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Immich's Developers Share Their 'Cursed Knowledge'

2025-08-08

Immich's Developers Share Their 'Cursed Knowledge'

The Immich team recounts a series of frustrating, almost cursed, development challenges. From Zitadel's scripting engine lacking named capture groups, to EXIF metadata dimensions differing from actual image dimensions; from the unintuitive handling of YAML whitespace to the access restrictions on hidden Windows files; from carriage return issues in bash scripts to Cloudflare Workers' default HTTP protocol in Fetch requests; from silent GPS data stripping on mobile devices to PostgreSQL NOTIFY's transactional mechanism impacting performance; from inefficient npm script health checks to the confusing indexing in JavaScript Date objects; to bcrypt password length limits, Node.js compatibility problems, PostgreSQL parameter limitations, and TypeORM's side effects in delete operations – the list goes on. These issues highlight the hidden pitfalls and challenges of software development, offering valuable lessons learned.

(immich.app)

Development

Fanaka: Bridging the Gap for African Tech Professionals

2025-05-25

African professionals face challenges in the tech industry due to underrepresentation and cultural differences. Fanaka, meaning 'success' in Swahili, is a handbook designed to help overcome these obstacles. Drawing on years of experience from successful African professionals and their colleagues, Fanaka offers guidance and advice to navigate the industry and achieve career success.

(fanaka.readthedocs.io)

Tech

BlackSheep: A Fast and Lightweight ASGI Web Framework for Python

2024-12-18

BlackSheep: A Fast and Lightweight ASGI Web Framework for Python

BlackSheep is a fast asynchronous ASGI web framework for Python, inspired by Flask, ASP.NET Core, and the work of Yury Selivanov. It offers a CLI for rapid project bootstrapping, supports automatic binding, dependency injection, OpenAPI documentation generation, and various authentication and authorization strategies. BlackSheep boasts broad platform and runtime compatibility, and features middleware, WebSocket, SSE, static file serving, and Jinja2 integration, making it ideal for building high-performance web applications.

(github.com)

Development Web Framework Asynchronous

Babylonian Eclipse Omens: Dark Predictions from Ancient Astronomy

2025-01-09

Babylonian Eclipse Omens: Dark Predictions from Ancient Astronomy

Newly deciphered Babylonian clay tablets from 1900-1600 BC reveal the earliest known records of lunar eclipse omens. These omens are overwhelmingly ominous, predicting everything from pestilence and famine to the death of kings. The Babylonians believed the sky mirrored the earth, making eclipses dire warnings of divine displeasure. While mostly foretelling doom, kings could attempt to avert fate through rituals and even using substitutes to bear the brunt of the ill omen. This discovery offers a fascinating glimpse into ancient worldviews and how celestial events were interpreted.

(archaeology.org)

Tech Ancient Babylon Lunar Eclipse Divination

Versioning vs. Coordination in Distributed Databases: Coordination's Killer

2025-02-08

This article explores the advantages of versioning over coordination mechanisms when building highly available, low-latency, and scalable distributed database systems. Through a concrete example, the author demonstrates how versioning avoids concurrency issues and scalability bottlenecks caused by locking. Versioning creates multiple versions of data, allowing concurrent transactions to access data without blocking each other, thus improving system performance and throughput. The article delves into version selection and management mechanisms, explaining how Aurora DSQL uses physical clocks to avoid coordination, ultimately achieving a high-performance and highly available distributed database system.

(brooker.co.za)

Development versioning coordination

xAI's Grok 3: Scale Trumps Cleverness in the AI Race

2025-02-20

xAI's Grok 3: Scale Trumps Cleverness in the AI Race

xAI's Grok 3 large language model has demonstrated exceptional performance in benchmark tests, even surpassing models from established labs like OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Anthropic. This reinforces the 'Bitter Lesson' – scale in training surpasses algorithmic optimization. The article uses DeepSeek as an example, showing that even with limited computational resources, optimization can yield good results, but this doesn't negate the importance of scale. Grok 3's success lies in its use of a massive computing cluster with 100,000 H100 GPUs, highlighting the crucial role of powerful computing resources in the AI field. The article concludes that future AI competition will be fiercer, with companies possessing ample funding and computational resources holding a significant advantage.

