BC TECH
Saved by @Jacobtldr

We just launched a fun little tool called Phantom Analyzer. It’s a 100% serverless tool that scans websites for hidden tracking pixels.

I want to talk about how we built it 👇

 The idea came about early this year after @mijustin gave us an idea about badges/certification, which developed into “what if we could scan websites for Google Analytics?!”. But we left the idea in Basecamp for many months.
Fast forward to Halloween, we’re thinking about fun ideas we could do to entertain people. We discussed “Phantom Analytics” in response to people getting confused with our product name, and had various ideas. And then we landed on the URL analyzer idea.
Once we’d finalized the spec, Paul got to work on our Halloween themed product and then coded up the HTML/CSS for it all. I then took it, put it into a Laravel application. Nice and easy.
Off the bat, I already knew the base stack I was using.

> Laravel Vapor
> ChipperCI for deployment
> SQS for queues
> DynamoDB for the database

We went with DynamoDB as we don’t want to worry about our database scaling!
So with our infrastructure known, we had a few challenges left to solve:

> How will we scan websites for tracking pixels?
> How will we utilize the queue and check the job is done?
> How will we validate the URL?
For scanning websites, the first thing I did was write out a complex, multi-level regex matching, guzzle executing scanner. But the problem was that it didn’t automatically run the javascript, which often includes additional requests, so the results weren’t accurate.
After spending a long time on that, I was searching for website crawlers and came across Puppeteer, which is a headless Chrome Node.js API. I then searched for how to get it running on Laravel Vapor and saw that someone had already solved that challenge!
I then spent 8 hours trying to start from scratch with Puppeteer, copying from @spatie_be’s Browsershot code, but I just couldn’t get it working. I went to bed, woke up the next morning, and decided that I’d start with Browsershot and simply modify it to what I needed.
I woke up the next day, and within 15 minutes I get a screenshot generated on Laravel Vapor, hooray! I then start to modify Browsershot…

Wait a minute...

Yes, out of the box, Browsershot already had what I needed. Are you kidding me?
So I modified my job and had it all working within minutes. Browsershot returns a list of network requests when loading a web page and returns them, bloody perfect. I then simply compared them against a list of around 10,000 known third party trackers that we had.
The next step was working out how we would get permanent storage in DynamoDB without bringing in anything extra. I wanted to keep it simple. So with DynamoDB as the driver, and “resources” as the storage root, I wrote a command that cached the tracking pixels indefinitely.
One of the initial concerns I had was regarding security. We would be passing user input to the command line and that wouldn't be safe. I spoke with @marcelpociot and he gave me some great advice, and I added in some validation. The active_url rule is fantastic.
I also wanted to have a way so that if a user entered a full URL (e.g. https://t.co/66d4eLDaOu) and not just "https://t.co/GA31muKcta", it still redirected them to the correct results page. Especially since our "tidying up" was opinionated. So we ran this code.
We then had to think about how to configure our Vapor app, and I went with the following settings

> 1024MB of RAM
> 2048 of RAM for the queue (could likely reduce!)
> Warm of 500
> CLI Timeout of 180 seconds

Those settings all worked nicely.
For our Vapor layers, we ran it like this. Very cool. My first time using Layers. Incredible work by the Vapor team (@themsaid @taylorotwell @enunomaduro).
For the "is it ready?" check, I debated using a UUID but I decided that we might have multiple users trying a website at the same time, and they should benefit from the same cache entry (we cache results for 5 minutes).
So for the ping, we went super old school. Interval and redirect when done. Very effective. And when it reloaded the page, it would hit the cache, see the entry and display it.
All in all, this was a fun project to build. I love working with Paul. The only design addition I made was the bats & fade, Paul did everything else. Very grateful for that 😂
I am still in awe over how quickly we deployed this with Vapor. I'm not kidding, it was all coded up and we just created it in the UI, deployed it and we were done. Remarkable experience. Infinite scale without any server work 😎

Hope you all enjoy Phantom Analyzer!

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This is how Facebook says it's trying to change the engagement pattern on its services. https://t.co/3p0PGc912o


.@RebeccaJarvis asks Zuckerberg if anyone is going to lose their job over the revelations in the NYT story. He dodges, says that personnel issues aren't a public matter, and that employee performance is evaluated all the time.
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foone
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This limitation, which is still found in the very latest Windows 10, dates back to BEFORE STAR WARS. This bug is as old as Watergate.


