@b0rk indeed

@b0rk I still get a lot out of reading HN. The front page is generally interesting. The comments are often very enlightening. Only rarely have I had negative experiences. I mean I've had to call out people on BS, and I've had people call out my BS when I was wrong. But more often than not it's been a positive experience.

I will say that I find myself downvoting downright nasty comments more of late, maybe that's a timezone issue where I wake up before the mods do.

@b0rk Indeed, sometimes getting away from the noise gives us great comfort. Spaces where people communicate quietly and respectfully make a real difference to our mental health 🤍"

I don't really like to talk about HN in a dismissive way though because I feel like that site did a lot for me as a tech blogger. I think it's important that there are places where folks can get their writing seen, and it's the only community I know of with full time paid moderation staff (though maybe there are more?)

(2/?)

@b0rk I stopped reading Hacker News around the time I joined Mastodon and never felt the need to look back 😌

@b0rk it has become insufferable, not that it was ever good

@b0rk Even before the AI shit it was largely a cesspit of vacuous hype with barely anything worth reading. Now it's just worse.

@b0rk : it is funny how I now fear opening the comments section of HN when one of my blog post is on the front page.

In consequence, I force myself not to open it (I made one exception for the release of one of my software because I knew most comments would be technical questions)

On the other hands, I’ve the opposite experience with lobste.rs : I do really appreciate the comments there and the discussion that follow.

@b0rk less hacker News. More donuts.

@b0rk
Relatable

@b0rk Is #HackerNews culture really that bad? I'm not on it but follow one of the #YCombinator bots that share viral articles they talk about on the #Fediverse.

@b0rk But…but you’ve missed the shoelace site😩 https://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/ And, importantly a mathematical calculation pinpointing the exact date of the upcoming singularly - which will happen on a Tuesday.

@b0rk it surely feels like different place lately, seems astroturfed to the max

@b0rk do you or anyone else have good suggestions for alternative communities (maybe even here on Mastodon/Fedi)? Looking to end my HN addiction.

@b0rk Related: I am still glad that (only in the last few years!) I learned that when somebody starts telling me about the specific horribleness of some forum, I can say, "I'd rather not hear about this, actually."

@b0rk I blocked it at my DNS server a couple of years ago to break the habit, and it made a huge difference to my mental health

@b0rk the quality of conversation there has really gone down in recent years. It always contained some level of vitriol but now it just feels like reading reddit comments but without the mirth.

@b0rk I've been actively trying to avoid spaces like that for a while now (Reddit being the main one I used) and it's a remarkable weight off.

I recently ran into someone who still frequented those places and talking to them was weird. everything phrased defensively or antagonistically. felt like engaging in verbal combat, even though we were just chatting about something we were both into. not very fun.

@b0rk 💜

@b0rk Great idea, I'm starting today

@b0rk 👍 Hacker News is enshittifying with lots of AI-related posts lately. 😒