A note on subscription prices from LWN • Hacker News Board

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#11

Post by Diederich » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:41 PM UTC

LWN is one of the cornerstones of my very successful career.

Starting from the beginning, I have (at least) read through every story and every article, every week, since 1998. Especially in the beginning, there was a lot in each article I didn't understand. I would try to do some digging into those topics.

One way or another, just the weekly exposure to absolutely top notch technical writing was foundational to me.

When newer folk would ask me how to really get good with Linux, I would always point them to LWN.net.

I've been a subscriber since the beginning. That small investment is the least I can do given the incalculable value LWN has brought to me.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#12

Post by mrweasel » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:41 PM UTC

thataccount wrote: post #5

LWN, probably about to discover people are paying high prices for all manner of things and will find that LWN is, sadly, a disposable entity to pay for.

You could also see if it's something your employer allows you to expense. It's still cheap enough that it's something most managers can just approve directly, depending on organizational structures.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#13

Post by roryirvine » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:42 PM UTC

rdpintqogeogsaa wrote: post #9

giancarlostoro wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not only that but lwn is one of the main sites that gets submitted to HN all year round (not daily, but maybe nearish to daily). So the audience here on HN has been exposed to it over the years. I'm not sure what more they could do to get new subscribers, I certainly hope they figure that out or how to get new ways to earn revenue without having to go the ad route. https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=lwn.net

That's the thing though. You can get all the value from LWN through here. Even if it wasn't for them tolerating subscriber links being posted on HN, the week-long delay isn't nearly enough an incentive to actually subscribe, rationally speaking.

I think the generosity and straightforwardness are a big part of the attraction for many subscribers.

They've always respected their readers and I hope that continues to pay off.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#14

Post by bryanlarsen » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:43 PM UTC

thataccount wrote: post #5

LWN, probably about to discover people are paying high prices for all manner of things and will find that LWN is, sadly, a disposable entity to pay for.

I suspect everybody likely to do so has already done so. Anybody who thinks $6 a month is a lot of money will also think $5 a month is a lot of money for something that they can get for free by waiting a week.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#15

Post by giancarlostoro » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:44 PM UTC

rdpintqogeogsaa wrote: post #9

giancarlostoro wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not only that but lwn is one of the main sites that gets submitted to HN all year round (not daily, but maybe nearish to daily). So the audience here on HN has been exposed to it over the years. I'm not sure what more they could do to get new subscribers, I certainly hope they figure that out or how to get new ways to earn revenue without having to go the ad route. https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=lwn.net

That's the thing though. You can get all the value from LWN through here. Even if it wasn't for them tolerating subscriber links being posted on HN, the week-long delay isn't nearly enough an incentive to actually subscribe, rationally speaking.

Easy to say until they have to eventually make the hard decision to shut down.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#16

Post by farlight » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:46 PM UTC

I know the editors visit these discussions: please, next time use a more descriptive title! I nearly had a fit when I saw that, really thought LWN is going down like it almost did 20 years ago.

Happy to pay the new price, even though I can only afford the cheapest tier.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#17

Post by upslefts » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:48 PM UTC

AlexB138 wrote: post #2

LWN is one of the, if not the single, highest signal tech publications around. I hope they're able to maintain a stable subscription service. Being user funded, and avoiding having to maintain allegiance to advertisers, is likely part of why their quality is so high.

[flagged]

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#18

Post by noir_lord » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:49 PM UTC

a12ah wrote: post #10

[flagged]

You actually created an account to post this rubbish, I'm almost impressed.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#19

Post by thataccount » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:50 PM UTC

bryanlarsen wrote: post #14

thataccount wrote: post #5

LWN, probably about to discover people are paying high prices for all manner of things and will find that LWN is, sadly, a disposable entity to pay for.

I suspect everybody likely to do so has already done so. Anybody who thinks $6 a month is a lot of money will also think $5 a month is a lot of money for something that they can get for free by waiting a week.

5 to 6 dollars is not much in terms of a donation. In terms of a subscription, though...One thing is voluntary if you find value, the other is mandatory to get to the value unless you are willing to wait.

Re: A note on subscription prices from LWN

#20

Post by tonyarkles » Wed, Sep 02, 2026, 1:52 PM UTC

rdpintqogeogsaa wrote: post #9

giancarlostoro wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not only that but lwn is one of the main sites that gets submitted to HN all year round (not daily, but maybe nearish to daily). So the audience here on HN has been exposed to it over the years. I'm not sure what more they could do to get new subscribers, I certainly hope they figure that out or how to get new ways to earn revenue without having to go the ad route. https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=lwn.net

That's the thing though. You can get all the value from LWN through here. Even if it wasn't for them tolerating subscriber links being posted on HN, the week-long delay isn't nearly enough an incentive to actually subscribe, rationally speaking.

Rationally-speaking, maybe not. I’ve been a long-time subscriber. When I first subscribed, my day-to-day involved embedded Linux and getting the “breaking news” was pretty valuable. These days I still do that somewhat but I’m stuck on a crusty vendor kernel and anything I read about a kernel newer than 5.15 is going to land on my desk in approximately 2028… but I still subscribe, mostly with a patronage mindset: I don’t acutely get value from the subscription every week, but I think it’s a community service and I’m happy to pitch in a few bucks to keep it alive.