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Article URL: https://middleeasternstreet.com/blog-detail.html?id=blog-1

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47098086

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://ivanca.github.io/snakeandfoes/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47098082

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://old.reddit.com/r/prequantumcomputing/comments/1ragunw/why_there_isnt_a_hacker_community_for_fundamental/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47098074

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://www.cs.cornell.edu/talc/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47098029

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/21/karen-newton-valid-visa-detained-ice

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47098027

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://github.com/jtolio/ajail

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47098025

Points: 2

# Comments: 0

I wanted to share some things most people outside the industry don't know, and a tool I built as a way to make the scale of it visible.

When you visit a site like NYTimes, your browser fires off 30-80 ad requests before the page even finishes loading. Each request broadcasts your device type, screen size, approximate location, browsing context, and a bunch of behavioral signals to dozens of ad exchanges simultaneously. This happens in under 200 milliseconds. Advertisers bid on you in real time before you've read a single headline.

But it goes beyond your browser. Walk past a digital billboard in a mall or on a highway and your device's mobile advertising ID can be picked up through location data. That DOOH screen doesn't know your name, but it knows a device with your behavioral profile was within range. Later that day you might see a retargeted ad on your phone related to a store near that billboard. That's not a coincidence.

None of this requires your name, email, or any PII. The industry doesn't need to know who you are. It just needs enough signal to understand what kind of person you are. Device graph matching, probabilistic ID resolution, contextual signals, and cross-device tracking build a shadow profile that follows you across screens without ever knowing your real identity.

I built a tool that estimates how much money the industry has spent targeting you personally based on your age, screen time, and country. It uses real CPM rates and impression estimates from the industry.

The site uses GoatCounter for anonymous page view counts, it's open source, cookieless, collects no personal data, and doesn't even need a GDPR notice. Your inputs never leave your browser. I built it this way because I know what the alternative looks like from the inside.

attentionworth.com

Happy to answer any questions about how the ad tech pipeline actually works.

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097997

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Hi HN,

I built OffKit after noticing something about app blockers: they fail the moment unblocking is too easy.

Most blockers rely on willpower. But the apps they block (Instagram, TikTok, etc.) are engineered by teams optimizing retention with massive resources. That’s not a symmetric fight.

So instead of “motivation”, I experimented with friction.

OffKit lets you: • Select apps to block (social media, games, etc.) • Add a forced countdown when disabling the block (e.g. 30 seconds where you just have to wait) • Generate a QR code that must be scanned to block/unblock apps

The QR code part is interesting: You can print it and put it somewhere physical — another room, your office, a drawer.

Now unblocking isn’t: tap → dopamine

It becomes: stand up → walk → scan → wait 30 seconds → reconsider

That small layer of friction changes behavior more than I expected. The delay gives your “rational” brain time to catch up to the impulse.

Technically, it’s built as a straightforward iOS app using Apple’s Screen Time / Family Controls APIs. No VPN tricks, no device management profiles.

Some observations so far: • Even 10–30 seconds of forced delay drastically reduces impulsive unlocks. • Physical distance (QR in another room) works better than purely digital barriers. • Users don’t want extreme lockdown — they want lightweight boundaries.

Curious what HN thinks about “friction design” vs. pure self-control tools.

Open to feedback on the concept and implementation.

App Store link: https://apps.apple.com/app/offkit-app-blocker/id6758268708

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097976

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://www.sigops.org/2026/ldos-toward-a-learning-directed-operating-system/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097967

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://www.welivesecurity.com/en/eset-research/promptspy-ushers-in-era-android-threats-using-genai/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097938

Points: 1

# Comments: 1

Article URL: https://www.biometricupdate.com/202602/colorado-moves-age-checks-from-websites-to-operating-systems

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097904

Points: 10

# Comments: 8

Article URL: https://github.com/magooney-loon/pb-ext

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097892

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://paolino.me/ruby-is-the-best-language-for-ai-apps/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097850

Points: 2

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/focus/20260106-back-to-textbooks-denmark-rolls-back-digital-learning

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097847

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://migratetoresponses.com

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097845

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://www.wired.com/story/a-galaxy-composed-almost-entirely-of-dark-matter-has-been-confirmed/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097842

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/2024388903869043061

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097840

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://twitter.com/sentdefender/status/2024929210867839399

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097823

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/acme-weather/id6742032583

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097808

Points: 1

# Comments: 0

Article URL: https://reui.io

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47097800

Points: 1

# Comments: 1