skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
IPad Lets Scientists Drag, Pinch and Swipe Real Molecules
>use my proceeds to invest in a small business, create jobs (the goal of the tax break), make the economy better

I was all ready to run up in here hatin' on tax evaders, reel off some polemic about how schools and roads need to be paid for by everyone, but then I read this.

Descending cloud of morning depression: averted. Best of luck to you.
I have never understood what is so difficult about Cocoa/ObjC's memory management. In very very complex projects, it can be like counting blackjack cards, but I've honestly never remembered my retain count for any object hitting over 5, and if it has, I've probably been doing something wrong. Most of the time it will never go above 2. All you do is add or subtract one from a number making sure you're never in the negative.

At least we don't have to declare how much memory to alloc and dealloc manually.
FWIW, they do own colour.com too.
Sony: Some PSN Services to be Available This Week
Yes, but it's harder to find that second 10 million users.
This is a lovely illustration of the Curry-Howard-Lambek correspondence, but I fear that they'll still think of this as software because it can be executed. It might make the point stronger if one were to reduce it all the way back to typed Lambda calculus.

Though even http://us.metamath.org/index.html itself seems to be unpersuasive, and it's concerned with writing the program equivalent to the ZFC axioms (which is, basically, the framework that underlies all the math most people have ever even heard of).

The person with the "what color are your bits" link, sadly, has the right idea. The law can, in fact, concern itself with distinguishing between mathematically equivalent things, legal fiction or not. It seems like we get more traction by arguing that the barrier to "invention" with software is so low and the risk of liability so high, even if one is not trying to infringe, that software patents hinder progress more than they help it.

Still, I love the illustration. Thanks for sharing.
You would have to rip out a lot of the introspection functionality in erlang to make this work eg

3> [P|_] = erlang:processes().
[<0.0.0>,<0.3.0>,<0.5.0>,<0.6.0>,<0.8.0>,<0.9.0>,<0.10.0>,
<0.11.0>,<0.12.0>,<0.13.0>,<0.14.0>,<0.15.0>,<0.17.0>,
<0.18.0>,<0.19.0>,<0.20.0>,<0.21.0>,<0.22.0>,<0.23.0>,
<0.24.0>,<0.25.0>,<0.26.0>,<0.27.0>,<0.28.0>,<0.36.0>]
4> erlang:process_info(P).
[{registered_name,init},
{current_function,{init,loop,1}},
{initial_call,{otp_ring0,start,2}},
{status,waiting},
{message_queue_len,0},
{messages,[]},
{links,[<0.5.0>,<0.6.0>,<0.3.0>]},
{dictionary,[]},
{trap_exit,true},
{error_handler,error_handler},
{priority,normal},
{group_leader,<0.0.0>},
{total_heap_size,987},
{heap_size,610},
{stack_size,2},
{reductions,2639},
{garbage_collection,[{min_bin_vheap_size,46368},
{min_heap_size,233},
{fullsweep_after,65535},
{minor_gcs,8}]},
{suspending,[]}]
As for the header/implementation split, I might have been brainwashed by the language, but I like it :) I take it as a nice division between the public interface and private implementation. And now that we have purely synthesized properties in the modern runtimes, we can keep the header file really clean:

https://gist.github.com/766381

I have never missed allocating objects on the stack, I am mostly happy with autorelease pools. They are slower and “less deterministic” than stack-based objects, but I don’t mind.
"In my experience most people who follow the big fad of the day (royal wedding, big brother, american idol, etc) are never really fascinated by it. If you ask them "what fascinates you about american idol?", the answer you're most likely to hear is "wtf, what do you mean?". Many of these things are designed to be attention-grabbing and to encourage chattering about their consequences, even if there is absolutely nothing interesting or actually at stake in that."

Hmm, my experience is quite different here. Generally I find that people may start off with some big fad of the day because it's nominally a 'safe' topic and something which can start a conversation without offending or knowing another persons interests apriori.

Almost any 'fad of the day' topic has a route into a more interesting topic.

