I was just thinking the other day how much I missed notifo doing this.
would be nice if it could send notifications via one of the HN iphone clients or at least text message though
HN Notify
21–30 of 49 posts
Re: HN Notify
#22Ahh. I had a similar desire to code something like this up, but didn't because I found there was some sort if service available on your account called notifo. Wonder what happened to it... Gl with this service. I definitely wanted it when I've done "ask hn" type things. How sure are you that the message will get to the notified's inbox? Email delivery is not easily done.
Notifo was around two or so years ago, and I believe it was a startup that went through ycombinator, designed to be a "central notification center". It worked quite well for the short while I was using it.
They didn't take off though, and after saying they couldn't afford to keep servers running much longer, became silent. Any decent message notification system would require integration, so there is definitely an area left open.
Re: HN Notify
#23Earlier quoted context omitted.
> But, the reality is probably that PG is just super busy and does not have the time and bandwidth to build features out. I totally get that, it's the reason I mentioned the 7-year time window though. You'd think that something like that would've been done at some point during all that time by some interns or something by now, even if it was a super low priority. I'm guessing that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" ph…
YC definitely does not have interns
Ok, but I doubt PG still hand-codes every update to the site himself, and such small features don't seem like they would require a high ranking staff member to implement them either, which was kinda my point.
Re: HN Notify
#24Surely I can't be the only one wondering why this kind of functionality isn't just built-in already (with option to enable/disable accordingly)? I mean, the site has been around for about 7 years now, and the whole 'community' aspect seems to be a big selling point, so it just seems odd...
The question is not only if it can be easily implemented (technically) but also whether it would have a positive impact on the quality of the comments...
(notifications = faster replies = more emtotion = less thinking = less value)
Re: HN Notify
#25Surely I can't be the only one wondering why this kind of functionality isn't just built-in already (with option to enable/disable accordingly)? I mean, the site has been around for about 7 years now, and the whole 'community' aspect seems to be a big selling point, so it just seems odd...
I remember at some point HN had built-in support for notifo, which was a notification startup at the time. When that went away, so did the notification feature.
Re: HN Notify
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
An interesting thought. Perhaps users constantly coming back and checking their comments for replies, increases time on site, and the possibility users will interact further and view other posts. But, the reality is probably that pg is just super busy and does not have the time and bandwidth to build features out. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Reddit does not send notifications on comment replies either.
> But, the reality is probably that PG is just super busy and does not have the time and bandwidth to build features out. I totally get that, it's the reason I mentioned the 7-year time window though. You'd think that something like that would've been done at some point during all that time by some interns or something by now, even if it was a super low priority. I'm guessing that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" ph…
> You'd think that something like that would've been done at some point during all that time by some interns or something by now
Just in case you didn't know, the guy who helps manage the site is RTM. Yes, RTM.
Re: HN Notify
#27I definitely don't need more notifications! :)
I don't, but I like projects that expand the functionality of an application. For example things like https://www.hnsearch.com .
Re: HN Notify
#28Nice! What would also be cool would be the following:
-1- Being able to follow a thread you haven't commented on. -2- Being able to follow a comment that is not yours.
The reason behind number 2 is that sometimes, you see an interesting comment and you'd be interested to know what people think about it, so you'll follow it and be notified whenever people reply to it.
Re: HN Notify
#29Surely I can't be the only one wondering why this kind of functionality isn't just built-in already (with option to enable/disable accordingly)? I mean, the site has been around for about 7 years now, and the whole 'community' aspect seems to be a big selling point, so it just seems odd...
The question is not only if it can be easily implemented (technically) but also whether it would have a positive impact on the quality of the comments... (notifications = faster replies = more emtotion = less thinking = less value)
I think this really is the focus of it.
This is also the big reason there is an increasing delay on nested replies as you go to deeper. It forces you to calm down and think a bit more before coming back with an emotional reply instead of a thoughtful one.
Re: HN Notify
#30Surely I can't be the only one wondering why this kind of functionality isn't just built-in already (with option to enable/disable accordingly)? I mean, the site has been around for about 7 years now, and the whole 'community' aspect seems to be a big selling point, so it just seems odd...
An interesting thought. Perhaps users constantly coming back and checking their comments for replies, increases time on site, and the possibility users will interact further and view other posts. But, the reality is probably that pg is just super busy and does not have the time and bandwidth to build features out. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Reddit does not send notifications on comment replies either.
> Perhaps users constantly coming back and checking their comments for replies, increases time on site, and the possibility users will interact further and view other posts.
Joel Spolsky wrote a piece on Building Communities with Software back in 2003.[1] He reasons that allowing email notifications is "the best way to kill dead any young forum" and that such "checking back" as you describe helps a forum to achieve critical mass and survive.
[1]: http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/BuildingCommunitieswi...