The people who run Stack Exchange finally admit comments have their use beyond requests of clarification, detail, evidence of research, and informing authors their questions are either off-topic or a duplicate. Moreover, the comments–I presume–will not to be locked, transferred to chat, edited or deleted by moderators or staff members. There's also a good chance that the number of flags, especially on Stack Overflow, will drop significantly as users who insist SO and other Stack Exchange sites are not forums will refrain from raising flags every time they encounter a meaningful banter between two or more users in their field of expertise.

How does this groundbreaking experiment work? In a video entitled Community Discussions, the narrator, which I swear is a female AI voice-over, describes the simple process:

P.S. How is “community discussions” significantly different from a forum?

Comments are worthless, they add only noise. Stack Exchange is different, we focus on answers not on chit-chat. We've all heard (and mostly accepted) this argument, haven't we?

Instead, six years later, comments will occupy a higher role: productive, meaningful, an immediate way to share opinions and experiences in any of the ramifications a single post might generate.

Returning to the announced initiatives and the related Blog article I read the following [emphasis in bold mine]

Am I seeing irony where none exists?

The people who run Stack Exchange have finally conceded that comments have their use. Beyond requests of clarification, detail, evidence of research, and informing users their questions are either off-topic or a duplicate; comments–I presume–will not to be locked, transferred to chat, edited or deleted by moderators or staff members. There's also a good chance that the number of flags, especially on Stack Overflow, will drop significantly as users who insist SO and other Stack Exchange sites are not forums will refrain from raising flags every time they encounter a meaningful banter between two or more users in their field of expertise.

How does this groundbreaking experiment work? In a video entitled Community Discussions, the femalr voice-over, which I swear is generated by an AI, describes the simple process:

By the way, how is “community discussions” significantly different from an online forum or message board? How will SE differentiate from Reddit?

We were told years ago that comments were worthless, they added only noise. Stack Exchange was different, it focused on answers not chit-chat. We've all heard (and mostly accepted) this argument, haven't we? Examples:

Instead, six years later, comments will occupy a higher role: they will be productive, meaningful, an immediate way to share opinions and experiences in any of the ramifications a single post might generate.

Returning to the announced initiatives and the related Stack Overflow article, I read the following [emphasis in bold mine]

Am I seeing irony where none exists?

Only now does the company fully appreciate its legacy and success lies with the user base, complete with their human interactions and their behavioural flaws. It has also paid tribute to the incredible generosity of its communities on numerous occasions. Yet, at the same time SE seeks to promote AI generated content, as if it were the deus ex machina, in the present crises. Madness.

The combination of community-driven verification with AI generated excitement about improved trust and reliability of technical content; however, user trust in the accuracy and relevancy of content is paramount. Transparency is key. […]
AI-powered search features helped developers cut down on time in low-complexity situations, but sometimes ran into hallucinations when dealing with answers to more complex problems.
Source: Community Products: Reflections and looking ahead March 27, 2024

• The combination of community-driven verification with AI generated excitement about improved trust and reliability of technical content; however, user trust in the accuracy and relevancy of content is paramount. Transparency is key.
• AI-powered search features helped developers cut down on time in low-complexity situations, but sometimes ran into hallucinations when dealing with answers to more complex problems.
  Source: Community Products: Reflections and looking ahead March 27, 2024