skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
In a way, one issue with the App Store, is that it exists. Since people know it's there, they'll check it out to see what's available. As opposed to probably not looking for apps at all. (or less)

And finding a good way to rank the apps is not easy. By number of downloads doesn't work well, by revenue wouldn't work I think, by rating might work a little bit but then what?
So, the App Store is in fact not a great place to find good apps, just the most popular.

So, people go to the App Store but otherwise don't know where to go to find apps or information about apps. But the presence of the store makes the word-of-mouth a little bit more difficult because the store is supposed to be the place, so I suppose in general, people don't look anywhere else. (I know I don't) And people don't feel like sharing their discoveries as much.

Of course, I don't deny the huge benefit of the App Store. I would have never installed that many applications otherwise. But it's "louder" and covers some of the more traditional marketing and word-of-mouth.
Amazing picture.

That's The Grassy Knoll: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Grassy_Knoll_2003.jpg
This thought occurred to me as well. I think it's of merit but Apple actually has a really hard problem on their hands, namely that the app store UI is terribly simple and at the moment doesn't appear to have a good way to prioritize suggestions.

Given the metadata that they must have, it would be trivial to switch to gross revenue, or rev * review score, or any number of other things, including time. (Reddit/HN method of scoring articles)

For that matter there's no reason why they can't compare app store purchases you've scored to the scores of other people who've purchased the same application to suggest things. (Amazon "people who purchased..." or Netflix way of doing things)

Hey Apple, give me the ability to affiliate your store. You can have 95% control of the UI (I want a banner at the top) but I get to pick the sequence things are offered for a given search. Give me 5%, I will make you rich. (Netflix challenge way of doing things)
Ask HN: Can the iPhone play videos on websites?
I know that the iPhone does not support flash but can it play videos using other technologies (ex: the HTML 5 video tag)?
Facebook’s New App Verification Program Offers Protection...for a Price
Xerox got bogged down with tons of employees too. I think in Xerox's case it was teams of salesmen, like at IBM.
No.
I know of no method that works, other than YouTube videos.
The fact that he lives in Wellington or Boca Raton means he very well may know someone at Sequoia Capital, or his father may have founded Nextel, etc. etc. That wouldn't surprise me.
I tried CUDA programming as well and found that the threading model and such is an utter nightmare. For certain tasks its quite easy, such as upscaling or filtering an image. However, such a task is exactly the kind of task where you'll end up bandwidth-limited anyways. The kind of complex tasks where you actually fully use the GPU processors are often the exact kind of situations where the API will work against you every step of the way.

The "960 cores" moniker is also very misleading, as last I recall there were really only (960/8) cores, with each core being able to run 8 instructions at the same if all the instructions were exactly the same.
Seems a bit silly but I see why they are doing this. They want to turn apps into a more respected medium of sharing rather than an object of ridicule as they often are.

I see one of two things happening:
1) Nobody buys into this game, the program is an utter failure, and this initiative goes the way of the ill-fated Beacon.

2) A few big name players buy the badge, it catches momentum, and all of a sudden you can't have a popular fb app without buying a badge. In this scenario the fb badge is analogous to the iPhone App Store top 100 because you won't have much success without being a part of the badge-holding group.

If fb ends up with scenario 2) they may have the start of monetization. They could make app developers who are trying to make money (through charging for services or display ads) pay a fee. It could even be tiered to allow the little guys to break into the app dev field and pay more if they find success.
I think a may have thought of a way to make it work...will post it on HN when I am done if this thread does not produce any good answers
I live in a place with a median house value of over $500k (north san francisco bay), yet I am not swimming in money. The key is that I don't own a house. The monthly payments on a 30 year mortgage would be more than my monthly after tax income. I rent an apartment.

Living in a rich area doesn't make you rich. Perhaps he lives in Boca Raton because that is where his last job was or where his wife works. Maybe his mortgage payments are so high that he can't afford to buy you beer.

I like to reserve judgment whenever possible.

Where do you live?
There are no links in the article either. (Not counting the garbage "other news in this category" links that stay in-house)
DRM stands for digital rights management. Encoding your name doesn't manage your rights in any way.
This is exactly what we can blame him for. Both Semel and Yang have presided over stretches in time where Yahoo products got their asses handed to them by the competition. If the CEO sees that happening, and then doesn't do anything, and then doesn't even sell the company, you certainly can blame him for his vast incompetence. Furthermore, he seemingly sat and watched while Yahoo's talent pool quit to work for Google or startups! What a joke!
The iPhone's video capability is extremely limited. I talked to someone recently who was trying to stream video to the iPhone. The main issue is that the internal video decoding API is not open, so you can't arbitrarily open it up from an iPhone application and pass in a video stream to be decoded. You can only open it on a full file.

