Hacker News Reader

DanBealeCon The Best Science Fiction Books (According to Reddit)

His newer books (Jennifer Morgue etc) are better stories; with some of the hell of modern office work.

DanBealeCon Pyweek13 is coming. Learn python the hardest way: make a game in a week

I have no programming talent (nor money). So if anyone wants to create a "zero player" like game (see, for example, progress quest) but for simulation racing games it'd be awesome. Imagine the tinkering fun of Forza or Gran Turismo, but without all the time drain of actually doing any of the upgrading. Or racing. Or licence tests. Or car buying.

DanBealeCon The Patent Pledge

It was analogy / metaphor. All the superpowers == all the big companies (Google, Apple, Samsung, etc) routinely fling nukes == lots of patent litigation.

DanBealeCon Practical Nerd: The hidden price of “free”

disturbing that so many HN readers install software without knowing what it does, or how it does it.

Having sad that, the docs could be a bit more clear.

For example, Spotify says quite clearly in sentence ii of para 14 of the end-user-agreement that "(ii) Spotify has a right to allow the Spotify Software Application and the Spotify Service to utilize the processor, bandwidth and storage hardware on your computer or other relevant device for the limited purpose of facilitating the communication and transmission of content and other data or features to you and other users of the Spotify Software Application and the Spotify Service, and to facilitate the operation of the network on which the Spotify Software Application and the Spotify Service runs. You may adjust the level of usage that the Spotify Service makes of your computer in the settings of the Spotify Software Application."

DanBealeCon Some Clarification and Musings

"I would have much less of a problem with rapid release if they'd stop changing major version numbers"

They're going to stop having any version numbers.

DanBealeCon Who Killed Prolog?

http://ngrams.googlelabs.com/graph?content=PROLOG%2CLISP%2CF...

poorly formed google ngram query is poorly formed.

DanBealeCon Why Ubuntu Linux is now ready for primetime

Asus tried Linux on the EEE PC. They unfortunately tried an odd version called Xandros, with some modifications and a cut down IceWM theme. I'm not sure they enjoyed supporting it. This article says they've stopped pre-loading Linux: http://www.pcworld.com/article/196987/has_asus_abandoned_net...

and this article says they're going to start pre-loading Ubuntu: http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2075819/asus-preloa...

DanBealeCon Why Ubuntu Linux is now ready for primetime

Hey, the mouse "just works!". Out of the box! Linux is ready. It's always disappointing in articles like these not to see 200 corporate workers trying Libre Office (which would be fine for many many people).

DanBealeCon Why Ubuntu Linux is now ready for primetime

Crunchbang isn't great. It breaks regularly; it's pretty big; and there are weird dependency problems. Compare it to distributions like Slitaz or Tiny Core, both of which really are small.

DanBealeCon New gaming laptop with innovative UI by Razer

You don't remember all the cardboard keyboard overlays that used to ship with software?

DanBealeCon Ask HN: Suggest me ideas for my weekend project in python.

I like this idea. How does multiplayer work with turn based games? Each player just has to wait for the other to finish?

DanBealeCon Ask HN: Suggest me ideas for my weekend project in python.

Markov Chain toy - grab some text as input (a file or a text box); allow the user to select whether they want to operate on words or letters; allow the user to select what 'depth' they wish to use (two word groups, three word groups, etc.); generate your probability tables; then spit out some output text.

being able to mash more than one text source might be nice.

bonus points if a user could just point the tool to a webpage to generate 'parody' version.

DanBealeCon Ask HN: Suggest me ideas for my weekend project in python.

A zero-player game (see also Progress Quest) but instead of dungeon crawling try Car race simulation. A ZPG version of gran turismo or forza would be awesome.

The player would start with some cash; they could either then let the ZPG run, or they could have limited input such as buying the first car. The ZPG would then do motoring tests, racking up badges for passing, and then gaining licences, and then enter races.

DanBealeCon Why Amazon Can't Make A Kindle In the USA

In the UK: agricultural workers either get minimum wage or are exploited migrant workers getting illegally low wages and illegal working conditions. People who look after the elderly are "care assistants" not nurses they are unskilled workers at minimum wage. The amount of abuse in the care industry (as well as the high churn rate) suggests that a substantial number of those workers do not get much satisfaction from 'contributing to humanity'.

1000 yen per hour is about £7.90; the UK minimum wage is £5.93 ((if you're over 21) but there are some tax breaks and benefits available to some low paid workers). There are plenty of jobs at that minimum wage, and many of those jobs will be as dull as checking gaskets.

DanBealeCon What are good keyboards for programming?

A separate USB number pad with a good mouse and a compact keyboard?

Or maybe an excellent trackpad and no mouse?