skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
I just got a samsung Gio from China Telecom. The Android Market is not there, instead there are three different lame market apps (estore, gomarket and samsung apps), google integration doesn't work, google maps is not available and it's really just a broken experience using this phone. I tried to install android market manually, but there are a lot of dependencies missing...

Now to be fair, for chinese users, gomarket is probably better and most people don't use google apps that much but it's really a pain...
I have the impression, from having had a look at the program, that they want you to be involved and available, which I suppose isn't that much to ask, given that the only other real string attached is to stay in Chile for 6 months. This would likely mean staying in Santiago.

BTW, for andrewcooke or anyone else there: how's transportation there? Can you get by with public transportation? Are cars cheap? Do they drive well or like maniacs?
Where did you see that AirBnB has only 10M cumulative revenue? That seems way too low.
I hate patents as much as the next guy, but to imply a patent is less valid because it was purchased is bunk. Part of the value of patents is that the inventor can sell them. If they aren't as compelling after being sold, then the inventor can not demand as high a price. That doesn't seem fair to the inventor. The fact that the patent has changed hands should not influence anyone's opinion on the matter.
It is only really a problem if you somehow want android to 'beat' iOS.

If as a consumer, I'm able to buy an Android phone that makes me happy, I think the situation is doing OK.
That's on the very low end for consoles, all current generation consoles do much better than this. It sure beats an N64, but it won't run Halo.
I think it's a psychological trick that Google is using, trying to instill to you the idea that you 're lucky to be their customer. </conspiracy
Could you share some of your experiences working in Chile? Where did you move there from? Did you already know Spanish? Have you enjoyed living & working there?
It's not necessarily a "cultural assumption" -- many companies only do business in the US. However, people of any ethnicity may reside here. Seems consistent to me.

I agree that splitting the city state is probably more complicated than it's worth though.
I think tags are a great idea, especially if one could block stories with certain tags (i.e. "I don't want to see anything tagged with Bitcoin or TechCrunch").

On the flip side, if someone really wants to read about Bitcoin, then can look at all stories with that tag.
This deserves a XZibit meme.
Lately when friends ask my advice about which DS, I suggest getting an iPod Touch instead unless they're really dying to have Nintendo property games (Mario). It does more than just games, no cartridges to lose, and the kids will want an iPod soon anyways.

Even the equivalent games are cheaper. LEGO Harry Potter is $4.99 on iOS vs. $14.99-19.99 on the DS. Sims 3 is $6.99 on iOS vs. $27.99 on the DS.
That's why I always had my SSH running on port 443.
Grails 2.0.0M1 is available
It's interesting, but it seems like as these startups grow bigger they become much like the corporations they are displacing - seemingly caring much more about profits than about doing the right thing.
I think the only reason there's a bunch of discussion that spreads across stories is because there are frequently duplicates that sit on the front page for ages. If they were quickly flagged off the front page, I doubt they would attract a significant portion of comments.
I think he's saying that people can redefine a problem so that it's no longer their problem. Defining the problem out, rather than actually addressing it.

In this case, instead of addressing (usability?) issues, the perceived problem, rather than being addressed head on, is redefined as being at the feet of the user, thus transferring responsibility and absolving oneself. (I.e "It works for me"!)

I think that's what they were saying.
Just give them a slow day and I'm sure they will be all over it. It's like those crimes that are somehow related to games or comics, "the murderer was reenacting his favorite scene!" or "the victim refused to give his character's login!"
Saying that you're sorry doesn't mean it was your fault or even have legal liability (which they might), it just means that you have a heart.

Saying 'I'm sorry' does legally imply it was your fault and you are liable, legally.

I am not a lawyer, but I have read my insurance documentation where it clearly says 'Don't say 'I'm sorry' if you are in an accident because ...'.
Airbnb Burglary Victim Says Company Tried to Quiet Her
don't forget to check out what's new at http://grails.org/doc/2.0.0.M1/guide/introduction.html#whats....
maybe just extend each article with links to other
discussion pages (say, adding beneath the text
"This topic is also discussed here (link)")

That's what happens with the "by hand" cross-referencing I already do, and which gets so many down-votes.
In this instance, to my knowledge, Apple isn't using shell companies. It has iTunes set up in Luxembourg, but that's a very real company. And each country has it's own Apple subsidiary which again are real companies in their own right.

I'd say that it's hardly tax avoidance, since they pay their taxes in the countries where the revenue is generated. No one in their right mind would give up 35% of their wealth simply to move it to a different country, and nor should they.
His argument makes no sense. The argument is that the Act might make it more expensive to get a patent (because it makes it easier for third parties to make the patent go through extra review). Small entities might not be able to afford that, so might not get as many patents, whereas large or well funded entities will be able to afford to go through the process. He gives Intellectual Ventures as an example of a large entity that will be largely unaffected by this.

