News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

haitchfive

Re:Ask HN: Why is the HN crowd so anti-AI? on Friday June 05, 2026 @11:52PM (#48421219)
What surprises me most is some of the virulent reactions that code generation appears to elicit, sometimes citing reasons such as craft, artistry, and originality. As if the entire disciplines of computer science and systems engineering never depended on assemblers, code generation, compilers, JIT. Or really, just writing bytes that can represent machine code, P-code, or bytecode.

A reaction that doesn't appear to make the very direct connection with the systems of exploitation, but chooses to target the tools, or the users of tools is difficult to justify as extremely sophisticated.

Re:The tyranny of single page apps on Monday May 18, 2026 @05:09PM (#48185667)
I don't understand what's the new contention. You are a leftie. Okay, so?

ReactJS only pays off at Facebook scale. Corporate front-end development is overengineered.

Not exactly a secret. Any other news?

Re:Ad Blockers helped kill the open web on Friday December 19, 2025 @09:42AM (#46326373)
And O2 helped to kill the nicotine cigar business. And the electric car helped to kill the fossil fuel industry.

Do people read what they post?

Ad blockers are a rational response to bad incentives and blaming them is like blaming progress for displacing harmful industries.

In many countries it is VERY illegal to watch someone die and do nothing.

The United States, thankfully, is not the same as the universe, as much as Americans find that hard to believe.

Re:How to get samples back from Mars on Sunday September 14, 2025 @04:50PM (#45243117)
I don't want to drop anything. Anti-scientific is anti-scientific.

Go read some books.

Re:How to get samples back from Mars on Sunday September 14, 2025 @12:49AM (#45237526)
Just logged in to downvote this anti-scientific garbage. Who allows this garbage to propagate via feeds?

Ignore the OP, pay attention to actual science, and why safety measures matter:

https://www.reuters.com/science/nasa-rover-finds-potential-s...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/09/10/life-on...

Re:Dear Paul Graham, there is no cookie banner law on Monday March 18, 2024 @10:06AM (#39744753)
I agree with almost everything you said, except for one thing: I don't believe the euphemism "hidden fees" helps to clarify the fact that these people are taking money away from people without their knowledge or explicit consent.

We have other more precise words to describe that action. I asked ChatGPT what those could be, here's its answer:

     Q: What are some english words meaning "taking money away from people without their knowledge or explicit consent"?
     ChatGPT: There are several words and phrases in English that convey the idea of taking money away from people without their knowledge or explicit consent:

    Embezzlement: This refers to the act of dishonestly withholding assets for the purpose of theft. It often involves someone in a position of trust, such as an employee, misappropriating funds entrusted to them.

    Misappropriation: Similar to embezzlement, misappropriation involves taking something (usually money) for one's own use without permission or legal right, often in a breach of trust.

    Theft: Theft is the generic term for taking someone else's property without permission, including money.

    Fraud: Fraud involves intentional deception for personal gain, which can include financial deception or stealing.

    Swindling: This term implies deceitful behavior to cheat or defraud someone, often involving trickery or manipulation.

    Skimming: Skimming refers to the illegal practice of taking cash "off the top" of the proceeds of a business or other source of income without recording it.

    Extortion: While not always directly related to taking money without explicit consent, extortion involves obtaining money, property, or services from an individual or entity through coercion or threat.

    Pilfering: Pilfering involves stealing small amounts or petty theft, often done stealthily or without detection.

    Conning: This refers to the act of deceiving or tricking someone, often for financial gain, through manipulation or persuasion.

    Clandestine withdrawals: This phrase specifically refers to taking money from someone's account without their knowledge or consent, typically in a secretive or unauthorized manner.