American idol - influence of music on society, what defines popular, changes in the music industry that make idol possible, etc.

Royal wedding - the role of the monarchy in modern nation states, the role of weddings in changing fashion, is marriage as a concept out of date, etc.

Big brother - voluntary surveillance vs involuntary, peoples behavior when they know they are being 'watched' vs not being watched, the role of 'reality' tv in the definition of morals in 21st century society.

One of the things that can trip up folks is concluding that because someone just asked you your opinion on last night's American Idol decision they believe that the best use of your time would be watching American Idol. Take it as the equivalent of 'nice weather we're having today isn't it?' and you can often find a common discussion ground at the appropriate level.
Relevant blog post from a few weeks ago that talks about the use cases this code makes possible:

http://nosql.mypopescu.com/post/4633402570/riak-zab-zookeepe...
People are speculating on the future value of a conserved and limited quantity. Bitcoin consumes energy to mine.
I know your quip about the misspelling is a joke, but I think their branding will be problematic throughout the Commonwealth (perhaps less so in western Canada), and French speaking nations -- it just doesn't look right.

Not quite in the same vein, but instructive nonetheless, many years ago our US born chairman insisted on branding a product with the prefix 'kwik', a relatively common misspelling in the US, instead of 'quick'. The product bombed, and market research suggested the brand simply looked wrong to the target market. We rebranded, and as far as I know -- I've long since moved on -- the product is still around and does reasonably well.
> Also, nothing would ensure that the electronic money you accumulate would hold its value, and nothing would prevent the operators of the platform from issuing more, in the first instance to themselves.

Nothing prevents the government from doing the same. Also bitcoins are regulated by math, by principle I trust math more than I trust the government.
Get People to Vote.
> under the current developer agreement

This is what worries me. Objective C is the only safe way to go.
Somewhere along the line of my life, I sacrificed some smartness for social skills. I am glad I did when I read some things on here.
:) Yeah. I don't want to move the proceeds to an offshore tax haven or something. If I can follow the letter and spirit of the law to create jobs instead of paying taxes, I think everyone wins. And the more HN readers who know about this and can do the same, the better!
I am 21 and not yet.
Customizable Windows text renderers
> American idol - influence of music on society, what defines popular, changes in the music industry that make idol possible, etc.

In my experience, if you bring up american idol most people will more likely say something like "god, did you look at her hair??" than something like "I wonder how the perception of fame and importance will change in 21st century society after the music industry realizes the artist brand is meaningless". You must certainly have different social circles from mine, as while it is possible to talk highly about trash pop culture, most people are completely uninterested in doing so (i.e., they turn to trash to turn their minds off, not to reflect about society, life, the universe, and everything).
Not going to read the article, but will say that it produces interesting and uncontrollable cognitive leaps. Your mind is more explorative in its creativity. However, there are massive problems with using it this way: you do not remember very much and cannot think coherently.

As for it making everything seem hyper-real and 'true', yes, it also does that but it is false. If you were to remember everything from a trip, the likelihood of most of it being useful or correct is probably pretty low.

Lastly, I agree that it is too dangerous -- I don't suffer from psychosis but nevertheless my one experience was not enjoyable. It turned bad; I believe I had a panic attack which I acted upon in the worst possible way. You do not want to experience feelings of failure on LSD. Trust me. My body created physical sensations based on my own thoughts and I lay on a bed shivering...

However, I guess it had a profound and positive effect on me. I realised that the experience was not the one that I wanted from life and it made me reflect on who I wanted to be and how I wanted to live. I realised that one of the best things about my mind has always been the clarity of thought that I have in comparison to many people. I refuse to let that go and since then I've actively sought purpose.
Power companies can't regulate the price of Bitcoin because they don't control the price of electricity, which is determined by the government and/or the market.

