1. US developers can offer non-app store purchasing, Apple still collect commission

Total comment counts : 112

Summary

Apple is making changes to its U.S. iOS App Store policies, allowing developers to direct customers to a non-App Store purchasing option for digital goods. Developers can now feature a single link to their website that leads to an in-app purchase alternative. However, Apple will continue to collect a commission on content bought through these links, ranging from 12 to 27 percent. Developers must apply for a StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement to offer this option. The entitlement allows developers to direct users to an external purchasing mechanism. The update comes as a result of Apple’s legal battle with Epic Games and the court’s order to change its App Store rules.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The US Supreme Court has decided not to hear appeals in the legal battle between Apple and Epic Games. The article provides a link to an ongoing thread discussing this development on a forum.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article suggests that compliance with a certain issue will likely be criticized as dishonest. There are rumors that a company called Epic will challenge this compliance decision quickly.

2. Show HN: I made a website to find best bus seat to avoid the sun while traveling

Total comment counts : 93

Summary

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Top 1 Comment Summary

The author had a similar idea to the one mentioned in the article 23 years ago. However, they got distracted by calculating the position of the sun and never finished their idea. They commend the person for completing it.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article suggests collaborating with the creators of “zonopjebakkes/seatsinthesun,” a website or app that helps users locate bars and cafes with sunlit terraces. It specifically caters to late summer afternoons, when evenings are becoming shorter and cooler.

3. Fluorite lenses: Corrective capabilities beyond ordinary optical glass

Total comment counts : 16

Summary

Canon developed its own technology to create large, high-purity artificial fluorite crystals for use in its camera lenses. The use of fluorite in lenses helps reduce chromatic aberration, resulting in sharp and clear images. Chromatic aberration occurs when different-colored waves within light are refracted at different angles, causing color fringing. Ordinary glass lenses have limitations in correcting chromatic aberration on all wavelengths, but fluorite lenses can effectively correct this issue. Fluorite lenses have low-refractive and low-dispersion properties, especially beneficial for telephoto lenses. Canon’s development of artificial fluorite crystals required precise control of temperature and a vacuum environment. The technology was successful, and in 1969, Canon released the FL-F300mm f/5.6, the world’s first consumer telephoto lens with fluorite lens elements.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses the wavelength dependence of the refractive index of materials and how it affects the magnification and color-shifted images produced by convex lenses. It explains that lenses made from different compositions with varying rates of decreasing indices are used to counteract these effects. It also mentions the significance of Fluorite or CaF2 crystals, which have a flat curve on the wavelength-refractive index plot, allowing them to focus all colors to the same point. The challenge lies in scaling out camera-sized crystals of Calcium and Fluoride with optical clarity. Canon has been working on this for several decades.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article explains why dispersion matters in the context of apochromatic lenses, which are optimized for three different wavelengths of light. It mentions that calculations for lens designs used to be done by hand but are now done quickly by computers. However, the computer calculations are limited to the properties of the glass elements provided by the glass makers. The article also mentions the special properties of fluorine as a coating for lenses.

4. Flowblade: Open-source video editor for Linux

Total comment counts : 18

Summary

Flowblade is a multitrack non-linear video editor that is released under the GPL3 license. It supports various media formats and codecs, making it suitable for beginners and professionals alike. Users can easily add, move, and trim clips, as well as combine and mix images and audio. Flowblade also offers color correction tools and access to the powerful G’MIC image filtering technology. It has received positive feedback from users, who appreciate its user-friendly interface and stability.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The author of the article shares their experience of trying to find a video editing software for Windows. They initially tried using Windows MovieMaker but found it to be lacking in functionality. They then installed Clipchamp but found it difficult to batch-add clips to the timeline. Next, they tried DaVinci Resolve but discovered that the free version doesn’t support importing 10-bit video. They then attempted to use Shotcut, but encountered issues with exporting. Finally, they tried Openshot and found it to be a successful and reliable option for amateur video editing. The moral of the story is that Openshot is a great choice for occasional amateur video editing.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The author of the article discusses the use of the MLT framework in various tools and notices a lack of robust support for hardware acceleration. They question whether this is a design problem or something that can be improved with funding. While acknowledging that hardware acceleration may not be a top priority, they believe it would greatly enhance the performance of open-source video editors, bringing them closer to professional editing capabilities. The author recognizes that these thoughts come from someone with limited experience in non-linear editors (NLEs) and video software, but they are inspired by the success of Blender and hope to see similar achievements in other fields.

