Webtagr - Technology News Summarizer

Popular：

Virtualization DNS security formal verification reachability analysis compiler errors macro conflict web extension development framework Bitmap Graphics API inconsistencies All Tags

Software Rot: Is It the Software or the Environment?

2025-08-06

Software rot is generally attributed to software degradation due to a changing environment. A program from a decade ago might not work with newer libraries due to incompatibility. A better approach focuses on the reliability of the software's dependencies. Building on stable platforms like DOS or NES, with static specifications, avoids constant maintenance. Conversely, software built for constantly evolving platforms like Linux may cease to function after a decade or two, requiring extensive media archaeology to restore.

(permacomputing.net)

Development software rot platform compatibility

The Huge Hurdle to US EV Adoption: Charging Infrastructure

2025-08-22

The Huge Hurdle to US EV Adoption: Charging Infrastructure

While a large percentage of US homes could theoretically support EV charging, the reality is far more complex. Over a third require costly electrical upgrades to handle home chargers, significantly increasing EV ownership costs and potentially exceeding those of gasoline cars. Furthermore, charging in multifamily dwellings presents even greater challenges, requiring permission from management companies and expensive grid upgrades, posing a significant obstacle to widespread EV adoption.

(arstechnica.com)

Tech charging infrastructure grid upgrades

Unexpected Perks of a High-Ranking Hacker News Post: It's More Than Just Traffic

2025-08-20

A decade-long Hacker News user shares insights: high-ranking posts bring massive traffic, but conversions are low. The real value lies in boosted brand awareness and invaluable user feedback. The author stresses actively engaging with comments, learning from user perspectives. Furthermore, high-ranking posts lead to subsequent traffic bumps and potential collaborations, even thank-you notes. However, the author cautions that HN isn't a marketing plan; traffic is fickle, the audience limited, and direct conversions shouldn't be expected.

(www.mooreds.com)

Misc

LinkedIn's Toxic Mediocrity: A Content Quality Lament

2025-08-22

The author decries LinkedIn's rampant 'toxic mediocrity': inauthentic personal branding, overproduced empty posts, and meaningless advice disguised as stories. The author argues that LinkedIn's algorithm incentivizes this behavior, yet it ultimately provides no career benefit. Instead of chasing likes and comments, the author advocates for high-quality content creation, such as building a personal blog to share meaningful insights, as a more effective path to career advancement.

(www.elliotcsmith.com)

Misc

Unlocking Shopping Carts with Phone Speaker Sounds: A DEFCON 29 Hack

2025-08-22

A hacker, @stoppingcart, demonstrated at DEFCON 29 a method to unlock electronic shopping carts using a phone speaker. Most electronic shopping cart wheels listen for a 7.8 kHz signal from an underground wire to lock and unlock. The hacker created a 7.8 kHz audio file and used the parasitic EMF from a phone's speaker to 'transmit' a similar signal, unlocking the cart. This exploits a vulnerability in the cart's security system, highlighting a security flaw.

(www.begaydocrime.com)

Tech electronic shopping carts

C-Tubes: Revolutionizing 3D Design with Flat Materials

2025-08-22

C-Tubes: Revolutionizing 3D Design with Flat Materials

Researchers at EPFL's Geometric Computing Laboratory have developed C-Tubes, a groundbreaking method for creating strong, lightweight curved structures from flat strips of material. Their algorithm precisely bends and connects these strips, avoiding stretching or wrinkling, resulting in surprisingly stiff and durable tubes. This sustainable approach minimizes waste and opens possibilities in furniture, lighting, architecture, and beyond. C-Tubes promises to revolutionize design and construction, offering a more efficient and environmentally friendly approach to 3D object creation.

(actu.epfl.ch)

Design

Mysterious `d4d4` Instructions in LLD: Not a Trap, But a Conditional Branch

2025-08-21

A programmer discovered numerous `d4d4` instructions in disassembled ARM code, always unreachable and identified by LLVM's objdump as a relative branch to -0x58. Experiments and analysis revealed these weren't added by the LLVM compiler, but by the LLD linker during object file boundary alignment. LLD uses `d4d4` as padding, intending it as a trap instruction. However, it's actually a conditional branch, acting as a relative jump in the Thumb instruction set. This seems like an LLD bug; it's not a true trap, potentially causing unpredictable jumps. The GNU linker uses zeros for padding, avoiding this issue.

(www.nmichaels.org)

Development

Rails in 2025: Lago's Case for Sticking with the Familiar

2025-08-20

Rails in 2025: Lago's Case for Sticking with the Familiar

Lago shares its experience building its API with Ruby on Rails. Despite the rise of Python, Go, and JS, they've stuck with Rails, prioritizing its speed in delivering a product. They address scalability concerns, arguing it's an architectural and operational issue, not a framework limitation. With proper design and optimization, Rails handles millions of API requests. The article also acknowledges Rails' weaknesses—performance, concurrency, and 'magic'—and how they use Go and Rust to compensate. Ultimately, they argue that language choice depends on quickly delivering a great product, and Rails fits the bill for their team.

