Happy New Year, HN! | Hacker News Reader

Happy New Year, HN!

26 pointsnotRobot17 comments

Here's to a better 2021...

I’m hoping we all have a happy, healthy 2021.

2020 was very rough, and the [almost always] insightful projects, debates, and experiences shared here helped me persevere (and sometimes procrastinate!) through the year. Thanks to you all for making this the least toxic “general purpose” online community I’ve found by far.

I am rehashing this I know, but:

We really need to HNify the Internet.

Not sure if possible, but a neural network based filter for browsers that enforces HN guidelines on your Google/YouTube searches, Amazon visits etc. The filter may be called "Dang Filter".

Or we just need to create our own communities with HN guidelines. Making replacements for Stack Overflow, YouTube etc.

I really wish the Internet would be like HN.

Dang and many other members put in a lot of work to uphold the culture here. But a lot of it comes down to two things:

- The hacker and academia cultures have historically been welcoming of beginners, eager to share, and open to learn and discuss. They comprise the vast majority of the community.

- Since you can’t delete posts or comments, and can’t edit them after a while, you really do have to think before you speak. Compare this to Twitter, Reddit, or Facebook where being toxic or unconstructive in one corner of the site doesn’t affect your other activities, and can be erased or edited in the face of backlash. This difference changes the dynamics tremendously

> - Since you can’t delete posts or comments, and can’t edit them after a while...

Actually, you can delete posts or comments too within a short window (about two hours from the time of posting, plus some other criteria to be fulfilled).

There was a discussion here [1] on this six months ago.

[1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23622865

Right, absolutely. But the pattern of “I’ll say something I may regret next year but I’ll just delete it if I really do regret it” isn’t present.

Thanks for highlight this, though. A lot of people are seeing it for the first time, I bet.

HN is fucking boring, I like being able to make jokes - just as many "go back to Reddit", you can have too much of a good thing.

It took a global pandemic to make me realise that its ok to be at home and treat 31st night as just another night.

I may not even make it to midnight :-) #HappyNewYear2021

Oh, nice! Well to me, it is also going to be "just another night". Though it freaked me out at first, but then I saw your post and thought well, you're not the only one who will have an unspectacular New's Year Eve. Which is oddly comforting.

Slightly edited text from a meme:

"I thought 2020 would be the year I got everything I wanted. Now I know 2020 is the year I appreciated everything I had."

Happy New Year! Hope things look up a lot more for the billions of people who have had a tough year in 2020.

I am wondering how other HNers are doing right now? Are you all good and ready for 2021? If you already in 2021: Happy New Year! One thing for sure: My New Year's Eve with an imposed lockdown would be quite boring without HN.

Thanks for asking. I am doing about as well as any old head could hope for. The market downturn earlier in the year made me withdraw more of my savings than I’d like (I try to stick to 3% annually), which was unpleasant, but could have been much worse. The biggest difference is the inability to meet new and old friends. Getting COVID would be a death knell for me at my age. I’ve found myself sending more emails, and actually came across some old friends here on HN whom I got in touch with again. So just like you and a few other commenters, this community has been a boon for me.

Similarly, I hope you are doing well in these times. This is unlike anything I’ve seen in my lifetime, and there’s no doubt some people are taking it worse than others. Look at those around you, reach out occasionally, and try to keep high spirits. Despite a loud minority clamouring about vaccines and freedoms, the vast majority of us are in this together. Happy New Year!

Preparing homemade Impossible Nuggets, Mozzarella Sticks, Egg Rolls, Pizza Bites. For an intimate screening of Pixar's Soul ;)

Call me a paranoiac, but I am not going to wish anything, whatever I wished in 2020 had a very wrong turn :D

I'll just say Happy New 2021 ... Long live and prosper !

2020 taught us all a lot of things. Hopefully 2021 brings more light.

Happy New Year 2021 HN! Thanks everyone for keeping me sane and involved.

If 2021 is like 2020 was personally, I know I won’t make it to 2022.

Happy new year!

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