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As others have said, forcing a login is a huge barrier. I wanted to see if any astronomy posts were on the front page, and when I didn't see any, I tried to ch

As others have said, forcing a login is a huge barrier. I wanted to see if any astronomy posts were on the front page, and when I didn't see any, I tried to check out the categories. But when prompted for a login/sign-up, I lost interest.

nsesites 3y ago
What do u think is the best login option with least friction? Google login, email link?
- jwuphysics 3y ago
  Although not the point of my comment (I don't want to sign in at all) -- I personally like a username/password the best.
- Obscurity4340 3y ago
  Don't use assisted login services. Use a password manager with autofill if you need convenience.
  - lying4fun 3y ago
    Care to elaborate on using assisted logins?
    - Obscurity4340 3y ago
      Assisted logins are any "Login with ____" options. Google, Facebook, Apple, et al offer this. Its a bad deal because they (to a degree) take control away from you and contribute to further unnecessary tracking. I have anecdotally also found it to be annoying in terms of disabling if I changed my mind and wanted to use my own username/address and generated password to more directly control my account associated with it. Additionally, if your account with the assistee was ever terminated or restricted, you may have a bad time trying to (as I remarked about) get back in direct control of your account. I don't like having all these things daisy-chained. Its like to digital version of being under conservatorship or babysat. If you're not prone to phishing I would advise against it, although I would prefer resolving that cardinal sin in shorter order where possible and practicable.
dndndnd 3y ago
No worries, I've just removed this, now you can freely read any article with no account needed. > I tried to check out the categories Hm, okay! > But when prompted for a login/sign-up, I lost interest. This is a one I cannot remove that fast (due to the way backend processes these categories), but I'm just curious, why did you loose an interest? I mean, yes, it requires login, and so?
- jwuphysics 3y ago
  > why did you loose an interest? Two reasons: 1. The posts I'd find most interesting in the site are ones related to astronomy and applied machine learning. If there wasn't anything on astronomy (or physics) then I probably wouldn't use the site in the long run. 2.HN is a news aggregator. Most links that reach the front page have something interesting to offer. If I can't access the part of the site I find interesting, then I'll like go back to HN and find another post. (This isn't something I'd love to admit, but oh well.)
  - dndndnd 3y ago
    > If there wasn't anything on astronomy Okay, gotcha, I think I have an idea how to fix this :) > Most links that reach the front page have something interesting to offer. Synthical has this functionality (I mean, "Top articles") in the right bar, but yep, I understand what you mean
    - TheHumanist 3y ago
      I thought you said above that you had removed the login requirement to view categories? I am still being asked to login. Or did I misunderstand? Would be nice to access categories without login necessary. Not seeing a reason that should be required?
      - dndndnd 3y ago
        Nope, I'm sorry if I was unclear, I was saying I've removed requirement to click on articles in the feed. This is a bit more complicated task with categories (due to some backend things I need to change), but I do understand the problem

nsesites 3y ago

What do u think is the best login option with least friction? Google login, email link?

jwuphysics 3y ago
Although not the point of my comment (I don't want to sign in at all) -- I personally like a username/password the best.
Obscurity4340 3y ago
Don't use assisted login services. Use a password manager with autofill if you need convenience.
- lying4fun 3y ago
  Care to elaborate on using assisted logins?
  - Obscurity4340 3y ago
    Assisted logins are any "Login with ____" options. Google, Facebook, Apple, et al offer this. Its a bad deal because they (to a degree) take control away from you and contribute to further unnecessary tracking. I have anecdotally also found it to be annoying in terms of disabling if I changed my mind and wanted to use my own username/address and generated password to more directly control my account associated with it. Additionally, if your account with the assistee was ever terminated or restricted, you may have a bad time trying to (as I remarked about) get back in direct control of your account. I don't like having all these things daisy-chained. Its like to digital version of being under conservatorship or babysat. If you're not prone to phishing I would advise against it, although I would prefer resolving that cardinal sin in shorter order where possible and practicable.

dndndnd 3y ago

No worries, I've just removed this, now you can freely read any article with no account needed. > I tried to check out the categories Hm, okay! > But when prompted for a login/sign-up, I lost interest. This is a one I cannot remove that fast (due to the way backend processes these categories), but I'm just curious, why did you loose an interest? I mean, yes, it requires login, and so?

jwuphysics 3y ago
> why did you loose an interest? Two reasons: 1. The posts I'd find most interesting in the site are ones related to astronomy and applied machine learning. If there wasn't anything on astronomy (or physics) then I probably wouldn't use the site in the long run. 2.HN is a news aggregator. Most links that reach the front page have something interesting to offer. If I can't access the part of the site I find interesting, then I'll like go back to HN and find another post. (This isn't something I'd love to admit, but oh well.)
- dndndnd 3y ago
  > If there wasn't anything on astronomy Okay, gotcha, I think I have an idea how to fix this :) > Most links that reach the front page have something interesting to offer. Synthical has this functionality (I mean, "Top articles") in the right bar, but yep, I understand what you mean
  - TheHumanist 3y ago
    I thought you said above that you had removed the login requirement to view categories? I am still being asked to login. Or did I misunderstand? Would be nice to access categories without login necessary. Not seeing a reason that should be required?
    - dndndnd 3y ago
      Nope, I'm sorry if I was unclear, I was saying I've removed requirement to click on articles in the feed. This is a bit more complicated task with categories (due to some backend things I need to change), but I do understand the problem