Skip to main content

2023-12-14

Google Fails to Provide Data Recovery: User Outraged by Impending Data Destruction

  • Google did not provide a data recovery service before informing users about the deletion of their data, which has left an anonymous user disappointed.
  • The lack of such a service is seen as ridiculous by the user.

Reactions

  • Users are frustrated with the termination and deletion of data on Google's storage services.
  • There are concerns about communication clarity and limitations of "unlimited" storage plans.
  • Alternative storage options are mentioned, and criticism is directed towards Google's practices.

Real-Time Exploration of NeRF Models Made Possible with SMERF

  • SMERF is a new technique that enables real-time exploration of NeRF models directly in web browsers.
  • The method delivers exceptional accuracy and produces scenes that are nearly identical to offline models.
  • Users can experience the project on the official website and share their feedback through email or Twitter.

Reactions

  • Google has created SMERF, a real-time rendering technology for exploring 3D models on different devices.
  • Feedback on the demos has been positive, but improvements are needed in movement and VR mode.
  • There are concerns about long loading times and large payload sizes, with suggestions for improvement.

Polish White-Hat Hackers Threatened by Train Manufacturer After Restoring DRM-Impacted Trains

  • White-hat hackers in Poland successfully assisted an independent maintenance company in restoring functionality to a train that was rendered inoperable by its manufacturer.
  • The manufacturer, unhappy with the bypassing of their anti-repair mechanism, is threatening legal action against the hackers.
  • This case has sparked a debate about the rights of independent repair professionals and the ongoing struggle between manufacturers' control over their products and the ability of consumers to repair them. The legality of the hackers' actions is currently uncertain under European copyright laws.

Reactions

  • The article explores different scenarios involving hackers, DRM, train manufacturers, and GPS spoofing.
  • It delves into ethical debates surrounding hacking, the right-to-repair movement, and the legal implications of reverse engineering in the EU.
  • Safety concerns and potential criminal charges related to train systems are also discussed, along with the exploration of GPS spoofing and its potential applications.

Nvidia RTX 4090 Outperforms Apple M1 Pro with MLX in Machine Learning Performance

  • The author conducted performance tests comparing Apple's MLX framework for machine learning on Apple Silicon with Nvidia's RTX 4090 using the Whisper benchmarking tool.
  • The benchmark results showed that the Nvidia 4090 was 16% faster than the MLX framework.
  • However, when using an Nvidia optimized model, the transcript was generated in just 8 seconds, demonstrating the advantage of optimization.
  • The author also mentioned tests conducted on M2 Ultra and M3 Max, which showed similar speeds to the M1 Pro.
  • The author acknowledged the potential inaccuracy of the measurements but emphasized that the MLX framework performed well for a laptop.
  • The purpose of the tests was for the author's podcast search engine project.

Reactions

  • The article compares the performance of Nvidia RTX 4090 and Apple M1 Pro with MLX using the OpenAI Whisper repo for machine learning tasks.
  • The discussion explores the optimization efforts of Nvidia, AMD, Intel, and Apple in machine learning hardware.
  • The consensus is that Nvidia GPUs tend to provide better performance for machine learning compared to Apple's M1 chips, but other factors and optimizations should be taken into account.
  • The author shares their personal experiences with poverty, including struggles with housing, finances, and strained family relationships.
  • They criticize insensitivity towards poverty, specifically mentioning Annunziata Rees-Mogg.
  • The author reflects on their journey out of poverty, activism for impoverished families, and their anger over not receiving royalties for their book. They hope to use their experiences to advocate for others and emphasize the importance of compassion.

Reactions

  • The article and discussion cover various topics related to poverty, wealth inequality, talent, genetics, education, and societal factors.
  • The importance of addressing poverty as the primary barrier to progress and success is highlighted, along with discussions on wealth disparity, capitalism, and the role of business practices.
  • The conversation also explores the relationship between poverty and athletic ability, intelligence, education programs for gifted students, community support, stigmatization, personal initiative, societal factors, exploitation in industries, difficulties faced by single parents, lack of community support in Western cultures, the connection between poverty and luck, personal responsibility, and challenges faced by individuals in poverty. The need for understanding, compassion, and tough love in communication is emphasized.

