#271 – July 08, 2018
Extracting Super Mario Bros levels with Python
For an upcoming project, I need to extract level data from the classic 1985 video game Super Mario Bros (SMB). More precisely, I want to extract the background imagery for each stage of the game, excluding HUD elements and moving sprites, etc.
"Stylish" browser extension steals all your internet history
Before it became a covert surveillance tool disguised as an outstanding browser extension, Stylish really was an outstanding browser extension. It bestowed upon its users nothing less than the power to change the appearance of the internet. Its extensive bank of user-made skins gave bright websites a dark background, undid disliked UI changes, and added manga pictures to everything that wasn’t a manga picture already.
No, you don't need ML/AI. You need SQL
A while ago, I did a Twitter thread about the need to use traditional and existing tools to solve everyday business problems other than jumping on new buzzwords, sexy and often times complicated technologies.
Great video series about the reddit infrastructure evolution by Steve Huffman – on of the founders of reddit.
Long projects in your free time
This year The Pragmatic Bookshelf and I released the Learn Functional Programming With Elixir book, and its first chapter is available here. It took me one year and a half to finish the book. Yeah, it took a long time! Why did it take that long?