skysight-inc/HackerNews huggingface dataset:
During our launch party dinner and celebrations that evening, what was truly amazing about this counter was how little it was actually going up. I’m not kidding when I say that we actually checked the connections and the software several times to make sure it was actually working, only to find out it was. Even then that very night we knew it was bad, that our whole future was in doubt.

I've had something like this happen to me before. The managers were convinced there must be something wrong with the statistics and reporting code, which I wrote, but I kept checking and nothing seemed wrong. We knew numbers would be down, but not as down as they were.

It's interesting to be on the front lines when you know things are about to get really bad.
Natural protein vs. designed (nano)machines
Actually, when a magazine interviewer asked Jessica about the percent of women among ycombinator-funded founders, I was very interested in her answer. Not because I suspected YC of bias - I didn't - but rather because I thought this percent would say something about the risks and rewards of small technical startups as perceived by women. Being a technical woman working on a startup idea, this information seemed useful to me: a possible glimpse into my personal future.
Cheap Booklets Printing
In addition to the multiple accounts which break TOC, it might also be a direction in which they want to go with their "secret business models." This might be loosely supported by the trending topics added to the user pages, but this is largely due to my speculation.
Logo Design Tutorials
STW, I just tried looking at the pearltree and here's what happened:

* It made safari freeze for a minute or two, which really annoyed me

* While safari was frozen all I saw was a tiny clock in the upper left corner of the browser, which didn't really give me an idea of what was going on

* After the flash loaded I had no idea what I was looking at. I didn't want to waste any more time so I just closed the tab.
I stumbled across an interesting blog posting:

"Generalizations, Truth, and Rationality"
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=592468
http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=1396

that bears a striking thematic relationship
to Scott Adams posting on "ridiculous reasons".

When an experimenter gave a "ridiculous" (aka "placebo") reason for butting in line at the Xerox machine, "because I need to make copies", the person already at the machine would often let the experimenter in front to copy a "few pages", but would often refuse a request for "many pages".

So giving a ridiculous reason can smooth out socially awkward situations, whether butting in line or paying for dinner, ... but when Scott Adams tries to generalize this very minor behaviour to solve problems on a world scale, such as nations being occupied by invaders, ... he is being truly ridiculous. What he may have intended as humour, just comes off as being naive and deeply offensive to people around the world who have been brutally oppressed for decades.

... and there is experimentaly data to show that his "ridiculous reasons work" hypothesis clearly falls apart as soon as the request becomes non-trivial.
Ask HN: How to fix overwide pre text?
You may have noticed that long, verbatim text
in a comment screws up the page width. I fixed this once, but the fix apparently stopped working in the latest versions of Firefox.

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=591894

People have suggested various new fixes that "should" work. I tried a few, and none did.

What is the simplest, most localized solution?
(Before making suggestions, please test them by modifying an actual hn page and verifying that the problem is fixed.)
Did you read the article?

The primary example in the article is that of a team with no skill destroying all of their opponents (some of whom had a lot of skill) through good strategy and effort.

In other words, Gladwell offers a compelling counter-example to the belief that skill is a requirement.

EDIT: All of their oponents save one. They fielded a four person basketball team that day.
Ask HN: Best way to land that number 1 ranking on google?
How to you get from ranking 150 to number 1? Quickest route? Most effective route? Let's do it.
Angry and unreasonable because of it. I've used nothing but Linux for the past 10 years, but I think most people are better off using Windows.
Perfect, this is exactly what I need. Thanks so much for this resource!
I'm not sure about #6 "I just don't like it." Certainly, that's going to be the first response, but you have to dig deeper and ask why someone just "doesn't like it."

In my case, after installing and playing with various Linux distros over the past 10 or so years, I still think it's just too hard. Part of it is because I don't really take the time to get into it (of course) and part of it is that it seems like every thing I want to do is like pulling teeth.

