open-source-ux

That example of practical effects looked quite stiff and fake like you said. But practical effects also continued to improve over the years even though CGI came to dominate the film industry.

Alien was released in 1979, but a few years later saw the release of An American Werewolf in London (1981) which featured a memorable werewolf transformation (all practictal effects). Then in 1982 saw the release of The Thing which took practical effects a notch higher.

Also, today filmmakers sometimes use a hybrid approach: combining practical and digital effects.

I do wonder how much further practical effects would have developed if CGI haven't overtook the film industry.

Yes, that's very true. But in the 90s, both developers and users would not tolerate slow or memory-hungry apps. The hardware and memory constraints meant developers chose languages and tools for that purpose.

Today, developers choose languages and tools that suit their comfort first. The user's comfort often takes secondary consideration.

My recollection of software from the Windows 95 era is different. The reliability of desktop apps varied depending on the type of software but problems were often related to hardware. Today, hardware is much more reliable and adheres to widely adopted standards.

Faster, more capable hardware hasn't necessarily made modern software better. In many cases the opposite: apps are slow and gobble up computer resources with no restraints.

Static Site Generators (SSG) are not new. The SSG blog software Moveable Type launched in 2001 (written in Perl) and preceded WordPress. It featured a friendly browser-based editing, and a publishing experience suitable for all users.

This article omits an important aspect of popular SSGs and the 'Jamstack': they are not easy-to-install or easy to use by non-technical users.

Some of the most popular SSGs are surprisingly complex despite claims to the contrary. (A simple contact form is impossible in many SSGs without embedding third-party services.)

Also, the love of Markdown is not shared by anyone who isn't a developer. Step outside of basic Markdown and it becomes unpleasant to use and cumbersome. It's even harder for non-technical users - try adding a table using Markdown.

Outside of developer circles, SSGs have had neglible impact on non-technical users.

Interesting idea but more questions than answers...

The 'block' idea makes sense in the context of WordPress, but WordPress 'blocks' include layout blocks as well as content blocks.

You could argue HTML is already a universal language that includes semantic 'blocks'. Is the block protocol a collection of HTML elements grouped together to form higher-level blocks?

Will content 'blocks' be separated from style? What role will CSS component frameworks take in styling content blocks?

We have embedded content from third-party parties already e.g. a tweet 'block', a YouTube video, an Instragram post, etc. The result is embedded 'blocks' stitched together to make a slow-loading page with a mess of HTML and CSS code (and a host of third-party cookies). How can the block protocol avoid this?

As I said, interesting idea but many questions remaining at this early stage.

Some additional context about the problem of grey squirrels in the UK:

The following information comes from The Woodland Trust and the Animal & Plant Health Agency (APHA).

Estimates of grey and red squirrels numbers in the UK from 2018:

- Grey squirrels: 2.5 million

- Red squirrels: 140,000

> Grey squirrels were first introduced to the UK in the 19th century. The species has spread rapidly and is now common across the UK, with the exception of north and western Scotland and some islands.

> The introduction of grey squirrels has had a disastrous impact on the UK’s only native squirrel species, the red squirrel. Greys compete with reds for food and also carry a virus known as squirrelpox. While greys are actually immune to the disease, they transmit it to reds, for whom it is fatal. The UK’s only viable populations of red squirrels are in places where greys are rare or absent.

> Grey squirrels can also affect the composition of native woodland by bark stripping and eating the seeds of certain trees. In parts of the country, the species is culled to protect red squirrels and mitigate its damaging impact.

> Fertility control has been proposed as a humane, publicly acceptable and cost-effective method for reducing populations of grey squirrel.

It's ironic that Microsoft promote their Surface Book models with pen pressure screens as ideal for all artists and designers. Except for their own designers who appear to prefer Macs.

I'm also shocked to hear that designers at Microsoft are designing features for Windows on a Mac. I presume these are 'UX Designers' or 'Interaction Designers'.

