skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
Yahoo has just announced Yahoo Cocktails, a set of tools for developers to use that make web apps look and behave more like native apps. Mozilla is working on tools to help developers sell web-based apps to mobile device users, enabling them to make profits just as developers in the iTunes App Store or Android Market can now do.

Yes, we can finally relegate this obsolete dinosaur to the dustbin of history once we faithfully replicate every aspect of it.
And thus Skynet was born.
It'll shock people, but it's still a cheap shock. The 2 example the grandfather post gave weren't great, but I think that in itself is the issue--coming up with effective emotional charged speech without using profanity is difficult, but completely possible. It takes work! And I think that is what a lot of people here are saying--cussing is cheap and lazy. And so it's offensive not because the actual words are offensive, but because the writer is clearly not putting any effort into their writing.
Agreed to some extent, but imo it's not the swearing that distracts as much as the underlying intention to manipulate the audience, and the sense of egoism behind it.

F-bombs-away as far as I'm concerned, but don't pretend you're Howard Stern and I'm a 'loyal follower'. We're coders, let's talk code. Funny is one thing, wit is fine, a little punk rock in your presentation never hurt anybody. But the idea that we need to craft ourselves into a 'brand' is crass to me.
As someone who has met a few of the people from The Game, I can tell you it's mostly crapware with very little to learn from.

The basic flaw with The Game(and most of the games of the characters in it) is that they take this to such extreme that instead of becoming charming and attractive, you become a paranoid insecure jerk.

That said, The Game has helped motivate many to take action in a critical area of their life.
Space Jam website - state of the art circa 1996
> didn't find it notable

Exactly, and neither did I, as a Github customer. As a matter of fact, I've probably used one or two of his arguments in the past and not thought twice about it because a) I'm experienced enough to know when and where to use profanity if I so desire, and most importantly, b) I'm experienced enough to know not to cause, enable or further fuel a situation where I cannot win no matter the logic employed.

This is where Holman lets the developer community down: justifying and promoting his unacceptable behavior in order to self-promote a fake persona. That alone implies a total disregard for his audience and alerts me to the fact that aside from colorful language, he isn't that bright.
Eine Welt ohne Frauen - videos.arte.tv
What are those 7 languages, anyway? The guy has a strong point he can make without exaggerating. If you want to capture > 90% of the mobile market, I think you only need Objective C and Java.
Worse still, Zach is now well on the way to becoming the 'swearing in talks' guy. There's been something like 5 different stories on HN about this. If it wasn't a distraction before, it certainly is now.
I've used Flowdock for several projects and found it useful tool for working with a distributed team. Great to hear this news!
This type of analysis is why it is important to be clear the Bill of Rights does not apply to individuals or companies, it only applies to the government. A hotel (which you are free to use or not) that monitors your room fridge is not the same as a government that spys on its citizens without probable cause that a crime has been committed. Search warrants were invented because of past abuses of police powers and the desire to prevent it. I sincerely hope the Supreme Court gets this ruling right and rejects the Feds claim to warrantless spying.
How to Become a Probation Officer
"Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, ‘This was their finest fucking hour.’"
At least in very small companies you are working with and for a particular set of people. So loyalty and personal reputation definitely applies.
"I'm not 100% sure, but I think that this kind of stuff also happens in most other communities?"

Pretty much. I've seen the same debate in other circles I'm involved in- anime/manga nerds, film geeks, atheists, sports etc etc. There's nothing special here but nonetheless we should act if there is a problem regardless of the community.
It's an on-going discussion: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=380637
Found it for free on Google Scholar:

http://osil.psy.ua.edu/pubs/onlinepersuasion.pdf
Best Metal Detectors
Mobile Flash ISN'T dead
The Hive calls it a day
Because it's offensive to women, as many have stated time and time again, and offending 50% of the population in a manner completely unrelated to the subject of conversation neither makes you clever nor witty nor funny.

When you're in polite mixed company, you don't make tits & ass jokes. Nor do you go around tackling people, or belching the star spangled banner, or peeing in the water fountain. The same applies to speakers at a conference. There are expectations of minimally acceptable behavior in any social context. Racy humor is racy because it rides the fine line between the titillating and the vulgar. But that line is different depending on the social context, which makes it even more important to either get it right or not bother trying, because getting it wrong offends people and makes you look like an ass.
Actually they're not. I specifically point out in the beginning of the article that I don't cover stuff from Cialdini's Influence (as it's been over covered). Who hasn't read it yet, definitely should.
Aussie gaming start-up Scalify to trial with Moshi Monsters
Care to explain this Geithner put in less financial-gibberish terms (than those websites listing it) instead of calling people names?
Currently I'm working on C++ container, because I hate the standard containers.
"the 3 browser players on Android seem to think Flash support is quite important. Surprising if it is something nobody wants."

