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Comment by rimher | Hacker News Reader

He makes some good points in the talk, but omg what a troll he is. Also on Twitter he's been a jerk to so many people, I really don't understand. If he's looking for what's wrong with software companies, he's part of the problem with his attitude honestly

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I've watched a lot of Jon's streams and stuff and I think "troll" is a mischaracterization. Trolls get a kick from getting people riled up, which definitely isn't the case with Jon.

He is often quite blunt though. He doesn't usually go out of his way to say things nicely and, being somewhat in the same boat, I think this is mostly because he's just sick of seeing the same bullshit over and over. It is frustrating.

He says it like it is - and has a critical mind which I suppose makes him come across as confrontational. A troll on the other hand goes out of their way to insult & shock, which I don't believe he does.

Just to expand on your definition of a troll, as someone who grew up in the 90s and met a lot of them on usenet. The common theme I found with them was being able to carefully phrase a comment or question to maximally elicit a response.

They often weren't consistent in their arguments over time - instead crafting their argument to most elicit an emotional response in the reader so that they were compelled to reply.

I’ve noticed this as well. He is a very arrogant fellow and has no problem insulting people who do not deserve it.

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