Last time I tried was about 6 months ago with Ubuntu. I actually got pretty far and I really like Ubuntu's package management system and very helpful forums, but when I have to go to the forums for every single thing I want to configure it gets old.

Once again, I'll admit that I don't have a lot of patience and this is MY problem. I went through the same pain when I learned the ins and outs of Windows (I really got started in the Win95 days). Learning something new just takes time and people don't want to take that time. I've heard much the same from a few "switchers" (to Mac OS X).
If it weren't, would we be having this discussion? Seems that you want it both ways, depending on whether you're discussing Twitter's obligations to you or your obligations to Twitter.
Bruce Eckel on Python, Java, Flex, and RIAs
This article describes an experiment where people gave a silly "placebo" reason that enabled them to butt in line at the Xerox machine ("because I need to make copies" ... duh)
that often works for minor request of a few pages, but often fails for larger request of many pages.

HN readers might like to contrast this article with a recent blog posting by Scott Adams (of Dilber fame) who claims that giving such "ridiculous reasons" that works so well for justifying why your friends should allow you to pick up the cheque at dinner, ... should be generalized to persuade people oppressed in occupied countries should accept their terrible fate when given a "ridiculous reason", such as, "well, you know, it's been 50 years, so you should give up. We won."
I'm also an Atwood fan. And he may have been pretentious in this particular post, but I find that for the most part he is quick to admit when he's wrong or lacking knowledge on a topic. He seems eager to learn.
I have terrible handwriting, so that has to be noted when choosing paper & pen, so people don't get penalized for poor handwriting.
Every business is built on other businesses. In the 1800s if you wanted distribution you had to play ball with the railroad barons.

This is just the 21st century equivalent.

Likewise, if you're building a destination website you're dependent on Google, email spam lists (don't get blacklisted!), browser vendors (MSFT and ESPN once conspired to make espn.com for IE-only), and even ISPs (see: Net Neutrality).

The risks are higher on Facebook and Twitter, but the upside is also higher. For example, I launched a Facebook application late last week and it already has 500k users. That kind of distribution is hard to get elsewhere.
This is a retarded attempt at spreading FUD.

And I could bet it comes from redmond.
At the same time, that site might be creating business opportunities that wouldn't otherwise exist.

And almost any business will be dependant, to some extent, on others. It's a question of how many of your dependencies are irreplaceable, and how likely they are to shut you out.

See for example http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/outage-10-08.html - they went down and lost all their data because the hosting company had a fight with the people who owned the building where the servers were kept. (Including backups, which made the host irreplaceable - with offsite backups, that wouldn't have been the case.)

Building on a site like twitter might increase the risk of being cut off on a whim, but it probably decreases the risk of competitors.
Sometimes you need to be caught to realize the magnitude of what you've done.
Number six is the best example of what bugs me about this article. The reason given is "I just don't like it." In other words, personal preference -- a totally valid reason for choosing an operating system. And the author pays lip service to this, saying 'After all, Linux isn't for everybody.'

But then this: "What they're really saying, of course, is that Linux was unfamiliar and spooked them so much that they ran back to Windows." Those foolish little cowards, scared by the unfamiliar, running with their tails between their legs back to Microsoft!

"Again, this is reasonable. It's their choice." Well, it's reasonable in real life, not in your emotion-driven caricature.

"But they shouldn't pretend they're making an objective evaluation. It's just an opinion." They're not pretending that. They said "I just don't like it." That's as clearly subjective as a statement can get.

The whole piece (except for point one) pretends to engage with opposing arguments but in fact distorts and caricatures them and then argues with the caricature.
Profitable start-ups anonymous?
The following seems to take care of the issue in Firefox at least, I haven't had a chance to check in other browsers.

pre {
max-width:500px;
overflow-x:scroll;
padding:2px;
}
Twitter is very open with how they like and don't like their system to be used. They are the most open company I can think of with their API. I can guarantee this wouldn't come as a surprise to the service maker. This is coming from someone who makes an application that heavily uses twitter.
HBS Prof. Noam Wasserman Discusses His Research on Startup Compensation
Sure it factors. That's why pills help during the withdrawal, because they don't trigger the full pleasure ritual, which includes taste, smell and anticipation.

