A guide to local coding models
This article discusses the capabilities and cost-effectiveness of the Claude AI model, suggesting that users can access similar capabilities to ChatGPT for a lower monthly subscription fee, making it a more affordable option for many users.
Deliberate Internet Shutdowns
The article discusses the growing trend of deliberate internet shutdowns by governments, which can have significant economic and social consequences. It examines the reasons behind these shutdowns, the impact on affected populations, and the challenges in addressing this issue.
Build Android apps using Rust and Iced
Some time ago I decided to try building an Android app using Rust. After a few weeks I got it working. There was a new iced release recently, so I've just updated the example to new iced and wgpu. I'd like to share my experience to attract more attention to Rust on Android.
First things, I want to thank all the people who work on the foundational crates and tools such as: - https://github.com/rust-mobile/android-activity - https://github.com/jni-rs/jni-rs - https://github.com/gfx-rs/wgpu - https://github.com/rust-windowing/winit - and many others
When I started I had to learn what tools and examples already exist. Luckily, there's a good set of examples using both NativeActivity and GameActivity: https://github.com/rust-mobile/rust-android-examples
The basic approach is that we take android-activity, winit and wgpu and that's it. On top of that you can find a few egui examples in the rust-android-examples repo.
Alright, so after I've got the basic examples running, I wanted to combine them with iced. Iced is a crossplatform gui library focusing on desktop and web. The mobile support is explicitly a non-goal, as far as I can tell at the moment of writing. Yet, there's an issue where some people posted their experiments. That's how I knew it was possible: https://github.com/iced-rs/iced/issues/302
There's a way to integrate iced in wgpu applications, so called integration example: https://github.com/iced-rs/iced/tree/0.14.0/examples/integra...
Above I mentioned that using winit and wgpu in combination with android-activity is enough to build the app. Putting together 1 + 1 I got 2: let's use iced integration example with android-activity. It was quite easy to compile with almost no errors. First issue I encountered is that there was no text rendered. I solved this by loading fonts the way it was shown here: https://github.com/pop-os/cosmic-text/issues/243#issue-21899...
Then I patched a few widgets to add touch support. And that's it. My role here was to take all the prior work and combine it together in a way that there's a working example.
Some other ways of building Android apps using Rust: - xilem has an explicit goal to support mobile https://github.com/linebender/xilem - egui supports mobile https://github.com/emilk/egui - game engines such as Fyrox and Bevy support mobile: - https://github.com/FyroxEngine/Fyrox - https://github.com/bevyengine/bevy - pretty much anything built on top of winit and wgpu
All of the above is related to building native apps using either NativeActivity or GameActivity. I'm leaving webview out of scope of current post.
What about iOS? As far as I know it should be similar or maybe simpler compared to Android. I haven't built it yet, but the next time I have a sizeable amount of free time, I'll try to make it work. The plan is the same: pick winit, wgpu, iced integration example, mix it together until it works. It'll require the same trick to load fonts, and maybe something else, but no visible blockers as of now.
Once again, thanks to all the people who made it possible and I wish you have a great time building mobile apps with Rust!
Webb observes exoplanet that may have an exotic helium and carbon atmosphere
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has observed an exoplanet with an unexpected atmospheric composition, challenging current theories about planet formation and evolution. The discovery provides new insights into the diversity of planetary systems and the complex processes that shape them.
I'm just having fun
The article discusses the author's perspective on the importance of having fun and not taking life too seriously. It emphasizes the value of enjoying the present moment and maintaining a positive, lighthearted attitude, even in the face of life's challenges.
Disney Imagineering Debuts Next-Generation Robotic Character, Olaf
Disney has unveiled a new robotic version of the beloved Olaf character from the Frozen franchise, marking a significant advancement in Disney's innovative technology. This autonomous figure represents a new era of immersive and interactive Disney experiences, blending advanced robotics with beloved characters.
Show HN: Books mentioned on Hacker News in 2025
The article discusses the rise of 'software-based' cities, where urban planning and development are increasingly driven by technology and data-driven decision-making. It explores how cities are leveraging digital tools and platforms to enhance infrastructure, services, and citizen engagement.
Aliasing
The article discusses aliasing, a fundamental concept in computer graphics and signal processing. It explores how aliasing can occur when sampling a continuous signal and the techniques used to mitigate its effects, such as anti-aliasing filters and oversampling.
Kernighan's Lever
The article discusses Kernighan's Lever, a programming principle that emphasizes the importance of simplicity and clarity in code over complex solutions. It highlights the value of taking a step back and finding the simplest possible approach to solving a problem, often leading to better and more maintainable code.
QBasic64 Phoenix 4.3.0 Released
Functional Flocking Quadtree in ClojureScript
The article explores the use of quadtrees and flocking algorithms to simulate group behaviors in computer graphics, such as the movement of a flock of birds. It discusses the implementation and optimization of these techniques to create visually compelling and realistic simulations.
