skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
Well, he did say:

"The Tesla I drove was an engineering prototype but is said to be very close to the one I'll get next year."

So I guess he's getting a 2009 model or something.
If there is already a clear competitive advantage then indeed the competitors are not that big of an issue. But it is very hard to ascertain that. Besides almost every company has smart people. So if there is something that can be done and it is not technologically impossible (or patented) then chances are that lot of other folks can do it too.

Those besides incumbents have about the same chance as you starting up and that is fair. The real issue is in estimating the likelihood that incumbents would dive-in too before you get traction. So what are the factors that one can look at or ensure to minimize the risk of doing something that the entrenched players would replicate.
Or what are the factors based on which such an idea should be put aside?

I really appreciate all the high quality input I am getting.
In an another post he mentions getting on the Tesla waiting list, quite some time ago. So long ago I can't be bothered to dig it up out of the archives.
Apple's App Store schizophrenia driving developers crazy
Developers, Developers, developers is that supposed to be a good thing?
That document is specious. Getting something to orbit is a lot harder than launching a whack of V2s (holding nothing but an explosive payload) across the English Channel and the huge market for rockets foreseen in 1993 (when that paper was written) disappeared with the bankruptcy of the Iridium, Orbcomm, Globalstar, Odyssey, etc. communication constellations. Today we can mass-produce missiles which are much more effective than the V2, but we still cannot create cheap orbital vehicles.

Mass production and cheap launches would be a sure-fire money-maker, right? That it hasn't happened in a half-century of western rocket technology should raise a bright red flag that something other than willpower or a global conspiracy is keeping it from happening.
...or, "When people confuse correlation with causation."

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/fashion/15jolie.html?_r=3&...
I guess it's Elon Musk Day today. Good news from his two most ambitious projects.
Bailing Out Wall Street Won't Save Main Street
"opportunity to die prematurely and painfully" Was presumably not the reason they gave to their wife when convincing them to go.
The Euro stumbling is the only thing that I can see that will stop that. It is very possible, just the focus right now is on the US. Greenspan would have inflated another bubble (of some sort) and started talking down the Euro already. Bernanke is just too nice of a guy to even think of that.
"... How much their vehicles cost? ..."

The short answer, a lot.

Interesting reading about Chinas efforts with project 921 ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_program_of_China#Project_... The main development appears to be at Shanghai Academy Of Spaceflight Technology (SAST) which is the technological backbone of the Chinese Missile programme ~ http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/china/contractor/sast.htm with considerable resourcing ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_program_of_China#Universi...

The main booster is the Long March 2F ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_March_2F which is upgraded 2E (with reported advanced fault monitoring & diagnosis & a not so reliable design after an astronaut on S5 mission ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yang_Liwei reported being sick due to vibrations).

The main capsule is the Shenzhou ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenzhou_spacecraft an "improved" Soyuz (a very stable & reliable design) ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soyuz_spacecraft

I'm not sure how the costing is being done. In the 90's the Chinese decided to privatise their commercial satellite programme and the US placed a lot of restrictions on it. But this program is different. There is no real military advantage in a manned programme, so I guess the real cost is being funded by the government. I do know one thing. They are looking to do this saving money. The asking price for the Soyuz was knocked back and their own version produced. So the aims seem to be quite ambitious. The cost reflected by the Russian Soyuz is based countless hours of reliable missions ~ http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/technology/shenzhou_...
When you get to THE idea you'll know it because it'll be all you'll think off for weeks
Is anyone interested in Alan's point? He knows that computer science is a math. Computer science is to computer engineering (including programming) as theoretical physics is to experimental physics. The problem is that computer scientists haven't done anything relevant to 95% of computer engineering for decades, and computer engineers apparently stopped reading the computer scientists even before that.
What goes up must come down. You can't get something for nothing.
It's not about the idea, it's never about the idea, it's all the execution. It shouldn't matter to you if someone copies your idea because you know you can execute better than them. They can make X, but you can make a better X or better market X or make more money from X, etc.

