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revelations of n.s.a. spying cost u.s. tech companies
| "even as washington grapples with the diplomatic and political fallout of mr. snowden’s leaks ..."that statement is a perfect example of the real problem with the us government and many journalists. they don't see the actual spying as the cause of all the backlash - it's all snowden's fault for telling the world. | the forrester note† that the article links to is a little more balanced that the nyt article. if you don't have time to read the whole thing, here are some good quotes:it's naive and dangerous to think that the nsa's actions are unique. nearly every developed nation on the planet has a similar intelligence arm which isn't as forthcoming about its procedures for requesting and gaining access to service provider (and ultimately corporate) data. as stated in the itif report, german intelligence has the g10 act which let's them monitor telecommunications traffic without a court order.the fact of the matter is that the it services market is a part of our portfolios because it provides capabilities we value either against it or business metrics. and it's highly likely these values are worth more to you than the potential risk you think your company faces due to government surveillance. and if your company is a prime target for government surveillance, you are probably being watched from within your own firewalls right now.... you can take actions yourself to protect your data from prying eyes when using these services. a quick tip: bring your own encryption. if you hold the keys the governments can't get to your data by going through your service provider.†<link> |
revelations of n.s.a. spying cost u.s. tech companies
| the forrester note† that the article links to is a little more balanced that the nyt article. if you don't have time to read the whole thing, here are some good quotes:it's naive and dangerous to think that the nsa's actions are unique. nearly every developed nation on the planet has a similar intelligence arm which isn't as forthcoming about its procedures for requesting and gaining access to service provider (and ultimately corporate) data. as stated in the itif report, german intelligence has the g10 act which let's them monitor telecommunications traffic without a court order.the fact of the matter is that the it services market is a part of our portfolios because it provides capabilities we value either against it or business metrics. and it's highly likely these values are worth more to you than the potential risk you think your company faces due to government surveillance. and if your company is a prime target for government surveillance, you are probably being watched from within your own firewalls right now.... you can take actions yourself to protect your data from prying eyes when using these services. a quick tip: bring your own encryption. if you hold the keys the governments can't get to your data by going through your service provider.†<link> | it's not the revelations that are costing the tech companies. it's the spying. |
revelations of n.s.a. spying cost u.s. tech companies
| it's not the revelations that are costing the tech companies. it's the spying. | > [ibm] is spending $1.2 billion to build cloud computing centers around the world to lure foreign customers who are sensitive about the location of their data.ibm et al are still american companies, and until they're immune to american legislation (ie: fisa section 702) then no-one will touch them with a fifty-foot ethernet cable. the location of the data is irrelevant.the us government will not budge on this issue, and they will happily throw the entire tech industry under the bus. bailing out silicon valley and nationalizing as much as possible is very appealing, too. |
revelations of n.s.a. spying cost u.s. tech companies
| > [ibm] is spending $1.2 billion to build cloud computing centers around the world to lure foreign customers who are sensitive about the location of their data.ibm et al are still american companies, and until they're immune to american legislation (ie: fisa section 702) then no-one will touch them with a fifty-foot ethernet cable. the location of the data is irrelevant.the us government will not budge on this issue, and they will happily throw the entire tech industry under the bus. bailing out silicon valley and nationalizing as much as possible is very appealing, too. | what i find scary is the amount of datacenters being built by us companies abroad.for example equinix is building large datacenter all over switzerland. swiss companies are blindly trusting them with their equipment. equinix controls the keys and access to you racks and cages. they can get to your hardware with ease and surely will when is us government asks no matter what swiss laws may say.what i also find suspect is the amount of investment banks (never heard of any of them before) in these datacenters with large cages of machines. are they really investment banks or a cover for machines where the nsa stores data. if they can monitor an entire nation for a month they have to store that data somewhere close when dealing with such huge data volumes. |
average stock ownership: 22 seconds
| warning, that page has a flash ad that autoplays with very annoying audio, turn down your speakers before you click the link or you'll wake up the whole house.in fact, don't bother clicking here is the whole text of the 'article':"what, you bought a stock one whole hour ago? and you still own it? that stock is practically a dinosaur in wall street's new reality.the average time a stock is held is 22 seconds. but that's an improvement from a year ago, when it was 20 seconds, according to analyst michael hudson, an economics professor at the university of missouri.it's all because of computerized split-second trading. "the financial sector is short term," hudson said in an interview. "they talk as if they're long term."wired has an excellent overview of how computerized trading has taken over wall street. it's so bad now, in fact, that computers now read news articles at lightning speed, searching for key words that will help them buy stocks.
"the machines aren't there just to crunch numbers anymore; they're now making the decisions," wired reports. computerized high-frequency trading makes up about 70% of all trades, experts say.how can the individual investor compete with that? | keep in mind that this could easily be a statistical quirk. firms that make very frequent transactions will tend to make a lot of them; as a result, they deal in insane volume and will make up the majority of the sample size. the statement in the headline is simply saying "stocks that get traded often make up the bulk of stocks that are traded," which most people would say "duh" to.to see how this plays out, imagine a hypothetical financial world that looks like this:firm a has $100m under management and makes a transaction every 10 seconds (total: 3 million trades). they make a return of 10%, $10m. each trade is for 10,000 shares (average 0.03 cents/trade profit).firm b has $1b under management and makes a transaction every 3 months (total: 4 trades). they make a return of 10% ($100m). each trade is for 10 million shares ($2.50/share profit).the remaining 100 firms have a total of $100m under management and make one transaction per firm per year. they make a return of 10% ($100,000 each). each trade is for 1000 shares.(ignore how everyone makes a profit in this supposedly closed financial system...we can just chalk it up to the fed injecting money into the economy.)if you average the holding time of each stock by transaction, you have (3 million trades at 10 seconds + 4 trades at 7.5 million seconds + 1,000 trades at 30 million seconds) / 3,010,004 trades = 1019 seconds. that's an average holding time of just under 20 minutes.if you average the holding time of each stock by volume, you have (30b shares at 10 seconds + 40m shares at 7.5m seconds + 100,000 shares at 30m seconds) / 30,040,100,000 shares = 9,976 seconds, or an average holding time of about 3 hours.if you average the holding time by firm, you have 1 firm at 10 seconds, 1 firm at 7.5m seconds, and 100 firms at 30m seconds, for an average holding time of just under 1 year.if you average the holding time by firm, weighted by capitalization, you have ($100m * 10 seconds + $1b * 7.5m seconds + $100m * 30m seconds) / $1.2b = 8.75m = about 4 months.note how different the results are depending upon how you perform the average. the article sounds like it's averaging by transaction (i.e. taking the total number of trades and dividing it by the time period they're traded in), which is method 1. i'd argue that a better metric is method 4, averaging by firm weighted by capitalization, which indicates how roughly how long firms with lots of money at their disposal are choosing to hold stocks. in a world like the hypothetical one above, where you have a few high-frequency trading firms, a few giant fundamental-investing firms, and a bunch of retail investors, the results for that are wildly different. |
average stock ownership: 22 seconds
| keep in mind that this could easily be a statistical quirk. firms that make very frequent transactions will tend to make a lot of them; as a result, they deal in insane volume and will make up the majority of the sample size. the statement in the headline is simply saying "stocks that get traded often make up the bulk of stocks that are traded," which most people would say "duh" to.to see how this plays out, imagine a hypothetical financial world that looks like this:firm a has $100m under management and makes a transaction every 10 seconds (total: 3 million trades). they make a return of 10%, $10m. each trade is for 10,000 shares (average 0.03 cents/trade profit).firm b has $1b under management and makes a transaction every 3 months (total: 4 trades). they make a return of 10% ($100m). each trade is for 10 million shares ($2.50/share profit).the remaining 100 firms have a total of $100m under management and make one transaction per firm per year. they make a return of 10% ($100,000 each). each trade is for 1000 shares.(ignore how everyone makes a profit in this supposedly closed financial system...we can just chalk it up to the fed injecting money into the economy.)if you average the holding time of each stock by transaction, you have (3 million trades at 10 seconds + 4 trades at 7.5 million seconds + 1,000 trades at 30 million seconds) / 3,010,004 trades = 1019 seconds. that's an average holding time of just under 20 minutes.if you average the holding time of each stock by volume, you have (30b shares at 10 seconds + 40m shares at 7.5m seconds + 100,000 shares at 30m seconds) / 30,040,100,000 shares = 9,976 seconds, or an average holding time of about 3 hours.if you average the holding time by firm, you have 1 firm at 10 seconds, 1 firm at 7.5m seconds, and 100 firms at 30m seconds, for an average holding time of just under 1 year.if you average the holding time by firm, weighted by capitalization, you have ($100m * 10 seconds + $1b * 7.5m seconds + $100m * 30m seconds) / $1.2b = 8.75m = about 4 months.note how different the results are depending upon how you perform the average. the article sounds like it's averaging by transaction (i.e. taking the total number of trades and dividing it by the time period they're traded in), which is method 1. i'd argue that a better metric is method 4, averaging by firm weighted by capitalization, which indicates how roughly how long firms with lots of money at their disposal are choosing to hold stocks. in a world like the hypothetical one above, where you have a few high-frequency trading firms, a few giant fundamental-investing firms, and a bunch of retail investors, the results for that are wildly different. | this article is entirely devoid of content. it is completely worthless.newsflash for everyone thinking about being involved with the markets: the reason they work is because there are participants with different motiviations and ideas on how to make money. period. by definition, the "plankton" of the markets are the market makers (both designated and implied, read passive hft). these guys provide immediacy. they do that with the express intent of continuously trying to manage their inventory of any particular stock to 0 (with constraints of their pricing model). this directly implies they have a very high turnover and a holding period that is minimized as much as possible.why do they do this? market makers provide a valuable service: immediacy. they supply to other traders an option to trade with them by displaying liquidity on the standing limit order book. therefore, they must deal with adverse selection (trading with counterparties who are more informed than they are). a market maker is there, ready to trade, and when someone lifts their offer or hits their bid they want to turn around and lay that position off as quickly as possible, ideally via another limit order being matched with a market order. this is the way they earn their living: by making the spread. |