But note that every ounce of pleasure you extract from drinking coffee is exactly balanced by the pain of withdrawing from it.

(And, in between, successive cups do not generate additive quantities of pleasure.)
It would take a company as large as Google to force people to adopt it, however.

I think we'd see quite a bit of progress if OpenID providers just started using PKI.
Myths About Women Entrepreneurs (2007)
I think it's fair to say that iPhone runs an OS that is related to Mac OS - but it's not really fair to say it is a Mac OS, since you can't run Mac OS apps on it. (That is, maybe it is a Mac OS, from an implementation point of view, but not from a usage-as-a-platform point of view.)

If you could run Mac OS apps on it, then that would increase the value of the iPhone platform in proportion to all those apps. The reason I mention Windows is just because it has many more apps on it, and in this sense, it increases the value of the platform more than Mac OS.

But the problem isn't in getting Mac OS to run on it (that's easy). The problem is that it isn't fast enough. It's not even fast enough to run Java or Flash apps (both Sun and Adobe wanted to port them, but Apple said no - I am certain this is because the user experience couldn't be very good, because too slow. And user experience is what Apple is great at, and what people buy it for). I should say that this is no criticism of Apple - they've done an astonishing job of getting performance out of a slow processor, and it's the kind of thing that impresses me very much. Sadly, that skill isn't needed when the processors get fast enough - for example, at one time Woz worked miracles to make the Apple work; and across the street Bill Gates went through contortions to squeeze a programming language into 8K. But today, neither Apple desktops or Bill Gates struggle for minimal implementations. And that's what's exciting to me about the iPhone as a platform - it is that time again, when those skills are valued. It's just that sadly, it won't last, according to Moore's Law.

Why do you think that the reason earlier Windows mobiles failed was because the UI was too Windows-like? Screen real-estate is a problem, but it's not that hard to change a UI. Consider: what Apple can do, others can copy. There are many possible reasons for a tech failure, and, forensically, it's hard to know for sure what they really were - but one reason is that processors were tremendously less powerful just a few years ago.

PS: I don't want to pick at typos, but I read your "APIs are nut (sic) supported" as "API nuts are supported", thinking that you meant "nuts" as a slang for the internal connections (like plugs, sockets etc). But I realize you just meant "not supported".
overflow: auto fixes this browser-wide. Check different overflow parameters here: http://www.quirksmode.org/css/overflow.html

Don’t use "scroll" as it always shows the scrollbar.
pre{ display: block; width: 95%; overflow: scroll; }

works for me
Have you looked at Steve Blank's Customer Development stuff that has been making the rounds here? Blank formalized a process for developing customers that has the same impact that formalizing software development process has on software development (reduces risk).

Using his process, the technical team will have their hands full and will need someone out on the field talking to people right in the beginning. It clarifies the role of early stage marketing/sales/etc. in relation to early stage product development.

My partner and I have been working on both product and customer development using Blank's process, and I can tell you it takes as much brain-effort on the customer development side as it is on the technical side. Someone skilled with customer development process will be as highly valued as the crack founding technical team.

At the very least, you would be able to find out how to sell yourself better for startups.

If you want to find out more, check out the blog posts here: http://steveblank.com/category/supermac/ ... and definitely get his book.
Keir Thomas wrote a great book that introduced me to Linux: Apress' Beginning Ubuntu Linux, 3rd Edition. I've read about a dozen Linux books since, but it's the best introduction I've seen. I doubt spreading FUD is his agenda.
Imo, There is a valid reason for 650 accounts. Plus twitter is interesting because of 3rd party apps, so they should be responsive with support emails.
How To Stay In Control Of Your Company
I'm curious: did you at any point contact Twitter for their blessing (of your 650 accounts for this particular use)? I meant, before they started suspending your accounts? Or even before you created the accounts?
What currencies are you going to be charging in?

