Hacker News Reader

hoboloboon Six-month-old, solo-owned vibe coder Base44 sells to Wix for $80M cash

This made me laugh. Reminded me of Tim Key's podcast on Daniil Kharms. If you can get it, it's well worth a listen:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03mndbk

hoboloboon Tesla sales in Germany dropped 41% in 2024

Newly-minted sock puppet

hoboloboon Liberux: The Linux Phone You Have Been Waiting For

Getting redirected to https://liberux.net/wp-admin/install.php

That's odd

hoboloboon I put a toaster in the dishwasher (2012)

What fire risk if it's in a dishwasher? :)

hoboloboon Coffee machine camera at Amazon warehouse raises concerns about surveillance

Amazon is well known for surveilling its staff. Why act surprised that staff think the worst when they find another piece of surveillance gear in the breakroom?

hoboloboon Brexit has failed for UK, say clear majority of Britons – poll

None whatsoever. Brexit has been a disaster, especially for Wales which received substantial EU funding.

hoboloboon Cryptocurrency scams cost owners $7.7B in 2021, driven by DeFi-based “rug pulls”

That would likely create a perverse incentive.

hoboloboon Brits head home to avoid being deported as illegals in Spain

He's saying that life in Spain was easier when you could have your pension/unemploment benefit paid into your account from the UK whilst also earning money doing cash in hand jobs locally.

hoboloboon A Database of Fugitive Slave Ads Reveals Thousands of Untold Stories (2018)

Such an ugly response. Their situation is that their children are already at risk.

I don't think you grasp the severity of the situation in Mexico. Perhaps you should go strut your tough stuff over the border. The state dept advise against it due to the high levels of violence and kidnapping.

That wouldn't matter to a would-be criminal though.

hoboloboon Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

As Ian Hislop put it:

Boris Johnson, people always ask me the same question, they say, 'Is Boris a very very clever man pretending to be an idiot?' And I always say, 'No.'

hoboloboon [dead]

There are no positives for the future when the PM tries to subvert parliament. The true meaning of "taking back control" is plain to see.

hoboloboon A Simple Guide to Meditation

It doesn't have to be the nose. You can use the rise and fall of your stomach as your focus. It is merely a point that allows you to notice when you've become distracted.

hoboloboon Hive: Free unlimited cloud storage for you and your friends

Everything about this says creepy.

hoboloboon Seeing a Supersize Yacht as a Job Engine, Not a Self-Indulgence

The very definition of a puff piece. An interesting viewpoint that buying a big boat is an act of social giving.

hoboloboon Introducing UberTAXI

Or if you can't beat 'em, co-opt 'em

hoboloboon London black taxis plan congestion chaos to block Uber

Just because they're getting something out of it doesn't mean it's a better deal all round. Amazon saves individuals money but that doesn't ameliorate the externalities that Amazon's business model create.

hoboloboon London black taxis plan congestion chaos to block Uber

The impression is that Uber are somehow freeing customers from unscrupulous and gouging taxi drivers. Taxi customers aren't being freed, they're simply under new management.

hoboloboon Microsoft ditching Windows 8, plans to release Windows 9

Microsoft saw Apple's ecosystem of inter-operating devices and the simple transition between using mobile and desktop devices and thought, 'We'd like some of that'. Windows 8 seemed to be about two things, making life easier for MS and pushing desktop/laptop users into familiarity with their mobile OS.

hoboloboon We made something. We use it. We love it. Apple rejected it

A bit off-topic but is there a name for the tone of the copy on this? It reads like the current tranche of MS/Apple advertising speak. Would cult-like be going too far?

hoboloboon Why is the opt-in toolbar scam still acceptable?

How could any industry evolve beyond such easy money? As long as there are users who will put up with Google/MyCoolWebSearch/ALOT/Conduit/Baylon/etcetera messing around with their settings and information these firms will never move away from these tactics.

If I rememeber correctly, Ccleaner was removed from Ninite due to the automatic refusal of big G's toolbar.

hoboloboon Chronicle of a Death Foretold

There's a very good reason it's in Guantanamo and not upstate New York (and it's not because of the climate).

hoboloboon Ask PG/HN: Recommended reading on the history of technology

Not sure if it's what you're after exactly but Where Wizards Stay Up Late:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/281818.Where_Wizards_Stay...

hoboloboon Google turned my iPod touch into a free wifi phone

That's not the point, though, is it?

hoboloboon Nordstrom Finds Cash Register Skimmers

There's a lot of righteous indignation coming out. Just to let you know, I upvoted you for your honesty.

hoboloboon In light of HealthCare.gov struggles, here are the UK's design principles.

Gets on hobby-horse

For the jobcentre site (as was), 'Start with needs' means IDS needs to be able to monitor these shysters for not getting a job.

Gets back off

hoboloboon How Lavabit Melted Down

I believe the preferred nomenclature is 'targeted killing'.

hoboloboon A beginner's cheat sheet for web development

Well done. A very well executed idea.

hoboloboon DivX Now Installs Malware

It is possible to read it as 'VLC comes with crapware' rather than 'third-parties distribute VLC with their own crapware'.