Personally I follow the RSS Feed using Google Reader and on encountering interesting items open up the article and comments, favoring if the article sparks conversation.
I've always just visited the site throughout the day. I find that the homepage doesn't change much and the new page is always changing, and using something like google reader isn't the best way of keeping track of discussions on the home page and new submissions both. Also, I've been surfing this site a lot more using my iPhone and was just wondering if pg was fine with someone designing an iPhone friendly version.
I use RSS (NetNewsWire), pick out interesting-sounding articles, skim the comments. If it still sounds interesting, I read the article, then read the comments in detail.
at sporadic intervals throughout the day. Many times it's just something to keep my fingers moving while I'm thinking. I usually just glance through the headlines and move on. I try to only read noncritical news in the morning when I wake and later at night.
First I usually skim the fronpage, whenever I see an interesting article I open the article and the comment page. Scan the article if seems interesting and is not too long read it, if it is long scan it and read the comment page. If there is an interesting discussion read the article, else close the article and comments page.
After reading the full article, if good upvote. Read the comments, if there is an interesting conversation upvote (if still unvoted) article and comments. If I have something interesting to add. Comment.
After that, if an interesting conversation was taking place set a mental interruption on the future to recheck it.
Lately I have found myself reading the comments on a article prior to reading the article itself. I don't know why, but maybe its because the discussion on YC is invariably better than the article itself. Also, if I see too many negative comments, I skip the article altogether. I read a lot during the day, and using the comments as a filter prevents me from adding to that list, if it be so.
I think a lot of us end up hesitating to bother opening an article because so often the submitted-title is a bad attempt at humor that instead completely masks the true topic of the article. Titles like "you really want to know..." are a total waste of my time. KNOW WHAT? If the topic is interesting, I will click. If it is about something of interest only to you, don't post it with a title that forces everyone to click just to know what the subject matter even is.
That said, I always read via google reader, since the actual interface makes it impossible to say "I have seen all these, don't show me them again!".
I check the front page for topics I'm interested in (webdev, Jennifer Connolly, artificial intelligence, amateur hardcore pornography, general programming, etc). If I'm really bored, I'll look to see which entries have 20+ comments and read those. If I'm really, really bored, I'll look at the newest comments. I'm usually really, really bored.
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[ 4.9 ms ] story [ 75.7 ms ] threadPS: I use greasemonkey to pretty it up.
https://www.buxfer.com/yc/#___home__
With interesting topics, I make it a point to read the comments, too.
then again, I read YC on ass, so I commend you for doing something.
at sporadic intervals throughout the day. Many times it's just something to keep my fingers moving while I'm thinking. I usually just glance through the headlines and move on. I try to only read noncritical news in the morning when I wake and later at night.
After reading the full article, if good upvote. Read the comments, if there is an interesting conversation upvote (if still unvoted) article and comments. If I have something interesting to add. Comment.
After that, if an interesting conversation was taking place set a mental interruption on the future to recheck it.
I hope that made sense...
That said, I always read via google reader, since the actual interface makes it impossible to say "I have seen all these, don't show me them again!".
- find some articles, /submit
- read RSS for headlines with my own hack sorting by hacker, points, stories & replies
- read /new, then /news, upclick & new tab for good articles, reply where something grabs my attention
- read threads, then reply
- read /comments, /lists when bored