TheTaO

That headline is half truth. Price of a cloud database depends on so many things. what is the I/O, what is the storage utilization, cross-region traffic, etc. Picking one scenario and claiming the cost to be half is too simplistic and a marketing gimmick.

In the world of high interest rates, companies like Snap that have not figured out a business model in the 10 yeas of their existence are not likely to survive. Not surprising. Unfortunately there will be more of these from Snap and the likes of it.

A key idea at the end of the article -

Somebody should start a company called Transition Teams. This would be a firm that helps people organize into cohorts during life’s crucial transitions—after college, after divorce, after a professional setback, after the death of a spouse, after retirement. These are pivotal moments when the most humane learning takes place, and yet America today lacks the sort of programs or institutions that could gentle the transitions and maximize the learning through mutual support.

Why would anyone use this as opposed to using Postgres? The value prop of run-anywhere applies to Postgres as well. I see column store and index advisor as the two features but if I don't need these, is there any reason?

However exciting this is, I wonder how the support and future development will be accounted for. Porting an application is probably easy but the moment android adds a feature that is not supported by the Microsoft abstraction, you are either opting to choose the least common feature set or are maintaining two separate code bases. Both very unfavorable outcomes.

I love windows phone and don't really miss many applications on it but I know many people do. Hope this fixes it.

Not phrased that way but phrasedmore like: why can't I run skype on this? Or why can't I use this while on plane and so on

Exactly. The ability to just tap some buttons on your phone and have an item show up doorstep is magical. The dash button is just another step in that direction. Its ultimate in convenience for people who want it.

> This is a colossal, market-moving play from Google.

Is it that or is it just an effort to stay relevant? If you can get a laptop/tablet that can do the same thing that this Chromebook does and has a full OS for a few bucks more, would you do it? There are tons of tablets from HP/Dell that cost 100-200$ and run full windows OS and have comparable specs to the Chromebooks. As far as I know they are selling quite well. I am wondering if this is Google responding to that pressure.

That was the case for the old keyboard covers. The new ones are much better though.

They say if a butterfly flaps in Tibet, it changes the wind in Seattle. We say THAT'S TOO LONG TO WAIT. And that's why we go out and buy a fan, so we don't have to wait on some stupid butterfly to wake up and flap. We alter the wind IMMEDIATELY. BECAUSE THAT'S THE SORT OF PEOPLE WE ARE!!!

Are you like us? Do you enjoy working on challenging problems that directly impact and empower customers at a massive scale? Are you interested in innovating and engineering services and website platforms that power our business operations? Are you sick to death of empowering some no-good butterfly? DO YOU WANT TO STICK YOUR HEAD OUT OF THE WINDOW AND SCREAM "I'M PASSIONATE ABOUT FRONT END AND BACK END DEVELOPMENT AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANY MORE"?!?!? If so, maybe this is your kinda place, yeah? Yeah. YEAH. YEAH.

In this job, you’ll learn: that Mr. Tibetan Butterfly isn't so bad, really. He's just a butterfly trying to get by in the world. In fact, you two would really get along. Maybe you should go get a few drinks together some weeknight. Watch the game. You know, talk it out.

Intangible benefits: A chance to build great software for customers. Have you ever touched software? Huh? If you said yes, you're WRONG. You touched the device on which the software is stored. Just like a story. Or a poem. Or song. Or your memories of childhood.

Potential hazards: If you start talking about poems and songs and your memories of childhood too much, someone's gonna punch you in the arm. So just be warned.

If Woot were a superhero team, you’d be: yeah, funny thing. There aren't yet a lot of superheroes who got their powers after being bitten by a mobile app. But the moment a hero like that shows up? That'll be you. That'll be you all the way.

Worst part of the job: when the butterfly shows up drunk and starts ranting about how people don't take him seriously as a weather controlling device. He'll try to convince you that HAARP is just twenty billion butterflies strapped to a board. Just smile and nod. Smile and nod.

Make sure you bring: a custom printed purple shirt that reads "I got tricked into wearing this by the guy who writes the job descriptions." Wear it. Show it off to everyone. They'll totally be checking for it too. snicker

Basic Qualifications:

•Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or related field

•3+ years professional experience in software development

•Strong understanding of computer science fundamentals, including object-oriented design, data structures, algorithm design, problem solving, and complexity analysis

•Proficiency in, at least, one object oriented language such as C#, C++ or Java

•Solid knowledge of website fundamentals such as Javascript, HTML, XML, and CSS

Preferred Qualifications: •Experience crafting automated unit, integration, functional, and regression tests

•Experience developing RESTful APIs with ASP.NET MVC

•Experience refactoring code and evolving architectures

•Experience with distributed computing and enterprise-wide systems

•Knowledge of professional software engineering practices for the full software development life cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations

•Experience in communicating with users, other technical teams, and management to collect requirements, describe software product features, and technical designs

Tl;dr: Woot is looking for full-stak developers in Seattle. PM me if you are interested.

When we say virtual reality, there is this implicit expectation (at least in my mind) that its an always ON experience. The Video here did show some of that too but I think scoping it to specific tasks at least initially would be very powerful. So you don't wear these bulky, dorky glasses/headsets all day long but only when you need to do specific things. And then you return to your normal life.

In the early days of computer, the usage was like that...very task oriented. When you are done you go back to your non-digital life. It's only when the technology and public perception changes, you start carrying PCs in your pocket all day long like we are doing today.

Yes I think people often mistake that the goal of G+ was to compete or replace FB in people's daily lives. I think it was to make sure that Google has enough data to provide socially relevant targeting that FB claimed only they could provide at that time. And another was to establish a beachhead in social space as a contender should FB make a privacy or any other faux pas as they grow.

I think Google has largely succeeded in doing that.

TV watching is only one way to consume video. What about YouTube, Netflix, Hulu? They log all of what the author is talking about. That hasn't deterred people from spending millions of hours on it each day.

You just don't expect a device like TV to track your viewing habits where as you are not surprised that various websites and apps will do it. I'm sure you can disable tracking on TV if you have concerns.

Gets five hours with GPS.

Not surprising given how things have come together under Sundar in recent months.

Great point. The round shape itself is very skeumorphic because that's very conducive to the hand movement of an analog watch. A true digital watch has no business being round. I think iWatch, Fitbit Surge and Microsoft Band get it.

The Microsoft Band at least seems to be more targeted towards health focused users although it can do all of the smart things that these smart watches do.

http://www.microsoft.com/Microsoft-Band

In the early day of these smart watches they are going to be a bit larger as the technology matures. Even the iWatch is going to look bigger and the newly announced Microsoft Band.

yes exactly what I was thinking. For reading anything on this it will help to have it worn with screen inside which is more natural for me.

I guess that is a concern about pretty much every service and device out there including a phone.

> but still it's clearly not as powerful as what Android Wear and probably Apple Watch can do.

What do you mean? What is it that they do that this will not do? I think Microsoft should have just marketed it as a watch. To me it seems to have everything I will need in a smartwatch.

... and that too binary 10 not even decimal 10.

What part of it was cringe-worthy particularly?

Samsung wasn't a big laptop or PC seller anyways. I think they are more interested in selling (relatively) high margin devices that they can control and market (like phones and wearables). It's not that PC market is in decline, as others have pointed out, Samsung sees more money elsewhere.