(www.thealgorithmicbridge.com)

AI scale training

Hand-Counting Ballots: A Threat to Election Accuracy?

2025-08-19

Hand-Counting Ballots: A Threat to Election Accuracy?

A growing number of states are considering banning electronic tabulators and mandating hand-counting of ballots. However, studies show that hand-counting leads to significantly higher error rates (up to 25%), increased costs, and substantial delays. For example, Nye County, Nevada's 2022 hand count resulted in a 25% error rate, and a similar bill in Arizona was only vetoed by the governor. This not only threatens election accuracy and security but also fuels voter concerns about corruption. The article advocates for the continued use of electronic tabulators, supplemented by post-election audits to ensure timely and accurate results.

(votingrightslab.org)

Misc election hand counting electronic tabulators

Streamlining Monorepo Development with Turborepo and pnpm

2025-08-20

Streamlining Monorepo Development with Turborepo and pnpm

This guide outlines best practices for developing, testing, and submitting code within a Turborepo-based monorepo. It covers efficient methods for navigating, installing, and creating new React packages using pnpm, leveraging Vitest for targeted testing, and ensuring code quality with ESLint and TypeScript. The guide emphasizes running linters and tests before commits and provides a clear PR title format.

(agents.md)

Development

Taming LLMs: A Practical Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls

2024-12-12

This book, "Taming LLMs," delves into the key limitations and implementation pitfalls encountered by engineers and technical product managers when building LLM-powered applications. Instead of focusing solely on capabilities, it tackles practical challenges such as handling unstructured output, managing context windows, and cost optimization. With reproducible Python code examples and battle-tested open-source tools, it provides a practical guide to navigating these challenges, allowing readers to harness the power of LLMs while sidestepping their inherent limitations.

(www.souzatharsis.com)

Development Large Language Models Open Source Software LLM Application Development

Heaney's Letters: A Poet's Life and Struggles

2025-05-30

This collection of Seamus Heaney's letters offers a fascinating glimpse into the life of one of Ireland's most celebrated poets. From his early struggles to his Nobel Prize win, the letters reveal the complexities of his journey. We see his friendships with other poets, his reflections on his work, his thoughts on life and death, and his conflicted feelings about fame and the demands of public life. Heaney's witty and poetic style shines through, revealing a man who was both deeply thoughtful and surprisingly humorous. The letters offer a compelling portrait of a poet grappling with the challenges of success while maintaining his integrity and compassion.

(salmagundi.skidmore.edu)

Misc

Saying Goodbye to CSS Classes: Building a Classless Website

2025-09-18

Saying Goodbye to CSS Classes: Building a Classless Website

Following a previous post advocating for leveraging browser built-in elements, the author put this philosophy into practice by completely removing all CSS classes from his personal website. He experimented with more granular default styles, nested selectors, modern CSS features like `:where()` and `:has()`, and custom elements and attributes as replacements. While this requires more careful planning and isn't suitable for all projects, the experiment led the author to question the necessity of CSS classes and has had a lasting influence on his future work. A small concession was made for a syntax highlighting plugin which utilizes classes.

(aaadaaam.com)

Development Custom Elements

GitHub Code Suggestion Application Restrictions

2025-07-19

GitHub Code Suggestion Application Restrictions

Applying code suggestions in bulk during GitHub code review is subject to several limitations. These include: no code changes made, the pull request is closed, viewing a subset of changes, only one suggestion per line, applying to deleted lines, suggestions already applied or marked resolved, suggestions from pending reviews, multi-line comments, and pull requests queued to merge. Additionally, there are instances where the action cannot be performed due to an unspecified error.