Most of the time, whoever implements an idea first doesn't win, it's whoever implements it best.
the thought of glow in the dark rounds as tracers actually sounds quite amusing.

I just remarked that it's going to be harder than it seems, nobody said anything about fun.

airsoft by its nature is silly and unrealistic. so is laser tag, paintball, and other mock war games. and yet, i enjoy them all.
Old people Facebook disasters
I'd love to see the proof. But you did not post your email address. Could you send it to mine?
JQuery to ship with ASP.NET MVC and Visual Studio
Thanks to Will for sharing a well written article.

I am careful not to diagnose myself or others and using labels: OCD, ADD, depressive, etc... The reason I am careful about labeling is I don't think the diagnoses are accurate enough. I have concluded that maybe we can't always identify the disorders, maybe we can't cure the disorders, but we can coup with and more openly discuss the symptoms.

If you are someone that suffers from the behavioral patterns discussed in the article, try various methods to break the behavior bit by bit.

Here are tools I use:
exercise,
cook a meal (it has a beginning and an end. You get to enjoy it in a short time frame. Not like software development which never ends.)

What tools do you use?
I only have two words for this video.

Awe Inspiring.

I had to send it to everyone I know, Thanks for the link.
Story Musgrave: Why Space, Why Explore?
Re: My comment, I just wanted to say I have nothing against the Chinese except their brutal regime. I don't intend to slut their nation on grounds of any prejudice.
if you don't know who Story Musgrave is ~ http://www.spacestory.com/storyf.htm
Yeah true, Wall St bankers provide the service of capital allocation and liquidity (and in a perfect world, they would be allocating capital efficiently, but that's a story for another day). However I think what rankles people is three things (and most of these were touched on in the article):

1. They don't risk their own money. The true capitalist risks his own money for some productive enterprise, and is rewarded if it comes off, or walks away with nothing if it doesn't. Most investment banker chiefs walk away with millions even if they run the company into the ground.

2. They don't produce anything tangible. Ultimately they just move money around. It's worth something, but multi-million dollar salaries? Probably not. Also, the things they produce don't have visible impacts on normal people unless it goes belly up.

3. The intrinsic value of an investment banker's production is arguably a lot lower compared to how much they are compensated. I'm not going to go into this, but how much is capital allocation intrinsically worth? In my opinion, the work they do is probably more comparable to the value of a tax accountant.

The article was about why people hate bankers. You've argued why the market values them so highly, but it doesn't necessarily mean that the vitriol of the common man is unjustified.
SkyDeck gets $3MM
Let's all breathe a sigh of relief that something like the App Store isn't necessary to use regular desktop apps on our Macs.. if it were, I'd suspect a mass exodus away from the platform would occur. Thanks to the lock-in / uniqueness of the iPhone platform, they can get away with it for now.
I think Microsoft is offsetting the pain developers face in trying to make web pages work in IE/JScript by promoting jQuery. Without a library like jQuery/Prototype its really difficult to get IE to do what you want. Good news.

I really hope they make IE conform to standards.
Humans clearly were made to see in the light.

...Or not.
When tissue is pronounced "Kleenex", you have a problem.
When tissue is pronounced "Kleenex", you have a problem.
Cirtex hosting review
www.cirtexhostingreview.org - you are reading one of the oldest cirtex hosting review & cirtex hosting coupon site online, dedicated to reviewing cirtex hosting & its hosted with cirtexhosting.com too.
Don't use a generic term to name your startup? Trademark your company name?
For the counter-argument, read this by Raymond Chen, a developer on the Windows Shell team: http://blogs.msdn.com/oldnewthing/archive/2005/01/14/352949....

(In a nutshell, he argues it's really hard to write exception-safe code)
Skydeck gets boost for service that reminds you to call your Ma
Linux for Older PCs : From Ubuntu to Vector Linux
You're right that there is a lot of choice. But most people who like to use Linux actually see this as a big plus. That may be hard to understand for people who only use Windows. Not that there's anything wrong with using Windows, it's just a different paradigm.

