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Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

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Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#61

Post by anon7725 »

AlbertCory wrote: post #29

They've been around forever. "Everyone has it but no one is on it" was always the description. One good application is finding someone you USED to work with (if they have email notifications turned on, of course). And hearing where your friends are working now. As for revenue: job listings. That's it.

> One good application is finding someone you USED to work with (if they have email notifications turned on, of course). And hearing where your friends are working now.

This is literally the only thing I care to use it for so of course it’s nearly impossible to use it this way.

Would love to log in once a year and see a simple list of “person X is now working at company Y”

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#62

Post by mongol »

anon7725 wrote: post #59
mongol wrote: post #50

I have sometimes considered to incorporate in my will that my family should post about my passing using my LinkedIn account. That will reach 95% of everyone in my circles of the last 20 years. Yes, it is disappointing...

“4 things I learned by leaning in to non-existence this year”

At first I was unsure what you were referring to but now I get it, I should post as a ghost! Haha, good one!

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#63

Post by kgdiem »

brightball wrote: post #36

So I started social accounts for the Carolina Code Conference that I took over this past March. LinkedIn has outpaced them all and they were all started at the same time. Content is delivered equally to all platforms, aside from a couple of experiments here and there. Here are the numbers from a couple of weeks ago… LinkedIn is by far the leader in the house, with 538 followers outpacing our 440 Substack subscribers…

I find I get a lot of likes and reposts when I post about my app on LinkedIn but it doesn’t translate into any actual sales.

Posting about a code conference is a lot different than an app but I’m curious if your follower counts and interactions translate to conversions / conference attendees.

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#64

Post by brightball »

kgdiem wrote: post #63
brightball wrote: post #36

So I started social accounts for the Carolina Code Conference that I took over this past March. LinkedIn has outpaced them all and they were all started at the same time. Content is delivered equally to all platforms, aside from a couple of experiments here and there. Here are the numbers from a couple of weeks ago… LinkedIn is by far the leader in the house, with 538 followers outpacing our 440 Substack subscribers…

I find I get a lot of likes and reposts when I post about my app on LinkedIn but it doesn’t translate into any actual sales. Posting about a code conference is a lot different than an app but I’m curious if your follower counts and interactions translate to conversions / conference attendees.

Yea. Ticket promotions, call for speakers, speaker and sponsor features with video that are tagged. Same for the podcast interviews.

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#66

Post by MrDresden »

I can't answer the question of how LinkedIn become what is today but having had a presence there for close to a decade now, I can't say I ever remember it being anything else than the cringe worthy place it is.

As a way of maintaining a social graph with other professionals and keeping a publicly available resume, it is fine.

But the feed and the posts? Can't imagine why anyone would care for that part if it.

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#67

Post by epicureanideal »

andrewjf wrote: post #30
nsenifty wrote: post #9

Politics and war discussions have been increasingly common at work too. Companies have promoting ERGs in the hope of diversity and in the name of "bringing your authentic self to work", and these groups have become a hotbed of activism. I've witnessed flamewars in work channels on the topics of BLM, war in Gaza etc in the past two companies I've worked.

> Companies have promoting ERGs in the hope of diversity and in the name of "bringing your authentic self to work", and these groups have become a hotbed of activism. …and it’s absolutely vile. Leave me alone at work. Work is not your place to advocate for whatever agenda you happen to have. Whether I agree or not isn’t relevant to the mission of the company, and it’s not the company’s job to support your cause.

> "bringing your authentic self to work"

Except only certain views are allowed to be expressed.

And of course, dating among coworkers is heavily discouraged and risks your career, but isn't that part of your "authentic self" too?

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#68

Post by gnicholas »

smolder wrote: post #60
gnicholas wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I didn’t think there was a way to mute people, only to unfollow or disconnect entirely. I find it annoying that I can’t tell LinkedIn to show me less of this, like I can with other social networks.

I find it annoying that other social networks offer "hide this" or "see less" features which are ineffective. E.g. Facebook won't stop putting clickbait "shorts" at the top, no matter what I do. YouTube keeps showing me ads for some kind of dating crap with suggestive pictures of women despite my best efforts (apart from adblock, which stopped the obnoxious and repetitive ads...)

It's true, this is possibly worse than not offering the option at all!

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#69

Post by gnicholas »

alephnerd wrote: post #54
gnicholas wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I didn’t think there was a way to mute people, only to unfollow or disconnect entirely. I find it annoying that I can’t tell LinkedIn to show me less of this, like I can with other social networks.

On the top right of a post there is an X button. Click that. It will remove that content from your feed and offer less content like that. Like content you find relevant and X out the content you find useless. In 1 week your LinkedIn will be completely tuned Also, as someone who I think might be a 2nd or 3rd degree connect of yours, the Bay Area Asian American HS network has been fairly high quality. Leverage and opti…

Interesting, I've X'ed posts in the past but haven't found there to be much effect. Maybe the algo is changed now; I'll try again.

Re: Ask HN: Why did LinkedIn become what it is today?

#70

Post by plagiarist »

epicureanideal wrote: post #28
mgillett54 wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Employee resource group, basically a group of employees that have some shared interest or background

Although as with most race, gender, or interest groups, it would be unwise to try to start one for specific combinations. Strangely, the same combinations that are labeled “oppressors”. I’m not saying I would want to, but I find that ERGs for every other combination starts to feel like a way for organized preferential treatment to happen for all those other combinations, and all their various interests to be promoted…

Society is the ERG for the specific combinations that aren't systematically held back.

What preferential treatment are your peers getting that are advancing their interests beyond yours? What are their interests that don't align with your own?

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