average stock ownership: 22 seconds
| this article is entirely devoid of content. it is completely worthless.newsflash for everyone thinking about being involved with the markets: the reason they work is because there are participants with different motiviations and ideas on how to make money. period. by definition, the "plankton" of the markets are the market makers (both designated and implied, read passive hft). these guys provide immediacy. they do that with the express intent of continuously trying to manage their inventory of any particular stock to 0 (with constraints of their pricing model). this directly implies they have a very high turnover and a holding period that is minimized as much as possible.why do they do this? market makers provide a valuable service: immediacy. they supply to other traders an option to trade with them by displaying liquidity on the standing limit order book. therefore, they must deal with adverse selection (trading with counterparties who are more informed than they are). a market maker is there, ready to trade, and when someone lifts their offer or hits their bid they want to turn around and lay that position off as quickly as possible, ideally via another limit order being matched with a market order. this is the way they earn their living: by making the spread. | compare this to mr. buffett, who has been quoted as saying:"i never attempt to make money on the stock market. i buy on the assumption that they could close the market the next day and not reopen it for five years."quite a contrast. |
average stock ownership: 22 seconds
| compare this to mr. buffett, who has been quoted as saying:"i never attempt to make money on the stock market. i buy on the assumption that they could close the market the next day and not reopen it for five years."quite a contrast. | how can the individual investor compete with that?a: don't try. holding stocks a long amount of time insulates you from the market-timing nonsense where the day traders are fighting tooth and nail for fractions of a percentage point of profit. |
a hacker's story: let me tell you just how easily i can steal your personal data
| someone is eventually going to go to prison after stupidly uploading evidence of themselves wiretapping a wireless network they don't own.there's also an interesting double standard here: would it be quite so acceptable to casually listen in on people's gsm calls or wireless house phone calls? | so, what exactly is the point of this article? "if you're on an insecure network, people can steal your data." ?? not such a big surprise... |
a hacker's story: let me tell you just how easily i can steal your personal data
| so, what exactly is the point of this article? "if you're on an insecure network, people can steal your data." ?? not such a big surprise... | should be renamed 'a script kiddie's story' |
a hacker's story: let me tell you just how easily i can steal your personal data
| should be renamed 'a script kiddie's story' | 2also, don't browse hardcore porn on a public network.omg people will know someone likes porn!!
people do fap. get over it. |
a hacker's story: let me tell you just how easily i can steal your personal data
| 2also, don't browse hardcore porn on a public network.omg people will know someone likes porn!!
people do fap. get over it. | i'm sorry but looking at packets on an unsecured network is in no way "hacking". even cracking a wpa network and using a mitm attack is trivial with all the tools and tutorials available. |
thanks for using my code, google
| the most amazing part of this post is that people are still using jottit. | well its obvious they copied. it doesnt matter if it is a re write. they owe somebody a thank note.so much for the do no evil bullshit. |
thanks for using my code, google
| well its obvious they copied. it doesnt matter if it is a re write. they owe somebody a thank note.so much for the do no evil bullshit. | the interface on the google service is identical as best as i can figure - does "do no evil" include saying thank you to the authors of open source code? |
thanks for using my code, google
| the interface on the google service is identical as best as i can figure - does "do no evil" include saying thank you to the authors of open source code? | when i read about panoramio (google product) on tc today, i thought about how similar it is with your product. i don't know how long google has been working on panoramio, but i think you have a good product. instead of closing the project down, did you try to get funding and take your service to next level? |
thanks for using my code, google
| when i read about panoramio (google product) on tc today, i thought about how similar it is with your product. i don't know how long google has been working on panoramio, but i think you have a good product. instead of closing the project down, did you try to get funding and take your service to next level? | wow this is amazing. what many would do to have google use our code haha... congrats man. |
review my one-day twilio project: track and view your customer support calls
| twilio has so many options for improving phone support it is unbelievable. imagine an integrated crm which, as your phone rang, brought up milly smith's account info on screen. or a quick prehuman prompt asking her for her ssn so that she never had to tell your employees. or both of these, in a call center environment. | if you'd like a demo, call (877) 264-0341 (toll-free, forwards to my cell). then visit <link>'ve blanked out the last four digits of the calls listed there for privacy purposes. |
review my one-day twilio project: track and view your customer support calls
| if you'd like a demo, call (877) 264-0341 (toll-free, forwards to my cell). then visit <link>'ve blanked out the last four digits of the calls listed there for privacy purposes. | hrm.... would have been nice to have seen this built on 'twiliokit' (<link> - a starter kit i put together for building twilio apps inside a pre-configured mvc framework (zf 1.10). i guess i need to do a better job of promoting twiliokit :)thanks for your support-desk contribution all the same - looks nice and clean :) |
review my one-day twilio project: track and view your customer support calls
| hrm.... would have been nice to have seen this built on 'twiliokit' (<link> - a starter kit i put together for building twilio apps inside a pre-configured mvc framework (zf 1.10). i guess i need to do a better job of promoting twiliokit :)thanks for your support-desk contribution all the same - looks nice and clean :) | good job. this looks cool. i made something like this for dell once called ftr (first time resolution). ftr is a metic that describes how many times (on avg) a user has to call in before their issue is resolved. i think if you added that here w/ some pretty charts or something it could help you monetize it. |
review my one-day twilio project: track and view your customer support calls
| good job. this looks cool. i made something like this for dell once called ftr (first time resolution). ftr is a metic that describes how many times (on avg) a user has to call in before their issue is resolved. i think if you added that here w/ some pretty charts or something it could help you monetize it. | this is great. thank you! |
chrome plug-in replaces occurrences of the word 'literally' with 'figuratively'
| "a browser plugin that replaces occurrences of the word 'literally' with 'figuratively'. that's figuratively all it does." | but a lot of times "literally" literally means "literally".why would you get all arrogant and superior over other people's use of language, then implement such an obviously broken concept? literally the dumbest thing i've seen all day. |
chrome plug-in replaces occurrences of the word 'literally' with 'figuratively'
| but a lot of times "literally" literally means "literally".why would you get all arrogant and superior over other people's use of language, then implement such an obviously broken concept? literally the dumbest thing i've seen all day. | lots of innovation in this area: <link> |
chrome plug-in replaces occurrences of the word 'literally' with 'figuratively'
| lots of innovation in this area: <link> | about a year ago i wrote an extension for finding & replacing whatever spelling/grammar people wanted to change on the www: <link> it's a poor man's version of the github pr for typos. |
chrome plug-in replaces occurrences of the word 'literally' with 'figuratively'
| about a year ago i wrote an extension for finding & replacing whatever spelling/grammar people wanted to change on the www: <link> it's a poor man's version of the github pr for typos. | why? modern usage of the word is appropriate. it's widely recognized as a contranym: <link> evolves. get over it. |
why everyone loves the ipad mini (even though the screen sucks)
| on every single flight i take, the main reason why everyone loves my ipad mini is because it is a nexus 7.edit: people ask: "is that the mini?". i avoid being a jerk about it and just say "it's the google one. one of the nexus products. the mini wasn't out when i bought this but i really like it. etc etc" | the ipad mini is "disruptive" only if you live in an alternative and exclusively apple universe. the smaller android tablets and large phones (like the galaxy tab), which have been out for a long time, disrupted the ipad and forced the introduction of the mini. |
why everyone loves the ipad mini (even though the screen sucks)
| the ipad mini is "disruptive" only if you live in an alternative and exclusively apple universe. the smaller android tablets and large phones (like the galaxy tab), which have been out for a long time, disrupted the ipad and forced the introduction of the mini. | technology is all about tradeoffs, film at 11.but seriously, i held a mini yesterday. as an ipad3 owner i can say i'd trade my retina and larger screen for the weight of the mini any day. the weight of the 3 is really difficult to hold for long periods of time.of course, i'd highly prefer a full-sized ipad that was as light as the mini (or "proportionally light", like the iphone5 vs 4). i'm not sure if battery technology will improve quickly enough to make that happen in the near term. |
why everyone loves the ipad mini (even though the screen sucks)
| technology is all about tradeoffs, film at 11.but seriously, i held a mini yesterday. as an ipad3 owner i can say i'd trade my retina and larger screen for the weight of the mini any day. the weight of the 3 is really difficult to hold for long periods of time.of course, i'd highly prefer a full-sized ipad that was as light as the mini (or "proportionally light", like the iphone5 vs 4). i'm not sure if battery technology will improve quickly enough to make that happen in the near term. | i know a couple of people who've said, hands down, they'd take a mini over an ipad 3. i would, in a heartbeat (and probably will next year, for 'testing') and i love the retina displays, i just don't think you miss it that much with the ipad mini unless you're reading, you have excellent eyesight and you hold it really close.i know some people will inevitable go "you can see the pixels, right there, there's a pixel", and that's fine for them. but it's a bit like audiophile headphones, one person can pick up an extra set of dulcet tones but for that guy over there? he doesn't care too much, he likes the other one that's technically not as good but suits him more. |
why everyone loves the ipad mini (even though the screen sucks)
| i know a couple of people who've said, hands down, they'd take a mini over an ipad 3. i would, in a heartbeat (and probably will next year, for 'testing') and i love the retina displays, i just don't think you miss it that much with the ipad mini unless you're reading, you have excellent eyesight and you hold it really close.i know some people will inevitable go "you can see the pixels, right there, there's a pixel", and that's fine for them. but it's a bit like audiophile headphones, one person can pick up an extra set of dulcet tones but for that guy over there? he doesn't care too much, he likes the other one that's technically not as good but suits him more. | "even though the screen sucks" reminds me of lewis c.k.'s "everything is amazing and nobody is happy". how soon we feel anything less than retina sucks. really? we're spoiled people when we look at a piece of technology like the ipad mini and our response is "this screen sucks!". sheesh. |
ask hn: where do you (programmers) find freelancing gigs?