When first wanting to get into Linux, the best option is to talk to someone that you trust not just to be a fan boy for their favorite distro, but to tell you honestly which they think would be best for you after you having told them (also honestly) where your computing experience sits on the scale from novice to expert and also what you intend to do with the distro you eventually choose.

These days, for a novice user wishing to experiment with Linux in general, I think the choice is pretty clear. Ubuntu.

Your last sentence seems to imply something along the lines of that MS should feel more secure that Linux as a whole is diluted into numerous distros which assumedly makes it harder for novices to get into Linux. Ergo, Linux is not as much of a threat to Windows' dominance of the market. I think this is missing one point that often comes up at least in the Debian community and this is that Debian has never really had the goal of dethroning Windows and taking on it's mantle as the "dominant" OS or anything like that. Debian doesn't care. The project has different goals to this. Debian is just doing its thing, and if that thing happens to work for you, then great. If not, then try something else.

Maybe Ubuntu does have this goal to dethrone Windows or whatever, and if so, more power to them. But my point is don't assume that all Linux distros even care how popular they are, or care about competing with any other OS, because many don't.
Can Browser Plug-ins Be a Business?
A "Microscope" for Exploratory Computer Science Permalink
My brother used to race his Porsche, so after reading the article I found myself wondering "How long til people start trying to circuit race these things"

Anyone care to put an estimation on a time frame? I'm thinking somewhere around 2010-2012.

I think someone putting some serious effort in trying to set up a series would help in a greater adoption of the electric car.
What’s the Right Business Model for a User-Generated Review Site?
14 is indeed an . . . odd number for them to pick. Looks almost like they just grabbed the top 14 from distrowatch.

My top 10 list is:
1. MEPIS
2. PCLinuxOS
3. Kubuntu
4. Linux Mint
5. Fedora
6. Debian (would be higher on the list, but for that annoying "Iceweasel" thing)
7. Dream Linux
8. Slax
9. Gentoo
10. Sabayon

Though the list changes often.

RE the discussion about having lots of choices . . . yes for some it can be overwhelming, but not everyone is an idiot. That whole notion needs to evaporate already, especially as that generation which has essentially "grown up" with lots of technology, innovation, gadgets and more enters the workforce in full. Of course there are still idiots, but not with as great frequency as less-technical generations past.

When attempting to explain my software obsession / obsession for choice in OSS / to fellow females who aren't hardcore techs, I like to make an analogy to shopping for clothes, which most females relate to well. Some females like to populate a closet full of fancy clothes; I like to fill my website -- http://oss.zentu.net -- have my computers be full of interesting software.

Or something like that. Analogy, close enough! :)
Ok, so why does 2+2=4?
The source of this article is full of Anti-semite drivel.
Sociocast launches new personalized content delivery platform
Timely subject matter, too...
The short answer is that packages don't work across distros. Or perhaps I could say they shouldn't be expected to work across distros.

The longer answer is that in situations where one distro has descended from another (probably the most well know example being Ubuntu descending from Debian) it is possible to use an Ubuntu package on Debian or vice versa, I've done it. But you should have a really good reason to do this and have done your homework (I can only think of one occasion where I did have a good enough reason to do this, and it didn't last long). This is possible (though not recommended) because all the distros that descend from Debian use the package management system derived from Debian also, which is incidentally the best one, IMO.

If you wish to know more about what makes it the best and the policy that guides how packages move through the different Debian releases (Experimental, Unstable, Testing and Stable), check out this link:

http://newpeople.debian.org/~srivasta/talks/why_debian/talk....

Particularly, you could read the section titled "Quality of implementation".

