Ask HN: Any Way to Improve the Facebook HN Bot?

4 pointsaethros7y ago2 comments

For those unfamiliar: https://www.facebook.com/hnbot/about

I like the HN Bot, and will sometimes check links it provides when I'm not on HN.

However, it occasionally posts links that end up becoming flagged, duped, or otherwise less desirable posts. Is there a way to improve the HN Bot so that it can pull back posts (I know fb has a delete capability), or maybe a delay before posting (avoiding these undesirables)?

Additionally, if someone has a better Idea, feel free to share it.

2 comments

aethrosOP7y ago

I realize this is probably not the most thought-provoking "Ask HN" (something like "best tutorials" or "how to learn math notation" I saw posted). But, I've been a long time lurker, and so this is my first post. Additionally, hopefully the practical nature of the topic should prove to be engaging enough for a discussion.

gitgud7y ago

Some people like bots to initiate conversation and suggest things, but others (like me) want an obedient program to respond with helpful things when requested.

To answer your question, I think making the bot get posts which are already popular (more than 10 points) will prevent this, as posts with more points are less likely to be removed.

Bots aren't for everyone, as the HN community's attention on this post demonstrates. But don't let that deter you a good bot can be a useful tool for a lot of people.

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