Nobody ever regulates or controls the price of anything, except if they're the only supplier or the government.
I'd be down.
Apple Surprises Microsoft With Last Quarter Results
An interesting TED presentation, giving perspective on animal suffering:
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/mike_rowe_celebrates_dirty...
i thought the low-end makers switched to using coffee pots and french presses. larger producers probably wanted that lab equipment anyway.
What I get from this article is a) apt-get is awesome and b) there's subcategories in the launcher. I completely agree that apt-get is great, and subcategories aren't bad either. However, this has nothing to do with "app stores." apt-get has been around way before the ubuntu software center, and if anything it goes way deeper than just "apps." If anything, this article is just bringing up the point that software management on linux (for the more technically inclined) is better than on mac, something that isn't quite exciting or new.

I think articles like these are just looking for trouble. It immediately stands as being biased, and screenshots completely skew things in Ubuntu's favor. Seriously, "pushiness?" It's a bad thing now to be showing users applications on the home page of a store? Maybe it might get cluttered, but I definitely don't prefer Ubuntu's "Nice clean and unassuming" main page with just a category listing. "The listing is pretty simple?" Now you're just looking for things to say; I'm going to end my comment here before I make the same mistake.
I flagged your submission.

For some reason, you linked to a piece written by a a writer who apparently is not affiliated with the Washington Post, and to a post explicitly labeled "opinion. Then you created a headline here without any info whatsoever about the contents of the piece, merely stating that newspaper "has lost all journalistic integrity"...apparently because they published someone's opinion.

Publishing opinion is one of the things newspapers do.
It's not a legal approach, it's a social one. In happy socialist countries like Denmark, bike locks aren't really a problem : they consist of a short hook blocking the rear wheel and that's about it. It's completely inefficient, but it's obviously enough there.
It took me a while to realise the title of this article was about Color-the-app. Seriously, the name itself raises an eyebrow.
Obj-C survives b/c it is the only real way to write iPhone and iPad apps, plain and simple (ignoring Appcelerator and PhoneGap for the moment). If people had options, it is likely they would use the alternatives.

Look at Linux. The "official" language will always be C, but there are toolkits for building GTK apps in Python, Vala, Mono and other even more obscure languages. Some pretty big apps have been written in each and people will continue to use those as long as they are viable options. If, however, someone big enough and with enough clout basically said "only native C/GTK apps will be accepted on our platform", you would see people migrate to that toolchain. It is simple economics.

Apple has the clout (imo, unfortunately) to do that and have done it with Obj-C. They basically killed Java, which was an option up until I think 2 years ago. I can see Apple's perspective, supporting two toolkits is expensive and takes time, resource, energy and focus. In their mind, what benefit to they gain from supporting multiple toolkits? Developers? They know they are popular enough that the developers will take up Obj-C when Java was dropped. Sure there will be grumbling and moaning, but Apple DOESN'T CARE ABOUT DEVELOPERS except that they make apps to attract the users.

I'm not saying what Apple did is right or wrong, but it does make sense from a strategic point of view. However, there is practically no merit to Obj-c on it's own. There are more compelling alternatives at nearly every turn, but NOT if you want to play in the iphone and ipad ecosystem.
If you don't get a cut in the sale they have no business suing you. It'd be the same as someone suing Google for showing up in their search results. You are just showing a graphic search result (vs text only). It's like suing someone for being quoted word for word (given you're not fudging with their deals). I have a feeling Donald Trump would do that, but thats another story.

I'd actually speak with a lawyer to double check, and once clear I'd write "Piss off" in broken handwriting with crayon. ;) (Followed by a letter from the lawyer that begins - the CEO is obviously upset regarding this baseless lawsuit...)
If you live in the uk you wouldonlypay 10% tax the first time you sell a company, up to £10m per person.
Google interviews should be perfect for you then. Experience hardly matters; it's all CS theory and problem solving.
Future income, among other things; more generally, success. It's actually fairly good at that. Don't let outliers and bias fool you.
So what? The app is called 'Color'.

Name one company which relies on "contentious" spelling and has succeeded. I can't think of one.
TheCopyPasteBlog Monthly Traffic Report | April 2011
Well, call me weird but I like the .h/.c split. Header files are awesome for a quick lookup. Big implementation files are not.

