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cma256 commented on Toyotas and Terrorists: "Why are ISIS's trucks better than ours?" (2023)   airuniversity.af.edu/Wild... · Posted by u/marysminefnuf
stinkbeetle · 2 days ago
The V8 in the 70 series landcruiser uses computer controlled electronic injection. It also has other electronic / electro-mechanical systems like ABS and airbags.
cma256 · 2 days ago
Fair enough!
cma256 commented on Toyotas and Terrorists: "Why are ISIS's trucks better than ours?" (2023)   airuniversity.af.edu/Wild... · Posted by u/marysminefnuf
netsharc · 2 days ago
Seems like the question is never answered. There's a lot of how the trucks get there, but not why they're better. (I skimmed it, the writing has too much emotional bait of "Look how evil they are! Don't forget, we're the good guys!").

Maybe it's survivor bias, the ones that are crap have been blown up by a Hellfire shot by a drone..

cma256 · 2 days ago
I can tell you precisely why foreign Toyotas (especially certain models) are more reliable that whats typically sold in the US. No electronics and parts which operate based on physics (pressure, gravity, etc). Both of these decisions lend themselves to a simple engine compartment and repairability.

In the US, you can buy a five-speed 4runner which is about the simplest engine available on the market. Has all the benefits enumerated above and its trivially repairable by DIYers. However, even the 4runner has annoying garbage which can fail.

Compare the newest 70 series Land Crusier in Japan to the US Land Cruiser (Prado). Difference is a v8 with no electronics and a 4 cylinder hybrid filled with electronics and a rats nest of tubes running across the top of the engine. Try working on that... Of course its get +20mpg compared to the Japanese version. I'm pretty sure the 70 series is 4 wheel drive always whereas the prado runs in 2 wheel drive but has a 4 wheel switch (more complexity -- better gas mileage).

Anyway, intangibles such as availability of parts and lower pricing makes scavenging more economical and increases life span.

Also, stability of the platform means there's lots of expertise that has developed over the past +30 years. Same design, same repairs, same parts. Makes things easy.

cma256 commented on Zig Libc   ziglang.org/devlog/2026/#... · Posted by u/ingve
audunw · 10 days ago
Do you have to bring up D in every Zig related post?

I do like D. I've written a game in it and enjoyed it a lot. I would encourage others to check it out.

But it's not a C replacement. BetterC feels like an afterthought. A nice bonus. Not a primary focus. E.g. the language is designed to use exceptions for error handling, so of course there's no feature for BetterC dedicated to error handling.

Being a better C is the one and only focus of Zig. So it has features for doing error handling without exceptions.

D is not going to replace C, perhaps for the same reasons subsets of C++ didn't.

I don't know if Zig and Rust will. But there's a better chance since they actually bring a lot of stuff to the table that arguably make them better at being a C-like language than C. I am really hyped to see how embedded development will be in Zig after the new IO interface lands.

cma256 · 10 days ago
He doesn't have to, he _gets_ to! Its knowledge exchange. Take it as a gift and not self-promotion. There's no money in this game so don't treat it like guerilla marketing. Treat it like excited people pushing the limits of technology.
cma256 commented on ICE using Palantir tool that feeds on Medicaid data   eff.org/deeplinks/2026/01... · Posted by u/JKCalhoun
pyrophane · 18 days ago
Honestly my real fear is ICE agents at polling places on Election Day harassing would-be voters with citizenship checks and aggressive behavior, slowing things down and maybe causing some people to leave.

Regarding voter data though, if it becomes known that registering to vote as a minority will get you extra scrutiny from ICE, and perhaps a visit to your home, that would probably cause some citizens avoid voting altogether, especially if they are associated with people who are not her legally.

