there are 10 members on here who finish 99% of the threads.. 1% Hoodwink the 99%

In a mirror of society, this forum clearly has a problem.

1% percent of members finish 99% of the threads.

Can I propose a rule that you can't give the same person more than 1 star in the same thread, it is artificially changing the dynaimic of debates. Perhaps a change on the amount of stars you can give per day, this would help more variety of responses gain prevalence.

What say you fine moderators ?

Star and flag.

I actually kind of like the idea that you can only star someone ____ many times a day. But this system would have to be worked out. Gotta think, some look at over 20 topics a day, the star/flag function would run out before half of their daily ATS ritual.

I totally grasp where you are coming from, but I do not have the golden method to help balance communication.

is that really all you have to rant about? some random stars and flags on a faceless internet forum? seriously? you need to get out more!!

reply to post by rolfharriss


I don't understand what you mean by "finish threads"?

Are you referring to members who debunk an inaccurate OP - thus eliminating a need for further conversation - or are you referring to the last post in a thread that is fizzling out anyway?

~Heff

There are 10's of thousands of members here.

How do you calculate your claim?

Especially with your long term membership of about 3 weeks.

Peace

Originally posted by rolfharriss

1% percent of members finish 99% of the threads.

What exactly were the figures which were used to reach this conclusion?

Beyond a certain point, stars shouldn't have much if anything to do with driving posting anyway. I can see it early on and I think everyone is like that to a degree with the first stars and flags. I'd seriously worry if they are more than a passing interest to note milestones beyond a fairly early point though. Just my thoughts....

reply to post by Hefficide


No the argument doesn't usually fizzle away as such, people tend to have to get on with their lives.. Because more often than not the last comment will always be from 1 of the 10 most prolific members the relentless nature of their approach does indicate they are working in unison.

I propose a check on the I.p addresses of the top 10 to ensure people are not operating from the same area.

There is no way to tell who is giving the stars and if 10 of the most prolific members are giving each other the stars between themselves it is surely against the spirit of a forum.


It would be naive to believe there wouldn't be a department within the government responsible for infiltrating alternative groups. I say lets make it hard for them, by working in unison to ignore the obvious candidates.

reply to post by Hefficide


I don't understand why stars mean so much to people, they're just stars on some website. I mean I get it but I don't. You star someone to say "I agree with you" or "That's a good point" something along those lines... Or that's how I do it anyway. Who knows, maybe I'm doing it wrong? But it seems to have gone beyond that, some people say some of the silliest things and will get a ton of stars for that comment simply because the other people like something else that the person has said. Why? I mean I understand that we view stars as kind of a reputation scale around here but why does it have to be a popularity contest? Who cares, it's just a silly little star.

With that being said, please give this comment a big phat thumbs up, maybe even two

Seriously... Please only star my comments, statements, posts, whatever only if you approve of that particular one and not of another one that I could be labeled guilty of. That's how I do it and I still believe in that whole "treat others the way you want to be treated" thing.

Originally posted by BrokenCircles

Originally posted by rolfharriss

1% percent of members finish 99% of the threads.

What exactly were the figures which were used to reach this conclusion?

I've been on before a while back, but got frustrated with all the 1% ers's

reply to post by rolfharriss


Without giving too much of the "behind the scenes" away... Staff has access to IP addresses and I can assure you that the top ten posters here are not the same person.

reply to post by Anundeniabletruth


Stars are free! I give them away often! Any post that I think is well stated, thought provoking, funny, ironic... anything that makes me interested for a few moments gets my TWO stars! ( Benefits of being on staff - double stars ).

They make people feel good about expressing themselves and opening up. They often help people get past social anxieties by showing that it's a safe environment for expression. They are, IMO, the equivalent of a smile and eye contact during conversation. Positive reinforcement.

As for popularity? I would accept that argument - except in reality trolls get more stars than productive posters much of the time. We're a conspiracy community and many of us have a soft spot for the rebels and those filled with angst.

In the end? Don't take the stars and flags too seriously. I know I don't.

~Heff

In that case hypothetically how would whistleblower information be handled?

Does ATS have a working relationship with any government organisation?

I know independent sites such as Sott.net have been raided by the police in the last year, has ATS had any similar issues?

Originally posted by rolfharriss

Originally posted by BrokenCircles

Originally posted by rolfharriss

1% percent of members finish 99% of the threads.

What exactly were the figures which were used to reach this conclusion?

I've been on before a while back, but got frustrated with all the 1% ers's

lmao. Try again, but this time, make some sort of an attempt to answer the question.

I do like the idea that you only are provided with a certain amount of stars/flags. This returns meaning to them.

I just don't think that's possible for ATS, too many active topics.

Personally I don't let stars alter my perception, I look at it as "I agree" - just healthy opinions.

reply to post by rolfharriss


Dude, Who cares? I don't come here to get stars or flags. I come here to be enlightened and in the hope that if some sh*t starts breaking somewhere I am informed early.
I don't watch mainstream TV anymore, I learn more on this site than on any other.
Who cares about points.

Originally posted by rolfharriss
reply to post by Hefficide

 

No the argument doesn't usually fizzle away as such, people tend to have to get on with their lives.. Because more often than not the last comment will always be from 1 of the 10 most prolific members the relentless nature of their approach does indicate they are working in unison.

I propose a check on the I.p addresses of the top 10 to ensure people are not operating from the same area.

There is no way to tell who is giving the stars and if 10 of the most prolific members are giving each other the stars between themselves it is surely against the spirit of a forum.

edit on 8-11-2012 by rolfharriss because: more info

It would be naive to believe there wouldn't be a department within the government responsible for infiltrating alternative groups. I say lets make it hard for them, by working in unison to ignore the obvious candidates.

edit on 8-11-2012 by rolfharriss because: more info

Well I can tell you that the top members don't always participate in the same threads. Do you think they all have the same interests?

I'm not top ten but maybe top 15 and I can truly state that I only give a SnF if I respect the thread. I don't have to like, agree or even love the content or OP.

In fact, many of the top members are in constant disagreement with each other but participate in the threads out of interest and respect.

That's why they are at the top. That and time for some.


Hope this clears it up a little.

Peace

reply to post by rolfharriss

I've been on before a while back, but got frustrated with all the 1% ers's

Perhaps if the absurdity dial in your threads was turned down a few notches, you wouldn't get so frustrated...

Having outlandish ideas is fine, but claiming the moon buggies were filmed inside of ever increasing sized vacuum chambers (Hint: You should have spent more time looking for a really big one before starting the thread, instead of chasing your tail when called on it) is starting to enter the realms of pure fantasy.

People will challenge you in your threads, this is, afterall a discussion forum, so expect it to happen.

I think you just need to be better prepared for it.

reply to post by rolfharriss

Your title apparently claims that ten members are one per cent of the total membership,
So the total membership is only 1,000?

When will you people realize stars and flags don't mean crap! You can't do anything with them.

I swear people on here are like little kids who need some form of acknowledgement in the form of stars much like gold stars as a kid.


Get over it! You can't use these darn stars, they mean nothing. I could careless about stars and flags and honestly wish they'd do away with the whole system.