(github.com)

Development

OpenBSD's Security Journey: From IPSec to Immutable Memory

2025-02-22

This article details the evolution of software and security concepts developed and maintained by the OpenBSD project, spanning from 1993 to 2024. OpenBSD has consistently been at the forefront of security, and this overview highlights its numerous security features, including IPSec, IPv6, privilege separation, privilege revocation, stack protector, W^X, ASLR, PIE, random-data memory, SROP mitigation, library order randomization, and the cutting-edge immutable memory. These features combine to create OpenBSD's robust security architecture, providing users with a strong security foundation.

(www.openbsd.org)

Tech

arXivLabs: Experimental Projects with Community Collaborators

2025-03-27

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

(arxiv.org)

Development

Starlink Sells Out in Zimbabwe Amidst High Demand

2024-12-17

Starlink Sells Out in Zimbabwe Amidst High Demand

Starlink's high-speed satellite internet service quickly sold out in Zimbabwe within weeks of its launch, driven by the country's slow, unreliable, and expensive traditional internet infrastructure. High demand led to sell-outs in major cities like Harare, and even spread to other African countries. Despite higher initial costs, Starlink's unlimited data and superior speeds are proving attractive to many, forcing local providers to lower their prices. While currently facing capacity issues in urban areas, Starlink's potential in rural and underserved regions is significant, boosting related industries such as installation services and accessory sales.

(restofworld.org)

Tech satellite internet Zimbabwe

FDA Approves Novel Analgesic, Challenging Opioid Dominance?

2025-02-01

FDA Approves Novel Analgesic, Challenging Opioid Dominance?

The FDA has approved Vertex Pharmaceuticals' Journavx, a new pain medication designed to eliminate the risks of addiction and overdose associated with opioids. Journavx works differently than opioids, blocking proteins that trigger pain signals before they reach the brain. Trials showed it was more effective than a placebo, but not significantly better than a common opioid-acetaminophen combination. Despite its high cost ($15.50 per pill), its non-opioid mechanism and potential offer a significant step in combating the opioid crisis. However, disappointing results in later-stage trials for chronic pain cast uncertainty on its future.

(apnews.com)

Tech new painkiller opioids FDA approval

Word2Vec's Secret Sauce: Bridging Traditional and Neural Methods

2025-02-17

Word2Vec's Secret Sauce: Bridging Traditional and Neural Methods

This blog post delves into the factors contributing to Word2Vec's success and its relationship with traditional word embedding models. By comparing models like GloVe, SVD, Skip-gram with Negative Sampling (SGNS), and PPMI, the author reveals that hyperparameter tuning is often more crucial than algorithm choice. The research demonstrates that traditional distributional semantic models (DSMs), with proper pre- and post-processing, can achieve performance comparable to neural network models. The article highlights the benefits of combining traditional and neural approaches, offering a fresh perspective on word embedding learning.

(www.ruder.io)

AI word embeddings word2vec distributional semantics

A Fast Bytecode VM for Arithmetic (Part 2): Compiler and Decompiler in Haskell

2025-08-28

A Fast Bytecode VM for Arithmetic (Part 2): Compiler and Decompiler in Haskell

This post, the second in a series, details a compiler and decompiler for a fast bytecode virtual machine for arithmetic expressions in Haskell. It explains why bytecode is faster than AST interpretation, designs a stack-based bytecode virtual machine, and outlines bytecode instructions for Num, BinOp, Var, and Let AST nodes. The compiler uses pre-allocated byte arrays and pointer manipulation for performance, with robust error handling. Performance benchmarks comparing various data structures and control flow are presented. Finally, a decompiler is implemented to aid debugging and testing.

