Hacker News Reader

The people you know don't use stock Ubuntu. My mom and yours don't even know what a package manager is.

You could try getting on the testing release which (as far as I can tell) is still ten times as stable as Ubuntu while still getting frequent updates. Testing is the best of both worlds IMO (stability <-> freshness)

octagonalon He got 1%, we can't hire him

The main reason we lag so far behind is that most of us don't have a "Let's do something prone to failure and find out if it will actually work!" mentality. In general we pay too much attention to thoughts and too little to feelings when it comes to business ventures. Add to that a dash of extreme risk avoidance and you've got the perfect recept for a very weak startup culture. Of course, the ones who are the opposite of that get struck down relentlessly by the collective mentality.

These wacko interviewing processes are just another symptom of this. Don't think any comptetent business leader actually believe these scores matter at all. In the end it's just another safeguard against (gasp!) taking a risk.

octagonalon How To Create Your Own Chrome Extensions

They forgot the most important part: having a good idea.

octagonalon Detaining my partner: a failed attempt at intimidation

The mere fact that it's becoming possible to make comparisons between a Western government and a criminal organisation, even if it's just to get a message across, is worse enough on its own.

octagonalon Git blame has never been so much fun

Why does that even matter?

It's not as if you have to interact with it beyond issuing a "lolcommits --enable" command.

octagonalon Eve-Online player loses a $9000 digital spaceship

So if I had the inclination to live out a Cowboy Bebop fantasy, that would be completely possible?

octagonalon Complaint filed against Irish subsidiaries of Apple, Facebook

There is no right to privacy in public spaces and no expectation thereof either. The only thing those cameras do is replace police officers. Another thing you are also forgetting is that people were aware of those cameras the second they were installed. No secret court bullshit. With personal correspondences on the other hand, people expect the contents of their messages to be entirely private. That secrecy should only be invaded upon within the confines of a morally justifiable law, especially when a foreign agency is doing the invading.

octagonalon White House: "We expect" Hong Kong to comply with Snowden extradition [video]

Sure they do. But are they expecting China to comply with them?

octagonalon US surveillance revelations deepen European fears

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charter_of_Fundamental_Rights_o...

Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union

Article 8

Protection of personal data

1. Everyone has the right to the protection of personal data concerning him or her.

2. Such data must be processed fairly for specified purposes and on the basis of the consent of the person concerned or some other legitimate basis laid down by law. Everyone has the right of access to data which has been collected concerning him or her, and the right to have it rectified.

3. Compliance with these rules shall be subject to control by an independent authority.

octagonalon Poll: Do you use a gmail.com address for your primary personal email?

I use firstname@owndomain.com for business (admittedly through Google's Apps for Business)

and fullname@gmail.com for friends.

octagonalon Live map of London Underground Trains

I came across the same hindrances when trying to build something similar to this. Public transportation data is surprisingly private.

octagonalon Linus on Oregon HB 2748 and US education in general

He probably meant "I'd rather be in any other developed nation than the US"

octagonalon Fltdsgn - a showcase of flat UI design

Design trends never make a design good.

octagonalon NASA Rover Confirms First Drilled Mars Rock Sample

It really shows we're still in our very early baby steps of space exploration when drilling a hole in a different planet is considered marvelous news.

octagonalon China Blocks Web Access to The New York Times After Article

The differences between Japan and China are truly interesting.

octagonalon 404 page that lets visitors express themselves

I wonder, for every vote on a submission here, how many people actually visit the link?

octagonalon What the Heck Is CSS Specificity?

On a similar note, I'm currently in the planning phase of building a "specificity calculator" as a bundle for TextMate. It will mostly be targeted towards complicated CSS files and the people who create them but I imagine it will also be helpful for people new to CSS. Would any of you guys have interest in such a bundle?

octagonalon European entrepreneurs: Les misérables

It always bothers me when I see listings where Eurozone countries are seen as separate entities. We're not. Our economies and social structures are heavily interdependent on each other and that's only ever going to increase. Regarding Eurozone countries as completely separate states would be akin to thinking of California as a different country.