Negotiations between the train drivers' union and the Belgian railway company are at an impasse. Union demands for improved working conditions and pay increases remain unmet, leading to ongoing strike action.

The strike has caused significant disruptions to train services across Belgium, affecting commuters and travelers alike. Many routes are cancelled or delayed, causing widespread inconvenience.

Both sides have expressed a willingness to continue talks, but a resolution remains elusive. The impact of the prolonged disruption on the Belgian economy is becoming increasingly concerning.

Researchers have developed a method to translate C code into safe Rust code. This avoids the use of "unsafe" Rust code, preserving Rust's memory safety guarantees which is a key benefit of using Rust.

The method involves type-directed translation and a novel static analysis technique using "split trees". It also handles C's pointer arithmetic and struct types in a way that's compatible with Rust.

The approach was tested on verified C codebases, including a large cryptographic library. Results show that the translation to safe Rust is largely successful, with minor manual adjustments needed in a few cases. The performance impact was negligible.

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A programmer created a raycaster in Bash, a surprising feat given the language's limitations. The code, under 300 lines, generates a basic 3D-like image using clever manipulation of terminal output.

Other users expressed amazement at this accomplishment, highlighting the unusual use of Bash and the efficiency of the code. Some commented on the potential for future development and optimization of such projects.

Discussions followed about the speed of Bash and terminal rendering capabilities, with some suggesting improvements and contrasting this approach to more traditional 3D rendering techniques. A similar project in MS Batch was also linked.

Spotify playlists, particularly jazz playlists, contained numerous unfamiliar artists, prompting an investigation. Many of these artists were based in Sweden, and some had remarkably high streaming numbers, exceeding even established artists.

Further investigation revealed that nearly identical tracks were listed under different artist names and titles, suggesting a pattern of manipulation. This unusual activity raised concerns about the potential use of artificial intelligence or attempts to avoid royalty payments.

Journalist Liz Pelly's year-long investigation uncovered Spotify's "Perfect Fit Content" (PFC) program. This involved partnerships with production companies and internal teams seeding these cheaper tracks onto playlists to boost profits, effectively undermining musicians and record labels.

The DOS APPEND command, initially puzzling, proved useful when organizing the DOS 2.11 source code. The older MASM version (1.25) used lacked directory support, making a hierarchical file structure challenging. APPEND solved this by adding paths to the file search.

APPEND, a TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) program, intercepts file access requests. If a file isn't found in the current directory, APPEND checks additional paths specified by the user. This effectively makes older DOS applications compatible with directory structures.

First seen in IBM's PC Network Program (1985), APPEND was later integrated into DOS 3.3 (1987). Its integration with COMMAND.COM enables it to function as an internal command after initial installation. APPEND offers control over paths through internal storage or environment variables.

A Stanford University volunteer is seeking input for a new course, CS 153: Infrastructure at Scale. The course will focus on practical aspects of large-scale systems, including hands-on projects and guest speakers from leading technology companies.

The instructor is particularly interested in perspectives from individuals who have solved complex scaling issues through innovative methods and unconventional approaches, and aims to highlight the value of unconventional problem-solving skills.

The course is looking for suggestions on who to invite as speakers and what projects to assign. Input can be shared publicly or privately. The course prerequisites are CS106/CS111 level programming.

Government prepares for potential energy crisis this winter. Concerns about energy supply shortages are growing due to geopolitical instability and high demand.

Vulnerability of energy grid is a key concern, especially given predicted cold weather. Authorities are exploring various solutions to ensure sufficient supply.

Public urged to conserve energy and prepare for potential disruptions. Measures include advice on energy efficiency and emergency preparedness.

Inline assembly in GCC and Clang is risky; avoid it when possible, using intrinsics instead. Modern compilers offer built-in functions for most situations where inline assembly was previously used.

If inline assembly is unavoidable, always use the "volatile" qualifier to prevent compiler optimization issues. Also, a "memory" clobber is usually needed to ensure correct memory access ordering.

Other crucial rules include: never modifying input constraints without changing them to read-write; avoid function calls within inline assembly; and use local assembly labels to prevent duplicate label issues when the assembly block might be cloned.

The UK Online Safety Act, despite prior warnings, is negatively impacting smaller online communities. A London-based cycling forum, LFGSS, is shutting down due to the law's stringent requirements, deeming compliance impossible.

The act mandates registration with Ofcom, assigning accountability to a "senior person." It also necessitates fully-staffed moderation teams with rapid response times and proactive child safety measures, overwhelming small forums.

The closure of LFGSS is not isolated; Microcosm, the forum's platform, hosts 300 similar communities, now facing shutdown or migration, highlighting a wider concern about the Act's unintended consequences on smaller online communities.