Even with what happened to me, I can't help but be happy for you if it makes your live slightly-better ;)

I don't totally agree with the "nice from them to give it, nice from me to not post". I don't want to start philosophical debate about what is "right" or not, but in my sense, being "nice" is the right thing. As someone who truly try to be nice to everyone, it pisses me off when some people aren't like that with me and, in these situations, I feel like it's right for me to point them out.

And, in all honestly, it's not really that much about money or about the book, but more about the way it happened. I first sent an email basically saying

"Sorry, I made a mistake. I really want to read that book and didn't know about the manning vs amazon ordered thing. I'd be happy to blog about you being awesome if you can give me the pdf :D"

And, then, for them to reply: "Sorry, but that is the advantage of buying from manning only. If you need further assistance, blabha".

So, no explication, whatsoever, about a way to fix the solution. No: "Yeah, I understand it sucks. You know what you could do? Just cancel your order from amazon and order it at manning and I'd be pleased to send you the .pdf as soon as possible!".

I then sent them out an email saying that I was really unhappy about the situation and that they had lost me as a customer. They then replied saying: "We can't give you the pdf because we have no way to make sure you really bought the book. Even if you give us the amazon copy, you could order, give us the message from amazon, cancel and get a free pdf".

Well, you know what, I could get the free pdf illegaly without even contacting amazon or manning or anyone! It'd be way more simpler for me to download it in 30secs instead of ordering, sending proof, canceling. no?

So, finally, you say it would have been nice for me to not post about that story. Why would it have been nice? If someone is harsh with you, is "Saying nothing and letting him/her being an ass with you" nice? Nice for who? Why would I be nice to them?

So, yeah, when I'll read the book, I'm sure it will be a good read and I'll be happy to blog about it. (still linking to amazon, of course ;)
I kind of got the feeling that he's lost some of his writing mojo - I didn't feel like I was reading Yegge. Maybe it was just too short a read for style to be noticeable, but I really do wish that when he truly comes back to blogging (he announced that he was back, but hasn't blogged since that), he will be at full gas again.
Coasting in Neutral Does Not Save Gas
I can't help but think that starting a new website with the RSS that they removed wouldn't be such a bad idea. Keep running digg, but take all the ideas and stuff the current digg community hates and build a new site (with different theme/terminology obviously).
I was a customer of Slicehost from day 1, literally. I told everybody about them because Matt and Jason (the co-founders) were the most awesome company founders I had ever dealt with. They were beyond helpful and always went out of their way to please their users. The good things that happened to them are fully deserved.

Thank you and best of luck with your new project, Matt!
For example, in the USA, "You generally must withhold federal income tax from your employees' wages. You withhold part of Social Security and Medicare taxes from your employees' wages and you pay a matching amount yourself." - http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=172179,00....

"If you classify an employee as an independent contractor and you have no reasonable basis for doing so, you may be held liable for employment taxes for that worker" - http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99921,00.h...

I assume that the US law allows "contracts" that are "signed" or agreed with one click on the "I agree with the terms and conditions" checkbox, and this contract would establish the paid individual as an independent contractor, and then the paying business has no burden of tax payment on behalf of the individual.

Do you have any information about the legal framework for similar issues in UK or Ireland?
How to MacIrssi: Part 2
Quote from the CEO of iRobot Colin Angle c.a. 2005: "I think humanoid robots are interesting and economically irrelevant for the foreseeable future."

http://news.cnet.com/The-leader-of-the-robot-pack---page-2/2...

To be sure, the Japanese have built some pretty amazing humanoid robots, and a lot of their emphasis seems to be trying to build things to help with caring for an aging population rather than detonating ieds, but it also seems that none of these projects so far have gotten past the proof of concept stage.
last year there were a number of stories in the UK press (not that that is necessarily an indicator of accuracy) about renters having a month's notice to move out as the landlord had defaulted on the mortgage (and not informed the tenants).
This is a good question, and one I've been thinking about myself.

I don't have a direct answer, but this is what's helped me.

(1): 4x3 Dry Erase Board nearby Computer, it might be because of having ADD but I find I do the best idea-refinement/drawing stuff out on a dry erase board, both because you can erase it easily and it involves some walking around. Thinking about it aloud and gesticulating helps me a lot as well, but I gesticulate quite a bit normally so that might be more specific to me.

