Ask HN: Thoughts on a hidden "meta" comment view? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Thoughts on a hidden "meta" comment view?

3 pointshumbledrone3 comments

I recently gained the ability to downvote comments, and I've been trying to take this (light) responsibility seriously. So far, the only comments that I have downvoted were those that I felt obviously did not add anything to the discussion.

As I downvoted one such comment, I had an urge to reply to it with an explanation of why I chose to do so. Of course, my explanation would not add anything to the discussion either, so I refrained.

It occurs to me that something like a normally hidden meta-chat view might be helpful. By default, none of the meta discussion would be visible, but a user could choose to view it. It would be a place for discussing the discussion, explaining site guidelines, etc. I think of it as sort of analogous to Wikipedia's discussion tab.

My idea here is that such a meta-chat view might help get crufty comments off the main view, as well as encourage more communication about why a comment is inappropriate. Another idea might be to allow comments to be voted into the meta category, so they would be hidden from the main view but still visible to those who care.

Have any other communities tried this sort of thing? What do you think of it?

...as well as encourage more communication about why a comment is inappropriate.

I strongly suspect this would cause problems, not solve them. Publicly tarring and feathering people for all the world to see is like chumming the waters and wondering why the hell you can't get rid of the sharks.

A better approach to culture issues is to set a better example. Give people the benefit of the doubt. Reply as politely and respectfully as you possibly can. If you can't think of any reply that doesn't come across as clearly asinine, remember that discretion is the better part of valor and closed mouths gather no feet. Look to the man in the mirror and worry about whether or not he is behaving. When frustrated with bad behavior around you, look again at the man in the mirror and wonder if there is yet room for improvement in his level of finesse.

"The beatings will continue until morale improves" is a broken paradigm on the face of it.

Peace.

> Reply as politely and respectfully as you possibly can.

Right now the only way to reply politely and respectfully is on the main comment page, where such a comment, no matter how polite, is off-topic. My suggestion is merely to move such off-topic (but still personable) comments out of the way.

I was addressing one specific piece of your point and quoted the piece I intended to address. I do not see any real value in actively encouraging basically a "dog pile" of critical/negative remarks with a permanent public record. That wasn't intended to suggest that some kind of meta comment system has no value. It was intended only to suggest that any active encouragement of ganging up on someone on permanent public record is generally very bad for a forum culture.

It's late. I'm only online due to insomnia. I am vaguely aware that my own post violates my stated suggestions and could have been delivered more smoothly. Please don't take it to be busting on the general idea. I hope others who have experience with such meta comment systems, which I do not, will have a lively discussion about the merits (or lack thereof). My thought had a very narrow intended focus -- that encouraging too much blunt public feedback on why some comment is bad is, itself, probably bad and possibly very very bad.

Peace.

PS: Congratulations on your newly acquired privileges.

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