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Except when they're not. For example, when something about a specific retro computing feat is posted, people will just ramble about something very faintly relat

Except when they're not. For example, when something about a specific retro computing feat is posted, people will just ramble about something very faintly related that they saw or did or purchased or dreamed about recently. E.g. topic is about an Amiga accelerator card, and there will be someone mentioning how they recently cleaned up the Amiga 500 they had in the garage -- like, who cares? Exactly like the comment we're discussing now: nobody cares except the author of that comment. Yet I never see those downvoted, and I know if I responded to them pointing out that this isn't their blog, I'd get downvoted. I just looked at the front page, this is literally the first discussion I clicked on before even getting to search for "retro" or "Amiga" as I would have otherwise: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27864139 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27864139 What is the content here? "For some reason I thought something else"... okay? Yet that isn't greyed out, it is the top comment. Why? Because of "Karnaugh map"? There are no replies because it offers nothing to discuss except more such ramblings about what someone might have encountered or lazily assumed (or pretends they have assumed so they can casually drop that they know a thing).

pseudalopex 5y ago
People who read the comments first like when someone highlights an interesting part of the article. It led some people to learn about Karnaugh maps probably. And it didn't have lots of competition. The top comment of this discussion is a link to the scanned book.
- howaboutnope 5y ago
  That just means it wasn't a perfect example for what I was referring to, but if I were to go digging, I could find you ten thousands of comments like these: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512113 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512113 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512254 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512254 It really just is small talk, no information, nothing. Instead of trying to find a rationalization for these, too, why not accept that yeah, small talk is perfectly fine, until it's not, and it's frowned upon, unless it isn't? Because it contradicts the self-congratulatory notion that "folks here prefer substance"?

pseudalopex 5y ago

People who read the comments first like when someone highlights an interesting part of the article. It led some people to learn about Karnaugh maps probably. And it didn't have lots of competition. The top comment of this discussion is a link to the scanned book.

howaboutnope 5y ago
That just means it wasn't a perfect example for what I was referring to, but if I were to go digging, I could find you ten thousands of comments like these: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512113 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512113 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512254 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11512254 It really just is small talk, no information, nothing. Instead of trying to find a rationalization for these, too, why not accept that yeah, small talk is perfectly fine, until it's not, and it's frowned upon, unless it isn't? Because it contradicts the self-congratulatory notion that "folks here prefer substance"?