AI Scams, Data Wars, and Google Confessions!

Learning to Play Tic-Tac-Toe with Jax

Key Points

• Uses JAX and PGX to model and train Tic-Tac-Toe via reinforcement learning.
• Explains PGX State fields, reward handling, and action indexing with the step function.
• Provides code resources (GitHub, Colab) and indicates fast training to perfect play on a laptop.

Show HN: Krowdovi – Video-based indoor navigation on a DePIN creator economy

Key Points

• Burn-and-mint token model: 75% burn, 25% weekly remint to creators (500K cap).
• Motion-controlled playback and multi-language, accessible overlays for navigation.
• Full-stack architecture using Next.js/Express/Prisma/PostgreSQL/Redis and Solana (Anchor, SPL Token) with Cloudflare Stream.

Corundum – open-source FPGA-based NIC and platform for in-network compute

Key Points

• Open-source FPGA-based NIC with 10G/25G/100G Ethernet, PCIe Gen 3, and Linux driver integration.
• Efficient BRAM/URAM-based queue architecture with multi-port schedulers enabling high precision TDMA via IEEE 1588 PTP.
• Broad support for Xilinx and Intel boards; 10/25G via verilog-ethernet, 100G via Xilinx CMAC with RS-FEC.

Evolution: Training neural networks with genetic selection achieves 81% on MNIST

Key Points

• Evolutionary, trust-based training replaces gradients and backpropagation.
• MNIST benchmark: 81.47% accuracy with a 784→64→10 MLP after ~600 generations.
• Alphabet task: 100% accuracy with a 10,000→128→26 model in ~1,800 generations.

Show HN: Claude Reflect – Auto-turn Claude corrections into project config

Key Points

• Captures and syncs session learnings from Claude Code into CLAUDE.md and AGENTS.md
• Open-source (MIT) GitHub repository with plugin/script-based structure
• Early adoption indicators: 32 stars, 0 forks at the time shown

Gershwin-desktop: OS X-like Desktop Environment based on GNUStep

Key Points

• GNUstep-based, early Mac OS X-like desktop with native X11 window manager and Global Menu server.
• Fast builds via Clang/LLVM with total footprint under 50MB and user-level app installs without root.
• Install via gershwin-build, GhostBSD package, or live ISOs for Debian, Arch, and GhostBSD preview.

GDI Effects from the PC cracking scene

Key Points

• Curated list of GDI/OpenGL/Direct3D scene effects with detailed metadata.
• Multiple entries note compatibility up to Windows 11.
• VirusTotal links provided for verification of each executable.

Pixoo Sign Client for Ruby

Key Points

• Ruby client demonstrates animations, text, and PNG rendering on the Pixoo 64 sign.
• Remote data can be displayed via NET_TEXT_MESSAGE from an HTTP endpoint returning DispData.
• Examples include device discovery, image buffer creation, and display item configuration.

From silicon to Darude – Sandstorm: breaking famous synthesizer DSPs [video]

Key Points

• Low-level emulation of the JP-8000’s DSPs and SuperSaw achieved via custom silicon reverse engineering.
• Undocumented instruction sets tackled using Arduino probing, opcode statistics, and fuzzing.
• Real-time emulator performance delivered through JIT compilation.

The Gentle Seduction

Key Points

• Introduces the technological singularity and its implications for daily life and longevity.
• Describes a future wearable interface (“headband”) for direct human-computer interaction.
• Illustrates domestic computing via baby monitoring with a camera, alongside concerns about memory risks.

Interview of Fabien Pinckaers, CEO at Odoo[video]

Key Points

• Odoo is reported to generate ~$650M ARR with 5,000+ employees and 50,000+ customer companies.
• Built from the countryside of Belgium, Odoo demonstrates large-scale growth outside major tech hubs.
• Fabien Pinckaers states he does not intend to sell Odoo or take it public (IPO).

The PGP Problem (2019)

Key Points

• PGP’s packet format and parsing are complex and error-prone, contributing to security issues.
• Common PGP defaults (RSA, CAST5 in CFB, MDC, S2K) diverge from modern cryptographic best practices.
• The article claims PGP’s breadth of features results in suboptimal performance for multiple security tasks.