First, he's wrong that IV will be unaffected. True, they can afford the cost of extra review, and so if all the extra review did was raise costs then they would be unaffected as far as their ability to get patents goes. However, that's not all the extra review does. The extra review will also cause some patents to be rejected that otherwise would have been issued. That will affect everyone who tries to get patents that are not novel or non-obvious to one skilled in the art, regardless of their size and ability to pay for the more costly procedures.

Second, even if the Act merely weakens small trolls, and leaves larger trolls untouched, that still has overall weakened trolls. No patent troll is strengthened by the Act.

Third, most troll patents come from small entities. The large trolls buy most of their patents from small entities or individual inventors. IV does do a significant amount of original research and gets patents on it, but those only comprise a few percent of their portfolio.
Google Now Imitates AOL With New Page Speed Service
A large advantage of lisp like languages is the data-as-code paradigm. To give up eval is to give up this.

It is definitely impossible to efficiently compile code with evals for all possible programs, but lots of code using the data-as-code paradigm generates data that is completely independent of input sources (macro like). This could be computed at compile time and thus efficiently compiled. A similar technique has been used for making Haskell run faster, called super compilation, and it shouldn't be too hard to implement in any functional language.

For evals that can't be compiled, well, it would be nice to still be able to do the dynamic inefficient eval, without botching the efficiency of the entire program. Do the normal dead code analysis, the eval might not work right, so provide a warning. The programmer can always do things to ensure any code they need isn't dead code eliminated by using it elsewhere. Yeah this is messy, but it leaves the choice up to the programmer and has no less power.
although everyone is initially coming to santiago, Valparaiso and Vina del Mar are doing all they can to grab a piece of the action (including offering free office space for SUP alumni) :)
The right way to handle this would be to make EJ right, then put insurance in place as part of the rental agreements that covers the future. Yes, insurance fraud exists, but insurance companies are good at ferreting that out. Since AirBnB is working on the latter, it makes no sense not to do the former.
Heatmaps for node.js and the browser
If you're held back by boilerplate, you're simply not a very good programmer. You need to learn to read and write code just like you read and write english. Yes there's boilerplate, but it's not a big deal. It's not something you need to worry about. Take the sentence I just wrote:

"It's not something you need to worry about".

That is 8 words, 5 of which are boilerplate. The only important words are "NOT" "SOMETHING" "WORRY". Who cares? It didn't slow me down typing out the other ones.

If you're really spending that much time writing code, you haven't yet worked out that programming is 90% thinking about things and 10% writing it.
Like others I have been following this and others passively as it's progressing. I'm not convinced the issue is as extreme as others are predicting.

I do agree that AirBnB should do more in this case though - from afar it looks like their reaction is based out of fear (Oh f%$k it happened, now what?! Let's get rid of it fast!) rather than compassion, it's impossible to say for sure, that's just what it looks like to me as an outsider. Compassion for the customer/victim/human being seems like a no brainer. I, too, agree with the sentiment that people are generally good and want to do the right thing. I'm hoping that the reason there has not been the level of support that seems to be expected is the result of fear. Fear for what others will expect when it happens again.

If they choose to not change their approach as a result or do anything at all here will it kill the company? At this point I doubt it. It's not good but I don't think it's a company killer, they're more at risk from being killed by regulation than bad PR I think.

As an opportunistic entrepreneur like others here my instinct is to look at it as an opportunity for good PR but that is quickly overcome by simple empathy, someone has been hurt by the product. Even if you consider it to be indirect someone still got hurt while interacting with the system. I personally choose to do business with companies and individuals who are people first and professionals second. That means businesses acting to Cover My Ass first are weak and those who act to do the right thing are atrong. I conduct my own business with the same thinking.

At this point it doesn't look like Chesky and company are the latter but rather acting with thinking from the former. The question I'm curious about is simply: why? I don't understand what circumstance would cause me in Chesky's shoes to not call her and at the very least be a compassionate human being until it was resolved to a reasonable extent. Something is amiss. edw519, some of your suggestions might be a bit extreme but surely something can be done to help her as it seems not enough has been done. Why not?
> I'm not an economist, but I think that when money flows from A to B, the economy does grow.

Money moving from one place to another does not always help the economy. When money flows from the corporate coffers directly into the private accounts of its executives, generally little of that money actually flows into the greater economy. When you consider that under normal circumstances 30% of that money would flow into the federal government to fund programs, it's pretty clear that less money flows into the economy in cases of tax amnesty.
Which book or site would you recommend for first exposure?
Good Defensive Patents Are Bad Patents (Julian Sanchez)
pg in relation to the Offer HN fad of a few months back:

Don't worry, these things always run their course.

