skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
I would be shocked if they did not, to be honest. It just seems like common courtesy to me to cater to each individual's needs. Even if a professor objects though, there are some very vigorously enforced laws which are intended to help people with physical or mental challenges. School administrations take them very seriously.

(I'm mildly dyslexic myself, so please don't take those terms pejoratively.)
Top Ten Wall Street Bailout Yokes
"FWIW, I rarely found classes valuable when I was in school; they mostly consisted of the professor (or TA, usually) reading us the textbook. I only went to class so that I wouldn't miss surprise exams. A laptop was nice to have so I could do something useful during the class periods that weren't exams."

It's hard to gauge whether this says more about your ability to contrast and draw imaginative connections between the material and yourself or whether this indicates that you went to schools that aren't very good.
People of today shouldn't pay for the crimes of people of yesterday (even if it does end up happening a lot). That's why AA/Title9/etc are great in theory, but pretty awful in execution. If only we were all color blind...
Vote For Change and Help Disrupt Google's Dominance
I do also list a skill level. The skills I removed were ones where I had very limited knowledge. I wouldn't list lisp on my resume even though I have some basic lisp programming, but I don't think listing novice lisp experience on your resume will hurt you either. I keep my resume down to a page, so I only want the most interesting information about me.
I get where you're coming from, but in terms of trust I think people check a few things:

1) Is my connection secure and encrypted, 2) Is either of Authorize.net, PayPal, or Google acting as a payment gateway 3) Is the site established, and does it have verifiable feedback from people I trust, 4) Does a Google search show other people talking about the site, What are they saying, 5)Does the site's content converge to norms I've come to know and expect from credible companies I've patronised

And 6) Is it located in the continental United States (if Yes that's icing on the cake... nothing more). I won't speak for most (I don't think you should either) because I have no grounds for basing an assumption of the "most people" magnitude.

But I think there are a lot of measures people check before swiping the credit card on a virtual transaction. The US/non-US piece is one consideration, but that's my point: It's just one item on a list of important credibility checks.
Which country are you based in?
Its very important to know because local goverment might creat problem for you.
How you determine what tools the students need in the first place? I've used laptops heavily for almost all my classes for the past few years now (obviously I can't take a laptop to a ceramics class, for example) and the tools I use depends on the class.

For most classes I can get away with using textmate, voodoopad and word (yuck). However, for classes with lots of diagrams I can't easily reproduce on the computer, I'll take out the tablet and use it with voodoopad specifically. Another person using a laptop in my class just brings a digital camera and takes pictures. There was one class I had where someone else wanted to take notes with me, so we used google docs in class. But I don't do that in a CS class, where I usually just bring out my IDE of choice and start hacking away and occasionally take notes.

Just a thought.
Not this time (that I know of).
William Clinton had a large press office that was quite capable of correcting the New York Time's reporting on his reading. In fact, knowing what we know about how newspapers and political offices work, it is probably that Clinton's press guys passed the stuff about reading Crighton's work to the New York Times as a ready-made anecdote to be inserted into stories about the terrorism boondogle.

Of course, he is still alive, and has more time now to answer correspondance. If you think the issue in doubt, email him. If you can get him to deny NYTime's reporting on the matter, I'll send you $100. If you are interested in the challenge, I'll dig up a link to the exact story in question.
uh, yeah, we call it the ETF industry.

there are ETFs for every risk tolerance of every global stock market, commodity, bond, etc etc etc. there are even ETFs of ETFs
This is not an ad posting board. Respect our community please.
Thanks folks, as a Hacker News regular, I am truly honored to have this featured here.

To address lhorn, this post was written and made it to HN when our India folks were asleep (13.5 hour time difference). And it may be hard for you to accept, but our company doesn't operate that way - the kind of "astro-turfing" you describe. I post at least once a week on Zoho blogs, and this is probably the second time ever anything made it to HN. And it was not a personal rant - it is about a major software-as-a-service vendor who acts in ways totally contrary to their public posturing. Keep in mind, they invited us to be there on AppX, and we did the integration work with their support. As the CEO of Zoho, I deal with hundreds of companies, large and small, in relationships that succeed and in relationships that fail to materialize. What happened with Salesforce was unusual enough to warrant calling out - and should be a cautionary tale for other companies.
Attempting to refactor the universe.
No, I don't think so. The income is not produced by merely hosting the app in the US. Instead, you most likely develop and maintain it, provide customer support, etc., all outside of the US.
Because it is not evil. Microsoft offers quality software for a good price, and the total cost of ownership is not that high.

What I like about Microsoft is, that even if it's a mammoth and are not able to innovate as quickly as Google for example, they are still able to improve their software and iterate towards a useful set of products.
> "IE6 does not make me happy, that's not an excuse to shaft users."