(abhinavsarkar.net)

Development

Saying Goodbye to Static Site Generators: My Blog is Now Raw HTML

2025-02-10

Tired of the constant updates and compatibility issues with static site generators, my blog has gone through numerous iterations, finally settling on raw HTML, using md-block for Markdown and highlight.js for syntax highlighting. Built-in browser audio and video players, and the longevity of HTML, free me from theme compatibility headaches and ensure long-term content availability.

(devpoga.org)

Development

Maker Builds Laser Shooting Game: From Legoland Ride to ESP32-Powered Halloween Fun

2024-12-13

Maker Builds Laser Shooting Game: From Legoland Ride to ESP32-Powered Halloween Fun

Inspired by a Legoland Egyptian adventure ride, the author decided to create a similar shooting game. Using inexpensive ESP32 microprocessors, infrared laser guns, and homemade targets, he successfully built a Halloween-themed shooting game. Along the way, he learned Arduino and MicroPython programming, overcoming challenges in hardware connections, power supply, and communication. The game was a hit at school and home events. Future plans include improving target design, lighting effects, and circuit boards to enhance the gaming experience.

(blog.langworth.com)

Development Maker

dk coder: Empowering Non-Programmers to Build Secure Apps

2025-06-16

dk coder: Empowering Non-Programmers to Build Secure Apps

The dk coder is a script runner and cross-compiler designed for users with limited programming experience to build substantial, safety-focused applications. Its ease of use, portability, and IDE support tackles the 'README-itis' problem: lengthy READMEs deter users from installing, resulting in lost users. A Quick Walkthrough Guide introduces dk scripts with simple examples. Developers should consult the dk Runtime for supported Windows, macOS, and Linux versions. For scripting, refer to dk Parties for project organization and keep the dk Libraries and dk Macros manuals handy. Experienced OCaml users should check out the Coming From OCaml guide.

(diskuv.com)

Development script runner cross-compiler ease of use

Wayland Lock Screen Transformed into a Pokémon Puzzle

2025-08-12

Wayland Lock Screen Transformed into a Pokémon Puzzle

A Linux enthusiast has created a unique Wayland lock screen that replaces the password screen with a Game Boy emulator running a modified Pokémon game. Users unlock their session by solving a mini-puzzle within the game, offering a fun and engaging alternative to traditional password entry. The project demonstrates the high level of customization possible with Wayland. The developer delved into Wayland protocols, implemented a low-level Wayland window, and even modified the Pokémon game's assembly code to incorporate password logic. While experimental, this project showcases impressive creativity and technical skill, offering a fresh perspective on personalized system customization.

(github.com)

Development Lock Screen

Meta's Metaverse Gamble: $60B in Losses and Counting

2025-05-02

Meta's Metaverse Gamble: $60B in Losses and Counting

Meta's Reality Labs reported a $4.2 billion operating loss in Q1 2025, bringing cumulative losses since 2020 to over $60 billion. Reality Labs, responsible for Meta's Quest VR headsets and Ray-Ban smart glasses, is central to Mark Zuckerberg's metaverse vision. Wall Street's skepticism regarding Meta's massive metaverse investment is compounded by new tariffs, potentially driving up device prices. Recent layoffs at Oculus Studios, the unit creating VR/AR content for Quest, further highlight the challenges facing Zuckerberg's ambitious project.

(meta.slashdot.org)

Tech Metaverse Losses

Elm Property-Based Testing: Ensuring Coverage of Interesting Cases

2025-05-02

This article demonstrates how to use Test.Distribution in Elm to ensure property-based tests cover interesting cases. The author uses a queue implementation example to show how Test.reportDistribution generates distribution reports of test data and how Test.expectDistribution enforces expected distributions. This allows developers to more precisely control test coverage, preventing important test cases from being missed due to uneven data distribution. The article also mentions Fuzz.examples and Fuzz.labelExamples functions, which help developers better understand and debug test data.

