They just mean the note itself is "dead" (voted down into oblivion or from a per...

sbisker on April 16, 2014 | parent | context | favorite | on: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code boot...

They just mean the note itself is "dead" (voted down into oblivion or from a person who is hellbanned) - you have to view HN with "showdead" turned on to see dead comments.