skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
I guess the key to staying motivated is the need to apply these (potential) skills to actual real world problems - no matter how small they may seem.

That said, I'm trying to get into Rails and Ruby and I'm in a similar boat as the friends you described. At work I'm a FileMaker developer, which might sound like amateur hour to the HN community. I'm very well aware of FileMakers shortcomings, but it also works quite well for our little non-tech company, which is why there is no immediate need to learn more advanced languages. Add to that outside my day job, I'm a musician/producer - this is a hobby as well as an occational source of income, but it takes time and there's only so much left when I get back home, which caused my drive to keep learning to behave more like an on/off relationship.

Nevertheless I try to hang on to it. Having experience with developer tools as well as audio production software and hardware, I have to agree with you - people interested in programing have everything they need readily available. Sure, it got a lot easier for musicians too, but usually a decent DAW, plugins or audio interfaces and monitors still require a financial investment, which certainly helps to remind you about your original goals. Meanwhile frameworks, editors and documentation are mostly free - combined with limited time and a lack of concrete need for your new knowledge, it can be tough.
This sort of statement reminds me of what people used to say about the first smartphones.

Want a phone? Get a more portable, smaller Razr (the original one).
Want a PDA? Get a real PDA, like a Palm Pilot.

Why should we create "PDA-phones" (aka, what smartphones were called back then), when PDAs do PDA things better, and Real Phones do the phone part better?
Sure. The product we developed in hackathon is MetroDF for Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.crayonlion...) then for iOS (https://itunes.apple.com/mx/app/metro-df/id528831959?mt=8). This year we got to participate in Yaxi [yaxi.mx] Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.zebstudios...) and iOS (https://itunes.apple.com/mx/app/yaxi/id551201698?mt=8) and backend. In the meantime we got to work in many apps for third parties where we polished skills a little.

This year we graduate so we hope to re-release MetroDF and work in our own projecs.
There are quite a few jets parked in SJC by Coleman Rd, both marked and unmarked (SJSU and San Jose Sharks have their own jets), so yes.
In retrospect can you imagine an approach that could have capitalized on the success of VineFlow? Could there have been some prize IN VineFlow that could only be unlocked by playing CelebrityPop?
Definitely beats the $44 price tag for the Kindle version.
It's lyrics from a Clash song (technically a reggae song they covered, but most people associate it with them). It's about the police misusing their power.
Forget privacy, CISPA coming back on Weds in exact previous form
Thanks for the tip about meetups - any in particular that you would recommend?

Not sure what you meant by running a tight ship. If you mean allowing strangers into the office, I understand - I mentioned the office only because it can be a good icebreaker meeting new people. If coffee shops would be a more comfortable meeting spot, I'm happy to buy.

If you meant something else, I'd be interested in learning what. I didn't think asking to meet new people would be off-putting.
Near Union Square - let me know if you'd like to chat at some point over the weekend!
Nope. It's a huge step forward. It means that I would have a tablet with full PC capabilities, including the option to runLinux through virtualization. Major woody.

The fact that I listed these thing doesn't necessarily mean I would personally use it that way. As an example, if I had a meeting where I needed to work with Solidworks files I'd far more inclined to take one of my big laptops with the 17 inch screen. My intent was to simply illustrate the range of possibilities in order to drive a point.
fuck patents.
Java Time API Now In Java 8
Some private high schools will give assignments that in totality, really do take many hours per day since they require lots of repetition and formula application, rather than say, a small number of very difficult prompts.

In response, here are some "deals" that my friends cut with their teachers:

Friend 1: Instead of doing ~50 easy/medium difficulty math problems per night, he would do 3 difficult ones instead from the section.

Friend 2: He would not have to any homework for AP Physics class as long as he got an A on the previous exam.

AP Bio Teacher: Had an official rule where any student who got a 90% or higher on the previous week's exam wouldn't have to do any of the assignments for the week (though many would do the assignments anyways to learn the material).

These are some things he could look into.
Well, how can it infer the dependency on particular versions? Or on particular implementations of some interface you're using?
Drone Home
Very cool. I, almost exclusively, use "raw" Linux (meaning: no GUI installed, just command line). I'd be a trip to have it available on a tablet.
Anybody else having issues reading this on an iPad?
The first big one that comes to mind is Gmail - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Gmail
Aaron Swartz: prosecution or persecution
We use Box because when it came time to purchase cloud storage Dropbox did not have a solution for teams or small businesses yet

I prefer Dropbox, it's much faster, but the headache of migrating has made us put off switching over
Better get back to work then.
Peter Sunde, co-founder of Pirate Bay AMA, Reddit.
I argue that investment bankers also make extreme sacrifice to stay where they are, in the form of 80 hour weeks, horrible family life, etc.

