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Complaining about website layouts and design is against HN guidelines.

by junon 5y ago

CamperBob2 5y ago
Why? Because the people responsible for the abusive website might see the complaints and be offended?
- Maxburn 5y ago
  Personally I'd prefer a warning about sites that pull the things like what this one does. I see that people are already warning about PDF files, some other similar warning about autoplay that can't be easily stopped would be nice for office environments. I didn't know it was against guidelines. Often I'll come to the comments to see things like links to web archive to get a better or working link to contents. Comments are helpful, don't know why such a thing would be against guidelines. Edit; a number of other comments are listed here about blockers etc etc. Maybe it would make more sense to not post sites that pull stuff like this at all?
- krazerlasers 5y ago
  >Please don't complain about website formatting... >They're too common to be interesting. >Exception: when the author is present. Then friendly feedback might be helpful.
m0llusk 5y ago
This is an important issue that goes beyond layout and design. When active elements of a web site generate extreme distractions or lock up the browser or even the entire computer then not only is that site largely unusable with the content being unreadable but it also impacts any other use or application of the computer. This is a serious problem which has been growing worse over time with the bulking up of web content and proliferation of trackers and aggressive promotions. It makes sense that many resort to ad and script blockers of various sorts, but it is also pretty clear that this has led to escalation and competition. Instead of being confident that powerful machines and blockers can solve this we need to find some way of taming the problem that ordinary people with ordinary browsers and configurations and machines can use to navigate the web and access content while retaining basic control of their attention, their browser, and their machines that they own.
- junon 5y ago
  I completely agree with you. Such comments are still against the site's guidelines.
  - m0llusk 5y ago
    Then you are not agreeing with me at all. In my opinion these issues have to do primarily with the out of control scale and scripting of modern sites. Scale and scripting has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with layout and graphical design which is the target of the site guidelines. Reasonable people can differ but let us be clear about the lines we are both drawing.

Complaining about website layouts and design is against HN guidelines.

by junon 5y ago

Complaining about website layouts and design is against HN guidelines.

CamperBob2 5y ago

Why? Because the people responsible for the abusive website might see the complaints and be offended?

Maxburn 5y ago
Personally I'd prefer a warning about sites that pull the things like what this one does. I see that people are already warning about PDF files, some other similar warning about autoplay that can't be easily stopped would be nice for office environments. I didn't know it was against guidelines. Often I'll come to the comments to see things like links to web archive to get a better or working link to contents. Comments are helpful, don't know why such a thing would be against guidelines. Edit; a number of other comments are listed here about blockers etc etc. Maybe it would make more sense to not post sites that pull stuff like this at all?
krazerlasers 5y ago
>Please don't complain about website formatting... >They're too common to be interesting. >Exception: when the author is present. Then friendly feedback might be helpful.

m0llusk 5y ago

This is an important issue that goes beyond layout and design. When active elements of a web site generate extreme distractions or lock up the browser or even the entire computer then not only is that site largely unusable with the content being unreadable but it also impacts any other use or application of the computer. This is a serious problem which has been growing worse over time with the bulking up of web content and proliferation of trackers and aggressive promotions. It makes sense that many resort to ad and script blockers of various sorts, but it is also pretty clear that this has led to escalation and competition. Instead of being confident that powerful machines and blockers can solve this we need to find some way of taming the problem that ordinary people with ordinary browsers and configurations and machines can use to navigate the web and access content while retaining basic control of their attention, their browser, and their machines that they own.

junon 5y ago
I completely agree with you. Such comments are still against the site's guidelines.
- m0llusk 5y ago
  Then you are not agreeing with me at all. In my opinion these issues have to do primarily with the out of control scale and scripting of modern sites. Scale and scripting has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with layout and graphical design which is the target of the site guidelines. Reasonable people can differ but let us be clear about the lines we are both drawing.