Hacker News Reader

Comment by talonx | Hacker News Reader

Pretty narrow question - considering that not all geeks celebrate Christmas.

It's a problem-solution thing. Commenting on HN typically has more substance than "I don't like ___". Your comment might have been more constructive if you restated the question to something you found more appropriate or thought would generate better discussion.

EDIT: I didn't down vote, just wanted to comment

True. My intention was to elicit a "what do you desire right now" response (with both gadgets/cool products and interesting philosophical answers e.g. "Time" etc..) rather than any focus on a holiday. I should have said "holiday season" rather than Christmas. My apologies.

People who don't celebrate Christmas can still answer the question. "Nothing."

No, they can answer the question by stating the gift they would like as a present. It doesn't always have to be Christmas to give presents.

I find it interesting that a perfectly legitimate question got downvoted.

@rick_2047 - It does not have to be Christmas to give presents, but the question assumes Christmas first, then presents.

@ceejayoz - Answering 'Nothing' would mean you want nothing for Christmas, not that you don't celebrate Christmas.

Downvoters - care to give any reasons?

I was not a downvoter but I think that your comment is a bit problematic. First of all, saying that not all geeks celebrating Christmas is at least obvious. In addition, think of this hypothetical question and you may understand the downvoters:

- Ask HN: Which Apple product do you desire the most?

- Answer: Not all geeks desire an Apple product.

@gsivil - Thanks for jotting down these points. I think my response was more geared towards the text "What should be on the Christmas list of geeks everywhere?" rather than the title "What do you want for Christmas?" of the OP's question. They can be interpreted as being different - at least I did.

I would like to know the answer to this too! I'm trying to think of a present for my boyfriend but I don't know much about the latest gadgets or useful accessories for a programmer. I was thinking an ergonomic desk chair but $600 is way out of my budget. Any ideas??

Reply on news.ycombinator.com