Imagine the opposite scenario for Apple and how absurd it sounds: designers at Apple designing features for MacOS or iOS using Windows OS laptops.

This prompts the following question: What design apps are the Microsoft designers using on a Mac that they can't use on a Windows machine? (Is it Mac-only Sketch?)

Lines and Colors is a great blog to dip in to find some visual inspiration. This blog has been going since 2005 - impressive longevity for a personal blog.

Description:

> Lines and Colors is a blog about painting, drawing, sketching, illustration, comics, cartoons, webcomics, art history, concept art, gallery art, digital art, artist tools and techniques, motion graphics, animation, sci-fi and fantasy illustration, paleo art, storyboards, matte painting, 3d graphics and anything else I find visually interesting. If it has lines and/or colors, it's fair game.

http://linesandcolors.com/

Maytag is not a well known brand in the UK. This may be because top-loading washing machines are not widespread here. Front-loading washing machines are the norm in the UK and in other European countries. It's unusual to see top-loading washing machines for sale.

"Houdini is a group of APIs that give developers direct access to the CSS_Object_Model (CSSOM), enabling developers to write code the browser can parse as CSS, thereby creating new CSS features without waiting for them to be implemented natively in browsers."

Why develop custom features only for one browser (firebox) that cannot be displayed in other browsers? This feels antithetical to the spirit of the web. Not to mention the complexity it adds.

In addition, the Firefox rendering engine cannot be used to create a desktop app (like Electron) where this custom CSS feature might make some sense.

Good points. However, on-demand streaming has changed people expectations around content availability. A weekly show on linear TV makes sense when it's topical (e.g. Countryfile or news-related), if it's a reality contest with a finale (e.g. Love Island, The Apprentice) or a prestigious drama with cliff-hanger ending.

Even the idea of TV channels makes little sense today unless those channels reflect a genre or theme (e.g. The Arts Channel or the Horror channel). I suspect most people in the UK would struggle to describe the purpose or differences between BBC channels. Streaming services (including iPlayer) reflect what probably makes sense to most people - the genre or theme of the programme. BBC linear channels are increasingly irrelevant.

This talk is from the 2020 Black Hat Conference. The presentation (40 mins) is on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ar_lVqkWcHk

One of the authors of the research, Jianjun Chen, demonstrates email spoofing using Gmail, Yahoo and Outlook in these short (1 min) videos from 2020.

Email spoofing demos (2020): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL--A-gWJV1dJ19Syhkzkl...

Status:

- Gmail: "fixed"

- Yahoo: "reported to Yahoo security on Oct 28th, 2019. They disregarded our report."

- Outlook: "reported to Microsoft security on Oct 28th, 2019. They disregarded our report ("Unfortunately your report appears to rely on social engineering to accomplish, which would not meet the bar for security servicing")."

I assume the response from the Outlook team ("social engineering") refers to the fact that body of the email must still contain a phishing link.

'Linear TV' (broadcast TV) is dead and the BBC probably have known this for some time. The idea of a TV schedule feels antiquated today amid unprecedented on-demand content. On commercial streaming services, only prestige series (seasons) are released weekly, everything else gets a whole series released in one go. (The BBC already does this on iPlayer for some series.)

It's worth remembering that the BBC is a Public Service Broadcaster (PSB) and does vastly more than YouTube or Netflix.

- News: the world's largest news organisation

- TV: everything from drama to documentaries to kids programmes

- Radio: national radio stations (covering every music genre + speech), 40+ local radio stations, and the World Service.

- Kids TV: ad-free TV kids programmes with strict guidelines on commercial influences and product placement.

- Education: massive educational content for schools (Bitesize) that has no commercial equivalent. (Who else other than BBC would launch the micro:bit project in schools with all the related educational resources to support it?)

- Music: promotes new music artists, funds 5 orchestras, runs the world's largest classical music festival (the Proms). Provides live music festival coverage (Glastonbury, Leeds, Reading etc)

- Accessibility: 100% of recorded programmes subtitled, + a proportion of audio-signed and signed programmes

The list goes on. Even simply browsing the BBC news website is one of the few news websites in the UK that is ad-free (if you are outside the UK browsing the BBC website, you're probably seeing ads).