I wasn't claiming investment bankers don't make sacrifices. I was claiming that they don't create wealth; they just siphon it from other people's pockets into their own. The fact that they work 80 hour weeks so they can siphon more wealth doesn't make it right.

without investment banks and private equity firms, an essential part of the economy -- namely, buying and selling companies -- would be missing and we would be worse off.

Investment banks do make money on mergers and acquisitions, but that's not where they make most of it. Most of it is made by finding suckers to take the wrong end of zero sum trades.

Corporations do not want free markets; they want government-sponsored monopolies.

Quite true; they want them so much that they are willing to pay good money for them.

We the people should hold our government responsible for succumbing to corporate special interests instead of blaming the companies once they are granted such privilege.

I disagree; we should blame both. The corporations for buying government favors, and the government for allowing them to be for sale.
Totally agree. His ego is orbiting way out there right now, and I can't see him sitting down to concentrate writing a history paper.
Morf.js Advanced CSS3 Animations Transitions
Wow.

It's definitely a goofy, pompous, rambling letter written by someone who doesn't know what he doesn't know yet. But assuming the business is profitable, there's zero chance that you or his parents can stop him from pursuing it at this point. I think this 15-year old's decision is made, and the point to intervene might have been when he started employing people.

I wasn't particularly academic, but wasn't driven / confident enough at college to start a business either. So I got my grades, degree etc. first, and have never given a CV to anyone. But I think anyone who gets that far, got through education to 18 or 21 and says they got nothing out of it years later is pretty stupid or short-sighted.

A year of computer science at college turned me from a know-it-all hacker into a grateful know-nothing. Two years of classics before that showed me how to spot when I was hopelessly bored and only trying to fulfil others' expectations, while I built a great relationship with my wife. You get something out of such a dense set of life experiences, but you might have to work it out what it was afterwards.

I'd say to the parents let him go, with a stern & overblown warning that he'd better not fuck it up. If he's burned out or bored of the hosting business at 17 or 18, there's nothing stopping him from resuming his education if that's what he wants - it's just doing things in a different order.
If he's getting a GED I don't see a problem. I don't really know what Minecraft is or if it's going to be around for long but if he's really making $350,000 I'd tell him to strike while the iron is hot and get out of there.

If he's not going to actually go to college he should set up shop on a college campus so he can use the library, etc and make some connections.
Just avoid trying to explain to a newbie that what closures are and that you can pass functions around. That normaly === "mind blow"
> I don't remember high school being extremely rigorous

Agreed, but it still requires at least 35 hours a week of sitting in class.
I'm so sorry, it is my Disqus comments plugin - there is so much traffic I am unable to log in and disable it. Will do as soon as I can.
If all of Google's properties were issued certs directly from Equifax rather than their own CA, the Internet security situation would change not- one- bit.

Beyond that, Google operates one of the four most important clearinghouses of Internet trust by managing the Chrome certificate policy. It's a little silly to suggest they're pulling a fast one on the Internet; if you don't trust them, you have bigger problems than nameConstraints.

Google did not create the subsidiary CA problem.
The problem lies with the investors. They would rather invest in a group of guys well known on the conference circuit than the team of unknowns with great work ethic.
Did you hear about TDL/TDSS bootkit?
http://www.nobunkum.ru/analytics/en-tdss-botnet
16 millions were infected. Distributed via partner programs with download sites, including bundling with installers Oracle-way. Do you think that because you were not affected such cases must not be prevented?
Theres somewhat hidden extensive technical information on the developers blog at http://piface.openlx.org.uk/ with the schematic.

The chips on the top are actually a simple SPI IO extender (MCP23S17SP) and a power driver (ULN2801A), so the extension won't run any code whatsoever.
He doesn't know what 'temporal' means and doesn't write that well. He would benefit from more English instruction.

There are many problems with how kids are taught in school. However, it's arrogant to think that you won't benefit from further instruction at 15 - regardless of how well you think you're doing.

I've known many smart autodidacts, but they're often unaware of their weaknesses. They tend to be less 'well rounded' than those with academically trained minds.
> How? Please explain what magical elevator makes this happen, because VC-istan seems to be a combination of connections and luck, large organizations tend to be clueless and political, and academia has been dying for at least a generation and a half. What I've seen may be limited and atypical, but I haven't seen anything that looks like this. I've seen the same nonsense that humanity has been repeating for thousands of years.

The problem may well be the "human condition" as substrate. In addition to talent in whatever domain or particular desirable skill-set, a person also needs to negotiate other people. If a large project is to be accomplished, the talents and effort of large numbers of people need to be marshaled. Unfortunately, our heuristics for interaction were tuned to keeping together small bands of people primarily concerned with food and defense. ("Paleo" BS notwithstanding, but this much is certainly true.)