I'm sure there are folks who want it. It just doesn't work. And Adobe has acknowledged that by axing the project, after promising to get it right for 6 years straight.

Let's disregard that mobile Flash is limited, buggy, CPU intensive, and battery draining. Most Flash content just doesn't work on small screens that are meant to be manipulated with fingers. The 'hover' action alone is causing web standards programmers head aches -- preparing Flash interfaces for mobile requires > ten times as much work, which the vast majority of Flash creators will never do.
I might start swearing if we keep talking about this on HN.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Too_big_to_fail
This Is The Way The Euro Ends
Five Stars (YC W11) has really challenging technology problems.
We're a 10-month old Y-Combinator funded startup. Here's a list of some challenging problems we've solved in the last 3 months:
1. Cross-platform Python software and GUI that works in Windows 95/98/2000+, Linux, OS X

2. Auto-updating our software remotely, across previously mentioned platforms, and in Python

3. Hooking and interfacing into a USB hardware plugin across multiple platforms

4. Building a single piece of software that communicates via HTTP, across all platforms, that has an online and offline mode, and is very secure

5. Networked client software that can work with various complex network topologies, without having multiple versions of the software

----------

* About Us *

+ Leading loyalty program in the Bay Area

+ Y-combinator Winter 2011

+ Raised $2.5MN in funding from first-tier VCs and top angels

+ Approached 9 VCs, got 9 attractive term sheets

+ Focus on small/medium business loyalty

+ Challenging technology problems including data synchronization and analysis, remote software deployments and scaling (our data is growing exponentially!)

+ Growing ridiculously fast (50% increase in clients last month, 35% increase in users last month)

+ Located in Mountain View, CA (relocation is a must)

----------

* Who we need *

+ Smart, resourceful hackers

+ Generalists

+ Individuals who are incredibly driven and are self motivated enough to operate very independently

+ Nasty code pisses you off, broken code makes you want to fix it

+ Slight perfectionist (and maybe even a tad OCD)

+ Want to build something millions of people want and use

+ The thought of working in a cubicle kills you

* Our technology and people *

+ Python, Python, Python

+ Django

+ PostgreSQL

+ 5 developers with 10+ college degrees

If you're interested, email hckrjobs@gmail.com with your resume and an introduction.
Regenerative Medicine Against Aging
server density.
Agree with your point, although I wouldn't say our age is that poor in rhetoric. Obama had some really great speeches in his campaign and Jobs' product presentations were top notch too.
I work around "real" people as well and I know no one that has purchased a Kindle Fire or is really even considering one. I do know people that have purchased the iPad 2, Xoom and Asus Transformer, and other who have Kindle book readers, but haven't found a single person who has pre-ordered a Kindle Fire.
> Your snarky comment applies to all digital media, mind.

Thus far, I don't know of any other digital media that's claiming to exist long enough for your child to grow up. Entire companies could crumble during that period.

Google's the last place you want to put a digital time capsule to your child. You'd want it in several places, none of which ought be encumbered by the policies a company like Google needs to keep its operations running. But they wouldn't want to mention that in an ad.

Any better for you?
And? Is it all you hoped for?
-Try reaching out to people who are listed in relevant meetups on Meetup.com.

-Get media coverage on the event.

-Get influential people in the community to tweet or post about it.

-Lookup local tech companies and try to get though to them.

-Get students from local colleges (CS, CE, EE, MBA). And please give them discounted tickets.

-Go through AngelList and try to find local folks.

-Think about the top ten things startup founders think about (raising money, VC funding, shipping product, finding users etc etc) and then look to see how many of those things your site clearly addresses in the first 5-10 seconds. (I didn't see anything I couldn't find online - but I think it is just a communication issue). You seem to be counting on the guest speaker's star power to draw crowds; I suggest using that in parallel to things that startup founders worry about during the first year.

Hope the above makes sense, and this is a great cause! Good luck!
This could be great if it doesn't have significant side effects for humans. I won't hold my breath.
I don't see that being a problem if there's a signed contract. It would be like any other liability if the company is sold.
What is Reality
It does not take a wallstreet genius to understand "too big to fail" and that huge amounts of bailout were payed for nothing in return. Nobody had to answer for what happened and things went right back to business-as-usual.

Or what do you make of it?
After taking the test (69 slaves), I thought I would try to see if I could minimize & maximize the results. So as a 1-year old naked infant in Bangalore with absolutely nothing to her name, I had 14 slaves. As a 40-year old homeowner in NYC with 16 children, a large house and tons of stuff, I had 151 slaves.
Is the situation improving?
Is it not a quota system that's typically used to remedy the lack of diversity? In the UK it hasn't been uncommon to do this quite openly as if it's a good thing. Territorial Army posters used to say they would only consider women and minorities for application.

