News Nug
Docker Bake is Now Generally Available

Published: 2025-02-08 | Origin: /r/programming

The content discusses several updates and announcements from Docker, including the release of Docker Desktop v4.37 and the upcoming General Availability of Docker Bake with Docker Desktop 4.38. Docker Bake is a new build orchestration tool designed to simplify the management of complex builds, allowing developers to define build stages and deployment environments in a declarative format. This approach makes managing multiple images and tasks like testing and linting easier, reducing the need for cumbersome commands. It also utilizes BuildKit's features to enhance

Why gold loves arsenic (2021)

Published: 2025-02-08 | Origin: Hacker News

An international team of geochemists has discovered the reason gold often appears alongside arsenic, providing insight into the formation of gold deposits. During their presentation at the Goldschmidt Conference, researchers explained that while gold can exist as nuggets, a significant amount is found in combination with iron and arsenic minerals like pyrite and arsenopyrite, which can concentrate gold up to a million times more than normal. Using intense X-ray beams, the team studied how arsenic-enriched minerals allow gold to bind

Starlink in the Falkland Islands – A national emergency situation?

Published: 2025-02-08 | Origin: Hacker News

The OpenFalklands blog discussed recent developments in telecommunications, specifically regarding Starlink usage in the Falkland Islands. On February 7th, Starlink users began facing service terminations as their 60-day roaming period expired, highlighting ongoing frustrations with internet access. Despite a significant demand for Starlink services—evidenced by a petition signed by 70% of the island's residents to reduce a high VSAT license fee and to formally authorize Starlink—the service remains illegal due to Sure International

Value-Based Deep RL Scales Predictably

Published: 2025-02-08 | Origin: Hacker News

arXivLabs is a platform for collaborators to create and share new features on the arXiv website, emphasizing values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. Only partners who share these values are involved with arXiv. The platform encourages project ideas that can benefit the arXiv community. Additionally, users can receive operational status notifications via email or Slack.

VSCode's SSH agent is bananas

Published: 2025-02-08 | Origin: Hacker News

The document discusses the integration of a system into VSCode's remote editing capabilities over SSH, particularly in the context of using language models (LLMs) for code generation. It highlights the phenomenon of "hallucination," where LLMs produce incorrect code. The proposed solution is to create a closed-loop system where an "Agent" runs generated code, captures errors, and feeds them back to the LLM for iteration, ideally on a clean Linux instance to avoid system configuration issues. The author

Obscure islands I find interesting

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: Hacker News

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

Do-nothing scripting: the key to gradual automation (2019)

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: Hacker News

The content discusses challenges faced by operations (ops) teams in managing manual procedures, particularly in modifying infrastructure and provisioning user accounts. These procedures can become complex, lengthy, and frustrating, often described as "slogs." While automation is a potential solution, automating individual steps often leads to a proliferation of single-purpose scripts without reducing overall complexity. The key issue is the perception of futility in automation efforts. A proposed solution is "do-nothing scripting," which involves encoding each step of a slog into

Jujutsu VCS Introduction and Patterns

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

Jujutsu (jj) is a new version control system written in Rust that has garnered interest for its innovative features. Initially satisfied with Git, the author tried jj and found it enjoyable due to its consistent design and simplicity. Key advantages of jj include the ability to use it as a frontend for existing Git repositories, allowing seamless collaboration without disruption to others. Notable features include the ability to undo any operation with the `jj undo` command and to view an operation log with `jj operation log`.

Ruby Programmer Happiness Explained!

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/ruby

The content discusses the concept of "Ruby Programmer Happiness," which refers to the fulfillment software engineers experience when they can effectively deliver business value to customers while maintaining code with minimal effort over time. It emphasizes that true programmer happiness is derived from serving customers well, rather than simply enjoying a particular technology. The author suggests that many programmers prioritize personal enjoyment in their work over customer satisfaction, leading them to choose less effective programming languages over Ruby. Ruby is portrayed as more productive in delivering value compared to other languages like Java

GitHub - perpetual-ml/perpetual: A self-generalizing gradient boosting machine which doesn't need hyperparameter optimization

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

PerpetualBooster is a novel gradient boosting machine (GBM) algorithm that eliminates the need for hyperparameter optimization, offering a more efficient alternative to traditional GBM methods. Users can adjust a budget parameter to enhance the algorithm's predictive capabilities, starting with a small amount and increasing it as needed. Unlike conventional GBM algorithms that require extensive iterations for optimization, PerpetualBooster reaches comparable accuracy in a single run, achieving up to a 100x speed improvement. The algorithm has been