(www.getlago.com)

Development

Dark Magic in Python 3.10's Pattern Matching: Exploiting `subclasshook`

2025-08-22

This article explores the unexpected capabilities arising from the combination of Python 3.10's pattern matching and the `__subclasshook__` method of Abstract Base Classes (ABCs). By cleverly using `__subclasshook__`, the author demonstrates 'hijacking' pattern matching, allowing custom definition of which types match and even matching based on object attributes, not just types. While showcasing powerful functionalities like creating custom matchers, the author strongly cautions against using this technique in production code due to its unpredictable and potentially harmful nature.

(www.hillelwayne.com)

Development Abstract Base Classes

D3.js: The Art Behind the Verbose Code

2025-08-21

D3.js: The Art Behind the Verbose Code

The journey of learning D3.js is like climbing a mountain. Initially, its lengthy code and complex syntax can be daunting; drawing a simple line requires a substantial amount of code. The author uses the example of drawing a box plot – 194 lines of code – to illustrate D3.js's powerful flexibility and customizability. D3.js is not just a simple drawing tool; it's a brush that empowers developers to create data visualization art, allowing for fine-grained control over SVG elements to achieve complex and unique visualization effects, ultimately transcending the limitations of off-the-shelf tools.

(theheasman.com)

Development

Pixel Watch 4: Google's 'Essential Companion' Evolves

2025-08-21

Pixel Watch 4: Google's 'Essential Companion' Evolves

Google's Pixel Watch 4 boasts significant hardware and software upgrades. The new watch features thinner bezels, a brighter display, and improved battery life. It also sports an innovative side-mounted charger and offers replaceable and repairable display and battery. Software-wise, the Pixel Watch 4 integrates Gemini AI for a more powerful voice assistant and a personalized health coach, alongside a Satellite SOS emergency call feature. In essence, the Pixel Watch 4 represents a bold step forward for Google in the smartwatch arena, striving to deliver a durable and feature-rich "essential companion."

(www.theverge.com)

Tech

Bay Area AI Engineer: Building the AI-First Fraud Detection System

2025-08-21

Bay Area AI Engineer: Building the AI-First Fraud Detection System

Coris is hiring experienced AI Engineers to build an AI-first fraud detection system for global commerce. Responsibilities include fine-tuning and optimizing LLMs for fraud detection, building high-performance Django backend services, and handling massive data volumes from payment processors like Stripe and Adyen. The ideal candidate has 3+ years of Python/Django experience, expertise in LLM optimization and fraud detection, and the ability to ensure low latency and cost in high-concurrency environments.

(www.ycombinator.com)

AI Fraud Detection

Seamless NetHack and Emacs mu4e Integration for Email

2025-08-22

Seamless NetHack and Emacs mu4e Integration for Email

The author, deeply engrossed in a NetHack game, devised an elegant solution to check emails without interrupting gameplay. Leveraging NetHack's mail daemon functionality, a Python script converts maildir to mbox format and checks the mbox file's modification time. New emails trigger a Bash script launching emacsclient, opening mu4e, and directly navigating to unread messages. This ingenious integration showcases the author's problem-solving skills and efficient workflow.

(feyor.sh)

Development

Decoding the Myriad of AI Job Titles: A Cheat Sheet

2025-08-22

Decoding the Myriad of AI Job Titles: A Cheat Sheet

Navigating the ever-evolving landscape of AI job titles can be challenging. This cheat sheet provides a framework for understanding the often-confusing terminology. By breaking down titles like "Applied AI Engineer" and "AI Forward Deployed Engineer," the author reveals common components and explains the meaning of modifiers (e.g., "Applied," "Forward Deployed") and domains (e.g., "ML," "Gen AI"). The ambiguity surrounding the "Researcher" title, differing between academia and industry, is highlighted, suggesting clearer job descriptions are needed. This guide helps decipher AI roles and offers valuable insights for career exploration.

(www.dbreunig.com)

Development AI jobs AI terminology career guidance

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Self-Improvement or Capitalist Tool?

2025-08-22

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Self-Improvement or Capitalist Tool?

This article explores the origins, development, and controversies surrounding Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). Created by Marsha Linehan, DBT aims to help those at high risk of suicide by improving emotional regulation through skills training and cognitive behavioral techniques. While DBT emphasizes the dialectic of acceptance and change, it's also criticized for oversimplifying complex issues, neglecting the impact of societal structures on mental health, and potentially serving as a tool for self-management under capitalist pressures. The article delves into the connection between DBT and workplace management models, and its limitations in addressing contemporary anxieties and stresses.

