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September 17, 2025

Technology warts are a good thing, actually

We learn why we should cherish the warts of our technologies, and what the difference is between Hong Kong and decimal odds. Plus new premium newsletter!

You have arrived at the mid-week hump. Have a $container of $beverage and enjoy some reading before you speed along with the rest of your life.

New articles

You Want Technology With Warts

We often lament the warts of our technologies, but their presence is actually evidence that the maintainer of the technology pays attention to maintaining backward compatibility. Embrace wartfulness.

Full article (1–3 minute read): You Want Technology With Warts

Flashcard of the week

What's the relationship between decimal odds and Hong Kong odds?

This whole odds thing used to be a constant source of confusion for me, but then I realised there are really only two types of odds: (a) real odds, which are various ways of writing p/(1-p), and (b) European odds, which are various ways of presenting the payout for a given size stake.

Hong Kong odds (like UK fractional odds) are real odds. Decimal odds (European odds) have an additional stake in them that needs to be removed.

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