What we have isn't a magical elevator. It's more like our brains doing Boolean algebra and predicate calculus. On average, we humans are notoriously unreliable at logic. So much so, we have terms for dozens of dysfunctions which happen all the time. (Fallacies.) With proper training and attention, we can be quite good, however. So it is with "meritocracy" and all of its various doppelgangers. The "cream" does rise to the top, but so does the scum. Talent can help you. "Talent" in the form of attributes that let you sleep your way to the top also help you. You can make it on sheer talent, but the ability to wage subtle, deniable psychological warfare on your rivals to diminish their confidence and shine will help you too. So will realpolitik maneuverings or just being physically attractive.

Many will just put it down to getting older and bitter, but the older I get, the more I realize that we really are (mostly metaphorical) feces-flinging, screeching, long-legged savannah-apes that just so happen to have exceptional individuals and exceptional moments of godlike beauty, wisdom, and insight. Neal Stephenson: “The difference between stupid and intelligent people – and this is true whether or not they are well-educated – is that intelligent people can handle subtlety.” The muck and mess of human interaction is every bit as subtle as it is unsavory.

(And the older I get, the stupider I feel.)
Microsoft Tried And Failed To Make The Future Happen Now
Google execs building $82M airport
> in the olden days, some websites ran off Knoppix CD's and rebooted often

That sounds horrific for performance.
> If the kid is this smart he can do way better than running some VPS hosting company in the long run.

What's actually super interesting about the kid's comment is that while clearly written by a clever kid, he specifically never states that he is too smart for this, and that seems intentional.

It seems very much that the kid recognizes that the system is flawed, and not that he is too extraordinary for the system, so in my opinion, trying to appeal to him in the: "If you were that smart you would've just finished it next to all your other stuff." sort of manner will be of no effect.

Now, I don't even know if I think he should stick around through school, I likely would not have, but if that's what you want to argue to him, I'd suggest that the best way to do that is through showing him how non specialized education is helpful all through life, which I argue will be very difficult, because we have an educational system that stresses specialization over a more liberal education, and I think he recognizes that.
Essentially ...

"Most of the reviews for Microsoft's new tablet, the Surface Pro, weren't very good."
For better or worse, a GED has a stigma as being an inferior option. Just something to be aware of.
Nanoparticles would be the solute in this case. (If a foreign substance, and not water, were the solvent, you'd have problems regardless of how tiny the solent's particles were.)
I understand, but my question still stands. I've been participating in online discussions for many years now, and I saw this pattern very early on. I didn't call it the "group monkey dance", but that just means I didn't know that name for the pattern. The pattern itself was obvious.
Do you see the expressions of surprise about this policy here on HN? These are the world's more informed client application developers.

Careful. You're going to show up on "Shit HN Says".
Yes, I think there' something wrong with discus. If I stop the browser loading before the JavaScript has completed, I can read the text.

I've seen this problem before elsewhere with the same solution.
What’s your solution to this?

This is direct action for fear of direct consequences, not something controversial at all. By refusing to go into quarantine, you are potentially hurting other people’s freedom. One or the other has to give.
The product page on Farnell's website[0] has more information. They also have a number of boards in stock ready for delivery.

[0] http://uk.farnell.com/jsp/search/productdetail.jsp?sku=22185...
Immediately after the sentence you quoted above, the article went on to say:
"Crockford’s book does not explain the JavaScript concepts in a thorough, clear, easily digestible form."
Google's Chairman Eric Schmidt to sell up to 3.2 million shares
I just did the maths and all, and it turns I've been spending approximately $30 a month on Kickstarter projectsfrom since I joined (to fund Andy Baio's Kind of Bloop) without even noticing it myself...
Do the worm on Acropolis. Slam dance cosmopolis. Enlighten the populace.

It's one of HN's most charming quirks that a reluctance to subscribe to conspiracy theories makes one a stalwart supporter of the state.
The expense and arguments over a next generation of airplane tracking and control are probably going to go on for a while longer.
How will business cope with massive content inflation?
I vote for GED and dropping out.

I did not go to a particularly good high school, but I didn't think that it was entirely a waste of time. However, I had no idea what I wanted to do after finishing my schooling. This kid does. As somebody said, the successful business will catch somebody's eye in some admissions office. Hell, Alexander Hamilton was a manager rather than an owner, and Columbia was happy to take him.
I'm pretty sure the GED was invented for this kid. He's learning a bunch of stuff now I wish I'd learned at that age. I stayed in school because I didn't have a better idea, but I certainly would have chased a better opportunity. Telling him to stay in school is a natural thing to do, but it sounds like he's old enough to make big decisions for himself.

