Hacker News Reader

Comment by quanticle | Hacker News Reader

Reading Hacker News.

Even the time I spent on video games was more useful (in teaching me discipline, consistency, etc) than the time I've spent reading Hacker News and getting caught up in the latest insight porn/Javascript framework/argument about the "optimal way to interview"/etc.

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I think it's still way more signal-to-noise than most websites and most subreddits. You just have to have an idea of which comment sections are worth skimming, which are worth skipping, and which are worth analyzing or contributing to.

I quit the site for about a month, came back because it really is a great idea generator.

Is it really wasted time if it's intellectually stimulating, and you can finish what you need to while maintaining your required 8 hours of butt-in-seat office time?

The question isn't whether it's intellectually stimulating or not. The question is whether a minute spent on Hacker News is best spent on Hacker News or better spent on something else.

Is reading about a new Javascript framework on Hacker News more intellectually stimulating than actually writing some code? Even if you're just trying to get your 8-hours-of-butt-in-seat-time in, it's a pretty questionable assertion, IMO, that HN is the best you can do with that time.

I would say in general depending on where you are in your career, knowing about a lot of stuff on a shallow level and knowing one or two things deeply is a competitive advantage. Especially as you move more into architect or consulting roles or even CTO.

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