Now that I have successfully spammed, derailed, and disrupted the thread about the new mods (http://www.isketchforum.net/new-mods-t1753.html?t=1753)(good start, Vik) I'm attempting to contain the damage by continuing the discussion here :)

The idea, proposed in #15 of that thread is to have some kind of appreciation button for members to use to show that a post by another member was outstanding. This could help in the selection process of new mods the future.

IMO I just think its a nice way to give people a smile when they have done a good post or said something clever. It does not have to have anything to do with rating just "its nice to be nice"

Yes, that's true. The reason I suggested it as a rating system is because a lot of members would like more input into the way mods are selected. If the members can rate people, then they are selecting the candidates for modship, and can then vote on them.

I'd like to see a thanks button. Not just for the mods process but to be able to see if a post has been appreciated. I know we all feel like our posts have been totally missed from time-to-time and I would also like to be able to show my appreciation.

On the other forums I experienced it on, it has worked very well. People have shown support in other posts when they don't have anything else to say or add to the thread. It says at the bottom on the post 'blah has been thanked 5 times for this post'

I don't feel a rating button would work as well because that's rating someone's post but I'm aware that The Vikster's talking about future mod selection and I feel that the thanks buttons could work just as well :smile:

With regards to future mods, can we do an aplication system and then a voting system like the general election without the lobbying cos let's face it, it's not cricket :razz:

Fair point, Facey. A thank-you button is more appropriate. I don't mean it would lead to the person having the most automatically being made the next mod, but it could be taken into consideration.

Fair point, Facey. A thank-you button is more appropriate. I don't mean it would lead to the person having the most automatically being made the next mod, but it could be taken into consideration.
I love your suggestion...I'm just scared of having really pants ratings :razz:

I do remember suggesting the thanks button before but can't find it now.

Anyway, either way, I think they're both great ideas.

I love your suggestion...I'm just scared of having really pants ratings :razz:

I do remember suggesting the thanks button before but can't find it now.

Anyway, either way, I think they're both great ideas.
Maybe it will inspire us all to write evn more clever and nice posts?

Oh, I would never suggest a ratings button where people can rate someone negetively. There is just no point to that other than to cause upset. Sorry if this is what people thought! As you said, Facey the thank-you button is enough.

One reason I have suggested this is because I, and quite possibly other members feel that at times members are not included in decisions they are capable of making, and maybe feel untrusted. I understand that my appointment as mod is a good example, but I hope to be able to change that a bit, and to include the people who are interested in being included in more stuff around here.

I also think there are plenty of members who feel they are generally overlooked and unappreciated. This button is a way of showing them this isn't the case!

Maybe it will inspire us all to write evn more clever and nice posts?
I'm not aware that anyone here deliberately writes not-nice posts or even un-clever ones either. Posts can easily be taken the wrong way if only one side of them is seen. There are alot of posts here that spill-out from something else so you miss vital bits inbetween and at the end.

Is anyone against the propsed rating?

Yes! Very much against it!

Especially here!

If you make something like this, please, make it only visible to the poster. So, if I'd like to thank Facey for her brilliant contribution, she will see that I gave her a 'thank you', but no one else will. And no point system should be maintained.

Otherwise it'll only lead to whining and ♥♥♥♥♥ing about how things are seen wrongly and it'll create some kind of competition. "You like my posts, I like yours" or "Oh, best not argue against that, 10 people have said a thank you to it!" -- which could lead to 'groupthink' (everybody agrees for the sake of keeping peace).

We've had enough nasty fighting in this place and I feel that this one has a risk factor.

It's not meant to be a competition and I believe that people here won't use it as a competition. It's a Thank You button. Simple as that. Think of it as your good dead for the day.

DO you see anyone moaning when someone opens a door for a lady trying to cart a double buggy and two toddlers into the doctors surgery and she says thank you to that person?

It's the same thing really.

No I was intimating that any one does it deliberately!! Just inspire us to be EVEN nicer.
Sorry hun xxxx I read it the wrong way :smile:

I'm not aware that anyone here deliberately writes not-nice posts or even un-clever ones either. Posts can easily be taken the wrong way if only one side of them is seen. There are alot of posts here that spill-out from something else so you miss vital bits inbetween and at the end.

Is anyone against the propsed rating?
No I was not intimating that any one does it deliberately!! Just inspire us to be EVEN nicer.

