Meta Is Murder

Thank you for a very insightful article, it’s a very interesting concept that explains the death of quite a few communities on the internet.

So a meta post condemning meta is ok? Seems you’ve found either a paradox or a flaw in your logic. You wrote this post which means you condone an anti-meta post which is in fact meta. So you think there is some value to a meta post or at least a certain type.

“Allocate your time accordingly.”

Hey what’s your problem? This is a free market econonmy, thus we should be all pimping ho’s

@Dinah Welcome to the incompleteness theorem.

So, “meta is murder”, but “a certain amount of meta is healthy”. How do you feel about metaphors?

@Hank: Indeed. I studied a few things along these lines but not this specifically. Thanks for providing the correct name so I can read up on it. I knew the concept but didn’t know what to call it until now.

Sorry, I have to say this: OMFG!

Here we are (me included) meta-discussing a meta-meta-meta-post and not only that meta-discussing each other’s comments! That’s like at least 5 metas.

@Phenwoods: I prefer my phors direct, thank you very much.

So, “meta is murder”, but “a certain amount of meta is healthy”. How do you feel about metaphor?

Oh no, not again. For someone who doesn’t like meta, you certainly go on about it enough, Jeff. Zzz.

Meta is the greek word for after and by. Meatah, means yur Amrican

You are right, I’m incredibly bored right now.

Meta is so annoying I didn’t even finish reading this blog post about blogging about blogging!

So did you enjoy your masturbation? Incidentally this was also the point I got bored and stopped reading.

Metaphors are rubbish!

Meta is super fascinating and dangerous at the same time.

What else is new? :slight_smile: Your entire blog can be considered meta - the time you spend writing and I spend reading is obviously time both of us instead could have spent doing.

I don’t disagree that meta is seductive - it’s easier and more entertaining to discuss programming concepts than to fix bugs, and discussing policies have the added advantage that you don’t need to know anything in particular to have an opinion.

But I do disagree that meta is murder. I think meta is more like Vitamin D: Necessary for proper functioning, but toxic in too large doses. So the interesting discussion is presumably “how much is too much”?

What about metaprogramming then? I actually read this blog because it is somehow connected to the topic programming…

This is a great post (well mostly, it quotes some other great commentary, but still).

This pretty much puts in to words a subtle decline that I have been noticing for about a year or so on a forum that I visit regularly.

After reading Millard’s explanation it IMMEDIATELY became clear that he is correct: I’ve been witnessing it first hand.

It’s kind of like when your favorite band hits that point where all they do is write songs about how tough it is to be on the road. Yeah, I’m sure it sucks, but I can’t relate so much.