HNHacker News
TopNewBestAskShowJobs

theboywho

1,065 karma · joined September 3, 2012

submissionscomments
theboywho··on Mistral Patent for “Code implemented tool calls”
The Scala[1] community has been working[2] on something similar for a couple of years now, with papers already published[3]. I wonder if Mistral is not just trying to steal this work.

[1] https://martinodersky.substack.com/p/tracked-capabilities-fo...

[2] https://github.com/lampepfl/tacit

[3] https://www.caisconf.org/program/2026/papers/securing-agents...

theboywho··on All my new code will be closed-source from now on
While the observations might be true, I’m not sure going closed source is going to help here. If optimizing docs for AI makes you less visible, guess what else makes you less visible : not even being accessible.

Just because AI is "taking advantage" of projects being open source doesn’t mean the solution is direct closed source. Going with the most direct solution to a problem is an indication you might not have spent time thinking deeper about the problem

theboywho··on European Union Public Licence (EUPL)
It’s worth mentioning that this has nothing to do with the European Union, as mentioned in the footer:

> This website is not sponsored or endorsed by the European Commission or any other institution, body or agency of the European Union.

theboywho··on Small changes that made our daily stand-ups more useful
Having a daily standup might be encouraging people to wait until the daily to mention blockers, which could be harming your team all while you think it’s working
theboywho··on Small changes that made our daily stand-ups more useful
This is an example of when Daniel Kahneman said that people don’t believe in something because there are arguments but believe the arguments because they believe in something. Here’s why I think so:

> syncing plans and priorities for the current day

Most of the work developers do require syncing multiple times a day, either by slack messages, GitHub comments or pair programming, etc. Waiting for the daily to sync is not realistic and would waste tons of time.

> signaling blockers early so the team can help

If you have a blocker and you wait until the daily to mention it, you have a bigger problem. Blockers should be notified right away and most teams do this over slack or other messaging platforms they use.

> encouraging collaboration and knowledge sharing

Teams are usually small, and if you don’t already know what someone is doing, you wouldn’t care what they have to say during the daily, and if you care what they have to say, you already know what they are doing.

> building a sense of team ownership and support.

Just go for a coffee break.

If you believe daily standups are useful, chances are you’re actually part of the problem.

theboywho··on Kermit: A typeface for kids
I fail to see why would the arguments be only valid for kids
theboywho··on Datastar: Web Framework for the Future?
What do you think about the Hotwire stack (Stimulus, Turbo) as compared to Datastar ?
theboywho··on Scala compiler is being rewritten in Go
TypeScript compiler has also moved to Go https://devblogs.microsoft.com/typescript/typescript-native-...
theboywho··on The hydraulic systems of the Alhambra Palace [video]
Alhambra comes from the Moroccan Arabic word "Alhamra" which means The Red, it shares many engineering similarities with what was practiced at the time in what is today considered Morocco, some examples include:

- The Kasbah of Moulay Ismail in Meknes, a parallel to the Alhambra’s engineering sophistication, particularly in its hydraulic systems.

- Khettara Networks: Underground water channels designed to transport water down slopes without active pumping with gravity-fed systems that tap into aquifers, there are extensive networks of these particularly around Marrakech and southern regions.

theboywho··on In praise of the hundred page idea
I think a lot of comments are missing the point : it’s not about page size.

Today, most book writers are following a template of about 300-pages imposed by their editor, this (non justified) rule sold as a sweet spot is being (blindly?) applied by most authors and seems to be producing books that are unfocused.

What should be understood from the blog article is not that 100-pages books are inherently better, but that books should be written in a more focused way, without the unnecessary ceremony/anecdotes mostly added for the sole purpose of filling the void necessary to reach the « imposed » 300 pages recommendation.

theboywho··on Common side effects of not drinking
So basically the author is feeling lonely. That’s the primary message sugar coated in a long blog post, but when you have constructed your social life around drinking, it’s no surprise. The majority of people in the west actually construct their social lives around drinking, which is why it feels lonely not to drink, so it’s more of a societal problem than anything else.
theboywho··on Ask HN: 30y After 'On Lisp', PAIP etc., Is Lisp Still "Beating the Averages"?
Using a programming language that you enjoy or you feel strong about is a much better choice, in that it will actually make you more productive simply because you’ll be programming more often.
theboywho··on Steve Ballmer is set to make $1B a year for doing nothing
That's basically the definition of investing, and that's basically how most wealthy people accrue their money, it just so happens that his investment was on something that turned out to be very big.
theboywho··on Firefox on the brink?
A lot of people around me are switching back to firefox as chrome is showing signs of cracks, especially with the Youtube/ad-blocking saga on chrome.

