Razor
Senior Forumite
Posts: 1,883
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Post by Razor on Jan 21, 2015 20:36:01 GMT
The way the voting is going unless we get more votes, ranking will be removed. I have looked at the internals of this forum and I do not think karma can be used as this site does not offer that option. I don't see any option to add anything in place of the ranking unless it is a title derived from belonging to a group or added by a mod. Everyone! Read what William as wrote, "I do not think karma can be used as this site does not offer that option."
Karma is dead!!!!! Long live the like button!
Now it's time to pull the plug on the ranking system!
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Post by Cottontail Customs on Jan 21, 2015 20:44:08 GMT
I'd wager all or nothing, but I think it's been said that moderators and the like can assign custom titles, so maybe those who feel they want to carry one can ask for one, maybe for a small donation to the forum's server costs? That's not a bad idea Random, I wouldn't mind contributing. -Josh
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Post by RicWilly on Jan 21, 2015 21:25:52 GMT
I'm down, I call dibs on El Conquistador.
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LiamBoyle
Member
Fechtmeister the Clueless of H.A.S.C.
Posts: 478
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Post by LiamBoyle on Jan 21, 2015 21:54:06 GMT
Oooh then I can make "Fechtmeister the Clueless" official? Mine, mine, mine....
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Post by Germanic on Jan 22, 2015 0:16:54 GMT
So it's looking pretty fair here, at 65%
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Post by Voltan on Jan 22, 2015 0:37:54 GMT
To Bill's OP, I voted no. I don't think it's that big a deal, or necessary. Most of us know who's who.
Regarding reviews, I've never done one in the hopes of getting rewarded. I've learned a lot from the good folks here, so the few reviews I've done were with the intention of contributing & giving back to the community, and because I enjoyed writing them.
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Sean (Shadowhowler)
VIP Reviewer
Retired Moderator
No matter where you go, there you are.
Posts: 8,828
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Post by Sean (Shadowhowler) on Jan 22, 2015 0:39:06 GMT
I'm down, I call dibs on El Conquistador. Awesome.
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Sean (Shadowhowler)
VIP Reviewer
Retired Moderator
No matter where you go, there you are.
Posts: 8,828
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Post by Sean (Shadowhowler) on Jan 22, 2015 0:39:56 GMT
Yikes, going a bit overboard there, aren't ya Rob? Okay, we get it, you want to be recognized, nay, LAUDED for your grand and wonderful contributions to all internet sword owner kind. Otherwise, well, you just won't play with us. ...okay. I'm up for that. Our original review team, way back when, never asked for any recognition or compensation. Pretty much every other reviewer since then has been in the same line of thought: reviews are fun, and they provide useful information to prospective buyers. They give us the opportunity to talk to an actual person who holds in their hands a model of sword we are interested in, and gives us the opportunity to ask questions we might not be able to ask vendors and manufacturers. Mostly, reviews really are done sheerly for the love of it, altruism aside, it's just fun. I'm starting to get the feeling you won't be satisfied until you're taking royalties off the sale of every sword you should be so gracious as to review. That's just not in the spirit of this forum, or any community at all. If you need an incentive to contribute, that's your deal. The rest of us are fine with "volunteer labor" and ask nothing. If not being rewarded makes you want to not contribute, well, don't. It's really okay, somebody else will, and they'll do it for the sake of having done something. My opinion of you is as neutral as can be, but your constant parroting of demands for compensation in return for what has always been a voluntary process is getting really, really annoying. :-X We're here because we like sharing. Not because we want to be rewarded. At least, most of us. 8-| You know its a strange day when I agree with randomnobody this hard...
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Mikeeman
Member
Small Business Operator
Posts: 2,904
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Post by Mikeeman on Jan 22, 2015 0:44:09 GMT
I was thinking that, too, but I didn't want to be "that guy." However, Random is the Monarch around here, so I guess he can do what he wants, right?
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Post by RicWilly on Jan 22, 2015 1:00:25 GMT
Random is the Monarch around here, so I guess he can do what he wants, right? Random has done what he wants since the day we met. I wouldn't have any other way.
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Post by randomnobody on Jan 22, 2015 1:07:19 GMT
I think I might be embarrassed. Nah.
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Post by aussie-rabbit on Jan 22, 2015 6:48:42 GMT
Should we not address the moderators as, My Lord (or My Lady if the shoe fits)? M'lord and m'lady is the correct way to say it I believe! Thank you Blackthorn, here are the coppers I promised you
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Post by bigpete on Jan 22, 2015 9:45:42 GMT
Meh I reckon just keep it :-)
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Post by atrixnet on Jan 22, 2015 11:29:17 GMT
I really didn't like the karma system, but I still prefer it over what we have. The following comment may seem abrasive, so please read it with an open mind.
"When comparing sword reviews to the average post, a system that gives sword reviews equal "point" recognition to a post that says "LOL" is equivalent to giving a purple heart award to someone who faithfully cleaned his military uniform each day."
That's an extreme metaphor only used to drive home the point that achievements should be recognized. I have 4 kids (which is all I think I could possibly ever handle). My kids thrive on positive feedback, and the result is that they are actually filled with the desire to do even better when rightly praised. Not recognizing achievement or failing to give praise where praise is due is a critical flaw that derails any sort of self confidence in a child.
