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It’s not everything it’s cracked up to be. I hardly ever use it. In principle, downvotes are meant for messages that are irrelevant, off topic, insulting, bell
by tgv 5y ago
It’s not everything it’s cracked up to be. I hardly ever use it. In principle, downvotes are meant for messages that are irrelevant, off topic, insulting, belligerent (can you believe my phone turned that into beliebers?) etc. The effect stops at -1 or -2 points, I believe, so it’s quite likely that a really upsetting comment has already been downvoted maximally. And you can’t downvote replies to your own comments, nor submissions. Not worth losing any sleep over.
- karmakurtisaani 5y ago> can you believe my phone turned that into beliebers? To be fair, that would have fit your list just as well.
- deltaonefour 5y ago>In principle, downvotes are meant for messages that are irrelevant, off topic, insulting, belligerent (can you believe my phone turned that into beliebers?) etc. In principle this is what it's used for, however it's mostly used to vote down comments people disagree or agree with. For example if I say something like global warming is an incorrect theory on a related topic I'd get voted down simply because most people disagree. Technically that statement did no fit the formal criteria to get voted down but people use it incorrectly.
- detaro 5y agoYou are mistaken about the "formal criteria" for downvotes on HN. "Don't downvote to disagree" is an official rule on reddit, but not on HN (although a good chunk of the community thinks it should be).
- deltaonefour 5y agoI am saying "downvoting to disagree" is not a formal criteria on HN.
- dang 5y agoNot sure what you mean by 'formal' but downvoting for disagreement has always been ok on HN. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16131314 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16131314
- deltaonefour 5y agoFormal as in listed on a faq. Not an obscure comment from pg. Generally I assume everyone respects freedom of speech to a reasonable degree with no censorship... and that is the general behavioral criteria I assume of any place in the united states. If that's not the case here maybe you should "formalize" it and make it clear?
- detaro 5y agoBut none of the other things you listed as "correct" use are listed in the guidelines or a FAQ either.
- deltaonefour 5y agoThe other things I listed I stated are "assumptions." Similar to the assumptions I have when traveling to another foreign country. For example, I assume murder is illegal everywhere I go.
- 37 5y agoThanks for the clarification dang! Appreciate it and all you do!
- _nalply 5y agoI have an opinion which is not shared by many people here. When I express this opinion I usually lose a few points. I shrug and think to myself, these points aren't worth my ire.
- deltaonefour 5y ago
- tgv 5y agoClimate change is a tricky one, in this context: it’s widely accepted, and supported by heaps of evidence. If I were to say that gravity doesn’t exist (eg in a discussion about dark matter), I suppose I’d be downvoted too. Climate change is also highly politicized. That just makes it harder to tell the reason behind the downvotes, because chances are that other people see your comment as a way to push a (very dangerous) agenda. I’m that case, adapting the tone of the message can perhaps help, although -as I pointed out before- it doesn’t take much to reach the bottom score.
- deltaonefour 5y agoWhen men have realized that time has upset many fighting faiths ... We've been wrong on things like global warming before, and we're likely going to be wrong again. That the ultimate good desired is better reached by free trade and ideas. In light of that knowledge that we may be wrong, the best course of action, the safest course of action, is to go ahead and listen to the uncensored ideas of the other side.. even when we disagree that climate change is false. The best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the marketplace of ideas. Those are the ideas that we can safely act upon. Every year, if not every day, we have to wager our salvation upon some prophecy based on imperfect knowledge. That, at any rate, is the theory of our Constitution. It is an experiment, as all life is an experiment.
- timbit42 5y agoJust yesterday someone called me a "little shit" on here and I have absolutely no recourse.
- smartbit 5y agono worries, others took it upon them and now that message is dead
- timbit42 5y agoOnly because I complained here.
- detaro 5y agothat's what the flag button is for.
- timbit42 5y agoI can't flag comments.
- dang 5y agoYou can. This is in the FAQ: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html#cflag https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html#cflag
- detaro 5y agoWhat is the current threshold for comment flagging? (I thought it was the same as for submissions, but a few weeks back another commenter already claimed it was higher: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29485995 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29485995 - and I can't really check myself)
- pvg 5y agohttps://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=true&query=30%20karma%20flag%20author%3Adang&sort=byDate&type=comment https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=true&que...
- seba_dos1 5y ago> simply because most people disagree Or maybe that's just why you think you're getting downvoted for?
- deltaonefour 5y agoNot me. Others. I've seen others just state a one sentence opinion that I myself disagreed with. Then I've seen these people get voted down.
- 37 5y agoStops at -4 I've recently learned. Also I guess I haven't asked before because I don't care that much. I read HN every day and would probably use the downvote feature maybe 2 or 3 times a year, just like I do on Reddit.
- itsdrewmiller 5y agoI don't think that is what downvotes are meant for, and AFAICT the intent is not defined anywhere. Here's a thread on the topic: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29564976 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29564976