At best attributing it to diversity and playing the sex card oversimplifies things such as the individual's upbringing and his personality. People are all different, so I find it unfair to say that this is not the product of a person being a person, but a person who works in a male dominated environment.

Is the implication thus that an industry needs more women for it to be more mature? That without diversity men (note how the article emphasises this is a male problem) will resort to making dick jokes and chatting about celebrities they'd bang all the time? And how is that implication any less offensive than the lack of professionalism the speaker exhibited?

So to answer the question, I attribute this not to diversity or anything such, but to an individual who was, as you've said, immature. He alone does not make the entire development community immature, nor is he exemplary of a male dominated profession.
Why We Curse. What the FUCK?
I was quite impressed with how MongoDB handled everything. They were quick to respond in an intelligent (read: not hot air) manner, admitted that their product still has some shortcomings that they're working on. I wish more companies were as honest.
Robert Cialdini, one of the people behind this study, is one of the most respected people in the field in the last 20 years.
? The future value of money is discounted by inflation and the opportunity cost of failing to invest.

According to this inflation calculator for US, you would lose about $1000 just from inflation if you deferred your bonus for the five years from 2005 to 2010.

"What cost $10000 in 2005 would cost $11067.95 in 2010."

http://www.westegg.com/inflation/
It's unambiguous that you're enthusiastic about node.js, it's ambiguous about whether you're able to express it well or not without cursing and are therefore frustrated.
Might be worth throwing out a Ask HN in prime time, I'd really like to know the answer to this too having experienced my own mini-google hell today and realizing I had no source of support apart from sub-standard forums that only 1/4 of questions seem to get answered in.
I like DHH. There is no vice we can put his balls in to change his behavior. He speaks his mind about groupon, and swearing. He's made his "fuck you money". He doesn't have to adjust his language for fear of repercussions in his professional life.

If he did anything less than speak his mind, we'd be getting a disingenuous experience of him. The gap between public DHH and private DHH is narrow, presumably.

DHH isn't asking anyone to like him. If his swearing is offensive to you, that's ok. But by trying to change his or Zach Holmans behavior, you're trying to censor them. That's not ok.
Agreed, I have too. But this way, with mobile Flash and Silverlight abandoned, we can all put more energy into web standards, even the developers who aren't usually ahead of the curve.
I haven't got a horse in this race, I'm just pointing out a technicality. A formerly available application is no longer available and its servers have been disabled, so the application will no longer function even if you downloaded it previously. Your initial claim was "Apple has taken away nothing whatsoever from you" and you're now pulling a no true scotsman.
A great hacker is able to generate simple, clean solutions to complex problems. You can learn how to do this by pair-programming with an expert and by posting and reading StackOverflow questions and answers.
The sentiment expressed by xkcd is great and very liberating to ponder. But I think this is off-topic.

The blog post states that "I seldom swear much outside of my slides" and "...it’s a crafted persona". Unless I am not understanding correctly, Holman is swearing as a calculated move which he believes allows him to communicate more effectively.

The xkcd comic decries filtering expression of one's personality out of fear. Here Holman is slightly altering (filtering?) his own personality, or at least creating a persona with subtle differences, for perceived benefit. You might even say he's doing it out of fear of mediocrity, though I would hesitate to put it so strongly.

People are talking about whether swearing actually is more effective, not about whether sensibilities have been offended. Holman is not the guy in the comic that others are trying to chastise for being himself.
Online live editor for WebGL fragment shaders
Agreed. I expected a lot of defensiveness/spin when I spoke with them. But really, not a lot of that at all. They hedged just the tiniest bit about data loss, but were very forthright. As a reporter, I really can't say how refreshing that is or how infrequently you see it.
No. Somebody please stop this guy. After reading this I feel about him like the machines must have when they sent the Terminator back in time to kill Sarah Connor.

Web apps are to native mobile apps as Java apps are to native desktop apps: ploddingly slow with clunky non-standard UIs—a degraded, lackluster experience.

With some notable exceptions I think they can be a pragmatically motivated stopgap step (in regards to either bottlenecks in time or money) on the road to building a full native app. But saying simply that because they cost less time or money to produce as a sole justification for creating them, and ignoring all their shortcomings, is like suggesting everyone buy a circa-1998 Samsung flip phone instead of an iPhone simply because you can get one on eBay for $5. It doesn’t matter, because the flip phone sucks and the iPhone doesn’t—economics aren’t the only factor to consider.