About the stack ... well if you care about performance to this degree in your Obj-C code chances are you should implement the stuff in C/C++.
> Is anyone using Objective-C for some reason other than writing OS X or iOS apps?

I'd love to. I played with GNUstep but ... it's just light years behind Apple's runtime. Obj-C is a pretty nice language if you like smalltalk OO.
Does Colour need a certain critical mass to even start to be useful? I tried it in Sydney, at some very busy places around the CBD and I only ever saw one other photo from someone else.

Of course, I could have been using the tool wrong because I really had no idea which symbol did what, but seeing that one other pic suggested to me it was working and getting nearby photos.
too bad there's not so much said about optimizing latency, serving a lot of traffic is not that difficult, but getting the best latency to serve your files 50ms faster can make a big difference
> Obj-C has the flexibility of C

So I guess you implemented duck typing with some void-pointer acrobatics in C?
Npm 1.0 released (with global and local installation space)
meta tl;dr:

The blog post talks about interesting runtime properties of the Objective-C/Cocoa runtime that differentiate it from C and C++/Java.

Hacker News mostly rants about the Smalltalk-like syntax.
TBH, I would be surprised if Color didn't "succeed" in some way. They have enough money to try at least 5-10 different ideas & approaches and that is an incredible luxury. And I don't mean slight pivots, I mean complete departures from what they are doing now.

Will they be successful? It seems obvious that they are fumbling around and actively searching for a model. I'm going to wager that if they do "succeed" some day it is because the VCs worked hard to find them an exit into some big company.
It'd sure be fun in cases like these to hear more about the company - after the deal is done, of course.
Dear Co-Founder: Open Letter to your Co-Founder
If you just keep to "release what you alloc/new/copy" you'll be golden.
huh? Would you care to explain what I did wrong? I chose to disagree with one of the points of the blog. And I chose so because it is incredibly bad advice. If you have problem with the tone of my opinion - I have to say that advice was incredibly lousy and thus the tone of my comment reflects that.

The biggest problem audience like HN's (a lot of smart and socially awkward people) has is the one of lack of self promotion skills. These people are already too humble and too weak.

What you might misconceive of me is - that I am not commenting here for self-promotion. I am commenting here to share my knowledge and to receive feedback - just like yours. So from my viewpoint I am trying to increase S/N ratio by cutting down on courteousness. I can afford to do that since most of HN audience is well educated enough to know that opinions are ones own and thus know not to take things personally.

Also another strategy I use is the one of provocation. The provocation aimed at the kind of person I am hoping to entice here - leads to a more frank and to the point debate. The side cost is that there is a lot of emotion intermixed - but the sought information is usually still there. So while some people tend to exchange niceities and shallow conversation amongst wide circle of people - I want to hear opinions from people who have them.
Each dollar bill has the words "Federal Reserve Note" in big type at the top. That is because they represent debt of the federal reserve. The bureau of printing and engraving prints them for the federal reserve to hand out and is reimbursed for the cost of printing by the federal reserve.

Federal reserve notes have the very handy attribute in that they are the only currency that can be used to settle U.S tax liabilities.
Most all laptops are equal for development, regarding processing speed at least. As long as the CPU and video card are not budget types, and there is enough RAM.

What makes a big difference to me is the display quality and the battery. Apple tends to have very good batteries. That's why I personally would buy an used Unibody Macbook or Macbook Pro, one of the recent types with the long-life high-capacity batteries.

I do mainly Linux development work, on Ubuntu, using an older Macbook Pro, and everything just works great and is super smooth to use - in fact this is the best Linux machine I have used!
The kinds of algorithms you can express very cleanly in a functional language, like Haskell, for example, are a lot more awkward when you have to worry about managing memory at each intermediate step. Look at all the monkeying around you have to do with __block declarations etc. For typical Obj-C code, where you're just gluing together bits of the Cocoa API, I agree that Obj-C's memory management isn't too bad. When you're trying to work at a higher level of abstraction, it's a distraction.