(www.thedriftmag.com)

Misc Dialectical Behavior Therapy dialectical behavior therapy

Lisp1 vs. Lisp2: The Great Namespace Debate

2025-08-09

This technical report delves into the advantages and disadvantages of separating function and value namespaces in Lisp. Lisp1 uses a single namespace, while Lisp2 separates them. The authors analyze the trade-offs in notational simplicity, referential clarity, compiler complexity, higher-order functions, macros, and space/time efficiency. While Lisp1 offers advantages in conciseness and functional programming style, Lisp2 excels in macro usage and mitigating naming conflicts. Ultimately, the report concludes that the status quo (Lisp2) is preferable for Common Lisp.

(dreamsongs.com)

Development

Evil Combinatorialist and 16 Wines: An Information Theory Puzzle

2025-08-21

Trapped in an evil combinatorialist's wine cellar, you're presented with 16 unlabeled bottles of wine, each from a different year between 0 and 15, and four binary measuring devices. Each device measures one bottle, outputting 0 or 1. The goal is to identify the year of each wine with 50 or fewer measurements. While it seems to require 64 measurements, exploiting the uniqueness of the years, a divide-and-conquer approach, starting by measuring most bottles with one device, dividing them into groups based on the result, and recursively applying the method, can solve it within 49 measurements. This puzzle cleverly combines information theory and combinatorics, showcasing how to leverage information asymmetry to reduce computational effort.

(chriskw.xyz)

Misc Combinatorics Puzzle

Lue: A Powerful CLI E-book Reader

2025-08-17

Lue: A Powerful CLI E-book Reader

Lue is a powerful command-line e-book reader supporting various formats like EPUB, PDF, TXT, etc. It features a modular TTS system, defaulting to Edge TTS but also supporting the offline Kokoro TTS engine. Lue boasts a rich terminal UI with customizable themes and full mouse/keyboard support, along with smart persistence features like automatic progress saving and cross-session continuity. It's cross-platform (macOS, Linux, Windows), multilingual (100+ languages), and offers intuitive navigation shortcuts. Users can easily customize voice, language, and filtering options via command-line arguments.

(github.com)

Development

Small is the New Big: Building for One in the Age of AI

2025-08-17

Small is the New Big: Building for One in the Age of AI

In the era of AI-assisted coding, the cost of building small, personal applications has plummeted. The author shares anecdotes of creating several small utilities: a private Slack workspace for a hundred people, a simple app for sending postcards to his mother, and a small program that calls her to remind her to take medication. These aren't designed for scale, but to meet specific needs for himself and a small circle. The author argues that the real luxury isn't speed or cost, but the freedom to stop, to build something small, useful, and perfectly personal, without the obligation to grow it until it breaks. In a world obsessed with scale, there's quiet satisfaction in leaving 'good enough' alone.

(derwiki.medium.com)

Development personal applications small is beautiful

xAI Co-founder Departs to Launch VC Firm Focused on AI Safety

2025-08-14

xAI Co-founder Departs to Launch VC Firm Focused on AI Safety

Igor Babuschkin, co-founder of Elon Musk's xAI, announced his departure to launch Babuschkin Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on AI safety research and startups advancing humanity. Despite xAI's rapid success under Babuschkin's leadership, the company faced controversies surrounding its chatbot, Grok, including antisemitic remarks and the generation of nude-like images of public figures. Babuschkin expressed pride in his time at xAI, citing valuable lessons learned from Musk, before embarking on his new venture.

(techcrunch.com)

AI

Relive the 80s: Epson MX-80 Font Pack Released

2025-08-21

Michael Walden has recreated the fonts from the iconic Epson MX-80 dot matrix printer, popular in the 1980s. Manually transcribing the font data, he's expanded the character set to include Windows-1252 characters and offers the fonts in various formats (.fon, .ttf, .otf, .woff, .woff2). Perfect for retro printing simulations or displaying program listings on web pages and in documentation.

(mw.rat.bz)

Design retro font

Building the Simplest Semantic Layer with YAML and Python

2025-08-20

Building the Simplest Semantic Layer with YAML and Python

This article demonstrates building a minimal semantic layer using a YAML file and a Python script, querying 20 million NYC taxi records to illustrate its value. It clarifies when a semantic layer is truly beneficial and when it's overkill. The piece contrasts semantic layers with traditional databases, highlighting advantages in data governance, caching, secure access control, and LLM integration.

(motherduck.com)

Development semantic layer

DiffMem: Git-Based Differential Memory for Smarter AI Agents

2025-08-21

DiffMem: Git-Based Differential Memory for Smarter AI Agents

DiffMem is a lightweight, Git-based memory system designed for AI agents and conversational systems. It leverages Markdown for human-readable storage, Git for version control and tracking memory evolution, and an in-memory BM25 index for fast retrieval. This proof-of-concept demonstrates how version control can create efficient, scalable memory for AI. DiffMem treats memory as a versioned repository, separating the current state from historical changes. This allows for efficient queries on the current knowledge while preserving the full history for deeper analysis. It addresses challenges in traditional AI memory systems like scalability and query efficiency, offering a human-readable, easily portable, and auditable solution. The system is composed of a writer agent, context manager, searcher agent, and an API layer. While currently a prototype, DiffMem showcases a promising approach to long-term AI memory management.

