Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#1

Post by followdev » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 4:48 PM UTC

I'm not interested in politics or business, yet I somehow end up wasting time reading them here. That's why I've decided to create a Hacker News-like forum exclusively for software development-related topics.

I find ranking to be unnecessary since i don't see more than 50-100 posts a day. I will add a comments feature once there are enough users.

I hope FollowDev helps you discover new & unique content

Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics
followdev.com

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#2

Post by johnnyworker » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 5:15 PM UTC

An RSS feed would be sweet!

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#3

Post by Gys » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 5:15 PM UTC

The title says 'HH-like forum' so I came here to understand what 'HH' stands for. Seems a typo?

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#4

Post by gregdoesit » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 5:19 PM UTC

Neat idea!

If I recall correctly, this was the same frustration that Lobsters[1] was created. In the case of Lobsters, moderation decision have carefully been considered and implemented.

My two cents is that it's when it comes to comments - and moderation - that things get challenging. It's also where both HN and Lobsters managed to find a (hopefully) sustainable model. Good luck with this!

[1] https://lobste.rs

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#5

Post by dewey » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 5:21 PM UTC

Have you thought about classifying HN posts and then displaying them in some alternative frontend for your use case? Then you don't have the cold-start problem and can benefit from the discussions already happening here. Could even be a browser extension.

Seems a lot more realistic than trying to create a niche community out of an existing niche community.

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#6

Post by colesantiago » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 5:30 PM UTC

Why should I use FollowDev when HN exists?

I always come to HN for the comments first article second, then I won't waste my time reading the article sometimes.

But it doesn't look like there is anything here so I may just bounce off this website in seconds.

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#7

Post by lloydatkinson » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 5:47 PM UTC

A hacker news alternative that actually focuses on hacker news is very exciting

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#8

Post by [deleted] » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 5:56 PM UTC

dewey wrote: post #5

Have you thought about classifying HN posts and then displaying them in some alternative frontend for your use case? Then you don't have the cold-start problem and can benefit from the discussions already happening here. Could even be a browser extension. Seems a lot more realistic than trying to create a niche community out of an existing niche community.

[deleted]

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#9

Post by pullosa » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 6:05 PM UTC

Will definitely be following this, I fully agree about your comments on HN content.

Personally, I think a very basic ranking would be nice to have, especially as the platform grows. Just allows for users to get an idea of what others find the most interesting/helpful.

One other note, adding some sort of tagging would be useful if users are interested in certain topics but not others (ie a distributed systems eng might not find javascript posts particularly interesting).

Re: Show HN: FollowDev, HH-like forum exclusively for software dev-related topics

#10

Post by coastermug » Tue, Oct 24, 2023, 6:08 PM UTC

Given a quick read, I enjoy it and see why it is different. I can’t get on with Medium because of their login process, and HN is great but I just doom scroll comments and don’t really use it for technical learning. - I already found an interesting article on SQL optimisation, so thank you.