I've seen a kudos type system on another forum, where you can either applaude or smite a member (giving or taking a kudos point.) This is done anonymously and, on the whole, is just a bit of fun ... especially when you know the owner and he bumps up your score to 6000+ for a giggle.

If the forum software Pete uses supports this type of feature I'd say go for it :smile:

I agree Nay in the fact that if it does happen....then the ratings should only visible to either the poster or the reciever. (prob the reciever)
I just don't want to see someone getting a rating...then everyone else following suite just because everyone else has rated on that person.
Sure most of us are smart enough not to do that...but i feel that this would happen amongst many of us.

Is it possible we could have a vote on this? Like can we have a thanks button. I personally dont care about "ratings" but as I keep saying "it's nice to be nice"

That's assuming that there's a rating not a thank you button though.

It's not meant to be a competition and I believe that people here won't use it as a competition. It's a Thank You button. Simple as that. Think of it as your good dead for the day.

DO you see anyone moaning when someone opens a door for a lady trying to cart a double buggy and two toddlers into the doctors surgery and she says thank you to that person?

It's the same thing really.


In its principle this is a decent idea; a thank you without a PM -- it's a good option to have.
I've seen too many nice plans in theory being implemented blindly though, without really thinking what it could do in practice.

That's why it's probably best to keep it anonymous (also refer to Tigs' comment); I think it's the best of both worlds.
If you want the rest of the forum to know you like a post, reply to it and say "Nice post, I agree with you for these-and-those reasons" or "Nice post, but I disagree with you on these points".

Though personally I won't make use of it -- I prefer a PM, which is so much more personal. See it as the facial expression that accompanies the "thank you" you receive for opening the door for that person. If they mutter 'Thanks' with a straight face, you won't feel much better. But if their face is beaming it'll brighten your day too. A bit, at least.

You can't always say 'nice post' though. There are threads in here that we like to keep tidy by only posting things like jokes etc.

We're all adult enough to not sit an groups and abuse it. I don't think this should really be taken in such a negative way.

I said I've seen this be used in another forum, it's a huge forum and I've never once seen it be abused.

I second MrsB's notition that it be put to vote in the end.

Im sorry but IMO why are some of us too scared to say thank you for a nice post or clever new thread. For my part i started a new thread this morning and a couple of people started ther post with "nice thread" it made me smile cos other people liked my idea! If people had hated it then I would have had a warning no? Surely too much is being made of this? Why cant we just have a way to say thanks or good post??

Yeah, let's vote on it.
We could always try it for a while, and if it turns out that it's not working or is causing rivalries or competition or whatever, then surely it could just be stopped?

I think 99.9% (if not 100%) of people here are mature enough not to let it cause petty arguments.


Edit:
If people had hated it then I would have had a warning no?
You mean you think people would have clicked warn if they hadn't liked your post?
No. Not unless they actually had something against it.

Plus for some people who aren't so good with words it may be easier to just click something that lets the other person know you thought their posts are good. Having an additional button doesn't stop anyone PMing to say they liked the post, far from it. Also if someone does looaaaaaads of good posts, & you want to give kudos for all of them, it gets a bit tricky PMing them every time you read one of their posts.

I think 99.9% (if not 100%) of people here are mature enough not to let it cause petty arguments.

Thank-you Tasha! Let's have some faith in people, eh?

Nay, I understand your concern, but I have envisioned this very differently to you. Let me explain my idea better. As we have the warning button here, so we can have a 'good one!' button. Pressing this button would not show up to anyone, apart from the moderating team. That way no-one gets upset when their post is not thanked, and no-one feels pressured to join in the mass 'well done' when a post is thanked a lot, if anyone would feel like that in the first place. It's just a quiet little way of people showing their appreciation rather than making a big fuss. People can still say 'nice post' as they wish, if they want to make it more public.

I have to say I don't know if this is even possible on the forum, it's just an idea, thanks for the feedback.

I see, Vik. That's an idea I support (as I already stated)

I see, Vik. That's an idea I support (as I already stated)
I'm glad you changed that.

I'd still like to show support for it being public though for all of the reasons stated above, not just by me either.

I can understand why the people who oppose it being made public are against it but we're all adults here and there are a large percentage of us who refuse to turn anything into petty little things. Saying that we will use such a system to do so is very insulting to us and I know Im not the only one who thinks so either.

