6 ms·

I don’t understand the HN algo anymore

tomrod 10mo ago
It's quite simple. No major algorithm, people who tinker vote on things that scratches their minds like this article does.
- bediger4000 10mo ago
  I don't think it's people who tinker any more. It seems like the "write Business Logic code as fast as you can" type predominate.
f1shy 10mo ago
Just flag it.
- tomrod 10mo ago
  It's not spam, why waste a moderator's time? It's something that people find interesting.
  - bmacho 10mo ago
    https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html HN in general has a very strict policy against what "people find interesting": On-Topic: Anything that good hackers would find interesting. That includes more than hacking and startups. If you had to reduce it to a sentence, the answer might be: anything that gratifies one's intellectual curiosity. Off-Topic: Most stories about politics, or crime, or sports, or celebrities, unless they're evidence of some interesting new phenomenon. Videos of pratfalls or disasters, or cute animal pictures. If they'd cover it on TV news, it's probably off-topic. News are like addiction, people don't act in their own best interest, they upvote things that they don't really want to see. Also "just flag it" is not "wasting moderator's time", but the recommended procedure: Please don't complain that a submission is inappropriate. If a story is spam or off-topic, flag it.
    - tomrod 10mo ago
      > anything that gratifies one's intellectual curiosity. Correct.
    - xboxnolifes 10mo ago
      HN guidelines are hardly strict. There is so much politics that stays on the front page.
      - f1shy 10mo ago
        Well, that means hardly anything. Is up to us, and the moderators, to choose what we want HN it to. I find politics interesting, and often are pretty much on topic, e.g. politics related to protecting personal information. But often are not, and full of ad hominem "arguments" From my POV, there is no doubt HN is getting more and more involved in politics and more and more polarized, which IMHO is not good. But I'm just one of many users... if it keeps going that way, I may have to leave. Is ok. In the meantime I will keep giving my opinion, as that is the very least what I expect from such a site: to be able to give an opinion (respectfully) without being instantly attacked, verbally or downvoted to oblivion. As can be seen in this case, we are reaching the point where that is not possible anymore... Let's see if the honest people or the trolls win the "battle".
        xboxnolifes 10mo ago
        It doesn't mean hardly anything, it means exactly what I said. The guidelines are not strict. They are loose guidelines. That's not an attack on them, it's just an observable fact. The guidelines say one thing, but the users vote for another.
  - f1shy 10mo ago
    Just meant "flag it if you think is off topic"... but no worries. I'm very used of people in HN not able to read in context... seems to be fried brains from too much AI use. Anyway, IMHO was pretty much off topic. I think we are allowed to have different opinions, you little dictator.
    - tomrod 10mo ago
      I do enjoy potatoes, but not Richards!
Spivak 10mo ago
You can't imagine why a forum of predominantly adult men in their late twenties to mid forties would be interested in an article about aging gracefully and maintaining warm healthy relationships with their peers?
- bcjdjsndon 10mo ago
  Because it's so elementary?
  - natebc 10mo ago
    it's really not. It's easy for some, sure and you're maybe one of them (or perhaps mistaken!) but many, many MANY people, especially men, even intelligent men struggle with social situations and maintaining healthy social relationships.
    - bcjdjsndon 10mo ago
      Be nice? Don't be a know it all? Even if you don't believe it you've surely heard people say it sometime in the last 40 years. Autism notwithstanding, and that probably accounts for a decent share of the readership
      - natebc 10mo ago
        I am, and don't ... but that still doesn't mean it doesn't take effort. There's way more to it than smiling and not being a complete tool. How long has it been since you called your long lost best friend and caught up? Did you go to his brothers funeral? Check in on him after his divorce? A year after his divorce? 5? It takes effort and is far from elementary no matter how much rizz you have.
        bcjdjsndon 10mo ago
        I agree it's effort it's just not hard..... for a 40 year old, remember.

tomrod 10mo ago

It's quite simple. No major algorithm, people who tinker vote on things that scratches their minds like this article does.

bediger4000 10mo ago
I don't think it's people who tinker any more. It seems like the "write Business Logic code as fast as you can" type predominate.

f1shy 10mo ago

Just flag it.

tomrod 10mo ago
It's not spam, why waste a moderator's time? It's something that people find interesting.
- bmacho 10mo ago
  https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html HN in general has a very strict policy against what "people find interesting": On-Topic: Anything that good hackers would find interesting. That includes more than hacking and startups. If you had to reduce it to a sentence, the answer might be: anything that gratifies one's intellectual curiosity. Off-Topic: Most stories about politics, or crime, or sports, or celebrities, unless they're evidence of some interesting new phenomenon. Videos of pratfalls or disasters, or cute animal pictures. If they'd cover it on TV news, it's probably off-topic. News are like addiction, people don't act in their own best interest, they upvote things that they don't really want to see. Also "just flag it" is not "wasting moderator's time", but the recommended procedure: Please don't complain that a submission is inappropriate. If a story is spam or off-topic, flag it.
  - tomrod 10mo ago
    > anything that gratifies one's intellectual curiosity. Correct.
  - xboxnolifes 10mo ago
    HN guidelines are hardly strict. There is so much politics that stays on the front page.
    - f1shy 10mo ago
      Well, that means hardly anything. Is up to us, and the moderators, to choose what we want HN it to. I find politics interesting, and often are pretty much on topic, e.g. politics related to protecting personal information. But often are not, and full of ad hominem "arguments" From my POV, there is no doubt HN is getting more and more involved in politics and more and more polarized, which IMHO is not good. But I'm just one of many users... if it keeps going that way, I may have to leave. Is ok. In the meantime I will keep giving my opinion, as that is the very least what I expect from such a site: to be able to give an opinion (respectfully) without being instantly attacked, verbally or downvoted to oblivion. As can be seen in this case, we are reaching the point where that is not possible anymore... Let's see if the honest people or the trolls win the "battle".
      - xboxnolifes 10mo ago
        It doesn't mean hardly anything, it means exactly what I said. The guidelines are not strict. They are loose guidelines. That's not an attack on them, it's just an observable fact. The guidelines say one thing, but the users vote for another.
- f1shy 10mo ago
  Just meant "flag it if you think is off topic"... but no worries. I'm very used of people in HN not able to read in context... seems to be fried brains from too much AI use. Anyway, IMHO was pretty much off topic. I think we are allowed to have different opinions, you little dictator.
  - tomrod 10mo ago
    I do enjoy potatoes, but not Richards!

Spivak 10mo ago

You can't imagine why a forum of predominantly adult men in their late twenties to mid forties would be interested in an article about aging gracefully and maintaining warm healthy relationships with their peers?

bcjdjsndon 10mo ago
Because it's so elementary?
- natebc 10mo ago
  it's really not. It's easy for some, sure and you're maybe one of them (or perhaps mistaken!) but many, many MANY people, especially men, even intelligent men struggle with social situations and maintaining healthy social relationships.
  - bcjdjsndon 10mo ago
    Be nice? Don't be a know it all? Even if you don't believe it you've surely heard people say it sometime in the last 40 years. Autism notwithstanding, and that probably accounts for a decent share of the readership
    - natebc 10mo ago
      I am, and don't ... but that still doesn't mean it doesn't take effort. There's way more to it than smiling and not being a complete tool. How long has it been since you called your long lost best friend and caught up? Did you go to his brothers funeral? Check in on him after his divorce? A year after his divorce? 5? It takes effort and is far from elementary no matter how much rizz you have.
      - bcjdjsndon 10mo ago
        I agree it's effort it's just not hard..... for a 40 year old, remember.