I think it's quite different now, the gap between HN and lobste.rs content is growing wider and wider, lobste.rs to me represents more closely what "old" HN was like
I'm still annoyed I couldn't find someone I knew to give me an invite to lobste.rs 9 years ago. I remember asking former coworkers, and people at local tech meetups, and getting blank stares like I was making something up. Though I suppose that is how they managed to keep things under control