Hacker News Reader

0xDEEPFACon Twitter notifies users that it’s now sharing more data with advertisers

This little bit is a gem.

"Twitter may share this information with these partners before you’ve signed up for Twitter (e.g. when you first open the app before creating an account) as disclosed prior to download in the Twitter app description in the App Store and Google Play, but does not offer you control over this data sharing until after you’ve created a Twitter account.*"

If I don't have an account, how could I have possibly have agreed to anything? Do the permissions on the phone give the app everything about me as soon as I download it?

What about situations where the phone comes preinstalled with this crap? Does the act of buying such a phone automatically mean Twitter now knows where I live and my taste in pornography?

0xDEEPFACon AvastSvc.exe contains a full, unsandboxed JavaScript/DOM implementation

Typical modern application development. "Javascript all the the things" because "we can make good UIs!" with no regard for safety, speed, or reliability.

0xDEEPFACon An Update from Robinhood’s Founders

"Multiple factors contributed to the unprecedented load that ultimately led to the outages. The factors included, among others, highly volatile and historic market conditions; record volume; and record account sign-ups. "

What a sad press release, I am sure people at their corporate office were sweating over this. The long and short of it is that users trusted the service would work and had possibly a great deal invested only to get a comment when everything breaks down deflecting blame "OMG we weren't prepared for what our users did!"

We live in a sad state of software. I expect things like this and the Equifax scandal to continue if things like software security, reliability, and performance aren't taken into account.

0xDEEPFACon How Big Technical Changes Happen at Slack

I think the problem with basing anything off of Electron is that the stack is just too daym high and depends on so many things out of your control. Not to mention Google owns you and your application and could add stuff to Chrome that snoops on your users...

It becomes impossible for you to do any sort of quality - even making the original choice to use it means you care about the perceived "convenience" of using CSS and ECMA over performance.

0xDEEPFACon How Big Technical Changes Happen at Slack

It's very easy to make a nice application with Electron, but very hard to make one that actually is large and compatible.

I mean the system requirements for AOL Instant messenger in 2008 was 300 MHz CPU, 256 RAM, and 250MB of hd space. Compare that to Slack - they don't list the system requirements but I am sure you all know it probably demands at least 1gb of RAM and will use all of it:

https://medium.com/@matt.at.ably/wheres-all-my-cpu-and-memor...

Let's face it we are reaching a new dark-age of computer programming away from static typing and caring about performance to a hellscape of ECMA script...

https://medium.com/commitlog/electron-is-cancer-b066108e6c32

0xDEEPFACon Cost of a 51% attack for different cryptocurrencies?

DASH's is incorrect. It has some protection against this vector of attack called "Chain Locks"

https://cryptobriefing.com/chainlocks-dash-network/

0xDEEPFACon Ever-growing cars: why they keep on getting wider

True, it is dangerous to drive a cool sports car. But its light and it handles well - its even modular with a huge aftermarket meaning I was able to easily spend an extra 1k and get both upgraded brakes and rotors installed.

Besides, if my girlfriend and I want to take a risk an enjoy a nice car I don't like the government telling me otherwise.

You're right about that date range, probably the best without software that thinks its better than you. Its going to be bad when cars have full electronic steering with no mechanics - you will essentially be holding an xbox controller and have no idea about your cars alignment lol

0xDEEPFACon Ever-growing cars: why they keep on getting wider

I actually go an opposite approach. I am buying old cars - the market is great here in the US.

I got a 47k mileage 1991 Mazda Miata for 4500$! And the girlfriend loves how cool it is and shifting stick. You should try to snag something from the 90s before people realize how nice they are.

Modern cars are spy machines needing constant software updates and nonsense features like "push button start" which is probably just a ploy to no longer have to make complicated ignition switches.

0xDEEPFACon Ever-growing cars: why they keep on getting wider

Yea... is it just me or are cars just plain ugly these days (yuck).

https://www.motortrend.com/cars/land-rover/range-rover-evoqu...

https://www.diariomotor.com/2010/05/09/el-morris-mini-minor-...

Draconian safety laws for manufacturers mean less visibility with narrow windows on the front, barely back window (backup cams required), and huge a-pillars.

So apparently we get safer cars but can see anything infront of us.

https://www.wardsauto.com/news-analysis/new-pillars-enhance-...

Video of child not being seen by new car (he is unharmed though) https://www.liveleak.com/view?t=9p7iH_1570391082

0xDEEPFACon WordPad Is Gettings Ads in Windows 10

I disagree, but I admit it is risky.

0xDEEPFACon WordPad Is Gettings Ads in Windows 10

No problems yet...

Updates work just fine and are only performed at reasonable intervals

0xDEEPFACon WordPad Is Gettings Ads in Windows 10

Got mine on Ebay

0xDEEPFACon WordPad Is Gettings Ads in Windows 10

Windows 10 LTSC is great - it doesn't have Cortana or the Windows Store and it even has a nifty search icon beneath the Start menu which says "Start typing to search..."