(2): Quiet place to work, best situation is to reserve a room your house/apartment/etc specifically devoted to working. I would say an office but office normally includes taxes, finances, faxes, etc

(3): Have water within arms length and drink it often

(4): Have a clear mind, vent out your mind before you get started and it will make it easier to be productive.

Start with the dry erase board, it really helps to get started focusing.
Yes, and Twilio is definitely hiring right now. Please please reach out if you or anyone you know is unhappy with your (or their) work situation.
My company hosts speed interviewing events over video chat to connect developers and companies hiring. We are hosting an Austin event on 4/12 and are currently signing up companies to participate. You can keep an eye on which companies are hiring here: http://www.hirelite.com/events/1012025199/jobs

Also this quesion on Quora may be helpful: http://www.quora.com/Which-startups-are-hiring-in-Austin-TX
damn, when asked for a vision for my small project, being convinced by their websites claims that they search for a billion dollar opportunity, i describe the mass adoption and the world conquering. i'm doomed to stay unfunded :(
Design annoyances
Ah, but that is human error - the error of the person who used a program in a manner for which it was not intended! They erred in not understanding that the program was written years ago and not intended for that use. Of course, then it is not the error of the human who wrote the program.

This, however, is the reason why the phrase "human error" is mainly applied to simple, 'random' mistakes such as typos, fat-fingering a button, or misfiling a paper - errors that anyone can make, simply by being a forgetful human - rather than the literal meaning of "any error committed by a human". Stretched to cover every mistake made by a homo sapiens, the phrase loses all descriptive power.

So, to clarify - all errors made by humans are "human error" in some sense, but that renders the classification meaningless, so we should distinguish between simple, common errors and more worrisome ones by using words other than "human error". Your example of a programmer that did not foresee a future desired use could be referred to as a "requirements error" if the programmer reasonably could have or should have foreseen it, as "operator error" if the person using the program is meant to be trained to understand its proper uses, or a "misallocation of resources error" if the problem exists because not enough budget or time was assigned to keep the program aligned with current necessary uses.

I sometimes feel that a fair number of disagreements or disputes in the comments of Hacker News are best resolved by checking whether we are using words in exactly the best way.
I'm not even sure what it means. Not patenting the invention makes sense, but exactly what is being released into the public domain? I don't see any benefit to not retaining the copyright on your writeup. (Provided you make it publicly accessible - but that's clearly the case here.)
That's the temperature of a nice day in San Jose.
How would you contrast this opinion to your current thoughts on RFS7 (Facebook Instant Personalization)?

Facebook has shown themselves to be developer-hostile in the past as well, and they represent all of the common risks of building on someone else's platform. Are their boundaries better drawn? Is the magnitude of the opportunity on Facebook larger to the point of justifying the risk?
If they expect you to work in that one spot more than anywhere else, the Aeron might be the most important thing you get! Nothing worse than a cheap, (eventually) painful chair. :|
A conversation with a recruiter isn't an "interview".
It's still unclear whether having Flash is better than not having Flash.
Nuance Releases Mobile SDK To Speechify Apps
So then wouldn't the buy/rent decision depend on your income tax rate?
Not yet! Time for some more research I think.
Which is why it's often not a good name for a project.
That article claims 3 deg C. The article just posted claims to have furthered that research to 20 deg C.

Amazing how 3 months of research produced such a significant jump.
I work for an established company - we are only 60ish people, but the company has been around for a very long time now. The resumes I see often contain companies I have never heard of and that is perfectly fine - as long as you can tell me what cool things you worked on, you would be a candidate I would listen to. Just because you haven't worked at some larger agency, it really wouldn't matter. It's how good of a coder that you are that really matters.
I just updated the title from "My Worst Interview" to "My Worst Phone Screen" to be more clear.
Leases expire, and owners' circumstances change.
Ha. Love it... These reactions get me more excited than when people say they love the Workables UI, experience, homepage, etc.
Maybe the individual actually was using emacs, but thought they were in vim.
I don't know how anyone takes Sarah Lacy seriously. The bombast, the myth-making and self congratulation, but most especially the complete disregard for any annoying facts that get in her way.

" And Digg? Well we got Digg exactly right. We said it could sell for between $150 million and $200 million, and over the next few months and years there were several negotiations and at least one solid offer in that exact range. But Digg — unlike peers like Flickr and Delicious– said no, and its best days seemed ahead of it."

Presumably she is talking about the google talks, because that would be the only "solid offer" in that exact range. And guess what, it was google who walked away according to Techcrunch.

http://techcrunch.com/2008/07/26/google-walks-away-from-digg...

