The hottest Engineering Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Business Topics

💥 Tech Talks Weekly #22

Tech Talks Weekly • 0 implied HN points • 11 Jul 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Tech Talks Weekly shares new talks from 13 conferences, making it easier to find tech content without scrolling through other platforms.
  2. Gergely Orosz's talk highlights the current state and future of the tech industry, making it a must-watch for anyone interested in tech trends.
  3. The newsletter offers a collection of talks that can help tech professionals learn and stay updated on the latest industry developments.

Tech Talks Weekly #16 ☀️☀️☀️

Tech Talks Weekly • 0 implied HN points • 30 May 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Tech Talks Weekly shares recent uploads from multiple tech conferences to help you stay updated.
  2. You can support this initiative by telling others about it and participating in a survey to improve the content.
  3. There are many interesting talks available, covering diverse topics in tech that you can watch to learn more.

Lambda Mountain v1.18 Patch Notes

Andrew’s Substack • 0 implied HN points • 02 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The new release of Lambda Mountain can now compile to C, making it compatible with many platforms.
  2. Compile times have significantly improved, going from 65 seconds to just 15 seconds.
  3. All code fragments are now strongly typed, which enhances clarity and reduces errors.

Building a Functional Expression Language within C's Type System

Andrew’s Substack • 0 implied HN points • 30 Oct 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. LM is a functional expression language that can generate code for different targets, including cross-compilation.
  2. To integrate LM with C, we need to convert LM types into C types, handling memory alignment and other details carefully.
  3. C's expression capabilities allow us to construct new data types and perform complex operations using simple expression syntax.

Lambda Mountain v1.17 Patch Notes

Andrew’s Substack • 0 implied HN points • 11 Oct 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The v1.17 update enhances programming experiences with new features, making the software more user-friendly. It focuses on improving performance significantly, allowing for optimized code structures.
  2. This patch includes useful improvements like single instruction math operations, function inlining, and better project organization, which help streamline coding processes.
  3. Overall, the update promises a strong foundation for future enhancements and supports more efficient coding practices, which is essential for low-level programming.
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Six Billion Unnecessary Function Calls

Andrew’s Substack • 0 implied HN points • 10 Oct 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Focus on adding features before trying to optimize your code, unless performance is a big issue. It's better to develop first and deal with optimization later.
  2. Low-level optimizations are useful for compilers, but many developers may not gain much from them. It's often smarter to enable existing optimizations like `O3` for better performance.
  3. High-level optimizations, like rethinking your code structure, help everyone. They improve performance and make the code easier to understand.

Procedural Flow for Mechanical Design

The Halfway Point • 0 implied HN points • 26 Apr 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. When designing a product, it's crucial to define the project scope clearly. This helps prevent misunderstandings and changes that can be costly later on.
  2. Using tools like design block diagrams can help visualize the design process. This makes it easier to define parts and see how everything fits together.
  3. Consider the quantity and materials needed for the design early on. This affects manufacturing choices and ultimately how well the product can be made.

The NextSeq 550 LEDs And More Dye Experiments

ASeq Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 03 Nov 24
🔬 Science Engineering
  1. The NextSeq 550 uses affordable components like $30 LEDs and image sensors, making it impressive for its cost-effective design.
  2. Experimenting with the LED pinout and driving them at certain voltage and current allowed for practical testing with a spectrometer.
  3. The author shares measurements taken through the NextSeq 550 optical system, indicating a hands-on approach to understanding its functionality.

How to inference-time compute scale your human engineering designs

Speculative Inference • 0 implied HN points • 22 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Design problems require more thought and effort compared to straightforward problems. It's about finding the best solution among many options, which is not always easy.
  2. Good designers think ahead about how their work will be used in the future. They prepare solutions that can adapt to changes instead of just solving today's issues.
  3. Scaling compute at inference time helps create better designs. It’s like having someone who combines experience and planning to come up with smarter solutions.

Coding with LLMs misplaces the understanding

Speculative Inference • 0 implied HN points • 21 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. LLM coding can be easy at first, allowing users to operate without deep understanding, similar to driving on autopilot. However, this can lead to mistakes and poor coding practices over time.
  2. Understanding complex systems is hard, and it's often not all written down. People rely on context and shared knowledge, which LLMs can miss out on, making it challenging for them to fully grasp what’s going on.
  3. If you don't understand your project's requirements or the underlying system well, you'll run into problems and make mistakes. Using LLMs requires a critical eye to avoid getting lost in error accumulation.

