Hacker News Reader

wubbfindelon Don't post generated/AI-edited comments. HN is for conversation between humans

I've been a regular users of the em dash for years before it became associated with AI output — and I refuse to let that change me!

wubbfindelon Woodpeckers don't have built-in shock absorbers to protect their brain

Doesn't a woodpecker's tongue also play a roll in protecting it? Or is the just a myth?

wubbfindelon Moderna mRNA sequence released to GitHub [pdf]

Interesting reasoning. But isn't it true to say that the "complex existing machinery and parts" which interprets the DNA was itself put together from instructions found in other DNA? I suppose that metaphors are rarely entirely comparable.

wubbfindelon Google Home Is 6 Times More Likely to Answer Your Question Than Amazon Alexa

Why the downvotes on this? I appreciate the thoughts. I think it's a real shame that Google's assistant isn't available in a desktop client, that can use either text or voice input.

wubbfindelon Japan's zero-gravity space drone sends first pictures from ISS

Yup, I misread. I was thinking you meant what would be the benefit of not using fans at all.

wubbfindelon Fake Obama created using AI tool to make phoney speeches [video]

Actually, wrong book.

It was Darknet by Mathew Mather.

Oops

wubbfindelon Japan's zero-gravity space drone sends first pictures from ISS

Being able to operate with no atmosphere (e.g. outside of the ISS) would be an advantage I suppose.

wubbfindelon Fake Obama created using AI tool to make phoney speeches [video]

Why the downvote? Am I not allow to link to a book that shows fact has caught up with fiction?

wubbfindelon Fake Obama created using AI tool to make phoney speeches [video]

That's pretty impressive! nice demo too.

wubbfindelon Fake Obama created using AI tool to make phoney speeches [video]

I read a book last month that featured a faked president video created by an AI.

Kill Process by William Hertling Link: http://amzn.eu/c1ZJNcv

Seems it was closer to non-fiction than I expected.

wubbfindelon Glitch by Fog Creek

https://medium.com/glitch/welcome-to-glitch-fe161d0fc39b#.ef...

"Why did we change the name (again)? Well, we heard from some members of our community that the old name evokes a hurtful slur in some Russian communities, and given our deep commitment to building an inclusive service, that didn’t sit right with us, even though people understand we didn’t mean to be hurtful."

wubbfindelon Password Rules Are Bullshit

Don't use your password. Generate random passwords for each security question and record them in your password manager.

So-called "security questions" are the dumbest security measure.

wubbfindelon How ‘Weird Al’ eclipsed most stars he parodied

Yeah this is great.

The fact he asks shows that he respects other artists and respects their feelings. Not everyone is happy about being parodied, especially if their work holds very personal sentimental meaning for them.

wubbfindelon A tiny sea creature is the earliest known step in humans’ evolutionary history

So this this headline wrong?

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/jan/30/huge-mouth-a...

Is it actually a huge anus with no mouth?

wubbfindelon Year of Upheaval for Restaurants That Ended Tipping

In a lot of places they don't directly receive the tips either, they all go in to one pot to be shared.

Have you ever tried asking for the charge to be removed if you're not happy with the service?

wubbfindelon Year of Upheaval for Restaurants That Ended Tipping

No, not at all. But when an establishment includes a service charge it's not expected either.

P.S. Nice username. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Too_Much_Coffee_Man

wubbfindelon Year of Upheaval for Restaurants That Ended Tipping

I've been to many restaurants here in the UK (and in Europe) where the "service charge" is automatically applied to the bill. You're not expected to tip at these places.

Many people don't realise; If you receive bad service, complain and the charge can be either reduced or waived altogether.

[edit for clarity]

wubbfindelon Training AI to Do Everything in the Digital Universe

If an AI is duplicated, so that a new instance is created (pro-creation), then surely the new instance already knows what the parent instance learnt?

wubbfindelon Ask HN: What simple tools or products are you most proud of making?

"im ded :( plz walk doggie"

Man, that's not how I would want to find out that a friend or family member has passed away.

:-|

wubbfindelon Whatsapp: Video Calling

Oh yeah, I guess so. I've used software phones that use SIP before. Forgot about that.

I guess I was thinking more about IM protocols rather than VOIP.

wubbfindelon Whatsapp: Video Calling

Apparently WhatsApp uses some form of XMPP.

XMPP is the closest we've gotten (to my knowledge) to a standard protocol that was adopted (at least partially). But it's never really kicked off.

wubbfindelon .NET on Linux – bye, Windows 10

I didn't realise that, thanks.

wubbfindelon .NET on Linux – bye, Windows 10

If your using Windows 10 Professional or above, you can change the Local Group Policy to prompt you for both downloading and installing updates.

For lower versions (like "Home"), there is a way to tell it that your connection is "Metered" and then updated won't be downloaded automatically; but that's not an official method to prevent updates.

wubbfindelon Project Ara Lives: Google's Modular Phone

2 Cameras for recording in 3D? ;-)

wubbfindelon [dead]

I've been using Chocolatey for a good while now, and it's great! Just updated my install of mysql workbench using "choco update mysql.workbench" - easy!

I think 'apt-get' for windows is a better description than an alternative to Windows Store.

Backed!

wubbfindelon What Lies Beneath Stonehenge?

I can attest, through the experience of living here (and occasionally cycling here) that Wales is in fact "hillier" than England at least! But I think Scotland beats Wales on hills.

So, personal experience; just slightly more scientific. But only slightly.

wubbfindelon What Lies Beneath Stonehenge?

Just a little correction, if I may offer it. The article asks:

> How did the bluestones, which weigh between four and eight tons apiece, arrive at the site, nearly 5,000 years ago, from 170 miles away in North Wales?

It's my understanding that the majority of the bluestones have been confirmed to come from the Pembrokeshire area in South West Wales, not North Wales.

Some searching returned these results:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-16245746

http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/press/pdf-files/uploaded-to-ebu...

Hope that's of some interest to folks...

wubbfindelon Fully Functional 1KB Hard Drive in Vanilla Minecraft

Reminds me of when someone built a scientific calculator in minecraft:

http://kotaku.com/5895191/someone-built-a-working-scientific...

wubbfindelon Wikipedia reveals Google 'forgotten' search links

Good point. I just like the conspiracy angle...

wubbfindelon Wikipedia reveals Google 'forgotten' search links

>>> The judges involved decided that citizens had the right to have links to "irrelevant" and outdated data erased from search engine results.

I wonder, are Google doing this to make the 'forgotten' content "relevant" again, because of recent news articles covering the move. Then they can start linking to it again?