| mostly here, my freelance work tends to come from me posting an informative comment on someone's show hn page, telling them what is good, what is bad and what needs to change.i often take an in depth look if there are bugs, going to my console, editing the javascript on their site and the css, to see if i can solve the bugs for them and then i email them to the poster or in the comments of the post, normally with an up vote to help them to notice quicker.occasionally the person will offer me work, or i will offer to do it for them, sometimes for free, sometimes for money, i'm normally not really bothered, i remember one guy bought me a pint from 2,500 miles away using an online ordering service, which was pretty cool.i don't know about how professionals find it though, i prefer my day job to freelance work, i only take it on nights where i have nothing to do. | early on in my career, i was slowly switching from graphic / web design to web programming. i used to spend quite a bit of time in a couple well known graphic design forums. i had a fairly intense day job, so it's not like i was there 10 hours a day, but i would chime in from time to time for my own interest as well as looking for people with programming questions.i mostly did it for my own learning. i'd been picking up very small freelance projects from an independent web host as the time, and every time i found an interesting question on the designer forums, i'd do the research and come up with an answer.in time, i became one of the main web programming resources in that community. i wasn't necessarily a very good programmer, but i'd always dig in and find the answer and try to find a way to present it well to a non-programmer group. as someone who used to be a designer, i knew how to approach the question and answer in a way that would benefit whomever asked.over time as the designers in that community got further in their careers, they would come to me, whether for work or advice. some came to me back then. some, years later. i had a potential client pop up about 6 months ago (at least 8 years since i'd stopped visiting that forum regularly) by way of a recommendation from one of those old forum members with whom i'd worked years ago.i would say the majority of the success i've found in my career stemmed from those relationships. a lot of whom are still friends and colleagues to this day.i'm not necessarily recommending you start lurking around design forums. but the fact is, there are many industries that are in need of some outside knowledge. i'm also not recommending you start spamming forums. what i mean to say is that it may be possible to find potential clients as a member of a non-programming community, provided you're a reliable and friendly member of said community.this is a very fortunate time to be a programmer. a solid majority of people in the world still have no idea how their phones and computers do what they do, and a good many of those people would benefit greatly by knowing someone who does. and some of them may have some work that needs to be done, or know someone who needs work done. |
ask hn: where do you (programmers) find freelancing gigs?
| early on in my career, i was slowly switching from graphic / web design to web programming. i used to spend quite a bit of time in a couple well known graphic design forums. i had a fairly intense day job, so it's not like i was there 10 hours a day, but i would chime in from time to time for my own interest as well as looking for people with programming questions.i mostly did it for my own learning. i'd been picking up very small freelance projects from an independent web host as the time, and every time i found an interesting question on the designer forums, i'd do the research and come up with an answer.in time, i became one of the main web programming resources in that community. i wasn't necessarily a very good programmer, but i'd always dig in and find the answer and try to find a way to present it well to a non-programmer group. as someone who used to be a designer, i knew how to approach the question and answer in a way that would benefit whomever asked.over time as the designers in that community got further in their careers, they would come to me, whether for work or advice. some came to me back then. some, years later. i had a potential client pop up about 6 months ago (at least 8 years since i'd stopped visiting that forum regularly) by way of a recommendation from one of those old forum members with whom i'd worked years ago.i would say the majority of the success i've found in my career stemmed from those relationships. a lot of whom are still friends and colleagues to this day.i'm not necessarily recommending you start lurking around design forums. but the fact is, there are many industries that are in need of some outside knowledge. i'm also not recommending you start spamming forums. what i mean to say is that it may be possible to find potential clients as a member of a non-programming community, provided you're a reliable and friendly member of said community.this is a very fortunate time to be a programmer. a solid majority of people in the world still have no idea how their phones and computers do what they do, and a good many of those people would benefit greatly by knowing someone who does. and some of them may have some work that needs to be done, or know someone who needs work done. | most of my consulting work comes through word of mouth and referrals from people who i've met at various meetup groups, hack nights, etc. some leads come through the website from people searching from ruby developers, but still the best lead is someone who knows someone who knows you!two podcasts i can highly recommend listening to are the ruby freelancers podcast (<link> and the business of freelancing (<link> podcast that i have found deeply helpful is the entreleadership podcast by chris locurto, which is a follow-on to the business book written by dave ramsey. it's more focused on general business and leadership. so it takes a little more work to apply the principles to your freelance business, but it's very helpful as one thinks through the future when freelancing evolves into a business with a team and so forth.i hope this helps! |
ask hn: where do you (programmers) find freelancing gigs?
| most of my consulting work comes through word of mouth and referrals from people who i've met at various meetup groups, hack nights, etc. some leads come through the website from people searching from ruby developers, but still the best lead is someone who knows someone who knows you!two podcasts i can highly recommend listening to are the ruby freelancers podcast (<link> and the business of freelancing (<link> podcast that i have found deeply helpful is the entreleadership podcast by chris locurto, which is a follow-on to the business book written by dave ramsey. it's more focused on general business and leadership. so it takes a little more work to apply the principles to your freelance business, but it's very helpful as one thinks through the future when freelancing evolves into a business with a team and so forth.i hope this helps! | i remember hearing that after you get a year or so of work and networking under your belt, it mostly just flows. and i didn't really believe it a year ago, but now i see it. all the people i've met from hackathons to the accelerator program to random events, it all adds up later and i get approached for work a good bit now. |
ask hn: where do you (programmers) find freelancing gigs?
