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Coder's Million-Dollar Mistake: A Bug with a Dramatic Twist

2024-12-16

Coder's Million-Dollar Mistake: A Bug with a Dramatic Twist

Trey, a programmer working for a 3G telecom startup, wrote an automated payment testing program intended for small test transactions. Three bugs in the code, however, caused the program to credit his test account with $100 every five minutes. A lack of liveness check meant that when one gateway failed, the program continued running for hours, accumulating a substantial sum. The next morning, Trey faced questioning from the security team until his department head explained the situation, but the test account balance was reset to zero.

(www.theregister.com)

Development programmer error automated payments

Code Review Hack: Ask Engineers "How Do You Like What You've Built?"

2025-01-06

During a code review of complex UI changes, instead of immediately reviewing, the author asked the engineer, "How do you like the new behavior?" The engineer's response led to the discovery and fixing of several bugs and even dropping a problematic requirement. This simple question prompted the engineer to think more deeply about their work and make improvements, ultimately enhancing code quality. The author believes that regularly asking engineers about their feelings towards their creations is a useful technique worth trying.

(morrisbrodersen.de)

Development code review

WordPress in Turmoil: Mullenweg's Actions Shake the Foundation

2025-01-21

WordPress in Turmoil: Mullenweg's Actions Shake the Foundation

A conflict between WordPress creator Matt Mullenweg and hosting company WP Engine is threatening the future of WordPress. Mullenweg's aggressive actions, including banning WP Engine, offering severance packages to dissenting employees, and drastically reducing contributions to the open-source project, have sparked community backlash and a lawsuit. This turmoil undermines WordPress's stability and raises concerns about its future direction, even pushing users and developers towards alternatives. The core issue is a clash between open-source governance and commercial interests, with far-reaching implications for the tech industry.

(digitalcxo.com)

Development community conflict

Microsoft's Xbox ROG Ally: Entering the Portable Gaming Fray

2025-08-22

Microsoft's Xbox ROG Ally: Entering the Portable Gaming Fray

Microsoft's Xbox ROG Ally handheld console, developed in partnership with Asus, is making waves at Gamescom. Targeted at hardcore gamers, the Ally boasts familiar Xbox controls and aims to expand the Xbox ecosystem, encouraging existing Xbox and PC owners to play more, thus increasing engagement and spending. With the Switch 2's strong launch and the existing Steam Deck competition, Microsoft is vying for a piece of the portable gaming market and boosting Game Pass subscriptions. Sony, meanwhile, remains on the sidelines, offering only the streaming-focused PlayStation Portal. The Ally's release date is October 16th, but pricing remains undisclosed.

(sg.finance.yahoo.com)

Game Handheld Console

20 Lines of Code to Outperform A/B Testing

2025-01-13

Tired of inefficient A/B testing? This article introduces an algorithm based on the multi-armed bandit problem that significantly improves website optimization with just 20 lines of code. By tracking the reward of each choice and incorporating random exploration, the algorithm quickly finds the best option and continuously uses it until a better one emerges. This method handles multiple options simultaneously, adapts to change, and eliminates the need for constant monitoring and adjustments, saving significant time and effort. Say goodbye to inefficient A/B testing and embrace smarter website optimization!

(stevehanov.ca)

Development website optimization multi-armed bandit

BleachBit: Reclaim Disk Space and Enhance Privacy

2025-02-19

Running out of disk space? BleachBit quickly frees up disk space and safeguards your privacy. It cleans cache, deletes cookies, clears browsing history, shreds temporary files, removes logs, and discards junk you didn't know existed. Supporting Linux and Windows, it works with thousands of applications including Firefox, Adobe Flash, Google Chrome, Opera, and more. Advanced features include secure file shredding, wiping free disk space, and Firefox optimization for speed. Better than free, BleachBit is open source.