Not that I would recommend it but you can purchase LTSC on Ebay for about ~20 to 30$. That is where I got mine... Sketchy? Yes, but worth a chance in my book

0xDEEPFACon BeOS: The Alternate Universe's Mac OS X

Well it wasn't as simple as "killed off by better competitors". It was actually both much better than Windows 98 and Mac OS at the time.

But ultimately the deathblow came from Apple which, after struggling with low sales and poor quality software, almost chose to buy BeInc's tech but dropped it so they could bring in Steve Jobs. So it was more like vendor lock-in (Windows) and corporate deals (Apple) as well as failing partners (Palm).

0xDEEPFACon 0.30000000000000004

Whoo go Ada, one of the few to get it right. Must be the goto for secure programming for a reason.

Take that Rust and C ; )

0xDEEPFACon The Language Agnostic, All-Purpose, Incredible, Makefile

Yea but, according to make file syntax whether you use tab or spaces matters...

Everything about it just seems half-baked

0xDEEPFACon Codem Ipsum: Lorem Ipsum but for Code

Lorem Ipsum but for javascript

0xDEEPFAC on Live in an adult dorm? Starcity thinks you would, for the right price [video]

Looks like boarding houses are back....

0xDEEPFAC on 5G Mobile Networks: A Systems Approach

So the solution is the radiate the entire group of people for instagram?

0xDEEPFAC on 5G Mobile Networks: A Systems Approach

I've lost faith in industry funded research. After all PFOA and GenX got approved for use in teflon and that stuff is most definitely toxic.
Maybe we all could benefit from being a little more paranoid.

0xDEEPFAC on 5G Mobile Networks: A Systems Approach

I think there is totally something to it. I mean Brussels halted the roll out over these very concerns.
EU environment minister Céline Fremault: "The people of Brussels are not guinea pigs whose health I can sell at a profit. We cannot leave anything to doubt.”
https://www.fiercewireless.com/5g/brussels-halts-5g-plans-ov...

0xDEEPFAC on Why are cars killing more pedestrians?

https://www.liveleak.com/view?t=9p7iH_1570391082

0xDEEPFAC on Why are cars killing more pedestrians?

Agreed, its not just crossovers that are difficult to see out of but all new cars - one of the issues is that SUVs have the ground clearance to run someone over much easier.
Also, children are important too and if one gets in front of you pulling up on a driveway using a modern SUV could be a recipe for disaster.
https://www.wardsauto.com/news-analysis/new-pillars-enhance-...

0xDEEPFAC on Why are cars killing more pedestrians?

Not in a close radius to the hood. Think about the extreme example of a semitruck which undoubtedly can see far far ahead, but imagine now that you are taking a right turn at a light.
I would disagree that its limited to children as a quick look right and then left might mean that much less of the person is visible and could possibly not catch your eye as you drive forward.
https://imgur.com/gallery/PUfmP
disclaimer: I was almost hit on a green walk light on 6th av in NYC by a cross over speeding on a left turn... I had to jump

0xDEEPFAC on Why are cars killing more pedestrians?

Visibility, visibility, visibility.
All new cars, trucks, etc. are tall with very narrow windows for better collision safety. Not to mention American's latest obsession with hideous "cross-overs." As a result, its much harder to see in front of you and the extra clearance means you actually suck someone underneath the car instead of over.
Also, is it just me or are cars just plain ugly these days (yuck)
https://www.motortrend.com/cars/land-rover/range-rover-evoqu...
https://www.diariomotor.com/2010/05/09/el-morris-mini-minor-...

0xDEEPFAC on Whatever Happened to Steampunk?

The author suggests the correlation between searches for "steampunk" happening around Sept and Oct are due to iPhone sales which is interesting.
Here is an alternative theory though - what if its more related to Halloween?

0xDEEPFAC on Expert Networks: A Secret World of $500 per Hour Consultations

Not to be inflammatory, but this article reads like a clickbait ad. I would take it with a grain of salt...
If it seems too good to be true it often is.

0xDEEPFAC on Combining GNAT with LLVM

I would say gcc and llvm are competitive - asserting gcc is faster at its current state is quite a claim.
Also, I was referring to AdaCore's implementation of the compiler backend. GNAT's architecture is structured like so:
GNAT Frontend (parsing, analysis, expansion) -> GNAT Backend (translation of frontend tree to something GNU or LLVM can understand) -> LLVM or GCC
This backend is quite complex and has a large role in how LLVM can optimize. My argument is that GNAT's GCC backend is 25 years old and a new backend written for LLVM probably generates better/cleaner code.
Also of note is that the GCC backend is written and C and the LLVM is actually written in Ada meaning its more uniform with the GNAT frontend.

0xDEEPFAC on Combining GNAT with LLVM

I wouldn't be so sure. Given that this is a new backend for GNAT and the first one is close to 25 years old I assume it will have more modern optimizations and experience behind it - presumably leading to something faster.

0xDEEPFAC on Microsoft Edge preview builds are ready to try

I would think so and that it would be more likely given M$'s track record.