Sure it is. It's called ROI and the ROI for supporting IE6 is terrible. You could easily spend your time supporting IE6 and instead spend it on usability tests to better support different user demographics. Users are more than browsers.
The one that interests you. We can't tell you that.

I'll tell you what I did, and you can take it or leave it. About a dozen years ago, after a few months of using Linux on my desktop, I knew I wanted to be involved in Open Source (it was still just called Free Software at that point...the Open Source moniker was yet to be coined for the more pragmatic arm of the movement). So, I started tinkering with all of the projects I found interesting. Squid was one of them, and I spent several years as a developer on the project. Webmin was another, which turned out to be the one I really had an affinity for. I also submitted small patches to yum, various Perl modules, Extropia (before it was called Extropia), LVS, quite a few audio and sound packages, and a few others I don't remember at this point. I also maintained my own kernel patches for several years, until the functionality I needed made it into mainline.

I found the various projects more or less amenable to my input, and more or less suiting my personality and strengths (some projects have a strong leader, others expect lots of discussion over even minor changes, etc.), and I found myself working more and more on the ones that suited me and less on the ones that didn't. And sometimes, I'd submit a single patch to a project for purely selfish reasons (I needed the problem fixed, and could see a way to fix it), and never looked at the code again. That's OK, too.

There are obvious "rock star" projects...the ones that impact almost everyone everywhere. Apache, Linux, Firefox, any of the P languages (PHP, Perl, Python, and the honorary member Ruby). With Perl you could work in a pseudo high level language called NQP (Not Quite Perl) to work on the language itself...which is pretty cool. I've never felt an urge to work on anything that low-level for fun before, but that's something that does appeal to me. A lot of interesting low-level stuff seems to be happening in the Haskell world, as well, but it's still esoteric enough to be unlikely to reach a lot of people for a few years...but being involved early in something that explodes later is a good career move.

So, my advice: Don't pick one project. Try many. You'll eventually find the one that suits you, and the one that you can be a valuable contributor to. Don't try to settle on one too soon, because you might miss out on some great learning experiences.
Microsoft give start-ups a leg up
Despite the qualms I have with PHP, you can't blame the language for design flaws in the software.
I'm pretty sure I've seen comments blend in completely at about the -50 mark. I don't have a link offhand though.
Just speaking from prior bad experiences :) I used to use laptops back even in high school, where the teachers were fine with it but made it clear it was a privilege extended to us that could be revoked should there be any misuse. One teacher caught a kid playing a game in class and wouldn't let anyone in his classes use a laptop. I got pretty mad in the beginning, but the whole thing blew over before I had a chance to go see if I could get an exemption from that rule with a doctor's note.

I'm not sure how I feel about this. I know I've definitely been on IRC in class while taking notes (however, some of it was with fellow classmates...) and more, and I really do see how this can be a problem. But computers can be pretty helpful...sigh.

I've tried looking into ways to take notes without distracting other people, and I think my iPhone would be perfect if only I could use it with an external bluetooth keyboard or something.
Anyone who says that Michael Crichton wrote bad books does not understand the point of reading. You don't read to learn, you read because it's a form of entertainment. And Michael Crichton wrote supremely entertaining books. If you are entertained only when you read Shakespeare, then you belong to a small minority of people, and you should not criticize a popular and good author who wrote books read and loved by millions of people, and was behind some of the more spectacular films of the 90s.

Reading is like watching TV or movies to me. I like watching heavy stuff every now and then, but the bulk of my reading is for entertainment, and Stephen King and Michael Crichton are good examples of such work.

The same people who criticize Crichton will sit in front of their TVs and watch Lost, and then proclaim it as an excellent show. For people who grew up reading, Lost is the same level as most of Crichtons works.
Whichever one you like. Next questions.
Obama's Use of Hidden Hypnosis Techniques in His Speeches
I didnt realize there were "outsourced sales services" - do you have any examples? Of good ones that may cost a bit more?
Maybe this will change, since nowadays one can develop for free using Visual Studio 2008 Express Edition + .net and MSDN.
Good design does in fact cause interest in customers
The idea that by changing variety, you can in fact cause interest in customers through design.
I haven't seen any of the issues people are talking about on the new MacBooks, though I have seen an issue where if I'm resting my thumb on the bottom of the pad like I used to when there was a discrete button I can't do two finger scrolling.
I haven't actually read this, but I found it somewhere and thought people here might find it amusing.
Sell using email. Do it by phone. Don't blame your salesforce - if a company wants your product, they will pay for it, you don't need to hassle them with a sales force. If you are not getting any sales, even after people have been introduced to the concept, then maybe your concept is not perfect. Start asking the people who what is wrong.

