C++ Modules: A Broken Promise?

2025-09-01

This article takes a pessimistic view on the progress of C++ modules. The author argues that if C++ modules cannot demonstrate a 5x (preferably 10x) compilation speedup across multiple existing open-source codebases, they should be abandoned. The article highlights the challenging development journey, citing the tight integration required between compilers and build systems as a major hurdle. The author emphasizes that the focus should be on improving compilation speed rather than addressing relatively rare issues like macro leakage. He recounts the standardization process, pointing out underestimation of implementation difficulties. Finally, the author suggests an alternative approach – `import std` – while acknowledging its limited potential for improvement.

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Google Mocks Apple's Year-Long Siri AI Upgrade Delay

2025-08-05
Google Mocks Apple's Year-Long Siri AI Upgrade Delay

Apple promised a major AI-powered Siri upgrade for iPhone 16 users via Apple Intelligence last year, but a year later, the upgrade is still missing, prompting Apple to pull related ads. Seizing the opportunity, Google's latest Pixel 10 ad subtly mocks Apple's delayed “soon-to-arrive” AI features, suggesting users switch phones. The ad, released on YouTube and X, teases the Pixel 10 launch on August 20th. Reports indicate Apple's delay stems from issues with Siri's hybrid architecture. Apple's software chief, Craig Federighi, confirmed they're working on a significantly improved Siri.

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Building a Docker Container from Scratch: Unveiling the Secrets of Mount Namespaces

2025-09-17
Building a Docker Container from Scratch: Unveiling the Secrets of Mount Namespaces

This article provides a clear and concise explanation of how to build a simple Docker-like container using only stock Linux tools: unshare, mount, and pivot_root. It focuses on the crucial role of the mount namespace in container isolation, and the complementary roles of other namespaces (PID, cgroup, UTS, network). Through step-by-step practical exercises, readers will understand how mount namespaces isolate mount tables and how mount propagation affects interactions between namespaces. Ultimately, readers will be able to create fully featured, Docker-style containers using only standard Linux commands.

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Development Linux Namespaces

illumos Cafe: Another Cozy Corner for OS Diversity

2025-08-21
illumos Cafe: Another Cozy Corner for OS Diversity

Following the success of the BSD Cafe, the illumos Cafe project has launched. Similar in spirit to the BSD Cafe, illumos Cafe aims to provide services running on illumos-based operating systems, demonstrating their usability and promoting open-source OS diversity. Currently, it hosts Mastodon and snac instances, with plans to expand services. The project embraces a positive and inclusive philosophy, seeking to create a free and independent community, free from the control of large tech companies.

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Development

India's Democracy Rankings: A Battle for Narrative Control

2025-03-11
India's Democracy Rankings: A Battle for Narrative Control

Faced with declining international democracy rankings, the Indian government displays a duality: publicly dismissing the rankings as unfair while privately working to mitigate their negative economic impact. The article reveals the government's strategic shift from initially trying to improve rankings to ultimately attempting to control the global narrative. This includes forming high-level committees to improve scores across various global indices, attempting communication with rating agencies to understand their methodologies, and employing media campaigns and suppression of dissent to shape a favorable public image. Ultimately, the Indian government even embarks on creating its own democracy index, aiming to challenge the Western-dominated evaluation system. This shift reflects a governance model of narrative control and intolerance of dissent, prompting deeper reflection on the state of Indian democracy.

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Servo Engine Makes Strides: Windows Multi-process Support Lands!

2025-07-18

The open-source web layout engine Servo continues to advance. This month's update highlights significant progress in incremental layout, performance optimizations, WebDriver server support for automation, viewport meta tag support, DOM scroll event support, basic IndexedDB support, improved AbortController abort handling, experimental multi-process support on Windows, and enhanced DevTools and screen reader capabilities. Servo is steadily maturing into a robust embeddable browser engine.

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Development Web Layout Engine

tinymcp: Control Embedded Devices with LLMs

2025-07-07
tinymcp: Control Embedded Devices with LLMs

The tinymcp project enables Large Language Models (LLMs) to control embedded devices via the Model Context Protocol (MCP). It leverages Golioth's LightDB state and Remote Procedure Calls (RPCs) to achieve this. Existing devices can expose RPCs without firmware modification by updating LightDB state. A simple blinky example demonstrates exposing LED control to an LLM via tinymcp. Users need to connect a device to the Golioth platform and run the tinymcp server locally. Tools like MCP Inspector and Claude Code are available for testing and interaction with tinymcp.

