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The guidelines say: Please don't do things to make titles stand out, like using uppercase or exclamation points and: Otherwise please use the original
by lambda 11y ago
The guidelines say:
Please don't do things to make titles stand out, like
using uppercase or exclamation points
and:
Otherwise please use the original title, unless it is
misleading or linkbait.
I think the idea behind this change in title is because the original is perceived as being linkbait; it has an explanation point, is very opinionated. The kind of thing that really tempts you to click through, or come and post a scathing rebuttal, because of how strongly worded it is.
Not saying I necessarily agree with the new title, but it is milder, and I think that in general moving away from clickbait titles is a good thing. There's enough clickbait junk going around the rest of the internet, having at least some standards at HN is fine.
- wging 11y agoPossibly. I see enough linkbait titles on the front page that I assumed they were preferred over sane re-titlings.
- Dylan16807 11y agoSo remove the exclamation point or something. A misleading title is worse than clickbait. And honestly, I find such a bold statement as "Don't Configure" to be more click-baity than the original title.
- djur 11y agoBut the new title doesn't have the same meaning. The original title means "Don't Make Users Configure Your Application", not "Don't Configure Applications". The latter is a much more unusual statement, to the extent it made me click. I would not have clicked on the original title, nor any accurate restatement. So what's "clickbait"?