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The cost of interrupted work (2023)

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: Hacker News

The blog post discusses the oft-cited statistic that it takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to return to work after an interruption. The author attempted to verify this figure through research but found that it does not appear in the key paper usually referenced, "The Cost of Interrupted Work: More Speed and Stress." This study shows that tasks were completed faster with interruptions, but also resulted in increased stress, and does not specify the recovery time or mention the 23-minute figure. The

The Real Cost of Poor Documentation for Developers

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

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SurrealDB is sacrificing data durability to make benchmarks look better

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

The content discusses concerns about SurrealDB, a newly popular database that claims to be a versatile tool. However, its marketing may overstate its capabilities, especially regarding data safety and durability. The author, while testing various new databases against established ones, uncovered issues with SurrealDB related to data corruption after power outages. This is notably alarming, as users typically expect databases to ensure data integrity once an operation is confirmed complete. The author found users reporting similar corruption issues on SurrealDB's Discord without

GitHub - ronilan/rusticon: A mouse driven SVG favicon editor for your terminal (written in Rust)

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

Rusticon is a mouse-driven SVG favicon editor designed for use in terminal environments, developed in Rust. It allows users to create and edit SVG images that function as website favicons, which can be either 8x8 or 16x16 pixels and utilize up to 256 colors. Pre-built binaries for each release are available, and users can install it via Cargo by invoking the command `rusticon`. Alternatively, if Rust is installed, users can build Rusticon from the source by cloning the

How to make World of Goo–style bridge simulator 🛢️ using WL + Canvas API in a few lines. All inside a single notebook

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

The content discusses modeling a system of interconnected bonds using the Verlet method. The system must adhere to Newton's laws and kinematic equations, with the Verlet method chosen for its ability to incorporate bond constraints easily. The force in question is specified as a gravitational force from a central red star. The approach includes plotting solutions based on varying initial conditions, particularly relating to the orbital velocity of stars. To visualize the system, calculations must be repeated for each frame. In one dimension, the relationship between unconstrained and

Evolution is still a valid machine learning technique

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

The author discusses recent advancements in a system called Harper, which has now improved its capacity for handling complex grammatical cases significantly, by approximately 500% to 1,000%. This enhancement does not slow down the system or increase its memory usage. The focus is on "expression rules," which make up the majority of the grammatical rules Harper can detect due to their speed and simplicity. However, the author has faced challenges with creating rules that address all cases due to the complexities and contradictions of the English language

Line scan camera image processing for train photography

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: Hacker News

The author discusses using a line scan camera to capture images of trains and other subjects, highlighting the complexities involved in processing these images. This camera operates with a single or dual column of pixels that scans quickly as a stationary camera captures a moving train, similar to a photo finish camera. The static background results in a unique striped appearance in the images, making line scan cameras ideal for train enthusiasts who want accurate models with minimal perspective distortion. The author uses an Alkeria Necta N4K2-

Compare-And-Swap (CAS): Building a Concurrent HashMap from Scratch

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

When multiple threads access shared data structures concurrently, race conditions may occur, leading to inconsistent or incorrect results if changes are overwritten. Traditionally, this issue is addressed by using locks (e.g., synchronized methods or ReentrantLock), but locks can lead to contention and performance bottlenecks in high-concurrency environments. Instead, Compare-And-Swap (CAS) serves as an alternative solution. CAS operates at the hardware level and allows threads to attempt updates without acquiring heavy locks. When using locks, one thread

SXO :: Optimized Server-Side JSX. Build Simple. Build Fast

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

The content describes SXO, a build tool for server-side JSX in JavaScript, powered by esbuild and Rust. It offers a fast, minimal architecture and is designed for building websites without relying on client frameworks like React. SXO features a clean directory-based router, hot replacement, and supports various file structures for components and pages. It allows for dynamic routing with parameterized directory names, and developers can manage middleware and handle requests in both development and production modes. Additionally, the tool provides guidance on

Light pollution prolongs avian activity

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: Hacker News

A recent study highlights the impact of light pollution on songbirds, indicating it disrupts their biological clocks and alters their singing patterns. Researchers analyzed over 60 million recorded birdsongs from more than 580 diurnal bird species. The study, published in the journal *Science*, found that in brightly lit areas like cities, birds sing an average of 50 minutes longer each day, starting 18 minutes earlier in the morning and ending 32 minutes later in the evening compared to birds in darker regions.