I assume something similar would apply to Red Hat and all the distros that descend from it for example... Their package management policy just doesn't work as well is all. :)
Can Social Bookmarking Improve Web Search? [a paper]
Military Surplus
Military Surplus BDU, ACU, ABU at wholesale prices. Free Shipping. Quantity Discount.
The Angle of repose
Also, the naive perspective on the .999999999999_=1 debate happens because some people intuit the hyperreals. It's in the hyperreal number system that there can be an infinitely small difference between .99_ and 1, because that infinitesimal is defined to exist where it isn't defined in the real number system.
Some would have a "Firefox3" option in their respective repository or package manager which makes the update very very easy (APT/YUM/RPM). These allow you to check the box and press "update". PCLinuxOS does this, for this specific upgrade, if I remember correctly (Firefox2 -> 3). Others that require a little more work let you just download the tar.bz2 file, decompress via command-line it in the appropriate directory. But sometimes it takes a bit of reading the documentation to understand how to get the symbolic links and such launching the correct instance of the browser.

Actually, I don't know if I should be attempting to answer your question when I'm so tired. Hope that makes sense.
"Grid" + Large Hadron Collider (LHC) = Faster Internet- Times Online
The article has no anti-semite anything. I don't know anything about the authors. But the article itself has sound logic and is well written.
"PowerPoint is a terrible idea because it takes everything interesting about what computers can do and brings it into an expensive form of paper. Alan now jumps into a demo of the system he’s using that isn’t PowerPoint. He draws a car and then animates it with a script. This is based on what children do with his system, Squeak. "

I found that tidbit interesting. The thing is, when you invent new things, you need some type of metaphor for what already exists, or people will have a hard time adopting it or using it.
The old-fashioned way of making strings for musical instruments
An iPhone Opinion Extravaganza
You don't get it. And, frankly, you sound like someone who played junior high football 10 years ago and is claiming that you're just a set of cleats away from playing for an 0-4 NFL team.

There are lots of people willing to do those jobs for a lot less money. The problem is that no one in a position to hire such people trusts the "lot less money" folks.

Instead, they hire the few folks who have demonstrated success on the ladder up to those jobs.

If you think that's easy, go for it and turn down the big bucks when it's offered.
The whole quiet thing creeps me out about the Tesla. Its a sports car you are supposed to hear the engine roar. + the whole quiet thing greatly increases your chances of some soccer mom side swiping you
Excellent point.

Never. Neither does In-N-Out, another privately owned "openly" christian company.

Staying private is one good way to alleviate issues with upset share holders and continuing to passively support the owners beliefs. This is fine as long as the company still respects the rights of the share holders, customers and employees.

As many have already stated, and i'll reiterate. There are two issues being discussed here. 1) gay rights. [no question they should have equal rights] 2) entangling support for social issues with a public company [this is where people have problems].

All the publicly held multi-national companies that I know of offer benefits to a homosexual partner. But they do it through the normal workflow of HR. The problem is Google does everything differently. Including making this announcement. So the question remains is this an acceptable way to do it? Google thinks so. (now my libertarian free market tendancies come in to play) If you support the way they did it, buy some more Google and give them a positive blog article. If you disagree sell it or short it and go use duckduckgo or yahoo.
Obama's quote for "sheriff" is pure fiction, from a bizarre and unfunny satire piece.
Coming soon: searching the web by page layout.
> Why can't we divide by zero?

By definition (of the division operation).
The article doesn't actually mention anything about jews ...

In fact, it seems fairly reasonable - stop with the ad hominems. Even if some other article from the same author is b.s., that doesn't have any impact on the legitimacy of this.
If you can't describe the principles for updating on a small amount of evidence, you can't describe the principles for updating on a large amount of evidence.
needs much more on the parallels between Japan's economic bubble of the 80's and the current US bubble - been looking for some commentary on this. Still, good post.
I agree w/ your point except the part about trading being a value-added activity. Liquidity, if you ask Warren Buffett, is overrated.

When people trade AAPL, for example, there is a loser and a winner. The real value is not created by those trading AAPL it is created by Steve Jobs and those working at AAPL. While trading is not zero-sum, it is a mostly zero-sum activity.

