I think that we waste a lot of time in news feeds (HN/Youtube/Facebook/Twitter/etc). We are afraid of missing something important, and seeing that "something new" feels good. But once you've seen it, you move onto something else immediately. There is some neat research in this (see http://healthland.time.com/2013/08/31/this-is-your-brain-on-..., and I'm sure there are other meaningful sources as well).

I personally have noticed that I have this cycle:

1) I want something to do, perhaps for just a little while.

2) I think about doing something meaningful, but get a feeling of the task being overwealming, so I'm not going to do that right now.

3) I think of something that would be easy to do right now, and HN/FB/etc. comes up. You know, just for a little while.

4) I proceed to the FB/Reddit/HN/etc. cycle and before I know it, I've wasted way more time than I have intended.

This is my cycle, but I'm sure there are others that have something similar.

=====

I have a case of repetitive strain injury (RSI), so I have to minimize my computer use outside of working hours for sure.

How?

I have other things I like to do. I study Buddhism and Meditation at a local center on Wednesday nights. I go out with friends. I read. I listen to audio books. I have a hobby of studying philosophy and religion that takes up a ton of time (personal interest).

I watch Netflix using my gaming systems/tablet (although I try to minimize my gaming time to only on weekends occasionally).

This year I intend to try yoga and tai chi - both are supposed to be good for RSI sufferers.

I have noticed that I tend to read facebook more often if I leave it open on my tablet/phone (as you get notifications constantly). So I stopped that.

I generally try to limit Hacker News / Reddit / etc. to about 1 read a day. I open up all the articles in many tabs, and when I'm through that, I'm through. If I missed something important, it will come up again or someone I know will link me. I still sometimes fall into my cycle above, but at least I am more likely to notice that and avoid it now.