skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
These are the failures. There’s a common theme.

2005 — Desktop app for creative writers. Made about $90k in total over its 10 year history

2010 — Secret sharing website. Made $0 revenue.

2011 — Hugely popular forum for poultry breeders in Ireland that ran for a few years. Made about $6k in advertising and sold it in 2015 for a few €k, can’t remember how much now.

2012 — Desktop journaling app. Made about $15k over its 5 year lifespan

2012 — Desktop password app. $3k over its short history.

2014 — Editing app for creative writers. Made about $20k over the 4 years.

2015 — Microsoft Word add-in for editing documents. Made about $50k over the past 5 years.

2017 — Another Desktop app for creative writers. See 2005 above. Made about $5k in two years before pulling the commercial version.

Takeaway: If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten. Building B2C apps for consumers who don’t have money or don’t like spending money is a model for continuous failure. It took me a long time to realise this.

Current project is a B2B SaaS app for dev teams. Work in progress.
Ask HN: File Sync App Recommendations for 2020
Like many people here on HN, lately I've become unhappy with Google and their attitude and actions. I've also become unhappy with Google Drive and the way its associated "Backup and Sync" tool works.

May I please have some recommendations for a replacement file sync tool? It should fill these requirements:

Cross-platform: Linux, Windows 10, and Mac OS X.
Stable and fast: No huge inefficient UI taking up memory.
Multiple locations: i.e. "cloud" based.
Pricing equivalent to my current $10/month for 2TB.
"Good" corporate behaviour: open about security, no selling info, no bait and switch etc.
Works OK with more than a million files.

An open source solution using something like S3 would be OK, but I'm not up to date on the latest offerings in that space.

It would be great if this tool would also allow multiple accounts so my wife and I can share space and files.

My reason for moving is that Google's file sync/backup tool has multiple "containers" such that if you sync folders outside of your "GoogleDrive" folder, that folder goes into its own container which isn't accessible from any other computer. You can access the files through the web interface, but you can't sync them to multiple computers. (There's a feature to "include folder in drive" from these containers, but they don't allow top-level folders, so you have to jump through silly hoops to get it to work, plus Google may just decide to remove that feature one day)
You can create your own DSM powered NAS using Xpenology to load the DSM software on normal hardware.

It's more fiddling but you can get a very powerful NAS very cheaply this way.
> it is an unrecoverable delete, at least temporarily.

That’s not really a precise phrase. It’s recoverable, but with a delayed outage (denial of service).
I fail to see how copyright law as it exists now, removes the need to "beg for patronage". If anything, being able to freely access an authors work may generate more interest for lesser known authors.

I think, as with many industries, there is an unfair wealth divide amongst creative professionals. I don't think JK Rowling is such a better writer than most other writers alive today, that she deserves to have made billions of dollars for her work. The only reason she has made that much is because of copyright law. If anything, copyright law increases the divide between the lucky authors, and the much more talented but much more unlucky ones.
To be fair, it is highly likely he was lying and was saying that just to ensure he could win the election.

A modern example would be Obama saying in 2008 that he wasn't in favour of same sex marriage.

Source:https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2012/may/11/barack-oba...

There are many other sources. Biden was saying the same thing in 2008.
[downvoted for boogaloo horseshit]
Interestingly, there seems to be an obvious modern recreation, the Microlino:

https://microlino-car.com/en/microlino
CS career questions is an odd ball though. Internet isn't a reliable way to assess what young people actually think especially in geek or programming circles.

Also, it's not just young people. If you tell someone ignoring the age that you are a plumber or farmer, they aren't going to look at you nicely even if you earn more than the engineer next door. Social media has changed perception of people regarding work. It is a primary means of keeping up with the world for younger gen and targeted advertisements make it worse. Instagram feeds have a happy skin-showing bias. Tiktok removes anything too sad or ugly.

I expressed in my earlier comment that expectations for young people now are different. They think they should be able to live better than their parents do now or did on the same folds the productivity has increased.

Compare 2000 to now and how work has been automated or made easier. Why not 5x-10x improvement in the living condition? That is why they want to get into FAANG.
According to the OjC README:

> No official benchmarks are available but in informal tests Oj is 30% faster that [sic] simdjson.

Source: https://github.com/ohler55/ojc/blob/master/README.md#benchma...

If you have benchmarks that show otherwise, that would be great for the discussion here, but your point appears to have already been addressed?
Go is becoming the language to implement json parsers
I recently read a very detailed and very compelling argument for why COVID-19 did not originate in a laboratory from a specialist in high risk biocontainment viruses. Compare the hand-wavey and fluffy arguments presented here with hard and scientific ones presented here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kAHSEx9-eIyVIahczH8itHaUm9j...
Passing information on to to other people is fine. However, in this case, why forwarding? If you are convinced by the information, why not do an effort and post it yourself in the group?

