The State of the CBG: An open invitation to your comments

[LordVreeg]

From the standpoint of utility,
where does any scoring get us?

Removing real input and the obvious benefit, I find little utility from a social 'scoring' system save making newcomers feel more like newcomers.  I think thread views should be visible only to the thread owner, personally, though a 'recent activity' indicator might be nice.  

I find the best way to improve honest, useful feedback is to increase the amount of motivated users.  While some people don't care, I don't want any social delneators that may demotivate.

[Elemental_Elf]

I think we're all talking about something different here. This is what I'm thinking about:

[spoiler] [/spoiler]

There would be a thank button at the bottom of every post that you can click. If you click the thank button, then your name would then pop up below the post.

[LordVreeg]

I think we're all talking about something different here. This is what I'm thinking about:

[spoiler] [/spoiler]

There would be a thank button at the bottom of every post that you can click. If you click the thank button, then your name would then pop up below the post.

Thanking people I can get behind.  Liking shit is for...other people than me.

[Steerpike]

Yeah, I can get behind that more.  I was picturing it more like "4 people liked this post" kinda deal - that was what was worrying me.

In response to some earlier comments and to clarify my earlier position, the gist of my point was more or less like this:

1) I don't think making the CBG explicitly competitive is a good idea; settings shouldn't compete against one another.  Positive and negative feedback are still both good, and comments should still certainly be critical.

2) As I'd (mis)understood it before, the "like" feature would have, perhaps unintentionally, quantified a setting's popularity in a way that view count, for example, doesn't (i.e. 10000 people may have viewed a thread and all of them may have hated it...).

3) The point of the like feature would be to encourage members who don't feel they get sufficient feedback at the rate and in the amount they'd like.

4) Ironically, the ranking/hierarchization that could ensue from quantifying setting popularity might actually have the opposite intended effect.

However, the system Elemental Elf showed is different than what I was imagining.  Instead of an impersonal digit being attached to a setting, the "like" feature in this version is actually just a short-hand way of typing out a brief comment, something along the lines of "Like what you have so far, more please."  That I'm OK with, because rather than being a measure of popularity it's simply a time-saver for those who want to comment but don't have a substantive critique or addition and/or who don't have the time to type out a lengthier response.

EDIT: So, basically, what Vreeg said.

[Ghostman]

A "thank button" type of feature could also make the forum feel more welcoming to first time visitors, if it were enabled for them. Although this would mean "guests" showing up on the lists of people approving posts from time to time, it would also enable unregistered users to get involved - and in a way that wouldn't open the gates for spambots.

[TankSpill]

What if the "Thank You" / "Like" button was available, but only the creator of the post could see who-or-how-many people had thanked him/her?  Thus, it keeps the competition out (if s/he doesn't know what other people are-or-are-not getting thanked for, s/he won't need to compete)

[Nomadic]

What if the "Thank You" / "Like" button was available, but only the creator of the post could see who-or-how-many people had thanked him/her?  Thus, it keeps the competition out (if s/he doesn't know what other people are-or-are-not getting thanked for, s/he won't need to compete)

Now there's a thought. Would make it more of a private feedback thing and less of a contest.

[Elemental_Elf]

I still don't see it as a contest any more than the number of views and, especially, the number of replies.

[LordVreeg]

What if the "Thank You" / "Like" button was available, but only the creator of the post could see who-or-how-many people had thanked him/her?  Thus, it keeps the competition out (if s/he doesn't know what other people are-or-are-not getting thanked for, s/he won't need to compete)

Now there's a thought. Would make it more of a private feedback thing and less of a contest.

Yep, this makes some sense

[sparkletwist]

I don't like any of this, at all. If you like something, make a post that you like it. If not, don't bother, or give some constructive criticism. I don't see why we need any fancy mechanic beyond posts, especially one that exists mainly as some sort of popularity contest, even a private one.

[LordVreeg]

I don't like any of this, at all. If you like something, make a post that you like it. If not, don't bother, or give some constructive criticism. I don't see why we need any fancy mechanic beyond posts, especially one that exists mainly as some sort of popularity contest, even a private one.

I don't mind a little, especially if it is only visible to the owner of a thread, or if they can give little thank you replies.  
But I agree that anything that demotivates new member is bad, and that a goal should always be to get more people to post.

[Llum]

I don't like any of this, at all. If you like something, make a post that you like it. If not, don't bother, or give some constructive criticism. I don't see why we need any fancy mechanic beyond posts, especially one that exists mainly as some sort of popularity contest, even a private one.

I'm with sparkletwist on this one.

[Elemental_Elf]

EDIT: Post Removed by user

[LordVreeg]

The argument being levied against the Thank you mechanic is laughable. Do you really think seeing 10 thank yous for a well written post is more of a popularity contest than seeing a thread with 10 replies?

We already have a popularity contest going on right this very second. You can go to the homebrew forum and see with your own eyes which settings are more and less popular.

A thank you button is far more gracious and elegant, and vastly less discouraging, then seeing some one else's setting thread with page upon page of replies and hundreds of views.

I also find it funny that the people who are most against this mechanic are, in fact, the most prolific and popular writers on the forum. You guys don't need a thank you button because you can snap your fingers and get all the replies you want. New setting authors will not have that luxury. Furthermore, new members may not have the confidence to post a reply to a given setting (I know I didn't when I first joined) but they will definitely have the confidence to click a thank you button.

I'm not trying to be divisive but I really don't see the doom and gloom that the anti-thank-you-button-ers are purporting.

EDIT: I suppose this is also a continuation of the "Is it ok to post 'You're doing a great job, keep up the good work' " debate.

You're doing a great job, Keep up the good work.

[Elemental_Elf]

Veterans of the forum do not need a Thank You mechanic because they already know the community IS thankful for their contributions, regardless of whether their thread receives a large number of replies or not. But new people? They do not have that knowledge. When they sit, day after day with just a handful of replies, how do you think they feel? Unwanted? Foolish? Depressed?

A thank you mechanic is nothing more than encouragement for those people. They build people's confidences up and persuade them to continue to write, continue to post, continue to forge on ahead.

Regardless of how I feel, I understand some people do not like the idea of the mechanic because they see it as a deterrent to the style of criticism/support they desire. However, just as there are different ways to learn, there are different ways to provide criticism and support. The Thank You button is nothing more than a tool in our collective arsenal that can be used to obtain and encourage new posters.