When this was developed, nothing had UPC codes yet because they'd just been invented.
Back when this mistake was made, There was only one Phone Company, because they hadn't been broken up yet. Ted Bundy was still on the loose. Babe Ruth's home run record was about to fall.

When this bug was developed, Wheel of Fortune hadn't yet aired. No one had seen Rocky Horror. Steven Spielberg was still a little-known directory of TV films and one box-office disappointment. SNL hadn't aired yet. The Edmund Fitzgerald was still hauling iron ore.

WHEN THIS STUPID MISFEATURE WAS INVENTED, THE GODFATHER PART II HAD JUST OPENED IN THEATERS.

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I am grateful to @slatestarcodex for taking the time to respond to my critique of technocracy. There is a lot there to respond to and in general I think the exchange speaks for itself. However, I think there are few points where clarification is important for the exchange to be

productive, which I'll briefly address here. I suspect many fellow travelers (e.g. @audreyt @dsallentess @JohnnieM @MichelleRempel @VitalikButerin @mds49) will find the exchange fairly ironic/revealing. I'll post this as a response on this blog as well.

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@eastshade
A thread about Eastshade's bike mechanic!

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10 Signs of Social Intelligence 🧠

1-Smile
2-Good posture
3-Strong eye contact
4-Fluid hand gestures
5-Let’s others talk more
6-Listens & relates
7-Comfortable Touching people
8-Walk with a swagger
9-Speaks at slower pace
10-Keeps calm under criticism

[ QUICK THREAD ]


1-Smile

How do you feel when you see someone that looks angry?

It’s a downer

No one will want to interact with you if you look pissed all of the time, it’s just negative energy

Plus, smiling is a sign of confidence and boosts others moods


2-Good posture

Don’t walk Into any social setting looking like the hunchback

It’s weak and makes you look low energy

Plus, you’re displaying low status with weak posture

Stand up straight with your chin up & chest out like a god

Walk like you’re proud of yourself


3- Strong eye contact

Ever shake someone’s hand & their eyes are either looking down or darting?

It’s weak & you probably won’t trust them

Or in conversation?

Eye contact while talking means you’re listening and paying *Attention*

Strong eye contact displays confidence


4-Fluid hand gestures

Use your hands to talk & express your points

Don’t stand there like a robot

Using the hands can make what you’re talking about exciting

It can also be used to emphasize

Exciting = positive emotion

Remember, making people FEEL is what’s important
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Billy Bostickson \U0001f3f4\U0001f441&\U0001f441 \U0001f193
Billy Bostickson 🏴👁&👁 ...
@BillyBostickson
Enough Jaw Jaw, this is War!
1. People's Justice Courts to be set up worldwide
2. Citizens' arrests of all Identified Suspects
3. Lab Inspections
3. Harsh interrogation using MKULTRA
4. Public Show Trials video streamed live
5. Cross Questioning of suspects via Twitter & Zoom
6.


A growing list of suspects to be interrogated


Foul Traitors, Charlatans, Frauds, Bat Molesters! Frankensteins, Well Poisoners, Plotters, Deceivers!
Dr. Shipmans, Saboteurs, Devils in White Coats!


Organisations to be Investigated
WIV
Wuhan University IMA
WIBP
WCDC
BEIJING IPB
Nanjing Military Lab
SinoPharm
BARDA
NIH
EMERGENT BIOSOLUTIONS
BIOPORT
GILEAD
SIAC
QTEL
USAMRIID
FORT DETRICK
DARPA
DTRA
Metbiota
ONE HEALTH
GVP
ECOHEALTH
MITRE
BATTELLE
TUNNELL
LAURIMA GOV SERVICES


Suspects (1)
China
Zhengli Shi
Peng Zhou
George Gao
Deyin Guo
Major General Chen Wei
United States
ALEX AZAR
JONNA MAZET
ALISON O’TOOLE
ANTHONY FAUCI
BOYD YOUNT
DAVID FRANZ
DAVID KARESH
DENNIS CARROLL
DYLAN GEORGE
GEORGE PAINTER
IAN LIPKIN
JENS KUHN
JEROME HAUER
JONATHAN EPSTEIN
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Vibhu Vashisth
Vibhu Vashisth
@VIBHU_Tweet
राम-रावण युद्ध समाप्त हो चुका था। जगत को त्रास देने वाला रावण अपने कुटुम्ब सहित नष्ट हो चुका था।श्रीराम का राज्याभिषेक हुआ और अयोध्या नरेश श्री राम के नेतृत्व में चारों दिशाओं में शन्ति थी।
अंगद को विदा करते समय राम रो पड़े थे ।हनुमान को विदा करने की शक्ति तो राम में थी ही नहीं ।