I also think that it's being looked into too much here and it needs to be lightened up a bit. It's a positive thing for crying out loud!

Pressing this button would not show up to anyone, apart from the moderating team.

Not even the person that posted it?

A lot of the discussion on here most recently has looked as though it assumes the person will be able to see it. It's basically just another way of saying 'nice post,' right? But if they can't see that, they don't know if anyone appreciated their post in the first place.

/me votes for a popularity contest button as well

I agree with Facey, why are some of us being so negative about such a positive option? Its ok to be against something if you have reason to believe it could make things go wrong but its a good thing we are trying to see if we can implement not a bad thing.

Hmm, tricky one. Maybe a compromise? If 10 or 20 people (i dont know about the numbers) report it as a good post, a little star appears next to it?

lol - I'm on about stars and I still don't know if the basic idea is applicable!

EDIT: The words popularity contest have already come up and it's not in place yet, I do think having a number of times someone has appreciated the post tally is a little unpopular.

The again, it's stupid not to trust people here, assuming before it begins that it will be abused.

Maybe have a PM to the poster saying 'someone liked your post!'

* Bad_MaNneR$ votes for a popularity contest button as well
/me glares at BM
Don't make it something it isn't :P

With regards to whether it can happen. Where I've seen the Thanks Button before, uses V Bulliten too.

It would only turn into a popularity contest if it turns out to be a rating button which I feel that the stars thing would turn into.

I fail to see how there's such a problem with saying Thank You infront of everyone, I really do. I find myself wanting to use it alot and do feel that it restricts me when I can't. Thanking someone is a good dead, a positive thing. Let's not bring it down and talk about it having to be in secret or anything. TBH, I think it's being made into something that it isn't.

* Bad_MaNneR$;88801 votes for a popularity contest button as well
/me knows BM would not win :twisted:

* Facey;88806 glares at BM
Don't make it something it isn't :P

With regards to whether it can happen. Where I've seen the Thanks Button before, uses V Bulliten too.

It would only turn into a popularity contest if it turns out to be a rating button which I feel that the stars thing would turn into.

I fail to see how there's such a problem with saying Thank You infront of everyone, I really do. I find myself wanting to use it alot and do feel that it restricts me when I can't. Thanking someone is a good dead, a positive thing. Let's not bring it down and talk about it having to be in secret or anything. TBH, I think it's being made into something that it isn't.

Oh there's nothing wrong with having a "Goodonya" button. Don't get me wrong. I just wanted a popularity contest button as well.

* rabbitrun;88809 knows BM would not win :twisted:

PFFT!!!

Greedy :P A thanks button is enough!!

I'm glad you changed that.
(..)
I also think that it's being looked into too much here and it needs to be lightened up a bit. It's a positive thing for crying out loud!

Facey, if you'd read what I said properly (sorry for that), you would have noticed that I was only against the scoring system and visibility of the option for everyone. I think saying thank you is a positive thing (duh!), and there's nothing wrong with the idea itself.

I can understand why the people who oppose it being made public are against it but we're all adults here and there are a large percentage of us who refuse to turn anything into petty little things. Saying that we will use such a system to do so is very insulting to us and I know Im not the only one who thinks so either.
See, that's exactly why I think it should be private. If you already take offence there, I'd say it is very much 'turning anything into petty little things'. From my point of view, this place seems to thrive off petty little arguments and reading into things...


The again, it's stupid not to trust people here, assuming before it begins that it will be abused.

That's not it; it's not a lack of trust and it's not that I think it's a bad idea. Before you launch something, you have to look at how it could potentially be misused. Be it not by current users, it could be seen differently by future users. It's not an accusation (although I made one in the paragraph above, I'm aware of that), but simply something that you could take in mind.

Nay, no-one is launching anything, it's still just an idea, and we're glad to get feedback, positive and negative so we can do the thing properly if and when we ever do launch it.

