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LWN is one of the, if not the single, highest signal tech publications around. I hope they're able to maintain a stable subscription service. Being user funded,

LWN is one of the, if not the single, highest signal tech publications around. I hope they're able to maintain a stable subscription service. Being user funded, and avoiding having to maintain allegiance to advertisers, is likely part of why their quality is so high.

giancarlostoro 24d ago
Not only that but lwn is one of the main sites that gets submitted to HN all year round (not daily, but maybe nearish to daily). So the audience here on HN has been exposed to it over the years. I'm not sure what more they could do to get new subscribers, I certainly hope they figure that out or how to get new ways to earn revenue without having to go the ad route. https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=lwn.net https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=lwn.net
- blks 24d ago
  I’m occasional lwn reader and I had no idea there are subscriptions there!
  - giancarlostoro 24d ago
    They lock down new articles for about a week I think, so subscribers get the first one, though if you're a subscriber I think they let you SHARE the article with others, so here on HN sometimes a brand new article will be shared by a subscriber with a code so anyone without a subscription can see it.
- rdpintqogeogsaa 24d ago
  That's the thing though. You can get all the value from LWN through here. Even if it wasn't for them tolerating subscriber links being posted on HN, the week-long delay isn't nearly enough an incentive to actually subscribe, rationally speaking.
  - roryirvine 24d ago
    I think the generosity and straightforwardness are a big part of the attraction for many subscribers. They've always respected their readers and I hope that continues to pay off.
    - excitedrustle 24d ago
      Agree. I don't read it every week, but I greatly appreciate the quality (both of the technical content and the lack of advertising/sensationalism/clickbait) when I do read an article. Happy to pay to support this style of tech reporting and journalism.
  - giancarlostoro 24d ago
    Easy to say until they have to eventually make the hard decision to shut down.
  - tonyarkles 24d ago
    Rationally-speaking, maybe not. I’ve been a long-time subscriber. When I first subscribed, my day-to-day involved embedded Linux and getting the “breaking news” was pretty valuable. These days I still do that somewhat but I’m stuck on a crusty vendor kernel and anything I read about a kernel newer than 5.15 is going to land on my desk in approximately 2028… but I still subscribe, mostly with a patronage mindset: I don’t acutely get value from the subscription every week, but I think it’s a community service and I’m happy to pitch in a few bucks to keep it alive.
    - kokada 24d ago
      Same as me. I started subscribing LWN when I was a Linux enthusiast from my early college days, because the content was so good and interesting. Nowadays I barely read it but I still keep my subscription alive, just because I think the content is worth it.
  - WD-42 24d ago
    Wouldn’t rationally speaking you’d want to support them to keep them around? Or did you mean selfishly speaking?
upslefts 24d ago
[flagged]
miki123211 24d ago
I don't use Linux (on the desktop, I use it on headless machines), yet I still agree with this statement. When I saw that title, I thought the note would be about their "incredible journey", fortunately that is not the case.
lsofzz 24d ago
Agreed!
Quekid5 24d ago
Absolutely. Very happy 10+ years subscribed here and I'll keep subscribing. (As someone pointed out in the comments, the title of this specific post could have been less heart-attack-inducing, but still... :) )
pimeys 24d ago
Super happy subscriber for years... One of those magazines that I open on a Sunday morning with a good cup of coffee and sleeping cats next to me before the family wakes up. If you enjoy well-written technical content, please subscribe and support them. I hope they continue making the great articles.
- EuAndreh 20d ago
  Just checking, are they print magazines? Or are you referring to the online articles instead?

giancarlostoro 24d ago

Not only that but lwn is one of the main sites that gets submitted to HN all year round (not daily, but maybe nearish to daily). So the audience here on HN has been exposed to it over the years. I'm not sure what more they could do to get new subscribers, I certainly hope they figure that out or how to get new ways to earn revenue without having to go the ad route. https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=lwn.net https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=lwn.net

blks 24d ago
I’m occasional lwn reader and I had no idea there are subscriptions there!
- giancarlostoro 24d ago
  They lock down new articles for about a week I think, so subscribers get the first one, though if you're a subscriber I think they let you SHARE the article with others, so here on HN sometimes a brand new article will be shared by a subscriber with a code so anyone without a subscription can see it.
rdpintqogeogsaa 24d ago
That's the thing though. You can get all the value from LWN through here. Even if it wasn't for them tolerating subscriber links being posted on HN, the week-long delay isn't nearly enough an incentive to actually subscribe, rationally speaking.
- roryirvine 24d ago
  I think the generosity and straightforwardness are a big part of the attraction for many subscribers. They've always respected their readers and I hope that continues to pay off.
  - excitedrustle 24d ago
    Agree. I don't read it every week, but I greatly appreciate the quality (both of the technical content and the lack of advertising/sensationalism/clickbait) when I do read an article. Happy to pay to support this style of tech reporting and journalism.
- giancarlostoro 24d ago
  Easy to say until they have to eventually make the hard decision to shut down.
- tonyarkles 24d ago
  Rationally-speaking, maybe not. I’ve been a long-time subscriber. When I first subscribed, my day-to-day involved embedded Linux and getting the “breaking news” was pretty valuable. These days I still do that somewhat but I’m stuck on a crusty vendor kernel and anything I read about a kernel newer than 5.15 is going to land on my desk in approximately 2028… but I still subscribe, mostly with a patronage mindset: I don’t acutely get value from the subscription every week, but I think it’s a community service and I’m happy to pitch in a few bucks to keep it alive.
  - kokada 24d ago
    Same as me. I started subscribing LWN when I was a Linux enthusiast from my early college days, because the content was so good and interesting. Nowadays I barely read it but I still keep my subscription alive, just because I think the content is worth it.
- WD-42 24d ago
  Wouldn’t rationally speaking you’d want to support them to keep them around? Or did you mean selfishly speaking?

upslefts 24d ago

[flagged]

miki123211 24d ago

I don't use Linux (on the desktop, I use it on headless machines), yet I still agree with this statement. When I saw that title, I thought the note would be about their "incredible journey", fortunately that is not the case.

lsofzz 24d ago

Agreed!

Quekid5 24d ago

Absolutely. Very happy 10+ years subscribed here and I'll keep subscribing. (As someone pointed out in the comments, the title of this specific post could have been less heart-attack-inducing, but still... :) )

pimeys 24d ago

Super happy subscriber for years... One of those magazines that I open on a Sunday morning with a good cup of coffee and sleeping cats next to me before the family wakes up. If you enjoy well-written technical content, please subscribe and support them. I hope they continue making the great articles.

EuAndreh 20d ago
Just checking, are they print magazines? Or are you referring to the online articles instead?