Hacker News: pxeboot

New comment by pxeboot in "Sports Betting Is Everywhere, Especially on Credit Reports"

pxeboot — Sat, 28 Mar 2026 04:39:34 +0000

> They didn't change any laws, did they? So it was as legal earlier as it is now, isn't it? It's just that someone found the right loophole that was always there.

In the US, it was banned in most places until 2018. The Supreme Court invalidated the ban that had been in place until then.

New comment by pxeboot in "GrapheneOS refuses to comply with new age verification laws for operating system"

pxeboot — Sun, 22 Mar 2026 20:39:29 +0000

> An adult had to pay for the ISP connection

In many countries, it is still possible to buy a prepaid SIM without any ID.

New comment by pxeboot in "The MacBook Neo"

pxeboot — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 17:56:52 +0000

> I don’t know how they do things nowadays, but it used to be the case that the same SKU didn’t even guarantee you the same hardware. Two machines of the same order could even be slightly different, requiring different drivers.

Apple is guilty of this too. For example, two iPhone's purchased at the same time can have displays from different manufactures, with noticeable quality differences between them.

New comment by pxeboot in "Dumping Lego NXT firmware off of an existing brick (2025)"

pxeboot — Sun, 08 Mar 2026 01:34:04 +0000

I have kept all my favorite sets. They don't take up much space. Just two 24x24x24” boxes. Maybe a big deal if you are moving internationally, but I have always been able to find space for them, even in some very small homes.

New comment by pxeboot in "Apple: Enough Is Enough"

pxeboot — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 19:11:34 +0000

> There is no simple way to reset the computer to factory conditions.

This is not accurate. There is a built-in factory reset option on macOS, just like on iOS.

New comment by pxeboot in "Swapping SIM cards used to be easy, and then came eSIM"

pxeboot — Mon, 29 Dec 2025 18:31:48 +0000

> ESim are backed up as part of iCloud backups

You can’t actually backup an eSIM. If you could, they would be easy to clone. I know Apple uses that terminology, but that isn’t what is happening in the background. Same with transferring an eSIM. A new one is issued each time.

New comment by pxeboot in "Are Apple gift cards safe to redeem?"

pxeboot — Thu, 18 Dec 2025 19:20:24 +0000

Apple does provide a way to transfer purchases to a different account you control [1].

[1] https://support.apple.com/en-us/117267

New comment by pxeboot in "Microsoft increases Office 365 and Microsoft 365 license prices"

pxeboot — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 02:48:54 +0000

> Have people switched en masse to them? Nope.

Business, sure, but there are millions of consumers who exclusively use Google Docs, iWork, or other Office alternatives.

New comment by pxeboot in "Bootloader Unlock Wall of Shame"

pxeboot — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 18:57:37 +0000

Yes, I have a Garmin watch paired with GrapheneOS.

New comment by pxeboot in "Bootloader Unlock Wall of Shame"

pxeboot — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 18:44:41 +0000

I personally use my smart watch for NFC payments. I find it far more convenient then paying with my phone.

New comment by pxeboot in "Bootloader Unlock Wall of Shame"

pxeboot — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 18:01:23 +0000

Not with Google Wallet.

New comment by pxeboot in "Bootloader Unlock Wall of Shame"

pxeboot — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 17:52:26 +0000

I use GraphaneOS and have had zero issues with the ~10 bank/brokerage apps I use.

New comment by pxeboot in "Digital ID, a new way to create and present an ID in Apple Wallet"

pxeboot — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 19:03:20 +0000

Google Wallet has supported passports for about a year now [1]. Works great at TSA. You scan it yourself. You never need to hand them your unlocked phone.

[1] https://support.google.com/wallet/answer/15284332?hl=en

New comment by pxeboot in "Google blocks Android hack that let Pixel users enable VoLTE anywhere"

pxeboot — Sun, 12 Oct 2025 05:34:08 +0000

This does work on Pixel's, but Google allowed carriers to block it, which at least one major US carrier does.

New comment by pxeboot in "Slack has raised our charges by $195k per year"

pxeboot — Thu, 18 Sep 2025 06:09:23 +0000

VMware? At least everybody saw that coming the second the Broadcom merger was announced.

New comment by pxeboot in "Signal Secure Backups"

pxeboot — Mon, 08 Sep 2025 18:41:39 +0000

I agree the video call quality needs improvement, but sending photos and videos has always been flawless on Android for me.

New comment by pxeboot in "Tesla used car prices keep plumetting, dips below average used car"

pxeboot — Sat, 09 Aug 2025 06:00:45 +0000

Has anybody actually been finding good deals on used Tesla's? Every time I see one that looks like a decent price, it has extremely high miles or serious issues.

Anytime I see one with low miles and in good condition, it is approaching the price of a new one.

New comment by pxeboot in "uBlock Origin Lite now available for Safari"

pxeboot — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 03:45:38 +0000

I have had no issues with any bank or brokerage apps, but NFC payments with Google Pay are blocked.

New comment by pxeboot in "uBlock Origin Lite now available for Safari"

pxeboot — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 00:51:57 +0000

I have been extremely happy with GrapheneOS. The built-in browser includes ad blocking, although it is not as good as uBlock Origin.

New comment by pxeboot in "SMS 2FA is not just insecure, it's also hostile to mountain people"

pxeboot — Wed, 14 May 2025 17:47:07 +0000

I think your experience is typical. I use my Google Voice number for everything and have rarely had any issues.

There are a few popular companies that blacklist VoIP numbers, but most don't. Even Chase, which historically blocked Google Voice, started allowing it a couple years ago.