sgacka

This hit every US news service. How is it so low in points?

"breach could potentially affect every federal agency, officials said"

I love HN's ability to filter news that matters to dev/tech-professionals, but when stuff like this pops up it should be top 10, for at _least_ a few hours. This is some serious shit. Who here does business with government agencies? Most of you have IRS Tax/Employer IDs... with the rate that this is "expanding" what is to say that it wasn't just HR records, but more. Your e-filed IRS return could be sitting with folks outside of the IRS...

No intention to fear monger but think of the statement "breach could potentially affect every federal agency" - every business in the US does something, with sensitive data, with an agency :/

I took a week off from working on our app bc of a client project (we're a for-hire firm trying to create an app). We had hits on our demo from the SF Bay area and some hits on the video. maybe a good sign?

Either way, we'll be building our app and launching this summer. We applied to YC for the advice and mentoring opportunities - we don't absolutely need the money to launch (it would definitely be nice, but we can manage without it).

Math has always been a part of technical design. I think "programming" is starting to become a field where the actual authoring of code and the design of logic fuse completely. So the future of programming combines the design (engineering, mathematics, etc.) with writing code.

From my somewhat inexperienced standpoint, I think programming has gone from instructing the computer to complete a task, to telling the computer to create a logic and handle events based on a complex set of conditions. The former was simple - 1, 2, 3, done - while the latter requires you to design a system, then make that system function through code.

I see old-style programming as following a map: go straight, turn right, turn left, and then stop at the destination. Modern programming is more like telling the computer to use this logic to find its own way on the map, then follow through.

Basically, I see programming slowly morphing into the creation of artificial intelligence.

By that example, I meant to highlight the DRY aspect of programming and how I realized, as an early beginner at the age of 15, that frameworks and libraries provide a good foundation so you can focus on more complex issues.

The SQL I kept repeating in that application was simple CRUD functions on MySQL tables. I know that SQL is so much more than that.

Libraries were created so that you could focus on mastering new and unexplored territory, not to replace programmers.

As a beginner, I didn't appreciate big libraries (like Cocoa). I couldn't wrap my head around the idea of having tons of prewritten code and stitching it together - I understood programming as writing code - so I wanted to write my own damn code, not just manipulate massive libraries.

So I turned to PHP and developed my own webapp (a stripped down Google Docs), from scratch. I quickly stumbled upon the purpose of frameworks and libraries. After writing my 20th SQL query I realized I was wasting time. About 10 hours later, I made my own light PHP framework. Now I didn't have to worry about my SQL syntax (it was automated based on the data model variables) and I got to start working on really cool/interesting programming issues rather than the mundane blah code.

Now I've started to investigate Cocoa again and I realize that libraries and frameworks have not hurt programming, but dramatically catapulted it into the realm of science rather than plug-and-chug. Today, our software is more complex than ever and it will only get more complex in the future.

I think if you see programming as just "stitching libraries together", then you've lost your passion or never had any to begin with. Programming has evolved into a science where you have to learn the foundations (languages) AND the pre-existing solutions (libraries) in order to figure out what's been done for you so that you can focus on exploring new and more complex issues.

First, you're not addicted to coffee, you are addicted to caffeine. Remember that caffeine is a DRUG.

Second, switching from a diluted caffeine intake (such as coffee or soda) to a pure intake (pills) could lead to you worsening your dependency on caffeine. Think about it: you drink 5+ cups of coffee, but you probably can't drink 10 everyday.... but you CAN pop another handful of caffeine pills quite easily.

If you look to the past, you'll probably see that your caffeine intake has been increasing, but the effects have not been intensifying. That's because your body builds a tolerance to caffeine over time. I used to be super jittery after 3 shots of espresso, but now (after 2 years of heavy consumption of coffee) there's not much effect.

My advice: don't switch to caffeine pills to fix your problems. They'll only make it worse because it will allow you to consume more caffeine in purer form at a faster rate than drinking coffee. As you consume more on a regular basis, your body will build a higher tolerance. You'll find yourself taking more and more caffeine pills to avoid the headaches.

So don't take pills on a regular basis, and start decreasing your coffee intake. I've set my limit to 2 cups of coffee or 2 shots of espresso per day. Drink more water - you'll feel way better than when drinking coffee.

Everything is fine in moderation.