When there is no interesting technical/startup/business story, and other stories are worth read, so why not read them?
If there are startup stories, articles or discussions that are worth reading, they'll hit the front page in HN.
That being said, HN is community for self-improvement. The story "How money restricts life's pleasures" has no relation to hacking/finance/startup but can be life changing and may be even change the track of your startup.
You are your startup. Improve yourself and your startup will also improve.
I definitely think HN has become somewhat of an Apple PR centre as of late. Anyone on here is surely going to get that news from another outlet aren't they?
I wouldn't call it an "Apple PR centre". Most of the Apple related submissions recently are of critical nature (e.g. antenna issues, restrictions of the iPhone SDK). I agree, sometimes the Apple related share of stories on the front page is overwhelming, but you should also consider how many startups/developers depend on things happening around Apple.
For me it's not about getting the Apple news from HN, but following the (high level) discussions about them.
If there are startup stories, articles or discussions that are worth reading, they'll hit the front page in HN.
That being said, HN is community for self-improvement. The story "How money restricts life's pleasures" has no relation to hacking/finance/startup but can be life changing and may be even change the track of your startup.
You are your startup. Improve yourself and your startup will also improve.