I found this extract summarizing well Author's POV "This means that while groups can generate high levels of solidarity, which can in principle be put to powerful political effect, it also becomes harder to express disagreement within the group. If, for example, an outspoken and popular member of a neighbourhood WhatsApp group begins to circulate misinformation about health risks, the general urge to maintain solidarity means that their messages are likely to be met with approval and thanks. When a claim or piece of content shows up in a group, there may be many members who view it as dubious; the question is whether they have the confidence to say as much. Meanwhile, the less sceptical can simply forward it on. It’s not hard, then, to understand why WhatsApp is a powerful distributor of “fake news” and conspiracy theories."
Those are separate concepts: we should not condemn children for their parent’s crimes but that doesn’t mean that we should forget that those crimes happened.

In this case it’s especially important because those children were treated very differently from their siblings: a slave owner’s fully white children had full status in society and lived in relative luxury but those borne by slaves inherited their mother’s status. Apologists try to claim that some relationships were consensual but it’s hard to reconcile that with the treatment of any resulting children.
In one day, this link has been posted 3 times and got flagged the first time.

Now I see 13 points on this post, wtf ?
Is this the part where I'm supposed to feel some ethereal kinship with Jeff Bezos and his literal dragon's hoard, because of some theoretical sense in which we work in the same industry? I mean, we really don't, though! I'm in the tech industry, he's in the being a billionaire industry. I see no reason to believe that people wanting to take away his dragon's hoard should make me fear for my salary.

And if it does - well, what the hell? Those people you cite are correct. I do make too much, and so do you. Even an ex-tech-industry billionaire will tell you that, or did you think it was by accident that people feel the need to worry their jobs will get exported to India or somewhere? I know I'm not going to make any friends talking about a salary bubble in tech, but we all know - or we better know - there is one, and sooner or later something is going to pop it.
In this case I'm saying that we're over-abstracting by pulling too much of the dissimilar code between the examples into the one representation (i.e. the method).

Ok it sounds like we agree on what is wrong with the example. "Over-abstract" still feels like the wrong word for that, because the actual problem is that we have ruined our abstraction layer with junk about lower layers. Average is an operation on lists of numbers, but ignore_nulls is a feature of the members of the list in your programming language, same with the Type argument. The members of data structures intuitively (maybe not always) exist at a lower level of abstraction. I would be more inclined to call this something similar to "partial-abstraction", because the programmer didn't take the time to remove all the semantics of the lower levels from the interface to the higher level.
Singularity SDK: Fast, Simple and Reliable SDK for Microcontrollers
An SDK that allows you to program multiple microcontrollers in different programming languages.
With heavy emphasis on code reuse.
Use Arduino libraries out of the box and lot more!
Is quinoa partition tolerant?
He argues contributory infringement and breach of contract, but he really only goes into the breach of contract theory.

I'm more curious about the contributory infringement theory. You cannot have contributory infringement without there being a direct infringement by someone else for the contributory infringer to have contributed to. I don't see offhand who would be the direct infringer whose infringement Grsecurity is contributing to.
The world has a gazillion scientists and MDs. Not everyone has the right to be on the news, otherwise we'll have some make outrageous claims to have their 15 minutes. IMO, these claims can cause a lot of harm so news people have to be extremely careful.
Show HN: Codeless Tests for REST APIs
When you say not working, I think you mean not using. And an unused AM receiver could still be used at some point.
> The issue is that the technical meaning of the URL is very far from what most user think of.

My argument is not really concerned with what most users think of, but humor me, what do they think of?

> So when NYT sets up a magical DNS config, it suddenly is fine, but using crypto to sign the package and serve it on a CDN that way, then it's suddenly "subverting the meaning of the URL"?

Yes, because HTTP/S scheme URLs have a definition that implies a meaning, which is subverted when you create exceptions to that meaning. NYT setting up a "magical" DNS config that resolves to some third party server is perfectly fine by that definition, and resolving one FQDN while displaying another is not. It's not sudden, this standard has existed in one form or another since 1994.

> We can have a real discussion of what the meaning of a URL is

Yeah, let's do that instead of harping on about what's fair and unfair. It's not a matter of fairness, it's a matter of standardized definitions. By all means, create a new "amp:" URI scheme where the naming authority refers to whoever signed the data and resolves to your favorite AMP cache, but don't call it http or https.
This may be also interesting to open the market for linux based phones like pinephone where DRM isn't there to enforce this law perhaps?
>Anyone can disagree of course but just looking at the political affiliation ratios of educators makes it clear that one aspect of the hard sciences historically has been an ability to stay focused on utility despite post-modernism.

Can you explain this further? How does political affiliation of educators have anything to do with the focus on "utility despite post-modernism"? Further, isn't there some utility in a discussion on the meaning, importance, and place of 'utility'?