(www.bleachbit.org)

Development disk cleanup

Turing's Secret Wartime Project: Unveiling the Portable Voice Encryption System 'Delilah'

2025-02-04

$Turing's Secret Wartime Project: Unveiling the Portable Voice Encryption System 'Delilah'$

After WWII's victory in Europe, Alan Turing's assistant, Donald Bayley, learned of a secret project: the 'Delilah' portable voice encryption system. Recently, a cache of Turing's wartime papers, the 'Bayley papers,' sold for nearly half a million US dollars, revealing Delilah's secrets. This compact, 39kg device used a stream of pseudorandom numbers to encrypt speech, its core being a Turing-designed key generator based on multivibrators—an incredibly innovative feat for the time. The papers reveal Turing's exceptional skills in electrical engineering, adding a new dimension to his legacy beyond mathematics and computer science. They highlight his prowess as a creative and resourceful engineer.

(spectrum.ieee.org)

Tech Turing Voice Encryption

Slimy Brain Barrier Holds Key to Combating Ageing

2025-03-02

Slimy Brain Barrier Holds Key to Combating Ageing

A study in mice reveals that a slimy barrier lining brain blood vessels, composed of mucins, deteriorates with age, potentially allowing harmful molecules into brain tissue and triggering inflammation. Restoring this barrier through gene therapy reduced brain inflammation and improved learning and memory in aged mice. This research highlights a potential therapeutic target for age-related diseases like Alzheimer's.

(www.nature.com)

Tech brain blood vessels mucins

Immutable Linux Distros: Are They Right for You?

2024-12-25

Immutable Linux Distros: Are They Right for You?

This article explores immutable Linux distributions, which enhance stability and security by locking down the core system as read-only. It explains the concept, advantages, and selection criteria for immutable distros, recommending several desktop and server options like Fedora Silverblue, Vanilla OS, and openSUSE Aeon. The author shares personal experiences and discusses the differences between immutable distros and traditional ones, along with snapshot tools like Timeshift and Btrfs. In essence, immutable Linux distros offer a compelling alternative for users prioritizing stability and security, trading some flexibility for a more maintenance-free experience.

(linuxblog.io)

Development Linux distributions immutable systems system stability

America's Healthcare System: A Total Breakdown, Beyond Insurance Companies

2024-12-14

America's Healthcare System: A Total Breakdown, Beyond Insurance Companies

The American healthcare system is broken, and the problem extends far beyond insurance companies. An oncologist argues that pharmaceutical firms, PBMs (pharmacy benefit managers), the FDA, CMS, hospitals, and doctors all share responsibility. Pharmaceutical companies push unproven drugs, PBMs profit excessively, regulators are lax, hospitals charge exorbitant fees and engage in predatory practices, and doctors order unnecessary tests and treatments. While insurance companies are frustrating, they are a scapegoat for a larger systemic issue. The author calls for sweeping reforms of the FDA and CMS to end corporate capture of regulatory agencies, addressing the high costs and inefficiency of the US healthcare system. The recent assassination of an insurance CEO highlights public frustration with the system.

(www.sensible-med.com)

Misc healthcare reform healthcare costs US healthcare

A Decade of Grief: Unbearable Loss

2025-02-14

A Decade of Grief: Unbearable Loss

Sixteen years ago today, the author's second daughter was born; ten years ago today, she died on her sixth birthday. The piece describes the author's reflections on this day, the day his daughter would have turned sixteen, a decade after her death. The author visits her grave and attends a final memorial service at Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple, a place that held special meaning for her, before its closure adds another layer of sadness. The author confesses that a decade later, the pain of losing his daughter persists, and the guilt of feeling he 'failed his child in the most fundamental way' remains.

(meyerweb.com)

Misc loss

Virtual Pipes: A Simple and Efficient Method for Simulating Water Over Terrain

2025-02-06

Virtual Pipes: A Simple and Efficient Method for Simulating Water Over Terrain

This article introduces a simple and efficient method for simulating water flow over terrain in games – the virtual pipes method. Based on shallow water equations and using a staggered grid, this method treats water flow as columns connected by imaginary pipes. Water flow is accelerated based on water level differences, and outflow scaling prevents negative water amounts. The author details the three steps: flow acceleration, outflow scaling, and water column updating, providing code examples. This method is easy to understand, computationally efficient, and suitable for games requiring terrain modification and water simulation, such as city builders. While it has limitations such as lacking inertia and velocity diffusion, it's practical for most game scenarios.