Writing complex algorithms in Obj-C is a pain because of it's incredibly clumsy syntax for collections and the manual coercion of elemental types back and forth to objects. Look at an implementation of a neural net or something as simple as k-means clustering in Obj-C, then C++, then Scala or Haskell to see how poor Obj-C is for this kind of thing.

For example, imagine how much worse this would be in Obj-C:
https://github.com/cageface/brains/blob/scala/src/main/scala...

Admittedly, Scala is particularly nice for this kind of thing, and Java is no better than Obj-C, but even C++ gives you much better tools for abstracting this kind of code.
Anyone feeling socially awkward should read Dale Carnegie
Thanks! There is an easy way to import material from Google Docs and Word: cut and paste:-)

It's not as cool as using an API, nor as efficient in some ways, but it works for Word, OpenOffice, whatever, and it's very simple to explain to the target market for LiberWriter (hint: it's not people like Daniel Markham who go out and download the spec:-)
The 100 Rules for Being an Entrepreneur
From where I am sitting color seems like the idea of a computing scientist that has gone out of hand. The premise would work brilliantly if EVERYBODY was using color, but unfortunately they arent. Right now they seem to be facing the problem faced by any social network start up. If you dont know anyone in the network, where is the incentive to join?
I don't know about VirtualBox and OpenGL, but I just installed Parallels and everything works swimmingly! Better native partition support and what seems like very good OpenGL acceleration.

I also got native partition booting working very quickly in Parallels - I can boot both my native Windows 7 installation and my native Ubuntu installation - that are On Partitions Of The Actual Hard Drive. Took a tiny little bit of nudgework, but now it just goes.
This is kind of outside the scope of Nginx.
There is a stockholm night owls group too http://stonightowls.com

A group of 40 or 50 people that meet every few months.
The difference is that you're scanning, they're aggregating. Scanning is O(logn), aggregating is O(n).
How's Redis' overall persistence/performance? I'm always wary of having it handle critical data in fear that it will just up and lose some (like MongoDB has done for me), but I love it otherwise. Have you had any bad experiences with using it in production?
Yes, I feel like strangling anyone who center-aligns a mass of text.
Wow, so many of these are exactly stuff that I had to figure out, but I didn't know anyone else had them! Anyway, here's a few I know the answers to:

- The hallway problem: The best way to mitigate this is to know something about the person. Then you can say "hey, how's that <insert thing here> coming?". Or, if your friend is wearing something interesting, say: "Hey, cool shirt!".

- The magical friendship word: You don't really formally become friends with someone, say the phrase and have a ceremony and all that. Just start conversation or invite them to something you happen to be doing, like grabbing lunch or going to that <x> that you know the other person is also interested in.

- Expressing sentiment: This isn't about helping, it's about sympathy and compassion. Of course it won't make the problem better, but it might make the person feel better.

- Genuine curiosity: Just say "I'm not trying to be an ass, I'm really curious". And don't sound sarcastic while you do that. Does the job for me.

- Participating in a conversation about things you know nothing about: Either don't come in with a positive / negative bias or just don't talk. If you do decide to talk, keep in mind there is always something interesting in everything. American Idol: "You mean these people give up their jobs for a year to just sing?" "I wonder why person <x> got selected when he's obviously a talentless moron" "I wonder what happens to the losers after the show is over".

Wow, just talking about this stuff is awkward and makes me sound like a robot. I guess some people get it naturally and others like us don't.
Started at 16, wasn't an "app", but was an online business that generated more than enough money.
His username is "trotsky". If he's serious about that, you are probably not going to have a productive topic of this issue with him.
HN Meetup: Beijing
Since the last one was a really good time, we're organizing another Beijing HN meetup, at 8:00PM on Saturday, May 7th. If you'd like to come, drop a line to eric.meltzer@gmail.com, and I'll send over the details about where we're meeting once we know how many people are coming!
Asset Store works mostly from inside the Unity application. My product (RageSpline) is currently in the front page big banner, so you'll have no trouble finding it.