I Automated My Taxes using AutoHotKey

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

The author expresses their frustration with the tax filing process, particularly due to the burden of reporting numerous stock sale transactions from RSUs (Restricted Stock Units). Despite a strong dislike for the work involved, they are meticulous after experiencing an audit due to a previous mishap with filing. The author usually spends about three hours manually entering data from a 1099-B into TurboTax. This year, they decided to streamline the process using AutoHotkey, writing a script to automate the repetitive task of entering

default/override - An Elegant Schema for User Settings

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

The article by JJ Maxwell discusses the complexities of managing user settings in applications, particularly in the context of a more complex app like Double, which is focused on investing. As app features evolve, user settings can become numerous and diverse, encompassing options like themes, notifications, and various financial settings. Proper management of these settings is crucial for app performance, scalability, and maintenance. Maxwell warns against a common mistake known as the "wide table trap," where developers might initially think to simply add more columns to

How to do well in a technical interview

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

The author shares insights from seven years of interviewing software engineers, emphasizing that the interview process should be a mutual evaluation between candidates and companies. They stress the importance of being respectful of each other's time and criticize take-home exercises as unfair, given the challenges posed by generative coding technologies. Focusing on candidates, the author suggests that the CV is the first chance to make a strong impression. After passing the initial screening, candidates often face standardized technical interviews, especially in larger companies. The author argues against

Python in Visual Studio Code - February 2025 Release

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

Visual Studio Code will release updated Python, Pylance, and Jupyter extensions in February 2025. Highlights include a no-config debugging feature for the Python Debugger, allowing users to start debugging without managing launch configurations—simply prefix the run command with "debugpy." Users are advised to modify their User settings.json to avoid conflicts with the new feature. Additional enhancements include the ability to cancel ongoing test discovery in the Test Explorer UI and the option to launch a VS Code Native REPL from

When Tech Stacks Become Cult Followings: The Dangerous Allure of Buzzword-Driven Development

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

In this member-only story by Terrance Craddock, he reflects on a moment in his career when he witnessed a senior engineer proudly showcasing an overly complex microservices architecture for a task that could have been executed with a simple Python script. The author, with extensive experience, critiques the modern software development culture, likening it to a "tech-themed cargo cult" where the focus is on the performance of coding rather than the efficiency and functionality of the work itself. He expresses concern that buzzwords like

Revenge of the GPT Wrappers: Defensibility in a world of commoditized AI models

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: Hacker News

The AI landscape has undergone significant changes over the past year, with an influx of new entrants and a surge in AI-first products. There are growing concerns regarding the defensibility of AI model startups due to the rise of open-source alternatives and competition. While current AI applications are experiencing rapid growth due to their novelty, this may diminish as AI becomes mainstream, leading to questions about effective distribution in a saturated market. The ease of replicating products could also challenge companies in retaining users. Historically, some consumer tech

HippoRAG: Neurobiologically Inspired Long-Term Memory for Large Language Models

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: Hacker News

arXivLabs is a platform where collaborators can create and share new features for arXiv. Participants must align with arXiv's core values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. Those interested in contributing ideas for projects that enhance the arXiv community are encouraged to learn more about arXivLabs. Additionally, users can receive operational status notifications via email or Slack.

Search PPP Loans by Zip Code

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: Hacker News

PPP Loan Map is an interactive tool that allows users to explore public data on Paycheck Protection Program loans. Users can search by ZIP code, business type, or business longevity to visualize where the loan money has gone. The platform enables users to click, zoom in, and uncover various insights from the data.

Mad at Meta? Don't Let Them Collect and Monetize Your Personal Data

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: Hacker News

Meta is facing backlash after announcing policy changes that include loosening its hate speech regulations, coinciding with anticipated shifts under the incoming Trump administration. Following these changes, there was a noticeable increase in Google searches for deleting Facebook and Instagram. However, cutting ties with Meta is complicated due to its pervasive tracking practices that extend beyond its platforms. The company thrives on surveillance advertising, gathering extensive personal data to sell targeted ads, which is integral to its business model. As a result, avoiding Meta’s platforms doesn’t

Tim O'Reilly has good news and bad news about your programming career

Published: 2025-02-07 | Origin: /r/programming

The author argues against the notion that AI will render software developers obsolete. Instead, it marks a transformation in programming practices rather than an end to the profession. The evolution of programming has seen significant changes over time—from early physical circuit programming and binary code to assembly language and eventually higher-level programming languages like Fortran, C, and Java. These advancements made programming more accessible and user-friendly. Additionally, the rise of interpreted languages, like BASIC, democratized programming for a wider audience beyond just corporate engineers.