Mozilla Launches Llamafile: Open Source Language Model for Image Summarization

  • Mozilla has launched an open source project called llamafile, an on-device Language Model that can be downloaded and run on your own computer.
  • Users can download prebuilt llamafile files to run the model, which includes a command-line interface for a multimodal vision model.
  • The blog post provides instructions on how to use the llamafile program for image summarization.

Reactions

  • The discussions revolve around the use of large language models (LLMs) in command-line interfaces (CLIs) and other AI-related tools.
  • Users share their experiences, challenges, and tips for using LLMs, Docker, and various container runtimes.
  • Topics include the cost and performance of high-end computers, limitations and requirements of running LLMs on different hardware, and skepticism or confusion about specific tools and technologies.

Challenging Corporate Advertising: Adfree Cities Promotes Art and Nature in Public Spaces

  • Adfree Cities is a network of groups working to challenge corporate outdoor advertising and promote the use of public space for art, community, and nature.
  • They believe that advertising has negative effects on the environment and people's well-being.
  • The organization offers news, insights, and opportunities for individuals to get involved in their local areas to help create ad-free cities.

Reactions

  • Discussions are centered around the presence and impact of advertising, particularly billboards, in various cities.
  • Participants share their experiences, opinions, and concerns regarding the aesthetic, safety, effectiveness, and regulation of advertising.
  • Topics of discussion include the influence of advertising on consumer behavior, equity of access, carbon impact, and potential alternatives like public art.

Dropbox Users Warned: Disable Third-Party AI Access

  • Amazon CTO Werner Vogels tweeted about a privacy issue affecting Dropbox users.
  • Vogels stated that third-party AI technology partners have default access to Dropbox user files.
  • He advised users to disable this setting in their account settings and tagged the European Data Protection Supervisor in the tweet.

Reactions

  • Dropbox users are raising concern and frustration over the company's new AI features that scan and access user files without explicit consent.
  • Speculations arise regarding regional restrictions and the availability of privacy settings.
  • Users are exploring alternative options with stronger data security and encryption due to concerns over lack of transparency and control over their data.

Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) Timeline: Achieving Consumer FSD and Twitter Updates

  • The summary discusses Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology and mentions a timeline for its development.
  • The author expresses belief that Tesla will achieve the first general or consumer FSD.
  • The summary provides a Twitter handle to follow for updates on the topic.

Reactions

  • Tesla's Full Self-Driving (FSD) package is under scrutiny for its limitations and failures, including the inability to recognize speed limits and the lack of advertised features.
  • Users are frustrated after years of ownership and are discussing the possibility of a class action lawsuit and seeking a refund based on the cost of the FSD package invested in Tesla stock.
  • Other difficulties and complaints about owning a Tesla, biases in engineering and testing, criticisms of Elon Musk, and the differences in speed limit signage standards between countries are being debated.

Agora: A Powerful Search Engine for Shopify Products

  • Agora search engine was designed to make it easier to find Christmas gifts by crawling thousands of Shopify stores.
  • It offers various features such as saving products, filters, reviews, and popular items.
  • The creator aims to expand to other e-commerce platforms but is currently facing challenges in maintaining search speed and performance due to a large data set.

Reactions

  • The discussion touches on various aspects of e-commerce, including search engines, price tracking websites, data scraping, and challenges faced by Shopify store owners.
  • Suggestions and experiences are shared on improving search functionality, managing server costs, acquiring users, and curating stores.
  • Ethical considerations regarding data scraping and its impact on content creators and search results are explored, along with discussions on different platforms, tools, and strategies to enhance the e-commerce user experience.