What api requirements/constraints do you have?
It's a dilemma. I love the taste of coffee, and some things just don't taste right without it. On the other hand, drinking coffee means being addicted, and being addicted often means drinking really, really bad coffee if it's the only caffeine available.
http://waferbaby.com/setup/2009/03/14/paul-graham
Account is a precious commodity, account name generally not, unless the intent is to squat.
This is excellent news and I think it was a great idea to try and have 1.0 ready before Stuart's book is released. Now that Clojure is at 1.0 I also feel less guilty about trying to use Clojure for work.
Yeah, that is a flaw in the article. Possibly because it can't work against a coach who halfway understands his or her job. No chance of that in the pro leagues. But in the world of middle-school girls' basketball?

Ranadivé might have hit on a strategy that works brilliantly... for middle school... if your goal is to place highly, and not to actually be champions. But that does underscore the point of the article, which is to understand the game that you are playing, your strengths, and your goals.
Nvidia Touts New GPU Supercomputer
This looks less like something specific to the iPhone and more like Apple finally fixing an embarrassing issue with QuickTime. QT tried to support streaming media in the same manner as RealMedia and NetShow (now part of Windows Media), but it never got the same degree of performance as the other two. (Which is really a condemnation, since their competitors haven't done a real good job either! It left Adobe/Macromedia a wide opening for Flash to get through!) Apple used to use QT streaming as a showcase for showing Stevenotes and other live events as well as demonstrating their once commitment to open source by making versions of the streaming server available for other OS platforms.

It may be making purses out of sow's ears at this point... As impressive as QT once was, it really is a creature of the CD-ROM multimedia era, and it really shows if you've ever worked with the APIs like I have. (There were design considerations for driving laser disc players via HyperCard in it's original specs!)
The #1, #3, and #4 best-selling smartphones in the US are Blackberries; iPhone #2
I could not agree more with the thesis on the article. Corporate world is all about survival, while the startup world is about success.
I have been troubled by cognitive therapy techniques, because they are implicitly intended to be used in the way that Seligman does. But they purport to be truthful, when they are intended to be used in a biased way. If you use them in a non-biased way (for example, to undermine good feelings, not just undermine bad feeling), they'll make you feel bad.

That's what I like about the two levels of this definition of optimism: it comes right out and says that it is biased, as a way of containing bad things, and expanding good things. The categories at the second level (personal, specific, temporary etc) appear to be just the same as cognitive therapy techniques.

So... thanks for that. :-)
You can restart at your leisure.
Maybe Joel interrupted him when he was talking about it once and he forgot about it and hence forgot to implement whatever important security practice he overlooked for stackoverflow.

Good thing stackoverflow is a tech help site and not porn/gambling, eh?
And that my friends is why a business should never have all its eggs in one basket or platform if you will
These are the reasons I hear from people telling me I'm stupid to run Linux, not so much people "quitting" from Linux.

The number one reasons for not using Linux on a laptop I hear are "suspend/resume doesn't work well enough" and "WTF do you mean I have to restart X to extend my desktop to an extra monitor?".
Skeptical Convert
Between Clojure and Scala (and JRuby and Groovy), it seems like there's a lot of potential for people to start using Java-the-platform without having heavily used Java-the-language (I know I'm in that situation). I think there's an opportunity for a book or blog-series that would get people familiar with the good and/or necessary legacy aspects of the ecosystem.

What do the more seasoned Java-ers (Javites? Java-ists?) think will remain most relevant from Java-the-language and the existing environment?
Ask HN: What do you need to communicate with a remote team?
For a virtual team in multiple time zones, what new collaboration solution would you use?

