Find some awesomeness here on HN -- there's a lot of that too -- and comment about it. Build something and show it off or support someone else who's built something cool. Write comments that contribute meaningfully and are positive and you will find more upvotes than you can possibly imagine, if upvotes are what you're going for. And you're right, you can find lots of upvotes (and downvotes too) by judging other people's legitimate choices without even bothering to understand them, but that doesn't make HN a better place, it doesn't help anyone learn, and it might not make you happy in the long run either, even if it's fun for you at the time.
We get to decide if this place is cool and supportive and fun to play in, or lame and thorny and dangerous to share any of your thoughts for fear someone will be an ass about it and insult your choice of tools. I choose the former, and I'm happy to spread the love and request that people refrain from trying to knock others down or engage in flame wars.
I generally upvote people who reply to me just as a way to say thanks for reading what I wrote and engaging with me. Here's one for you. I hope you'll find more peace on HN and get exposure to more of the positive side of it. There are some incredibly amazing people here, and it's true there are also some destructive forces too. I hope you can let the crap roll off and seek out more of the good stuff!