(github.com)

Development

BusyBee: Blazing-Fast Background Job Processing for .NET

2025-08-20

BusyBee: Blazing-Fast Background Job Processing for .NET

BusyBee is a high-performance .NET background job processing library built on native channels. It offers a simple, configurable, and observable solution for handling background tasks, boasting built-in OpenTelemetry support and flexible queue management. Features include unbounded or bounded queues with various overflow strategies, configurable timeouts, parallel processing, comprehensive logging, and rich job context information. OpenTelemetry integration allows for robust monitoring and analysis. Error and timeout handling is also supported via custom handlers.

(github.com)

Development background processing

Cubix: A ZX Spectrum 3D Platformer Defies Expectations

2025-08-21

Cubix: A ZX Spectrum 3D Platformer Defies Expectations

Gogin's Cubix, released during the YRGB 2025 retro game competition, is being hailed as the first-ever 3D platformer for the ZX Spectrum. This impressive feat is achieved through clever 2D manipulation and pre-calculation, creating a Fez-like rotating level mechanic. By pre-calculating and storing data to overcome the hardware limitations of the ZX Spectrum, Gogin completed this stunning game in just 4.5 months. Cubix challenges the boundaries of what's possible on this classic '80s computer.

(www.timeextension.com)

Game 3D Platformer

Wayland Focus Stealing Prevention: The XDG Activation Story

2025-08-09

Unlike X, Wayland requires applications to use the XDG Activation protocol to bring their windows to the front. This protocol uses tokens to ensure focus changes are legitimate, preventing rogue applications from stealing focus. The KDE community recently fixed several applications' XDG Activation issues (Dolphin, KRunner, etc.) and strengthened KWin's focus stealing prevention, improving the Wayland user experience. KWin will gradually tighten its focus stealing policy to enforce proper application behavior.

(blog.broulik.de)

Development

OCaml Editor Gets a Major Boost: Powerful Refactoring Capabilities

2025-08-20

OCaml Editor Gets a Major Boost: Powerful Refactoring Capabilities

During my internship, I added powerful refactoring capabilities to OCaml's Merlin compiler, starting with an "extract toplevel expression" feature. This feature extracts selected expressions into new `let` bindings, supporting constants and expressions (including those using variables), and cleverly handling OCaml's purity issues. Implemented via the Language Server Protocol (LSP) with both code action and custom request interaction methods, the feature is in PRs and nearing merge. This marks a significant step towards an IntelliJ-like editor experience for OCaml, with plans for more refactoring tools in the future.

(tarides.com)

Development

Sütterlinschrift: The Rise and Fall of a German Handwriting Script

2025-08-21

Sütterlinschrift: The Rise and Fall of a German Handwriting Script

Sütterlinschrift, a widely used German handwriting script from 1915 to the 1970s, represents the final form of Kurrent. Designed by Ludwig Sütterlin, it was banned by the Nazi regime in 1941 and replaced with 'normal script'. Despite this, Sütterlinschrift continued to be used by many post-war, fading from common use only in the 1970s. Its unique letters and ligatures even left a mark in mathematics and proofreading, showcasing its historical and cultural impact.

(en.wikipedia.org)

Misc German history

Daemonless Docker Compose Builds with Podman, BuildKit, and a Pinch of Bakah

2025-08-21

Due to Docker's incompatibility with nftables and a preference for a rootless, daemonless approach, the author uses Podman to build a Docker Compose project. The article explores the shortcomings of using both the official Docker Compose CLI and podman-compose, ultimately achieving builds under Podman using the Docker Compose CLI and BuildKit by enabling the Podman socket, creating a Docker context. To avoid a BuildKit daemon, the author developed Bakah, a tool that converts Compose projects into Bake JSON files and uses Buildah for building, resulting in a completely daemonless build process.

(emersion.fr)

Development

Generating Pixel Art Space Invaders with Algorithms

2025-08-20

Generating Pixel Art Space Invaders with Algorithms

This interactive article details the creation of a Space Invader generator using JavaScript and vector graphics. The author walks through the process, from hand-drawn pixel art to vector polygons and finally pixelated images, explaining the algorithms and techniques involved. This includes using the OKLCH color space for color generation and Anime.js for animation. The article is highly interactive, allowing readers to generate their own Space Invaders.

(muffinman.io)

Development Vector Graphics

← Previous 1 2 … 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 … 564 565 Next →