One of the problems with this is streaming video. You can do video downloads a'la Youtube, but that's because those fit the model: they are mp4 files with a header atom at the front containing index information for the entire file. You can't do this in live streaming, for obvious reasons. The guy I had talked to basically concluded that it was impossible to view a live video stream on the iPod with an ordinary application, since Apple's API was closed and the built-in ARM CPU was an order of magnitude too slow to do the video decoding on its own with a custom decoder rather than using the built-in decoder chip.
Hold on, who says you are handing over the private key?

I would definitely like to use a CDN with SSL sites. I am happy for the domain to be amazon's (or cloudfront, whatever) signed with their cert, I just don't want the browser security to be broken by having non-SSL content on the page.

Is there something wrong with this?
It's too late for them to take actions to preserve their Human Capital. They are already at the point where:

1) Much of their good talent has quit
2) They are laying off tons of people anyways

Time to just fire everyone and sell off the company.
Ha, so true.
"Early to bed, early to rise, work like hell and advertise."

- Ted Turner
That's no reason not to learn python. Python is an elegant language with many unique aspects, and for those reasons alone is worth playing with some.
Apart from YouTube videos, it can play some H.264 videos with its built-in Quicktime player, which can be launched automatically from Safari. This is how BBC's iPlayer (on-demand) service works with the iPhone/iTouch. I don't know too much about what types of video are allowed, but this might help:

http://www.apertureprofessional.com/showthread.php?t=2957
You might decompose burn rate into a core that is rather fixed (a few employees that you have to have, an office space, substantial hosting or other commercial machinery) and an incremental component that increases with projects undertaken.

As an investor, one may wish for several related ideas to be explored concurrently with the hope that one sticks. As an investor, one may also desire that the business be prepared for aggressive sales when their idea (hopefully) finally goes big. Go hard or go home, so to speak.

I'm not arguing for or against these mindsets, just that if there was not common value in staffing large and fast, VC rounds would be structured like trust funds, not lottery payouts.
Ummm, yes.

Drat.
Point taken. I didn't read the details. Sounds more like it truly is worth $0.
Yaplc.blogspot.com: The best magnifier - Zoomit
As an adult of acceptable means, I've found that my appetite increases substantially in the fall and winter, and diminishes in the summer, despite slightly elevated exercise levels in the sunny Seattle summers. It doesn't explain the holiday break, but I could easily see myself putting on 2-3 pounds during the winter.

I'd love to read more about the weight issue if you can recall where you read it. The notion turns on its ear the stereotype of kids laying around the house eating Doritos all summer.
Reading the title, I initially thought it was something related to the electric car ...

Anyway, I guess the problem is that most programmers have no clue of how to program GPU. Programming multi-core CPU is already very hard, and now comes the GPU stuff ...
The iPhone can play back h.263 and h.264 in 3gp, mp4 and mov containers. http://developer.apple.com/webapps/designingcontent.php
It's not evil so much as it is closed-mindedness, he says while characterising fans of open systems as "evil, smug, stupid" and favouring buggy and unstable software.

POP3 is open. SMTP is open. IMAP is open. Microsoft make money from Exchange which deals with all three. C# is an open standard, Microsoft make money from it; it's high quality and reliable. Java is an open standard, Sun make money from licensing it, it's Enterprise class. RedHat is open source, RedHat Inc. make money from supporting it, it's used in Enterprises accross the world.

Open, good quality, focused, reliable, profitable, they're not all the same thing.
Hmm .. starts to look like Nvidia graphics chips code names .. g92b anyone?
So you're getting just under $2 CPM. Not bad for AdSense at all.

I used to get like $20 on my poker blog, but that was poker and largely through affiliates. Maybe you could try some good travel affiliate programs?

The only thing I can tell you is try to sell directly. You can probably make $5-$10 CPM off of just a couple banners. If nothing else, put up a link that says "Your Ad Here" and see if anyone bites. Maybe try some of the ad networks, especially if there's one specifically for travel.
Tenn Spends millions to stop P2P while laying off teachers
Đố vui về các địa danh du lịch ^^
unless Sun figure out how to install Java on a brand new PC, yes JavaFX won't go anywhere.
IMHO Sun should put more effort on building Swing
Well, it's not me.

This former banker taught himself a new platform, realized an idea, and created a game that obviously many people are entertained by. The real-world impact? He got to quit a job he (apparently) didn't like very much, created a product that entertains people, and got to start his own company.

What real-world impact are you looking for, exactly? What's the "next big problem?" Should we all be trying to cure cancer? Save the environment? Create true AI? This may come off condescending, but I truly do want to know.

I have yet to find a single useful Facebook app, but that doesn't mean there are no apps which other people, perhaps thousands, consider to be useful improvements. Presumably, every successful product solves some sort of real world problem for some number of people, otherwise why would anyone pay for it?