_Exactly Right_
I think there's always room for improvement. Competition and diversification are essencial for an evolving project, be it a blog, a company or a mere discussion. It makes people think about how to improve, how to be better, how to evolve.

I really love the TSF. It's clean, not bloated and very objective. Maybe you have different ideas than the ones the implemented. So, please do try and do your thing.

People we'll be here to "judge" :D
I assume that every country has some laws to prevent:
1) That actual employees are declared as independent contractors for the purpose of evading the payment of social security and medical taxes.
2) That the individual that gets paid also declares the revenues and pays the corresponding income taxes.
3) Money laundering and financing terrorist activity.

In the case of my country in Eastern Europe these laws are so tight that they require either:
- the independent contractor to be officially registered with the governmental authorities and authorized as such, or
- to be considered as an employee, which has to sign with the business a paper contract that also has to be registered with the authorities, and for which social security and medical taxes must be paid.

This makes impossible running in my country a business based on the model that you are also interested in.

Could you discuss what the law allows in UK, Ireland, Cyprus or other European country?
StackExchange allows discussion of techniques for removing DRM.
Ask HN: What is the best online donation service? 
What is the best online service for accepting donations on a web site? This would be for a local cause that I'm working with and is just starting up, so I don't believe they have 503(c) status, which many services seem to need.
MinGW cross compiling environment – Release 2.19
There's nothing people love more than an article romanticizing the good old days.
"Not that important" depends on what your goals are. Sounds to me like the GP is taking the view that job satisfaction and the pleasure of seeing the work you are doing contribute to the bottom line will be significant to the OP - I think this is good advice.

Your advice also makes sense if all you are concerned about is the size of your paycheck. But we all have different goals at different time, taking a good look at which ones are currently important to the OP will help him/her find a happier spot in life.
How does your stake in the company compare with that of th CEO?
With all due respect, I'm not sure I buy that "hiring is an issue" argument.

You don't need someone full-time to help develop best practices, help design or architect code/systems, or to do code reviews.

Any startup that gets funding should, in my opinion, get a short-term consultant to come in, take a look around and offer suggestions and advice. Even if it's just for a day. These are resources that have been there, done that, and wouldn't be interested in a full-time gig with the company to begin with. Even if the company could afford them.

Hopefully this isn't too far off topic, but it's something that I see missing from a lot of clients that I get called into. (Not saying these guys haven't done this, either.)

I think there's a lot of value for a startup to validate their work with outside help, especially if they're relatively new to the game. Even if it's just pointing them to some articles or reading for them to follow up on, or just mentioning ideas of things they should look into; it can prove to be huge.

For instance, I'm currently mentoring a few developers/teams on a part-time, couple hours a week basis. Some of it is just being available on MSN to answer a quick question every now and then, other times it's doing a couple code reviews. Other times it's grabbing lunch/beer with them to discuss the concepts of things like how to implement continuous integrated testing, or managing other processes, or discussing new tech that they've heard of. For the most part, they're not paid gigs either. I enjoy helping people do stuff well, and the little bit of good faith help usually leads to some good future work.

Sometimes all it takes is asking the right question to get them to think about things in a different manner.

The last gig I got was for a major video game company. The job involved a .NET stack, which I knew nothing about and had never worked with, not even a little bit. I got the job despite that fact because in the interview I asked them general (admiteddly leading) questions, such as "how are you handling _____, or what is your plan for _____". Even though all of my experience had been in non-MS tech stacks, the technical director that was interviewing me was furiously taking notes. It was clear that they hadn't planned for some of the things I was mentioning, never mind thought of them. But once they heard the question, it was painfully obvious they should have. As a result, a 3-day consulting engagement turned into full-time for two years.

In my case right now, I've sought a mentor in some new tech I'm working with in my current startup. It's allowed me to hit the ground running, and take advantage of their experience. A half day one-on-one made all the difference for me, and will drastically improve the quality of what I'm doing.
I think the point of the article was that smaller innovations can eventually lead to the greater pushes "that generate large amounts of new economic value"

Coming up with those "big ideas" is an extremely tough thing to do. Often, people who get so enamored with the grand scheme of things engage in endless strategy with no prototype and nothing to show the world.

I will agree with you that one should not write off the bigger picture, but sometimes in order to get to the bigger picture you need to put the little pieces in place first
"It's been almost 3 years, and we haven't failed, but we haven't launched or secured funding yet"

Dude, drop what you're doing and get out.