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The biggest thing hampering LinkedIn's growth has been such a strong tech market. This is also why many HN readers are not familiar with it. When the market i

The biggest thing hampering LinkedIn's growth has been such a strong tech market. This is also why many HN readers are not familiar with it. When the market is strong, those with technology skills can find work in a few hours without using any platform. But if the market dips, things like LinkedIn's recommendations will become useful and relevant. Less so for technology workers than for those with softer skills, but far more relevant than they are today. LinkedIn is pretty big in the NYC startup scene because overall people are more ambitious in a career ambition way... Silicon Valley has more ambition to build cool things and so having a LinkedIn profile feels like wearing a suit and having one's teeth professionally whitened and going around formally shaking hands with people. LinkedIn is also one of the few innovators in dark pattern UI research. Each week I get an invitation email accidentally sent by someone over 60 who signed up for LinkedIn and spammed his/her entire Gmail address book with invites. I hope the acquisition isn't being driven by LinkedIn's lead-gen functionality, since that has been the main reason I've considered deleting my profile. Most of the people who attempt to connect are selling something, which reduces the platform's usefulness as a social network. The best thing about the acquisition is that lots of that money will flow back into the startup ecosystem.

marssaxman 10y ago
Not familiar with it? LinkedIn has been working their evil magic for so many years it's hard to imagine how you could be involved in the tech industry at all without having had to fend off at least a little bit of their bullshit. I am totally familiar with them, having ground my way through the process that eventually stops their relentless flow of content-free nag mail, and my feelings can be described in a single word: contempt.

marssaxman 10y ago

Not familiar with it? LinkedIn has been working their evil magic for so many years it's hard to imagine how you could be involved in the tech industry at all without having had to fend off at least a little bit of their bullshit. I am totally familiar with them, having ground my way through the process that eventually stops their relentless flow of content-free nag mail, and my feelings can be described in a single word: contempt.