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So you want to write an "app"

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

The author, who has a long history with computers but limited experience in app development, embarked on a project to explore the modern developer experience across different platforms (avoiding web technologies like Electron). They decided to create a simple program that generates random numbers within a user-specified range, mimicking the function of dice used in tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs). The goal was to focus on the tooling setup and user interface (UI) building aspects of each platform rather than the application logic itself

Returning To Rails in 2026

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

The author, a DevOps architect and musician from West Sussex, combines his interests in technology and music. He enjoys tackling side projects and has a penchant for building elaborate solutions to minor inconveniences. Faced with challenges related to managing setlists for his covers band, he created an app called https://setlist.rocks to streamline the process. This project reignited his passion for building web applications in a traditional way, particularly using Ruby on Rails, which he found enjoyable despite its age. The author

Media over QUIC: On a Boat

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

Saronic recently published a blog discussing their long-term use of MoQ (Media over Quick) for handling video streams, particularly in maritime settings. They emphasize that continuously sending a full HD stream from every camera isn't sustainable due to fluctuating bandwidth and potential feed loss. Traditional protocols like WebRTC and RTSP are push-based, which isn't ideal for boat operations. In contrast, MoQ is pull-based, allowing viewers to subscribe to specific streams or "tracks" based on their needs, enhancing efficiency

Building a Procedural Hex Map with Wave Function Collapse

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: Hacker News

A developer has created a procedural map generator for medieval islands using WebGPU and approximately 4,100 hex tiles organized in 19 grids, which can generate maps in around 20 seconds. Inspired by childhood experiences with random dungeon tables in AD&D, the generator employs the Wave Function Collapse (WFC) algorithm to ensure tile edges (grass, roads, cities) align correctly. While traditional WFC uses square tiles, this project uses hex tiles, which introduce more complexity due to their six edges.

JSLinux Now Supports x86_64

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: Hacker News

The text indicates that there are emulated systems available, but it does not provide specific details about the systems.

Is legal the same as legitimate: AI reimplementation and the erosion of copyleft

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

Dan Blanchard, the maintainer of the chardet Python library, released version 7.0, which is significantly faster and supports multiple cores. Notably, he utilized Anthropic's AI, Claude, to reimplement the library without directly examining the original source code. As a result, the new version shows less than 1.3% similarity to previous versions and has been re-licensed from LGPL to MIT. However, original author Mark Pilgrim raised concerns, arguing that the

Why glibc is faster on some Github Actions Runners

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

At CodSpeed, there have been instances where benchmarks regress due to unrelated code changes, such as documentation updates or changes in CI workflows. A recent case involved a user adding a new benchmark, which resulted in performance regressions for existing benchmarks. This raised questions about how a new benchmark could adversely affect the performance of unrelated ones. The article highlights the complexity of CPUs and how they optimize performance through various techniques like caching and threading, which can sometimes lead to unexpected performance outcomes. The investigation into this phenomenon aims

Understanding the Go Runtime: The Scheduler

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: Hacker News

The previous article discussed Go's memory allocator and its management of heap memory, but did not explain the scheduler responsible for determining which goroutine runs next. The scheduler handles the multiplexing of potentially millions of goroutines onto a limited number of OS threads, ensuring efficient CPU core usage without causing starvation of any goroutine. The scheduler is based on the GMP model, which consists of three components: G (goroutine), M (machine/OS thread), and P (processor). A G represents a

Building a strict RFC 8259 JSON parser: what most parsers silently accept and why it matters for deterministic systems

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

Part 2 of the article discusses the need for a strict JSON parser in Go, addressing the limitations of lenient JSON parsers that can create ambiguity and unpredictability in deterministic processing scenarios like canonical signatures and reproducible builds. The author has developed a strict parser that adheres to the constraints of RFC 8259 and further incorporates restrictions from RFC 7493 and RFC 8785. The article highlights specific areas where strict parsing is crucial, including surrogate pair handling, noncharacter detection, management of

Willingness to look stupid

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: Hacker News

The article discusses the importance of being willing to look foolish in creative work, highlighting that this mindset can serve as a protective barrier against self-doubt. The author reflects on their writing journey, noting a shift from a carefree approach to publishing to a more self-critical stance, which makes sharing ideas feel more daunting. This shift is attributed to increased self-awareness and the pressure of expectations, similar to how Nobel Prize winners often cease to produce innovative work due to the high standards imposed on them. The piece argues

