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Post Count?
- Thread starter mike_v_s
- Start date
Hard to believe some of the drama here about post counts. In the spirit of transparency, I'll disclose my reasoning for going along with the suggestion to exclude OT and Lobby posts from post counts:
Post counts have no real function other than to show how active a member is. They don't tell you anything about how reliable a member's information is, how good a player they are, what their teaching/building/luthier credentials are, etc. Some vbulletin sites have activated a feature called "Rep Points", which was designed to allow members to give feedback on the information given by other members; the idea was that if somebody made a useful or helpful post, they could get positive feedback on that post, and over time, this would be reflected in their "Rep Points". In actual use, features like this usually become a popularity contest dominated by those who spend the most time hanging out and shooting the breeze online and have nothing to do with the content/value of posts whatsoever (to see how the concept of "Rep Points" can turn into a total wankfest parody of itself, visit a certain forum dedicated to home recording that shall remain technically nameless here).
So what is a newbie to do if they want to check into who is giving them advice? Looking at the post count of any member can at least tell them who has been active in the topical music forums, and to what degree they've been active. This isn't much, but it's at least something. If someone with 10,000 posts on a music forum gives you what seems to be good advice, you might be inclined to take their steady activity on the forum to possibly be a sign that they're at least well-read on the subject. Would you think any differently if you discovered that 9,900 of those posts weren't about music related issues at all, but were instead about things ranging from "Asian chicks rule" to "The return of the son of man laws, part 17", to "who thinks farting on an elevator is funny?"? I know that I'd rather, if i were going to be looking at post counts at all, be looking at a count of music related posts.
I honestly can't think of another reason why a post count should matter at all. If a poster is posting for the fun of it or the community - both perfectly valid reasons - why should it matter what the counter reads? If the poster is posting for the counter, IMO the poster might want to take a look at their motivations. YMMV, as always.
So if you're saying a post count doesn't matter, then why would it matter if the majority of this hypothetical poster's post count has been acquired admiring the asian chicks in the asian chick thread (which aren't allowed anymore anyway). If doesn't mater. You're implying that the posts, or that the thread itself has NO value, when compared to the posts in the threads of the other forums. You're implying, (even though post count doesn't matter) that the +1's posts, or the song uno threads, or the name my band threads have more value that they very post you just made (which I feel has a legitimate point). So if they have no value, or posts don't matter, then why bother creating this unbalance, which just comes across as a jab against those who hang out in OT? By doing this you've created social hierarchy that puts more worth and status in those posts, threads, and posters that populate the other forums. This is the crux of my beef with this policy. So you "say" that post count doesn't matter, but your policy implies that it does, by determining which posts count towards the total, and which posts don't. So which one is it? Do they matter or don't they?
Personally, I agree with you. They don't matter. So then eliminate them, and you don't have to worry about it.
Eric, what is "heatbeat"?
I can't find it in urbandictionary.com.
I don't want to be fooled again like with rusty trombone.
I can't find it in urbandictionary.com.
I don't want to be fooled again like with rusty trombone.
No. I don't care about post counts. They could go away tomorrow and I could care less. I care, because I just can't shake the feeling that this policy is a mean-spirited jab at OT, and all the regulars that post here. It's a gesture that goes against the spirit of the site, IMO.
Exactly. That's where I take issue with the whole thing. There have been deep, meaningful conversations in OT. There have also been conversations that contribute to building, dare I say it, friendships, in OT. To suggest such contributions count for less than the imbecilic +1 posts, etc. is ridiculous.
There are countless posts in the Bass Humor & Gig Stories as well as Band Management that really have no relevance and nothing to add to TB, yet they remain, and these posts are counted.
'Compliments you don't like' 'Hottest Metal Chick' 'Salt & Pepper Only' are all very relevant, yet threads like 'my wife left me' 'Is this worth going to court for' & 'My girlfriend is becoming a vegetarian' are not.
Its easy to understand Maki's issue when one looks at it with a little scrutiny.
'Compliments you don't like' 'Hottest Metal Chick' 'Salt & Pepper Only' are all very relevant, yet threads like 'my wife left me' 'Is this worth going to court for' & 'My girlfriend is becoming a vegetarian' are not.
Its easy to understand Maki's issue when one looks at it with a little scrutiny.
René_Julien;8253755 said:Hey Chris,
How is DB Off Topic dealing with this?
Are they more yielding to this measure? Or is it a riot over there too?
I don't think any of them have noticed or would care if they did.
Actually, there's a new prune juice movement in DB...and when I say movement...
Personally, I would have no problem with this.
Seconded, Thirded... Fifth'd... I'm in.
edit: I now wonder, if post counts were removed entirely, would the general population of OT be to blame, and would frequenters of other subforums cast us in a negative light because of it, or would they even care?
Sorry. This is OT, we can't have it be too serious in here.
Woah, woah, woah...... buddy, OT is part of the interwebs.
Rules are, internet = serious business.
You know the score man.
Mods could deduct all OT posts from everyone's post count. But that would probably start a mad dash to +1 in all the other forums. Humm come to think of it, maybe removing post count from OT is going to clog all the other topics with worthless crap for points! See, OT has a purpose.
Bryan R. Tyler
TalkBass: Usurping My Practice Time Since 2002
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The difference is that while posts that contain nothing more than +1 don't add anything to the musical discussions on this site, there are countless thousands of posts that happen every day and finding all of those would be difficult. Every Off Topic post, by its very nature, is not music related at all.
And boy, I wonder how many man laws Maki has broken in this thread- talk about needing to call the waaahmbulance
