I think you're going about this platform in exactly the right way: figuring out how involved you want to get while still keeping the experience as enjoyable for yourself as possible. A lot of people are signing up for this platform for all the wrong reasons (money) and therefore get frustrated after a few weeks and a small handful of dollars. Take what you can while giving back as much as possible but at a good balance that you're comfortable with. Steemit.chat or Discord--I've personally found--are not absolute prerequisites to improving your Steemit experience.
Regarding commenting after the hard fork, I honestly don't know too much about this or how HF-19 impacted the commenting process. Although I've spent a lot of time on this platform, I'm still learning more about these technical aspects on a day-by-day basis, so it's difficult for me to give my opinion on these things. But as soon as I know more I'll be sure to fill you in on my thoughts ;)
Btw, I upvoted your comment too & I'm glad you enjoyed my post!
To be honest, money was exactly the reason I signed up here also at first and I am guilty of follow4follow shit also in my first week.
After realizing it didnt bring any upsides and wasnt fun at all. I decided to change this and engage in content and catogieres I enjoyed and tadaaa....it changed my experience 100%. Suddenly I was learning about stuff I was genuine interested in and from time to time I was even able to teach or add some value to their post, which is waaaayy more fun and also earned me more followers and most importantly engaged follower.
I would be lying if I said I dont care about the money at all but if you have fun and engage in an "honest" way money will follow. At least this is my experience for now.
Come for the money, stay for the community