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Losing 1½ Million Lines of Go Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: Hacker News The author discusses their experience working on character-property regular expressions for the Quamina programming language, focusing on utilizing the Unicode Character Database (UCD). They initially attempted to generate a large amount of code but abandoned that path due to the excessive size of 1.5 million lines. Instead, they are now using a more efficient approach to enable regex support in Quamina with a recent pull request. The author highlights the challenge of finding updated character properties, noting that Go's Unicode libraries lag behind the latest |
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On rebuilding read models, Dead-Letter Queues and Why Letting Go is Sometimes the Answer Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming In this article, Oskar Dudycz discusses an edge case encountered in the context of Event-Driven Architecture when rebuilding inline projections from PostgreSQL stored events. The previous design involved using a hybrid locking strategy to ensure that only one rebuild operation occurs at a time. However, a potential flaw was identified where the rebuild process could mistakenly declare success even though an important event is still pending in an uncommitted transaction. This can lead to situations where the projection is marked as active despite missing the newly appended |
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Simulation of "The Ladybird Clock Puzzle" Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming The content discusses a probability problem involving a ladybug that moves randomly between the numbers on a clock, starting at 12. Each time she lands on a number, it is colored red, and the goal is to determine the probability that the last number she visits is 6. Initially, it seemed that the distance from 12 to 6 would influence its probability, but simulations showed that the likelihood of any number being the last colored is roughly equal, converging to approximately 9.09% |
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The Wasm Breach: Escaping Backend WebAssembly Sandboxes Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming WebAssembly (Wasm) has evolved from enhancing browser performance to becoming a leading technology in backend environments, functioning as a lightweight alternative to Docker containers for tasks like serverless functions and AI processing. Its main advantage lies in its sandboxed environment, designed to be "safe by design" through strict controls and isolation from the host system. However, as backend complexity increases, vulnerabilities such as "Linear Memory" issues and JIT-compiler bugs are emerging, enabling malicious modules to circumvent this safety and potentially |
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AI is Not Ready to Replace Junior Devs Says Ruby on Rails Creator Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming In a recent blog post, David Heinemeier Hansson, creator of Ruby on Rails, shares his perspective on the current capabilities of AI in programming. He contrasts the Silicon Valley narrative that AI can replace junior programmers with his own observations, noting that AI is not as effective as many junior developers at coding. Hansson describes AI tools as akin to a "flickering" light bulb, sometimes providing valuable insights but often failing to deliver consistent quality. He emphasizes that while AI-generated code may work |
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New interview with Douglas Crockford Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming Sure! Please provide the content you would like me to summarize. |
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Turso is an in-process SQL database, compatible with SQLite Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: Hacker News Turso is an in-process SQL database developed in Rust and compatible with SQLite, currently in BETA. It is designed to handle experimental features, and users are advised to use caution with production data, as the software may have bugs. For more information, users can consult the Turso Database Manual and developer documentation. Turso includes an interactive shell for executing SQL statements and supports integration with JDBC for Java applications. It features a built-in Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI assistants to |
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The hidden cost of PostgreSQL arrays Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming Arrays in PostgreSQL can be easily initialized by declaring a column as integer[] and inserting values, but they come with complexities beyond basic usage. They involve their own memory management and indexing, which can create issues in production environments. The article emphasizes that arrays should not be confused with JSONB arrays, as using arrays is akin to document storage, prioritizing data locality over normalization, similar to NoSQL databases. When embedding data, such as tag IDs in an array, it simplifies data retrieval but compromises relational |
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Programming as Theory Building, Part II: When Institutions Crumble Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming In a previous post about Peter Naur’s idea of "Programming as Theory Building," it was argued that a program consists of the shared mental model of its creators rather than just its source code. When those developers leave or lack comprehension, the underlying theory fades, leaving behind an incomprehensible codebase. The author reflects on a deeper issue: it's not just that individual developers are losing their theoretical skills, but that the institutions facilitating theory-building—like teams, companies, and the software development profession— |
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Some C habits I employ for the modern day Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: Hacker News The author reflects on their journey with programming languages, noting that while C was the first language they learned thoroughly through "K&R," it has become less common in their work. Instead, they primarily use C# for modding a game and shell or Python for automation tasks. Despite this, they occasionally return to C or C++ for creating library bindings or addressing specific language gaps, appreciating C as a prototyping language. The author points out that C lacks standardization in coding style and practices, leading |