Seriously, what should I be doing instead? I'm not smart enough to create SKYNET and since I'm not a pharmaceutical company there's no money in finding the cure for cancer. If entertainment and "poking" aren't enough for Tim and you, then that's on you guys to do something more with your lives. As for me, I'm perfectly happy to help people find cheaper tickets.
Lyons slammed the company after Yahoo flacks told him just weeks ago that the Google/Yahoo search deal was a "sure thing" and that Jerry Yang wasn't going anywhere. "Then that deal fell apart. And now Jerry Yang is out on his ass. The take-away: Do not believe a word that Yahoo says. Ever."

Then again, getting lied to constantly by PR people isn't exactly something that's going to result in happy feelings.
While on the side topic of maintenance (rather than 404) pages, digg's got the most useful one I've ever seen:

http://flickr.com/photos/alabut/2947148797/
> flexibility of the mind

Is not a good thing. It leads to curse of choice, analysis paralysis, bikeshedding, and all the related drains on productivity.

I submit that "There should be one obvious way to do it" is the #1 reason devs are/feel more productive with Python.

Sadly Python is growing too many exceptions to that rule.
I'm not so sure that you could replicate eBay (or Digg) with four people. I do agree that it's harder to maintain culture as you get bigger - but that's the whole point of management.

We're trying to build a tiny little mini-eBay in a tiny little niche market, and it's taking us fucking forever to do stuff. The issue is that it's really hard to determine what's essential - and to get a new seller (and we don't ask people to leave eBay; we just want them to add Dawdle as a venue), we have to be better than eBay on all those things that particular user feels is essential.

That's why Mixx, despite being a nicer community, with all sorts of bells and whistles, and links on lots of major sites, isn't taking off (http://siteanalytics.compete.com/mixx.com+digg.com/?metric=u...). There's a certain je ne sais quoi about a site that determines what makes it "essential" - and it usually isn't feature equivalence.
Making the webapp IE-friendly
I (like to) believe, the hackers community here are very Mac-centric. (If not, that's okay, don't flame me).
I have been working on a RoR app on Mac, so most of my testing (80%) happens on Firefox, and about 20% on Safari. Today I happened to check the interface from IE - it truly sucked! Layout gone wild, JS issues, the bground color missing on most divs, turning the whole app to be a bland unusable site.
How do you guys develop your app? How do you make X-platform compatibility test? I know its a very generic question, but would like to get your viewpoints anyways.
Mathematica 7.0 Released Today
If Microsoft's "mistreatment" means they produce solidly reliable integrated systems such as their clusterable database server which integrates permissions with their directory service and supports hosting code written in their server/desktop/mobile/web programming language and framework and has its own reporting server which integrates with their web server which can also host code written in the same programming language and framework, the same language that's used to customise their collaboration portal and office application suite, then let them go ahead.

Microsoft sacrifice quality for customisation? Hah. I dislike it because it's so high quality and uncustomisable. Means you can't do what you want with it, but the boss loves it.
you mention ps2 - is the ps3 similar? (although its powerpc - there are 7 cores to use - so is it still as tricky?)
Wow, I love articles about Bush from back then. The change in tone from now is just amazing. Notice how there is no mention of Karl Rove's possibly being the antichrist.

Ahh, the good old days, before the media went all liberal. :)
Business Model Innovation Matters
Yeah I'm not sure exactly what it does that some of the free ones don't.
I believe that it was the Yang responsibility

Ah yes, that must have been it.
Ocarina Surges To Top Paid iPhone App Position
Unfortunately it is something I was told by an education professor in a college class. No primary source.
It's hard to filter things to their essential features, but that ability is kind of what defines a good entrepreneur.

Building those essential things-- those things people absolutely need to use your service (and maybe to differentiate it)-- and then iterating upwards is the key. In six months, I think you could replicate the majority of eBay's functionality with four people.

The things you're discussing are mostly user acquisition problems. That problem is not solved by hiring more engineers.
In Australia you have the choice of one or the other until your annual turnover reaches some fairly large threshold then you have to move to accrual.

Personally, Id always use cash accounting given the choice. If you always get paid up front or if you have a large cash reserve it doesnt matter but otherwise when cash actually hits your bank account is all that matters. Having a whole bunch of outstanding invoices is no good if the bank account is empty. Use cash accounting and focus on cashflow.
S3: 10m 53s, 6m 24s, 10m 15s

CloudFront: 8m 37s, 8m 12s, 8m 17s
the PS3 uses the Cell processor which is also tricky to program
"so the guy's a noob, big deal -- we've all been there."

