HN Buddy Daily Digest
Friday, February 13, 2026
Hey buddy,
Man, you gotta hear about the stuff from Hacker News yesterday, Friday the 13th. Some wild stuff, as usual. Grab a coffee, here’s the quick rundown:
iOS Keyboard Drama
First up, this guy posted a whole countdown website basically saying, "Fix the iOS keyboard or I'm switching back to Android!" He’s super frustrated with typos and autocorrect. The comments were buzzing. A lot of people agreed, saying Apple's software design has gone downhill, maybe because the original smart folks left. Others pointed out how Android still has features iOS doesn't, like multiple accounts for apps or better photo storage control. Kinda makes you wonder if Apple's just pushing new hardware over good software, right?
Drawing Diagrams with Text
Then there was this cool new tool called Monosketch. It lets you draw diagrams just using text and ASCII characters. Super neat for quick sketches without needing a fancy graphics program. The creator even popped into the comments, which is always cool to see, saying he almost didn't share it because he thought it wasn't ready. People were comparing it to other text-based diagram tools and even an old text editor called Acme.
EU vs. Infinite Scrolling
Big news on the regulatory front: the EU is apparently moving to "kill infinite scrolling" and other addictive design patterns. Think TikTok, Instagram, that kind of stuff. The comments were pretty mixed, with some saying it's about time, and others wondering how you'd even define "addictive design" legally. One interesting take was that personalized advertising is the real root cause, and maybe just taxing companies more could fix it.
OpenAI Drops 'Safely' from Mission
This one was a bit unsettling: OpenAI apparently removed the word "safely" from its mission statement. Yeah, 'safely'. People are obviously concerned, asking if AI is going to serve society or just shareholders now. Some comments compared it to social media already manipulating reality, and others brought up how easy it is to make bioweapons with AI, or how Google was actually hesitant to productize LLMs earlier due to safety concerns. Bit of a red flag, if you ask me.
MinIO Goes Closed Source
Remember MinIO, that open-source object storage project? Well, their repository is apparently no longer maintained as open source. This sparked a huge debate. Some people were fine with projects changing their licensing, while others were pretty annoyed. Lots of talk about alternatives like SeaweedFS and Aistore, and the complexities of open-source business models. It’s a good reminder that "free" doesn't always mean forever.
The Dark Patterns of Tipping
Someone made a game called Skip the Tips that highlights how impossible it can be to select "No Tip" on some payment screens because of dark patterns. You know, those tricky UI designs that nudge you to do something you might not want to. People were sharing their own horror stories, like being extorted for tips in Paris or ATMs trying to trick them into bad currency conversions. It's a real problem out there!
GPT-5.2's Physics Breakthrough
And finally, get this: OpenAI announced that GPT-5.2 apparently derived a new result in theoretical physics! Pretty wild, right? The comments were a mix of awe and skepticism. Some folks were debating whether AI is truly "intelligent" or just really good at throwing stuff at the wall until something sticks, much like humans. Others were more concerned about the long-term impact on jobs if AI can do this kind of high-level intellectual work, and if our leaders are even thinking about what that means for society.
Anyway, that's the gist of it. Crazy stuff, huh? Catch you later!
Best,
Your Buddy
Disclaimer: This summary is based on the provided data from February 13, 2026.