Last time I read this I didn't have nearly enough Category Theory beneath me to get the last half, but now I can read it as a very general way to generate OT-systems for practically arbitrary "transformation" categories.
I don't know if that means I better understand pushouts or better understand OT.
Looking at how this item has fared, it's clear that something or someone has penalised it[0]. Shame, really, that a genuine technical article has fallen off the front page like that.
I don't understand what you mean. An item's ranking is a combination of it's points, time, and any penalties that get applied. If people flag it then it gets penalised, or if the mods decide for some reason to apply a penalty then it gets pushed down in the rankings. Getting votes makes it more likely that an item will make it to the front page.
Does that make sense?
There are plenty of write-ups about how the ranking system works if you want to know more. Or email - details in my profile.
Sorry, I was vague. I didn't realize there was a penalty system that flagging or modding could invoke. I had never investigated it and always assumed that if a post was flagged then it'd just be removed from HN.
In retrospect the system makes sense as is, but I'd just never considered it.
