5 ms·

So does Facebook, and Myspace.

by TheGateKeeper 14y ago

untog 14y ago
Does HN automatically hate any tech company as soon as it becomes successful?
- zbowling 14y ago
  we love github
  - jmathai 14y ago
    for now
- mbreese 14y ago
  We have a love/hate relationship with Google and Apple. Does that count? Sometimes we just don't like where a company is going or what it has done to try to actually cough make money. I think with Twitter it's watching what used to be a very open platform slowly, but surely, becoming yet another walled garden.
  - prodigal_erik 14y ago
    This. Using tools in creative and unexpected ways is what human beings are. When a service no longer permits that, it has officially made itself Part Of The Problem, regardless of how much money it's bringing in.
- enraged_camel 14y ago
  I think it's more that HN automatically hates any tech company as soon as it goes public, because going public tends to shift the company's focus from its users to its bank account. Decisions based on growing the latter almost always come at the expense of the former.
  - deleted 14y ago
    [deleted]
- cookiecaper 14y ago
  Is Twitter successful? Last I knew they still had no real path to profitability. They've got a bunch of people using something, but as far as I understand, it's just a drain, and now they're trying to figure out how to actually bring in some profit. I don't call things like that "successful".
  - galactus 14y ago
    They have been profitable since 2009, apparently (http://www.wired.com/business/2009/12/twitter-earns-first-profit-selling-search-to-google-microsoft/ http://www.wired.com/business/2009/12/twitter-earns-first-pr...)
- a-priori 14y ago
  The key thing about things like Twitter and, especially, Facebook that makes them get such hate, I think, is that as a user, you are their product -- not their customer. They don't get money from you, so their interests are not aligned with yours. This leads to a lot of perverse behaviour in the interests of extracting value from your use of their site. This is in contrast with other services (like Github, which someone mentioned), whose interests are aligned with yours. They want your experience to be good so that you continue to give them money.
  - 001sky 14y ago
    ^^This is a nice, clear, and level headed response. Combine conflict of interest and lack of transparency, and you can explain a lot of problems.
- icebraining 14y ago
  HN is not a single mind. It's composed of different users with different opinions. Some like Twitter, others hate it, and some others like me are just very much indifferent towards it.

So does Facebook, and Myspace.

untog 14y ago

Does HN automatically hate any tech company as soon as it becomes successful?

zbowling 14y ago
we love github
- jmathai 14y ago
  for now
mbreese 14y ago
We have a love/hate relationship with Google and Apple. Does that count? Sometimes we just don't like where a company is going or what it has done to try to actually cough make money. I think with Twitter it's watching what used to be a very open platform slowly, but surely, becoming yet another walled garden.
- prodigal_erik 14y ago
  This. Using tools in creative and unexpected ways is what human beings are. When a service no longer permits that, it has officially made itself Part Of The Problem, regardless of how much money it's bringing in.
enraged_camel 14y ago
I think it's more that HN automatically hates any tech company as soon as it goes public, because going public tends to shift the company's focus from its users to its bank account. Decisions based on growing the latter almost always come at the expense of the former.
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
cookiecaper 14y ago
Is Twitter successful? Last I knew they still had no real path to profitability. They've got a bunch of people using something, but as far as I understand, it's just a drain, and now they're trying to figure out how to actually bring in some profit. I don't call things like that "successful".
- galactus 14y ago
  They have been profitable since 2009, apparently (http://www.wired.com/business/2009/12/twitter-earns-first-profit-selling-search-to-google-microsoft/ http://www.wired.com/business/2009/12/twitter-earns-first-pr...)
a-priori 14y ago
The key thing about things like Twitter and, especially, Facebook that makes them get such hate, I think, is that as a user, you are their product -- not their customer. They don't get money from you, so their interests are not aligned with yours. This leads to a lot of perverse behaviour in the interests of extracting value from your use of their site. This is in contrast with other services (like Github, which someone mentioned), whose interests are aligned with yours. They want your experience to be good so that you continue to give them money.
- 001sky 14y ago
  ^^This is a nice, clear, and level headed response. Combine conflict of interest and lack of transparency, and you can explain a lot of problems.
icebraining 14y ago
HN is not a single mind. It's composed of different users with different opinions. Some like Twitter, others hate it, and some others like me are just very much indifferent towards it.