The only real effect I see is I tend to pick up a few Twitter followers and I like to read the comments that result because they tend to be intelligent, insightful and often challenging.
In my case, both. HN users are not the typical web surfer. They will provide insightful criticism of your work/opinions without using personal attacks. This is the most powerful feature of HN. Trending here is like getting a thousand years of advice in a few hours.
true.. and it has also become the first place to get reviews for your Hack by a large group of Tech savy audience(one which is hard to get at least for the weekend hacks).