Announcing AuthCon

ciamweekly • 0 implied HN points • 09 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. There's a new conference called AuthCon happening in New York in May 2025, focusing specifically on customer identity and access management (CIAM).
  2. CIAM is important for all engineers because customer identity issues affect nearly every application in some way.
  3. Other conferences about identity exist, but AuthCon aims to fill the gap by being solely dedicated to CIAM for developers.

NextSeq 550 Image Sensor Pinout

ASeq Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 03 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The NextSeq 550 has a specific image sensor design that is being explored in detail. Understanding its components can help improve its use.
  2. Previous experiments with LEDs and dyes have provided insights into the image sensor's capabilities. Learning from these tests can enhance the device's performance.
  3. There are various posts that contain helpful observations about the NextSeq 550's imaging and fluidic systems. These notes can serve as valuable references for users and researchers.

Honda Elevate: Big on the Outside, Small on the Inside

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 18 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Honda Elevate feels cramped inside despite its big exterior size. The low seating and limited legroom make it uncomfortable for taller drivers.
  2. It lacks some modern features like a 360-degree camera and USB-C ports, which are common in newer cars. This can be a drawback for tech-savvy users.
  3. While it has some good safety features, it misses out on important ones like a multi-collision brake and pretensioners for seat belts, making it less safe than other options.

The Citroën Basalt Costs 18 but is worth 9

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 15 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Citroën Basalt is overpriced at 18 lakh and feels more like it's worth 9 lakh due to poor quality and features.
  2. It lacks important features like a 360-degree camera, good seat comfort, and proper air conditioning, which makes for a disappointing driving experience.
  3. Safety features are minimal, and the infotainment screen is positioned poorly, making it hard to use while driving.

The Seltos is a Marginally Worse Creta

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 11 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Seltos and Creta are very similar cars, with 95% of their features being the same. If you like one, you'll likely enjoy the other.
  2. The Creta offers a smoother ride and feels lighter when driving, making it easier to accelerate with less effort compared to the Seltos.
  3. While both cars have great features, the Seltos has some quirks, like a less comfortable headrest and a tendency to overreact with safety features, which may frustrate some drivers.

The 2024 Creta is Perfection

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 10 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The 2024 Creta is very comfortable and spacious. It offers a high seating position, plenty of legroom, and smooth suspension, making drives feel enjoyable without bumps.
  2. Driving the Creta is effortless and fun. Its powerful turbo engine and light steering make it easy to handle, even in heavy traffic, and it feels stable at high speeds.
  3. The car has great digital features like wired CarPlay and a premium sound system. However, some tech issues exist, like non-multitouch screens and limited app functionalities.

Why Look Around?

ciamweekly • 0 implied HN points • 23 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Cost issues can lead teams to look for new CIAM solutions, especially if a vendor raises prices or causes delays in other features.
  2. Availability problems with a vendor, like outages, can make companies reconsider their choice for CIAM, especially after multiple incidents.
  3. Sometimes teams seek new features or capabilities that their current CIAM solution doesn't offer, prompting a search for alternatives.

Oberon International's Omni-Reader

Computer Ads from the Past • 0 implied HN points • 17 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Omni-Reader is a tool designed to make data entry easier by using optical character recognition (OCR) technology. It helps users scan printed text and input it into their computers without having to type everything manually.
  2. Despite its potential, the Omni-Reader has limitations. It can struggle with different types of text quality and formatting, making it less reliable for certain tasks.
  3. Oberon International, the company behind the Omni-Reader, aimed to provide a low-cost solution for OCR, but it had issues that made it more suitable for occasional use rather than frequent office work.

Jeep Compass: Overpriced and Worse than the Creta

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 19 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Jeep Compass is deemed overpriced compared to the Creta, with major discomfort and driving flaws that make it less appealing.
  2. Although the interior quality is acknowledged as high, issues like cramped space and a firm suspension diminish overall comfort.
  3. While it has unique features like cooled seats and good digital connectivity, its complex climate controls and some digital limitations reduce usability.

The Two Essential AI Prompting Guides You Need to Know

ProductiveGrowth • 0 implied HN points • 30 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. To get better results with AI, you should write clear instructions and break down complex tasks into simpler ones. This makes it easier for the AI to understand what you want.
  2. Using examples and giving the AI time to think can greatly improve the accuracy of its responses. It’s like giving it hints to guide its answers.
  3. Learning advanced techniques through hands-on resources can help you implement AI more effectively. Watching practical examples can make complicated ideas easier to grasp.

