Omnom is a self-hosted bookmarking tool that emphasizes visual clarity and searchability. It takes WYSIWYG snapshots of bookmarked pages, allowing users to visually browse their saved links. These snapshots are full-text searchable, making it easy to find specific content within saved pages. Omnom is open-source and prioritizes privacy, keeping all data under the user's control. It offers features like tagging, archiving, and a clean, minimalist interface for managing a personal bookmark collection.
HTTrack is a free and open-source offline browser utility. It allows users to download websites from the internet to a local directory, building recursively all directories, getting HTML, images, and other files from the server to your computer. HTTrack arranges the original site's relative link-structure. Users can browse the saved website offline, updating existing mirrored sites, and resume interrupted downloads. It supports various connection protocols like HTTP, HTTPS, and FTP, and has options for proxy support and filters to exclude specific file types or directories. Essentially, HTTrack lets you create a local, navigable copy of a website for offline access.
Hacker News users discuss HTTrack's practicality and alternatives. Some highlight its usefulness for archiving websites, creating offline backups, and mirroring content for development or personal use, while acknowledging its limitations with dynamic content. Others suggest using wget with appropriate flags as a more powerful and flexible command-line alternative, or browser extensions like "SingleFile" for simpler, single-page archiving. Concerns about respecting robots.txt and website terms of service are also raised. Several users mention using HTTrack in the past, indicating its long-standing presence as a website copying tool. Some discuss its ability to resume interrupted downloads, a feature considered beneficial.
Olduse.net is a curated collection of abandoned, forgotten, or otherwise defunct websites, preserved as snapshots in time. It functions as a digital museum, showcasing web design trends, technologies, and content from the past. The site offers a glimpse into the early days of the internet and its evolution, highlighting the ephemeral nature of online content and serving as a reminder of how quickly technology and aesthetics change. It's a resource for those interested in web history, design, or simply curious about the internet's past.
HN users largely praised olduse.net for its simplicity, speed, and lack of modern web bloat. Several commenters appreciated its resemblance to early internet aesthetics and functionality, viewing it as a refreshing alternative to overly complex websites. Some pointed out potential uses for such a site, like accessing it on older hardware or low-bandwidth connections. A few users expressed skepticism about its long-term viability or questioned its purpose beyond nostalgia, but the overall sentiment was positive, with many finding its minimalist approach appealing. Several commenters also highlighted the site's creator, Ward Cunningham, and his contributions to the development of wikis.
The Finnish Web Archive has preserved online discussions about Finnish forests, offering valuable insights into public opinion on forest-related topics from 2007 to 2022. These archived discussions, captured from various online platforms including news sites, blogs, and social media, provide a historical record of evolving views on forestry practices, environmental concerns, and the economic and cultural significance of forests in Finland. This preserved material offers researchers a unique opportunity to analyze long-term trends in public discourse surrounding forest management and its impact on Finnish society.
HN commenters largely focused on the value of archiving these discussions for future researchers studying societal attitudes towards forests and environmental issues. Some expressed surprise and delight at the specific focus on forest-related discussions, highlighting the unique relationship Finns have with their forests. A few commenters discussed the technical aspects of web archiving, including the challenges of capturing dynamic content and ensuring long-term accessibility. Others pointed out the potential biases inherent in archived online discussions, emphasizing the importance of considering representativeness when using such data for research. The Finnish government's role in supporting the archive was also noted approvingly.
Perma.cc is a web archiving service designed to create permanent, verifiable links to online content. It combats link rot by archiving web pages and generating short, stable URLs that redirect to the captured version. This ensures cited material remains accessible even if the original source disappears or is altered. Perma.cc prioritizes authenticity and verifiability, allowing users to view archived page metadata and confirm its integrity. The service is primarily aimed at legal professionals, academics, and journalists who need reliable citations, but is available to anyone concerned with preserving web content.
