31 replies to this topic

[Blue Marble Travel]

Hi. I am relatively new to the forum... but an early comment is this:

I would love it if there were a way to "thank" or "like" a post. If someone says or does something thoughtful or useful, it would be nice to "approve" it, with or without signature, as a way of supporting the effort. Example: the member who posted the photos of the WI Talgo sets today. I don't have anything to contribute there, but I am grateful for his work.

Thanks for your consideration...

[MattW]

I'd use such a mechanism to "thank" the first post in this thread already!
I'm on two forums that use something like this to great effect. One is actually a "thanks" where the people that have thanked a post are listed at the bottom of that post, and the other is a rating system where you can "plus one" a post, but it's anonymous. On the latter forum, we used to have a "minus one" as well, but that just devolved into a huge flame war when a few members got a few bad ratings.

[Devil's Advocate]

Can't have a yin button without the yang button.

[Blue Marble Travel]

Thanks for the "thanks"

I agree, the positive without the negative would be nice. I'm not looking to hurt anyone's feelings (and you can always filter out an individual poster if you find him consistently irritating). Rather to thank people for the often thoughtful, careful, and informative responses I have seen given, to my questions and to others.

I'd use such a mechanism to "thank" the first post in this thread already!
I'm on two forums that use something like this to great effect. One is actually a "thanks" where the people that have thanked a post are listed at the bottom of that post, and the other is a rating system where you can "plus one" a post, but it's anonymous. On the latter forum, we used to have a "minus one" as well, but that just devolved into a huge flame war when a few members got a few bad ratings.

[the_traveler]

I just post a "thanks" in the thread. You also can (if you want) disagree with the poster. So what if your name is associated with the thanks?

[Blue Marble Travel]

That works... sort of. It clutters the thread, makes it harder for others to read through, and there is a bit of a "look at me, even though I have nothing to say" aspect to it... with the result that I, personally, keep quiet, unless I want to expand upon the point. But, yes, it is certainly a way around the problem if you really want someone to know you saw and admired their work.

As for disagreements, yes, of course, those should be founded and supported. Which is why a "don't like" button doesn't work so well. It just hurts the feelings of the original contributor, without being in any way constructive.

I just post a "thanks" in the thread. You also can (if you want) disagree with the poster. So what if your name is associated with the thanks?

[Devil's Advocate]

As for disagreements, yes, of course, those should be founded and supported. Which is why a "don't like" button doesn't work so well. It just hurts the feelings of the original contributor, without being in any way constructive.

On the plus side a dislike button gives the "silent majority" a chance to make their honest feelings known without having to join or initiate a fight themselves. If someone takes the vague disapproval of an anonymous thumbs-down rating so hard that they are too hurt to continue, well, that's their problem. In the context of the internet as a whole AU is generally pretty mild when it comes to heated discussions and controversies. I don't think adding a like/dislike option would substantially change that.

Edited by Texas Sunset, 07 February 2012 - 05:46 PM.

[Ryan]

As for disagreements, yes, of course, those should be founded and supported. Which is why a "don't like" button doesn't work so well. It just hurts the feelings of the original contributor, without being in any way constructive.

On the plus side a dislike button gives the "silent majority" a chance to make their honest feelings known without having to join or initiate a fight themselves. If someone takes the vague disapproval of an anonymous thumbs-down rating so hard that they are too hurt to continue, well, that's their problem. In the context of the internet as a whole AU is generally pretty mild when it comes to heated discussions and controversies. I don't think adding a like/dislike option would substantially change that.

You're wrong, and you're a stupid poophead for thinking that.


(ok, just kidding, I actually agree with you)

[MattW]

As for disagreements, yes, of course, those should be founded and supported. Which is why a "don't like" button doesn't work so well. It just hurts the feelings of the original contributor, without being in any way constructive.

On the plus side a dislike button gives the "silent majority" a chance to make their honest feelings known without having to join or initiate a fight themselves. If someone takes the vague disapproval of an anonymous thumbs-down rating so hard that they are too hurt to continue, well, that's their problem. In the context of the internet as a whole AU is generally pretty mild when it comes to heated discussions and controversies. I don't think adding a like/dislike option would substantially change that.