5. BBC BASIC raytracer in 432 characters

Total comment counts : 17

Summary

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Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses the implementation of error diffusion dithering capabilities in a code. This makes the code smaller and improves the output quality. The author provides a link to a website where the code can be accessed. The article also mentions bidirectional error diffusion, which would further enhance the output, but the author is unsure how to implement it.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article discusses someone’s experiment running a program on a real Acorn Electron computer. The program took 8 hours and 40 minutes to complete, which was considered a reasonably good time.

6. Willow Protocol

Total comment counts : 17

Summary

This article introduces a protocol for peer-to-peer data stores with several key features. These features include fine-grained permissions for privacy, the ability to make destructive edits, and a small bandwidth and memory footprint. The data storage provided by this protocol is always available and can be used for various types of data. Users can have multiple stores for different namespaces, and when stores from different devices belong to the same namespace, they sync with each other. The data stored in this protocol is private and end-to-end encrypted, ensuring that other users cannot access it unless they already know about it and can decrypt it. The protocol also allows for total erasure of data, including metadata. It provides fine-grained capabilities for restricting read and write access to specific data ranges or time periods. Additionally, it supports partial synchronization, allowing users to choose which data to replicate based on various criteria. Destructive edits overwrite old values and metadata, and users can locally delete unwanted data authored by others. The protocol is flexible, allowing users to choose the transport and cryptographic primitives that best suit their needs. Authors can also write from multiple devices concurrently. The project was funded through the NGI Assure Fund, with support from various sponsors.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses the design of the Willow data model, which is a protocol that allows for flexibility in choosing certain parameters. These parameters can determine how namespaces are identified, such as through human-readable strings or digital signatures. The goal of Willow is to be a higher-order protocol that can be instantiated with specific choices for its parameters, resulting in a concrete protocol that can be used. However, if two systems instantiate Willow with different parameters, they may not be interoperable even though they both claim to be “Willow-compatible.” The article raises the question of whether the purpose of a protocol is to allow independently developed systems to function without agreement on implementation.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article compares the Willow protocol to other protocols like IPFS. According to the comparison, data on IPFS is immutable, stateless, and globally-namespaced, while data on Willow is mutable, stateful, and conditionally-namespaced. Willow is described as an authenticated, permissioned, content-based, globally-addressed, distributed database system. The article also mentions a helpful feature in the documentation where hovering over underlined words provides definitions or explanations, making it easier to understand the terminology.

7. “Amazonian dark earth” was the work of ancient humans

Total comment counts : 16

Summary

Scientists have discovered ancient, fertile soil called “Amazonian dark earth” (ADE) in the Amazon rainforest. This soil, known as “black gold” or terra preta, is up to 3.8m thick and was created by ancient humans. It is rich in nutrients and organic matter, making it ideal for growing crops. The discovery of an ancient “garden” city in Ecuador has led to speculation that there may be more hidden settlements in the Amazon. Indigenous communities in the region relied on ADE to improve agriculture, and there is growing interest in applying their methods to modern farming practices and to combat climate change. ADE is found throughout the Amazon and contains a mix of inorganic and organic materials, including pottery, bones, and ash. It provides valuable insights into the ancient rainforest ecosystem.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses the discovery of ancient city ruins in the Amazon. It mentions specific sites such as Kuhikugu and the Marajoara culture. The article challenges the assumption that Amazon tribes have remained unchanged since ancient times, suggesting that some may be descendants of societies that experienced urban collapse.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article acknowledges that businesses are currently trying to capitalize on the ancient method mentioned. However, it emphasizes that this is not a new area of research or business. It suggests a book titled “Burn - Using Fire to Cool the Earth” by Albert Bates & Kathleen Draper as a recommendation for further exploration of various surprising uses for biochar. The link to the book can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/43866589

8. PixieFail: Nine Vulnerabilities UEFI Implementations

Total comment counts : 8

Summary

This article discusses nine vulnerabilities that affect the IPv6 network protocol stack of EDK II, TianoCore’s open source implementation of UEFI. These vulnerabilities exist in the network stack of EDK II and can be exploited during the network boot process. Network boot is a common feature on enterprise computers and servers, allowing the loading of an operating system image from the network at boot time. The vulnerabilities can be exploited by attackers on the local network or remote networks, and the impact includes denial of service, information leakage, remote code execution, DNS cache poisoning, and network session hijacking. Various vendors, including Arm, Insyde Software, AMI, Phoenix Technologies, and Microsoft, that use the EDK II’s NetworkPkg module are also affected. The article provides proof of concept scripts to detect some of the vulnerabilities and suggests deploying fixes and mitigations recommended by CERT/CC.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The author expresses disappointment that ARM and RISC-V have chosen to adopt UEFI, believing that there was an opportunity for a clean break. They express concern about the potential for persistent firmware-level root kits and the inclusion of hard-coded web addresses in the firmware’s network stack.

