Re:The Unofficial HN FAQ
by RiderOfGiraffes on Monday October 04, 2010 @11:09AM
(#1755863)
The answer is correct, but is (perhaps deliberately) incomplete. Replying to recent comments is not disabled, there is an exponentially increasing timeout. Yes, you can always click on the "link" link and then hit "reply", but in-thread, the "reply" link only appears after a timeout that gets longer as the comments get deeper.
In summary:
+ "reply" on comments in old threads are disabled.
+ "reply" on comments in new threads have a timeout
+ the timeout is very short if the comment is shallow
+ the timeout gets longer as the thread gets deeper
+ the timeout can be circumvented by clicking "link" - then you are offered a "reply" link immediately.
+ PG might put the timeout out the shortcut method, but hasn't yet done so.
Do you mean a delay for the reply link to show up ?
Timeout is confusing. I didn't know about this feature.
I was kind of in doubt about what to do there, I'm aware of that trick but I think it is in there for a reason, to publicly put a 'workaround' out there would likely be counter productive.
The old thread item duly noted and added. What do you think about the 'link' bit, should that be added or best left as it is?
Current answer is wrong. Commenting is disabled for old threads. For new, overly active threads only in-thread commenting is disabled, but clicking on the 'link' link still gives an access to the response form.