Hacker News
1Zed 1.0
- Zed, a new code editor, has reached version 1.0 after five years of development. Built from scratch using Rust and a custom GPU-based UI framework instead of web technologies like their previous editor Atom, Zed aims to be the most performant coding environment. The 1.0 release includes AI integration, cross-platform support, and introduces Zed for Business with team management features.
Problematic license terms and data privacy concerns
Users express strong concerns about Zed's license agreement granting broad rights to user code and data, including rights to create derivative works and collect telemetry. Additional issues raised include mandatory arbitration, short statute of limitations, and autocomplete sending code to AI providers by default.Search UI design criticism
Many users dislike Zed's search implementation that opens results in new tabs instead of using modal/overlay interfaces like other editors. Users prefer telescope-style search from Vim/Helix or JetBrains' floating panels for quick searches that can be dismissed with escape.Performance praise and editor switching experiences
Users consistently praise Zed's speed, low memory usage, and performance compared to VSCode and other editors. Many report successfully switching from Sublime Text, JetBrains IDEs, or VSCode, citing Zed as a modern, feature-rich alternative with excellent remote SSH editing capabilities.
2HERMES.md in commit messages causes requests to route to extra usage billing
- A bug in Claude Code v2.1.119 causes API requests to be incorrectly routed to "extra usage" billing instead of the included Max plan quota when a git repository's recent commit history contains the case-sensitive string "HERMES.md". This resulted in $200 in unexpected charges while the user's Max 20x plan capacity remained largely unused, making projects unusable once extra usage credits were depleted.
Anthropic's refusal to issue refunds
Users report being charged incorrectly due to technical bugs but Anthropic initially refused refunds, stating they're "unable to issue compensation for technical errors." Multiple users experienced billing issues and had to resort to credit card disputes or public pressure to get resolution.Poor customer support quality
Discussion reveals Anthropic uses AI-generated customer support responses that provide unhelpful, contradictory answers. Users report being unable to reach human support, with tickets being closed without comment and support bots creating frustrating loops.Public pressure forcing company response
After the issue gained visibility on social media and Hacker News, Anthropic employee announced they would provide full refunds plus additional credits. Many noted this only happened after bad publicity, not through normal support channels.
3Online age verification is the hill to die on
RTA headers as alternative solution
Many discussants favor RTA (Restricted to Adults) headers that websites can add to flag adult content, allowing client-side parental controls to filter it. This approach avoids centralized tracking while enabling parents to protect children without government surveillance.Privacy concerns and surveillance motives
Participants argue that age verification laws are designed to destroy online anonymity rather than protect children. They suspect the real goal is creating surveillance infrastructure and eliminating anonymous speech online.Parental responsibility vs government intervention
Strong debate over whether parents should handle internet safety themselves versus government mandates. Many argue parents are responsible for raising children and that different families have different values about age-appropriate content.
4Before GitHub
- The author reflects on GitHub's evolution from being crucial Open Source infrastructure to its current decline. Before GitHub, developers ran their own infrastructure with higher barriers but more accountability. GitHub revolutionized Open Source by making publishing and consuming code frictionless, enabling micro-dependencies and explosive project growth. While GitHub provided tremendous value as a centralized platform and archive, it's now losing trust due to instability, AI features, and unclear leadership. The author observes notable projects leaving GitHub for alternatives like Codeberg, though this dispersion comes with costs like reduced discoverability and increased maintenance burden.
GitHub's impact and evolution
Discussion covers GitHub's key contributions including user-centric repositories, gradual feature rollout, and transformation of open source collaboration. Users reflect on how GitHub simplified project creation compared to SourceForge's complex setup process.Fossil vs Git debate
Users debate Fossil's integrated approach (wiki, forum, tickets in one SQLite file) versus Git's dominance. Some praise Fossil's simplicity for small teams, while others note Git's superior performance and workflow flexibility for larger projects.Centralization concerns and archival
Discussion of GitHub's role as a central archive creating dependency risks, with examples like Nintendo DMCA takedowns. Users debate need for decentralized alternatives and mention Software Heritage as existing archival solution.
5Bugs Rust won't catch
- In April 2026, Canonical disclosed 44 security vulnerabilities in uutils, a Rust reimplementation of GNU coreutils used in Ubuntu. Despite Rust's safety features, these production bugs weren't caught by the borrow checker or other tools, highlighting important lessons about secure systems programming in Rust including path resolution attacks, permission handling, UTF-8 assumptions, and panic-induced denial of service vulnerabilities.
Rust standard library filesystem API limitations
GNU Coreutils maintainer criticizes Rust's std::fs for making TOCTOU races easy to write, lacking openat-style APIs. Performance issues emerge with deep directory paths, showing 12+ second delays vs 0.01 seconds for GNU version due to path resolution overhead.Inexperience with Unix APIs in the rewrite
Developers knew Rust but lacked Unix systems experience, making "exceedingly amateur" mistakes like TOCTOU races and improper path comparisons. Many bugs were decades-old solved problems that weren't documented or tested properly in the original codebase.Canonical's premature deployment decision
Ubuntu's decision to ship the Rust rewrite despite finding 44 CVEs shortly before LTS release criticized as irresponsible. Users shouldn't be "lab rats" for testing immature rewrites of critical system utilities, especially when citing security as justification.
