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The negativity in this thread is a perfect exemplar of the say-anything-critical-to-look-smart, "No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame.", poisonous middleb

by karzeem 13y ago

The negativity in this thread is a perfect exemplar of the say-anything-critical-to-look-smart, "No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame.", poisonous middlebrow dismissal that pg complains about. This is an amazingly light convenience, with really solid, streamlined execution. People, it's ok to think something is good.

codex 13y ago
I like your point and it is a valid critique of HN commenting. Many dismissals are perfunctory and incorrect. All the same, though, it is expected that almost all new startups will fail and most products will not be "the best" or even original. That's the nature of competition; only the top products get any traction at all. Given that, I would expect critiques of most new ventures.
Segmentation 13y ago
Ugh. Just people you disagree with someone doesn't make them negative. It's critique. HN is a place of dissenting opinions. It's ok to have an opinion different than yours.
- sbuk 13y ago
  The "Ugh", that's what the GP is talking about. A number of the posts come across as spiteful, which is not objective and as such, has no place here. In fact objective criticism is something that developers aren't good at at all, but such an important engineering skill. Speak to designers and learn how to do it. You'll be a better engineer as a result. Edited for clarity.
jamesbritt 13y ago
It's a tough call sometimes. Or it feels like it. I didn't care for the site. Took too long to show what it was about so I closed the tab. Just a bit too cute for my taste. I was going to post a comment about it, mainly as a data point, in case such things matter to the site owner. OTOH I have on iPhone and I don't have a Mac I use often enough to care about this sort of product anyway; it's in perpetual sleep mode 99% of the time. I'm not the target audience. Does mentioning my dislike for the site make me negative? Is it to the long-term good that people feel reluctant to offer criticism? I do get the point about "Knock stuff to show your IQ"; it's unpleasant and an easy habit to fall into. I've been with groups of geeks where it's impossible to discuss almost any piece of software because it turns into a dick measuring contest. (So to speak.) Still, sometimes some things really are flawed and those flaws are worth pointing out. I suppose that every criticism should be accompanied by some suggestion on how to fix or improve things, but that's not always possible. I don't have any really good suggestions on how to temper negativity other than to encourage people to pause and consider why they are posting something, and for others to try to ignore the posts that irk them.

by karzeem 13y ago

codex 13y ago

I like your point and it is a valid critique of HN commenting. Many dismissals are perfunctory and incorrect. All the same, though, it is expected that almost all new startups will fail and most products will not be "the best" or even original. That's the nature of competition; only the top products get any traction at all. Given that, I would expect critiques of most new ventures.

Segmentation 13y ago

Ugh. Just people you disagree with someone doesn't make them negative. It's critique. HN is a place of dissenting opinions. It's ok to have an opinion different than yours.

sbuk 13y ago
The "Ugh", that's what the GP is talking about. A number of the posts come across as spiteful, which is not objective and as such, has no place here. In fact objective criticism is something that developers aren't good at at all, but such an important engineering skill. Speak to designers and learn how to do it. You'll be a better engineer as a result. Edited for clarity.

jamesbritt 13y ago

It's a tough call sometimes. Or it feels like it. I didn't care for the site. Took too long to show what it was about so I closed the tab. Just a bit too cute for my taste. I was going to post a comment about it, mainly as a data point, in case such things matter to the site owner. OTOH I have on iPhone and I don't have a Mac I use often enough to care about this sort of product anyway; it's in perpetual sleep mode 99% of the time. I'm not the target audience. Does mentioning my dislike for the site make me negative? Is it to the long-term good that people feel reluctant to offer criticism? I do get the point about "Knock stuff to show your IQ"; it's unpleasant and an easy habit to fall into. I've been with groups of geeks where it's impossible to discuss almost any piece of software because it turns into a dick measuring contest. (So to speak.) Still, sometimes some things really are flawed and those flaws are worth pointing out. I suppose that every criticism should be accompanied by some suggestion on how to fix or improve things, but that's not always possible. I don't have any really good suggestions on how to temper negativity other than to encourage people to pause and consider why they are posting something, and for others to try to ignore the posts that irk them.