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1839740
A newer better interface... the feed is too hard to read.
A native application for your choice of OS would be nice too.
I'd argue that the natural option would be

07920748555

When writing it you might choose to add spaces, but that'd be for readability, not because of some notion of area codes.

It's clear even from the name that area codes doesn't apply to _mobile_ phone numbers.
Interesting concept... I'd go with a different name though.

I'm assuming it is just "selling" loyal customers of a product/service to businesses in exchange for them giving a sample of their product for free. Could work well in other industries, as long as you can ensure it isn't abused (i.e. I buy $1.30 coffee 4 times at Tim Hortons/Dunkin Donuts, then get a free organic latte ($5) at the place down the street... )
Twitter is a great tool to met new people, and it's not invasive or rude to @mention someone and ask to meet up. Break the ice by saying you're into startups and will be in town. You'll be surprised how many people like to meet up!
No one can say for sure. It's a doomsday scenario that no one is really prepared for.

The only thing anyone can say with any certainty is that the next president of the USA will be a Republican, because that's what this is all about. Destroy the economy, blame the incumbent, and scoop up the next election.
I can't discount your experiences. There is no doubt that Android in its earlier years was kind of an ugly baby. The OS suffered fundamental faults, lag on user interactivity being a primary one.

Is that true with current devices? Absolutely not. Gingerbread suffers from zero of the complaints that you mentioned.

"I had a task killer installed. It was my most frequently used app."

You should probably remove this from your post because it betrays that you are an ignorant user. All else follows from that.

While you have edited your post here to temper the zeal, comments like "Android just replaces feature phones" are, well, "fanboy" type comments. Tell my Galaxy S II that.

You're angry about something and are taking it out on Android. No one should draw much from your dated observations.

This story is about a bad device, possibly even a defective handset. Call the press, someone got a lemon!
Hands on: new Android Market app sells books and movie rentals
I'd be happy with a hide button
Not sure about the details there, and wikipedia is silent. Certainly SJG employees were active in the phreaking community. But AFAIK none were ever charged with anything. And I know with certainty no charges resulted from this raid in particular.

The whole thing was a terribly botched job, the "facts" in the warrant were a mash of giant whoppers of technobabble. It was a mess.

Did the SS have the best interests of society at heart, and might they have reasonably been fooled into thinking something was up at SJG? Yeah, probably. Did they actually do the right thing? No way.
Merging discussions is IMO a better way, but it's also trickier.

(I, for one, mostly upvote your cross-links - thanks for keeping the graph connected!)
Attachments.me is Rethinking Collaboration in Email
the benchprep webapp is a great use of the backbone.js framework
Oh sure, it's for readability that you split it (or the equivilent when speaking) - but because the standard for splitting up a mobile number is the same as the standard for splitting up a landline, it's pretty well known that, if a form (or whatever) were to want your number split in two, then you classify the first five digits of the mobile number as the "area code".
Wookey's site moved to wookware.org, the new version of the name page has another paragraph. http://wookware.org/name.html
GDP = Gross Domestic Product.

In order to grow GDP, you must increase the production of goods and services domestically.

Sure, more money for investors/employees is not bad. But an amnesty is no different than the government directly giving money to them. It's never bad to give employees a tax credit, but when we're in such dire straits there are more urgent uses for the money. It's never about "Is giving money to X wasteful?" but more about "Is that the best I can do?"
> I intend to look at the data in the strings and see if it looks anything like a SQL command

How will you do this? The only certain way I can think of is having an extra copy of the database you're using with a little "dummy" data in it, and testing user input against that to see if it changes data it shouldn't. But that would be computationally expensive.

If you're checking with a regex or something, there's 1,001 ways to get around that.

There are guidelines for SQL injection prevention in .NET[1], but what you describe ain't them.

[1]http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff648339.aspx
It'll be interesting to see how much this gets adopted. Ad-hoc query languages like SQL are great for operations and reporting, but if your NoSQL store needs to conform to the limitations of the unQL language, aren't you losing that "polyglot persistence" quality of using NoSQL?
Victims need closure, they don't need a job by the one organization they associate with their plight. Likely this will haunt her for years as it is. Just having your place burgled is bad enough and reason for plenty of people to move out and/or never feel safe again in their own home. Imagine what this does to you.

There is a tremendous breach of trust here, especially in the part where AirBNB says that a suspect is in custody and she says that is not the case.

If the police would inform anybody it should be her, not AirBNB so one of them is not truthful here and that alone should preclude any relationship beyond getting this behind them asap, employment does not even enter into the equation.

