How To: Get a Good Reputation

[omnian]

Sorry if this has been answered already but it's starting to annoy me somewhat, lol. I've now got two grey marks in my reputation points section. Thing is, the first one has been like it for a few weeks now so my question is this: exactly how long do these take to be 'activated' as it were? Sure it's a countermeasure against people coming in and subtracting or adding points without reason but I would imagine it's been long enough right?

Any help is greatly appreciated....

[ShadowMaat]

They'll never count for anything. Rep points don't work retro-actively. Once granted, they stay that way permanently, even if they're neutral.

[ShadowMaat]

I've done a bit more hunting around regarding the Reputation feature.

From the HawaiiThreads.com FAQ:

What is Reputation?
Much like "karma points" and "mod points" used in other online communities, Reputation is one way to gauge at a glance how much credibility to give the author of a post. The Reputation system is an informal way for members of the forum to reward (or penalize) fellow members for informative, helpful, articulate, or even simply entertaining (or not) posts.

A user with a high Reputation is someone you're more likely to learn something from. A user with a low Reputation is someone you might simply want to ignore.

User reputations are shown on each post as green (or red) squares in the upper right corner. The more squares, the higher the reputation. The same squares can be found in each user's Public Profile. The squares are only general guides, however — only the user knows his or her actual Reputation point level.

On what basis should I give Reputation points?
Reputation scores should be given on a post by post basis, and should be based on your reading of the message, not your opinion of the messenger. Perhaps more importantly, Reputation scores should be based on the quality of the post, not on whether you agree with the point of view.

If you like chocolate and a member posts a defense of vanilla, you should not automatically give a negative Reputation score simply because you disagree with the opinion. And you should not automatically give positive reputation scores to members or messages that you like, agree with, or simply support your position.

Ask yourself, "Would this post be helpful to a newcomer trying to understand the topic?" Is the post well written, informative, and reasonable? Is it especially clever, funny, or representative of the kind of attitude the community values? If yes, give a positive score. If not, give a negative score.

And then from the ChiefDelphi FAQ:

Why would reputation not count positive or negative?
When a new user first starts out, their reputation does not count. There are a few factors that determine when their reputation should start counting. Some of those factors are the number of posts, the number of days they have been registered, and the number of reputation points that have been given to them.

When my reputation begins to count, do my grey dots then count?
No, once a reputation value has been given (negative, positive, or neutral) the point values will never change retroactively. If you give a zero-point reputation, it will remain a zero-point reputation no matter how high or low your reputation point values become.

What are good and bad things to give positive reputation for?
Reputation should be given to people who post meaningful, helpful, and thoughful posts. Any post that contributes to the thread in a positive way probably deserves positive reputation. This does not mean that you agree with what was said; the point brought up may be completely opposite to what you believe, but it may be a good point nonetheless, and worthy of a pat on the back. Giving positive reputation to someone because they are your friend and deserve to have a few more green dots next to their name probably isn't a good reason to give positive reputation.

What are good and bad things to give negative reputation for?
Negative reputation should be given if the person is posting something that detracts from the conversation. If the post is rude, inappropriate, breaks forum rules, is not gracious, etc; these are all good reasons to give negative reputation. If you have a personal grudge with someone, their team, etc, is it not appropriate to give them negative reputation for no reason. Giving negative reputation because you don't agree with what was said is not an appropraite use of the reputation system. People are entitled to their own opinions, and just because you don't agree doesn't mean the user was wrong or not contributing to the conversation.

The last bit is a little repetitive from the first bit, perhaps, but I think it bears repeating. A lot.

Anyway, hope that answers a few Q's.

[Elwe Singollo]

I've done a bit more hunting around regarding the Reputation feature.

From the HawaiiThreads.com FAQ:





And then from the ChiefDelphi FAQ:


The last bit is a little repetitive from the first bit, perhaps, but I think it bears repeating. A lot.

Anyway, hope that answers a few Q's.

That helped me a whole bunch, even if you weren't directing the FAQ to me

[ShadowMaat]

That helped me a whole bunch, even if you weren't directing the FAQ to me

If there's one thing I like, it's understanding things. I also like to help others understand.

[Anubis]

As long as you understand things eveyrthing seems clear


Shadow, I've also notice you're now a Royal Guard. Congrats! lol

[Bagpuss]

Thanks for the Rep.Guidelines you posted,Shadow. I found it really helpful too,lmj!

I think any rep point comes up as "Grey",if there's no comment attached.
Is that right or wrong,anyone?

(I refuse to even consider awarding anyone a "Negative" point,btw ! )

[ShadowMaat]

Nah, you can always comment on rep points and they'll show up, that's why I know that a couple of my gray points were definitely meant to be in the red. The problem is that a lot of people DON'T comment, which can be aggravating. I actually have one or two green points without comment as well, so folks liked what I posted, I just don't know why.

Then again, comments don't always help... at least not if the points are gray. I got a comment yesterday that I am a "bad evil woman" but the referring post was a bit of a joke, so was the person kidding and rewarding me a green point, or did they take me seriously and award a red point?

[Bagpuss]

Just a tad confusing,then!
Back to my second theory then,that it's connected to the length of time a Poster's been around,and the level of the person they're giving the point to.
That seems most likely,IMO.

Ho-Hum! I just prefer to have a comment added,anyway. Gives people the chance to state the reason for the point at least!
If after all that, the point shows up as grey,no worries.....

[bcmilco]

I'm guilty of not including comments, however after reading this thread I'll try to including them from now on.

BTW Shadow one of those grey marks was probably from me and it was + points (just don't ask me which post 'cus I couldn't tell you. ) I didn't agree what you said, but it was well written and nicely put, so I thought I'd be nice and keep you from getting all red marks

BTW... again, just how many posts do you have to "rate" before you can go back and "rate" the same person again? Or is that another one of the many secrets the guys are keeping from us

[ShadowMaat]

BTW... again, just how many posts do you have to "rate" before you can go back and "rate" the same person again? Or is that another one of the many secrets the guys are keeping from us

That I can't answer. It probably varies from forum to forum. I'd guess that most of us here on this thread are "active" now in terms of granting points.

[bcmilco]

That I can't answer. It probably varies from forum to forum. I'd guess that most of us here on this thread are "active" now in terms of granting points.

Yeah, but there have been a few posts I've read and gone "wow, that's really insightful, I think I'll be a nice guy and give them points" and then I get this message:

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to [username] again.

At one point I got so fed up with it I went out of my way to find a few people who deserved some points, but I still can't go back to most of the people I've given points/non-points too.

[ShadowMaat]

Ah. Tiredness strikes again. I haven't granted any ratings so I don't know how long you have to wait before giving points again. I recommend harrassing David day and night until he comes up with a satisfactory answer.

[Newbie]

so what are the actaully repuation ranks?

[ShadowMaat]

...incubating and will one day take a host.
...slithering well on the way to taking a host.
...a beacon of hope for all larval Goa'uld.

If there are any in between or beyond the last two, I haven't seen 'em yet.

The Rep system is really more about points than ranks, though.