Cybersecurity predictions for 2025

Frankly Speaking • 0 implied HN points • 07 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. In 2025, security budgets are expected to focus more on hiring skilled people than on buying security tools. Many tools don't really solve the security problems they claim to address.
  2. Artificial Intelligence is set to change the landscape of security tools, especially in outdated categories like data and application security. AI could help with understanding complex security issues better.
  3. The cybersecurity industry might see more companies staying private or being acquired instead of going public. The tough business environment is making IPOs less likely.

🐿️ Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines - The Insanely Profitable Tech Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 07 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Experimentation is key to learning. Just like early aviators learned from their crash attempts, businesses can benefit from trying new things and learning quickly from failures.
  2. SpaceX took more risks and embraced failures, which helped them succeed faster. They learned from their explosions, while Boeing took a safer approach and faced delays and high costs.
  3. In software development, mistakes can be less costly than in aerospace. Companies should feel free to experiment and gather feedback from users to improve their products, just like SpaceX does.

What to Look for in a Non-Electric Car

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 16 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. If you choose a non-electric car, go for a petrol engine. They are quieter, less vibrating, and provide a fun driving experience.
  2. Dual-Clutch Transmissions (DCT) are great for both quick acceleration and smooth driving. They work well for people who enjoy spirited driving and those who prefer a comfortable ride.
  3. CNG cars are better than diesel ones because they are less noisy and respond better, but keep in mind that CNG filling stations are not as common. Avoid manual and AMT transmissions as they tend to perform poorly.

🐿️ Leap of Faith - The IPT Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 21 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. We rely on many experts to prepare our food safely, from farmers to shippers, but we often overlook the importance of software engineers who also play a crucial role in this process.
  2. It's important to question and verify the work of those who create our tech products, just like we do with food safety. Ignoring potential issues could lead to serious problems later on.
  3. The speaker plans to host a podcast focusing on asking tough questions to industry experts, aiming to encourage others to do the same in their own workplaces.

🐿️ Murder Your Darlings - The IPT Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 14 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Review your software supply chains regularly to avoid unnecessary risks. It's important to double-check any changes before they go live, especially in critical services.
  2. Understanding how computers work is crucial for software design. Sometimes, small mistakes can lead to big problems, so be careful how changes are made.
  3. In any organization, it's vital to prioritize tasks and not try to do everything. Maintaining focus can help avoid burnout and keep the mission on track.

How will technical interviews (coding, system design) change in the world of Ai?

Thinking Through • 0 implied HN points • 28 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. AI should be seen as a useful tool in interviews, just like other programming aids. If it helps candidates showcase their skills, it should definitely be encouraged.
  2. We can streamline the interview process by merging coding and design tasks. Instead of separate questions, candidates could create a live project using AI in a single session.
  3. The focus in interviews should shift more towards understanding a candidate's fit within the company and their growth mindset, rather than just their coding abilities.

Nexon EV 45 Review: Don't Buy

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 13 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Nexon EV 45 has many flaws, making it hard to recommend. It's cramped and lacks good driving features, leading to a lack of confidence while driving.
  2. While the car drives smoothly and has modes for different driving styles, it has serious stability issues at high speeds and pulls to the left, which is dangerous.
  3. The digital features are lacking, with poorly located ports and unreliable tech like voice assistants. Additionally, the stereo and overall comfort can be improved significantly.

Optimizing for learning vs results

CodeFaster • 0 implied HN points • 17 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Learning is really important for long-term success. Understanding how things work helps you solve problems better in the future.
  2. Sometimes, learning can be hard and frustrating. But even when you fail, you learn what not to do, which can help you next time.
  3. Optimizing for quick results might seem tempting, but it can limit your growth. Balancing learning and results is key to becoming better at what you do.

Startup CTO series

Anant’s Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 18 Feb 25
💼 Business Engineering
  1. Effective roadmapping is essential for startups. It helps in outlining the goals and directions for the team.
  2. Recruiting the right people at the seed and series A stages is crucial. This means building a strong team that aligns with the startup's vision and needs.
  3. Measuring performance as a CTO involves setting clear frameworks. It's important for managing the team and ensuring everyone is on the right track.