(martin.janiczek.cz)

Development

Elon Musk's Government Reform Attempt: A Battle Against Bureaucracy

2024-12-15

Elon Musk's Government Reform Attempt: A Battle Against Bureaucracy

This article explores Elon Musk's attempts to reform government inefficiency. The author argues that Democrats haven't prioritized addressing government inefficiency, and Musk's intervention is not a solution but may exacerbate the problem. Insiders are watching Musk's reform attempts with skepticism, believing that even billionaires can't easily shake the entrenched bureaucratic system. The article points out that lengthy legal procedures and resistance from vested interests are huge obstacles to reform, and the courts also play a significant role in worsening the problem. Ultimately, the author calls for a re-evaluation of government reform strategies and a clear understanding of the difficulty and complexity of reform.

(www.eatingpolicy.com)

Misc government reform bureaucracy Elon Musk

GAO Slams Federal Agencies for Cybersecurity Failures

2025-08-06

GAO Slams Federal Agencies for Cybersecurity Failures

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued scathing reports criticizing three federal agencies—the General Services Administration (GSA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—for their CIOs' failure to implement cybersecurity recommendations. DHS has 43 outstanding recommendations, seven prioritized by GAO; EPA has 11; and GSA has 4. Common failures include inadequate cybersecurity event logging and IT portfolio reviews. The EPA faces additional issues with cloud software management, lacking documentation and service level agreements. DHS's Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology (HART) program remains plagued with problems, with all nine recommendations unimplemented. The GAO hopes newly appointed CIOs will address these shortcomings, and has brought the issues to Congress's attention.

(www.theregister.com)

Tech government accountability IT management

We Built Loneliness Machines and Called Them Smart

2025-06-14

We Built Loneliness Machines and Called Them Smart

Since the advent of smartphones in 2010, they've become ubiquitous, yet this pervasiveness comes at a steep cost. This article argues that excessive smartphone use leads to addiction, loneliness, depression, and damage to mental and physical health. Furthermore, smartphones exacerbate social divisions and political polarization. While an outright ban is unrealistic, the author suggests collective action to mitigate their negative effects, including promoting a "right to disconnect", to regain freedom and well-being.

(jacobin.com)

Tech digital well-being

White House Establishes Department of Government Efficiency

2025-01-21

White House Establishes Department of Government Efficiency

On January 20, 2025, the President issued an executive order establishing the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to modernize federal technology and software, boosting governmental efficiency and productivity. The order renames and reorganizes the United States Digital Service into the U.S. DOGE Service (USDS), creating a temporary organization to implement an 18-month DOGE agenda. Each agency will form a DOGE team to collaborate with USDS on software modernization and improving network infrastructure and IT systems.

(www.whitehouse.gov)

Tech Government Efficiency Technology Modernization Executive Order

Say Goodbye to Dependency Headaches: Simplifying Python Script Distribution with uv and PEP 723

2025-03-28

Tired of managing external library dependencies for your single-file Python scripts? This article shows how uv and PEP 723 make distribution a breeze. By embedding dependency metadata directly into your script, uv eliminates the need for `requirements.txt` and complex package managers. It automatically creates isolated virtual environments, installs dependencies, and runs your script—all without manual intervention. Adding a shebang makes execution even easier, directly launching your script from anywhere.

(thisdavej.com)

Development

Espanso: A Cross-Platform Text Expander in Rust

2025-05-17

Espanso: A Cross-Platform Text Expander in Rust

Espanso is a cross-platform text expander written in Rust. It detects keywords and replaces them with predefined text, boosting productivity. Features include saving typing time, creating system-wide code snippets, executing custom scripts, easy emoji use, and broad compatibility (Windows, macOS, Linux, most applications). It supports images, a powerful search bar, date expansion, custom scripts, shell commands, app-specific configurations, forms, package expansion, a built-in package manager, file-based configuration, regex triggers, and experimental Wayland support. This free, open-source project, created by Federico Terzi, is licensed under GPL-3.0.

(github.com)

Development text expansion

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