Thread

1. nomel · 1790637663 · focus · HN ↗

   > Thin accounts: few comments, low scores, no real standing in the subreddit.

   > Young accounts, or accounts with histories that are hidden or wiped.

   Nope, this is no longer an indicator of a bot account. Many that I've looked into will have active posts to local town/region subreddits (often times multiple!) and different sports subreddits, sometimes getting unusually high amounts of karma in them (which suggests a network).

   Turing test is looong dead, so no reason to assume the small fractions of a cent to make comments, to get a reasonable history, isn't being taken advantage of.

   1. sippingabonedry · 1790640279 · focus · HN ↗

      Too many subreddits still have minimum karma or account age requirements. Most of those are ruled by tyrant moderators so you're not missing much, but it's made the site largely useless. I estimate 60% of discussions on Reddit are fake or fabricated on some level.

      Can't post honest questions anymore without posting obviously phony pandering banter first to increase your karma. What's worse, it promotes the bad behaviors the bots are actually good it.

      Bring back forums.

      1. Nifty3929 · 1790643041 · focus · HN ↗

         "Bring back forums" - I'm with you. I prefer forums as well, but when I think about it a little bit I can't say exactly why. Threaded conversations on specific topics, with moderation? That's basically Reddit (and forums). So what do you think it is that makes Reddit feel icky, versus the forums we've had in days of yore? Is it something fundamental about the system/experience, or is it just a "nobody goes there anymore... it's too crowded" problem?

         Maybe the difference is the post/comments framing? Rather than an opening post with sequential follow-up replies? Maybe something about voting? Maybe it's all the bolt-on features?

         1. OroPla · 1790690716 · focus · HN ↗

            The reasons forums are better:

            - threads are linear

            You post something to a five year old discussion, everyone in the forum notices.

            - no voting

            Doesn't matter whether your opinion is controversial or not, it is presented as just as valid as all other opinions and thus is worth engaging with, fostering debate.

            - smaller communities

            It is actually possible to read every post made to the forum and know every member.

            - niche interest as the main driver of everything

            Everyone is aligned on at least something and politics don't pervade everything.

            - moderation can still kill everything

            If you got a mod willing to remove posts or ban users for differences of opinion (sexist, racist, homophobe, transphobe, islamophobe, etc. etc) then everything dies either way.

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