And again, use email, so you can do this yourself.
I agree with you completely. The focus on race in this election is preposterous, and it shows that racism isn't dead, it's just more benign than ever.

I thought that the big deal here was that we see Obama as a politician, not a "black politician." But it seems that many people have yet to get beyond this point. That being said, and as another commenter mentioned, there's a difference between voting based on race and appreciating the historical significance of a minority, let alone a black man, holding office in America. And contrasted with this nation's history, that is remarkable.
LinkedIn: Application Directory
Ask HN: Please Help Us Find Someone
We have been looking for a talented hacker for about 2 months and we can not find anyone in South Florida looking for a job at a start up! We have only had like 3 applicants! We're paying at or above market and providing plenty of perks. We're still in the early stages, so who ever is hired will have a tremendous influence on the company and it's products...

We've used SnapTalent, Startuply, Craiglist, CareerBuilder, Krop, Indeed & More!

If you know any talented hackers in S. Florida, please send them here:

http://www.krop.com/jobs/n6ky3/

or here:

http://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/eng/907168620.html

Thank you HN!
Here I thought it worked by giving anchors a break while some time was killed.
No. We can have a productive discussion about whether a language and its frameworks are conducive to secure coding without it devolving into a language war. We're adults here, and there are more than just stylistic differences between PHP and its competitors.
Wow this license terrifies me.

It seems to me to be entirely unclear on the most important point. When does "internal use" go from allowed to unallowed? The write-up dodges this point completely and the license itself seems to imply that "developers" can use it internally but others can't.
Oh, Yahoo stock is going to start doing some zig-zagging soon. The volume on the trades went pretty high when it touched $9, and those people will want to exit with some profit.
Sure you can. People do it all the time with C.
Ask HN: What other business's revenue model do you resemble
I was chatting with an investor a few weeks back and he asked me this question:

"What other business's revenue model does your company resemble?"

It struck me as one of the more insightful questions I've had to wrestle with, and informs what your capital requirements may look like.

So far, LuckyCal has been identified as a consumer product that makes money based on its affiliate fees. However, this isn't the way to a homerun. The prosumer or business use of the product is enough to warrant charging for it, which is exciting.

Given that, it looks like a classic "Freemium" model, typified by flickr.com.

However, there's another set of capabilities that arise when an entire organization uses it. The emergent abilities are worth even more, but also require buy-in at an enterprise level by an organization. That falls outside of Freemium entirely.

The closest model I've been able to find is logmein.com, which is free for consumers, but which allows companies to track, control, secure and limit the product's capability after installing an enterprise license.

I'd appreciate any insight. Making money in three different ways either seems inspired or foolish. If someone else is out there doing it effectively, it'd help me solidify the argument for the former.

I'm eager to see what other canonical models appear. I haven't seen a good taxonomy of revenue models on HN or elsewhere. What's your plan? And how does it resemble?
IRC backchannel?

There are a lot of things that can benefit from a backchannel. Live event, conference, etc. Having a discussion between viewers can be really valuable.
Dharmesh Shah on insights from and around MIT
I was just reading something about how people have different ways of taking in information, and it can be a challenge trying to speak to someone that has a different method. For example people that learn by taking notes are generally bothered when they speak to someone that isn't taking notes, whereas people that learn by listening carefully are bothered when the people they speak to are constantly taking notes.

It's something I'll try to remember next time I'm in a meeting.
It wouldn't work very well for small investors. Even with a discount broker, trading costs for periodic purchases and rebalancing will end up being about as much as fees for a low-cost index fund like VFINX.
Yahoo Finance has historical stock prices available for download in CSV format. http://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=VFINX
I tend to be the same way. Taking notes whilst listening to someone speak interrupts my ability to absorb what they are saying.

That said, depending on the nature of the speech, a few keyword notes are harmless (and sometimes required), and it seems prudent to write things down in more detail as quickly as possible afterwards.
I had serious issues with the trackpad for the first 1.5 weeks. I realized I was resting the full left hand side of the first bone in my thumb on the trackpad and flipping back and forth between shell and selecting - it was getting confused. Since then my experienced has improved significantly, although I'm still looking forward to the fix they're talking about releasing soon though.
Some classes I've gone to were as you describe: pontificating the textbook, thus rendering either the class or the textbook useless toward learning the material.

But some classes... or I should say, some instructors... bring life and interest to the material in a way that the textbook cannot, and for them I have much respect and value their efforts.
I seem to be the only one that liked it. I am sure they can project the 2d image on to some smoke in the future.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't pay yourself and try to live off Ramen the entire time, just that 200k is pushing it (although it depends on what people did before they started their startup and what kind of lifestyle they need to support).