It's not breaking news that we were all once children, and many of the same things can be applied to ourselves. We don't need quite nearly the encouragement we probably once did in order for us to do good. The good hearted people of SBG donate a lot of spare time and effort to build the community without ever really being patted on the back...
And so I opine that while a ranking system is flawed, we lack a formal way to recognize people who have made fantastic contributions and who deserve the recognition of their peers. For some, this means that assigning an equivalent value to a "LOL" post and a sword review that was weeks in the making, is ill-conceived. For me, this means that we simply lack the ability to digitally thank those who make key contributions.
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Post by randomnobody on Jan 22, 2015 12:08:08 GMT
While I get what you're saying and agree to an extent, that's kind of where the other members come in. No review has ever gone un-thanked or otherwise unacknowledged by at least a dozen other members. Likewise any other genuinely informative posts. Recognition from one's peers is adequately represented already when members take time to comment on reviews, generally thanking the reviewer for their efforts and more often than not complimenting the review itself. When you really know you've made it is when some new guy comes in asking about a particular sword and the first reply contains a link to your review of the same. Stickers and candy never motivated me as a kid (and it irritates me to no end when people think I should still be motivated by the same), but when the other kids asked me how to solve a math problem or something, I was thrilled that I knew how. That's why I put in effort as a kid, and it's why I put in effort now. I work a lousy retail job, but there is nobody in that store who's asked me where to find something that has left thinking I didn't know where it was. People who've been there twice as long as me have to ask me whether we sell a given product and where we keep it, and I'll know. Same idea here. We have members who have more hands-on with more swords than the rest of us, and they share their knowledge and thoughts with us because they have them and sharing is its own reward. Oh and there's a "like" button now, I hear, so if you're into that it kind of works. Can't see anywhere that lists the number of "likes" any given member has, though. I imagine forthcoming reviews to be showered with "likes" to the point of oblivion. That should be more than enough "recognition" and "acknowledgement" for anybody who voluntarily took the time to write a review. Or do we want to break down the age old "but not all reviews are equal" next? A single sentence and one photo to each template category gets the same credit as a dozen photos and an essay per the same template? Absurd! Oh, wait, no... No, it isn't. It's just a post on an internet forum either way.
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Post by DigsFossils-n-Knives on Jan 22, 2015 12:29:17 GMT
We've all seen the sword reviews, folks showing their sword collection, folks answering questions posted to the forum, etc. and the subsequent responses that follow. Receiving recognition as "good job", "excellent review", or a simple "thanks" is sufficient. Especially when it comes from a moderator, a forumite that's been on this forum for ages, or from someone who truly thinks that the info was useful to them. People don't do reviews for a handful of karma points. Karma points is just the icing on the cake and not all that important.
You're either going to be a contributor or lurker. And if you're a contributor you're here to spark conversation, to obtain info, to share info, and you do this because "you want to". If you're a lurker you're not going to value a review based on the total number of posts or karma points the reviewer has. You'll read the review and the following comments, and then you'll search for other reviews to get a general consensus.
I'm not saying that karma points is a bad thing, I just think that a few people put too much value in them.
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Post by DigsFossils-n-Knives on Jan 22, 2015 12:31:22 GMT
While I get what you're saying and agree to an extent, that's kind of where the other members come in. No review has ever gone un-thanked or otherwise unacknowledged by at least a dozen other members. Likewise any other genuinely informative posts. Recognition from one's peers is adequately represented already when members take time to comment on reviews, generally thanking the reviewer for their efforts and more often than not complimenting the review itself. When you really know you've made it is when some new guy comes in asking about a particular sword and the first reply contains a link to your review of the same. ... LOL, you beat me to it. I take too long to type my thoughts
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Post by Bryan Heff on Jan 22, 2015 12:50:20 GMT
There is no way to quantify how "good" a review is or how helpful a post that answers a question is. The Karma system I thought was nice in that it gave the power to individuals to hook somebody up with a tick mark of recognition, but that is gone now as this site does not support karma. The next best thing IMO is the LIKE feature, which is similar except it does not keep a tally or score, which honestly I don't think we need anyway. Its the thought that counts right?
Spend enough time here and its obvious without a points system who the contributors are etc. I believe in almost all cases, most people were posting reviews or being helpful not to accumulate karma points or tally a score but because they liked to do it, they enjoyed writing a review or discussing the merits of a sword, I mean...that is what we do here, yap about swords :)
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Post by RicWilly on Jan 22, 2015 13:05:16 GMT
When I got here I was like, What? Anyone can do a review? You don't have to get tapped for it or get it approved or kiss a ring or something? Cool!!!!!!
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Post by Curtis_Louis on Jan 22, 2015 14:38:02 GMT
When I got here I was like, What? Anyone can do a review? You don't have to get tapped for it or get it approved or kiss a ring or something? Cool!!!!!! WAIT!!! You didn't have to kiss a ring??? I'm feeling a little violated right now. Sean, you told me everyone kissed the ring before a review.
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