| i remember hearing that after you get a year or so of work and networking under your belt, it mostly just flows. and i didn't really believe it a year ago, but now i see it. all the people i've met from hackathons to the accelerator program to random events, it all adds up later and i get approached for work a good bit now. | my co-founder (sabalaba) and i have been working on hackerlist (<link> - a selective network of great freelance engineers.this seems like something many of you have been looking for as there are a shocking number of "freelance" posts (from both clients and programmers) on hn each month -- hn ids: 4596379, 4463692, 4323612, 4214767, 4184757, 4053078, 3914001 3783658, 2539892, etc.we admit, at this stage hackerlist is an experiment. we're only asking for your time and patience -- we'll help you land contracts with top companies, handle the logistics, and you'll keep 100% of your earnings. no catch. we'll handle the vetting process, source contracts, and continuously work one-on-one with you to improve our tech until it serves your needs. unfortunately, to preserve high quality, we're unable to accept more than 32 candidates and 6 of these spots are already filled.if you'd like to be considered for hackerlist, email me at [email protected] or submit your github username on <link> long-term vision is to create a realtime system (think the intersection of mechanical turk, stackoverflow, odesk) where trusted freelance engineers can immediately clone a git repo, start hacking on a technical problem, and upon completion, get paid what they're worth.p.s. suggestions and feedback are appreciated -- we don't want to build something you don't need. |
visualizing algorithms
| author here, ask me anything. and don’t miss the related work section at the end — there’s a ton of links there to inspiring work. | off-topic: why isn't my macbook a jet engine right now? i've read plenty of blogs with nothing but a parallax scroll at the top and my computer fan goes insane.but, on this blog, tons of dynamic code running and not a peep. |
visualizing algorithms
| off-topic: why isn't my macbook a jet engine right now? i've read plenty of blogs with nothing but a parallax scroll at the top and my computer fan goes insane.but, on this blog, tons of dynamic code running and not a peep. | funny thing about that random comparator shuffle - microsoft used it for their browser selection screen (part of the eu antitrust settlement). oops!<link> |
visualizing algorithms
| funny thing about that random comparator shuffle - microsoft used it for their browser selection screen (part of the eu antitrust settlement). oops!<link> | breathtaking work!found a ton more interesting examples here: <link> |
visualizing algorithms
| breathtaking work!found a ton more interesting examples here: <link> | this one is also interesting (requires webgl) <link> |
early modern recipes (1600-1800) in a modern kitchen
| the cutoff at 1800 seems odd given louis eustace ude's _the french cook_ comes out in french in 1813, and had a strong foothold in england prior to 1800. [1] if i understand correctly, he was also one of the first to bring what we now consider modern gastronomic techniques into british cooking. he may present an interesting case study for the period before grimod and brillat-savarin.<link> | there is a group in san francisco called the guild of cookery[1] that is doing this with old recipes and running pop-up dinners based on game of thrones feasts. i went to one and it was fascinating to hear them talk about finding old recipes and sourcing ingredients as authentic as they could get. interesting stuff.[1] <link> - sorry, they only have facebook |
early modern recipes (1600-1800) in a modern kitchen
| there is a group in san francisco called the guild of cookery[1] that is doing this with old recipes and running pop-up dinners based on game of thrones feasts. i went to one and it was fascinating to hear them talk about finding old recipes and sourcing ingredients as authentic as they could get. interesting stuff.[1] <link> - sorry, they only have facebook | i imagine people who are interested in this would also be interested in the silk road gourmet: www.silkroadgourmet.com. everything from babylonian recipes to reconstructions of roman fish sauce. |
early modern recipes (1600-1800) in a modern kitchen
| i imagine people who are interested in this would also be interested in the silk road gourmet: www.silkroadgourmet.com. everything from babylonian recipes to reconstructions of roman fish sauce. | if you like deciphering ancient recipes, you may interested in "the forme of cury: a roll of ancient english cookery compiled, about a.d. 1390": <link>'s remarkable that english written over six centuries ago is still more or less comprehensible, albeit with a little effort. |
early modern recipes (1600-1800) in a modern kitchen
| if you like deciphering ancient recipes, you may interested in "the forme of cury: a roll of ancient english cookery compiled, about a.d. 1390": <link>'s remarkable that english written over six centuries ago is still more or less comprehensible, albeit with a little effort. | boy, that beef roll looks great. i definitely need to give that one a try.these kinds of historical recipes are always fascinating to me. some survive and are still quite good - my girlfriend made a middle eastern dish that apparently hasn't changed in a long, long time (shakshouka) and it turned out surprisingly complex and wonderful. |
facelette: on techcrunch in three hours and $0
| i like this quote best -i’ve also come to loathe this mentality, at times. it’s the same mentality where someone whips up a two-page website and asks people to “review their startup!” i think startup is a phrase that’s been abused. you’ve made a project, or a mashup, or a hack, not a startup.and that’s cool! embrace that. more people need to do stupid shit. i mean that from the bottom of my heart. don’t do it to make money. don’t even do it to learn hip new technology x. do it for the sake of doing something stupid | not to take away from facelette, but for others who want to be on techcrunch: make something with any new apple product this week and the next.the first guy who makes a mac book air case-mod will be on tc.mark my words. |
facelette: on techcrunch in three hours and $0
| not to take away from facelette, but for others who want to be on techcrunch: make something with any new apple product this week and the next.the first guy who makes a mac book air case-mod will be on tc.mark my words. | i’ve also come to loathe this mentality, at times. it’s the same mentality where someone whips up a two-page website and asks people to “review their startup!” i think startup is a phrase that’s been abused. you’ve made a project, or a mashup, or a hack, not a startup.i think this is so true. a startup seems to imply that it will at least in theory become a business at some point. i bet that facebook didn't even call itsself a "web startup" when it started out at harvard until it started to spread and raised some real money.to call every little project that someone hacks together in a weekend a startup is a misnomer, similar to the tendency for founders to give themselves c-level titles in their startup companies which consist of nothing more than a prototye and a pitch, rather than just calling themselves 'founders'. |
facelette: on techcrunch in three hours and $0
| i’ve also come to loathe this mentality, at times. it’s the same mentality where someone whips up a two-page website and asks people to “review their startup!” i think startup is a phrase that’s been abused. you’ve made a project, or a mashup, or a hack, not a startup.i think this is so true. a startup seems to imply that it will at least in theory become a business at some point. i bet that facebook didn't even call itsself a "web startup" when it started out at harvard until it started to spread and raised some real money.to call every little project that someone hacks together in a weekend a startup is a misnomer, similar to the tendency for founders to give themselves c-level titles in their startup companies which consist of nothing more than a prototye and a pitch, rather than just calling themselves 'founders'. | i happened to come upon a novel ideaa derivative idea. not that this takes away anything from the service. most ideas and successful implementations aren't of the kind we've never seen before. |
facelette: on techcrunch in three hours and $0
| i happened to come upon a novel ideaa derivative idea. not that this takes away anything from the service. most ideas and successful implementations aren't of the kind we've never seen before. | we’re in the most ridiculous industry on earth. you can whip something up in a few hours and before you know it, people around the world will be using it.oh how i love this field! its exhilarating! |
red tape, 'tattoo-aversion' snarls government hiring of cybersecurity experts
| my brother's fiancee has a pretty coveted fellowship with a 4 letter agency here in the us (full ride, lots of lab time, money goes with her, etc).her hair color changes with the week, but no tats or piercings otherwise. she says that sitting down at dinners with the higher-up is just confusion. the older grey-beards just do not understand the gaps. their generation was one of service and is mostly white men that did not go to viet nam and are now 60+ and have at least 3 ex wives. her generation is mixed in race and gender, marital status (if ever), and age (22 to 35 year olds). the divide is cultural to her. these guys are always 'behind the fence' and have been for 40 years. their resumes are basically classified, they could never quit as they could never be hired in another job.so, when she dines with them and they complain that all their fellows just go off to apple or sun, she knows that she just has to bite her tongue. they just won't understand because they have been so sheltered for the last 4 decades. the 'silver tsunami'[0][1] as it is known, is starting to rock the boat of the military industrial complex.[0]<link>
[1]<link> | what? three letter agencies recruit very heavily at my particular school and computer science department.while i can't comment on their hiring practices for people without a college degree (even though i know a few people who have had successful careers with the govt without any college experience), i think a more likely reason heavily tattooed people could have a problem working at the government is that they are more likely to be people who are difficult to clear (heavy drug use in the past, surrounded by people who are heavy drug users, etc.). they clearance process is honestly really stupid. having tattoos will not disqualify you, but surrounding yourself in people with bad habits will.as someone watching close friends get hired weekly to places where they "can't say where they will be working", it seems like uncle sam will hire anyone with a pulse who even expresses an interest in security.and if not, the people will just go make twice the money at a defense contractor....edit: i think a lot of the "red tape" belief for the government comes from people who are on the outside of this industry looking in not understanding the hiring process. it is the opposite from a place like google.basically. you end up in someone's office and they talk to you for a few minutes and know if they are going to hire you within the first 3 minutes of the interview. the important part though, is that you are clearable. since this is a long and expensive process, a lot of contractors put on their job requisitions "must be able to obtain a security clearance". they will believe you if you tell them you are clearable. that's because getting denied a clearance can be a big deal if you want to work at the gov't later. it also is a auto-fire for the particular job (i would know. the clearance i was denied was the best thing that ever happened to me).... |
red tape, 'tattoo-aversion' snarls government hiring of cybersecurity experts
| what? three letter agencies recruit very heavily at my particular school and computer science department.while i can't comment on their hiring practices for people without a college degree (even though i know a few people who have had successful careers with the govt without any college experience), i think a more likely reason heavily tattooed people could have a problem working at the government is that they are more likely to be people who are difficult to clear (heavy drug use in the past, surrounded by people who are heavy drug users, etc.). they clearance process is honestly really stupid. having tattoos will not disqualify you, but surrounding yourself in people with bad habits will.as someone watching close friends get hired weekly to places where they "can't say where they will be working", it seems like uncle sam will hire anyone with a pulse who even expresses an interest in security.and if not, the people will just go make twice the money at a defense contractor....edit: i think a lot of the "red tape" belief for the government comes from people who are on the outside of this industry looking in not understanding the hiring process. it is the opposite from a place like google.basically. you end up in someone's office and they talk to you for a few minutes and know if they are going to hire you within the first 3 minutes of the interview. the important part though, is that you are clearable. since this is a long and expensive process, a lot of contractors put on their job requisitions "must be able to obtain a security clearance". they will believe you if you tell them you are clearable. that's because getting denied a clearance can be a big deal if you want to work at the gov't later. it also is a auto-fire for the particular job (i would know. the clearance i was denied was the best thing that ever happened to me).... | [the dhs] is vying with the private sector and other
three-letter federal agencies to hire and retain talent
to secure federal networks [...] "the hiring process is
very, very difficult," she said.
let's be honest, even if you desperately wanted to work for the government, the dhs is all about confiscating water at airports. who in their right mind would choose that over the much cooler fbi, nsa or dod? |
red tape, 'tattoo-aversion' snarls government hiring of cybersecurity experts
| [the dhs] is vying with the private sector and other
three-letter federal agencies to hire and retain talent
to secure federal networks [...] "the hiring process is
very, very difficult," she said.
