3 ms·
>do you typically feel better or worse after browsing the internet? I know it's common to say the "internet sucks" but I'll go against the grain and honestly s
by jasode 1y ago
>do you typically feel better or worse after browsing the internet?
I know it's common to say the "internet sucks" but I'll go against the grain and honestly say it's the best resource in my life. I like learning new things and the internet has been #1 tool for that for many decades. I'm speaking as someone who grew up with public libraries with paper card catalogs and looking at archives of microfiche for old newspapers.
Learning anything like coding, how to repair cars and random things around the house. Learning about places to travel to. Basically learning about any topic. The vastness of the internet is superior to the physical books I used to buy from Barnes & Noble and Amazon.
I think one of the reasons I don't have a negative opinion overall about the internet is that I've never sought friendships or "connection" on the web. Therefore, it's not an aspect that let me down. Maybe an analogy would be the perspective traders would have about the Bloomberg Terminal. It's just an information tool. They don't seek any "social connection" on the Bloomberg Terminal so there's no disappointment that makes the users conclude "Bloomberg Terminals suck". That's what The Internet is to me -- a general all-purpose "Bloomberg Terminal".
It may surprise some to hear that the biggest source of negativity I'm exposed to on the internet is actually here on HN. I'm not joking. I don't read news websites so my daily dose of internet negativity comes from HN comments.
- michaeldoron 1y agoa. Amen to the internet being a great tool for learning b. I acknowledge this is a tangent, but I would say the same about LLMs. They can have plenty of negative effects on society as a whole and individuals using them, but I found that when I use them as a tool for learning they are usually great and a net positive, both at the time of learning and later on when using that knowledge on my own.
- idiotsecant 1y agoIf the most negative place on the internet you regularly are exposed to is HN, you have some excellent memetic hygiene, congratulations. I try to only use the parts of the internet that enrich me but the dopamine from places like Reddit, Bluesky, youtube (for hours) etc is pretty tough loop to break. It's obvious these places are not particularly helpful to me in the way I use them, but I find my fingers typing the URL without thinking and once you hit that first link it's so easy to just fall into it for way longer than you should.
- aaron695 1y ago[dead]
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- SirFatty 1y ago"how to repair cars and random things around the house." Not so sure about this one... you learn more from hands on work than following a youtube video. Like following a GPS route to a destination and not really understanding the path that lead you there.