HN Guideline Reminder: Please remove numbers from post titles

Re:HN Guideline Reminder: Please remove numbers from post ti... by anigbrowl on Monday July 06, 2009 @02:32PM (#690167)

Numbered lists imply completeness, omniscience etc. - it's a literary gimmick, both in terms of attracting the lazy reader and in giving the writer a convenient structure they can fill out easily, with the last few points usually being fluff. A famous example is the '7 habits of highly effective people' followed by 'the 8th habit' (strangely, not titled 'oh wait, I forgot one').

Of course, you could argue that leaving the numbers in informs HN readers about which articles are mere gimmickry rather than carefully written essays.

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Re:HN Guideline Reminder: Please remove numbers from post ti... by catone on Monday July 06, 2009 @03:46PM (#690325)

I disagree with this. At least from my own perspective, numbered list imply one thing: that I can expect a specific number of items.

In fact, in the given example, the non-numbered version of the title sounds like it should be more authoritative. It goes from an interpretation of, "a list of 20 common mistakes," to one of, "a list of /the/ common mistakes." I.e., to me at least, the second option has an implication of being a list of all the common mistakes, while the former implies that this while this is a list of 20 mistakes, there could be more.

It is the adjective ("amazing," "killer," "must-have," etc.) present in the title and NOT the number that conveys authority, completeness, etc.

Perhaps I am the exception, though, and not the rule.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:HN Guideline Reminder: Please remove numbers from post ti... by philelly on Monday July 06, 2009 @06:26PM (#690555)

It is exactly because the "top x" title is a gimmick that I want it faithfully included in HN titles. This way, I know to not click on the link in the first place, as I typically avoid these types of list articles.

[ Parent | on HN ]