(lisyarus.github.io)

Development water simulation

Massive Data Breach: 190 Million Americans Affected by Change Healthcare Ransomware Attack

2025-01-25

Massive Data Breach: 190 Million Americans Affected by Change Healthcare Ransomware Attack

UnitedHealth Group confirmed that a ransomware attack on its subsidiary, Change Healthcare, in February 2024 affected approximately 190 million Americans – nearly double previous estimates. The attack resulted in the theft of massive amounts of sensitive health and insurance data, including names, addresses, birthdates, Social Security numbers, and medical records. Some data was even published online by the hackers. Change Healthcare paid ransoms to prevent further data release. This is the largest healthcare data breach in US history, highlighting critical vulnerabilities in the healthcare system's cybersecurity.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech healthcare security

Predictable Crowd Behavior: Insights from Pamplona's Running of the Bulls

2025-02-16

Predictable Crowd Behavior: Insights from Pamplona's Running of the Bulls

A study published in Nature reveals that the collective movement of large crowds becomes predictable above a certain density. Researchers tracked approximately 5,000 people at Spain's San Fermín festival for four years, using cameras and a mathematical model. They found that at a density of 9 people per square meter, the crowd spontaneously oscillated like a fluid with an 18-second period. This predictable behavior, also observed in data from the 2010 Duisburg Love Parade tragedy, offers valuable insights for anticipating and mitigating dangerous crowd dynamics in confined spaces.

(phys.org)

Tech collective motion safety management

arXivLabs: Experimenting with Community Collaboration

2025-02-01

arXivLabs is a framework enabling collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on the 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. Got an idea for a project that will benefit the arXiv community? Learn more about arXivLabs.

(arxiv.org)

Tech

Rwandan Scientists Develop Local Yeast for Banana Winemakers

2025-02-09

Rwandan Scientists Develop Local Yeast for Banana Winemakers

Banana wine production in Rwanda has long faced challenges with yeast selection, impacting both quality and regulatory approval. Scientists have developed a new yeast strain derived from local raw materials, preserving the traditional flavor of banana wine while withstanding high temperatures and alcohol concentrations. This breakthrough promises to standardize banana wine production, reduce costs, and boost Rwanda's burgeoning banana wine industry.

(phys.org)

Tech Food Technology African Tech

Open-Source Laptop Design: A Journey into the Hidden Knowledge of Consumer Electronics

2025-03-30

An engineer embarks on a challenging project: designing a completely open-source laptop. The goal is to share the design process, knowledge gained, and promote repairable, upgradeable, and sustainable electronics. He believes that consumer electronics hold a wealth of hidden knowledge, and open-source projects can lower the barrier to entry for learning and innovation. The project will cover electronics design, thermal management, mechanical design, high-speed PCB design, and more, offering complete source files, documentation, and community support. This is not only a technical challenge but also an attempt to drive sustainable development in the industry.

(resources.altium.com)

Development laptop design

Is the Reign of Knowledge Work Over? AI and Policy Shifts Fuel White-Collar Job Losses

2025-03-30

Is the Reign of Knowledge Work Over? AI and Policy Shifts Fuel White-Collar Job Losses

The unemployment rate for college graduates has risen faster than for other workers in recent years, sparking concerns about the future of knowledge work. Layoffs in tech and finance, fueled by AI advancements and government policy changes under the Trump administration (reducing funding for research and education), have contributed to significant job losses. While overall unemployment remains low, the increasing automation of white-collar jobs and reduced demand for college graduates raise questions about the long-term prospects of this sector.

(www.boston.com)

Tech

Bambu Connect's X.509 Certificate and Private Key Extracted

2025-01-20

Bambu Connect's X.509 Certificate and Private Key Extracted

Following Bambu Lab's announcement of locking down network access to its X1-series 3D printers with new firmware, the X.509 certificate and private key from the Bambu Connect application have been extracted by hWuxH. This application was intended to be the sole method for third-party software to send print jobs to Bambu Lab hardware. The Bambu Connect app, a relatively simple Electron application, employed obfuscation and encryption, but not enough to deter determined users. The de-obfuscated main.js file reveals the certificate and private key used to encrypt HTTP traffic with the printer, the only obstacle preventing tools like OrcaSlicer from communicating with authentication-enabled Bambu Lab printers. Bambu Lab's next steps are unclear, highlighting the ineffectiveness of security through obfuscation alone.