Can I start using Wayland in 2026?

Key Points

• Explicit sync in sway 1.11 and wlroots 0.19.0 resolves NVIDIA rendering glitches under Wayland.
• wlroots lacks TILE property support, causing 8K Dell UP3218K to appear as two monitors in sway.
• Distros and vendors are shifting toward Wayland; X11 support is being reduced (e.g., RHEL).

The First Video Game Came Long Before Pong

Key Points

• Tennis for Two (1958) predates early commercial hits and is considered the first entertainment-focused computer game.
• It used an analog computer and oscilloscope display with custom controllers to simulate tennis.
• Higinbotham’s career spanned Los Alamos wartime electronics, founding the Federation of American Scientists, and work at Brookhaven.

Anatomy of BoltzGen

Key Points

• BoltzGen co-folds binders and targets at atomic resolution to design novel molecules.
• It unifies proteins, DNA, RNA, and small molecules in one generative framework.
• A 14 atoms representation encodes residues to integrate sequence labels with 3D geometry.

Maybe Comments _Should_ Explain 'What'

Key Points

• Comments can clarify both “what” and “why” when code is non-obvious.
• Rationale placed only in commits or tests increases context switching.
• Over-refactoring into many small methods can hinder readability and debugging.

Third Parties and Single Points of Failure

Key Points

• Third-party SPOFs can stall page loads when critical external scripts fail.
• Self-hosting critical content reduces exposure to CDN/cloud outages.
• Historical examples (Facebook like button, RawGit, Polyfill.io) show persistent and compromise risks.

FreeBSD Home NAS, part 3: WireGuard VPN, routing, and Linux peers

Key Points

• WireGuard selected over OpenVPN for a home VPN due to kernel-space design and simplicity.
• Two-site topology: 192.168.0.0/24 (office) and 192.168.100.0/24 (home) with TP-Link Archer AX12 routers and VPN subnet 10.8.0.1/24.
• Initial FreeBSD setup covers wireguard-tools installation, module loading, enabling in rc.conf, with routing and PF rules planned next.

JavaScript engines zoo – Compare every JavaScript engine

Key Points

• JavaScriptCore, V8, and Chakra are profiled with implementation language, JIT status, ECMAScript support, compatibility percentages, company, and license.
• V8 powers Chrome and Node.js; JavaScriptCore powers Safari/WebKit; Chakra powered Microsoft Edge Legacy (2015–2021).
• Licensing differs by engine: JavaScriptCore (LGPL-2.0), V8 (BSD-3), Chakra (MIT), influencing integration considerations.

The Venezuelan Oil Narative Is Pure Theatre

Key Points

• Article claims Pentagon, not presidential initiative, drove approval and planning.
• Venezuelan oil portrayed as strategically limited compared with Iraq 2003.
• Cited motivators: Chinese, Iranian, and Russian activities and critical mineral risks.

Using AI generated images to get refunds

Key Points

• AI-generated images are increasingly used to support fraudulent refund claims.
• A Douyin case led to police detention after a seller exposed fabricated crab damage videos.
• Forter reports a >15% rise in AI-doctored refund claims since mid-2024, including organized $1M scams.

Was It Really a Billion Dollar Mistake?

Key Points

• Null references are easy to detect and less common than many other memory errors in memory-unsafe languages.
• Modern platforms reserve initial virtual memory pages so null dereferences fault, simplifying runtime detection.
• Removing null does not address prevalent issues like use-after-free and incorrect pointer arithmetic.

Show HN: I used AI to recreate a $4000 piece of audio hardware as a plugin

Key Points

• Software plugin emulates a $4,000 audio hardware unit using public documentation.
• Built with AI assistance (Claude Code) and implemented in Cmajor.
• Demo video available for evaluation and feedback.

Nightshade: Make images unsuitable for model training

Key Points

• Nightshade creates robust “poison” images that degrade unauthorized model training outcomes.
• It minimizes visible changes using multi-objective optimization while altering model-perceived features.
• Glaze (defense) and Nightshade (offense) are complementary tools; an integrated release is planned.

