rep

[Stigma]

Honestly, I'm on board with the trial period idea. Give everyone past X number of posts rep power for like a week or so and see what happens.

[RTC]

Reputation on a forum really depends on how seriously posters generally take it. Obviously, you'll have dissidents and staunch supporters regardless of the respect the system has in place, but the best indication is not the support of the system, it's the respect.

In my opinion, the rep system here is worthless to the point that I really don't care whether it stays or goes. If you need or are concerned about numerical validation through a forum concerning a relatively obscure 12-year old game, you probably need better activities.

[cephalopod]

Playing Devil's Advocate - not necessarily my own views - I could argue that more limitations over less would be the way to make this fairer.
If only select people can rep, people that could be 'chosen' to spot the good and bad over the forum, you add some accountability which is always important.

Also, with more people able to rep you just end up with any action getting more response, so if someone did something 'nooby', they would end up with minus a lot more than they may deserve.

Just a few points to discuss.

[Fracture]

If the staff really do value its importance for newbies to recognize helpful users, there should be a drop-down list of reasons that you can select from when you give rep and abusers should simply have their privileges taken away. Otherwise, it can stay as a fun but meaningless way to show appreciation for other users - if people think the numbers will confuse new people, just don't show the totals or only show the sum of the 5 most recent actions.

[Badger]

Playing Devil's Advocate - not necessarily my own views - I could argue that more limitations over less would be the way to make this fairer.
If only select people can rep, people that could be 'chosen' to spot the good and bad over the forum, you add some accountability which is always important.

Also, with more people able to rep you just end up with any action getting more response, so if someone did something 'nooby', they would end up with minus a lot more than they may deserve.

Just a few points to discuss.

And good actions would result in more +ve rep. It's all relative.

[Avalanche]

If the staff really do value its importance for newbies to recognize helpful users, there should be a drop-down list of reasons that you can select from when you give rep and abusers should simply have their privileges taken away. Otherwise, it can stay as a fun but meaningless way to show appreciation for other users - if people think the numbers will confuse new people, just don't show the totals or only show the sum of the 5 most recent actions.

Playing Devil's Advocate - not necessarily my own views - I could argue that more limitations over less would be the way to make this fairer.
If only select people can rep, people that could be 'chosen' to spot the good and bad over the forum, you add some accountability which is always important.

Also, with more people able to rep you just end up with any action getting more response, so if someone did something 'nooby', they would end up with minus a lot more than they may deserve.

Just a few points to discuss.

Why not have the drop down list, but then also have the other members write extra comments upon this one down or up rep so that it only counts as a single point but can have lots of people's inputs?

[Meganerdbomb]

Y'all are turning this into a serious discussion when it was really just Reier being butthurt that I repped him down a couple of times.

[cephalopod]

He raises interesting points about abuse of the system though in fairness.

[yugitom]

Well, he raises the point that it can be abused and has been but it's not as if we have loads of AU's and vets running around attacking people's rep for no reason at a large scale. Like MNB says, I just think this issue has been pushed due to his recent actions and I think Reier's argument of abuse is blown out of proportion, as it would be if you only looked at the change history very recently with what MNB has been doing.

Plenty of ideas have cropped up to improve the system such as a 'cool down' system so rep can only be affected by a certain person so many times a day and there's also the simple method of choosing those we deem shouldn't be affecting rep and stripping them of their power to do so. I think there's no major issue with rep, especially not to remove it.

[09090901]

i like the idea of a rep system, mainly cause i like reading the karma stats page and that it really doesn't hurt anything.

but thinking that rep actually helps noobs is pretty dumb imo. like sage said, noobs generally don't look at rep/understand it and anyone who has lurked for more than a week is going to know who they should and shouldn't listen to. besides, most new users are gone within a day

[yugitom]

Well, it's also a matter of respect. A +rep is kind of like a pat on the back for something someone thinks you've done good at. How that differs from just posting 'good job' is that, after a while, you and others get to see how much respect and 'pats on the back' you've garnered and that's a nice thing to look back on and it really puts into perspective how good a member someone has been when you look at outstanding rep counts such as Craaig and RedAce's.

And, just like a pat on the back in real life, no one really cares but it's a nice thing to have regardless.

[Meganerdbomb]

If you want a legit suggestion. The one other small forum I frequent has a rep system where you can only give positive rep, and your member ranking, instead of by post count is based on how many rep ups you've gotten. If you want a system that's good at pointing out who's most respected for newbies, that's a pretty good one. And you don't have the drama of "waaah someone repped me down  and it's not fair!" (a la GF39, Reier.)

[Scorpion]

Maybe we should just all agree that rep is like religios belief, everybody has one, some people care too much about it, and in the end it really doesnt matter anyway.

[Naryar]

Rep in a nutshell:

It does matter, but only as far as a general indicator of good behavior/who should be trusted in the forums, also as a general way to communicate and say "thank you for what you did" or "no, you shouldn't do that" to someone else.

Fighting and causing drama over a few points of rep isn't worth it, however someone like Andrew having 15 rep is problematic. See my former point about it.

Rep is only as important as it's pragmatic uses are. Otherwise, it isn't. But yet, it should be kept because of those points I brought.

Simply, rep abuse should be fought, as in MNB's sucking Andrew's dick or massive rep circlejerks which are no longer common since not everyone can rep.

[Meganerdbomb]

Mfw nobody cared when it was racecarlock getting 100 rep.
 
He's perma banned anyway, it's not like newbies are going to be tricked into thinking he's a respected memeber. (See what I did there?)

[RTC]

If you want a legit suggestion. The one other small forum I frequent has a rep system where you can only give positive rep, and your member ranking, instead of by post count is based on how many rep ups you've gotten. If you want a system that's good at pointing out who's most respected for newbies, that's a pretty good one. And you don't have the drama of "waaah someone repped me down  and it's not fair!" (a la GF39, Reier.)

Is that a Xenforo system by any chance? That's one of the few rep systems that can actually work for its intended purpose.

[yugitom]

Rep in a nutshell:

It does matter, but only as far as a general indicator of good behavior/who should be trusted in the forums, also as a general way to communicate and say "thank you for what you did" or "no, you shouldn't do that" to someone else.

Fighting and causing drama over a few points of rep isn't worth it, however someone like Andrew having 15 rep is problematic. See my former point about it.

Rep is only as important as it's pragmatic uses are. Otherwise, it isn't. But yet, it should be kept because of those points I brought.

Simply, rep abuse should be fought, as in MNB's sucking Andrew's dick or massive rep circlejerks which are no longer common since not everyone can rep.

I agree with everything being said here.

[madman3]

i'm cool and gtms top dsl builder apparently can i rep people please

[Naryar]

Rep in a nutshell:

It does matter, but only as far as a general indicator of good behavior/who should be trusted in the forums, also as a general way to communicate and say "thank you for what you did" or "no, you shouldn't do that" to someone else.

Fighting and causing drama over a few points of rep isn't worth it, however someone like Andrew having 15 rep is problematic. See my former point about it.

Rep is only as important as it's pragmatic uses are. Otherwise, it isn't. But yet, it should be kept because of those points I brought.

Simply, rep abuse should be fought, as in MNB's sucking Andrew's dick or massive rep circlejerks which are no longer common since not everyone can rep.

I agree with everything being said here.

lol i was just paraphrasing your own words

i'm cool and gtms top dsl builder apparently can i rep people please

wait, what ? you aren't an AU ? this needs to be solved

gtms top dsl builder

Them's fighting words.

[Jonzu95]

lol mnb muted