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Development Embedded Devices

Microrim's Rapid Port of R:BASE System V to OS/2

2025-08-11

In late 1986, Microrim, a database software company, faced a monumental task: porting their flagship product, R:BASE System V, to IBM's newly emerging OS/2 before its official launch. Leveraging their modular software design and expertise, they systematically converted the largely FORTRAN-based application to C using a translation tool, then efficiently ported it to OS/2 by isolating OS-specific calls. This feat, accomplished in a remarkably short timeframe, showcased Microrim's prowess and offered valuable lessons for other developers facing similar challenges. The resulting OS/2 version benefited from OS/2's expanded memory and multitasking capabilities, enhancing performance and user experience.

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Development Software Porting

Hinge's $550M Secret: Selling Hope, Not Matches

2025-03-23
Hinge's $550M Secret: Selling Hope, Not Matches

Dating app Hinge's success isn't about better matches; it's about masterful branding. Its tagline, "Designed to be deleted," positions it as the app that helps users find love and move on. This contrasts sharply with competitors focused on short-term engagement. In 2024, Hinge raked in $550 million in revenue with 1.5 million paying subscribers. Its story proves emotional marketing, building brand loyalty by selling hope, trumps purely functional features in driving business success.

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Raspberry Pi E-Ink Commute & Weather Tracker: Closing the Agency Gap

2025-03-29
Raspberry Pi E-Ink Commute & Weather Tracker: Closing the Agency Gap

The author built a Raspberry Pi-powered e-ink display that shows real-time subway arrival times and weather forecasts, solving a daily morning commute problem. The device displays date, time, upcoming F & G train arrivals for the next 30 minutes, and a 12-hour weather forecast. The project details cover hardware and software design, including data acquisition from the MTA API, display engine, and update strategies to minimize screen flickering and ghosting. The final product is aesthetically pleasing and functional, loved by the author's wife, successfully bridging the 'agency gap'.

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Hardware E-ink

Tesla Model 3 Nightmare: Hardware Failure and Battery Drain

2025-02-10
Tesla Model 3 Nightmare: Hardware Failure and Battery Drain

The author's purchase of a Tesla Model 3 manufactured in late 2024 turned into a nightmare. Multiple features, including cameras, GPS, autopilot, and software updates, failed due to a hardware fault in the new onboard computer. Worse, the car experienced an 8% daily battery drain, and issues with braking and suspension systems were also reported. Tesla acknowledged some faults but refused a penalty-free return, offering only a solution of a part replacement in three months. The author was forced to stop driving and urges other Tesla owners to be wary of this issue.

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US Visa Changes Spark Rise in South Korea's 'Digital Undertaker' Services

2025-06-28
US Visa Changes Spark Rise in South Korea's 'Digital Undertaker' Services

The US Embassy in Seoul has resumed accepting student and exchange visa applications, but with a new requirement: applicants must make all social media accounts public. This has caused anxiety among South Korean students seeking to study in the US, leading many to seek help from 'digital undertaker' services. These services, offered by online reputation management firms, remove potentially damaging posts and photos from social media. The cost ranges from ₩100,000 to millions of won, highlighting the tightening of US visa policies and the impact of social media on personal reputation.

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arXivLabs: Experimenting with Community Collaboration

2025-01-31
arXivLabs: Experimenting with Community Collaboration

arXivLabs is a framework for collaborators to develop and share new features directly on the arXiv website. Individuals and organizations involved share arXiv's values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only partners with those who adhere to them. Have an idea to improve the arXiv community? Learn more about arXivLabs.

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Development open platform

Reverse Engineering Vercel's BotID: A Surprisingly Basic Bot Protection System?

2025-06-30

This post delves into Vercel's newly released BotID anti-bot system, focusing on its free Basic mode. The author reveals that the Basic mode's current detection mechanisms are surprisingly rudimentary and easily bypassed by manipulating browser properties. While BotID collects various signals including browser fingerprints and GPU information, its processing of these signals is basic, failing to effectively identify sophisticated bots. The author speculates that Vercel is using Basic mode to quietly gather data for training future, more robust anti-bot models. The paid Deep Analysis mode, utilizing Kasada's anti-bot scripts, is significantly more complex than Basic mode.

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Development

US Debt Crisis: Economic Models Crash, Predicting Disaster

2025-07-17
US Debt Crisis: Economic Models Crash, Predicting Disaster

Concerns about the massive US debt are resurfacing. Economists used powerful computing models to simulate future economic trends, with shocking results: the models failed to converge, meaning long-term economic projections are impossible under the current rate of debt growth. This isn't just another 'boy who cried wolf' scenario; it signals a potential economic catastrophe. Continued debt escalation could lead to soaring interest rates, economic contraction, and other severe consequences. Experts suggest reforms like raising the retirement age, implementing a carbon tax, and reducing social security benefits, but the probability of success is only 5%.