Top 2 Comment Summary

In this article, Quarkslab replied to prior requests and commentary from various vendors regarding a blog post about certain issues. Quarkslab stated that the blog post would contain a technical report submitted to the disclosure coordination forum and a detailed timeline of events in the disclosure process. The post would include proof-of-concept code to trigger vulnerabilities 1 to 7, but not exploit code. Quarkslab emphasized that the purpose of reporting the vulnerabilities was to assist vendors in identifying and fixing them, rather than debating editorial policies for their research work.

9. Some memories of Niklaus Wirth

Total comment counts : 6

Summary

Niklaus Wirth, a pioneer of computer science, passed away on January 1, 2024. He was known for his practical yet rigorous approach to engineering and his contributions to programming languages and systems software. The author of the article worked with Wirth as his PhD student and credits him for influencing their work and interest in computer science. The author’s fascination with compilers and programming languages led them to work on a Pascal compiler, which later evolved into Turbo Pascal. They were introduced to Wirth’s work on Modula-2 and the Lilith computer, which they incorporated into their compiler. Inspired by Wirth’s inventions, the author pursued PhD studies in programming languages under Wirth’s guidance at ETH. The author describes the unique workplace environment in Wirth’s group, where everything from the computer to the fonts and programming tools were developed in-house. Despite the small team, Wirth emphasized simplicity and justified the inclusion of features based on their essentiality and compactness. The author views Wirth’s work as a culmination of Von Neumann languages, and highlights his influence on their coding and teaching.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The author recalls seeing Martin, possibly referring to Martin Odersky, the creator of the Scala programming language, on a London bridge with a group of people. They were unaware that Martin was a student of Nikalus Wirth. The author expresses a belief that Wirth’s philosophy was abandoned in the 1990s and 2000s, leading to the development of languages like Python, JavaScript, Ruby, and Scala. However, they note that recent language design is now rediscovering Wirth’s techniques, as evidenced by Google’s Carbon project, which aims for an AST-free single-pass design.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article discusses Martin Odersky’s impressive work in the field of programming, including his contributions to TurboModula-2. However, it questions whether Odersky adopted a simplicity-driven approach like that of Niklaus Wirth. The article highlights the complexity of Scala’s type system and the lack of simplicity in the concept of “object-functional” programming.

10. ALOHA robot learns from humans to cook, clean, do laundry

Total comment counts : 14

Summary

Researchers at Stanford University have developed a new AI system called Mobile ALOHA (A Low-cost Open-source Hardware System for Bimanual Teleoperation) that enables mobile robots to perform complex tasks in various environments. The system addresses the high costs and technical challenges associated with training mobile bimanual robots that require guidance from human operators. Mobile ALOHA is cost-effective, learning from as few as 50 human demonstrations, and costs about $32,000, significantly less than off-the-shelf bimanual robots. The system combines teleoperation and deep imitation learning to enable the robot to learn tasks autonomously after gathering sufficient information. Mobile ALOHA has been successfully demonstrated in tasks such as cooking, house-keeping, and more. However, the system is not suitable for tight spaces. The researchers plan to enhance the system in the future by adding more degrees of freedom.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses a robot that operates in teleoperated mode and collects training data during this process. Although the robot is capable of certain autonomous actions, it is not able to perform tasks such as preparing an entire meal. The Github repository mentioned in the article provides more information and separates autonomous mode from teleoperated mode. Additionally, there is a video available at normal speed, which showcases the robot’s slow performance in autonomous mode. The article concludes that while there has been progress, the hype surrounding the robot’s capabilities exceeds the actual results.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The writer discusses an idea from the book “The Door Into Summer” by Heinlein, where the protagonist trains household robots by demonstrating tasks to them. The writer initially doubted the feasibility of this concept, but now with the advancements in robotics and a new device called Rabbit from CES, they see that Heinlein’s idea might actually be possible.