India has surpassed Japan to become the fourth-largest economy

Key Points

• India’s review reports it has overtaken Japan to 4th in global GDP and projects surpassing Germany within three years.
• Real GDP growth reached 8.2% in Q2 FY 2025–26; exports rose to $38.13B in November, led by key industrial sectors.
• Per-capita income remains low versus advanced economies; final confirmation awaits 2026 data; RBI forecasts 7.3% growth.

Jeffgeerling.com has been Migrated to Hugo

Key Points

• Site migrated from Drupal to Hugo to reduce maintenance and streamline publishing.
• Hugo chosen over Jekyll for self-hosted use due to simplicity, speed, and Markdown support.
• Large migration expected to have some broken links/images, with redirects added where possible.

Attention Is Bayesian Inference

Key Points

• Early RAG approach translated queries to SQL and used retrieved data to drive accurate LLM responses.
• AskCricinfo usage increased by three orders of magnitude compared to StatsGuru.
• Authors claim transformer attention implements Bayesian inference through learned geometric structures.

Open Veins of Latin America Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent [pdf]

Key Points

• 25th anniversary English edition with translator Cedric Belfrage and a foreword by Isabel Allende.
• Original 1971 Spanish edition (Siglo XXI Editores) and subsequent English editions (Monthly Review Press, 1973/1997).
• Contents outline three parts on resource extraction, development, and plunder, plus references and an index.

YouTube Playlist Downloader

Key Points

• Bash script wraps yt-dlp to batch download and organize YouTube playlists.
• Organizes by channel, uses clean naming, and skips already-downloaded files.
• Supports batch input via playlists.txt; requires yt-dlp and FFmpeg; MIT-licensed.

A New Year's letter to a young person

Key Points

• AI most readily automates single-task work; complex, multi-task roles are more resilient.
• Regulation and firm choices can slow or shape AI adoption despite technical capability.
• Productivity gains for junior roles may precede displacement as AI improves.

Swift interface for GNUStep's version of AppKit

Key Points

• Requires OnFlapp’s GNUstep Desktop on Debian and Swift 5.8.1.
• Manual resource copying into the build’s Resources directory is needed.
• Bridging uses GNUStepNSObjectWrapper and GNUStepNSObjectSubclassConstructor, with an ___swiftPtr ivar for Swift–ObjC linkage.

Street Fighter II, the World Warrier (2021)

Key Points

• CPS-1’s immutable GFX ROM forced a code-driven, on-screen visual fix.
• Tiles from the word “World” were reused to repair “Warrier,” yielding “Warrlor.”
• A one-pixel tile plus palette control enabled dotting the “i” to achieve “Warrior.”

Nike's Crisis and the Economics of Brand Decay

Key Points

• Revenue down 11.5% to $11.01B; digital, app, and foot traffic metrics declined.
• DTC shift reduced retail presence, enabling On and Hoka to gain share.
• Product team reorganization weakened development, contributing to margin compression and inventory issues.

Cold-Blooded Software (2023)

Key Points

• Warm-blooded vs. cold-blooded software analogy explains maintenance approaches.
• Cold-blooded projects avoid external services and vendor dependencies for longevity.
• A 2012 Python 2 static site generator with local build and rsync/ssh deploy exemplifies this approach.

Understanding the bin, sbin, usr/bin, usr/sbin split (2010)

Key Points

• The directory split originated from early Unix disk constraints and mount sequencing.
• Modern initrd/initramfs and shared libraries reduce or eliminate the split’s original rationale.
• Distro-specific conventions persist, affecting tmp directories and writable paths like /var.

Web development is fun again

Key Points

• Modern web development complexity drives specialization across frontend and backend.
• AI tools like Claude and Codex help the author manage full-stack work again.
• The author reports faster delivery and more room for creative UI/UX iteration.

How I archived 10 years of memories using Spotify

Key Points

• Annual process: copy ‘Liked Songs’ to a year-named playlist, clear likes, and back up to Google Drive.
• Chronological order enables precise time-based recall within each year.
• Listening habits (no shuffle, top-first) create a rolling window linking songs to dates.