I don't think anyone is taking offence already, just debating the possibilities. Facey is completely correct, a lot of people will find it insulting not to be trusted. We're still just talking about it :)

Nay, you state your arguments in strong and persuasive terms - stronger than most people who use this forum - this isn't a retribution, just an observation. If others chose to reply in the same ilk, it's only to be expected. I think most people would say this forum is peaceful (minus the last few days perhaps) and I think for a lot of people on here, a person who is not shy about the way they put things can be seen as aggressive/argumentative. Perhaps that's why you have found some many petty arguments! I don't think you're a stirrer or a trouble maker at all, and I don't think you are an aggressive person, but maybe what I have said is something to bear in mind.

you would have noticed that I was only against the scoring system and visibility of the option for everyone.
Yes, I did read your posts and yes, I do realise what you're saying with regards to it being private after all, we're all allowed to vent our opinions :smile:
See, that's exactly why I think it should be private. If you already take offence there, I'd say it is very much 'turning anything into petty little things'. From my point of view, this place seems to thrive off petty little arguments and reading into things...
I'm still not convinced that it would turn into anything petty. It's just a way of saying that you are appreciated and we need alot of that on this forum sometimes. With regards to it being kept private, yes, I understand where you're coming from but I don't think I will turn into anything petty here. AFterall, we say thank you lots on here, we even have a thread for it, and it doesnt get petty. It's a fact of life, some of us are thanked at one time, and some of us are thanked at another time. As I said before, I've seen this system in place elsewhere and it hasn't been abused. It's just a way of showing appreciation :smile:
it's not a lack of trust
Actually, it is. You've been known to go against the 99.9% figure Tash gave and say that you doubt it very much so. As a few of us have already said, we are all adults here and are capable of being able to accept that some things are thanked, some are not. I get it in my day-to-day life. There are things that I should get recognition for and I will do one day and my time will come. But we're not talking about big stuff here, just being able to thank someone for a nice post they've made or to show your agreement. It's very easy on this forum to feel like you're alone and it makes you fight harder but when you actually talk to people offline, you realise that you're not alone and it lightens the load. Trust me, I've been there.

I've still yet to hear anything that persuades me that this should be kept private.

Just to make it clear, Facey: I don't think this discussion as a whole is a 'petty little argument', it was your taking offence to a hypothetical situation that could arise would the system be introduced (with visible scores; I don't mean a simple 'thank you' button -- that is not what I replied to, initially), which you saw as an attack on your adulthood...

That you take offence when I say that I find that hypothetical situation likely to arise, I can imagine. But I'm not going to hide my thoughts to create pretentious peace and agreement. Just know that if I couldn't stand you lot, I would've been out of here long ago! It's just one part I don't like about this forum: argument is avoided until it's no longer possible, and then it all explodes.

That's why I stated the opinions I stated here: Privately, things are probably sought behind certain possible uses of the 'Thank You' button, which are kept secret (or discussed via PM), but implicitly start playing a role. It may feel a bit like nannying to keep it private, I can see that. But with the current forum culture, it seems to fit better if you keep it private.

I don't mean to make trouble, but I feel that being confrontational and direct works better on the long term than covering things up and doing things behind others' backs.

Nay, I can see what you mean about not wanting to say things and do things behind people's backs - that solves nothing normally, and yes, creates false peace sometimes. There are, however, ways and ways of saying things :P But let's not go too far off-topic.

For me, one reason for keeping the button private, or half private (like my idea of a star showing up after it's recieved 10 or so presses) is that because we are a small community - despite the 2,000 member mark, the amount of actual active posters is very few. It's easy to see and to deduct, should someone want to do that, who has thanked your post and who has not. I think it could lead to a situation where someone feels pressured (purely by themselves, not be the poster) to thank just because they are feeling odd one out.

Besides that, I think it's kinda neat to have it anonymous - a bit more mysterious and exciting, lol - but maybe that's just me :P

......From my point of view, this place seems to thrive off petty little arguments and reading into things...



I have to agree with Nay here and provide the following example - As we are all aware, yesterday we had two wonderful new green goddesses without any official prior notice (but apparently there were rumours). When I expressed my shock at this decision - I had quite a few PM's and MSN messages. I would like to state for the record (though I am pretty annoyed that I have to justify myself) - Yes, I was surprised but no - I am not upset that I wasn't asked and it really is no skin off my nose as anyone who knows me better, knows that I am not shallow and also I haven't been well.

I do notice that when there are these 'petty little arguments' the viewings go up ten-fold for that particular thread. But - that is life, people thrive off other people's upset or whatever and if someone chooses to rubberneck - then that is up to them. But please - don't make assumptions.

