Show HN Daily Selection (2025-05-18)
- I built a knife steel comparison tool
- I cloned a YC funded app in a day as an MVP
- Merliot – plugging physical devices into LLMs
- Yum Yum Go - Mobile game to introduce healthy eating to kids
- Fahmatrix – A Lightweight, Pandas-Like DataFrame Library for Java
- Blacklight – secret scanner for code, databases, drives, and slack
- X-RAY – A student-built tool to audit OS behavior via ISO comparison
- SRE Assistant – An AI-powered agent for Kubernetes and AWS operations
- Compress Long LLM Prompt, Right in your web browser
- I made a tool that helps you find and create better AI prompts faster
- Chained VPN routing lab with Linux netns, veth, and iptables
I built a knife steel comparison tool [Consumer Tech]
89 points, 64 comments
A tool for comparing knife steel properties via radar charts.
- Compares edge retention, toughness, corrosion resistance, and ease of sharpening
- Uses a simple 1-10 scale for easy comparison
- Designed for knife and metallurgy enthusiasts
- Interactive and user-friendly interface
Discussion Link, Original Link
I cloned a YC funded app in a day as an MVP [Education]
3 points, 3 comments
Cloned a YC-funded learning app in a day as an MVP with similar features.
- Replicates core functionality of converting learning material into summaries and quizzes
- Developed in 9+ hours of continuous coding with some manual effort
- Currently listed for sale on an MVP marketplace
- Potential future open-sourcing or free release
Discussion Link, Original Link
Merliot – plugging physical devices into LLMs [Consumer Tech]
74 points, 23 comments
Merliot Hub is an AI-integrated device hub that connects physical devices to LLMs for natural language control.
- Enables control of physical devices (e.g., security cameras, thermometers) via natural language
- Acts as a gateway between AI (e.g., Claude Desktop, Cursor) and the physical world
- Supports seamless interaction with devices through LLMs
Discussion Link, Original Link
Yum Yum Go - Mobile game to introduce healthy eating to kids [Education]
4 points, 1 comments
Mobile game introducing healthy eating habits to kids.
- Designed for children
- Focuses on healthy eating education
- Mobile platform accessible
Discussion Link, Original Link
Fahmatrix – A Lightweight, Pandas-Like DataFrame Library for Java [Developer Tools]
43 points, 7 comments
Fahmatrix is a lightweight, pandas-like DataFrame library for Java designed for performance and simplicity on the JVM.
- Lightweight and dependency-free
- CSV/TSV import with auto-headers
- Series/DataFrame structures (like pandas)
- Statistical functions like describe(), mean(), stdDev(), and percentile()
- Fast parallel operations on numeric columns
- Java 17+ support
Discussion Link, Original Link
Blacklight – secret scanner for code, databases, drives, and slack [Developer Tools]
3 points, 0 comments
A secret scanning tool for detecting sensitive data across codebases, databases, and communication platforms.
- Scans for secrets, keys, and sensitive data in multiple environments
- Generates SARIF reports for easy sharing
- Customizable rules for governance and compliance
- Includes 114 built-in matching criteria with extensibility
Discussion Link, Original Link
X-RAY – A student-built tool to audit OS behavior via ISO comparison [Developer Tools]
3 points, 0 comments
A lightweight, high-privilege Linux system behavior auditor that compares live systems to original ISOs and detects suspicious changes in real time.
- Detects unexpected file/process changes and can auto-eliminate suspicious activity
- Lightweight (3MB) and efficient, runs on low-power devices like MacBook Air
- Exports behavior chain to Graphviz .dot format with full process trace
- Open-source and free to fork, built by a first-year non-CS student
- Intercepts plugin installations and terminates processes like VSCode if suspicious
- JSON/log export functionality in progress
SRE Assistant – An AI-powered agent for Kubernetes and AWS operations [Developer Tools]
3 points, 0 comments
AI-powered assistant for managing Kubernetes and AWS operations via natural language.
- Manages Kubernetes clusters (pods, deployments, logs, scaling)
- Provides AWS cost analysis and reporting
- Integrates with Slack for team collaboration
- Uses Google's Agent Development Kit for conversational AI
Discussion Link, Original Link
Compress Long LLM Prompt, Right in your web browser [Developer Tools]
4 points, 0 comments
A TypeScript port of LLMLingua-2 for compressing long LLM prompts directly in the browser.
- Ports Python implementation to TypeScript for web use
- Optimized for WebGPU-enabled browsers for best performance
- Open-source project available on GitHub
Discussion Link, Original Link
I made a tool that helps you find and create better AI prompts faster [Productivity]
13 points, 11 comments
A tool for discovering and creating better AI prompts with a community-driven approach.
- Helps users find and organize effective AI prompts
- Designed for both hobbyists and professionals
- Community-focused with user contributions and shared workflows
- Built by a team with marketing and engineering expertise
Discussion Link, Original Link
Chained VPN routing lab with Linux netns, veth, and iptables [Developer Tools]
4 points, 0 comments
A chained VPN routing lab for multi-user traffic isolation using raw Linux tools like netns, veth, and iptables.
- Uses WireGuard tunnels and dedicated namespaces per user
- Implements NAT and routing table overrides
- Includes OpenVPN in a second namespace for final egress
- Controlled via bash scripts and PostgreSQL, no containers
- Designed for GDPR-compliant VPN infrastructure with per-user isolation