[HN Gopher] Do you want to build a community where users search ...
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       Do you want to build a community where users search or hang? (2021)
        
       Author : mooreds
       Score  : 12 points
       Date   : 2026-02-17 14:58 UTC (3 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.mooreds.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.mooreds.com)
        
       | laurex wrote:
       | This is such a misunderstanding of what "community" means through
       | the lens of technology. These tools are not designed to help
       | people have relationships, and the Google vs. Facebook
       | distinction is quite apt in that both are scale-oriented and
       | relationships are in service of the ends of the business. We're
       | using the word "community" to obfuscate the weird way the
       | technology and its owners attempt to mediate relationships.
        
         | iugtmkbdfil834 wrote:
         | Agreed. We may need to start moving the language a little to
         | capture things more accurately. In terms of technology,
         | community is more akin to 'captive audience'.
        
         | mooreds wrote:
         | Fair point. As the author, I was explicitly looking at it in
         | the context of technology or technology companies building
         | communities around them. I was working in developer relations
         | at that time, so building a community of practitioners around
         | our software was a priority for me.
         | 
         | I didn't mean "community" in the general sense, though I have
         | thoughts on how to build that too:
         | 
         | * show up
         | 
         | * be kind
         | 
         | * try to meet people where they are at, but have minimum
         | engagement standards
         | 
         | * follow up and meet regularly
         | 
         | * leverage existing groups and communities (organizations like
         | Rotary or friend groups) where possible
        
       | themafia wrote:
       | I don't think you can "build" a community. I think you can only
       | serve them. Perhaps they haven't been served that well before and
       | your service will foster their growth. You still didn't "build"
       | anything.
        
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       (page generated 2026-02-20 23:01 UTC)