PyApp: An easy way to package Python apps as executables

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

Redistributing Python programs as self-contained packages can be challenging for developers. While tools like PyInstaller and Nuitka exist, they have significant drawbacks: PyInstaller is cumbersome and requires trial-and-error, while Nuitka produces large binaries and takes time to compile. A newer solution, PyApp, uses a different approach by allowing developers to compile a Rust program that generates a self-contained binary for their Python project. This binary unpacks and executes the project without requiring Python on the end user's system. Unlike existing

No, Google Did Not Unilaterally Decide to Kill XSLT

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

A recent GitHub issue raised significant debate regarding whether to remove XSLT (Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformations) support from web browsers, leading to heated discussions and personal attacks before it was locked. XSLT is an XML language used for transforming document structures, commonly used for styling RSS and Atom feeds into HTML. While there have been ongoing discussions about the relevance of XSLT in web development, the initial proposal to remove it has ignited a counterproposal to update its support. The

Coinbase CEO explains why he fired engineers who didn’t try AI immediately

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

The content discusses the increasing use of AI coding assistants among programmers, particularly in the context of Coinbase. CEO Brian Armstrong revealed in a podcast that he mandated all engineers at Coinbase to adopt AI tools like GitHub Copilot and Cursor after acquiring licenses for them. He was surprised by some engineers' predictions of slow adoption and emphasized the importance of onboarding with these tools. Armstrong hosted a meeting for those who had not set up their AI accounts, where some engineers provided valid reasons for their delay.

A visual history of Visual C++ (2017)

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: Hacker News

The content discusses the evolution of Microsoft's Visual C++, an IDE for Windows software development, highlighting its various versions and features over the years. Starting with Visual C++ 1.0, released in 1993 for 16-bit development, the IDE marked Microsoft's push into more integrated development tools for Windows, moving away from command line compilers. Despite its advancements, such as an integrated debugger that emulated process behavior in a cooperative multitasking environment, early versions faced performance issues due to high RAM

Google says it dropped the energy cost of AI queries by 33x in one year

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: Hacker News

The article discusses the rising energy consumption in the U.S., increasing nearly 4% this year largely due to the growth of data centers driven by AI demands. This uptick in electricity use coincides with a 20% rise in coal-generated power, raising environmental concerns. The complexity of accurately measuring AI's energy impact is highlighted, as it requires detailed data from operational data centers, which is often not publicly available. Google’s recent analysis of AI's energy use offers an informative glimpse, indicating a

Japan city drafts ordinance to cap smartphone use at 2 hours per day

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: Hacker News

The city of Toyoake in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, has proposed an ordinance aimed at encouraging residents to limit their smartphone use to two hours per day outside of work and school, citing concerns about excessive technology exposure. This ordinance, if approved by the local assembly, would take effect on October 1 and is potentially the first of its kind in Japan. Although it won't impose penalties, the city hopes it will prompt residents to reconsider their smartphone usage. The draft also recommends that elementary school

Netbeans 27 Released

Published: 2025-08-23 | Origin: /r/programming

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Busy beaver hunters reach numbers that overwhelm ordinary math

Published: 2025-08-22 | Origin: Hacker News

The article discusses busy beaver numbers, specifically focusing on the first five numbers in this sequence: 1, 6, 21, 107, and 47,176,870. Busy beaver numbers are linked to a challenging question in theoretical computer science and have been studied for over 60 years, garnering interest from both professional and amateur mathematicians. The fifth number, BB(5), was only precisely identified the previous year by a mostly amateur team through the Busy Beaver Challenge.

Closing the Nix Gap: From Environments to Packaged Applications for Rust

Published: 2025-08-22 | Origin: /r/programming

The discussion revolves around choosing the right tool for packaging Rust applications within the Nix ecosystem. Developers are often confused about whether to use crate2nix, cargo2nix, or naersk. To simplify the development process, devenv provides a straightforward solution with the `languages.rust.enable` feature, which allows access to tools like cargo and rustc without needing to delve into Nix packaging. For deployment, devenv now offers `languages.rust.import`, which automatically packages Rust applications

Nitro: A tiny but flexible init system and process supervisor

Published: 2025-08-22 | Origin: Hacker News

Nitro is a lightweight process supervisor that can serve as the init system (pid 1) on Linux. It is configured using a directory of scripts, typically located in /etc/nitro, and can handle several service directories. These directories can contain multiple service files, and those ending with @ are ignored but can be referenced through symlinks. Parameters can be passed to these scripts via the symlinks. Nitro operates in three main phases: bringing the system up, running services,