ATS Needs An Economic Structure For The Points We Earn....

It would be a nice feature for the boards if I could buy an original avatar from another member for an agreed upon number of points.
A way to pay for a service rendered.......

Or I could make a wager on the outcome of a debate with another member.
Or I could challenge another member to a tagging race.
Or I could give a 1000 point transfer to a member that helped me with research.
Or I could send 500 points to a member that I voted for WATS as a little bonus.

I'm looking for ways to use the points that I've accrued, and I think the ATS Boards need to set up some sort of economic structure that allows members to buy and sell services using the points in their accounts.

The current store that you can buy acct. upgrades from is lacking in possibilities as to what you can use your points for........



No money would change hands, just points from one acct, to another.


I'm just tossing the idea into the ring, so tell me what you think................

Yes but that is exactly the reason why hackers would want to get into other peoples accounts, the transfer of points into their account.

Though I think it is a good idea, it would promote certain things including, bribary, (spelling? lol too late to spell) trolls, (getting paid for conspiracies) members, (making richer members look better)

I mean if this was possible, people could get acess to secret forum free. They could just keep asking a friend for moolah, even if they are new and have zero points.

Though I guess this would be a good idea. (unsure smiley)

Quid Pro Quid

This subject has come up in various forms ever since points were implemented (well before my time).

Back in my Councilor days we discussed this quite a bit, and I'm sure the current Councilors are mindful of the issue as well.

What has emerged so far is that points do in fact form the basis for the ATS economy, but that the economy is carefully managed by the site administrators -- particularly our beloved, benevolent SkepticOverlord.

Since points are intended to be awarded for things considered meritorious and worthy of encouragement, making them transferable to other members would, in a single stroke, undermine the entire economy.

Aside from that, the number of ways such transfers could be abused is limited only by the imagination and resourcefulness of those who would abuse them – in other words, an infinite number.

So unless there has been or will be a dramatic change in the thinking behind points, I doubt we'll see transferability of points anytime soon.

However, that doesn't mean they aren't worth accumulating.

He Who Has The Gold...

One of the other things that came to light during the last session of Council is the fact that points are what will pay for “public improvements” in the ATS family of websites.

Councilor Lysergic, for example, was the Councilor who successfully proposed and got funding for converting to the new point system, which added BTS and PTS to the point economy. That was a landmark occasion, and despite the fact that it may make points seem more complex, the inclusion of BTS and PTS was and remains a big deal.

In the future, we can expect more “public works” projects to come up for funding, and when they do, members who wish to support them can “vote with their pocketbook”.

Thus, those members who have more points will tend to have more influence over how ATS evolves. Eerily like the “real world”, isn't it?

At least, that's the theory. In practice, these things take time, and one of the hardest jobs for any Councilor is getting the kinks worked out of new ideas and proposals.

After all, new features need to be improvements over old ones, and considering how much has already gone into the design of ATS, that's not easy!

In any case, my advice is to be patient, stay in touch with your Councilors and hang on to those points.

Because you never know...