Show HN: An interactive guide to how browsers work

Key Points

• Address bar input is converted into search URLs or normalized full URLs.
• The guide demonstrates forming HTTP requests from URLs.
• Key HTTP headers like Host and Accept are explained through examples.

AI Sycophancy Panic

Key Points

• ‘Sycophancy’ is an overloaded label for varied LLM complaints about tone and feedback.
• Anti-sycophancy tuning can reduce fluency and hinder exploratory dialogue.
• Overly adversarial fact-checking mid-conversation can harm user experience.

The Unbearable Joy of Sitting Alone in a Café

Key Points

• Leaving devices at home led to reduced anxiety and increased presence.
• A slower routine, including long dog walks and café visits, reshaped time perception.
• Mindful, device-free café sitting facilitated deeper observation and reflection.

Anti-Aging Injection Regrows Knee Cartilage and Prevents Arthritis

Key Points

• Blocking 15-PGDH restored and protected knee cartilage in older mice.
• Human knee tissue formed functional cartilage in response to the therapy.
• Chondrocyte gene reprogramming enabled regeneration without stem cells.

Lessons from 14 Years at Google

Key Points

• Start with user problems; let solutions follow from deep understanding.
• Bias toward action: ship prototypes/MVPs to learn from real feedback.
• Favor clarity over cleverness and limit novelty to reduce operational risk.

Neurodivergent Brains Build Better Systems (2025)

Key Points

• Neurodivergent traits are presented as strengths for building robust software systems.
• Bottom-up attention to detail can prevent deployment errors, illustrated by a version mismatch catch.
• Workplace design that reduces sensory distractions is argued to enable superior engineering focus.

Bison return to Illinois' Kane County after 200 years

Key Points

• Six bison returned to Kane County at Burlington Prairie after more than 200 years.
• The effort is a partnership between the forest preserve district and the American Indian Center of Chicago.
• The herd came from Nachusa Grasslands and supports ongoing prairie restoration.

Trellis AI (YC W24) is hiring engineers to build AI agents for healthcare access

Key Points

• Trellis AI is hiring to build agentic systems that automate prior authorizations, appeals, and document intake at scale.
• Backed by YC and major investors, the company reports nationwide reach and rapid revenue growth.
• Technical requirements include Python/Go, ML libraries (PyTorch/TensorFlow/Transformers), Postgres, and cloud/container tools (AWS/Azure/GCP, Docker, Kubernetes).

Using Hinge as a Command and Control Server

Key Points

• Encodes a compiled C payload into images with a Python script (NumPy, PIL) and uploads to Hinge.
• Shows Hinge’s undocumented API can expose public profile media using specific headers and a user ID.
• Notes platform image transformations and the need for stronger steganography for reliability.

Macromedia Flash, from an Animator's Standpoint

Key Points

• FutureSplash Animator (1996) evolved from SmartSketch, adding animation and an SWF web format.
• Macromedia’s acquisition rebranded the tool as Flash, accelerating features and adoption.
• Flash 2.0 and 3 added libraries, ADPCM audio, movie clips, and preloaders, enabling practical web animation.

Show HN: Magic CSV – Transform CSVs with plain English, no formulas

Key Points

• Transforms CSVs via plain-English commands without formulas or scripts
• Interactive demo with messy sample data lets users test transformations
• First file is free with no credit card required

I charged $18k for a Static HTML Page (2019)

Key Points

• Urgent engagement for a single static HTML page after a developer left.
• Estimation of 20 hours (~$1,500) with on-site work required.
• Significant time lost to setup and waiting for assets, documented to the manager.

Venezuela's interim government says it is united behind Maduro

Key Points

• Government officials reaffirm unity behind Nicolas Maduro despite his U.S. detention.
• Delcy Rodriguez assumes interim leadership with top court approval while insisting Maduro remains president.
• PDVSA cuts crude output amid export halt following U.S. maritime blockade and cargo seizures.