let's be honest, even if you desperately wanted to work for the government, the dhs is all about confiscating water at airports. who in their right mind would choose that over the much cooler fbi, nsa or dod? | i dealt with the federal civil service hiring rules at lot at my last command.it would take us weeks to hire someone to do routine military personnel administrative tasks. no clearance needed, no degree, no special skills beyond being trainable on a computer, etc. weeks.i can only imagine the difficulty present in needing to run through the hiring process and having to run a security clearance. especially in the wake of snowden, aaron alexis, manning, and usis screening contractor scandals, which have all combined to help guarantee that no one tries to so much as streamline any part of the sf-86 and its background investigation.the military even has problems with this; it's not uncommon for new accessions to be delayed at their initial entry training schoolhouses due to "clearance issues". but they're at least already drawing a paycheck, and it's not as if the students waiting can just take a new job out of their frustration. and as the article mentions, it's in many ways much easier (as far as red tape goes) to join the military than to join the civil service.i hope dhs get better hiring authorities. it may seem weird in sv but "direct hire" is practically fighting words for many groups watching the government, who are concerned that it would just be abused for nepotism.however i do agree with the points about not needing people with a clearance. by definition dhs is not engaged in offensive cyber and defending critical network infrastructure is hardly a task that requires a year-long background check. |
red tape, 'tattoo-aversion' snarls government hiring of cybersecurity experts
| i dealt with the federal civil service hiring rules at lot at my last command.it would take us weeks to hire someone to do routine military personnel administrative tasks. no clearance needed, no degree, no special skills beyond being trainable on a computer, etc. weeks.i can only imagine the difficulty present in needing to run through the hiring process and having to run a security clearance. especially in the wake of snowden, aaron alexis, manning, and usis screening contractor scandals, which have all combined to help guarantee that no one tries to so much as streamline any part of the sf-86 and its background investigation.the military even has problems with this; it's not uncommon for new accessions to be delayed at their initial entry training schoolhouses due to "clearance issues". but they're at least already drawing a paycheck, and it's not as if the students waiting can just take a new job out of their frustration. and as the article mentions, it's in many ways much easier (as far as red tape goes) to join the military than to join the civil service.i hope dhs get better hiring authorities. it may seem weird in sv but "direct hire" is practically fighting words for many groups watching the government, who are concerned that it would just be abused for nepotism.however i do agree with the points about not needing people with a clearance. by definition dhs is not engaged in offensive cyber and defending critical network infrastructure is hardly a task that requires a year-long background check. | i don't understand the aversion to tattoos in many workplaces. i have tattoos myself, one on each leg and one on my arm. you cannot see them when i'm wearing my interview clothing, but during the summer when i wear shorts and a t-shirt at work you can easily see them. when people see them, they don't expect me to be the kind of person that has tattoos.by associating tattoos with a certain type of person before you even get to know their abilities means that you lose out on a lot.the same goes for people who have differently coloured or styled hair. the lead developer for one of our products at the company i work for has a green mohawk, yet he's an extremely talented and knowledgeable developer.appearances have nothing to do with knowledge or ability. the quicker people learn this, the better for all of us. |
as families change, korea’s elderly are turning to suicide
| this is a severe abuse of statistics.they are succeeding at alarming rates; the suicides among people 65 or older ballooned to 4,378 in 2010, from 1,161 in 2000.the are absolute counts, not rates. the male 65+ population went up 70% in the same period, and the 75+ subgroup doubled [1]. this explains away much of the increase (c.f. generic statistics in [2]). and at the same time:the number of suicides among other adults and teenagers also surged... (no numbers)is it even clear the age-normalized suicide rate increased at all among the elderly, relative to the general population? i don't think the journalist checked.edit: bbc says korea's general-population suicide "more than doubled" over the same period [3]. so the 65+ suicide rate is almost completely explained by the null hypothesis. the count of 65+ suicides went up by 3.77x; the male 65+ population increased by 1.68x, and the general population suicide rate by 22.0x, which together is a factor of 3.36x. that leaves a 012% increase in [65+ suicide rate]/[general population suicide rate] (i'm still ignoring (rare [2]) female suicides). in a better analysis this might completely disappear. e.g. the 75+ subgroup outgrew the 65+ subgroup and they are much more suicidal [2], but i don't know how much more.[1] <link>[2] <link>[3] <link> | this, by the way, is one of the reasons that the aggregate national suicide rate in korea (and also in japan) exceeds the aggregate national suicide rate in the united states. the elderly (persons born before the end of the korean war, and especially before the end of world war ii) in those countries kill themselves at a much higher rate than the same birth cohort in the united states. on the other hand, rates of youth suicide in recent decades have been much more comparable among those countries, and once when i checked in the 1990s, looking up world health organisation statistics, the youth suicide rate in the united states was actually higher than that in japan. so some of the international comparisons in suicide rates have to take a careful look at cohort effects (rates specific to a particular era of birth) to better tease out hypotheses for the causes of differing rates of suicide.this is an old issue all over the world, including in east asia, the issue of children growing up and taking care of themselves and their children rather than their elderly parents. a comment on hacker news (as i recall) recently mentioned the 1953 japanese movie tokyo story (東京物語), which i began watching on a dvd from the public library last night. yes, even in 1953 in early postwar japan, families had to adjust to children not necessarily being by the side of their parents as the parents grew old. |
as families change, korea’s elderly are turning to suicide
| this, by the way, is one of the reasons that the aggregate national suicide rate in korea (and also in japan) exceeds the aggregate national suicide rate in the united states. the elderly (persons born before the end of the korean war, and especially before the end of world war ii) in those countries kill themselves at a much higher rate than the same birth cohort in the united states. on the other hand, rates of youth suicide in recent decades have been much more comparable among those countries, and once when i checked in the 1990s, looking up world health organisation statistics, the youth suicide rate in the united states was actually higher than that in japan. so some of the international comparisons in suicide rates have to take a careful look at cohort effects (rates specific to a particular era of birth) to better tease out hypotheses for the causes of differing rates of suicide.this is an old issue all over the world, including in east asia, the issue of children growing up and taking care of themselves and their children rather than their elderly parents. a comment on hacker news (as i recall) recently mentioned the 1953 japanese movie tokyo story (東京物語), which i began watching on a dvd from the public library last night. yes, even in 1953 in early postwar japan, families had to adjust to children not necessarily being by the side of their parents as the parents grew old. | certainly, when individuals vote to turn over personal responsibilities to the the government, things will turn out badly in the end. however, the break down of personal responsibilities within families is not the result of economic success. has the article's author considered their implied message - that if only koreans had experienced economic failure, then everybody would just happy as pigs in slop? that's absurd, of course, as their northern neighbors provide the perfect example for the comparison. if there is a breakdown in familial responsibilities, it is not likely to be the result of economic success. many people around the world work not just in a distant city, but in a distant country in order to send the fruits of higher earnings home to family - so it is not reasonable to assume that moving to a different city somehow forces a person to lose their sense of familial responsibility. if such a breakdown is occurring, the explanation for its cause lies somewhere other than economic success. |
as families change, korea’s elderly are turning to suicide
| certainly, when individuals vote to turn over personal responsibilities to the the government, things will turn out badly in the end. however, the break down of personal responsibilities within families is not the result of economic success. has the article's author considered their implied message - that if only koreans had experienced economic failure, then everybody would just happy as pigs in slop? that's absurd, of course, as their northern neighbors provide the perfect example for the comparison. if there is a breakdown in familial responsibilities, it is not likely to be the result of economic success. many people around the world work not just in a distant city, but in a distant country in order to send the fruits of higher earnings home to family - so it is not reasonable to assume that moving to a different city somehow forces a person to lose their sense of familial responsibility. if such a breakdown is occurring, the explanation for its cause lies somewhere other than economic success. | maybe a few centuries from now our major societies will no longer rely on population growth. the consequences of this unsustainable approach won't be pretty. my kid will be expected to financially support at least two retirees via social security contributions and pay back a chunk of those borrowed $trillions. |
as families change, korea’s elderly are turning to suicide
| maybe a few centuries from now our major societies will no longer rely on population growth. the consequences of this unsustainable approach won't be pretty. my kid will be expected to financially support at least two retirees via social security contributions and pay back a chunk of those borrowed $trillions. | this is something i've been thinking about in the good old usa too. throughout most of history elderly relied on family to take care of them, but modern society often has families spread out over great distances and children not prepared or expecting to have to care for their parents, and with people living longer than ever it becomes much more of a job to care for your parents. combine that with the fact that pensions are becoming increasingly rare and social security benefits are likely to be cut at some point in the future, and you have the potential for a massive increase in elderly living below the poverty line with no one to care for them.even if you prepare and save, that's no guarantee as the recent economic troubles demonstrated, with many people nearing retirement seeing massive decreases in their investments. not to mention, with the skyrocketing costs of college tuition and wages that have not kept up with inflation, adequately saving for retirement has become increasingly difficult as well.i'm not sure what's going to happen but i don't see the future as being that promising as we age and quite frankly, i can see a lot of seniors turning to suicide when whatever meager savings they have run out. i hope i'm wrong, but it looks quite bleak... |
ask hn: what's the best way to learn python/django enough so i can hire someone?