(hackaday.com)

Hardware 3D printer security X.509 certificate private key leak

Port of Coherent UNIX's `lc` Command

2025-01-10

Port of Coherent UNIX's `lc` Command

This GitHub project is a port of the `lc` command-line utility from Mark Williams Company's Coherent UNIX. `lc` lists files in categories and columns. This port adds support for symbolic links. It's a handy tool for managing and viewing files.

(github.com)

Development

The Brutal Truth About Udemy Instructor Earnings in 2024

2025-01-28

The Brutal Truth About Udemy Instructor Earnings in 2024

An in-depth analysis of 200,000 Udemy courses reveals a harsh reality for instructors: the average yearly income is only $3,306, with 75% earning less than $1,000 annually. A mere 1% achieve a full-time income (>$50K/year). The top 1% of instructors receive over 50% of all earnings, while the bottom 50% earn less than 1%. New instructors joining since 2020 average just $2,100 annually, significantly less than those who joined before 2020 ($5,400). Udemy's shift towards B2B business exacerbates inequality, with most courses excluded from Udemy Business and experiencing drastically reduced income. The study concludes that success on Udemy is exceptionally challenging for most instructors, recommending income diversification.

(sellcoursesonline.com)

Startup Online Courses Earnings

Visualizing Concurrency: A Guide to Understanding Program State Space

2024-12-20

Concurrent programming is notoriously complex due to the difficulty of enumerating all possible states. This article uses visualization to explain how to understand the mechanics of concurrent program execution. It begins by introducing the concept of program state, which is a combination of variable values and instruction location, and then demonstrates the transition process of program states and the generation of state space using a simple C-like program example. The article then introduces concurrent programs, and, using two concurrently executing programs, P and Q, it explains how to represent the state of a concurrent program and the construction of the state space. Finally, the article explores how to use the model checking tool SPIN and the LTL language to verify the correctness of concurrent programs, highlighting the important role of model checking in ensuring the correctness of concurrent programs.

(wyounas.github.io)

Development state space model checking

Keyboard Company Halts US Shipments Due to Trump Tariffs

2025-02-06

Keyboard Company Halts US Shipments Due to Trump Tariffs

Mechanical keyboard company Qwertykeys has temporarily suspended all shipments to the US due to President Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods. The 45% tariff increase, coupled with DHL's new requirement for a 50% prepayment of declared value plus a $21 processing fee per package, makes shipping unsustainable. Qwertykeys is pausing shipments for 72 hours to negotiate with DHL and other logistics providers for fairer solutions. The company also faced temporary delays in sending replacement parts due to a now-reversed US Postal Service suspension of packages from China.

(www.theverge.com)

Hardware trade war

t4t: A Social Network for Trans and Gender-Non-Conforming Individuals

2025-01-23

t4t: A Social Network for Trans and Gender-Non-Conforming Individuals

t4t is a social network specifically designed for transgender and gender-non-conforming individuals. It's a free, minimalist, text-based platform. Recent posts reveal a diverse range of experiences, from daily life updates like cooking and car maintenance to more personal and vulnerable moments expressing financial struggles, loneliness, and desires. The platform provides a space for connection and support within the trans community, showcasing both the everyday joys and challenges faced by its members.

(t4t.social)

Misc LGBTQ+ social network transgender gender non-conforming

Listen Notes' 2025 Tech Stack: From Single-Page App to Profitable Podcast Empire

2025-03-05

Listen Notes' 2025 Tech Stack: From Single-Page App to Profitable Podcast Empire

Listen Notes, launched in 2017 as a simple podcast search engine, has evolved into a mature product with a massive database and three user interfaces by 2025. This post details its tech stack, encompassing backend (Python, Django, uwsgi, Nginx), frontend (React, Tailwind), databases (Postgres, Elasticsearch, Redis, ClickHouse), and cloud services (AWS, Google Cloud, Cloudflare). It also shares operational insights, including finance, legal, HR, and marketing, offering valuable lessons for small software companies.