>they've just dropped the pretense of being truth seeking persuits.

Is there any evidence or reasoning to persuade the reader of this statement?

>but for a long time philosophy resisted efforts to 'mathmatecize' (my own word) the field because of concern that it would become inscrutible to outsiders

This isn't the case in my experience, rather, philosophers were concerned about the implications in terms of the kinds of arguments they can make and their relevance if the field were 'mathematized' - you may not be aware, for instance, of 'analytical Marxism' which proposes that mathematical models are a superior way to continue Marx's project - but it is not without its critics on methodological grounds[0]. As you would expect, mathematicians and quantitative economists working within analytical Marxism share some 'politically polarized' views too. Where is there space for the 'utility' of a political-economic project within your schema?

"The conception of mathematics as a mere language contains, however, the seeds of its own destruction. The notion of language as a simple medium through which ideas are communicated has been challenged from diverse perspectives; it has been reinterpreted as both constitutive of, and constituted by, the process of theorizing (e.g., by Williams 1977, 32). The use of mathematics in social theory, too, may be reconceptualized as a discursive condition of theories, which constrains and limits, and is partly determined by, those theories. Mathematical concepts, such as the equilibrium position associated with the solution to a set of simultaneous equations or the exogenous status of the rules of a game, partly determine the notions of relation and causality among the theoretical objects designated by the theories in which the means of mathematical formalization are utilized."

[0] As Amariglio & Callari said, claims of rigor and clarity may just as well be used as rhetorical devices, in exactly the same way Descartes proceeded with rhetoric to 'prove' his own mind and God.
I didn't say they were evil, I said they were stupid. I don't know if power does that, but I've spent enough time working around and for rich people that I sure as hell know money does.
Yes, especially when Rust could be a relief to many pains embedded software suffers from. The counter argument is of course that embedded software is very entrenched. Often we would be happy if we could use a normal C++ compiler like gcc or clang instead of the fragile pieces of art that semiconductor manufacturers give us.
That Norwegian decision is a travesty as presented here, how can a repair infringe on a trademark and how on Earth did that not lead to an appeal. Using aftermarket parts is a well established practice in automotive, I see absolutely no reason why that would not extend to phones. Are they going to demand cars are only repaired with OEM parts as well?
Yup. That's what I said. The user can benefit from my work.

Seriously. Why was what I wrote bad?

I just put enough legal fig leaf on to make sure I don't get sued for anything, do the very best work I can, and put it out there, for all to use.

I literally wrote a post, encouraging people to open-source their software, and I led by example; not decree, which is usually the best way to proceed.

Is the MIT license a bad license? If so, why?

I have found that if I make it GPL, then a lot of folks won't use it. I want people to use my stuff. I think it's good stuff, and can benefit users, by being a high-quality component.

I think I do have one GPL project; an ffmpeg wrapper that uses the GPL H.264 codec. I could probably get away with not licensing it GPL, but why bother? It's not gonna save the world. I suspect no one will have much of a use for it, anyway.
Thats one person saying it is faster. Without a reproducible test, thats pretty much worthless.
"Commutative" communicates something. "Abelian" communicates nothing.

"Order-independent" like I suggested communicates a lot.
One thing I like about subscribing to HN via RSS is that I get to see all the submissions that were flagged or demoted. I clicked this one thinking for sure it would be flagged as it's counter-narrative, but not yet! I'll check again later, mods must be asleep.

Edit: Flagged!
There's a hardware store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn near where I used to live that had a bird in the store, and it frequently did cell phone ring tones, cash registers, etc.

I thought that kind of exact copying was relegated to mockingbirds but this guy just looked like a parrot.
The term reactionary dates to the French Revolution. You imputing Marxism to any skepticism of the existence of “Cancel Culture” is a typical straw man; I am no Marxist.

The only relevant conspiracy theory I’m aware of is the one being advanced by those pushing the “Cancel Culture” narrative. All it takes is a few minutes watching Tucker Carlson or his comrades in arms to hear them lay out their specious case that there is a unified effort to unfairly cancel innocent celebrities. (And it is nearly always celebrities. It amuses me that the right wing narrative at the present moment includes a tabloid-like fixation on the fate of anyone halfway famous.)
And less obvious ones, like https://www.ellenator-gmbh.de/ which exists solely to exploit a legal loophole to get something that is arguably more dangerous than a car into the hands of people who are not licensed to drive a car.
Self-Cannibalism: FFmpeg Generating Video Using FFmpeg Binary
These two phrases... to me they seem like the new one "answers" to the old one.

Maybe it's something to do with it. They're happy they found a "continuation" to the previous phrase.
The Surprising Joy of Missing Out
Thank you for posting this. I rarely see anyone in tech discuss the negative sides of our success.