Illumination Controller - 中央精機株式会社

Everyday Thing • 0 implied HN points • 06 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The illumination controller is a simple device made mostly of a transformer and a variable resistor to control light bulbs. It's not very complicated, just does its job well.
  2. It probably dates back to the 1980s but is based on designs from older decades, showing the timelessness of good design.
  3. The assembly appears to be done by hand, and everything is neat and well executed, which adds to its charm.

EDX-720

Everyday Thing • 0 implied HN points • 05 Feb 25
🔬 Science Engineering
  1. The EDX-720 is an energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometer used to analyze materials by firing X-rays at them.
  2. This kind of instrument has a heavy metal shield because it uses X-rays, making it safe for users.
  3. A lot of pictures of the EDX-720 have been shared, showing its various parts and features.

🐿️ Recapitulation - The IPT Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 17 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Technology often has parts that look fragile but work together well. By understanding these 'contraptions,' we can better appreciate their value and reliability.
  2. Old computer systems sometimes carry outdated functions, making them act like their ancient versions. This shows how technology can evolve but still keep old elements alive.
  3. People often create makeshift solutions that can work surprisingly well, even if they're not ideal. These 'kludgy' setups remind us that not all systems need to be perfect to serve their purpose.

🐿️ Inspector Gadget - The IPT Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 17 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Many technologies and systems are complicated and work just barely, like funny gadgets. They often rely on many small parts working together, even if they look messy or fragile.
  2. Rebuilding a system from scratch can make you lose important fixes and adaptations that made it work. It's better to replace parts slowly to improve it while keeping it running.
  3. Even though we think of computers as well-designed, many are actually put together in tricky ways. This is especially true for old software that can be a confusing mix of different ideas.

Verna Review: The Best Car For Under A Crore

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 23 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Verna is a top choice for those wanting an affordable car under 95 lakhs. For a budget of around 70 lakhs, it's the best option available.
  2. It offers impressive comfort and smoothness, with great handling and no body roll. The driving experience is so good that it feels almost effortless.
  3. The car has useful features like a great sound system and multiple USB ports, but it lacks some modern conveniences like a fully upgraded charging system.

Virtus / Slavia: Outclassed by the Verna

Kartick’s Blog • 0 implied HN points • 17 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The Hyundai Verna is recommended over the VW Virtus and Skoda Slavia because it's more comfortable and has better performance.
  2. Even though the Virtus and Slavia are similar, the Virtus has a more attractive design and doesn't cause discomfort like the Slavia does.
  3. Both cars have some useful features, but the Verna stands out with its smooth driving experience and better infotainment system.

Big Tech Digest #21 💥

Big Tech Digest • 0 implied HN points • 15 Jul 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. AI can sometimes make job candidates seem overly perfect in interviews. It's important to know how to spot AI-generated responses to ensure fair hiring.
  2. Team leaders may face skepticism when introducing AI tools. Having strong conviction and clear communication can help in gaining team acceptance.
  3. Optimizing technology, like reducing latency in a service or improving performance in software, can result in significant benefits, making systems faster and more efficient.

🐿️ Recapitulation - The IPT Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 19 Aug 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Many technology systems are like 'contraptions' that seem fragile but still serve important functions. It's helpful to understand how they work and where they might fail.
  2. Older computers often mimic past versions when booting up, showing that technology evolves by retaining elements from its history.
  3. Shims in software allow old systems to work with new platforms, creating interesting solutions but also hiding potential problems that could arise.

🐿️ Slow Turbo - The IPT Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 19 Aug 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Old computers had a 'Turbo' button that actually slowed them down because they ran too fast for certain programs. This was a clever way to control their speed for user experience.
  2. Modern software needs to be careful with changes because users can have strong reactions to even small updates. This is known as Hyrum's Law.
  3. When software is connected to many systems, improving it can make things complicated. It’s often better to simplify interactions to avoid problems while updating.

🐿️ Inspector Gadget - The IPT Newsletter

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 19 Aug 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. Gadgets and systems often seem complicated and fragile, yet they work just enough to solve problems. This makes them remind us of funny cartoon inventions.
  2. Many technologies were built in a messy way, rather than being perfectly designed. This means they often need clever fixes to keep running smoothly.
  3. It's usually not a good idea to completely remake a working system. Instead, small updates and improvements help maintain its value without causing chaos.

And here's the video

atomic14 • 0 implied HN points • 12 Aug 25
🕹 Technology Engineering
  1. The post features a video that was previously forgotten and is now included.
  2. There's a discussion about a printed circuit board (PCB) having a digital twin, highlighting modern technology.
  3. The content can be explored further through a link to read the full story online.