ONNX Runtime and CoreML May Silently Convert Your Model to FP16
Programming languages used for music
Cursed circuits #3: true mathematics
The article delves into the complexities of electrical engineering, exploring the intricacies of circuit design and the role of mathematics in understanding the behavior of electronic systems. It highlights the challenges faced by engineers in bridging the gap between theoretical principles and practical applications.
More on whether useful quantum computing is “imminent”
The article discusses the potential risks and considerations surrounding the development of advanced artificial intelligence, focusing on the importance of ensuring that such systems are aligned with human values and interests to avoid unintended consequences.
CO2 batteries that store grid energy take off globally
The article discusses a novel battery technology that uses carbon dioxide as the active material, which could potentially provide a more environmentally friendly and cost-effective energy storage solution compared to traditional lithium-ion batteries.
Single-Pass Huffman Coding
The article presents a novel single-pass Huffman coding algorithm that can efficiently encode data without the need for a full tree construction. The algorithm is described in detail, along with its advantages in terms of speed and memory usage compared to traditional Huffman coding approaches.
Making the most of bit arrays in Gleam
The article discusses the syntax and usage of bit arrays in programming, providing examples and explaining how they can be employed to efficiently represent and manipulate binary data.
How I protect my Forgejo instance from AI web crawlers
The article discusses strategies to protect a Forgejo instance from AI web crawlers, including using the Robots Exclusion Standard, IP-based blocking, and other technical measures to restrict access and prevent scraping of sensitive data.
Show HN: WalletWallet – create Apple passes from anything
I got my Apple developer certificate and built a simple app to solve a problem I had. One shop I buy from doesn't have Apple Wallet passes. Since you need signed certificates to build these very simple things, I created a minimal app that signs them. It's available if you need it too. It won't scan cards with AI - you manually enter the barcode, which I think makes it less prone to error.
Rue: Higher level than Rust, lower level than Go
Related: https://steveklabnik.com/writing/thirteen-years-of-rust-and-...
I program on the subway
This article explores the challenges and benefits of programming during the commute on public transportation, highlighting the need for focused work environments and the tradeoffs between productivity and distractions in such settings.
Exploring Speculative JIT Compilation for Emacs Lisp with Java
The article explores the potential benefits of using Just-In-Time (JIT) compilation for Emacs Lisp (Elisp), a programming language used in the Emacs text editor. It discusses the implementation and performance improvements of the JuiceMacs project, which aims to bring JIT compilation to Elisp.
Show HN: Rust/WASM lighting data toolkit – parses legacy formats, generates SVGs
Hi HN, I'm Holger, a developer who worked in the lighting industry.
I built this to scratch my own itch and put it on crates.io and PyPI where nothing like it existed.
The old file formats (EULUMDAT from 1990, IES from 1991) still work fine for basic photometry. But the industry is moving toward spectral data – full wavelength distributions instead of just lumen values.
The new standards (TM-33, ATLA-S001) are barely supported by existing tools.
So this handles both: legacy formats for compatibility, spectral data for anyone who wants to work with the new standards.
Stack: Rust core, then UniFFI for bindings. One codebase compiles to WASM/Leptos, egui, SwiftUI, Jetpack Compose, PyO3.
At one point the generated Swift boilerplate got so large GitHub classified it as a Swift project. 3D viewer is Bevy, loaded on-demand.
Feedback welcome – especially on the SVG output and the 3D viewer.
https://github.com/holg/eulumdat-rs (MIT/Apache-2.0)
The Going Dark initiative or ProtectEU is a Chat Control 3.0 attempt
Mullvad, a privacy-focused VPN service, announces a new feature allowing users to access the Tor network directly through their Mullvad VPN client, providing an additional layer of privacy and security.
Evaluating chain-of-thought monitorability
The article discusses the importance of monitoring and evaluating the chain of thought process in language models to ensure their transparency and accountability. It explores the challenges and potential solutions for making the inner workings of these models more understandable and interpretable.
The gift card accountability sink
This article explores the growing issue of gift card fraud, highlighting the need for increased accountability and security measures to combat the rising trend of scammers abusing gift card systems to steal money from unsuspecting consumers.
Luke Howard’s essay on the modification of clouds (1865)
The article explores the historical development of cloud modification techniques, from early experiments in the 19th century to more recent advancements in weather modification through seeding and other methods, and discusses the potential applications and controversies surrounding such practices.
Autoland saves King Air, everyone reported safe
The article describes how the autoland feature of a King Air turboprop aircraft saved the lives of the crew and passengers when the pilot became incapacitated, allowing the plane to land safely without human intervention.
I wish people were more public
The article reflects on the author's desire for more public discourse and engagement in society, arguing that increased openness and transparency can lead to greater understanding and progress on important issues.