Ask HN: Hacker news source code?

http://github.com/nex3/arc/blob/master/news.arc

I'm not sure if this is the latest version, but should point you in the right direction. My understanding is that pg keeps some aspects (eg, the hellbanning protocols) out of this code to prevent the system being hacked and overrun by spammers.

There are also other sites running versions (Markenomics.com comes to mind; News Mogul is no longer with us). Not sure how many of those have published their changes to source code.

Another option is to use http://SlinkSet.com a hosted version by Posterous.

I'm almost hesitant to recommend it though, because the service is terrible and they have not updated in months.

Instructions on setting up the news site.

http://github.com/nex3/arc/blob/master/how-to-run-news

Question: What kind of server does one need to setup arc on it? Do you need like a total control (as in virtual/dedicated servers)?

It looks like it runs its own server on its own port, so you'd most likely need a virtual/dedicated server. There are some shared hosts that allow you to run custom servers, such as NearlyFreeSpeech.net