Reputation system
I was just wondering what the purpose of the two separate ways to give reputation are for. Just now, I was posting on a thread (which wasn't my own) and another user gave me some comments on a better way to do what I'd done in my code. I found this helpful, and so clicked on the "I found this post helpful" button.
However, on reflection, this could cause it to show up as the post people have marked most helpful in the thread, while it has little relevance to the actual question. Is this the difference? That the "Rep" button is for adding reputation for 'off-topic' posts, while "I found this post helpful" is for marking posts which are helpful with regards to the question asked? Or is it something else, like "for historical reasons"... Thanks, |
It's all a bit of a mess now. The helpful yes/no pre-dates the rep system. A 'yes' will assign some rep, but that's a side effect. If you really want to give the other person some rep points for helping you they will get twice as much by using the rep system directly.
I was in favour of the helpful yes/no system when it was first proposed but sadly people misuse it to such an extent that I don't think it works as intended.. I always saw the helpful yes/no as a comment on the content of the message posted and not on the person posting it. I'm not in favour of the per user "helpful" statistics on each members stats page or the rep system itself which make comment on the individual user rather than the individual posting.. Personally, I find it much more satisfying if someone takes the time to post a 'thankyou' and would be happy to see both the rep and helpfulness systems yanked. |
Hi Snark1994,
It is a long read but this thread might give you a good look at both: LQ Reputation System Hope this helps. |
Moved: This thread is more suitable in LQ Suggestions and Feedback and has been moved accordingly to help your thread/question get the exposure it deserves.
Think of the Yes/No as a way to point readers towards the solution - it is meant to show the most helpful post and make things easier for anyone coming afterwards to find a solution quickly; you get rep points for that. |
Maybe an idea would be to get rid of the "Helpful? Yes|No" thing in /General, as it seems to be sometimes used for purposes of "praising" posts that other members thought were "funny" or that agreed with their position on some issue (e.g. bickering about LQ rules, posts in political/religious threads, etc.), rather than genuinely rating posts as "helpful" in a useful context.
My :twocents:. |
A couple comments:
* As noted, the Helpful system is meant to rate the quality of a post (and its content) while reputation is in a member context. * The Helpful system has been disabled in General (and other non-technical fora) since its inception. --jeremy |
Quote:
My apologies, then; I thought I saw those in /General, but I guess I'm confusing sections (the thread I linked to is here in LQ S&F, not /General :p). My point about abusing the "helpful" system should still be relevant, though…I think. :-\ |
Quote:
Quote:
I think this is the bit I dislike most. A 'no' has impact outside of the scope of the individual post. I don't like the idea of helping to brand someone as unhelpful just because I disagree with a specific posting, and as such I don't use the 'no' option except in extreme circumstances. Some others aren't as considerate and will click no at the slightest thing. I've seen threads recently where it has generated bad feeling. I'm used to being branded 4% unhelpful now though, so I mostly ignore it, ;) What would be interesting to see is a "GazL is on n users ignore-list" statistic as that would be interesting feedback for some :D |
Thanks for the comments / links / moving the thread :P
Quote:
|
The reputation system is related to the member, the helpfulness to the post. If you believe a post is helpful, whether it solves the problem or not, you would click the "Yes" (or "No" if you believe the post to be terrible. The best ranked post is then flagged beneath post#1. The reputation system is to flag the member as helpful - as you gain "age" on the board, more and more of your posts will be noticed and you will be seen as a helpful member, then people will increase your reputation.
In both cases, there are no prizes except for a warm fuzzy feeling and boasting rights at your local bar. |
Quote:
|
Quote:
|
Brilliant, thanks once again, XavierP.
|
This thread is a very, very clear case of not-helpful ratings being abused. Galen marked as "not helpful" any reply that didn't support his clearly stated agenda, regardless of how valid it might have been; even the post XavierP made when he closed the thread! In a follow-up thread, Galen gave as his reason: "I don't find personal attacks to be helpful", which means, in context, that he wanted to punish people for pointing out his pattern of behavior. He didn't dispute the accuracy of their information; he wanted to punish them for supplying it.
The follow-up thread also shows that other people have started abusing "not helpful" ratings to retaliate against him. |
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:18 PM. |