6Who owns the code Claude Code wrote?
- AI-generated code from tools like Claude Code and Cursor creates complex ownership issues. Such code may be uncopyrightable if lacking human authorship, automatically owned by employers through work-for-hire contracts, or contaminated by GPL licenses from training data, creating legal risks for developers.
Copyright ownership of AI-generated code
Discussion centers on whether humans directing AI tools own copyright of generated code, with debates over meaningful human authorship requirements, work-for-hire doctrine, and comparisons to compiler output versus creative expression.License contamination and legal liability
Users debate whether LLMs trained on GPL/open source code create license violations when reproducing similar code, with concerns about copyright laundering, DMCA takedowns, and liability for using potentially contaminated output.Legal precedent and Supreme Court interpretation
Participants discuss misstatements about Supreme Court cert denial in Thaler case, clarifying that denial doesn't settle national law, and debate what constitutes sufficient human creativity for copyright protection.
7Cursor Camp
- A welcoming message for visitors to Cursor Camp, expressing hospitality and encouraging guests to enjoy their time there.
Innovative mouse control mechanics
Users praise the genius of using mouse motion as the primary control scheme, highlighting features like cursor teleportation through doors, loss of control during slides/floating, and suggesting expansions like hedge mazes and difficult terrain.Productivity concerns and workplace impact
Discussion of Neal's games causing workplace productivity loss, with jokes about class action lawsuits and comparisons to Dragon Quest's legendary impact in Japan, plus mentions of corporate wifi blocking the game.Nostalgic multiplayer experience
Players express joy at the Club Penguin-like social experience, describing human connections formed through simple cursor movements, collaborative activities like beach volleyball and soccer, and the refreshing return to fun internet experiences.
8Soft launch of open-source code platform for government
- The Dutch government launched code.overheid.nl, a self-hosted open-source code platform using Forgejo as an alternative to GitHub and GitLab. Currently in pilot phase, it aims to support digital sovereignty and eventually become a shared Git platform for all government bodies.
Dutch government migration to Forgejo
Dutch citizens celebrate their government moving from GitHub to self-hosted Forgejo platform at code.overheid.nl, part of broader European efforts to reduce dependency on American tech services. Discussion includes technical issues and comparisons to other EU governments' open source initiatives.Government open source adoption across Europe
Comparison of open source adoption by governments, with Norway having 3000+ repos, Germany's opencode.de platform, and UK's 17,000+ OSS projects. Discussion reveals varying perspectives on which countries lead in government FOSS adoption.Machine-readable law project (RegelRecht)
Dutch project converting legal texts to structured YAML for automated decision logic, allowing citizens to check legal compliance automatically. Examples include rent law calculations and benefit determinations, exploring transparency in legal systems.
9We need a federation of forges
- Tangled is a decentralized code collaboration platform that aims to reduce dependency on centralized systems like GitHub. It uses git for code transfer and AT protocol for communication, allowing developers to collaborate across different servers while maintaining the social aspects of code development like issues, pull requests, and timelines.
Atproto vs mastodon federation
Discussion of how ATProto's RSS-like architecture with personal data servers and aggregating AppViews differs from Mastodon's instance-based federation, avoiding defederation issues and cold start problems while maintaining unified network experience.VC funding concerns
Users express skepticism about VC-backed projects due to eventual rug-pull risks and enshittification pressures. Founders defend their choice citing difficulty obtaining grants and need for rapid development, while critics prefer non-profit models.Purpose of forge federation
Debate over whether federated forges solve real problems, with some questioning the need beyond social login, while others cite discoverability issues and desire for decentralized alternatives to GitHub's dominance.
10How ChatGPT serves ads
- OpenAI has launched an advertising platform for ChatGPT that injects ads into conversations based on chat topics and tracks user interactions through merchant websites. The system uses encrypted tokens to connect ad clicks with subsequent user behavior, allowing advertisers to measure conversions across different brands like Grubhub, GetYourGuide, and Canva.
LLMs as propaganda tools
Discussion centers on how LLMs could become powerful vehicles for subtle propaganda and influence campaigns. Users debate whether bias would be detectable, how governments might exploit these systems, and the potential for "overlay weights" to customize responses for different interests.Sam Altman's credibility
Users question Altman's trustworthiness after he previously called ads a "last resort" but is now implementing them. Many compare him to other CEOs who use words strategically rather than truthfully, suggesting his statements should be viewed as tactical rather than honest.Ad integration concerns
Discussion focuses on how ads will be injected into AI responses, from current separate ad blocks to future seamless integration. Users worry about adversarial content manipulation and compare this to SEO gaming, with some already experimenting with covert advertising techniques.