jgable

I was recently trying to write my own TCP stack to solidify my networking knowledge, similar to Julia Evans's efforts [1]. I got frustrated working with raw sockets on my mac, because they don't provide the same level of control as raw sockets on linux [2]. Is pcap a better level of abstraction that is cross-platform? I don't really care about windows, but it would be nice to work on linux and osx.

[1] http://jvns.ca/blog/2014/08/12/what-happens-if-you-write-a-t...

[2] http://stackoverflow.com/questions/6878603/strange-raw-socke...

I completely understand the author's point, but I always find myself annoyed at these kinds of posts. Maybe it's simply a matter of emphasis. Yes, we have backtracked in so many ways from the speed and functionality of native applications. However, I'd prefer to accept that the web will be the dominant programming platform from now on, and use the capabilities that we had with native applications as inspiration to make the web stack better. Yes, It can be annoying to hear people breathlessly describe the responsiveness of some new javascript framework as if it's something that native apps haven't had for ages. However, I don't think that should make us want to go back. We need to work hard to bring that speed and functionality to the web while taking advantage of the unbelievable capabilities that the web offers that we didn't have before.

Besides, the browser as a user interface is only going to last a little while longer. Have you used Janus VR [1]? Have you used it with an oculus rift? It is crude. The graphics are simplistic. But it is AMAZING. It represents the future. The metaverse is almost here, and this is a very exciting time.

[1] http://janusvr.com/

So what are some strategies to really solve this problem? Is it basically impossible to implement a GC for a C-like language that will not leak at least a little memory?

I agree.

Specific skills (e.g. working with a certain framework) will go in and out of style, but problem solving will always be in demand.

Also, maybe I'm naive, but I just don't see the software-as-legos future as feasible. There will always be the need for customization and ever-more-advanced functionality.

Beautiful. I had seen Markov chains mentioned before, but had not looked them up. Skimming the wikipedia page made sense (it's a state machine with transitions determined by probabilities instead of defined events), but I would not have had an intuitive understanding of why they are useful. The explanation mid-way down about modeling the distribution of sunny and rainy days really made it click for me.

I understand small companies caving to the demands of patent trolls, because fighting is more costly than they can afford. I like to think I'd have the courage to act differently, but I understand the rationale. But a behemoth like Microsoft or Sony? Why pay up? You hear the mantra all the time: "We do not negotiate with terrorists."

It seems obvious it's worse for them in the long run, and they can afford to play the long game. Maybe I'm being naive about the costs at stake here.

Can someone explain the motivations of the major players here? The posted article references another Reuters article that goes into a little more detail: "Several large tech companies previously invested in IV, which gave them low-cost licenses to IV's vast patent portfolios as well as a portion of royalties IV collected." However, investments like this seem pretty short-sighted, and I would have thought that all players in the tech space would have woken up to the dangers of patent trolls years ago. What explains the continued behavior of Microsoft? Is this just another version of paying off the trolls to make them leave you alone?

For some projects, maybe, but not the majority. It's not a bad idea. If we invested in such a setup, it would help with unit testing and such.

Fair enough. We are in Orange County (CA) so there is enough tech talent here to justify keeping our candidate search local. Thanks.

No, for most of our projects, the test systems are small enough so that it's not cost-prohibitive to ship. I just know that every time we bring up a new system or board, there can be days of debugging stupid problems, and that's with everyone and all our electronics gear in the same building.

You say the environment was "functional". For you, did the advantages of having the larger applicant market outweigh the disadvantages?

Question for author and others on HN:

How feasible is it to have remote employees when most of your work is on embedded systems?

I recently started a software consulting group with a couple of partners, and we are starting to hire. I'd like to offer remote positions, but since most of our work is on embedded systems (e.g. medical devices), I don't think this is really feasible. For any given system, there's so much pain in wiring, setting up and debugging a test and development environment, etc. that it doesn't seem worth it. However, maybe I'm overestimating the difficulty and underestimating the benefit. Anyone else have success with remote work that is not primarily on web systems?

You are correct that today, in the US, on average, electric vehicles do not provide a significant improvement in emissions over hybrids like the Prius. [1] However, something to consider is that an electric vehicle effectively decouples transportation from the emissions source, forever. Power generation is projected to continue to get cleaner over time [2], and as power generation improves, the emissions of electric vehicles improve with it, even without any additional improvement of electric vehicles themselves. While US power generation may never be as free as fossil fuels as that of France, it is only getting better, and electric vehicles can ride that wave. If instead, we continue to drive gasoline vehicles (even hybrids), we will never stop pumping out CO2 with our cars.

The only renewable resource that can power a car directly, without transitioning through electricity, is solar, and there just isn't enough power in the solar radiation that strikes the roof area of a car to be practical.

Natural gas vehicles are actually a good stepping stone to reducing CO2 emissions, since methane (CH4) has roughly half the carbon per unit of energy. There is renewed interest these days in developing natural gas vehicles, but I personally think electric vehicles will win the race.

[1] http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/electric_emissions.php [2] http://www.eia.gov/forecasts/aeo/MT_electric.cfm

Doh! You posted that link while I was writing up my response. Fantastic essay.

In terms of getting a title of "Senior Engineer" at most companies, it is mostly a function of experience. It is highly unlikely you will be hired as a Senior Engineer straight out of college.

Don't focus on getting the title. Instead, focus on what you can control, and the titles and career advancement will take care of themselves.

There's a well-known, well-written essay on the qualities that a Senior Engineer possesses: http://www.kitchensoap.com/2012/10/25/on-being-a-senior-engi...

Technical maturity comes from working on and finishing large projects. As with anything else, you can work for years and have lots of "experience", but if you are not critically thinking and learning during the journey, you won't get anywhere. Learn the pros and cons of high-level, architectural decisions so that you can be prepared to make those decisions someday in the face of uncertainty.

Personal maturity means working effectively on your own and especially with others. Pay attention to the highly respected engineers in your organization, and observe how they work with others.

Good luck!

IANAL, but the justification for fair use seems tortured here. EFF made the case for fair use in this article:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/beastie-boys-goldieblo...

... and I think the commercial element is stronger than EFF argues for, and the fact that the video uses the ENTIRE SONG pushes factor three (amount and substantiality) in favor of the Beastie Boyz.

My first thought on seeing the commercial was "Awesome!"

My second thought was, "Did they get Beastie Boyz' permission to do this?"

I have to say, I agree with the Beastie Boyz statement in its entirety:

http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/record-labels/580...