The idea of a Thank You/Appreciation ranking system is good in principle and I see where everyone is coming from be it positive or negative. Ultimately, the decision rests with Peter - so it will be interesting to see how things pan out.

I do notice that when there are these 'petty little arguments' the viewings go up ten-fold for that particular thread. But - that is life, people thrive off other people's upset or whatever and if someone chooses to rubberneck - then that is up to them. But please - don't make assumptions.
Unfortunately, that's very true.

I think what you said at the end, that "The idea of a Thank You/Appreciation ranking system is good in principle and I see where everyone is coming from be it positive or negative" is well put.

Ultimately, the decision rests with Peter - so it will be interesting to see how things pan out.
LOL, sorry, I couldn't resist, it jumped out at me :razz:

This is a good point though. Either Peter will make a decision on this himself, or it'll be put to a vote.
Through a vote, we'd be able to see what the majority of people here think should happen, based on the discussion in this thread.
And if Peter uses his judgement to make the choice, then good - he's able to read the information here for himself and make a decision based on that.

LMAO.. I never noticed that Tasha!!! You are one clever lady :razz:

/me wonders if the reason she wrote that is because she secretly harbours to be a child again and run away to Neverland....

/me calls her Psychologist for another appointment.... :razz:

LMAO.. I never noticed that Tasha!!! You are one clever lady :razz:


Or maybe I just have the mental age of a 6 year old? :razz:

(She says, as she goes back to writing an analysis of a Charles Dickens novel. Oh great, I have age-o-phrenia.)

I think we should have a Thank You button, and that it should be anonymous and private.

I see it as a way of your showing your appreciation for a post, and I don't think it really matters who is thanking the person. Should you want your appreciation for something to be known, you can always pm the poster and say, "I gave you a Thank You for that post!". This way (i.e. anonymity), it seems to me, people who don't really want the poster to know who they are (you don't need to justify anonymity for a good deed, I think) won't be known, so it allows them to say Thank You as well.

I think it should be private because what is the point really in showing that 12 people like a post? I don't think it's necessary for everyone to know that so-and-so many people liked something. It would only encourage groupthink (not willing to disagree because of popular opinion), and would seem like a rating system, somewhat.

I also feel - and I tread carefully here - that if it were not anonymous, there could arise a situation where people give 'return' Thanks, and people judge others based on a number showing how many people appreciate something.

I realize I am repeating some things that people have already said, but I just wanted to phrase it in my own words.

P.S - why do we not have a poll yet for this?

Haha, we'll end up with 20 voters for 5 options this way. No way to get an overview. Or anything statistically significant

Though really, it does have better options.

Haha, we'll end up with 20 voters for 5 options this way. No way to get an overview. Or anything statistically significant

Though really, it does have better options.

I just went with the options that a few members and a mod had thrown my way.

Nay, not too many people have made their opinions on this known, and from those who have a large part were undecided and still dicussing it. The poll will show us for sure how popular each option is. If it all comes out exactly equal, we will knowa lot more discussion will have to go ahead. Nerdy worked on this, don't dismiss it without giving it a chance!

Plus, we are not looking to get a statistics degee out of this, just asking some members to show us what they think - don't forget a lot of people will have an opinion who haven't necessarily posted about it.


EDIT: oops, that poll went a bit pear shaped. Here's (http://www.isketchforum.net/thank-you-button-t1774.html?p=89278) a link to the brand new one.

lol.. pear shaped. More like nerd shaped.. :razz: (sorry about that, guys, we realised we didn't have the right options in there)

I'm sorry if this has been cleared up and i'm just coming in late, but i didn't pay much attention earlier.

Is this button technically feasible? Wouldn't want the members all rallied up just to later say hey sorry, turns out the VB board doesn't have a function or an add-on for it...

Yeah, that's what I keep saying! I have no idea if it's possible, it's still just an idea.

Great idea vik.

I think but could be wrong, but other vbulletin forums I have been on have a star system, not sure how it works exactly but I think members press a button then if they get so many presses that post gets a star , the star is then stored by the members name, like we have for the acade winners etc (look up see my tournament ones right hand side)
Then the more posts that are voted the more stars the member gets, bit like McDonals staff, they have a badge with stars on ranking from zero up to 5, I think you get 5 stars if you last out the whole day. ( joking no offence to McDonalds)

From hearing different things, I think VBull. has many options with this. Question is, what does the version we have support?