Not all the above will disappear with a different funding model, but it's likely that the BBC will be slimmed down. (And that is something BBC critics will want to see happen.)

Aside: Nadine Dorries is minister for 'Digital, Culture, Media and Sport' - the BBC falls under the remit of this department. Dorries didn't even know that Channel 4 (another PSB in the UK) does not receive any public funds (it is funded by advertising). When this was pointed out to her when facing other politicians, she babbled incoherently unable to admit her error. Make up you own mind about the calibre of this politician: https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/news/nadine-dorries-channe...

The title is a tad misleading because the HTML in the link is described "an extension to HTML" featuring numbers, booleans and variables.

The popular YouTube channel Computerphile tackled this topic back in 2016:

HTML IS a Programming Language (Imperative vs Declarative): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4A2mWqLUpzw

Me? I'm happy to describe it as a markup language.

An interesting related question: Is CSS a style sheet language, or now something more? It has variables, performs calculations (using the calc function), can add strings to the page (using a pseudo element) and can create animation. It might not count as a programming language, but it has morphed into a strange hybrid beast between style sheet and programming language.

"I think we need to be much more willing to consider software that's released with source available"

I agree. The label 'source only' is considered a dirty word among some open source advocates. But if you are building a B2B (Business-to-Business) software product, 'source only' is a perfectly viable option to succesfully make a living from your product - one that isn't completely closed source (but one that clearly isn't open source). The source code of the product cannot be shared, but it can be modified by the customer to suit their needs.

The idea of 'source only' is not new at all. Back in the late 90s when Delphi was popular, many developers created and sold components to other developers (e.g. UI widgets). These components came with full source code of the components but they were not open source.

Fast forward to today, what are examples of 'source only' products doing well? Two examples: 'Kirby CMS' and 'Craft CMS' (Content Management Systems). Both are popular and profitable. Their source code is even published publicly on GitHub. The product creators trust customers will pay for the product (presumably some do not, but enough customers do pay so it doesn't matter).

Other developers are happy to contribute to the eco-system of plugins. So, yes, it's perfectly possible to build a community of enthusiastic followers for a 'source only' product that isn't open source.

WordPress is another example. Although WordPress is open source, the plugin market is full of 'source only' plugins for sale that are successful and profitable.

"I'm finding it hard to shake the conviction that anything I input on my computer or a website is being recorded and analyzed."

I share your concern, but 'analytics', 'telemetry', 'web beacons' (whatever it's euphemistically called) have been adopted wholesale by developers when creating software. It is rarely questioned by developers because it have become so normal.

An uncomfortable truth is that it is often developers who incorporate user tracking in their software. It doesn't matter if the software is an OS, a desktop app or a SaaS 'cloud' app.

For example, Microsoft's Visual Studio Code is a desktop app that collects telemetry. Electron makes it easy to embed analytics in an app - something developers are eager to do.

Google's ChromeOS is a 'cloud' OS used by millions of school kids in the US. It is not possible to use the full features of the OS without a Google account. Even if user data is 'anonymised' and aggregated we are talking about volumes of data that are simply enormous.

User tracking in software is a juggernaut that shows no sign of slowing down, particulary with the popularity of SaaS. [1]

What do developers have to say about this pervasive tracking?

<tumbleweed rolls by>

Developers are more likely to defend their favourite tech company rather than question or scrutinise their tracking practices.

[1] This is a Figma blog post about how Notion was designed using Figma:

"It was around that time we noticed Ivan in Figma. He suddenly popped to the top of our most active user list — spending upwards of 18+ hours a day in our design tool."

https://www.figma.com/blog/design-on-a-deadline-how-notion-p...

The last time this story was posted on HN, the snippet above passed without any comment - and was considered a perfectly normal use of user tracking.

"Are there any references of it being used in production successfully?"