Also, I don't think the US govt guidelines are going to have a dramatic worldwide impact on firefox numbers, the US is no longer the major online player it once was.

theboywho··on Turbo Pascal Turns 40
Fun fact: one of Niklaus Wirth (the author of Pascal) students was Martin Odersky, who went on to create Scala.
theboywho··on Worldcoin isn’t as bad as it sounds: It’s worse
I don't get all the comments, from the worldcoin website:

> Your biometric data is first processed locally on the Orb and then permanently deleted. The only data that remains is your IrisCode. This IrisCode is a set of numbers generated by the Orb and is not linked to your wallet or any of your personal information. As a result, it really tells us — and everyone else — nothing about you. All it does is stop you from being able to sign up again.

> Since you are not required to provide personal information like your name, email address, physical address or phone number, this means that you can easily sign up without us ever knowing anything about you.

If Worldcoin is building a biometric database, that must be the most useless database in the world.

theboywho··on Is there a concept for not wanting to know the time/clock while doing something?
I run into a similar experience the other day, as someone with synesthesia, looking at a digital clock messes up with my time–space spatial imagery experience (and also my planning capacity), while looking at an analog clock helps me "view" time in a way that works for me.

I use an analog clock on my wrist, but with an iPhone, I can't disable the screen lock digital clock, so whenever i look at my phone for notifications, I try to avoid looking at the clock. I only recently made this connection and I'm looking to get an Android.

So it's not exactly the same thing as what you are looking for - not wanting to know what time it is -, but close - not wanting to know what time it is using a digital clock -

I have found this article interesting : https://www.noemamag.com/the-tyranny-of-time/

theboywho··on My Emacs eye candy
The title is "my emacs eye candy", not "my emacs eye candy is the best emacs eye candy", there are definitely better "eye-candy" emacs setups out there than OP's, but it doesn't matter as it's not a competition, OP's emacs is still eye candy, good enough for some people. Thanks for pointing the others though
theboywho··on Ageing studies in five animals suggests how to reverse decline
and with gene therapy, all of this could be resolved
theboywho··on Ask HN: Where did all the ICOs go?
That’s like asking where did all the Kickstarters go. The answer is it depends, some are now successful businesses/projects, some didn’t make it.
theboywho··on OpenAI is now everything it promised not to be: closed-source and for-profit
Would things have been different in the success of OpenAI if from the start the company was closed-source and for-profit ? If the answer is no, then does it really matter ? The article makes it seem like if OpenAI owes its success to the initial promise.
theboywho··on Microsoft announces new Bing and Edge browser powered by upgraded ChatGPT AI
Highly unlikely since Google has been playing around with their own chatGPT called LaMDA that they are now making into a product called Bard.

I think that Microsoft could have had a chance if they decided to do this before even introducing the world to chatGPT, everyone would have been talking about Bing, but now everyone knows chatGPT and everyone is gonna be talking about Google's Bard as an alternative to chatGPT and not as an alternative to Bing/chatGPT.

theboywho··on A manifesto on shower temperature control
Thinking from first principes, what about a shower handle that copies how air conditioners and heating work, something like a screen showing the exact temperature of the water with an Up and Down buttons to control the temperature.
theboywho··on Merry Christmas, HN
Can someone please explain to me what’s special about Christmas for those who celebrate ? Is it special symbolically ? To me it feels like you get to see your family and maybe have 2-3 days off, which is something most people do many times a year, usually during the weekends.
theboywho··on Alien Truth
> it would be true for aliens that one can get better at something by practicing

We get better by practicing only because of our brain's neuroplasticity, which one might argue, is a mechanism of adaptation, and thus a result of evolution. An intelligent life might have developed other ways of coping with change, and not necessarily through a neuroplastic brain, but for example, through an instant rewiring of the brain that doesn't require any practice.

The same can be said for justice, even though it might seem as a social construct, it's still rooted in our biology (emotions are still "physical" reactions in our body) and so an intelligent life might have developed a different biological system different than that of emotions.

theboywho··on Ask HN: 10k hours rule to master anything. Could I switch career when I am 43?
The 10k hour rule has been debunked by many studies. For further reading, I recommend the book:

Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein

theboywho··on Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health
I'm starting to suspect HN to have the same effect, the more I read HN the more unmotivated I feel.

Unfavorable comparisons with "successful" people/projects who make it to the front page could be behind the same effects.

theboywho··on Facebook Novi and Surveillance Finance
"...rebranding of their Libra cryptocurrency project into the new Facebook brand Novi."

That is technically not true. Novi is a wallet Facebook is making for Libra. The wallet used to be named Calibra and caused confusion. Libra has not been rebranded by Facebook.

theboywho··on Firefox extensions to make remote work and school a little better
I fail to see how is this related to remote work and not just work in general. Does firefox really need this this kind of "jump on the hype" kind of marketing ?
theboywho··on Arab states are embracing solar power
Why unfortunately? Are you suggesting that air conditioning sidewalks in Qatar is a luxury? Because the only other option I can think of is for people to leave Qatar. It’s far from a luxury.
Page 1 of 7Next →