Either way, the federal government really has no right to that data or legitimate use for it, so hopefully they don't manage to get their hands on it.

cma256 · 18 days ago
Thanks. I understand now.
cma256 commented on ICE using Palantir tool that feeds on Medicaid data   eff.org/deeplinks/2026/01... · Posted by u/JKCalhoun
neumann · 18 days ago
I don't understand your question. What does citizenship got to do with this?
cma256 · 18 days ago
I thought GP was arguing they were trying to find non-citizens on the voter rolls to intimidate them (which may be a misreading).
cma256 commented on ICE using Palantir tool that feeds on Medicaid data   eff.org/deeplinks/2026/01... · Posted by u/JKCalhoun
jayd16 · 18 days ago
Pam Bondi is now demanding voter rolls. It's clearly about suppressing liberal voters in liberal areas through a show of force. They're using this data to optimize who to harass.
cma256 · 18 days ago
If citizenship is required to vote then how would accessing voter rolls suppress liberal voters? Honest question; I'm not concern trolling. I had to Google who's allowed to vote.

I found this article[1] by the Brennan Center. It alleges this is an attempted federal takeover of elections but it doesn't suggest or allude to voter suppression. I'm not convinced by the article that having access to voter rolls can be considered a federal takeover of election administration (but I'm not in the know and would need things explained more verbosely).

If you have more information about the attempted centralization of election administration and its impacts on voter suppression I would be interested to know more.

1. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/trum...

cma256 commented on Ask HN: What are you working on? (January 2026)    · Posted by u/david927
happiness0067 · a month ago
I ended up making a side project for my side project and built MeasureToCut: https://measuretocut.com

I moved last year and started a bunch of DIY projects, and each one turned into a bunch of drawings on napkins and backs of receipts to figure out how much wood/material I needed to buy to avoid "one more trip to store". It tells you how much of a stock material you need, and shows you how to cut it, to minimize waste or minimize cost.

A few details

1D: works for boards, pipes, bars, etc. You enter lengths and quantities; it details the cuts onto the stock material.

2D (coming soon): will work for plywood and sheet goods and lets you see how your parts tile onto sheets.

Apparently the software engineer to woodworking pipeline is actually just a circle

cma256 · a month ago
Excited for the 2D calculator. The 1D calculator is very timely because I'll be framing a few walls soon. It is indeed just a circle.
cma256 commented on Ask HN: What are you working on? (January 2026)    · Posted by u/david927
cma256 · a month ago
As of yesterday I decided I want to try adding a GTK runtime for Elm. Write Elm, compile to JS, execute with QuickJS, bridge to GTK, render a native app using the JS state machine.

The goal is basically what's listed on the Elm website. No runtime errors, fearless refactoring, etc. But also improved accessibility for developers who want to create a native "Linux" app. IMO Linux should be so accessible and so amenable to rapid prototyping that it is the default choice when building a new GUI app.

cma256 commented on Python numbers every programmer should know   mkennedy.codes/posts/pyth... · Posted by u/WoodenChair
cma256 · a month ago
Great catalogue. On the topic of msgspec, since pydantic is included it may be worth including a bench for de-serializing and serializing from a msgspec struct.
cma256 commented on The Rapper 50 Cent, Adjusted for Inflation   50centadjustedforinflatio... · Posted by u/gaws
mk_stjames · 4 months ago
I was prepared to be absolutely fucking disgusted by such a comment but I.... shit. I mean... this is.... this is wild

I gotta go contemplate 'where we're at' again it seems. If that is truly a straight generative audio diffusion model.... wait, how did they get the same verse by verse chord progressions to match? this has to be professionally post-produced, right? AI models aren't able to do this end-to-end yet, right?

cma256 · 4 months ago
I had similar emotions. The cover of 21 Questions by the same YouTuber is even better. And other covers of Mario's "Let Me Love You" and Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas" are equally mind blowing.

I'm ashamed to say I prefer these to the originals so much so that its difficult for me to listen to them any more. Make of that what you will...

u/cma256

KarmaCake day190September 20, 2023View Original