i've got a large idea that i'd like to outsource. i'm a product development guy with no programming ability. i'm willing to learn python enough so that i can properly outsource, but i don't want to spend tons of time on it. where should i start? | it really depends. when you say "no programming ability", does that mean absolutely no programming experience ? do you understand what is involved in programming ? i am guessing no. if thats the case, you might be looking at it the wrong way. the thing is that there is no quick magic for you to be able to have enough programming skill to be able to judge another developer whether outsourced or not.unless you really want to program or are very interested, i suggest you try and find someone reliable who can guide you in finding the right developers. having said that, you can still learn programming on the side but don't make the assumption that by taking a few classes or learning a few tricks, you will be able to judge the quality of a developer.ps: go and try out <link> | i used this and a bit of playing around, to learn the basics of python/programing: <link>, i wonder if learning to program is really the best use of your time. have you considered finding a co-founder? there are many good programmers out there that are eager to do a startup, so it’s clearly an option for you to use the money you are planning on using to outsource the job to get a co-founder instead, which you can then pay, and that can maybe even put some of his own time in there. |
ask hn: what's the best way to learn python/django enough so i can hire someone?
i've got a large idea that i'd like to outsource. i'm a product development guy with no programming ability. i'm willing to learn python enough so that i can properly outsource, but i don't want to spend tons of time on it. where should i start? | i used this and a bit of playing around, to learn the basics of python/programing: <link>, i wonder if learning to program is really the best use of your time. have you considered finding a co-founder? there are many good programmers out there that are eager to do a startup, so it’s clearly an option for you to use the money you are planning on using to outsource the job to get a co-founder instead, which you can then pay, and that can maybe even put some of his own time in there. | check out the django documentation on <link> the documentation is wonderful and very well written. i learned django from reading that. as for python, i'd suggest the learn python the hard way free ebook/exercises rather than codeacademy. there is also dive into python. i am new to programming and used these resources to build some web apps in python. you should learn enough from these to hire someone to do the work for you. |
ask hn: what's the best way to learn python/django enough so i can hire someone?
i've got a large idea that i'd like to outsource. i'm a product development guy with no programming ability. i'm willing to learn python enough so that i can properly outsource, but i don't want to spend tons of time on it. where should i start? | check out the django documentation on <link> the documentation is wonderful and very well written. i learned django from reading that. as for python, i'd suggest the learn python the hard way free ebook/exercises rather than codeacademy. there is also dive into python. i am new to programming and used these resources to build some web apps in python. you should learn enough from these to hire someone to do the work for you. | i can't imagine what advantage a short intro to python/django could possibly give you in trying to hire a developer.do you already have partial implementation of your idea in python? given python, i can see why you're interested in django. but why python specifically?i ask this because you may have an easier time finding a good developer without a language requirement. that said, i am a python/django dev. if you want some questions to ask your prospects, i can help you out. just email me. |
ask hn: what's the best way to learn python/django enough so i can hire someone?
i've got a large idea that i'd like to outsource. i'm a product development guy with no programming ability. i'm willing to learn python enough so that i can properly outsource, but i don't want to spend tons of time on it. where should i start? | i can't imagine what advantage a short intro to python/django could possibly give you in trying to hire a developer.do you already have partial implementation of your idea in python? given python, i can see why you're interested in django. but why python specifically?i ask this because you may have an easier time finding a good developer without a language requirement. that said, i am a python/django dev. if you want some questions to ask your prospects, i can help you out. just email me. | email me ([email protected], email also in profile), i'm looking for people just getting started in programming. i think a little guidance goes a long way at the beginning.for a little more info, here was my ask hn post looking for people like you: <link> |
pdp-11 booting
| i had an lsi-11. it was a real sweet machine. dec completely missed the micro revolution - they could have owned it. so sad. | if you find getting a real pdp-11 too much trouble, consider using the simh emulator:http://simh.trailing-edge.comsimh does lack the visceral appeal of putting your hands on the console though... |
pdp-11 booting
| if you find getting a real pdp-11 too much trouble, consider using the simh emulator:http://simh.trailing-edge.comsimh does lack the visceral appeal of putting your hands on the console though... | isn't this cheating? i thought the bootloader was supposed to be input in using the toggle switches or keypad, and only then can you boot off paper tape. lazy kids these days. |
pdp-11 booting
| isn't this cheating? i thought the bootloader was supposed to be input in using the toggle switches or keypad, and only then can you boot off paper tape. lazy kids these days. | oh man, that 4th-to-last picture fills me with happiness. so old school. is that the drive head? love the vernier scale made out of pcbs. and the big-ass cast iron parts. and the 1/4"-20 socket head bolts. and the ultra-sparse through-hole pcb in the background. that picture made me so happy. wish i had been around back in the day to program one of the old machines. |
pdp-11 booting
| oh man, that 4th-to-last picture fills me with happiness. so old school. is that the drive head? love the vernier scale made out of pcbs. and the big-ass cast iron parts. and the 1/4"-20 socket head bolts. and the ultra-sparse through-hole pcb in the background. that picture made me so happy. wish i had been around back in the day to program one of the old machines. | that's not how i remember it, somewhere you have to (occasionally because it's real core) toggle in the bootstrap using the front panel switches ..... |
ipad 3 4g teardown
| hm... the battery numbers are surprising. the battery is 43.5wh, which is huge. over 9.5 hours us "use", that comes to 4.6w average. my dell xps 15 l501x (very much not a "light" machine!) has a 9-cell 91wh battery and got about 5 hours continuous on it when it was new, for about 18.2w.so the ipad 3 is drawing 25% the current of a beefy 2.9ghz arrandale laptop? that's shockingly high, imho, especially considering that the screen area of the 15.6" laptop is twice that of the tablet.similar, the numbers they show aren't much higher than the range (30-50wh, 6-9 hours) already achieved by a bunch of netbooks on the market. | and 1gb of ram confirmed. apple's policy of not mentioning the ram made sense to me when they started, because it did seem like a amount of ram in the initial model (256mb). but they've doubled the ram with each new generation and made no mention of it. i guess apple has just made the calculation that 1) it doesn't matter to most consumers (the ipad is supposed to be magic), and 2) they'll be outspeced by the competition over the lifetime of the model, anyway. |
ipad 3 4g teardown
| and 1gb of ram confirmed. apple's policy of not mentioning the ram made sense to me when they started, because it did seem like a amount of ram in the initial model (256mb). but they've doubled the ram with each new generation and made no mention of it. i guess apple has just made the calculation that 1) it doesn't matter to most consumers (the ipad is supposed to be magic), and 2) they'll be outspeced by the competition over the lifetime of the model, anyway. | wow, beautiful photographs. they always do a great job.has anyone looked closer at the a5x package in these pictures? is that a glimpse of pc board under that can? is there some kind of multi-die package (and not just pop)? |
ipad 3 4g teardown
| wow, beautiful photographs. they always do a great job.has anyone looked closer at the a5x package in these pictures? is that a glimpse of pc board under that can? is there some kind of multi-die package (and not just pop)? | i love these teardowns - so superfluous, and yet so compelling nonetheless. |
ipad 3 4g teardown
| i love these teardowns - so superfluous, and yet so compelling nonetheless. | i want to know if they successfully got it back together. |
vmware fusion 4 released
| they seems to change the eula to allow installing on as may macs as long as you own it[1], compared to previous license[2]: you are prohibited from installing and using the software on more than one computer at a time
[1]: <link>!/vmwarefusion/status/113994645062684672[2]: <link> | did they discontinue academic pricing? anyway, coupon: "fusion20" gives you a 20% discount. |
vmware fusion 4 released
| did they discontinue academic pricing? anyway, coupon: "fusion20" gives you a 20% discount. | release notes<link> runs windows 8.<link>!/vmwarefusion/status/113988639339450368 |
vmware fusion 4 released
