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On the other hand, it forces you to think about a catchy title instead of copying and pasting it from other sites

HN Rules is to use the original title verbatim when possible.

dang has stated recently (and I would expect a corresponding update to the Guidelines page eventually) that terse or otherwise inadequate titles warrant enhancement for clarity (not to clickbait or unnecessarily dupe). Dupe recognition that doesn't rely purely on title is inevitable.

I wouldn't go that far. Some terse titles have a charm or mystique that enhances the HN front page. And it's good for readers here to have to work a little, so not everything should explain itself.

Probably what I said is that if one is going to expand on an overly terse title, one should use representative language from the article. That's a partial check against editorialism.

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