They keep the train centered by the differential effect. The angle of the cone is very slight, nowhere near enough for gravity to overcome friction to cause the train to slip laterally into the center. And then keeping the train centered as the track turns results in the train turning with the track.
Sure, but I guess I'm wondering if that is just a convenient effect of the centering, or if it is actually necessary to prevent the wheels from skipping.
I think this may be the primary reason why narrow-gauge railways are better at tighter curves: the shorter axle means the same wheel radius difference (caused by lateral displacement) causes a smaller turn radius versus a standard-gauge axle.
I don't think it requires sign-in for content that's not behind the paywall. I think it occasionally prompts the user to sign up or sign in, but you can click outside the box to move past it. It's hostile that they don't exclude an explicit "dismiss" button, though.
They have gotten more aggressive (and will continue to do so). I have been recently told I've run out of free articles, and if I switch to private browsing mode, it will tell me I've only got one left.
I don't think clicking outside of the box works anymore. You really have to reopen the page in incognito mode in order to read it, if you don't want to register & sign in.
I think people don't realize that Medium doesn't require articles to be behind the paywall. There are two ways an article gets paywalled:
1. You opt-in to getting paid for views.
2. If you put your article up for curation AND it gets picked. If it gets picked to be shown in curated feeds, it goes behind the paywall, but if it doesn't get picked by a curator, it's openly accessible.
If you don't select getting paid for views or put it up for curation, it's always openly accessible.
I use Medium because hosting my own blog would be too much of a hassle. I never put my articles behind the paywall; my aim in writing is not to get paid, and I don't put them up for curation because I don't have an explicit goal of increasing my readership.
I'm also a Medium member, because I do think we need ways of paying for content, and paying for good content (the curation part). Maybe Medium's model is not the best way to do that, but I'd rather support a company that's trying to find the right balance than declare that all content should be free.
The alternative to Medium isn't necessarily "hosting your own", they are not the only blog hosting service around.
I personally would suggest at least going for your own domain, so you can switch providers if they turn worse, if you're ok with spending some money on it.
