Google Capture the Flag 2017 | Hacker News Reader

Google Capture the Flag 2017

capturetheflag.withgoogle.com

43 pointsfred25618 comments

"The Contest is open to individuals who are (1) over the age of eighteen (18) at the time of entry; (2) not a resident of Brazil, Quebec, Cuba, Iran, Syria, North Korea, Sudan, or Crimea;"

WTF with Brazil and Quebec being in that list...

Presumably because of local laws in Brazil or Quebec; probably too much of a hassle for Google to comply.

Also: "Entrants warrant that their codes are their own original work and, as such, they are the sole and exclusive owner and rights holder of the submitted code and that they have the right to submit the code in the Contest and grant all required licenses."

Does that mean exploits can't be cribbed off someone else's (open source) ones or use libraries? Not being able to do that completely changes the game.

It seems like they copied and pasted rules for a programming contest...

We added this section for the write-ups. We want to be able to republish write-ups and their code if we want.

Quebec: https://www.thebalance.com/why-are-so-many-competitions-void...

I'm sure the reason for Brazil is similar.

Off topic: do certain domains or certain users get a bump in value in the HN ranking algorithm? This post is currently 34 minutes old, has 4 points, 0 comments, and is currently ranked 12th on the front page. That seems like an unusually high ranking for a post with this level of engagement.

I just looked, and every post made more recently than this one (as of now) has exactly 1 point, so its not that crazy to see this on the front page.

That is true. It is a Friday in the summer and it is already late afternoon on the west coast. It is possible that HN is unusually quiet at the moment and obviously something still needs to make the front page even during slow downs. I just don't remember seeing numbers that low.

Comments have a negative impact on rank I believe, meaning that all things being equal, a story with less comments than another will rank higher.

I don't think that's true necessarily; you're referring to the flamewar detector, which kicks in at a threshold.

Off-topic: There's a typo in you're profile; "flounder @ Latacora".

EDIT: Appears possible it's a not a typo given it's also in this profile too: https://m.facebook.com/thomas.ptacek

If you don't follow the links:

"we’ll be hosting the online qualification round of our second annual Capture The Flag (CTF) competition. In a ‘Capture the Flag’ competition we create security challenges and puzzles in which contestants can earn points for solving them. "

Also for those familiar with CTF terminology, TL;DR is:

Online; Jeopardy; Finals onsite (4/team) w/ cash prize.

I really want to "flag" this post. But not really.

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