| release notes<link> runs windows 8.<link>!/vmwarefusion/status/113988639339450368 | vmware fusion 3 customers, no need to fret. unless you purchased after july 20th, you get to pay full price just like everyone else. ( i'd be happy to be wrong, but at this point, i feel a tad betrayed. to the point that i am considering dumping fusion ) |
vmware fusion 4 released
| vmware fusion 3 customers, no need to fret. unless you purchased after july 20th, you get to pay full price just like everyone else. ( i'd be happy to be wrong, but at this point, i feel a tad betrayed. to the point that i am considering dumping fusion ) | does anyone know if this supports the the vmwgfx gallium3d driver for accelerated opengl in linux guests?update: vmware responded (within 6 minutes) on twitter and the answer is no. <link>!/vmwarefusion/status/11402734522400768... |
the hacker's diet: losing weight the hacker way
| i followed this diet back in 2003 and lost 40 kilos (about 88 pounds) over 6 months, most of them in the first 3. the key things for me were:giving up alcohol for two months
not eating much at all
doing the fitness regime to boost metabolic rateby the time i stopped i was on level 45 of the ladder, had never felt fitter in my life and wasn't ripped per se but was certainly toned.since then my weight has gone back up largely due to work and old habits coming back - i've taken up cycling which is definitely having a positive effect, but i'm not sure it'll be as effective without consideration to other areas (crap food, booze etc.) | four years after reading this the first time, i still remind myself of one insight: engineer vs. managers and "fixing problems" vs. "managing problems".you can find this discussion under the heading "problems: managing, fixing, and solving" here <link>'s pretty brilliant. even when my (manager) head knows i should be just managing problems, my (engineering) heart really, really wants to just fix them. |
the hacker's diet: losing weight the hacker way
| four years after reading this the first time, i still remind myself of one insight: engineer vs. managers and "fixing problems" vs. "managing problems".you can find this discussion under the heading "problems: managing, fixing, and solving" here <link>'s pretty brilliant. even when my (manager) head knows i should be just managing problems, my (engineering) heart really, really wants to just fix them. | has anyone tried the shangri-la diet? seems too simple not to try it. from wikipedia:"the diet itself consists of taking 100–400 calories in the form of extra-light (not extra-virgin) olive oil or sugar water per day, either all at once or spanned throughout the day. this must be consumed in a flavorless window, which is at least one hour after flavors have been consumed, and at least one hour before flavors will be consumed.[4] the consumption of these flavorless calories supposedly lowers the set point, and therefore, lowers weight."i just mention this because i've read the authors paper "self-experimentation as a source of new ideas: ten examples about sleep, mood, health, and weight" and it seemed really interesting. available here:<link> |
the hacker's diet: losing weight the hacker way
| has anyone tried the shangri-la diet? seems too simple not to try it. from wikipedia:"the diet itself consists of taking 100–400 calories in the form of extra-light (not extra-virgin) olive oil or sugar water per day, either all at once or spanned throughout the day. this must be consumed in a flavorless window, which is at least one hour after flavors have been consumed, and at least one hour before flavors will be consumed.[4] the consumption of these flavorless calories supposedly lowers the set point, and therefore, lowers weight."i just mention this because i've read the authors paper "self-experimentation as a source of new ideas: ten examples about sleep, mood, health, and weight" and it seemed really interesting. available here:<link> | i'm on this "diet" and have lost about 45 pounds so far.getting skinny always seemed like black voodoo or something. looking at it the way i would look at hacking together a system made it really, really, really easy. |
the hacker's diet: losing weight the hacker way
| i'm on this "diet" and have lost about 45 pounds so far.getting skinny always seemed like black voodoo or something. looking at it the way i would look at hacking together a system made it really, really, really easy. | the hacker's diet is a perfect example of a watched metric improving just by being watched.when i needed to lose weight recently, i watched what i eat (in a google docs spreadsheet) and weighed myself every day, and lost 10kg in about 10 weeks. |
os x 10.9.3 is toxic
| in an attempt to balance the discussion, i'm on 10.9.3 and i've had absolutely zero issues so far. | one kernel panic bug, and the system is "toxic" and "disease"? i'm not saying that this issue is acceptable, but i don't think those adjectives are really appropriate in describing it. |
os x 10.9.3 is toxic
| one kernel panic bug, and the system is "toxic" and "disease"? i'm not saying that this issue is acceptable, but i don't think those adjectives are really appropriate in describing it. | i've been a mac user for 6 months (mbp), i hardly tax the machine but it has crashed a dozen times. twice today, and five times this week in total.not since windows 98 have i seen such an unstable os. i've seen less bsod in the last 15 years than i've seen kernel panics in the last week. |
os x 10.9.3 is toxic
| i've been a mac user for 6 months (mbp), i hardly tax the machine but it has crashed a dozen times. twice today, and five times this week in total.not since windows 98 have i seen such an unstable os. i've seen less bsod in the last 15 years than i've seen kernel panics in the last week. | notably absent from the article, but spelled out in the comments, is that the author doesn't have an appleid because he doesn't want to agree to apple's terms, and therefore cannot acquire a kernel debug kit. |
os x 10.9.3 is toxic
| notably absent from the article, but spelled out in the comments, is that the author doesn't have an appleid because he doesn't want to agree to apple's terms, and therefore cannot acquire a kernel debug kit. | some people have felt that switching graphics modes is the source of mavericks crashes. i had five crashes in several days last week. i went to the energy saver control panel, and turned off automated graphics switching. haven't had a crash in a week. could easily be coincidence, but i thought i'd mention it here in case anyone else wants to try it. i'd be very interested in hearing whether it helps.by the way, what happens on my machine is that the ui completely freezes. i'm not sure if that's what other commenters experience when they talk about "crashing". |
ask hn: how quiet is your startup office?
we're 10 people or so and it's incredibly quiet here a lot of the time, just traffic sounds from outside, keyboard tapping and mouse clicking. | 12 person startup, here. it's deadly quiet. most people are in offices, they close their door for phone calls. headphones for music is the norm. it makes me crazy, sometimes. i get a little break because i sit near the kitchen and there's a lot of chatter when people are preparing their lunches. | 3 people in our office. we have a speaker system in the office and take turns running our personal pandora or spotify stations on it. sometimes we crank it up and other times we have softer mellow music playing. heck, we will even put on npr. we all have headphones and can plug in and listen to our own music if we want.i can't stand mouse clicking and keyboard tapping, so a little music for background noise is nice. i can also open my window and listen to the cars on the freeway. |
ask hn: how quiet is your startup office?
we're 10 people or so and it's incredibly quiet here a lot of the time, just traffic sounds from outside, keyboard tapping and mouse clicking. | 3 people in our office. we have a speaker system in the office and take turns running our personal pandora or spotify stations on it. sometimes we crank it up and other times we have softer mellow music playing. heck, we will even put on npr. we all have headphones and can plug in and listen to our own music if we want.i can't stand mouse clicking and keyboard tapping, so a little music for background noise is nice. i can also open my window and listen to the cars on the freeway. | 4 person startup here. our founders decided to bring 2 concert-sized speakers from their college days to our office. it's hooked up to an airport express and we use spotify/soundrop. at first, it didn't seem like a good idea but now i think every office should have speakers to lighten the mood.we keep the volume pretty reasonable during work hours so you can still pop on headphones and listen to your own stuff if you wanted to. |
ask hn: how quiet is your startup office?
we're 10 people or so and it's incredibly quiet here a lot of the time, just traffic sounds from outside, keyboard tapping and mouse clicking. | 4 person startup here. our founders decided to bring 2 concert-sized speakers from their college days to our office. it's hooked up to an airport express and we use spotify/soundrop. at first, it didn't seem like a good idea but now i think every office should have speakers to lighten the mood.we keep the volume pretty reasonable during work hours so you can still pop on headphones and listen to your own stuff if you wanted to. | we have about 50 people in our office. desks are foldable tables. seating groups are split between product/design, devs, sales and content people. constant chatter between product and content. our cto is very hands on and most people have meetings at their desks.with that said, i have my headphones in much of the time. |
ask hn: how quiet is your startup office?
