Hacker News Digest
· 35 Hacker News
I measured the hidden token costs of Claude Code versus OpenCode, discovering that Claude Code sends roughly 33,000 tokens of system scaffolding before your prompt even arrives, compared to OpenCode'…
I recently used modern AI coding agents to port my old Java applets from 1999 into functional JavaScript, bringing decades-old visualizations back to life with minimal bugs. The process was so effici…
I am thrilled by the rapid progress in AI, from new LLMs to self-driving cars and coding agents. However, I reject the fear-mongering about an impending doom or the idea that only a select few in San…
Vinton Cerf, the legendary architect of TCP/IP, is stepping down as Google's chief internet evangelist after more than two decades. While celebrating his historic career, Cerf warned that the rise of…
Since Chrome 148, the Math.tanh function exposes your operating system through tiny calculation differences caused by distinct math libraries on Linux, macOS, and Windows. Anti-bot systems now use th…
I transformed my reading habits from fewer than ten books a year to one book weekly by replacing screen time with reading. By removing social media apps like Instagram and YouTube, carrying an ebook…
I report that Irish datacenters now account for 23% of the nation's total electricity consumption, a figure that jumped 10% in 2025 despite a moratorium on new grid connections in Dublin. These massi…
Drawing parallels between the CGI revolution that replaced stop-motion in Jurassic Park and today's rise of LLMs, I argue that programmers must evolve to avoid obsolescence. By mastering new tools li…
I built LARP, a satirical platform where founders swap fake revenue to inflate their Series A metrics without moving a single dollar. By pairing users to wire imaginary money back and forth, we creat…
I have compiled a comprehensive collection of tiny emulators running directly in your browser, featuring classic systems like the Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, and Amstrad CPC. You can instantly explore…
We switched our production agent from Claude Opus to GPT-5.6 Sol, achieving 2.2x faster builds at 27% lower cost. This migration required fixing our evaluation harness and adapting to GPT-5.6's uniqu…
Even as AI agents take over routine tasks, I believe humans must still write code to truly understand system architecture and maintain attention. Direct engagement with the execution environment help…
I trace my journey from a ravenous young reader to an adult whose reading habits were eroded by social pressure, work, and the rise of social media. I explore how love, money worries, and the desire…
I argue that relying on AI for research while weakening the human pipeline to understand it is a critical strategic error. Mathematical capacity is vital infrastructure, not just a byproduct of theor…
Nearly six years after publishing my original guide, I have updated this curriculum to help hundreds of thousands of self-learners master physics. Whether you seek a degree or simply crave understand…
I invest in useful companies, yet I believe the next breakthroughs come from stubbornly useless research. Visiting the Folk Computer lab, I saw programming return to a human, physical scale, defying…
I explore the growing mystery of whether Large Language Models truly reason or simply mimic patterns. While these systems produce impressive outputs, their internal logic often remains a black box. W…
We conducted a large-scale experiment across ten major US cities to test if coordinating a tiny fraction of trips could ease congestion. By subtly guiding drivers away from bottlenecks using Google M…
I explore the Deir el-Medina strikes, the earliest recorded collective labor action in history, where artisans in the Valley of the Kings halted work during the reign of Ramesses III. Facing severe g…
I am asking the Hacker News community what projects they are currently working on. I am also interested in hearing about any new ideas that you are thinking about pursuing.
I have curated a chronological list of illustrated literature spanning Western comics, Japanese manga, and graphic novels that define the cyberpunk genre. From the gritty noir of The Long Tomorrow an…
I curated an open directory of documents that crystallized narratives at the perfect moment to move billions of dollars. From Satoshi Nakamoto's Bitcoin whitepaper to Marc Andreessen's essay on softw…
I argue that relying on one-step predictions to model the world is a dangerous mistake in AI research. While appealing, these models fail because small errors compound rapidly over time, and calculat…
Agent Draw is an innovative tool built on the tldraw infinite-canvas SDK that allows an AI agent to draw shapes and diagrams in real-time as you speak. By simply dragging a rectangle on the canvas an…
After years in software, I dove into hardware by building a custom PCB for a BME280 sensor using KiCad. I navigated schematic design, component sourcing from DigiKey, and ordering from JLCPCB before…
We built Kode Dot to stop you from wasting time wiring screens and sensors. This pocket-sized device features a dual ESP32-P4 and C5 MCU, a crisp AMOLED touchscreen, and 16 programmable GPIO pins. Wi…
I tested Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson's 'chosen scarcity' theory against real data from Austin, San Francisco, Vienna, and London. While Austin proves that clearing regulatory valves boosts housing…
I introduce Flash-MSA, the first performant open-source training kernels for MiniMax Sparse Attention designed for Hopper and Blackwell GPUs. Developed on Spheron rentals, this implementation uses bl…
I built an interactive model to estimate the health impact of MacKenzie Scott's $30 billion in charitable giving, translating her donations into Quality-Adjusted Life Years. By weighting intervention…
After building a complex music school platform entirely in Vanilla JavaScript and Web Components, I realized the browser is already the framework. The industry obsession with React, Angular, Vue, and…
I propose a clear definition and classification framework for Architecture Description Languages to resolve community confusion. By distinguishing ADLs from simulation and programming languages, I id…
Drawing on Ivan Illich's theories, I argue that unlimited computing power erodes autonomy just as excessive vehicle speed creates traffic inequality. While we accept speed limits for cars, we lack a…
For the first time in 63 years, the public can tour Jim Henson's Creature Shop in Queens, where Sesame Street characters and other whimsical puppets are built. I explored the historic workshop, watch…
I demonstrate how the A* algorithm extends beyond grid maps to find optimal paths through forests of circular obstacles. By converting the environment into a graph of tangent lines and arcs, we can c…
Instead of obsessing over distant goals like becoming a billionaire, I argue you should focus on your immediate position. By taking nonintuitive steps, such as reaching out to old contacts like Rob f…