If the people around hin strong arm him, give him crap, or generally disapprove of his plan to drop out, it's not going to help him (in my opinion). Should I be fortunate enough to be in his position at 15, I'd hope that the people around me would care enough to educate me about my options. This could include staying in school, pursuing school in some other capacity (child actors do it), or simply walking away. There's always the opportunity to go back later, but there's very little chance he'll learn a more valuable lesson by walking away from something he productive that he cares about towards something in which his sees little value.

I propose this. His friends and family go to work for him. They agree to help him make the business more successful. In return, he agrees to pursue a certain level of education for at least two years. Just one crazy idea.
Can you provide another example? A single large suit over 10 years ago doesn't really indicate a 'history of enforcing patents'...
I think this goes to show, that even what we may now look upon as dinosaurs no longer capable of innovation can do great things if they put in the R&D and don't scuttle their own efforts with shitty corporate politics.

I really, really, respect IBM for being able to do this despite its size and age as a company. They somehow have figured out how to keep(or start again) innovating when most companies that grow to that size tend to become complacent or just play catch-up with more innovative companies.
> It's definitely a goofy, pompous, rambling letter written by someone who doesn't know what he doesn't know yet.

Further, I find it a bit odd that the kid, knowing that his parents are paying thousands of dollars (I'm assuming) to attend a private school decides to start neglecting his classes. I'm likely just not doing a good job of understanding his point of view, but it feels selfish and immature.

Did he not want to discuss his ambitions with his parents? They clearly care about him (at least, remarkably more than many of the kids that went to my high school).

Is the company really consuming all of his time? Or is this letter satisfying a desire to rebel? These are important questions to ask him (but probably in a less confrontational tone).
Well, what is motivating you to get into Ruby on Rails in the first place? If it's money or a better job, is there anything else driving it?
Moffett Field (a NASA-run federal airfield, and former Naval Air Station) has significant operating restrictions for Google, and there is probably strict limits on what aircraft they can base there, and how often they takeoff and land there.
True, so called expert systems are nothing new, but the much improved ability to parse natural language and semantics is newish. It means the human-machine interface is easier to use and combined with portable access via tablets this might very well be the tipping point. Similar to how the iPad was adopted compared to decades of tablets before that never saw a wide-spread adoption, mainly because of the poor human-machine interface.
This is really nice. I've taught JS to several people and the best advice is to try to avoid reading snippets from the web if possible. This is a good approach and I'd also recommend:

http://eloquentjavascript.net/chapter1.html
Effort is a multiplier. It's not a term. That's why "merit == effort" is a very bad idea without more elaboration. As mentioned in the recent Bitcoin thread, getting 1000 people together to dig a hole is costly, but not necessarily that valuable. The real trick is, exactly which hole, where and when. Depending on those factors, the hole could literally be worth nothing or worth millions.

All things being equal, effort can well be a deciding multiplier, however.
I'm explaining why I voted for Obama, not why you should have. If you think we should outlaw corn chips, or annex Monaco, or subsidize free public sausage making classes, Obama wasn't your candidate. More power to you.

The reason my comment was relevant to the thread was that it was asserted elsewhere that Obama supporters were intellectually inconsistent for doing so despite Obama's manifest refusal to dial back Homeland Security.
For those who were asking about an archive page, here it is!

http://designpepper.com/js-drip-archive
When someone says I've reimplemented some of Wouter Swiestra's work, I can't help but feel that's a massive compliment. Thanks!
Fine-Tune Your Privacy Settings for Facebook Graph Search
Is there a timeline set for Rust 1.0?
I too found that to be pretty dubious advice. I try not to recommend people any books or tutorials unless I've seen it and it's clearly a good beginner's resource or I personally found it to be invaluable when I, myself, was starting out on a language. Crockford's book is the latter. It doesn't teach you the raw basics, sure, but there are many resources for that (I'd recommend Eloquent: http://eloquentjavascript.net/contents.html), and Javascript has fairly simple C-like syntax anyway, so it's not hard to pick up tangentially. The Good Parts gets you thinking about the language in a different way - that, plus the annotated spec (http://es5.github.com/) really sets you on the right road to mastery.
Said the guy posting about taking several weeks off to go to China on a "tech tour". That seems like a massive boondoggle.
Going Fearless By Confronting an Archenemy
Thanks. I wrote this post with beginners in mind, so it's good to know that it's provoked an "aha" moment in at least one person.
We're shooting for the end of the year. No guarantees of course.
"really bad at estimating demand"

I won't pretend Apple is bad at estimating demand, even though each new model sells way more units than the last. Tim Cook is famous for his inventory management [1].

I think Apple's manufacturing partners simply cannot produce enough of them (partly because Apple keeps making them harder to manufacture, partly because Apple demands the best prices). Of course, Apple could wait longer, stockpiling units for months, before announcing the products but then production units tend to leak and it allows competitors to catch up.

[1] http://www.wired.com/business/2011/08/why-tim-cook/
It "breaks" some sites but most of them only visually not functionally.