we're 10 people or so and it's incredibly quiet here a lot of the time, just traffic sounds from outside, keyboard tapping and mouse clicking. | we have about 50 people in our office. desks are foldable tables. seating groups are split between product/design, devs, sales and content people. constant chatter between product and content. our cto is very hands on and most people have meetings at their desks.with that said, i have my headphones in much of the time. | i'm a big ad agency. silence is impossible to find, unless you start working at 7pm. everyone here uses headphones. |
healthcare.gov crashes on the last day before deadline
| how exactly is this fine supposed to be enforced? simply added to your taxes? for the record i think it's bs that i get fined for not giving my business to companies that i don't trust and are incentivized to screw me over. signing up for obamacare isn't signing up for health care, it's signing up insurance against grossly overpriced healthcare. lets fix the problem, not play the insurance companies game. | for anyone wondering, the obama administration has already built in a system for letting people who tried to sign up in the next couple days but didn't complete an application sign up without a fine in preparation for this. i'm sure it won't handle all cases and seems odd given how strict they said the deadline would be, but just for clarity of debate i wanted that out there. |
healthcare.gov crashes on the last day before deadline
| for anyone wondering, the obama administration has already built in a system for letting people who tried to sign up in the next couple days but didn't complete an application sign up without a fine in preparation for this. i'm sure it won't handle all cases and seems odd given how strict they said the deadline would be, but just for clarity of debate i wanted that out there. | technical problems due to scheduled maintenance is to blame'scheduled maintenece' is either one hell of a euphamism or a most cynical dark pattern. |
healthcare.gov crashes on the last day before deadline
| technical problems due to scheduled maintenance is to blame'scheduled maintenece' is either one hell of a euphamism or a most cynical dark pattern. | it looks like it was down for 8 hours total, 5 of which were scheduled. |
healthcare.gov crashes on the last day before deadline
| it looks like it was down for 8 hours total, 5 of which were scheduled. | this is normal for any systems of this type. the online tax returns system for hmrc in the uk does the same thing every year. people need do it earlier. |
posthaven launches in public beta
| i signed up for an account today. they don't give much away on their homepage, so here's a preview of the current post editor for those interested:<link> can sign up today for $5 and you won't be billed again until they're out of beta. i felt it was worth doing because i support their vision and i'm keen to see how it develops, even though the actual product is very bare bones at the moment. (e.g. no template editing, no pages, can't save posts as drafts.)what they have so far seems fast, clean, and easy to use, though. the environment is refreshing compared to wordpress and more suited to medium-to-longform writing than tumblr.my advice to the creators: show actual mockups of what you're hoping to build. (e.g. <link> )promising never to sell out is great, but i would much rather see a visual pledge in the form of, "this is what we plan to make [screenshots] and this is the order we're building those features." even if you don't offer a definitive schedule, at least your beta backers will feel more invested in the journey you're on. | hey, someone explain to me what happened here... seems like twitter bought posterous to shut it down, and the founders took the money and basically started the same product with a new name and a pay model. |
posthaven launches in public beta
| hey, someone explain to me what happened here... seems like twitter bought posterous to shut it down, and the founders took the money and basically started the same product with a new name and a pay model. | advice to startups: list your price at its yearly rate, not monthly. i see the words "per month" and i think yet another thing sipping on my bank account every month. it's silly but it's easier to accept that i'm dishing out money for something that i won't have to think about again until a year. |
posthaven launches in public beta
| advice to startups: list your price at its yearly rate, not monthly. i see the words "per month" and i think yet another thing sipping on my bank account every month. it's silly but it's easier to accept that i'm dishing out money for something that i won't have to think about again until a year. | hi garry (8 posthaven team),so i've used livejournal, dreamwidth, tumblr, and posterous before, maybe a few other blogging services. lj has disintegrated due to $xyz politics, dreamwidth is pretty awesome but very small, tumblr is looking for $$$, and posterous is, well, you know.so i regret to say that i do not look forward to using posthaven. i instead plan to write my own content system that is git 8 markdown driven that renders out to my own site, paid for by me. you see, i do not trust content hosting anymore without significant reason to believe they won't drop me into a hole because $business-reason. perhaps if posthaven is still a going concern in 5 years and fully self-owned/ipo'd, then i will consider it a reasonable place to put time into. i guess i've just gotten burnt and my crispyness is starting to show.i do wish you the best of luck, and i hope that posthaven is a long-term stable business.regards,
paul |
posthaven launches in public beta
| hi garry (8 posthaven team),so i've used livejournal, dreamwidth, tumblr, and posterous before, maybe a few other blogging services. lj has disintegrated due to $xyz politics, dreamwidth is pretty awesome but very small, tumblr is looking for $$$, and posterous is, well, you know.so i regret to say that i do not look forward to using posthaven. i instead plan to write my own content system that is git 8 markdown driven that renders out to my own site, paid for by me. you see, i do not trust content hosting anymore without significant reason to believe they won't drop me into a hole because $business-reason. perhaps if posthaven is still a going concern in 5 years and fully self-owned/ipo'd, then i will consider it a reasonable place to put time into. i guess i've just gotten burnt and my crispyness is starting to show.i do wish you the best of luck, and i hope that posthaven is a long-term stable business.regards,
paul | i love the concept of posthaven because it says that a huge exit doesn't have to be the end game for every startup.they've made a promise to their users to live by a sustainable business model instead of shooting the moon. writing should be permanent, but the model of startups is one that favors the temporary. this seems like a logical next step. |
ie to start automatic upgrades across windows xp, windows vista, and windows 7
| microsoft should just start to bundle ie with new solitaire games, so that people would be forced to upgrade ie to get the new games. that should kill ie6 in a few hours. | perhaps i'm being overly optimistic, but this has just made my christmas and new year. if this has a genuine impact, and means people are running ie8 in the worst case, then i will be a very a happy dev.patiently waits to see browser usage trends once this rolls out... |
ie to start automatic upgrades across windows xp, windows vista, and windows 7
| perhaps i'm being overly optimistic, but this has just made my christmas and new year. if this has a genuine impact, and means people are running ie8 in the worst case, then i will be a very a happy dev.patiently waits to see browser usage trends once this rolls out... | this move.. which as far as i can tell would be to make ie upgrades opt-out instead of opt-in, could be a seriously great one. it just might go a long way to killing off ie6 and ie7, leaving ie 8 as the only non-current version requiring support.it's great to fantasize about no ie or the latest ie on xp, but in the real world this is a very positive move. |
ie to start automatic upgrades across windows xp, windows vista, and windows 7
| this move.. which as far as i can tell would be to make ie upgrades opt-out instead of opt-in, could be a seriously great one. it just might go a long way to killing off ie6 and ie7, leaving ie 8 as the only non-current version requiring support.it's great to fantasize about no ie or the latest ie on xp, but in the real world this is a very positive move. | does this mean that ie9 will be available on win xp?it would be great, but i doubt that microsoft will do something like that. most likely win xp users will get "only" security updates an service packs for ie7, vista users for ie8 and only win7 users will get the latest ie.that being said, i can't see this as a big leap forward, since large majority of users will not get the latest browser update. |
ie to start automatic upgrades across windows xp, windows vista, and windows 7
| does this mean that ie9 will be available on win xp?it would be great, but i doubt that microsoft will do something like that. most likely win xp users will get "only" security updates an service packs for ie7, vista users for ie8 and only win7 users will get the latest ie.that being said, i can't see this as a big leap forward, since large majority of users will not get the latest browser update. | what about 'pirated' copies of windows? i presume they're not getting updates at the moment.(all the same, this is still a good thing.) |
bing smacks google in new usability test
| potential confounds:* google submits many more searches with it's instant ajax search-as-you-type* google's speed allows users to hone in on better search results by tweaking terms, whereas bing/yahoo users don't waste their time with a 2nd search* google displays the answer right on the results page with superior semantic analysis, nullifying the use of a clickthrough* google's tools (such as "define:", math like "4+1.078", and conversions like "45cm in inches") are well-known and people look to google itself for answers, not secondary sites in results* if google's users are more "tech savvy", they may use search qualitatively differently than bing users (related to the above explanations)* google users click on google ads more than bing users click on bing ads - are ad clicks tracked?of course, these could all be wrong. but worth looking into or acknowledging in the research if they already had. | matt's response to this:
<link> |
bing smacks google in new usability test
| matt's response to this:
<link> | here's an interesting comparison:google: <link>8safe=active8q=fan...bing: <link>8go=8form=qbre&...yahoo: <link>;_ylt=agt64bofz7.2argjz_io2bsb...what stood out to me is that images and videos are not being served up front and center on google.no doubt more and more people are searching for video. google really looks old-fashioned in this match-up. |
bing smacks google in new usability test
| here's an interesting comparison:google: <link>8safe=active8q=fan...bing: <link>8go=8form=qbre&...yahoo: <link>;_ylt=agt64bofz7.2argjz_io2bsb...what stood out to me is that images and videos are not being served up front and center on google.no doubt more and more people are searching for video. google really looks old-fashioned in this match-up. | i initially assumed that everyone around here would have tried bing, then i realized that may not be true. have you guys given it a try? when bing came out i switched my browsers to bing for a couple of weeks and noticed essentially no difference in usability or results quality. alas, after reinstalling operating systems and browsers, google gradually defaulted back to the browser i use, and it's just not worth the effort to change again. i really don't prefer one over the other. |
bing smacks google in new usability test
| i initially assumed that everyone around here would have tried bing, then i realized that may not be true. have you guys given it a try? when bing came out i switched my browsers to bing for a couple of weeks and noticed essentially no difference in usability or results quality. alas, after reinstalling operating systems and browsers, google gradually defaulted back to the browser i use, and it's just not worth the effort to change again. i really don't prefer one over the other. | does my 'search' for "skitsophrenia" as a lazy-man's way of spellcheck actually count as a query? imho this metric is flawed. |
turntable.fm raising $5-10 m. at $40 m. valuation
| its not a pivot, its a completely different business with the same founders. | i'd like to see google implement a similar feature for google+ by integrating it with google music. they could implement it in hangout somehow. |
turntable.fm raising $5-10 m. at $40 m. valuation
| i'd like to see google implement a similar feature for google+ by integrating it with google music. they could implement it in hangout somehow. | am i crazy for thinking that it's inevitable they get sued by the recording industry? |
turntable.fm raising $5-10 m. at $40 m. valuation
| am i crazy for thinking that it's inevitable they get sued by the recording industry? | really interested to see who ends up funding their round. so many investors have told me that they want nothing to do with the music industry (streaming rights especially are not too attractive a proposition) and won't fund anything. on the other hand, they don't want to be the ones to miss a gold mine because they are stuck in thinking from 10 years ago about an evolving industry. if turntable can do one thing, i would hope it would be to help foster a more creative community around music application creation. having that community have the blessing of the music industry themselves would be the ultimate goal along with changing the licensing structure for developers (david isrealite of the nmpa talked about this here: <link> the amazing innovation i have seen at 2 musichackday.org events lets me know that there is so much that will be done with music in the future, if developers and entrepreneurs are given the ability to pursue these dreams without fear of prosecution. |
turntable.fm raising $5-10 m. at $40 m. valuation
| really interested to see who ends up funding their round. so many investors have told me that they want nothing to do with the music industry (streaming rights especially are not too attractive a proposition) and won't fund anything. on the other hand, they don't want to be the ones to miss a gold mine because they are stuck in thinking from 10 years ago about an evolving industry. if turntable can do one thing, i would hope it would be to help foster a more creative community around music application creation. having that community have the blessing of the music industry themselves would be the ultimate goal along with changing the licensing structure for developers (david isrealite of the nmpa talked about this here: <link> the amazing innovation i have seen at 2 musichackday.org events lets me know that there is so much that will be done with music in the future, if developers and entrepreneurs are given the ability to pursue these dreams without fear of prosecution. | it's not a pivot when you do something completely new. |
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