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The latest blog posts to take off on Hacker News. 8,981 posts.
Tech Industry & Business
Any year
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Money Out of Nowhere: How Internet Marketplaces Unlock Economic Wealth
(*) Benchmark is/was an investor in companies labeled with the asterisk. In 1776, Adam Smith released his magnum opus, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations , in which he outlined his fundamental economic theories. Front and center in the book — in fact in Book 1, Chapter 1 — is his…
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Nobody Likes the “Idea Guy”
One time I had a “great” idea for a telephone company. Service would be free—all the calls you want! But you’d have to listen to advertisements before each one. I asked my friend what he thought the idea was worth. His answer: “I don’t know. Telephone companies make a lot of money. Maybe $1 billion?” […]
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How does the Hololens 2 matter?
So that happened, the Hololens 2 has been released. A few people have asked me what I think, so it’s about time I got my thoughts down on paper the interwebs. I’ve had a day or 2 to mull over it ...
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Wage Stagnation
[Epistemic status: I am basing this on widely-accepted published research, but I can’t guarantee I’ve understood the research right or managed to emphasize/believe the right people. Som…
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Twitter Thread Compiler Apps and Copyright Ethics
Twitter threads are a pain to read! So let's just steal them, right? Umm... Nope, probably wrong. I'm going to say very wrong. Think about it.
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How Badly Is Google Books Search Broken, and Why?
I periodically write about Google Books here, so I thought I'd point out something that I've noticed recently that should be concerning to a...
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On Being an Engineering Manager
I’ve been acting in the role of Engineering Manager for 6 months now, so it’s a good time to review how things are going. Some of the points below could be obvious to some and not everything will work in all situations, but I hope I can accurately describe my perspective. A little bit of background for you, first, to…
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Technical Recruiting Needs to Focus on Selling the Position
Developer and writer.
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Going Solo, Successfully
Three years ago I quit my job and started consulting full time . It's worked out really well. I get to spend more time doing things I like to do and I've been able to deliver great products for clients. I wanted to go over some tips for starting a successful consulting business.
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Is it creepy when brands pester you on social media?
You're sat in a pub, chatting with your mates. You start to moan about how the cheap lager they serve gives you a headache. All of a sudden, a stranger runs up to you and says: "Oh no! Headaches? Have you tried the refreshing taste of Pepsi® Cola? It's the Flavour That Keeps Giving™!" I suspect you would complain to…
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You Don't Need to Quit Your Job to Make
The startup storyline being told may not be the most optimal. The mental clarity of separating your lifeline from your projects may be the most thoughtful choice.
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A letter to Steven Pinker about global poverty
*Note: the discussion of historical poverty trends here is updated and developed more fully in the recent article, “ Capitalism and extreme poverty ”, published in World Development . Dear Steven, I’m writing to respond to a letter you posted regarding claims I made in the Guardian about
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Oh God, It's Raining Newsletters
On the rise of newsletter production, consumption, and monetization, and how email is one of the most powerful and resilient publishing platforms.
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I stopped using Intercom
This post has been on the back of my head for a couple of years now. I think we actually switched-off Intercom in 2016 or so… But the reasons should still stand now, or might even be stronger. Of course, things might have shifted, so please forgive me if some features are totally different by…
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Spotify’s Podcast Aggregation Play
Spotify is making a major move into podcasts, where it appears to have clear designs to be the sort of Aggregator it cannot be when it comes to music.
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App Analysis: Air Canada
This blog series focuses on the collection of device data by various popular mobile apps. Data is often collected in the name of advertising, error monitoring, fraud detection, and social media integration.
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Google Play Store Now Open for Progressive Web Apps
Chrome 72 for Android shipped the long-awaited Trusted Web Activity feature, which means we can now distribute PWAs in the Google Play…
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Forget privacy: you're terrible at targeting anyway
I don't mind letting your programs see my private data as long as I get something useful in exchange. But that's not what happens. A forme...