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Context for the uninitiated or younger HN audience:<p>Aaron Swartz was a programmer and an internet freedom activist. He co-authored the RSS spec at age 14, and helped build Reddit, Creative Commons, Markdown syntax, Open Library, and more. But he was much more than the sum of his outstanding code contributions. He believed public information hidden behind unreasonable paywalls should be free, and fought to make it actually public.<p>In 2008, he wrote a script to download millions of federal court documents from the government's paywalled PACER database. In due time, he was caught by federal authorities, but the case was closed without filing charges. Aaron had violated the terms of service, but he had not broken the law as the documents were public property. The cache is now permanently hosted on the Internet Archive.<p>In late 2010, he started running a script to download the JSTOR archive, a digital library that locks millions of academic journals, papers, books, and primary sources behind expensive paywalls. JSTOR caught on, and started firewalling him. Aaron bypassed the firewalls by entering an unlocked utility closet in the basement of MIT's Building 16 and connected his laptop to the network switch, hiding it under a cardboard box. This did not end well.<p>MIT and JSTOR found the laptop and contacted the authorities, who turned this into a federal sting operation, and used a camera to catch Aaron in the act. Federal prosecutors and U.S. attorneys tried to make an example out of him. Instead of a simple trespass or civil suit, they charged him with multiple felonies including CFAA and wire fraud, threatening him with 35 years in prison and $1 million in fines (comparable to sentences for manslaughter, bank robbery, and worse crimes). Aaron rejected a plea deal that would brand him a felon.<p>After three years, Aaron was still facing trial and the full weight of the federal government. On January 11, 2013, he took his life. He was 26 years old.<p>Today, we pay tribute to a pioneering builder and thinker of the open web.<p>Some links:<p>Aaron's manifesto on freeing academic knowledge: https://ia600101.us.archive.org/1/items/GuerillaOpenAccessManifesto/Goamjuly2008.pdf<p>Aaron's weblogs: https://github.com/joshleitzel/rawthought/tree/master<p>An excellent documentary on Aaron Swartz: https://archive.org/details/TheInternetsOwnBoyTheStoryOfAaronSwartz<p>Aaron’s keynote “How we stopped SOPA”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgh2dFngFsg<p>16 year old Aaron speaking at the launch of Creative Commons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpT_V-DB1JU
There’s a point where growth stops feeling like momentum and starts feeling like an anchor.<p>It’s not a lack of effort. It’s the complexity threshold.<p>We just ran the first Vision diagnostics for real companies. From tech startups to 50-person firms, and the data is clinical:<p>By the time you hit 25 people, decision latency spikes by 30–50%.<p>On the surface, you look fine. Underneath, the system is opaque. You aren't scaling leverage; you’re scaling chaos.<p>What this looks like in the trenches:<p>- The Manual Glue: Teams compensate for broken workflows with manual workarounds. We call it the friction tax.
- The Artisan Trap: You’re in "craft mode" (bespoke tasks) rather than "platform mode" (scalable systems).
- The Insight Gap: Simple questions take three days and four spreadsheets to answer.<p>In one Vision report, revenue was up 18%, but costs ballooned 27%. They were paying a premium to grow slower.<p>The reality…<p>Most leaders optimize nodes (hiring, new tools). But the bottleneck is the constraint.<p>True transformation follows one law.<p>Intelligence precedes action.<p>Once these companies saw their diagnostic, the fix was simple: Solidify the data spine and prune low-leverage work. This unlocked 12–20% operating leverage without one new hire.<p>When a system finally sees itself, the weight lifts.<p>Decisions compress.<p>Waste becomes visible.<p>If your org feels heavy, you don't need more ambition. You need a cognitive core.<p>Vision by Cultivation was built to be that core.<p>Run the diagnostic. Name the thing you’ve been feeling.<p>→ heycultivation.com<p>It takes 60 seconds. It might save your next two years.
I am a big fan of apps like Tricount, but yesterday, I was with some friends and found that creating a group and adding everyone was a burden for a simple calculation.<p>I thought that a simple website to add people and expenses with no sign-ups/ads (or downloading another app) to calculate payments automatically would be helpful.<p>So I created and published it. It is very simple but I think nice-to-have for one-day trips/activities.<p>https://splitcostonline.com<p>Let me know your thoughts :)<p>Jaime