Australia Bans Engineered Stone Due to Health Risks

  • Australia has become the first country to ban engineered stone due to the increase of silicosis cases, a lung disease associated with working with the material.
  • The ban will come into effect from July 2024 in most states and territories.
  • The decision has received support from trade unions, health organizations, and personal injury law firms, while engineered stone manufacturer Caesarstone has expressed disappointment and criticized the reasoning behind the ban.

Reactions

  • The discussion revolves around worker safety and health risks associated with engineered stone and silica exposure.
  • The potential ban on engineered stone in Australia is considered, as well as the need for improvements in worker safety and compliance.
  • Studies have shown that low-silica engineered stone products can cause inflammation, challenging the notion that reducing silica alone will eliminate disease risk.

C Library Implements Go Channels with Blocking Selects

  • This C library implements channels, a concept introduced by Hoare and popularized by the Go programming language.
  • It supports both buffered and unbuffered channels, as well as the select statement.
  • The library currently works with Ptreads and is being developed for Win32 threads. Users can include it in their project or build a shared library. An example is provided to demonstrate its usage, along with information on related work and where to seek support.

Reactions

  • The article discusses several topics related to the C programming language, including the implementation of Go channels in C89 and the use of bool and typedefs.
  • It also explores the compatibility of different C versions, the suitability of channels and higher-level abstractions in concurrent programming, and the complexity and productivity of the C language.
  • The conversation concludes with recommendations for alternative tools and implementation options.

Google Cloud Announces Imagen 2: Advanced Text-to-Image Technology on Vertex AI

  • Google Cloud has made Imagen 2, an advanced text-to-image technology, generally available on Vertex AI.
  • Imagen 2 enables customers to personalize and deploy image generation using easy-to-use tools, managed infrastructure, and built-in privacy and safety measures.
  • The upgrade offers enhanced image quality and features like text rendering, logo creation, captions and question-answering, multi-language prompts, and safety precautions. Companies like Snap, Shutterstock, and Canva are already leveraging the Imagen API to enhance their creative workflows.

Reactions

  • The conversation revolves around various topics including criticism and frustration with Google's Imagen 2 service and the limitations and challenges of AI text-to-image generators.
  • Workplace issues, Twitter's current state, concerns about Google's lack of transparency and accessibility in its AI tools, and confusion surrounding AI models and their capabilities are also discussed.
  • Common themes include disappointment with Google's products and services, concerns about usability and documentation, and the desire for improvements and alternatives.

Cortex A57: Performance and Power Efficiency for Nintendo Switch

  • The Cortex A57 is Arm's first 64-bit capable core, used in the Nintendo Switch's Nvidia Tegra X1 for high GPU performance in a portable gaming console.
  • It has a modest branch predictor and caching system, a 48-entry instruction TLB, a unified register file, distributed scheduling, and two integer pipelines.
  • The A57 processor can handle four integer operations per cycle, but floating-point operations have high latency. It has limited address space, and optimization efforts can improve game performance on the Nintendo Switch and older platforms with integrated graphics.

Reactions

  • The conversation delves into multiple aspects of the Nintendo Switch console, such as hardware bugs, design decisions, and processor choices.
  • Discussions about cost-saving measures, game rankings, and comparisons with other gaming devices are also featured.
  • The conversation touches on homebrew capabilities, PS Vita, graphics capabilities, and future console improvements, presenting a variety of perspectives and opinions.

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS Boosts Performance with Default Frame Pointers

  • Canonical is implementing frame pointers by default in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS to enhance performance engineering.
  • This change will simplify profiling and debugging processes, providing more precise performance analysis data.
  • Although there may be a minor performance impact, the increased accessibility to performance insights outweighs this drawback.

Reactions

  • Ubuntu 24.04 LTS will enable frame pointers by default for better debugging and performance on specific platforms.
  • There is a debate about the trade-off between performance improvements and issues with core dumps and debugging.
  • The use of higher registers on x86_64 CPUs and its impact on performance is discussed.