Stop Forwarding Errors, Start Designing Them

Key Points

• Rust’s std::error::Error trait cannot represent tree-shaped error sources.
• Async backtraces are limited, origin-focused, and expensive to capture.
• Dynamic context APIs (RFC 3192/2895) add unpredictability and complexity.

Linear Address Spaces: Unsafe at any speed

Key Points

• Modern CPUs rely on complex, multi-level page tables for virtual-to-physical memory translation.
• Backward compatibility is a primary reason linear address spaces persist.
• These structures cause performance overhead and can lead to failure modes like double faults.

Show HN: Hover – IDE style hover documentation on any webpage

Key Points

• IDE-style hover documentation available on any webpage, including ChatGPT and Claude.
• Build with bun and load into Chrome as an unpacked extension; Chrome Web Store release planned.
• Supports OpenRouter API keys or a custom OpenAI-compatible endpoint; site control via URL patterns.

Sorting with Fibonacci Numbers and a Knuth Reward Check

Key Points

• Fibonacci-based Shellsort variant and its k-sorting mechanics are presented.
• Theorem 1 (order preservation under k-sorting) is sketched using Knuth’s framework and Lemma 1.
• Successive k-sorting with coprime gaps compounds ordering, setting up complexity analysis.

Show HN: Terminal UI for AWS

Key Points

• Terminal UI for AWS with real-time updates, Vim-like navigation, and EC2 actions.
• Multiple install paths: Homebrew, pre-built binaries, Cargo, or source build (Rust 1.70+).
• Requires AWS credentials and IAM permissions; supports profiles and regions.

Why does a least squares fit appear to have a bias when applied to simple data?

Key Points

• Least-squares fit of y on x minimizes vertical errors, not symmetric distances.
• Principal eigenvector of the covariance matrix reveals maximum variance direction.
• Observed misalignment between the regression line and the data’s principal direction raises concerns about fit appropriateness.

OpenGitOps

Key Points

• OpenGitOps offers standards and education to support GitOps adoption.
• GitOps Principles v1.0.0 define versioned, immutable state and automatic pulling.
• Industry endorsements from Google, MediaMarktSaturn Technology, and Curve emphasize GitOps’ practical benefits.

NSFW Acronyms for Programmers (Free eBook)

Key Points

• Free eBook available in PDF and EPUB with CC BY 4.0 licensing.
• Uses NSFW acronyms to explain real software engineering principles.
• Includes practical advice, war stories, and critiques of misused “best practices.”

Claude Code On-the-Go

Key Points

• Runs six Claude Code agents on a Vultr VM, controlled via iPhone with Termius, mosh, and tmux.
• Secure, Tailscale-only access with layered defenses and pay-per-use cost control.
• Push notifications via Claude hooks and Poke enable truly asynchronous mobile development.

I changed my personality in six weeks

Key Points

• Personality traits are framed by the Big Five model and can change over time.
• Experts cite evidence that targeted interventions may accelerate trait changes within months.
• Author begins a six-week experiment with baseline scores: high neuroticism, high openness, high conscientiousness, moderate agreeableness.

Server-rendered multiplayer games with Lua (no client code)

Key Points

• Server-rendered engine with Lua scripting and streamed drawing primitives.
• Native Rust for performance-critical logic and WebRTC for low-latency communication.
• Free to self-host; supports macOS (M1/M2/M3 & Intel) and Linux, with Windows coming soon.

Agentic Patterns

Key Points

• Curated, repeatable, agent‑centric patterns backed by public references.
• Comprehensive categories covering orchestration, memory, feedback, tooling, reliability, and security.
• Auto‑generated tables and open PRs for evolving categories and contributions.

Eurostar AI vulnerability: when a chatbot goes off the rails

Key Points

• Four security issues: guardrail bypass, ID validation weaknesses, prompt injection, and HTML injection causing self-XSS.
• Chatbot runs via a REST API endpoint; server-side guardrails were weakly enforced.
• Vulnerabilities were fixed after a difficult disclosure process under Eurostar’s VDP.

North Dakota law lists fake critical minerals based on coal lawyers' names

Key Points

• Two fictional minerals—“stralium” and “friezium”—are listed in North Dakota’s critical minerals law.
• The names appear linked to attorneys involved in the bill; North American Coal’s David Straley denies responsibility.
• The article notes the error remains in the law’s definition, with no correction steps detailed.