If you need any more proof, remember what happened when the iPhone originally launched and there was no support for building native apps. Apple’s professed solution was for app functionality to be provided by mobile-optimized web apps. There was literally a sustained caterwaul by developers and users alike for the ability to create native apps on the platform, so much so that Apple did a complete 180 on their original stance.
Big Data Is Useless Without Science
I think Accenture is the corporate instantiation of that character.
I was loyal to a company for three years. It would have been longer but I saved them 300k with a project and they laid me off the day after it went live.
Bwin.Party Quarter Financial Report Out (Edit)
Is this feature available for anyone besides pg?
National Sales-Tax Bill a Victory for Amazon's All-or-Nothing Stance
I still do not understand how this argument works. Why is it that people only seem to be offended at mediocre vocabulary when 'profanity' is involved? If, as you state, emotionally charged speech without profanity is difficult, why should we become offended when people are unable to achieve it? I don't think anybody goes to technical talks to appreciate high grade word-smithing.

I honestly believe this is an instance of generally rational people becoming offended for a reason they don't quite understand, and inventing a theory to explain the data.
Some databases really do loose their mind when the query contains many tables. Sybase was particularly a pain and pretty much required breaking up big queries. Sybase's optimizer for version 12.5 and earlier (cannot speak after that) often required forcing indexes and plans in stored procedures.
Agreed. I was in the audience and took notice of this. Made me groan internally a bit.
"I have done well over 3000 mineral evaluations using a combination of blood, urine and hair tests in my practice. Almost without exception, people who consume distilled water exclusively, eventually develop multiple mineral deficiencies. Those who supplement their distilled water intake with trace minerals are not as deficient but still not as adequately nourished in minerals as their non-distilled water drinking counterparts even after several years of mineral supplementation. The ideal water for the human body should be slightly alkaline and this requires the presence of minerals like calcium and magnesium. Distilled water tends to be acidic and can only be recommended as a way of drawing poisons out of the body. Once this is accomplished, the continued drinking of distilled water is a bad idea."

http://www.mercola.com/article/water/distilled_water.htm
Note: Google does NOT support merging accounts.

I've had a similar experiences.

The Youtube merge was a disaster causing many Gmail addresses to be merged with "nicknamed" Youtube channels that users didn't want anymore. Since Google refuses to step in and delete accounts or unlink them, many people are stuck with a Youtube account nickname they don't want to be associated with. This got even worse over the last few weeks as Google now automatically logs you into Youtube.

The Google Apps/Full Google Account so called "merge" never actually merged anything, it just created 2 full Google Account, a new one under your domain email, and the old one still active under a modified version of the your email address.

Google has no reason why they can't unlink, merge, or rename accounts/usernames. I'm convinced that almost every single person in the world has 2 or more Google accounts.

Google Hell is right.
Loyalty to people != loyalty to a company. I'm well acquainted with the interaction between personal loyalty and employment. I've made career-altering choices out of personal loyalty that in a purely economic sense were not optimal.

But that loyalty is tied only to people, not to any company. If I'm not in a job because of loyalty to one or more people, it's got to be out of either economic factors, or because I find the work interesting/fulfilling. The entity it's associated with is irrelevant.
The Lean Startup Wiki
Funny maternity clothes
China Has 70 Android App Stores | mocoNews
Okay, I can't help but imagine the speaker delivering the talk this way now.
No offense, but in voip terms you are "the folks that still pays AOL"

I have numbers from companies that are more reliable and offer more value than this. And use gvoice for my spam numbers
Eschewing style in favor of substance is just as foolish as its inverse. Style and substance combine to make a better end product. That's true in software, it's true in hardware, it's true in writing, and it's true in presentations.

That's my problem with people hating on the use of cuss words. They are a stylistic flourish, and they can be used well, or poorly, but they do not deserve disproportionate attention. Someone who uses cuss words all the time in a presentation is just the presentation version of the guy who wears a bright green suit to every social event. They are failing to use style effectively.
Sometimes i wish more people would care more about making good products rather than the next buzzword middleware stack which solves everything.
I have no opinion about this guy one way or the other.

Even brilliant people can make mistakes, and even brilliant scientists can be victims of their own preconceptions. I'm not trying to trash his life's work, I'm having serious doubts about the premises and results of this study specifically.

[Edit] Just a strange observation: yours is essentially an argument from authority (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argument_from_authority) and yet mods seem to love it.
The pecking order here is far subtler than in a lot of places but it's there.

I'm some loud-mouthed brassy broad. If you are male, it's possible that's one reason you get less crap. I do things like sit up front in large meetings at work (because I can't see for crap and my hearing is not so good, etc) and it gets remarked on by other people like it's very aggressive Type A personality stuff. I don't do it to be assertive or anything but other people react like that's why I do things. I repeatedly run into situations where it feels to me as if acting like "everyone else" (or "just being myself") and also, oops, being female is interpreted as "feminazi" behavior.

Perhaps not the right (time and) place to make such remarks. In my defense: I'm short of sleep and working overtime this week.

Peace.
And there's even a reference in here to the HN topic of the day - swearing in front of an audience!

> 2. Swearing can help influence an audience. Light swearing, that is. (Go overboard and lose all credibility.)