Julia EvansFeb 13, 2024

i really appreciate that we can have great conversations here on mastodon if I’m extremely careful about every single thing I post and often include disclaimers (“please don’t explain rebase to me”) to avoid repetitive annoying replies that I can predict

but I still feel like I need to be SO much more careful about my posts than I was on Twitter and I wish it wasn’t like that

Show threadJulia Evans

the replies to this are pretty bad, a lot of

- "well it's not a problem for ME”
- "just don't read the comments"'
- "have you heard of blocking/muting”
- "have you ever considered that on social media in general you need to be careful about what you say because folks don't have much context”
- "tech people are just all assholes”
- "no julia, the dozens of people trying to explain to you what a git branch is are just trying to HELP, you should be grateful”

Feb 13, 2024 at 5:28pmWeb
Show threadJulia EvansFeb 13, 2024

on a positive note I really appreciate everyone who replies to my questions on here, you all are GREAT.

in particular this thread on git config options is probably the best resource I've ever seen on configuring git, I'm still working on synthesizing the replies because there are so many good ones https://social.jvns.ca/@b0rk/111885363143321068

Julia Evans (@[email protected])

what are your favourite git config options to set? Right now I only really have `git config push.autosetupremote true` and `git config init.defaultBranch main` set in my ~/.gitconfig, curious about what other people set (diff algorithm patience? a custom diff/merge tool? enable rerere?)

Mastodon
Show threadMichael KohneFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk Are you going to do a write-up? Because that's something the world could use.
Show threadJulia EvansFeb 13, 2024
@mhkohne that's the plan!
Show threadRaineer  🦆Feb 13, 2024

@b0rk I think your guides are absolutely amazing.

They both make the topics approachable, and capture the common questions most people have. It reads so much better than a man-page or a bland summary. They have such personality! Please continue to do all you do!

Show threadAndy HerdFeb 13, 2024
@raineer massive plus 1 to this, thank you Julia for your wonderful and succinct guides to so many things @b0rk ❤️
Show threadpeter sibleyFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk I copied some common aliases and diff+merge tool configuration from my git config: https://gist.github.com/petersibley/b9dda13199cdd057cc404d240e56db0a
Handy git config aliases and git diff & mergetool configuration.

Handy git config aliases and git diff & mergetool configuration. - .gitconfig

Gist
Show threadAJFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk Sorry it’s so exhausting in general. For me, your reply guidelines make it much easier to contribute. I was one of those kids who begged for a rubric for everything. It gives me confidence that my thoughts might be worth sharing.
Show threadJulia EvansFeb 13, 2024
@ajf i'm so glad they're helpful!
Show threadmmu_manFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk cc @Siltaer
Show threadjycFeb 15, 2024
@b0rk Sorry you have to deal with this constantly. It isn’t how things should be.
Show threadkaeFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk there's gotta be some sorta "law" that says that any criticism of tech folks will cause them to exemplify the issue 
Show threadDavidFeb 13, 2024
i agree with your assessment of here versus there. thanks for making the situation more publicly visible.
Show threadAshe DrydenFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk “have you ever considered that I feel that my need to be contrarian is more important than your request not to be abused?!” Lol people can be trash
Show threadLuis VillaFeb 13, 2024
@ashedryden @b0rk ugh, that "quote" captures so much of that vibe (sadly, well-pre-dating Mastodon) so concisely and so well.
Show threadchristineFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk just ugh 😑 . Sorry this has been your experience, I definitively have felt this too.
Show threadjebelkrongFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk your writing is one of the best resources for me. I wish, collectively, we were better at this.
Show threadMr. CompletelyFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk well I think you're doing great, your post was on point and I agree people here can be picky, pushy and generally pretty weird
Show threadrojunFeb 13, 2024

@b0rk I've followed your blog for years and even bought your zines. I hope those comments don't get too much under your skin.

It's cool that you can distill these subjects into something not sounding pretentious and elitist, but instead your style portrays curiosity and openness to ideas and learning - it's quite unique because of that, and not all of the IT ppl get it.

Show threadAllan ChowFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk just know that I and many of my colleagues hold you in very high esteem and I hope your reputation will precede you for people on here soon.
Show threadSam Livingston-GrayFeb 13, 2024

@b0rk at risk of proving my own point... yeah, I've definitely noticed that mastodon is *full* of useless replies. Almost every time I look in the replies to a post on here—technical, political, joke—there's at least one reply from someone who appears, for all intents and purposes, to have zero clue. "Oh, you made a joke; you obviously require someone to reply with a dry, boring, pedantic explanation of YOUR OWN DANG JOKE"

[sighing intensifies]

Show threadpixFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk WELL ACTUALLY
Show threadBen RosengartFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk @mhoye I think you’re pointing out a real problem, and Mastodonians should pay attention and consider mitigations. (Trying to balance out the bad replies a bit.)
Show threadRodrigo EscobarFeb 13, 2024

@b0rk That sounds awful 😔

I wonder if the issue is not the platform necessarily but the fact that a lot more tech people are here these days?

I imagine this could be an example of the Dunning-Kruger effect just because every dev *thinks* they know everything they need to know from git while the rest of your topics in the past were probably things that they didn't use on daily basis and they took it as new information

Show threadSean DFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk Just saw this on Bluesky and thought of your experiences. https://bsky.app/profile/danhon.com/post/3klczqvc27s2k
Dan Hon (@danhon.com)

Over on Mastodon, which has a Kind of Person, I made these images to attach to help people manage replies. Album: flic.kr/s/aHBqjBdZ8F

Bluesky Social
Show threadNorman WilsonFeb 13, 2024
@b0rk I think there's a small-but-noisy contingent here who left the birdplace to find a place where they got to set the rules. Any suggestion that anything is wrong here or with them sets them aflame. A friend (with a thick skin, fortunately) gets crap because he dares to post black-and-white photos, or describe in neutral terms photo subjects they hate. That may be part of what you're getting.
Show threadJulia EvansFeb 13, 2024

@oclsc i get the impression there's a certain kind of grumpy open source nerd here that's much more common on mastodon than twitter

(and I say this as a pretty big open source nerd who used linux on the desktop for 20 years)

Show threadNorman WilsonFeb 13, 2024

@b0rk Speaking as a sometimes-grumpy guy who has used Linux and Unix on desktop and in machine room for ca. 45 years, I think you're right.

And they've been around in one form or another for at least that long! FOSS attracts them but didn't create them.

Makes me wish I could redo age-20s me, I was too much like them.

Show threadDan Kletter 🥑Feb 14, 2024
@b0rk 😬
Show threadednl 🇪🇺Feb 14, 2024

@b0rk Have you seen @danhon 's work today? :D (Probably not a direct solution, but funny. And tragic.)

https://dan.mastohon.com/@danhon/111925461009889302

Dan Hon (@[email protected])

Attached: 3 images made some more tongue-in-cheek ha-ha no-seriously images to help you manage replies in lieu of affordances to help you manage replies please steal and use if you find useful or so help me funny 1. Do not reply unless you have direct experience 2. Do not reply with a software suggestion 3. This is an observation. Do not attempt to help. No reply necessary. YOU MAY REPLY if you have a suggestion or request for another helpful informational message. more in thread + https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBdZ8F

Mastohon