That requires a basis of trust that I think that AirBNB will not be able to re-establish with this person barring some kind of miracle.

AirBNB needs a team that handles this sort of thing because it likely happens with some regularity, even if not this public or of this magnitude. But that does not mean that they should hire this particular person, or that it would be even reasonable to assume that she would be interested in such a position.

She's a traveling writer, not a psychologist and saying 'AirBNB should hire her' is taking away her ability to govern her own destiny, it is not AirBNBs call to make.
The scale is obviously different, so in that sense I wasn't fair. But the defense is exactly the same, disclaiming responsibility for the acts of your contractors. I don't think any victim (Craigslist, NoTW phone hackees) cares about the fine point of the employment relationship.

EDIT: took EJ off the parenthesized list of victims, as she was not the victim of a contractor.
I am not sure what you mean by "merge" mechanism, but it would be wonderful to have a feature like on StackOverflow, where's before you actually click submit, the app recommends that you review suggested links before posting your own.

Of course, this is going to help people who haven't see the same story repeat, but this isn't going to stop those who repost hot topics just for the sake of gaining karma points.
"offered to help her in any way that she needs."

From the blog postings she has written, this doesn't seem true at all

"We will continue to make ourselves available to her" &
"We have encouraged her to reach us" &
"we are standing by"

You shouldn't be just standing by, you are the ones that need to reach out and help her. The tone of language used here is extremely passive when airbnb needs to be more active about this situation. Also, did you really ask her to take down the blog post or put it in a more positive light?
I'm liking that Model A as a pocket-size emulation box for early games machines (specifically the SNES and ZX Spectrum).
I'd vote for a style of hand-merge mechanism that would

- Take the title of the post with the most discussion

- Turn it into a link like a poll, where each link has it's own "interior" link

- Throw all of the conversations from the posts and throw it into the main body of the combined post.

Users keep the ability to gain points, the front page stays clean, and no data is lost. The only downside is there's no easy way to flag things as "merges", unless the ability to "flag to merge" is added for people at a certain karma level. Enough flags, it automatically rolls them together.
I'm not convinced that multiple submissions is a bad thing. We're all going to continue to get out information from different sources, and the discussion that follow a particular submission may have as much to do with the source as the story. Some people might place more trust in one source over another or one poster/submitter over another, and I think that is why the multiple submissions problem hasn't already worked itself out on its own. Any sort of automated merge/filter would be a form of editorializing that could squelch valuable discourse.
Seriously? What is it with this "imitation fetish" of the tech blogosphere that they want to mention it every time a service slightly resembles another service, or product.
Five myths about entrepreneurs
Technological advances can cut both ways though.

Whereas we definitely have more sensitive equipment inside a given building, we also have improved materials and designs that can better-withstand weather events.

I wonder to what degree events that would have formerly been billion-dollar disasters have dropped off this chart, because power plants, hospitals, etc are resisting forces that would have seriously damaged older buildings.

And on the other side, I wonder to what degree our lax infrastructure spending has exacerbated the cost of these disasters. Truly if we were spending on levees and spillways at engineer-recommendations, recent hurricanes and floods would have caused notably less damage [1].

I guess my only point is that while I concur that it's careless to try to draw conclusions from this data, I don't think we can clearly assume that progress alone shows us which direction the data is skewed and why.

[1] Would we have even had to open the Morganza spillway if Louisiana's levees had been maintained and updated over the years?
Another possibility: when submitting a link, simply have an automated check against previously submitted links, and give an automatic upvotes or two to the previously linked submission. In this way, if a bunch of people resubmit something (say, an old article is making the rounds on the net yet again), it will have a chance to be brought back to the front page - with all the previous discussion - so that HN can stay a place where people can discuss the hot topics of the day, even if the "hot topics" happen to be four years old.

This aims to solve the "double discussion" problem, but it won't fix the "I don't want to see it again" problem.
The word you were looking for was "popular", not "practical". Our industry is largely internally rife with fads, marketing, and anecdotal discussion, rather than objective analysis and scientific measurement.

And then, this statement is just blaming the tools rather than the developers. "C chops" means less than "has good logical thinking skills and exposure to many programming approaches/patterns".
It's frustrating how little progress has been made. In a lot of ways I feel like the problems are getting worse not better. For the average person who has very low expectations and a high tolerance for pain it may not be a big issue but it really gets on my nerves to keep hitting the same issues over and over again every single day. I would be happier using stock Android but the process of rooting my phone is about 25 steps and requires downgrading to an old version of Android to root the device before installing a new ROM. (even though Motorola supposedly decided to unlock their boot loaders I haven't seen any change yet)