The problem on the forum I was on where it went sour wasn't that as a whole they are immature or prone to arguments, it was actually just one person, but it was enough to divide the rest. I agree that a -4 or -8 on a post shouldn't be enough to drive people over the edge, but all it takes is one
I think Blue Marble Travel hit the nail on the head. People who dislike something tend to actually have a reason and won't just post a one word: "hate" if they don't like it whereas sometimes "Thanks" is all that's really needed, but people don't want to just post one word, but can't think of anything else to go along with it.

[Hotblack Desiato]

As for disagreements, yes, of course, those should be founded and supported. Which is why a "don't like" button doesn't work so well. It just hurts the feelings of the original contributor, without being in any way constructive.

On the plus side a dislike button gives the "silent majority" a chance to make their honest feelings known without having to join or initiate a fight themselves. If someone takes the vague disapproval of an anonymous thumbs-down rating so hard that they are too hurt to continue, well, that's their problem. In the context of the internet as a whole AU is generally pretty mild when it comes to heated discussions and controversies. I don't think adding a like/dislike option would substantially change that.

You're wrong, and you're a stupid poophead for thinking that.


(ok, just kidding, I actually agree with you)

Thanks.

(Look at me, even though I have nothing to say).

[Ryan]

Thanks! Disaster Area is the greatest band ever.

(cookie to anyone other than Mr. Desiato that spots the reference without using Google)

[Blue Marble Travel]

See? Perfect use for "Like."

As for disagreements, yes, of course, those should be founded and supported. Which is why a "don't like" button doesn't work so well. It just hurts the feelings of the original contributor, without being in any way constructive.

On the plus side a dislike button gives the "silent majority" a chance to make their honest feelings known without having to join or initiate a fight themselves. If someone takes the vague disapproval of an anonymous thumbs-down rating so hard that they are too hurt to continue, well, that's their problem. In the context of the internet as a whole AU is generally pretty mild when it comes to heated discussions and controversies. I don't think adding a like/dislike option would substantially change that.

You're wrong, and you're a stupid poophead for thinking that.


(ok, just kidding, I actually agree with you)

[The Davy Crockett]

Thanks! Disaster Area is the greatest band ever.

(cookie to anyone other than Mr. Desiato that spots the reference without using Google)

No cookie for me.

[EMTDON]

Dislike buttons and minus buttons can cause wars with people who get mad because you disagree with them.....I have had that happen to me already....

[the_traveler]

This is my personal opinion only - I'm not saying yes or no.

What if someone writes a post that you agree with, except for one line. Should you hit the "like" (because you agree with 98% of the post) or the "dislike" (because you do not agree with 2% of the post) button? If you hit "like", you say that you like and agree with the whole post. If you hit "dislike, you are saying the whole post is wrong!

[Devil's Advocate]

Dave, why on earth do you try to make everything so complicated?

Have you never seen a "like" function in action before?

In all my years of forum use I've never once seen a reputation system that's as confusing as you're trying to make this out to be.

[Blue Marble Travel]

That would be a good use of an actual reply...

This is my personal opinion only - I'm not saying yes or no.

What if someone writes a post that you agree with, except for one line. Should you hit the "like" (because you agree with 98% of the post) or the "dislike" (because you do not agree with 2% of the post) button? If you hit "like", you say that you like and agree with the whole post. If you hit "dislike, you are saying the whole post is wrong!

[The Davy Crockett]

This is my personal opinion only - I'm not saying yes or no.

What if someone writes a post that you agree with, except for one line. Should you hit the "like" (because you agree with 98% of the post) or the "dislike" (because you do not agree with 2% of the post) button? If you hit "like", you say that you like and agree with the whole post. If you hit "dislike, you are saying the whole post is wrong!

I think you've hit upon one of the greatest weaknesses of our democratic system. One ends up voting for the candidate, if one does not feel so disenfranchised that one doesn't vote, who most closely matches our opinions and ideas, even if we only agree with that candidate 2% of the time.

But as Winston Churchill so aptly stated:

Many forms of Government have been tried and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.

[Anderson]

I don't tend to like having approval buttons without disapproval buttons...it's one of the things I don't like about Facebook (though the idea of starting a "DISLIKE (group/item name)" group and encouraging people to "like" the "dislike" group has crossed my mind.

If you're of a mixed opinion on a post, I'd say just don't rate it.

[Oldsmoboi]

The forum software has the "like" function built in and it can also be set to only allow positive votes. It is up to the admin to make such a change.