(www.listennotes.fm)

Startup podcast

Revisited: JTAG 'Hacking' of the Original Xbox After 20 Years

2025-01-20

Revisited: JTAG 'Hacking' of the Original Xbox After 20 Years

This blog post details the author's successful attempt to 'hack' the original Xbox using its Intel Pentium III CPU's JTAG interface. The original Xbox's security relied on a 512-byte secret bootrom hidden within the NVIDIA MCPX Southbridge. While early researchers considered using the CPU's JTAG capabilities, it was deemed impractical due to the TRST# pin being grounded. The author designed a custom CPU interposer PCB to circumvent this, and using a vintage CodeTAP debugger, successfully dumped the secret bootrom via JTAG, proving a 20-year-old theory. This work is historically significant and provides valuable experience and resources for x86 JTAG research.

(blog.ret2.io)

Hardware Original Xbox

Local-First & Ejectable Apps: The Future of Data Ownership

2025-03-16

Cloud apps offer convenience, but traditional desktop software provides better data ownership. 'Ejectable' apps bridge this gap, letting users self-host the backend sync server. This means saving a workspace and downloading a server executable, allowing seamless switching between cloud and local versions. Data remains accessible even if the cloud service shuts down, ensuring longevity like classic apps like DOOM.EXE. The author highlights Thymer as an example of this approach.

(thymer.com)

Development ejectable apps data ownership

DeepSeek R1 Brings AI to the Edge on Copilot+ PCs

2025-02-01

DeepSeek R1 Brings AI to the Edge on Copilot+ PCs

Microsoft is bringing the power of AI to the edge with DeepSeek R1, now optimized for Copilot+ PCs powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon and Intel Core Ultra processors. Leveraging the Neural Processing Unit (NPU), DeepSeek R1 runs efficiently on-device, enabling faster response times and lower power consumption. Developers can easily integrate the model using the AI Toolkit to build native AI applications. This initial release of DeepSeek R1-Distill-Qwen-1.5B, along with upcoming 7B and 14B variants, showcases the potential of edge AI for efficient inference and continuously running services.

(blogs.windows.com)

AI Edge AI

C++26: Removed and Deprecated Features Roundup

2025-03-20

C++26 is removing or deprecating several features. These include the complete removal of the `std::allocator` typedef deprecated in C++20, and the no-argument overload of `std::basic_string::reserve()`; removal of deprecated Unicode conversion utilities and `std::strtok`; removal of aged `strstreams` and `std::shared_ptr` atomic access APIs; and removal of `std::wstring_convert`. Additionally, `std::is_trivial` is deprecated, with suggestions to use the more precise `is_trivially_XXX` alternatives; and `std::memory_order::consume` is deprecated due to unsatisfactory specification and implementation difficulties. These removals and deprecations aim to improve language safety and efficiency, and clean up outdated functionality.

(www.sandordargo.com)

Development language features deprecation

Nostr Protocol Basics: Events, Signatures, and Communication

2024-12-23

Nostr Protocol Basics: Events, Signatures, and Communication

Nostr's NIP-01 outlines its core mechanics. Each user has a keypair, using Schnorr signatures on the secp256k1 curve. The core is the event, containing fields like ID, pubkey, timestamp, kind, tags, content, and signature. The event ID is the SHA256 hash of the serialized event data. Tags reference other events or users, with three standard tags defined: e (references an event), p (references a user), and a (references an addressable event). Event kinds define their meaning; NIP-01 defines two basic kinds: user metadata and text notes, and specifies how different kind ranges are handled (regular, replaceable, ephemeral, and addressable). Clients communicate with relays via websockets, sending events, requesting events, and closing subscriptions. Relays return events matching filters and send OK, EOSE, CLOSED, and NOTICE messages.

(github.com)

AI blockchain decentralized social

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