Figma, the hugely popular design tool that runs in a browser uses WebAssembly. They have an old blog entry from 2017 talking about Web Assembly: https://www.figma.com/blog/webassembly-cut-figmas-load-time-...

I was sceptical a complex, feature-rich design tool could be possible in the browser, but Figma proved me wrong. Not only that, Figma has proved to be serious competition to rival Sketch (a native desktop app for the Mac), and to Adobe XD (native Mac and Windows desktop apps).

IRC might be designed around a simple protocol, but it is not simple in operation. The plethora of command line options explains why IRC is only loved by (some) developers and nobody else.

I suspect some IRC users like the high barrier to entry (but would never admit to it): it keeps out all those clueless 'non-technical' users.

"Is there a reason consumer printers haven't been disrupted.."

Xerox used to sell colour ink printers using solid ink blocks (not ink cartridges). The printer heats the solid ink blocks turning them into a viscous liquid. In case it's not obvious, the solid ink blocks don't require any cartridge encasing. They are simply slotted into ink compartments inside the printer. Here is a short video demo: https://youtu.be/cnd37wYLo-Q?t=104

The cost of the printers were high but the ink blocks worked out to be cheaper (cost-per-page) than traditional ink cartridges. The printers were aimed at business users and are no longer sold by Xerox. The reviews for these types of printer were mixed.

Do solid-ink blocks count as "disruption" to colour ink printers? Not sure, but it's the only example I know where a company attempted try something different to the colour ink cartridge model. There is simply no incentive for inkjet printer manufacturers to think afresh about cartridges, cost-per-page, refills etc.

gitbook.com is a popular hosted product for documentation. It includes a (beta) import feature for MS Word documents:

https://docs.gitbook.com/features/import

You'll have to evaluate the option of hosting your documention in the 'cloud' over self-hosting though.

The related survey details from the UK's Office for National Statistics:

Prevalence of ongoing symptoms following coronavirus (COVID-19) infection in the UK : 6 January 2022:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthan...

"How is Java not one of the biggest success story ever for a programming language?"

The language is an enormous success. But in one key area it did not succeed in popularity: in building cross-platform desktop GUI apps.

Many businesses did use it for building internal GUI desktop apps. However, Java did not find much success in consumer-facing desktop apps - despite the considerable effort made to encourage developers use Java for this purpose. For example, in the late 1990s Java had it's own GUI look-and-feel called 'Flush 3D'. It was designed to be consistent across operating systems.[1]

But Java desktop apps earned the reputation as being slow and unresponsive, not fast and nimble. The Java applets that ran in the browser were no better. Today, perhaps Java will find success creating consumer-facing, high-performance applications on web pages using WebAssembly?

[1] http://ptitben2000.chez.com/info/lookandfeel/higc.htm

Thanks for writing up your experience using Julia for creating a web app.

I agree that Julia is doing well in scientific domains, but is not perceived as a general-purpose language among many developers. Other languages also have rich non-scientific libraries, frameworks, and learning resources.

The scientific domain is vast though, so Julia can certainly thrive in that space. Can it break out of that space into other fields too? It does not seem to have yet, but I guess only time will tell. (Julia recently received multi-million funding so it will be interesting to how this will be used to develop and promote Julia.)

"I think I’m going to start taking aspirin"

In the UK there is a large, ongoing clinical trial called 'RECOVER' to test different COVID treaments for hospitalised COVID patients. One of the trials included giving hospitalised patients aspirin. The trial was not looking at the treatment of long-covid symptoms (at least not directly in hospital patients).

"A total of 7351 patients were randomised to aspirin 150 mg once daily and compared with 7541 patients randomised to usual care alone. There was no evidence that aspirin treatment reduced mortality."

Link: RECOVERY trial finds aspirin does not improve survival for patients hospitalised with COVID-19: https://www.recoverytrial.net/news/recovery-trial-finds-aspi...

Good work. This looks very interesting.