We've developed a solution (timzon.com) to help virtual teams better communicate through video threaded discussion and would like to know what functions hackers would really benefit from.
We've added synchronized drawing and comments but are sure there is more that can be done to bridge the cultural and time zone gap.
Let's Take a Trivial Problem and Make it Hard
Right now, your css reads as follows:

pre {
overflow:hidden;
padding:2px;
}

Changing it to the following works for me in both Firefox and Safari:

pre {
overflow:auto;
padding:2px;
max-width:500px
}
It's ironic that this was posted as the same day as this -->
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=591897

Would be interesting to see how a version in Clojure compares.
Yes, it was fast. I believe 18 months between first public release and 1.0.

Though rhickey said he worked on Clojure for a year+ before the first public release, and before Clojure he worked on two projects trying to integrate Common Lisp and Java (call Java from CL and vice versa). He said the difficulty of those projects lead him to write clojure.
I had and have terrible handwriting. But that did not penalize me in school.

I'd hate to type on querty-keyboard (as opposed to a sensible layout) much more than having to write by hand.
The biggest reason is that a lot of computer users want the computer to be a toaster with a screen, and that Linux, while it can be used to make toast with only the smallest bit of rewiring and that toast will be the awesome free toast of moral superiority, is really focused on being the best damn soldering iron there is.
The NYTimes Doesn't Understand Facebook's API
If true, I think we can infer quite a lot from this:

1. The business market for smartphones is much larger than the consumer market for smartphones in the US. Yet, the consumer market for phones is much larger than the business market overall. From there, we can infer that a huge number of consumers aren't interested enough in smartphones to pay extra for them.

2. RIM is absolutely killing the competition in terms of units sold. I read elsewhere that the Storm sold almost as many units as the iPhone, which means RIM is selling at least 2x as many units as Apple in the US. I have no idea about profit margins, though.

3. It's tough to be #1 in the US at anything if you don't have a single product available for Verizon customers. Either AT&T will have to pay out the nose for iPhone exclusivity next year, or the iPhone will be on both AT&T and Verizon, at least. But, considering they are only on AT&T now, Apple definitely did very well.
It's ironic that this was posted as the same day as this --> http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=591897

Would be interesting to see how a version in Clojure compares.
Implying that something was once excellent, then pointing out that the service is no longer excellent isn't exactly bashing.

If something is free you shouldn't be able to post your negative yet completely truthful experiences with it?

There are plenty of free services that people rely on. If you relied on free email service like Gmail and you began to receive just 1 in 10 emails sent to you, would you feel like you had the right to post a negative account of your experience?
Since the code in my GM script has become a bit ugly, here is the relevant portion (cleaned up and commented):

// Get all the pre tags within comments.
var xpathpres = document.evaluate("//span[@class='comment']//pre", document, null, XPathResult.ORDERED_NODE_SNAPSHOT_TYPE, null);

// Iterate through them.
for (var n = 0; n < xpathpres.snapshotLength; n++) {
var thispre = xpathpres.snapshotItem(n);

// Find width of the spacer image, add 120 (found experimentally).
var reduction = (thispre.parentNode.parentNode.parentNode.firstChild.firstChild.width || 0) + 120;
// pre span td tr td img

// Get the size of the browser window, default to 800px.
var winsize = window.innerWidth || document.documentElement.clientWidth || document.body.clientWidth || 800;

// Ensure a minimum width so things don't disappear.
var width = Math.max(winsize - reduction, 300);

// Set the width.
thispre.style.maxWidth = width + 'px';
}

Really seems like there should be a pure CSS solution to this though. As others have pointed out, setting overflow-x: scroll and then defining widths for all the containing elements explicitly would probably fix it without depending on javascript.

If he were to use my solution, at least he would know the spacer image width serverside, so wouldn't need javascript to find that. Would still have to use it to find the window size though.
display: block; isn't needed, pre is a block level element :)
I pay something like $7/month for webhosting on Dreamhost and I get SVN along with it.

I've done consulting work on projects that use Beanstalk.
http://beanstalkapp.com/