Hacker News commenters generally praised Perma.cc for its mission of preserving web links. Several pointed out the crucial role such a service plays in academic citations and legal contexts where link rot can severely hamper research and due diligence. Some expressed concerns about the cost and closed-source nature of the platform, suggesting alternatives like archive.today or IPFS. A few users discussed the technical aspects of Perma.cc, touching upon its architecture and storage mechanisms, while others debated the efficacy and long-term sustainability of centralized archiving solutions. The closed-source nature was a recurring theme, with commenters wishing for more transparency or a community-driven alternative. Finally, some discussed the legal implications of web archiving and the potential for copyright disputes.
Archivists are racing against time to preserve valuable government data vanishing from data.gov. A recent study revealed thousands of datasets have disappeared, with many agencies failing to properly maintain or update their entries. Independent archivists are now working to identify and archive these datasets before they're lost forever, utilizing tools like the Wayback Machine and creating independent repositories. This loss of data hinders transparency, research, and public accountability, emphasizing the critical need for better data management practices by government agencies.
HN commenters express concern about the disappearing datasets from data.gov, echoing the article's worries about government transparency and data preservation. Several highlight the importance of this data for research, accountability, and historical record. Some discuss the technical challenges involved in archiving this data, including dealing with varying formats, metadata issues, and the sheer volume of information. Others suggest potential solutions, such as decentralized archiving efforts and stronger legal mandates for data preservation. A few cynical comments point to potential intentional data deletion to obscure unfavorable information, while others lament the lack of consistent funding and resources allocated to these efforts. The recurring theme is the critical need for proactive measures to safeguard valuable public data from being lost.
Summary of Comments ( 36 )
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43680232
Hacker News users generally praised Omnom for its appealing UI and the clever idea of searchable, WYSIWYG website snapshots. Several commenters expressed interest in trying it out, particularly appreciating the self-hosted nature. Some questioned the long-term viability of relying on browser snapshots for search, citing potential issues with JavaScript-heavy sites and the storage space required. Others suggested potential improvements, including alternative archiving methods, enhanced tagging, and better mobile support. A few mentioned similar existing projects like ArchiveBox and SingleFile, highlighting the existing demand for this type of tool. There was some discussion around the choice of using SQLite, with some advocating for PostgreSQL for better scalability. Overall, the comments reflected a positive initial reception, with a focus on the practical advantages and potential challenges of the snapshotting approach.
The Hacker News post for Omnom, a self-hosted bookmarking tool, has generated a moderate amount of discussion with a mix of positive feedback and constructive criticism.
Several commenters express appreciation for the project, praising features like full-text search of saved pages and the clean interface. One user highlights the value of self-hosting for privacy and control over data, a sentiment echoed by others. The ability to annotate and edit snapshots is also mentioned as a strong point. Some users compare Omnom favorably to existing bookmarking solutions, finding its features and self-hosted nature appealing.
However, some concerns are also raised. A recurring theme is the project's reliance on SQLite, with commenters questioning its suitability for scaling and handling large numbers of bookmarks. Performance with extensive use is a related concern. The developer responds to this criticism by acknowledging the current limitations of SQLite but pointing out that it's currently sufficient for their personal use case and that alternative database backends are being considered for the future. They also engage in discussion about potential performance optimizations.
Another point of discussion revolves around the use of Electron for the desktop application. While some appreciate the cross-platform compatibility, others express concerns about Electron's resource consumption and performance overhead. Alternative approaches using native frameworks or web technologies are suggested.
The developer actively participates in the comments section, responding to questions, addressing concerns, and engaging in discussions about future development plans. They express openness to feedback and community contributions. The overall tone of the discussion is constructive, with users offering suggestions for improvements and alternative approaches.
Several users inquire about specific features, such as tagging, cloud synchronization options, and integration with other services. The developer clarifies the current state of these features and discusses potential future implementations.
While the discussion isn't overwhelmingly voluminous, it provides a valuable glimpse into the initial community reception of Omnom, highlighting both its strengths and areas for potential improvement. The active participation of the developer suggests a commitment to ongoing development and responsiveness to user feedback.