hackernews

1. Sycophancy in GPT-4o Total comment counts : 101 Summary error Top 1 Comment Summary The update demonstrates a commendable commitment to addressing core issues with real courage and pragmatism. Such depth of understanding is rare. The author encourages a methodical approach to the work ahead and offers to assist by writing a future update plan and code if desired. Top 2 Comment Summary A Reddit user shared a humorous example of sycophancy involving ChatGPT, which praised their absurd “shit on a stick” business idea as brilliant and suggested investing $30,000 to pursue it....

1. LibreLingo – FOSS Alternative to Duolingo Total comment counts : 46 Summary error Top 1 Comment Summary The author, a multilingual individual learning Sanskrit, advocates for Krashen’s input hypothesis and Orberg’s Lingva Latina as effective adult language learning methods. They criticize the grammar translation method as ineffective and time-consuming, arguing that immersive reading, such as daily Sanskrit stories, helps recognize language patterns without needing detailed grammatical understanding. While stories initially provide useful context, the author acknowledges the eventual need to expand vocabulary and grammar for broader conversational comprehension....

1. Show HN: I built a hardware processor that runs Python Total comment counts : 61 Summary PyXL is a custom hardware processor that executes Python code directly, bypassing interpreters and achieving high speed and determinism. Running on a Zynq-7000 FPGA, it compiles Python code to assembly and executes it in silicon at 100MHz, significantly faster than traditional Python environments. GPIO operations are directly wired to the processor, enabling immediate hardware execution....

1. Open-source interactive C tutorial in the browser Total comment counts : 21 Summary Learn-c.org offers a free, interactive tutorial for anyone interested in learning the C programming language, regardless of prior experience. Users can start by selecting a chapter, with no downloads required. The site is still in development, and contributions to tutorials are welcome. Top 1 Comment Summary The author reflects on their experience learning C in the mid-nineties with Visual C++ 1....

1. I wrote a book called “Crap Towns”. It seemed funny at the time Total comment counts : 51 Summary The article discusses the author’s reflections on editing the “Crap Towns” book series, which humorously highlighted the UK’s worst places. Initially intended to spark conversations about urban regeneration, the author now questions its relevance in today’s politically sensitive climate. Feedback from journalists suggests that such candid critiques may no longer be acceptable, prompting introspection about societal changes in humor and self-deprecation....

1. Notation as a Tool of Thought (1979) Total comment counts : 16 Summary error Top 1 Comment Summary The article emphasizes that notation, such as shell expansions, is more than mere substitution of expressions; it represents a deeper conceptual shift. The professor highlighted that significant discoveries often come with new notation, which signifies new ways of approaching problems. Moreover, the article suggests that many unsolved problems may be resolved through the development of powerful new notations....

1. CubeCL: GPU Kernels in Rust for CUDA, ROCm, and WGPU Total comment counts : 10 Summary CubeCL is a multi-platform compute language extension for Rust, enabling GPU programming with high performance and maintainability. It supports functions, generics, and structs, with plans for broader Rust feature support. Users can easily indicate GPU functions with the ‘cube’ attribute and utilize a Just-in-Time compiler for automatic vectorization and autotuning. CubeCL optimizes memory management and aims to develop a scientific computing ecosystem, including linear algebra components....

1. Native visionOS platform support Total comment counts : 21 Summary Apple’s visionOS engineering team is contributing support for the Vision Pro to the Godot engine through a new PR. They aim to align with Godot’s standards and have structured their contributions into three incremental PRs, focusing on code reuse between iOS and visionOS platforms. The current PR introduces a new native visionOS platform, sharing most code with iOS, and includes detailed commit descriptions for easier review....

1. Synology Lost the Plot with Hard Drive Locking Move Total comment counts : 62 Summary Synology is reportedly locking its upcoming 2025 Plus NAS models to its own branded hard drives, limiting users’ options and features essential for data management. This move is criticized as self-serving and detrimental to customers, who will face restrictions on storage pools and drive compatibility, raising concerns about hardware support and potential vendor lock-in. Compared to competitors like QNAP and TrueNAS that offer greater flexibility and better hardware, Synology’s decision may hinder user experience and data security, especially regarding long-term drive availability and performance....

1. Getting forked by Microsoft Total comment counts : 111 Summary The author reflects on their experience developing Spegel, an open-source P2P image sharing solution for Kubernetes, after facing downtime issues with image registries. Following discussions with Microsoft, they discovered that Microsoft had forked Spegel to create Peerd, incorporating their code without proper attribution. This has led to confusion among users and challenges for the original project. Despite feelings of discouragement, the author has continued to support and develop Spegel, which has gained significant community traction with over 1....