The current status of registered users (i.e. member, senior member, Guru, LQ veteran, moderator, etc) is necessary, it indicates position of the user which impacts on user's mind.
A guru's or veteran's or moderator's answer is taken more seriously by OP than member's or newbie's.

So Getting Reputation points is an addiction or not.
Is it the main reason which inspires users to give answers?

What will happen if root removes this green attractive strip?
will it affect the answer count?

I am not going to wade into the reputation issue, but
is wrong. Those titles are not necessary. They are honorific titles awarded to members who are active: the higher the post total, the higher the title. (Consider it recognition of devotion to the board.) Those titles are indicators of members' activity levels, not expertise.

1 members found this post helpful.

Those titles are meaningless. And so is the Rep count.
Both suffer from Garbage in, Garbage out.

There might be a few who think of the Rep as their "score" in the linuxquestions game, but I think most people are more complex than that. I very much doubt that it is a significant motivator.

6 members found this post helpful.

Who cares about rep? If an answer is useful, it is great, certainly would not affect me deciding for or against the forum.

1 members found this post helpful.

It depends exactly on you (all of us). Why do(n't) you click on that YES? That is the answer.

1 members found this post helpful.

Nope. Been a member for a bit and never thought of it.
But then. I don't pretend to be what I am not.

It always amazes me what some folks consider important enough to start a thread about though.
Like as if they got too much free time on their hands, or are just lonely.

Good luck wondering about brownie points.

2 members found this post helpful.

The advantage a "reputation" has is in estimating the value of the answer. Those that provide good answers, that help the user should get more "brownie points".

Of course, that also means there should be a way to down vote too.

1 members found this post helpful.

I don't see any benefit to the rep system, and so am glad there is an opt-out. I think that focusing on increasing your rep distracts you from more important things, and can sometimes lead to rep wars, especially if negative reps are enabled. I prefer to stay out of the mess. However, I do recommend that you hit the "Did you find this post helpful?" button, because it quickly lets me know that the answer was good. Sometimes OPs will just leave the thread and never post anything back about any of the answers. That is not beneficial.

EDIT:

I have noticed that reputation DOES have an effect on how some people react to you. OPs are more likely to believe and take the advice of someone with rep or status than someone without it. This is not universal, but some people do react this way. That's up to them. To me a good answer has nothing to do with rep.

Rep can also have negative effects. For example if someone has high rep and says something controversial, they will be seriously beaten into submission, maybe because they are more representative or maybe more of a force to be reckoned with or maybe they are more memorable because of their rep. I think it is better to have no rep and be left alone and mostly uncensored.

1 members found this post helpful.

Maybe I'm an exception, but I do appreciate reputation points.

I take each one that I have received as a compliment, an indication that I might have been able to help someone or, at least, point someone in the right direction. They help me believe that my efforts here are well-spent.

At the same time, I must admit that I am troubled when I see someone actively request rep points in a signature. I find that doing that is, at best, gauche.

3 members found this post helpful.

Personally, I have "blissfully ignored" the "personal reputation" system here. I actually read posts without regard to "helpful," and am very happy so to do. If there is an 'addiction' then I shall have no part of it.

After all ... "it's all about the content." People come here from everywhere on this planet with: Linux Questions. And we endeavor to answer them ... trying also to leave a trail of threads that is useful to a search, even if that search takes place five years from now (and we died three years from now, say). (Damn(!) "bread truck!" Didn't you see me?! Sux!!)

That's what it's really about. Not our "reputations." If we've established some kind of history of actually helping people, then human-beings will find a way to know that without the "assistance" of some silly integer counter. So, let's just all focus on "answering Linux questions" (as we also just hang-out at the General water-coolers). If we focus on doing that, as generally we all seem to already do, then "all is well."

"Is it an addiction here?" Certainly not for me. I know nothing about it and am happy so to be. "Counterproductive."

1 members found this post helpful.

I was a member for years before I even realized there WAS a reputation thingy. Don't see the point of it myself.

1 members found this post helpful.

Here is the problem with trying to fix issues 1000 miles away. Someone wants an answer, so people with free time offer some solution. I might go to other sites to get a solution where votes are offered for best answer. They may not be right but offers a clue, they still leave the lesser voted replies so that I can make a choice myself. You can make a choice based on the answer here. In general, some of the top posters offer good solutions. Not always.

I try to give the good replies credit. So logically if one does provide good answers (and we never really know until the OP replies solved) they are ones that might be considered good sources of answers. Can a new person give a great answer, yes, and if so they deserve credit.

Yes, I am affected too. I may not challenge some of the top posters to an argument in some cases. Also, I may not even bother to enter into a topic if they are working on it simply because I've read their answers and they tend to be good ones. Similarly, I'd add to a newbie post in some cases or may try to change the direction of the topic not knowing their skill level.

Do we need it? Maybe not. Do I need it? No not at all. I do however like to know that I might be offering good advice. If people don't give me any feedback, then how can I tell? I do like to know that others are being regarded as qualified by their peers and the actual OP's.

I've never asked for any points.

Hadn't really ever thought of that...

But can you see quickly what replies are voted as best?

I don't think this is accurate. I'll be frank there are some people in LQ who have alot of posts, as far as I am aware only posts outside of General are tallied, who for my money I wouldn't follow much of what they say.
Same as above this really doesn't matter much simply because it is so easy to post things that are borderline on topic but not helpful in order to increase a post count.
Not for me, if it is for others then they require help.
Not for me, if it is for others then I would question their motives and also the effectiveness of their "assistance".
Probably nothing.
It shouldn't but if it does then the people who stop posting because of a theoretical removal are probably not worth listening to anyway.

It amazes me too that people think OP has lots of free time to post here garbage but I don't know why they just don't ignore these posts and concentrate on real Linux problems of the site instead of they spend their precious time to post data here.