Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#1

Post by cjc » Thu, May 14, 2009, 3:52 PM UTC

Dear readers who are deluding yourselves into believing Hacker News is the last bastion of social news hope,

It is not. HN has become another cesspool of useless ego-boosting linkbait.

As evidence, here are 4 headlines currently on the front page that literally make me STUPIDER:

  Vitamins Found to Curb Exercise Benefits 

  College grad: ‘I wish I’d gone to prison instead’

  Steve Jobs allowed to tear down his home

  TECH CRUNCH TECH CRUNCH STUPID ARRINGTON BS*

*This last example not an actual headline, but instead an educated guess.

SERIOUSLY? How does any of this "gratify one's intellectual curiosity"? (http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html)

It does not.

Hacker News failed. Does anybody have a better hangout spot?

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#2

Post by noodle » Thu, May 14, 2009, 3:55 PM UTC

what would you prefer?

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#3

Post by kyro » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:02 PM UTC

You've only made 3 submissions yourself. HN isn't a service being provided to you, whereby you sit and expect it to present you with interesting stories.

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#4

Post by noonespecial » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:08 PM UTC

Whenever I think HN is becoming too reddit-like, I go spend some time on reddit. I always feel better after.

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#5

Post by cjc » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:17 PM UTC

kyro wrote: post #3

You've only made 3 submissions yourself. HN isn't a service being provided to you, whereby you sit and expect it to present you with interesting stories.

Please do not make this a personal attack on me, one member of the community.

I argue that submitting nothing is better than submitting garbage links. Additionally, I am not bringing the site down by voting up egregious headlines.

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#6

Post by cjc » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:20 PM UTC

kyro wrote: post #3

You've only made 3 submissions yourself. HN isn't a service being provided to you, whereby you sit and expect it to present you with interesting stories.

And actually, for all intents and purposes, HN is a service being provided to me, whereby I sit and expect it to present me with interesting stories.

How is it any different for you?

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#7

Post by cjc » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:23 PM UTC

noodle wrote: post #2

what would you prefer?

Glad you asked:

* more news about Startups, less news about things tangentially related to startups

* less churn on the homepage

* a community made exclusively of people actually building websites

* a limit on accepting new members

* less talk about useless academic subjects

* more "review my new project" submissions

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#8

Post by effektz » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:26 PM UTC

And the cycle continues. Diggeres move to reddit and complain about digg all day. Redditors move to Hacker News and complain about Reddit all day. You will all be bitching about HN as soon as you find another home, I'm sure.

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#9

Post by noodle » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:26 PM UTC

cjc wrote: post #7

noodle wrote: post #2

what would you prefer?

Glad you asked: * more news about Startups, less news about things tangentially related to startups * less churn on the homepage * a community made exclusively of people actually building websites * a limit on accepting new members * less talk about useless academic subjects * more "review my new project" submissions

would you be willing to post up a membership fee for something like this?

or, perhaps you'd like a much more heavily meritocracy-based community?

Re: Tell HN: Hacker News is almost reddit

#10

Post by behe » Thu, May 14, 2009, 4:26 PM UTC

This is the internet. Stupidity finds its way into anything you care to mention, no matter how hard you try and fight it.