We revel in the adrenaline that chasing numbers provides yet rarely ponder the destructive nature of achieving those numbers.
Yea I know moralistic arguments lack teeth but on some level computer science is a field founded on the concept of good faith so I like to remain loyal to the spirit of Prometheus when I'm having my liver eaten out each morning by vultures aka my project manager.

And as I mentioned in my parable the lion didn't need the mouse to bite it in order to do the right thing you know what I'm saying?

In other words a 150 year+ institution should just know better and it's a shame to think they've been sucking the world dry for that long without a second thought as to how it might affect their own bottom line.
If the idea of adding more to your duties as a recreational sysadmin doesn't excite you, a Synology is fantastic. And there's quite an extensive array of app packages you can run on them with nice interfaces.

However if you're looking at doing more than basic storage, you might want to look at something like FreeNAS, Proxmox or Unraid. I've no experience with any of these but if you're wanting to do a lot of app containers for stuff like databases, media servers, home automation, Unifi Controller, download managers etc, these might make more sense.

I personally run a dozen docker containers on my Intel CPU Synology, but I wouldn't describe it as a seamless experience. I do 99% of the docker administration from the terminal (via ssh to the nas) and maintain it with custom shell scripts. I'm very happy with the outcome as I get the benefits of Synology (Hyper Backup being a particular highlight) and docker containers running on hardware that was running 24/7 anyway.
Isn't it surprising that Microsoft, Apple, Google, Netflix, Blizzard and others don't express their deep regret and support the people of Hong Kong? If they really stood by their values they would act in the same way as they did by supporting the BLM movement. It's just another proof that they only did that to get press coverage for being "benevolent" and not because they genuinely supported the people. Disgraceful.
Black lives do matter, but BLM the organization gets a lot of flak because they're unfortunately hijacking the concern of black lives with a Marxist political agenda. Here's one of the founders discussing this in an interview about BLM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCghDx5qN4s&t=423s

It's sad to me that we can't have a conversation about police brutality without having Marxists inject themselves into the conversation and harness it for a political agenda that is so violent and manipulative. I care very much about the sanctity of all lives, but I can't discuss black lives without having to explain that I don't support Marxists. That is messed up.
>The Norwegian judges made the final decision purely assessing trademark violations on these screens, based on obscure and technical details that are entirely invisible to consumers (...) while Huseby still maintains they were refurbished. (...)

>As Huseby puts it, Apple uses intellectual property law as a “weapon” by putting multiple logos and QR-codes on each component part of its screens, knowing that the Chinese grey market will not specifically cater to repairers in other countries that zealously enforce intellectual property. This creates a kind of “roulette” for repairers who want to import affordable, refurbished parts from China. Apple can then ask customs authorities in these countries to seize refurbished parts shipments.

https://repair.eu/news/apple-crushes-one-man-repair-shop/
Texthero – Python module to analyze any text dataset in seconds
Thermodynamics and the quantum most certainly would not exist if you did not bring them up. You are now the master of existence. I dub thee Molecule Man.
Except you can't in any serious organised form, like the olympics would be, or they'll come after you / the payers.
Such a crazy difference with the amount of resorts in japan. In Colorado there are <10 resorts within 3-4 hours, and your pass only works at a couple of them. Our problem is optimizing the time you leave to reduce traffic time and maximize skiing time.
Yeah, no, I get that. Student debt doesn't care how much you're making; if you're making anything, it belongs to a bank before it belongs to you. If that doesn't leave you enough to live on, the bank doesn't give a shit. And it was already hard to make a start without taking on decades of debt when I did it twenty years ago. It hasn't gotten easier in the interim.

I mean, I don't know how to explain to you that you should care about other people, and here's pretty much where I give up trying. But in a time when more and more people are saying that all the old advice on how to build a good life in America has stopped working and they can find nothing left for them but to barely scrape by or just outright fail entirely, you should maybe consider the possibility that they are not wrong about that. You probably won't. But you should.
I'm developing a web-based system which supports every browser in existence.

So far, I have full baseline feature support for everything back to Mosaic, including Lynx, IE3, Netscape3, Opera3, and many others.

At the same time, still including advanced features like client-side PGP for browsers which will support it.

Every browser presents its own challenges, and it is not always the oldest ones which have the dumbest behaviors.

My intent is to promote interoperability and offer something as an alternative to today's near-monoculture.
You don’t see the irony in that statement? You’re one person saying simdjson is faster, and you are also lacking a reproducible test. That doesn’t make your side of the argument particularly compelling either.

I’ve never used either library, so I don’t care which one is faster, but I would generally trust the author of the library to have tested the performance at some point more than I would trust someone who isn’t the author to comment on the performance of code they’ve never tested.

The author of that library isn’t present to make their case, so you’re the only one of the two who could provide evidence right now.

EDIT: the author is present now: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23738512