2025-01-19
TikTok goes dark in the US
TikTok experienced a temporary shutdown in the U.S. due to a federal ban, but service began to be restored by midday Sunday. The ban was driven by concerns over potential Chinese surveillance, with bipartisan support for requiring ByteDance, TikTok's owner, to sell the app. President-elect Donald Trump suggested delaying the ban and proposed a joint venture with U.S. ownership as a potential solution, while alternative apps gained popularity during the ban.
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TikTok's ban in the US has ignited discussions on data privacy and geopolitical influence, with concerns centered around its Chinese ownership. The ban is seen by some as a national security measure, while others perceive it as a limitation on free speech and a potential advantage for American tech companies. This situation has prompted debates on balancing security with freedom and the impact of foreign entities on domestic media.
Kalman Filter Tutorial
KalmanFilter.NET provides a tutorial on the Kalman Filter, a mathematical tool for estimating and predicting system states in uncertain conditions, commonly used in tracking and navigation. The tutorial, initiated in 2017, includes numerical examples and intuitive explanations, covering both univariate and multivariate Kalman Filters, and has expanded to advanced topics like non-linear Kalman Filters. A book based on the tutorial offers a comprehensive guide from basics to advanced topics, with illustrative examples and practical applications, making the Kalman Filter accessible and understandable, with some parts available for free.
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To grasp the Kalman Filter, it's beneficial to first study Least Squares, recursive Least Squares, and the Information Filter, as the Kalman Filter is an efficient reformulation of recursive Least Squares. The Kalman Filter is a powerful tool for state estimation in systems with noise and dynamic changes, and it can be understood from both procedural and Bayesian perspectives. While mathematical rigor is crucial for a deep understanding, those without a strong math background can still explore the concepts through intuitive means, supported by various resources like PDFs and online tutorials.
Forgejo: A self-hosted lightweight software forge
Forgejo is a self-hosted software forge that emphasizes security, scalability, federation, and privacy, developed by the community under Codeberg e.V. It serves as a Free Software alternative to GitHub, offering an easy installation process and low maintenance for efficient project management. Forgejo is designed to be resource-efficient, fostering collaboration and productivity, and supports innovation in decentralized software development.
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Forgejo is a self-hosted, lightweight software forge, serving as an alternative to GitHub, and is managed by a non-profit organization without premium upsells. It originated as a fork of Gitea, following Gitea's shift towards commercialization, and emphasizes being freely licensed and community-driven. Forgejo is noted for its low resource usage, ease of updates, and development of federation features, making it ideal for personal or small-scale hosting.