A question:

Some VPS hosting providers let you upload a custom OS image to their servers. Was NiceOS created for such a scenario? For example, if you wanted to distribute a VPS image to customers so they could self-install a web app. Would NiceOS be suitable for a task like this? (Example: NiceOS + PHP + web server + database - all pre-configured. )

Self-hosting remains complicated and impossible for non-technical users. No-one appears to have solved this problem (Docker, Cloudron, Sandstorm are not easy for non-technical users).

I can see that a minimalist VPS OS image configured around a single web app might make self-install a tad bit easier.

By the way, you should add the text 'Show HN:' to the title of your post so others find it more easily.

Good luck with you project!

I disagree with the premise that writing concisely is analogous to writing concise code. In fact, the opposite is more likely true.

Why do we still have thousands of poorly written program error messages of the meaningless 'invalid value' kind? Everyone immediately recognises this staccato style of writing common among developers.

Even modern programming languages have terrible compiler error messages. (Rust has made a commendable effort to display readable English compiler error messages.)

All this suggests to me that developers who write their English like their code are writing like a computer, not writing for other humans.

---

Here are two recommendations for writing clear English (excludes fiction) :

Plain English Campaign

This is a campaigning organisation from the UK which promotes clear, easy-to-understand written English suitable for any industry or profession.

Here is their clear, simple and short guide on How to write in plain English [PDF]:

http://www.plainenglish.co.uk/files/howto.pdf

---

GOV.UK: 10 tips for clear writing

I find the tips at the following link very helpful:

https://gds.blog.gov.uk/2019/08/27/podcast-on-writing/

You don't need to listen to the podcast at the top of the linked page (unless you want to). Scroll down the page and you'll find a short description of each of the following tips:

1. Establish ‘The Point’

2. Write it like you’d say it

3. Don’t try to sound clever

4. Show the thing

5. Know that you are not your writing

6. Share your work

7. Read (poetry in particular)

8. Never start with a blank page

9. Know when enough is enough

10. Stay human

There is an alternative animated version of Winnie the Pooh made in Russia in 1969 by the director Fyodor Khitruk. Pooh is more lively than the Disney version - and has a very different character design to Disney (or Shepherd's original illustrations). To be fair to Disney, their Pooh design is closer to the spirit of Sherpherd's illustrations (but can't match the charm of Sherpherd's illustrations).

"When Khitruk visited the Disney Studios, Wolfgang Reitherman, the author of Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day that won the 1968 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film, told him that he liked the Soviet version better than his own." [1]

Winnie the Pooh (1969) in Russian with English subtitles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCXegrxlKbI

[1] Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winnie-the-Pooh_(1969_film)

The Crystal programming language is very nice. It is a typed, compiled language with excellent performance. The syntax is inspired by Ruby but is not identical to Ruby (by design).

The all-important version 1.0 milestone was reached in March 2021. The next version (1.3) is scheduled for release in January 2022.

Some downsides to Crystal:

- No Windows version: Estimate for a Windows version is still not known - this will obviously turn away Windows developers. Crystal can be run via WSL (Windows Sub-system for Linux), but it's not ideal.

- Slow(ish) compilation.

- Small community: This isn't necessarily a problem, but as a new language you won't find the same learning resources and online discussions as more popular languages. However, the standard library is quite well fleshed out.

https://crystal-lang.org/

This article highlights the contortions developers go through when trying to "sell" their open source product. The GPL family of open source licences let you charge for the distribution of the source code.

The oft-repeated suggestion of selling support for your open source product is probably the least attractive option to solo developers or small teams.

An alternative is the 'source only' option. It's not open source but it gives your customers the ability to adapt the source code to their circumstances.

If you are creating a B2B product (i.e. selling to profit-making businesses), the 'source only' option let's you do the one thing GPL licences forbid: charge for the source code.

For some open source advocates the term 'source only' is a dirty word. It's up to you to decide whether it suits your product.

I posted an 'Ask HN' question on this topic the other day:

Ask HN: What are you thoughts on 'source only' software products?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29676321