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International Rescue! The Epic Quest to Save a 43-Inch Sony CRT TV

2024-12-23
International Rescue! The Epic Quest to Save a 43-Inch Sony CRT TV

YouTube creator Shank Mods embarked on an epic rescue mission to save a mythical 43-inch Sony KX-45ED1 CRT television. This behemoth, weighing 440 pounds and released in 1989 for a staggering $40,000 (over $100,000 today), was thought to be a mere legend. Following a lead from a photo in a Japanese soba restaurant, Shank coordinated an international effort, overcoming numerous logistical hurdles to transport the TV to the US. The restoration process, detailed in a recent YouTube video, was equally challenging, showcasing the dedication of a global community of retro tech enthusiasts.

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A 9-Month Odyssey: Implementing Bel in Clojure

2025-03-11

This post details a nine-month journey of implementing the Bel programming language in Clojure. Initially envisioned as a weekend project, the author encountered several challenges: creating a custom parser for Bel's unique syntax; handling Bel's continuation-passing style, which necessitated a re-implementation of the interpreter's call stack to overcome stack overflow issues; and optimizing performance by leveraging Java data structures. The author delves into Bel's powerful features, such as `lit`, `globe`, `scope`, `mac`, and `err`, showcasing the capabilities enabled by continuations. While the project is still under development, the author highlights the valuable lessons learned throughout this challenging yet rewarding experience.

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Development

Ontology Is Overrated: Links, Tags, and the Death of Categories

2025-03-09

This essay challenges the conventional wisdom of ontology-based categorization in the digital age. The author argues that pre-defined categories, reminiscent of library catalogs, are constrained by physical limitations and human biases, ill-suited for the dynamic nature of the web. Instead, they propose a more organic system based on links and tags, allowing for free-form user labeling and valuable insights from large, messy datasets. Using Yahoo! and Google as examples, the author demonstrates the superiority of link-based search over pre-defined categories, showing how tagging systems better adapt to the scale, diversity, and dynamism of online information.

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Self-Folding Origami: Art Meets Engineering

2025-06-19

This art explores the natural equilibrium forms achieved by folding paper along curved creases. The resulting sculptures, transforming flat paper into swirling surfaces, feel surprisingly alive. This research has implications for deployable structures, manufacturing, and self-assembly. The artist's work, including pieces like '200 Circles' (2018) and the 'Holderness Series' (2013), has been featured in prestigious galleries and even entered the permanent collection of MoMA.

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Open-Source 5-Band Equalizer a5eq.lv2 Released

2024-12-18
Open-Source 5-Band Equalizer a5eq.lv2 Released

ashafq has released a5eq.lv2, an open-source 5-band equalizer LV2 plugin. This plugin features a low shelf, three peaking filters, and a high shelf, designed for precise audio sculpting by both amateur and professional audio engineers. It boasts high-precision filter coefficients, stereo processing, and a user-friendly interface. Compatible with any LV2-supporting host software such as Ardour and Audacity, it's easily installed and used via command line. Users can submit issues or contribute code via GitHub.

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Roame Hiring: Lead Full-Stack Engineer to Revolutionize Travel Booking with AI

2025-05-11
Roame Hiring: Lead Full-Stack Engineer to Revolutionize Travel Booking with AI

Roame, a flight search engine leveraging credit card points and miles, is seeking a Lead Full-Stack Engineer. Backed by top-tier investors, Roame empowers millions to maximize their points' value. The ideal candidate possesses 4+ years of experience, mastery of Next.js, Firebase, and Go, and a strong understanding of AI pipelines. The San Francisco-based role requires in-person work. Roame offers competitive salary, equity, benefits, and a culture emphasizing collaboration and rapid iteration.

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Development Travel Booking

The Astonishing Secrets of the Intel 386 Chip's Packaging

2025-08-10
The Astonishing Secrets of the Intel 386 Chip's Packaging

A 3D CT scan of the Intel 386 processor reveals a surprisingly complex six-layer wiring structure hidden within its seemingly simple ceramic package. The chip boasts separate power and ground networks for I/O and CPU logic, along with side contacts for electroplating. The analysis also uncovers 'No Connect' pins used for testing, and a hierarchical interface design scaling from microscopic circuitry to macroscopic pins. The article details the 386's packaging technology and Intel's evolution in processor packaging.

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Hardware 386 Processor

Ancient Genomes Rewrite the History of the Sahara and Africa's Peopling

2025-05-08
Ancient Genomes Rewrite the History of the Sahara and Africa's Peopling

A groundbreaking study utilizing ancient DNA has revolutionized our understanding of the Sahara's 'Green' period and its impact on the peopling of Africa. Analysis of ancient genomes from North Africa and the Sahara revealed complex admixture events, tracing connections between Near Eastern and sub-Saharan African populations. The findings highlight migrations from Iberia and the Levant shaping the Northwest African Neolithic. This research offers unprecedented insights into the origins and evolution of African populations and the profound influence of climate change on human history.

