1. Show HN: Workout.lol – a web app to easily create a workout routine
Total comment counts : 83
Summary
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Top 1 Comment Summary
This article criticizes a fitness app for its limitations. The author mentions that they find the app’s design neat, but they have some issues with its content. They express disappointment in the app’s suggested workout routines, particularly the exercises. The author mentions that they have been lifting weights for a long time and they find the suggested exercises to be ineffective or unnecessary. They also criticize the lack of variety in the workouts and the absence of certain exercises that they find important. They believe that the app would be more useful if it provided in-depth discussions by experts on different exercises and how to maximize their benefits. Additionally, they suggest that the app should include suggestions for modifying exercises to accommodate injuries or focus on specific areas. They believe that these improvements would help users to have more effective and personalized workout routines.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article describes an app that stands out in the competitive fitness market. Unlike other workout builders, this app provides example videos for each exercise and allows users to create customized workouts without having to search multiple times on Google. Overall, it is praised for its excellent execution and ability to deliver an exceptional product.
2. Firefox address bar
Total comment counts : 58
Summary
This article explains how the address bar in Firefox functions and provides a way to have more control over the search results. By using specific modifiers at the beginning of the search, you can filter the results. For example, typing *headphones will search for the word “headphones” in your bookmarks only, and ^headphones will include only results from your browsing history.
Top 1 Comment Summary
This article discusses a feature that allows the user to extend the functionality of the Firefox address bar by creating custom keyword-based shortcuts. By creating a bookmark with a specific keyword and URL, the user can easily redirect their input to a desired destination. For example, creating a bookmark with the keyword “hn” and URL “https://hn.algolia.com/?q=firefox%20address%20bar" allows the user to quickly search for “firefox address bar” by typing “hn firefox address bar” into the address bar. This feature allows for easy customization and personalization of the Firefox browsing experience.
Top 2 Comment Summary
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3. A Japanese factory that designs clothes on a 40-year-old computer [video]
Total comment counts : 58
Summary
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Top 1 Comment Summary
A startup company has reverse-engineered the code needed to operate textile looms used in factories worldwide. Instead of relying on outdated systems, the company developed software that treats the looms as printers. After finding the right business model, they now partner with major brands to offer large-scale textile customization, a previously uncommon service.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article suggests that technology should be seen as a tool, not as the objective. It emphasizes that the focus should be on achieving the goal, and that if older methods are effective, fancy software and hardware are not necessary. In other words, you don’t need the latest technology to be successful.
4. Tuition costs have risen 710% since 1983
Total comment counts : 92
Summary
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Top 1 Comment Summary
This article explains that an 18-year-old student with no money or credit history can receive a loan backed by the federal government if they get accepted into a qualifying university. This has led to an increase in tuition and fees, as universities are confident that their admitted students will be able to pay.
Top 2 Comment Summary
This article argues that the current system of student loans benefits lenders and colleges because the government guarantees the loans and protects them from bankruptcy. The author suggests that removing this “free money guarantee” would force lenders to be more selective, as they would have to use the same criteria as issuing credit cards to younger individuals with no credit history. The author also believes that colleges would have to reconsider raising costs if lenders become more strict or stop lending altogether.
5. InfluxDB Cloud shuts down in Belgium; some weren’t notified before data deletion
Total comment counts : 37
Summary
The article discusses users’ experiences and frustrations with the discontinuation of InfluxDB services in certain regions without proper notification. Many users complain about missing or incomplete data and the lack of communication from InfluxData. Some users express concerns about data loss and express disappointment in the handling of the situation. They criticize the lack of notice and the inability to retrieve their data. Users also suggest finding alternative solutions and highlight the need for better communication and data management from InfluxDB.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article suggests that there may have been a regulation requiring the service to have a sunset date a month prior. They wanted to keep the data legally until the 30th in case of this situation happening. It also mentions the need for flash messages, emails, and aggressive contact attempts to inform users about the changes. Additionally, the article discusses the importance of having a console switch to a final backup that can be exported by the user or moved to another region.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article highlights a concern regarding a cloud database provider’s failure to keep data safe and recoverable. The author criticizes the provider for not taking necessary precautions, such as backups and testing, and suggests that this oversight reflects poorly on their decision-making. The author concludes by expressing their preference for self-hosting and suggests using a different database system.
6. Engineers should focus on writing
Total comment counts : 29
Summary
The article argues that engineers should improve their writing skills because writing is essential in their field. The author emphasizes that simply reading about a topic is not enough to fully understand it; writing helps cement knowledge. They suggest that engineers should write code instead of just copying snippets, as it deepens understanding. The article also encourages engineers to approach design reviews as an opportunity to improve their writing. The author recommends starting a blog or answering questions on platforms like Stackoverflow to further develop writing skills. Finally, the article emphasizes that writing is unavoidable for engineers and becoming a better writer will make one a better engineer.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article criticizes an engineer who blogs and gives talks, but also promotes their coaching services. The author compares this to financial advisers who send weekly newsletters that create anxiety about financial portfolios and encourage coaching sessions.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article highlights a growing trend in companies where software engineers are spending less time writing code and more time on other tasks such as writing documents, commenting on documents, and attending meetings. The author expresses concern about the impact this has on the number of software engineers who are not writing code at all.
