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Comment by raganwald | Hacker News Reader

Is a list of the essays the best way to make your point? The value in a post on the front page isn't just "Oh look, an essay from Paul Graham I haven't seen before." It's also in the inevitable discussion.

If you want to ask people not to submit old content, I'd suggest going beyond the list and coming up with a compelling reason why old content being reposted and upvoted and discussed vigorously is detrimental to the HN community as a whole and not simply annoying to a few old hands.

Some of that discussion is a complete retread, of course, but some of it is brand-spanking new and reflects the fact that both the people and the times have changed, so the ideas will also change.

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I understand your point. And yes, the discussion that follows each pg repost adds some totally new perspectives/comment.

But then why only stop at pg articles? people should be encouraged to repost all the nice material from past. Since HN is active since years, there would be so much interesting stuff to repost.

I do not understand the approach that when a newbie submits something (useful nevertheless) without knowing its a repost, lot of people go on flagging and commenting its a repost. Why different treatment to pg articles?

But then why only stop at pg articles?

1. That's not entirely true. Other old stuff also gets reposted sometimes.

2. It speaks to the quality of PG's essays.

3. There is definitely some thoughtless fanboy upvoting just because it's PG. If that's what you are trying to reduce, that's great. But meta posts are hardly the way to go.

Isn't the fact that the article gets voted up proof that a substantial number of HN'ers want it here (again), no matter what you think?

I never flag reposts of any kind. But that's just me, I can't explain why someone would flag a repost unless the original was also flag-worthy.

Personally, I see the mentioning of dupes as an indication that something interesting is going on. The comment "Dup." followed by a link gives people the opportunity to revisit the old discussion, and I see that as useful.

FWIW, I usually don't revisit the old discussion. The point of a resubmission to me is to get new eyeballs and new ideas. If I revisit the old discussion I'm pushing my brain down well-trodden paths.

The question of whether resubmissions are a bad idea comes up from time to time. It's just as interesting to see new perspectives on this subject as it is to see new perspectives on old posts. You can't have one (new discussions about old posts) without the other (new discussions about old complaints) :-)

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