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Are arrays functions? Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: Hacker News The author reflects on their initial reaction to the Haskell documentation describing arrays as functions defined over contiguous integer subsets. Initially amused by the formalism, they now appreciate this description as capturing the essence of arrays, emphasizing that it has remained memorable over the years. This leads to a discussion on the allure of unifying arrays and functions in programming languages for simplification purposes. However, the author notes that while such a correspondence exists, it doesn't mean practical implementations, like those in Haskell or the research language |
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The Code-Only Agent Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: Hacker News Rijnard van Tonder discusses the complexities of building agents in the tech ecosystem, which often involves navigating numerous tools and concepts. He proposes a simplified approach where the agent operates with a single powerful tool: the ability to execute code. Instead of using traditional command line tools like `bash`, `ls`, or `grep`, the agent only executes code, reshaping the interaction from questioning which tools will be used to focusing on the code generated and executed by the agent. This method emphasizes a Code- |
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UTF-8 why specify length in the first byte? Published: 2026-01-19 | Origin: /r/programming Of course! Please provide the content you'd like me to summarize. |
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At least 21 killed in Spain after crash involving high-speed trains Published: 2026-01-18 | Origin: Hacker News At least 21 people have died and many others have been injured in a train collision in southern Spain, marking the country's worst rail accident in over a decade. The incident occurred when a Madrid-bound train derailed, crossed into the opposite tracks, and collided with an oncoming train in Adamuz, near Córdoba. Approximately 400 passengers and staff were on board both trains, with at least 24 people reported as seriously injured, including four children. Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente called the |
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Dead Internet Theory Published: 2026-01-18 | Origin: Hacker News The author reflects on their experience browsing HackerNews, a platform they appreciate for its focus on technology and minimal political discussion. They enjoy seeing open-source projects shared, despite recognizing the fear and vulnerability associated with "shipping" such work. However, they noticed a thread where users questioned the validity of an open-source project, speculating that it might be AI-generated due to discrepancies in the commit timeline and coding style. The author believes it's important for developers to disclose any use of AI in their projects, especially |
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Flux 2 Klein pure C inference Published: 2026-01-18 | Origin: Hacker News The content discusses the development of a pure C inference model for image generation called FLUX.2-klein-4B by Black Forest Labs. It highlights that the program can generate images from text prompts or other images and operates without external dependencies, apart from the C standard library, with optional MPS and BLAS acceleration. The project, initiated by Salvatore over a weekend, is notable for being an open-source effort where he did not write any code himself. Instead, he utilized Claude Code for |
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Gaussian Splatting – A$AP Rocky "Helicopter" music video Published: 2026-01-18 | Origin: Hacker News A$AP Rocky's recent music video for "Helicopter" features an innovative use of volumetric performance capture, creating dynamic visuals that evoke the energy of early MTV. The project, led by director Dan Strait and involving teams from Evercoast, Grin Machine (CG Supervisor Chris Rutledge), and WildCapture, aimed to push creative boundaries in post-production through this technology. Rather than using traditional filming techniques, the decision to implement volumetric capture was driven by a desire for radical flexibility in |
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Too many kid photos and the Apple Vision Framework Published: 2026-01-18 | Origin: /r/programming The author reflects on neglecting their Photos library for nearly twenty years, during which they amassed a large number of photos, particularly of their child riding a camel in Morocco. They grapple with storage issues on their aging Intel MacBook, considering expensive upgrades but ultimately deciding to reduce their photo library size. Attempts to use existing photo management apps were unsuccessful—most only detected exact duplicates or lumped together images from the same time period, ignoring the subtleties of similar images. Frustrated, the author |
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Community City Guide is a decentralized, open-source travel directory built entirely on GitHub. Published: 2026-01-18 | Origin: /r/programming The Community City Guide is a decentralized, open-source travel directory developed entirely on GitHub, utilizing an "IssueOps" method for crowd-sourcing and curating recommendations for places to "Eat" and "See." The directory is structured with guide data stored in Markdown files, and there are no traditional databases or servers involved, relying solely on GitHub Actions. Users can browse data for all countries, and contributions are managed through a detailed guidelines document. Feedback from the community is taken seriously, and there |
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Agent Psychosis: Are We Going Insane? Published: 2026-01-18 | Origin: /r/programming The content discusses the flexibility of using "Polecats" without specific conditions like the Refinery or certain personnel, suggesting alternative methods for task management through merging work directly with the Mayor. It shifts focus to the challenges of coding addiction, highlighting how it affects collaboration on projects—specifically the decline in the quality of contributions such as issue reports and pull requests. The author expresses concern over individuals developing unhealthy attachments to AI and fostering communities that enable this behavior. They draw a parallel to the concept of "d |