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AI Darwin Awards: Celebrating AI-Fueled Disasters

2025-09-10
AI Darwin Awards: Celebrating AI-Fueled Disasters

The first-ever AI Darwin Awards highlight cautionary tales of AI misapplication. From a Taco Bell drive-thru's AI order-taking system failure to a Replit coding mishap that destroyed a production database, and a McDonald's AI chatbot security breach exposing millions of applicants' data, these incidents underscore the importance of responsible AI implementation. The awards don't mock AI itself, but rather the disastrous consequences of its careless application. The message? AI is a powerful tool, like a chainsaw or a nuclear reactor—use it wisely.

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AI

YC-Backed Fintech Startup Blaze Hiring AI-Driven Software Engineer

2025-06-16
YC-Backed Fintech Startup Blaze Hiring AI-Driven Software Engineer

Blaze, a YC-backed fintech startup in Mexico City, is hiring a Junior Software Engineer. The role involves leveraging AI tools like Cursor to accelerate the development of their payment platform's front-end and back-end. Ideal candidates will possess strong JavaScript, React, and AI development tool knowledge, and a passion for fintech. Blaze offers competitive compensation, equity, and the opportunity to grow in a fast-paced environment.

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Development

Napster Faces $3.4M Copyright Lawsuit Over Sonos Radio

2025-06-18

Napster, once synonymous with music piracy, is facing a new copyright challenge. SoundExchange is suing Napster and Sonos for over $3.4 million in unpaid royalties related to the Sonos Radio service, which used Napster's music catalog until 2023. The lawsuit highlights Napster's complex journey from a P2P file-sharing pioneer to a legal streaming service, showcasing its tumultuous evolution in the digital music landscape and its ongoing struggle with copyright issues.

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Tech

arXivLabs: Experimental Projects with Community Collaboration

2025-02-09
arXivLabs: Experimental Projects with Community Collaboration

arXivLabs is a framework enabling collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on the website. Individuals and organizations involved uphold arXiv's values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only partners with those who share them. Have an idea to enhance the arXiv community? Learn more about arXivLabs.

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Tech

Breaking Math.random(): An Improved Algorithm for Inverting Xorshift128+

2025-09-04
Breaking Math.random(): An Improved Algorithm for Inverting Xorshift128+

The recent vulnerability CVE-2025-7783 exploits an edge case in the Node.js ecosystem, affecting applications using axios or the deprecated request library. The attack requires five consecutive outputs of JavaScript's Math.random(), allowing prediction of future outputs using the z3 solver. This blog post presents a more efficient approach. The author demonstrates a 226-operation algorithm to invert the Xorshift128+ algorithm used by Math.random(), requiring only two full 64-bit outputs. By analyzing Xorshift128+, knowing only the least significant 26 bits of R1 allows determining the remaining bits of L1 and R2. The post also discusses adapting this to the full Math.random() function, highlighting challenges due to bit truncation and proposing a solution using three outputs. Finally, the author shares their experience using ChatGPT for research, noting its potential while acknowledging current limitations.

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Development

HackberryPi_CM5: A Raspberry Pi CM5 Handheld with a Blackberry Keyboard Twist

2025-09-11
HackberryPi_CM5: A Raspberry Pi CM5 Handheld with a Blackberry Keyboard Twist

Zitao, a Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Design Master's student at the Technical University of Dresden, has created the HackberryPi_CM5, a portable computer. This unique device cleverly combines a Raspberry Pi CM5 compute module with a repurposed Blackberry keyboard, resulting in a retro-futuristic handheld. Housed in an aluminum case, it boasts dual speakers, a 2242 NVMe slot, a 5000mAh battery, and MagSafe-compatible magnetic charging. The open-source project provides 3D printable models and detailed tutorials, aiming to deepen users' understanding of Linux and hardware architecture.

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Hardware Blackberry

Cambridge Blockchain Network Sustainability Index: Bitcoin Mining Map Reveals Energy Consumption Patterns

2024-12-12

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) released a mining map visualizing global Bitcoin mining energy consumption as part of the Cambridge Blockchain Network Sustainability Index. The map shows the share of Bitcoin mining hashrate by country and region, revealing a seasonal migration pattern of Chinese miners between ‘dry’ and ‘wet’ seasons to leverage cheaper hydropower. However, this migration pattern likely ended after the Chinese government crackdown on the mining industry in June 2021. The research is based on geolocation mining facility data collected in partnership with several Bitcoin mining pools and acknowledges contributions from BTC.com, Poolin, ViaBTC, and Foundry.

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