For the first time ever I questioned today whether I should continue to use HN anymore so I'm writing this partly to explore my own thoughts and to see if anyone else feels similarly.
1. AI, AI, AI.
I get it. AI is the big thing right now, but I find AI posts fundamentally less interesting than the traditional tech content that used to be posted here. A post containing someone's qualitative opinion on how different AI models compare when drawing pelicans simply isn't as technically interesting as something like this, https://nee.lv/2021/02/28/How-I-cut-GTA-Online-loading-times-by-70/
2. Does any build startups here anymore?
Again, I get it. I largely quit trying to bootstrap my own startup ideas in the late 2010s. The industry became too competitive for a solo founder without significant financial backing to have much of a chance of success. And today it's even harder. But I think this has changed HN from a place where you used to frequently see people launching cool new projects to a place where people just discuss the latest big tech AI model launch.
3. Politicisation and intolerance
One of the things I've always liked about HN was that it's a very open minded place. And it still is in many ways, especially when compared to other platforms like X and Reddit, but even here I've noticed comments becoming more one-sided and those with less popular opinions more frequently being flagged and downvoted.
Perhaps it's just me, but I never downvote or flag people unless I genuinely think their comment is cruel or aggressively disregarding the guidelines.
4. Is it just me?
I know I've become increasingly nostalgic to the internet I grew up with... Everything was so much more exciting back then, and yet everything felt so in reach. Sites like YouTube were revolutionary yet built by just three people. Same with sites like MySpace and Facebook which again were hacked together by a handful of people, at least in the early days.
Today things rarely feel new and everything feels so far from reach. AI, well LLMs, have probably been the first "new" thing for years now, yet they're completely different from what's come before. Past tech was primarily built by people for people. LLMs are cool tech, but they're built by companies for companies. YouTube was built because some people thought it would be cool to build a website for sharing videos with friends. That didn't happen with LLMs. Companies just thought it would be interesting to build AGI so invested millions of dollars recruiting teams of researchers to try to build that. No one is asking for it and I'm not sure anyone outside silicon valley even wants it... These are fundamentally inhuman products. Their promise isn't to entertain or connect us, but to automate our work, or just outright replace us.
Too many cool little projects which are replied to with 'Why not use Y?' or 'Who needs this?'. It is as if projects are deemed as having no worth unless they are economically sound and improve productivity.
The AI obsession seems to be slowly dying down, thankfully. For awhile it felt like every single link was about AI, now it seems to only be 10-20%. I expect this to continue.
In general culture I think people are more impatient, cynical, and frustrated, and this shows on HN. But it’s still better than X, where everyone seems absurdly confident in their obscure ideas and viewpoints.
It feels to me like there are less long form “thoughtful” comments with a personal touch than maybe 5 years ago. If I could adjust HN’s settings, I would incentivize those types of comments and not the quick takes that get all the upvotes.
What I'm about to say isn't meant to be mean, but all you said up there? That's on you. That's all you. Keep doing the right thing with your votes and downvotes. Keep trying to come up with that great startup project and build it out and find an audience. Use AI to make you better, smarter, and stronger. Tolerate the ignorant and the different. Pfft...what does it matter anyway what we think of a goofball mouthing off about the remake of Like Water for Chocolate?
Take care of your self and find more fun stuff! If that means taking a vacation from HN, do it. I took a year off a while back and it did wonders. Also dumped most news. Even now, I'm writing Atari 800 programs for the next two days as a small retreat myself.
Yes, the world is on a little decline right now. That just means there's a chance coming to fix things, and the time to prepare for it just happens to be NOW! Be ready! If you do drop off HN, drop me a line and stay in touch!
Millenials have aged.
We dont care enough to be bleeding hearts - so there best be no political conversation, bc we don't want to care.
There is a slice of us that refuse to even like interact with AI -> bc they are afraid of it, either taking their jobs or becoming Skynet - I have no idea.
If more interacted with AI they would realize AI is - maybe we would have more startups again, more personal projects - the majority of people on this platform have access now to something that renders solo/small team projects much, much more plausible -> so, where are they?
That you think AI is such a limiting thing is exactly what I mean.
HN is not more close minded - the People here are. Slowly becoming the boomers for Gen Alpha/Beta to hate.
What was a little kickback has become grift to the tune of millions in plain sight. "It's just a donation for a pet project"
I grew up with that internet you miss. As noted, it became concentrated for various reasons related to network effect, uncontrolled M&A's, echo chamber attention traps, and now free porn that you can create, not just watch.
It's still possible to humanize this internet, in terms of private and small group-oriented inventions, and the many, many unmet human needs out there. Seniors need help. "Where are the exoseletons?" "Where are the SAFE self-driving cars?". Students need help in these rapidly changing times when Calvinists are locking kids under 18 from dangerous things like compilers and code repo's. And so many others need help that is not coming from the tech bro's, who are way more interested in life-extension and various transhuman things.
While medical research, vaccines and medical care are being savaged in favor of "supplements".
Downvoting? I was downvoted to zero for doing nothing but quoting an article linked in an OP that mentioned "double-tap" air strikes.
Techies need to care more about what they work on, and not in increasing Zuck's or Musk's or Jeff's wealth.
X users are being doxxed [0], and big tech has sold out to a griftarian government.
Bootstrap worthy things and let me/us know. Same here.
Small is beautiful.
[0] https://www.mintpressnews.com/x-users-find-their-real-names-...