[michael_miller]

I know you meant well with your comment, but in general, it's best to avoid well-actually comments. This is one of Hacker School's core rules; they elaborate on why it's a good idea to avoid these types of comments at https://www.hackerschool.com/manual.

[joshmlewis]

What you linked to wasn't the HN 'manual'?

In the actual guidelines found here: http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html it doesn't say anything about well actually comments. It says be smart in your discussions and don't just get opinionated, it says to present facts and actually address the thing that you're arguing over. I believe having proper arguments and discussions is one of the core things HN is about. It lets people learn and see other points of view. If you don't like a comment just downvote it.

[rickhanlonii]

Furthermore, the character of 'well-actually' comments are that the orignal comment was close to, or intended to be close to, a certain fact, and the well-actualer is pedantically correcting the original without adding any substantial value to the conversation.

This is not what happened here. rvkennedy did not make a statement of fact, he made an off-the-cuff remark. eldude challenged the substance and tone of that remark in order to prevent further misrepresentation of the point. He corrected and clarified the remark in a clear and substal way, thus falling well outside of the 'well-actually' category.

Oh dear. I've spent way too much time reading SCOTUS rulings/blogs today.

[nsxwolf]

This is also such a terrific "well-actually" I'm glad he broke this non-existant rule. It is absolutely maddening to hear people misinterpret the 3/5ths rule, and I'm convinced basically no one in this country understands it.

[acjohnson55]

Isn't this reply sort of a meta-well-actually comment in itself?

[obstacle1]

Well, actually this is Hacker News, so "hacker school"'s rules don't apply.

IMHO a much better rule is "avoid acting as thought/discourse police."

[6chars]

HN comment pages would be pretty darn empty without well-actually comments.

[clarkm]

Ok, what's your point?

I don't think "well-actually" comments are bad. Wikipedia says to avoid weasel words and "expressions that lack precision" [1], and I think well-actually statements often help clear up such ambiguity.

If someone follows up their "well, actually..." with a legitimate correction of the facts, then I don't see a problem with it.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Avoid_weasel_words

[niels_olson]

I think that in verbal parley well-actually comments are a lesser degree of the same offense as shooting down someone else's idea in a brainstorming session. Not only does it tend to silence the first speaker by shaming, it tends to derail the larger conversation. In this written context, it's less of an issue, though nested comments do create a similar potential context.

Granted, sometimes you gotta break some eggs. But don't be surprised when the hen who laid that egg isn't to be happy about it.

[gnaritas]

This isn't hacker school.