The Year of the 3D Printed Miniature (and Other Lies We Tell Ourselves)

Key Points

• Tech hype often overlooks actual user needs, leading to missed predictions.
• 3D printing has not disrupted Games Workshop or the Warhammer hobby as frequently claimed.
• Community, craftsmanship, and the full hobby experience are central to value in tabletop wargaming.

Show HN: An LLM-Powered PCB Schematic Checker (Major Update)

Key Points

• LLM-powered multi-agent pipeline reviews PCB schematics against datasheets to catch errors before fabrication.
• Supports OpenAI and Anthropic models with configurable review parameters and automatic datasheet retrieval.
• Transparent, tiered pricing: Free, Hobby ($10/month), Pro ($20/month), and Enterprise (custom).

The great shift of English prose

Key Points

• English prose’s key shift was the early modern move to plain style and logical syntax, not merely shorter sentences.
• Complexity depends on idea structure and clause relationships, not sentence length.
• Modern writing trends align more closely with spoken English while older styles persist.

C-Sentinel: System prober that captures "system fingerprints" for AI analysis

Key Points

• v0.6.0 introduces enterprise features: role-based access, TOTP 2FA, personal API keys, audit logs, and session controls.
• C-Sentinel captures system fingerprints with auditd integration and applies LLM reasoning for explainable risk scoring.
• Quick-start commands enable rapid analysis, baseline learning, and continuous monitoring with optional audit logging.

Six Harmless Bugs Lead to Remote Code Execution

Key Points

• Six small flaws were chained into a pre-auth RCE on LogPoint’s SIEM/SOAR appliance.
• Architecture mapping (Nginx layers, Python/Java split) enabled targeted pivots and escalation.
• Hard-coded secrets, leaked credentials, SSRF, and eval() formed the core of the exploit chain.

Millennium Challenge: A corrupted military exercise and its legacy (2015)

Key Points

• MC ’02’s outcomes were scripted, triggering controversy and shaping public narratives.
• The article provides a fuller account based on interviews and the 2010 after-action report.
• MC ’02 was a congressionally mandated, large-scale, costly exercise aimed at testing future warfighting concepts.

Ask HN: In the real world we pay for everything so why not software?

Key Points

• Internet makes code distribution nearly costless, supporting free software models.
• Paid jobs often subsidize open-source work, with recognition as a key motivator.
• Industry shift toward bundling software with hardware/compute (e.g., Microsoft).

The Showa Hundred Year Problem

Key Points

• The Showa year reached 100 in 2025 without reported issues.
• Japan’s imperial era calendar is widely used alongside the Gregorian system.
• Legacy two-digit Showa year storage posed a Y2K-like risk.

During Helene, I Just Wanted a Plain Text Website

Key Points

• Heavy, media-rich emergency sites failed under low connectivity after Hurricane Helene, while a simple text newsletter proved most effective.
• The article urges text-first, minimal design and early performance testing for critical information pages.
• Common sources of bloat—large PDFs and excessive plugins—should be reduced to improve mobile and low-bandwidth usability.

The baffling purple honey found only in North Carolina

Key Points

• Purple honey’s cause is unknown and its appearance is sporadic in the Sandhills.
• Local attractions include Pinehurst Golf Resort, Southern Pines, and the Drowning Creek route.
• Dees Bees Apiary provides mid-July availability updates and prices reflect the honey’s rarity.

California residents can now request all data brokers delete personal info

Key Points

• DROP enables California residents to request data deletion and opt-out from registered data brokers.
• Residency verification via California Identity Gateway or Login.gov is required before submitting requests.
• Data brokers must process deletion requests at least every 45 days starting August 1, 2026.

Logos Language Guide: Compile English to Rust

Key Points

• LOGOS compiles English to Rust for native binaries and maps English to First-Order Logic in Logic Mode.
• English-based constructs cover variables, types, operators, control flow, and functions with return types.
• Recursion is supported, requiring clear base and recursive cases.