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I'm not sure...when I click on the link above to go to my site, I see the popup asking me if I want to subscribe to the RSS feed: http://img.skitch.com/2010092

I'm not sure...when I click on the link above to go to my site, I see the popup asking me if I want to subscribe to the RSS feed: http://img.skitch.com/20100929-xq3tsubtd9dkgj9uxbjdechmik.png http://img.skitch.com/20100929-xq3tsubtd9dkgj9uxbjdechmik.pn... I installed WP Greet Box, which displays different messages to different people depending on their referrer, but I didn't think it was working for HN. Maybe it's because we're on different browsers (I'm on Safari 5)? Also, this message would only appear if you were coming from the story on HN, not from a link on Twitter, so I'm not sure it's relevant here anyway. EDIT: Yep, I see the message now in Firefox and Chrome. Should I disable? I'm not sure I see the problem with reminding people who came to the post from HN to vote for the story if they think it's worthwhile, but what do others think?

hugh3 16y ago
EDIT: Yep, I see the message now in Firefox and Chrome. Should I disable? I'm not sure I see the problem with reminding people who came to the post from HN to vote for the story if they think it's worthwhile, but what do others think? I thought it was a pretty obnoxious message, and that it should be disabled. Honestly, I find the whole tone of this discussion pretty obnoxious. The thing that can destroy HN is when the front page stops being filled with the stories which people find most interesting and starts being filled with borderline-interesting stories from the best self-promoters.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- ryanwaggoner 16y ago
  With regard to the "if you like this story, please upvote" thing, I understand your point, which is why I asked for feedback. But as to the original topic of this blog post, I think we're on different pages. I don't see anything wrong with the fact that I tweet my blog posts to my followers and some of them happened to find it interesting and submit to HN. Should I stop using Twitter and RSS as promotional tools because it might somehow be unfair to the person who doesn't use them but writes better content? This seems akin to arguing that startups shouldn't worry about marketing and sales and self-promotion and should instead just make something awesome and then people will flock to them. I really (truly) wish the world worked that way, but it simply does not.
  - hugh3 16y ago
    Honestly I think the whole idea of trying to get your own blog posts onto HN is contrary to the spirit of HN. It seems... somewhat gauche, like asking for a birthday present. If someone wants to give you an upvote or a birthday present they'll give you an upvote or a birthday present, but actively campaigning for one is socially unacceptable (unless you're under the age of, say, twelve, in which case the birthday-present case is okay). Even submitting your own blog posts for consideration is something that I don't really consider to be kosher, and I'd never do it myself.
    - ryanwaggoner 16y ago
      I shall refer you to this thread: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445455 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445455 Specifically this comment by PG: Yes, it's ok to submit your own stuff. If you get to the point where you've submitted 20 things and none of them got any upvotes, though, you may want to start to be more selective. http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445526 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445526
    - blasdel 16y ago
      On Metafilter, making a front page post that links to your own stuff is the only %100 banworthy offense. It's all the more important there because the front page is reverse chronological and anyone who's been there a week can post to it.
jcl 16y ago
A button on another site that casts my vote on HN rubs me the wrong way. And asking for upvotes sets a bad precedent.
- ryanwaggoner 16y ago
  How is this different from a FB Like or a Retweet button on a blog? Or do those rub you the wrong way as well? Not trying to be snarky; I'm genuinely curious.
  - sorbus 16y ago
    I, personally, am fine with those when they come after the article. However, asking me to like, upvote, retweet, subscribe to your RSS feed, or do anything indicating that I like an article before I have read it is a really, really good way to get me to close the tab and go read something else. Even more so if, as on some sites, the request appears in a pop-up thing which obscures the text of the article.
    - ryanwaggoner 16y ago
      Good point. If I do keep it, I'll modify to have it appear at the end of the article.
  - jamesbritt 16y ago
    "Or do those rub you the wrong way as well?" Do they do so for me. If I think something is interesting or valuable, I'll tell people, and do it in my own way. I don't see how these buttons help me or add value to the content of a site. I'd rather readers be encouraged to participate in a discussion.
    - ryanwaggoner 16y ago
      This assumes you have readers in the first place. It's very difficult to build any kind of audience without promotion, especially in the beginning.

hugh3 16y ago

EDIT: Yep, I see the message now in Firefox and Chrome. Should I disable? I'm not sure I see the problem with reminding people who came to the post from HN to vote for the story if they think it's worthwhile, but what do others think? I thought it was a pretty obnoxious message, and that it should be disabled. Honestly, I find the whole tone of this discussion pretty obnoxious. The thing that can destroy HN is when the front page stops being filled with the stories which people find most interesting and starts being filled with borderline-interesting stories from the best self-promoters.

deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
ryanwaggoner 16y ago
With regard to the "if you like this story, please upvote" thing, I understand your point, which is why I asked for feedback. But as to the original topic of this blog post, I think we're on different pages. I don't see anything wrong with the fact that I tweet my blog posts to my followers and some of them happened to find it interesting and submit to HN. Should I stop using Twitter and RSS as promotional tools because it might somehow be unfair to the person who doesn't use them but writes better content? This seems akin to arguing that startups shouldn't worry about marketing and sales and self-promotion and should instead just make something awesome and then people will flock to them. I really (truly) wish the world worked that way, but it simply does not.
- hugh3 16y ago
  Honestly I think the whole idea of trying to get your own blog posts onto HN is contrary to the spirit of HN. It seems... somewhat gauche, like asking for a birthday present. If someone wants to give you an upvote or a birthday present they'll give you an upvote or a birthday present, but actively campaigning for one is socially unacceptable (unless you're under the age of, say, twelve, in which case the birthday-present case is okay). Even submitting your own blog posts for consideration is something that I don't really consider to be kosher, and I'd never do it myself.
  - ryanwaggoner 16y ago
    I shall refer you to this thread: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445455 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445455 Specifically this comment by PG: Yes, it's ok to submit your own stuff. If you get to the point where you've submitted 20 things and none of them got any upvotes, though, you may want to start to be more selective. http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445526 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=445526
  - blasdel 16y ago
    On Metafilter, making a front page post that links to your own stuff is the only %100 banworthy offense. It's all the more important there because the front page is reverse chronological and anyone who's been there a week can post to it.

jcl 16y ago

A button on another site that casts my vote on HN rubs me the wrong way. And asking for upvotes sets a bad precedent.

ryanwaggoner 16y ago
How is this different from a FB Like or a Retweet button on a blog? Or do those rub you the wrong way as well? Not trying to be snarky; I'm genuinely curious.
- sorbus 16y ago
  I, personally, am fine with those when they come after the article. However, asking me to like, upvote, retweet, subscribe to your RSS feed, or do anything indicating that I like an article before I have read it is a really, really good way to get me to close the tab and go read something else. Even more so if, as on some sites, the request appears in a pop-up thing which obscures the text of the article.
  - ryanwaggoner 16y ago
    Good point. If I do keep it, I'll modify to have it appear at the end of the article.
- jamesbritt 16y ago
  "Or do those rub you the wrong way as well?" Do they do so for me. If I think something is interesting or valuable, I'll tell people, and do it in my own way. I don't see how these buttons help me or add value to the content of a site. I'd rather readers be encouraged to participate in a discussion.
  - ryanwaggoner 16y ago
    This assumes you have readers in the first place. It's very difficult to build any kind of audience without promotion, especially in the beginning.