7. An Introduction to Statistical Learning with Applications in Python
Total comment counts : 17
Summary
The article is about the book “An Introduction to Statistical Learning” and its different editions. The book provides a less technical overview of statistical learning topics and is suitable for anyone interested in data analysis. The first edition was released in 2013, with applications in R. A second edition was published in 2021, and it has also been translated into various languages. A Python edition was published in 2023. Each edition includes practical labs to demonstrate the concepts discussed in the chapters. The book covers topics such as regression, classification, resampling methods, tree-based methods, support vector machines, deep learning, survival analysis, unsupervised learning, and multiple testing. The authors of the book are Gareth James, John H. Harland, Daniela Witten, Trevor Hastie, Rob Tibshirani, and Jonathan Taylor.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The author of the article finds it interesting to observe the ratio of upvotes to comments on chatGPT topics. They note that there are usually hundreds of comments but only 100 upvotes and 7 comments so far. The author reflects on the state of “ML / AI / Data Science” and suggests that the low ratio of upvotes to comments may indicate that many people interested in AI hype may not have a deep understanding of the underlying concepts in mathematics and statistics. The author also admits to not providing a meaningful comment on the topic.
Top 2 Comment Summary
This article is an update to a popular text originally written in R, focusing on statistical learning. Professors Hastie and Tibshirani, who are well-known educators in the field, have also created a video course to accompany the text. The article highly recommends this resource for those interested in learning the theoretical aspects of classical machine learning.
8. Wayland on OpenBSD
Total comment counts : 8
Summary
The article discusses the author’s experiment with building Wayland on OpenBSD during the g2k23 event in Tallinn. The author acknowledges that there are still many issues to be resolved, but it demonstrates that running Wayland on OpenBSD is possible. The author provides build instructions and notes that scdoc is used to generate manual pages. They also mention patches and ports for various components of Wayland on OpenBSD. The author highlights the need to install certain packages for cursors and fonts to work correctly. They mention that some applications still rely on Xwayland and there are issues with GTK+ and Qt support. Finally, the author notes that there is no implementation of UTF-32 support on OpenBSD and mentions future improvements that could be made, such as sandboxing and crash debugging.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The author questions the feasibility of emulating or supporting libevdev and libinput on non-Linux operating systems. They suggest that the Wayland protocol does not necessarily require these implementations, and that alternative approaches specific to each operating system may be more beneficial for the ecosystem. Additionally, the author expresses skepticism regarding the concept of multiple seats in OpenBSD and suggests that compositors should instead have a mode where a single seat owns all input and display devices.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The author has been interested in using OpenBSD on their desktop but has been deterred by issues with X server. However, they are hopeful that a new development might finally allow them to switch to OpenBSD.
9. 3M reaches $10.3B settlement over PFAS contamination of water systems
Total comment counts : 27
Summary
Chemical manufacturer 3M has agreed to pay at least $10.3 billion to settle lawsuits over the contamination of U.S. public drinking water systems with PFAS, a potentially harmful compound. PFAS, commonly used in firefighting foam and other consumer products, have been linked to various health issues. The settlement will help cover the costs of filtering PFAS from affected water systems and testing others. The agreement is subject to court approval and may reach as high as $12.5 billion, depending on further testing. 3M plans to halt all PFAS production by the end of 2025.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The author’s initial reaction to something is “That’s it?” They suggest that maybe the mentioned amount is per year and paid by all former executives from when PFAS were manufactured. The author believes that since the executives take credit and receive bonuses for positive things, they should also be accountable for the negative aspects.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article mentions that 3M has stated that its participation in a settlement is not an admission of liability. The writer finds such statements amusing and suggests the implementation of a policy to prevent post-settlement spinning.
10. Mistakes with Rust smart pointers: when Deref goes wrong
Total comment counts : 15
Summary
The article discusses the implementation of the Deref trait on custom types, specifically focusing on the use of Deref with ASCII strings. The author explains the motivation behind using a newtype to wrap a Vec<u8> to represent ASCII strings and how the Deref trait allows for automatic coercion from &Vec<u8> to &[u8]. The author also explores the confusion that arises when Deref affects the behavior of implementing the Index trait on &str. The article concludes with a cautionary note about the implications of implementing Deref and the importance of ensuring all implementations of a specific trait.
Top 1 Comment Summary
This article discusses the use of smart pointers in Rust and potential conflicts that can arise when using them. The author explains that true smart pointers should not have methods of their own, but rather rely on functions that can be called on the pointer itself. This helps to avoid conflicts. The author also mentions that using the Deref trait for types like String or Vec can lead to conflicts, as Rust does not have method overloading. They suggest that using Deref can be useful for creating is-a relationships or delegating functionality to another type.
Top 2 Comment Summary
This article discusses an issue with method search in Rust, where it does not check method parameter types against argument types. The author explains that Rust does not allow much overloading of function names, partly because C++ had complex overload resolution rules that could introduce errors. In Rust, the programmer is required to write out the rules explicitly, which may be more verbose but less confusing.