Edit: now that I re-read that article I think we might be talking about different things. I don't think it's common for the founders to pay themselves that much, although I can imagine having to pay that much for executives that you hire early on.
I loved that movie. I'm guessing you're not talking about the 1971 version. Or if you are, then maybe you had to be there.
Weve used Elance.com and Guru.com for numerous different outsourcing projects beforehand, including sales.

To be honest though it does depend on location, having had salaried, salary + commission, commission only, remote commission only it really depends on the product and its location.

For example if you need a couple of calls to close a sale then its probably worthwhile to have regional specific sales reps (commision only) as it will probably end up the client wants to meet to close.

Price is also a big factor, try cold selling anything more than £100 ($160) over the phone and your gonna be up against it!
Really? I thought he was Muslim (not that I follow politics). Him being Christian is just downright boring.
You need to first develop a sales road map, and the easiest way to do that is to sell yourself. Find out what works, what doesn't. Only then will you know how to show other sales people how to sell, whether it's part of an internal team or outsourced. For a more complete rationale on this, I encourage you to read Steve Blank's "4 Steps to the Epiphany" which is all about how to develop customers.

-- Fred
I keep hearing people/journalists say scientists share a consensus, but a simple google query "global warming climatologist" gives you:

1. Climatologists (scientists who study climate) have analyzed the global warming that has occurred since the late 1800's.

A small number of scientists argue that the increase in greenhouse gases has not made a measurable difference in the temperature. They say that natural processes could have caused global warming. Those processes include increases in the energy emitted (given off) by the sun.

http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/global_warming_worldbook.html

(I know I picked quotes carefully, but that is irrelevant to my argument.)

2. Believe it or not, Global Warming is not due to human contribution.

I was as opposed to the threats of impending doom global cooling engendered as I am to the threats made about Global Warming. Let me stress I am not denying the phenomenon has occurred. The world has warmed since 1680, the nadir of a cool period called the Little Ice Age (LIA) that has generally continued to the present. These climate changes are well within natural variability and explained quite easily by changes in the sun. But there is nothing unusual going on.

Since I obtained my doctorate in climatology from the University of London, Queen Mary College, England my career has spanned two climate cycles. Temperatures declined from 1940 to 1980 and in the early 1970's global cooling became the consensus. This proves that consensus is not a scientific fact. By the 1990's temperatures appeared to have reversed and Global Warming became the consensus. It appears I'll witness another cycle before retiring, as the major mechanisms and the global temperature trends now indicate a cooling.

http://www.canadafreepress.com/2007/global-warming020507.htm

This evidence is enough to support this very simple statement: Not all climatologists share a consensus that Global Warming is a man-made phenomenon.

Nevertheless, I am sorry to hear about the Crichton's loss. My dad had cancer and I can relate to the hardships.
The title here is definitely misleading. Is Microsoft just giving away the GNU userland on cd? Now, that'd be newsworthy!

(/sarcasm. yes, I'm aware "free" here refers to the price of Microsoft's proprietary software)
I like his milder films, like Looker and Rising Sun
i say we all hold off on this offer until they sweeten the pot a bit more.
It might be funny if they weren't serious.
And, of course, this depends on the course, too. Not every course is based in a textbook, but rather in a text that isn't necessarily taught, but discussed.
Google for Business gets semi-special treatment in the fact that Google actually has real info on their customers whereas a random Google account is sometimes difficult to truly authenticate for.
Don't all ETFs include some kind of management fees? I usually see fees of at least, say, 0.20%. His idea would eliminate that.
Can't you easily make this yourself? Does anyone know of a good tutorial for doing this?
Of the classes I've taken within the past 4 years, all of the professors/instructors have placed their notes online. I figured that all classes were going this direction. I personally find taking (verbatim-ish) notes to be a big distraction.
I'd stick with Freemium as the category of your revenue model, it sounds better than crippleware

for us, business 1 is ad-driven (ad-sense will be fine until we grow beyond it). business 2 will be monthly subscription with maybe some branded schwag revenue.
you're just not located in a high tech area (few local candidates), or one that is particularly appealing to hackers (few want to relocate there), in my opinion.

i mean, just as an example, i, myself, am looking to relocate and your opening is something i would be interested in applying for. but moving to boca is a turn-off for me, and nothing in your post makes me want to overcome that. you don't mention the pay or perks, etc..

edit: also, if you're not finding success, you might want to consider a remote employee (which i would definitely be interested in applying for, btw).
edit2: or a mostly remote employee who spends some time in the office, or something like that
Anyone else notice his title: "David Drummond, Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and Chief Legal Officer"?

Does that not sound like a very unusual combination of roles?
FCC Frees Up White Spaces, Signals a Wireless Revolution (Google is Very Happy)
So do professors ban laptops because they genuinely want to help students overcome their addiction, or because the professors don't feel like they're getting the attention that they deserve?
Or the GI bill. If only we had known! :)