Why I Hope I Get to Write a Lot of F# in 2026 · cekrem.github.io

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

The author reflects on their journey with Elm over the past year, where they wrote a book on functional programming (FP) concepts and developed substantial Elm software. Although they have a strong affinity for Elm as a learning tool for FP, they argue that F# is more suitable for enterprise projects. The author highlights the importance of deeper FP principles, such as immutability and robust type systems, which can also be applied to languages in the ML family, including F#. They emphasize that building long-term maintain

The death of social media is the renaissance of RSS (2025)

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: Hacker News

The article discusses the current state of social media in 2025, highlighting the overwhelming presence of Generative AI (GenAI) content, which has led to a decline in authentic human interaction. Social platforms are now saturated with repetitive and shallow material, making it difficult for genuine voices to be heard. This deterioration is attributed to issues like algorithmic manipulation, advertising overload, and the proliferation of bots, which have collectively accelerated the downfall of social media. Amid this crisis, RSS (Really Simple

I have been coding this engine for a while, take a look and see my process let me know what y’all think

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: /r/programming

Of course! Please provide the content you'd like me to summarize.

Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (March 2026)

Published: 2026-03-09 | Origin: Hacker News

The user is developing a platform called DuoBook, which functions like Netflix for language learning, allowing users to select or create bilingual stories. They have integrated feedback from various sources to improve the platform, addressing common user difficulties by adding features like URL grounding for story generation and easy-to-use buttons for story selection based on interests. Users can generate stories without signing up, highlight words during reading, check definitions with a tap, and evaluate their pronunciation. The platform uses a fast and high-quality story generation model,

Linux Internals: How /proc/self/mem writes to unwritable memory (2021)

Published: 2026-03-08 | Origin: Hacker News

The article discusses a unique aspect of the /proc/*/mem pseudofile in Linux, known for its "punch through" semantics. This allows writing to virtual memory locations marked as unwritable, a feature utilized by specific projects like the Julia JIT compiler and the rr debugger. The text raises questions about the extent to which privileged code adheres to virtual memory permissions and the limitations hardware imposes on kernel access. It provides a demonstration using /proc/self/mem to modify unwritable memory

Agent Safehouse – macOS-native sandboxing for local agents

Published: 2026-03-08 | Origin: Hacker News

Safehouse is a macOS-native sandboxing tool designed to enhance security for local agents by enforcing strict access controls at the kernel level. It mitigates risks associated with large language models (LLMs), which operate probabilistically and carry a 1% chance of failure, by guaranteeing a 0% chance of disaster. Key features include: - Denial of write access outside the designated project directory, preventing unauthorized file interactions. - Agents work within their own confined environments, inheriting user permissions but

Set Safe Defaults for Flags

Published: 2026-03-08 | Origin: /r/programming

The content emphasizes the importance of default settings for command-line flags in software utilities, particularly when dealing with production data. It illustrates a scenario where a user forgets to use the `--dry_run` flag, leading to unintended changes in production data. The text explains that a safe default setting for the `--dry_run` flag should be `True`, meaning operations are simulated by default unless explicitly stated otherwise. This approach minimizes the risk of serious mistakes. The content also advises that documentation should include commands

We should revisit literate programming in the agent era

Published: 2026-03-08 | Origin: Hacker News

Literate programming is a concept that integrates code with prose, allowing readers to understand a codebase as a narrative. While intriguing, the practical application of literate programming can be cumbersome, as it requires maintaining both code and accompanying prose, which limits its adoption. Historically, it has found use in data science, particularly with Jupyter notebooks where explanations and results coexist. Emacs Org Mode also supports this through its org-babel package, but its complexity makes it a niche option for larger software

Open Sores - an essay on how programmers spent decades building a culture of open collaboration, and how they're being punished for it

Published: 2026-03-08 | Origin: /r/programming

Sure! Please provide the content that you would like me to summarize.

Two mechanisms for dynamic type checks

Published: 2026-03-08 | Origin: /r/programming

The content discusses methods for performing dynamic instance type checks in virtual machines with single inheritance. It outlines two main strategies for checking if an object of type `t` is also of a more specific type `u`. The first method involves representing the types as a directed acyclic graph (DAG) with pre-order and post-order numbering derived from a depth-first search. When an object of type `t` is created, its pre-order number is stored as a tag, allowing for efficient type checks at