I think HN is a whole lot better than it used to be. (I think shadowbans used to be common back when pg ran this site.)

I'm still happy that other sites exist.

I'm pretty easy going, so I haven't experienced it, but shadowbanning seems like a nefarious thing. I'd much rather, I think, know that I have been banned and why I have been banned.

That is actually speculation. I've never actually been banned from any online community.

If what I've observed, the HN mods are pretty good at leaving a comment when someone's been banned. Sounds like there are two perhaps different understandings of shadowbanning: banning without letting someone know, and allowing a user to continue to post with their comments being dead by default. If someone hasn't read their responses (which can happen) one might not be aware they are banned. Am I understanding you correctly in that you're referring to the first (no notice) vs the second (dead comments)?

Shadowbanning is, to me, banning that results in the user still believing they aren't banned and that their posts appear, to them, to be posted normally. Shadow banning means the user doesn't even know they were banned and still sees their posts being posted as if there has been no change.

They may only notice the difference after they have logged out and then checked to see if their post has actually been posted like normal. It seems insidious, perhaps nefarious was too strong a word. I can see where some people might have earned such a ban, however.

Given that description, would you mind elaborating on what you would consider a prescription, in the context of HN?

In case it wasn't clear I agree.

I think todays practice is a whole lot better.

I also haven't been banned yet but I feel I sometimes annoy dang a lot even when I try to be as polite as possible without letting go of the facts so I won't be surprised if/when it happens.

I sorta told a mod off, not dang but one of the guys at night usually, before I knew he was a moderator. What I respect is that he never even mentioned his moderator status. I figured it out when I saw him threaten to ban someone at a later date and remembered the username.

So, I have grown to respect the moderation here. It is generally a light touch and I've seen them give multiple earnings. They seem to be pretty even headed and aren't power hungry or overly controlling.

I realize this strays a bit far from the topic at hand, but it seems related enough to share. It's also a good time to point out that they were right, I was wrong, and I am sorry for grumping at them.