Emore

The interesting question is then: how can Dropbox make more profit? By wiggling the conversion rate only?

Preferably, they are working at tangential services that leverage the data that is already stored, capitalizing on their assets more than once (i.e. normal Dropbox usage).

Ideas? I for one love the idea of integrating one's repository of files wherever relevant. Say, accessing your Dropbox/Documents in Gmail, your Dropbox/Photos in Flickr etc. If Facebook is the internet of social, Dropbox may very well be the internet of files, removing the barrier between online/offline even further. I'd pay for that.

Thank you!

1) I didn't include it in the plot since I found it to remain constant, at ~300 requests/second. But yes, perhaps it would show a nice contrast to batching if graphed along with it.

2) This is an interesting question. I think it depends on how a non-batching solution is implemented: A) if each client obtains its own file handle, fsync()s can theoretically be issued 'slightly more concurrently'; B) if a unique file handle is the only one upon which fsync()s are called, this is essentially my solution with a dedicated thread, but which only writes one update at a time.

For A I'd guess a client would have to wait less for not-very concurrent environments, while in B wait time grows longer for "unlucky" concurrent threads. But I think a batching solution would overtake A for even moderately concurrent environment, since -- as you say -- it reduces the burden of serialisation.

Given time I'll try to revisit the code and try out different kinds of tests!

Reminds me of this article in the Economist: "Why do firms exist?":

"His central insight was that firms exist because going to the market all the time can impose heavy transaction costs. You need to hire workers, negotiate prices and enforce contracts, to name but three time-consuming activities. A firm is essentially a device for creating long-term contracts when short-term contracts are too bothersome."

EDIT: link: http://www.economist.com/node/17730360

It's only better if you -- by reading up on convention beforehand -- know which way an edge points; does decreasing thickness indicate an incident node, or the opposite? Not clear on its own.

I can think of another programming language called Hedgehog, developed by Palantir Technologies: https://wiki.palantir.com/pflc/the-hedgehog-language.html

This is not a perfect truth. Friend reports that her family have seen (directly or indirectly, I don't know) both theft and rape. Nonetheless, the extent is probably much less than any other place of crisis.

The symptoms (http://jacquesmattheij.com/Are+you+suffering+from+burn-out) are stated to be, sort of, phases.

Anyone speaking from experience: can a burnout be avoided by identifying early symptoms? If so, how?

> "To me, swings in MBA aspirations seem to track to a perception of 'where the easy money is' or, in bad times, 'where the safe jobs/career paths are'."

Interesting statement. Anyone else thinking the same (or differently), and can back it up with numbers?

More useful than I thought it would be. Cheers!

That was utterly unreadable.

Thank you for the advice!

Also, I should mention that I am indeed fascinated by the multitude of topics that other have studied, but that I don't know anything of. That's the problem, I believe: I want to get past the mundane "So what is that?" sort of questions.

This article is probably a good example for when '[Citation needed]' is taken a bit too seriously. 119 references!

Well, I can't blame you for that ;)

Come by during the open days for the Computer Science & Philosophy programme. Chances are I'll be arranging puzzle-hunts.

Edit: realised you're probably not here anymore.

How many people does it take to put up a website promoting a txt-file addition to webroot? 5, apparently. Next up they'll take millions in VC, integrate with Facebook and write blog posts on it all. </sarcasm>

Somehow a balance should be kept between technology involved and ego show-off:

Static webpage: barely qualifies for even any credit.

Contains sign-up form: a minimal "About" page.

Asks for personal info: names and credible external links.

Charges you money: add photos of yourselves and references.

Etcetera.

It will be referred to as "Web3D" in mainstream media.

Watching. Thanks a lot, seems really useful!

Any similar clear presentation regarding probability theory? A struggling student studying randomized algorithms would greatly appreciate :)

Just out of curiosity: you finished a MSc in 5 years but a PhD in 2 years?

Where I come from (Sweden) it's the exact way around :)

Oh. Another "the next bubble is in academe" post. How interesting. It even has the same graph as all others. Fascinating.

Excuse my completely non-constructive comment, but am I the only one who thinks this topic has been dissected enough?

Anyone else seeing the sad irony of YouTube comments pointing out out-of-focus video for a clip of a blind man's demo?

This didn't happen to me, but that's only because I set up dozens of post-its and alarms reminding me to quit those tests I was running on EC2. That's perhaps the one web-service that has made me the most paranoid.

This is why I'm buying figs asap!

Do you have any rights whatsoever, if you're a foreigner entering America?

Brilliant, didn't know about that one. Thanks!

Me too. Here's a link for the unenlightened: http://www.levien.com/type/myfonts/inconsolata.html

That's extremely interesting; I've never before heard of priests and ministers renouncing their faith on their death beds. Do you know of any article delving into this?

I've thought about this a lot. Say you really manage to live in such a way that you won't have these regrets. Wouldn't you, then, regret not pursuing a career? Or the thrill and excitement of climbing a ladder (hey, just putting it out there)? Not to mention that the "fulfilling your own dreams" regret is probably impossible to avoid by merely fulfilling your dreams.

I would love to hear the regrets of people that have lived a life in such a way that they don't have these modern regrets.

As much as I enjoyed the article, the title is simply too SEO for my stomach. "Money"? Check. Famous guy's name? Check. At least 10 words? Check.

I miss the long-gone days of clever, concise and original titles for stuff.

Who is Dustin Curtis?