svjunkie's comments

What's the problem you're trying to solve? It's hard for anyone to give useful advice without any more context.

That said, I recommend whichever language is easiest for you. I use R and have not fully learned Python, so I have an obvious bias. If you're performing complicated statistical analysis, I'd recommend R, but for more traditional programming, I get the impression that Python interfaces more efficiently with other languages.

Non-professional content creation apps are already available in the Chrome web store. Aviary has a suite of audio-visual tools it offers, including vector image editing (I don't work for them or anything).

Agreed. It's all magic to me but it seems like, if this breakthrough can keep Moore's Law chugging, it's worth a pretty penny. I'm surprised their stock isn't up more today.

This item was posted on HN before, without the unnecessary editorial: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1506718

I haven't used the iPhone extensively, so I'm curious as to which of these, if any, seem to be missing from the iOS experience.

It actually sounded like a bit of a test as I read it. Sort of a second trial by fire, the interview being the first. It simulates the feeling of pressure (for some, at least) while the stakes are relatively low, making it easier to handle tough questions when the incubating company is pitching clients or future investors.

For a second, I thought this was an article about a new Star Trek series. And yes, I can feel the downvotes coming.

"Nobody's ever really lost money on real estate in China" - how can you short this market? Do they have entities analogous to REITs there?

Thanks for the response! My question actually stems from your blog post on zero-day Diaspora exploits and I appreciate the input. Guess I'll start with the obvious stuff and learn from mistakes as I go along.

I don't think video stores deserve to die because of their treatment of customers (though I'm too young to have had much experience renting from a brick&mortar store). I think they deserve to die because they refused to innovate as competitors built the infrastructure to overtake them. They scoffed as Netflix and Redbox built brands that would come to dominate the industry, yet their too-little-too-late offerings were not competitive with the newcomers despite having considerably more resources at one point.

The idea of an action always "resulting in a positive outcome" depends entirely upon the perspective of the person experiencing the outcome. When you step outside of your comfort zone, something will happen. You may find you love your new experience; you may find you hate it. Either way, you are likely to learn from it, and depending on your time horizon, the newly acquired knowledge may result in "positive" outcomes for years to come.

Consider the situation described by @vyrotek: quitting your job and devoting yourself fully to a startup. There's no guarantee that the startup will grow into a $100 million company or even a $1 million company. You may go into debt, you may lose friends, your girlfriend may leave you because you can no longer offer the stability of a "normal" job. Would that be a negative outcome? Again, it depends. Maybe your business ownership experience makes you a prime candidate for chief executive at a scrappy new startup. Maybe your friends were more concerned with partying than with personal growth, and maybe your girlfriend was in love with your car instead of you.

Obviously, this example isn't all-encompassing and nobody can predict the future. Sometimes, you just need to act without knowing for sure if you're making the "right" choice, and then continually evaluate that choice as you accumulate new experiences. Nothing is permanent; if you take the leap of faith into the startup world you can always return to the job market later. Of course, in this economy it may take you 8-12 months to find a new job so it's wise to have some savings to fall back on.

I stepped out of my comfort zone by moving to a completely new city and then deciding to purchase a franchise business with a friend. I was extremely unsure about both decisions, but I'm glad I moved forward with both. The franchise has been a trying experience, straining my friendship as well as my wallet. However, we're starting to make money and get into a rhythm - an opportunity I wouldn't have had if I hadn't decided to jump in headfirst. There are days I hate where I am, but the experience I gain every day is invaluable, and I'll cherish it for the rest of my life.

Who wants to start an HN team?

Disclaimer: I'm an amateur in every sense of the word but eager to learn. A Craigslist API could make for some really cool mashups but many of those could probably also be created using the RSS feeds they provide. Do you see any substantial advantage to a distinct Craigslist API?

Karma isn't necessarily about conforming to majority views because (and I've especially practiced this at HN) it is completely reasonable to upvote a comment you disagree with. Of course, not everyone would agree with Voltaire, but I have seen enough civil disagreement within this community to believe that "Karma" at HN works the way it was supposed to. Moreover, insight is gained by thinking and doing, and those insights are often enriched by discussion with those who bring other perspectives to the table. By "rewarding" people who contribute to productive discussion, we help to encourage the HN community to enrich our existing insights.

How did he arrive at the assumption that the connections are where Facebook derives the majority of its value? Doesn't most of its existing targeted advertising revolve around user-volunteered information, not information about users' connections?

Facebook is interesting in the event that any of its concepts around creating value really manage to take off. The concept of an open platform for app development could provide a model for next-gen end-user computing (barring net neutrality issues and the tubes getting clogged, etc.). Also, the virtual goods being exchanged on facebook and other online communities make up a billion dollar industry (http://www.marketingvox.com/virtual-goods-make-for-billion-d...).

I'm sure disclosure laws vary by country, but in the U.S. companies must provide this information to the SEC (via form 13-F and others).

On an unrelated note, I believe a better suited word in this case is "innocuous," not "inconspicuous."

This situation begs 2 1/2 questions:

1) Should the SEC attempt to regulate/audit/oversee companies whose ADRs trade on American stock exchanges, given that they have become so popular with investors?

  1.5)  If so, how?

2) What prompted Raju to offer even the limited explanation that he gave? Guilt? Corporate responsibility?

I'm a little surprised slideshare didn't make the list, but I think it'll be there by next year.

Windows 7 seems to combine the relative modularity of XP with the ability to quickly access storage and transfer data, as evidenced by this informal benchmark:

http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=3236

I haven't taken a look yet, but it seems promising. Is this going to keep Windows competitive with OS X?