Posts that commenters keep linking to, ranked by how many different people have cited them in Hacker News comments. 327 posts.
ORM looks great early in a project but breaks down as complexity grows, forcing you to learn SQL anyway. Relations aren't objects. Either use NoSQL for object-like data or write a model layer with real SQL. ORM's abstraction is leaky, its efficiency poor, and the alternatives are better.
A new Apple CEO would need credibility with two highly disparate factions: Apple’s rank-and-file employees, and Wall Street. The only candidates who could satisfy both factions, to any degree, already work at Apple.
As a child, I had read about the Homebrew Computer Club, where Osborne and Apple were born - and I wanted to be part of a big movement like that ever since. When I first heard about Y Combinator I thought here was something happening right now that might be looked back on in the same way. I worked my way through the…
physics, history of science, pseudoscience, hoaxes, writing, education, skepticisism, humor, quotes, illusions, 3d stereo photography.
The end of the year is a great time to sit down with a glass of your favorite beverage, dim the lights, snuggle up next to the fire and think about what you’ve learned over the past twelve months.
Writing and Stuff from Isaac Z. Schlueter
Microsoft gets $5 for every HTC phone running Android, according to Citi analyst Walter Pritchard, who released a big report on Microsoft this morning. Microsoft is getting that money thanks to a p…
This HTML version of is provided for convenience, but it is not the best format for the book. In particular, some of the symbols are not rendered correctly.
An in-depth blog post talking user retention and lifecycle email marketing for startups.
Following up on my recent Scala posts , some commented that because I haven't used Scala seriously, my opinion is of little value. I respo...
How cold calling succeeded where AdWords failed, producing a 100% conversion rate and all the information needed to create a scalable business.
There's just one small problem: The way POSIX has defined close(2) is completely and utterly broken.
This domain is parked. There is no active website here.
The bash (Readline) shortcuts worth knowing for editing, recalling and controlling commands, plus the ! and ^ history tricks.
One of the topics I asked most of my Coders at Work interviewees about was C++. I am not an expert, or even a competent C++ programmer and recognize that my own opinions about C++ are not well-info…
I have previously argued that the Bilski ruling renders all software unpatentable in the US because any method of manipulating information ...
Written pieces, talks, and other bits by Zach Holman.
Life, technology, and other good things
I realized recently that while I have written about the history of the about:authors URL , I have never explained the history of the about:jwz easter egg . Well, I guess it's been long enough, so now it can be told.
Synthpop and sci-fi
I don't actually know this story - certainly no more of it than anyone who has read a few web pages. But luckily, I'm pretty good at making...
There's a great deal said about Ada, Countess of Lovelace that I find misguided. And, worse, the real intellectual triumph of Lovelace is ...
Google has recently announced their intention to remove the H.264 video codec from its Chrome browser. This decision has been smeared as an evil campaign for controlling video on the web, akin to not-invented-here syndrome. It’s also been lauded as the push that the web needs to remain open and free. Mostly, it’s been…
I chatted with a young guy last night about his new startup idea. He’s got a vision for a social commerce app with a few cool spins on it. As I listened to him, I was thinking about how I had heard this exact pitch half a dozen times before. I also knew I had a lot to offer him in terms of help. I have a good friend…