Good to hear I'm not the only one dumb enough to have done stuff like this in the past.
this is a terrible article. It goes out to discuss how it isn't at all similar, but never bother to quote pricing from the mainstream providers, but we are asked to just take it on faith... I mean the points could be valid, but for gods sake give me some data to backup your wild claims.
That ad is everywhere now.
A feature guide to current-generation gaming consoles
11 Ways to Use Twitter to Help Your Site Go Viral
A javascript flash player would be incredibly awesome... and tremendously difficult, I imagine.

step 1: Implement a flash player in javascript

step 2: Dodge Steve Jobs personal assassination squad

step 3: Profit.
I was thinking of this program, which is distributed that way. http://www.calculatem.com/ There are a lot of casual users who would definitely be interested in something to give them an edge, but I guess the problem is they don't know such programs exist.

And sure, most people probably already have accounts at their preferred sites, but it doesn't hurt to have it as an option. It's easy enough to open a new poker account (well, it was when I was playing before Bush messed things up) and getting the typical bonus + software could be enough to play for a week at a second tier site.
Mixing objects signed by different certs works the same way as having non-SSL content on the page.
What's wrong with calling out PR people when they lie? I get why it's not good from the publisher's standpoint, but if they PR guys at Yahoo! are making stuff up constantly, call 'em liars.
Separating behavior and structure in web design
Tesla wants a piece of the bailout...wants taxpayers to pay to build luxury cars
It was intense for me, but they were quite adept at making me at ease. They asked great questions and were quite honest about their positions on things, (their level of interest, their feeling about the market I'm in, etc). I'm using "they" to maintain propriety, but my experience was only with one partner. I've met a few of the partners through Y Combinator and all of them seem on the up and up. In fact, I moved back to New York City after Y Combinator Summer '07 and ran into Greg McAdoo and his wife in Central Park. It was a brief chat, but I was impressed that he remembered me.

I think Sequoia has the track record to be able to spare everyone the game playing. As I said, the meeting arose out of a cold email, so that's quite telling on its own. I definitely feel that I could return to them when I think my company's position has matured and it's more appropriate to raise a series A.

Sequoia and Matrix stand out as two firms that will provide advice while simultaneously performing cursory due diligence. That's a plus for non-business types like myself.
unless they can promise a 20-25K car for that investment, the gov't should tell them to take a hike
A conversation about One Laptop per Child
Checklist for Those on Debt Management Plan
So when do we get the version he talked about at Startup School that can find a unifying theory of physics by running cellular automata with randomly generated start conditions?
Mathematica is nice but I dont like their licensing policies. Had a huge fight with them once after I had to reinstall my OS :(
Once Fake Steve Jobs was unmasked, it was all downhill from there. The strain was already becoming evident...
"Great Algorithms" course taught by Richard Karp
Startup Tips for Moving to Profitability
Bullshit. Or would you mind if I tagged you and your other possessions so I could track you and remove your privacy? It's latent DRM, only awaiting the lawsuit against you to activate it. Whether or not it's wrong to do or even effective is another discussion, but it is most definitely a handle by which they can control, or "manage", your rights.
Financial and Stock Tips from Ron Pollack
A terrific site all about the Dancing Bear Fund and other Hedge Funds by Ron Pollack.
I live outside of Boston, where the median home price is way north of 500k. And living in a rich area doesn't make you rich - I can attest to that personally, too: I rent, I eat ramen.

But I know that if someone made this proposition to me, in the Boston area, I'd expect something in return. I don't think asking for a meal or some beer is out of line. It's more symbolic than anything.

If you're not in the position to buy me a dinner in exchange for a few hours of my services, then I really wonder if you're in the position to start a company. No offense intended - but if you are about to go the VC route, then the VC will be asking you to make a lot bigger personal bets than a simple dinner.

But anyway, this is all speculation, and HackerNews isn't a place for speculation. I'd go back and edit my comment, but the edit window is expired. C'est la vie, mod me down accordingly.

My apologies if I offended anyone.
> Would you agree that jobs gets to decide how the iPhone works?

I don't agree that it is a good idea to let him decide what you are allowed to run on 'your' phone.

> By not giving in to adobe now, jobs is holding out for faster, better alternatives to emerge.

'But he is benign dictator so it's OK'.

Why not let the customers choose? What if he started doing that with your computer with other plugins, platforms and standards? Maybe they could start to decide that other standards are no good and ban them too. Why not ban mp3's or divX? Where does it stop?

If and when jobs retires and the reality distortion field starts to wear off people are going to see this for what it really is.
Simply loading an mpeg or mov file works. I set content type to video/mpeg and encode in H.264. It works fine.

The HTML5 video tag is not supported, if I go to http://webkit.org/blog/140/html5-media-support/ I get the "This is fallback content..." message at the bottom of the post. The current official desktop Safari build handles the video tag, so perhaps it is coming.
Sweet Jesus. The image-processing capability is pretty hot, as is this:

ProteinData["A2M", "MoleculePlot"]

It's a shame Mathematica isn't open-source; I'd love to see the code.
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