You might say. AIG may beg to differ, since it went under for liquidity, rather than solvency reasons. However if you don't employ dangerous amounts of leverage, it is not an issue. There are plenty of insurance companies in business who didn't dance too close to the edge like AIG did.
Interesting read. Especially considering the school of engineering at my university just replaced its last Solaris station in favor of some flavor of Linux.
Paixnidia
Greek flash game site with loads of free online games.
Fascinating Jorge Luis Borges Story About a Man With a Perfect Memory
Printed Circuit Board (pcb): All You Need to Know
A PCB (printed circuit board) has more functions than just being a power facilitator as it provides mechanical support for the many components that are attached to it; it is the backbone of the electronic device, conforming to overall shape and dimensions, provides for signal fan out opportunities, etc.
Ruby Performance Tools
Electricity - allows Ruby and Erlang to talk using an Erlang port to a Ruby process
As a car nut that has spent time on a race track (exhibit a: http://flickr.com/photos/pauls/sets/72157594286920410/ ) in various sports cars, I see a strong dichotomy between Tesla owners/gawkers and real car guys. Yeah the Tesla accelerates faster than most people will have ever experienced before and it's neat with its whole 1 gear thing, instant torque and of course being all electric. But it will be the laughing stock of any track day.

First off, as Wil pointed out, it doesn't like staying at 100mph+ for very long. That naturally makes it not a track friendly car. It will get passed up easily on the straightaways at some tracks (ex you can hit 140+ on the back straight at Road Atlanta). And the brakes will get roasted and it will run out of battery after just a few sessions. Not to mention that there's no fun in driving a car and not shifting gears and toying with the clutch, and of course being deafened by the loud sound of a free flowing V-8,10,12,whathaveyou

Okay, just my little rant. In summary the Tesla is not a car guy's car, it's a SV show-off car.
A better question is - is SPARC on it's deathbed? If yes, then Solaris (as we know it) probably is too.

Answer is probably only "maybe" at this stage. The SPARC/Solaris combination (usually w/ Oracle) is a mainstay in the financial industry, so the current climate might be a significant hit for Sun.
This is not an attack on you personally, nor is it an attempt to scientifically "prove" that all whites are smarter than all blacks, or some other such nonsense. I'm of European descent and I'm positive that for any given race/ancestry, you can find someone who is strictly smarter than I am (by any metric you want).

The point you're missing by interpreting our statements as personal attacks is that we're talking about group mean differences. And the reason this is relevant is that for the past 40 years in the United States, inequality of outcome has been taken as evidence of inequality of opportunity (i.e., lower average African-American and Hispanic educational/economic achievement is evidence of discrimination by whites), thereby justifying affirmative action and other forms of income redistribution. This is a perfectly reasonable conclusion if you assume that all races have an equal distribution of cognitive abilities. What we're trying to say is that this assumption is unfounded.
dead eh?
SPARC deployments are a fraction of Solaris deployments, which are in turn a small fraction of server deployments. That's for an entire computer architecture. SPARC has also been displaced by MIPS on the high-end and PPC on the low end of "pizza-box" and network infrastructure, and the embedded market seems to belong to ARM.

Financials and WebSphere farms definitely do still run Solaris/SPARC, but plenty of huge financials have also transitioned to RHEL.
I am not much of a programmer. I love designing things, I love layouts, I love figuring out the mechanics behind a system. That said, I'm ignorant with various languages and what does what. Is it possible to use Python to parse a web page? I'm woefully ignorant where stuff like that is concerned.
This is on similar lines to PG's essay on wealth -> http://paulgraham.com/wealth.html (One of my all time favorites, wish i had learnt about it earlier).
I guess that solar energy will offer economic reasons at some time. Also I suppose that the unique properties of space (like less gravity, no earthquakes, no weather) will be of interest for some industries one day. But probably space exploration will only really take off once we have the space elevators.
So I assume smug geeks are immune against bad driving?