माता सीता भी हनुमान को पुत्रवत मानती थी। अत: हनुमान अयोध्या में ही रह गए ।राम दिनभर दरबार में, शासन व्यवस्था में व्यस्त रहते थे। संध्या को जब शासकीय कार्यों में छूट मिलती तो गुरु और माताओं का कुशल-मंगल पूछ अपने कक्ष में जाते थे। परंतु हनुमान जी हमेशा उनके पीछे-पीछे ही रहते थे ।


उनकी उपस्थिति में ही सारा परिवार बहुत देर तक जी भर बातें करता ।फिर भरत को ध्यान आया कि भैया-भाभी को भी एकांत मिलना चाहिए ।उर्मिला को देख भी उनके मन में हूक उठती थी कि इस पतिव्रता को भी अपने पति का सानिध्य चाहिए ।

एक दिन भरत ने हनुमान जी से कहा,"हे पवनपुत्र! सीता भाभी को राम भैया के साथ एकांत में रहने का भी अधिकार प्राप्त है ।क्या आपको उनके माथे पर सिन्दूर नहीं दिखता?इसलिए संध्या पश्चात आप राम भैया को कृप्या अकेला छोड़ दिया करें "।
ये सुनकर हनुमान आश्चर्यचकित रह गए और सीता माता के पास गए ।


माता से हनुमान ने पूछा,"माता आप अपने माथे पर सिन्दूर क्यों लगाती हैं।" यह सुनकर सीता माता बोलीं,"स्त्री अपने माथे पर सिन्दूर लगाती है तो उसके पति की आयु में वृद्धि होती है और वह स्वस्थ रहते हैं "। फिर हनुमान जी प्रभु राम के पास गए ।
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Max Fagin
Max Fagin
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November is here, and that means a massive shift is coming. And by "massive" I am of course referring to the redefinition of the kilogram unit of mass that the world has been building up to for more than 100 years. Let me explain:


1/ I've had an unhealthy fascination with metrology (the study of measurement) ever since my 2nd year as a physics major when I took a class devoted to duplicating historic physics experiments, so please indulge me for going into heavy detail (get it?) about the kilogram.

2/ So what actually *defines* a unit of measurement? If you're American, you probably know a mile is 5280 feet and a foot is 12 inches and an inch is 2.54 centimeters etc. But where does this chain of definitions end? Is it turtles all the way down?

3/ It's actually not! For all units (even the imperial units used in America) the answers all end with the Système International (SI) unit definitions established and maintained for over 100 years by the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIMP) in France.

4/ At the base of this tower are the SI base units. Just 7 SI base units define every other unit in existence. They are:

Kilogram, kg (mass)
Meter, m (distance)
Second, s (time)
Kelvin, K (temp)
Ampere, A (electric current)
Candela, cd (luminous intensity)
Mole, mol (quantity)
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Anu Satheesh 🇮🇳...
@AnuSatheesh5
Agastya Muni & Kaveri River
#story
This is a story which describes how River Kaveri was brought on earth by Agastya muni. There was a king named Kavera lived in the Brahmagiri hills who prayed to Brahma for a child. He was blessed with a daughter whom he named Kaveri.


Agastya muni married her. A demon, named Shoorapadma, wanted to trouble people so he prevented rain from reaching South India. As a result famine occurred in South India.
Agastya Muni who came that way was very sad seeing this. He started to pray Mahadeva for a solution.


Shiva gave him small amount of Ganga water in his Kamandalu (small pot) and said wherever you spill this water the river will flow from there. Agastya Muni travelled lot of places to find a suitable place to pour water. Feeling tired he kept his Kamandalu and took rest.


At that time Ganesha took a form of crow and perched on the Kamadalu and made a hole that water began to flow as river Kaveri. This place is now called as Talakaveri (Karnataka), located in the Brahmagiri hill.


Tala Kaveri has temple for Agastheeswara, which denotes the story between Kaveri and Agasthya muni. Kaveri is a part of Ganga, thus, also called Dakshina Ganga.
🙏🕉🙏
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