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Comment by MatekCopatek | Hacker News Reader

I have a slightly similar experience - I got off all social media, felt good but not life-changing. My guess is this is due to not being an extremely addicted user in the first place.

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Don't you consider HN social media?

Why would you? I see it as more like a news site with a comments section.

I don't consider those to be social media either.

Aren't we socializing right now?

Yes, but there are no push notifications/ads being crammed down your throat/autoplaying video

Still it is social media nontheless.

What about keeping in touch with your loved ones via carrier pigeon in the 19th century?

Almost spilled out my breakfast with this. Made me lol.

We have different definitions of socializing. Commenting on a piece of news or opinions to enhance our thinking and gain knowledge/motivation/ideas, I don't call that socializing. I haven't made any connections through this platform and if I don't check the HNews for a week, I don't feel sad or missing anyone. But that's me. Someone else may be more (in)vested in here and consider HN as an integral part of their social life. I won't judge them.

I suppose there's a subtle viewpoint difference. You see yourself "commenting on a piece of news". I (and presumably GP) see you socializing with the GP, the way you could casually socialize with a stranger on a bus stop.

I'd miss Temporals grumpy assertions. I learned I'm even older than him, that's disconcerting.

HN does not maintain a social graph and push notifications to you.

I'd say that's what makes a site 'social media.'

FWIW, meatspace doesn't maintain social graphs and push notifications - in physical-world social interactions, you're responsible for holding the social graph in your head. Just like on HN :).

> Why would you? I see it as more like a news site with a comments section.

A news site isn't social media necessarily, but the comment section pretty clearly is.

Find it weird that more people don't just consider Twitter a forum, if you break it down to what you're actually doing it's pretty much the same as reading reddit threads.

Yet many people have convinced themselves that no, twitter is the real world.

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