A Word on the Reputation System at THIS Site

[JLC]

I had already planned on composing a thread similar to what I'm about to say because I felt like certain issues regarding our Reputation System needed to be addressed. And then another thread about reps pop up and people start talking and suddenly the entire tone and content of what I'd planned to say has shifted. So now y'all have to bear with me as I step up onto my soapbox...

No matter WHAT we do with the Reputation System, there are going to be people who disagree, who end up disappointed, and who vehemently express their dislike for the system. It's very much a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" sort of issue. That being said, I will TRY to explain our reasoning behind certain decisions and choices regarding how this system is run...so that whether you agree or not, you can at least (hopefully!) understand and respect the fact that we DO have our reasons and intend to stand firm on them.

There are two important facets of our Rep System. ONE -- We feel it is valuable to the community to allow people to "give a pat on the back" to their peers, as well as to express disapproval in a constructive manner when necessary. TWO -- The Rep System allows the community as a whole to help keep trolls out of our forums and to keep a tight rein on the more unruly or disruptive members.

If we were to do away with the Rep System entirely (or simply remove the ability to give Neg Reps as Fauna did) we would then have to implement an entirely new way to manage disruptive members. Such a task would take a great deal of time and energy and debate to create and implement. Not to mention the additional burden it would place on the staff to be judge and jury of every member who does not technically break the TOS/Rules, but who happens to be a disruptive presence anyhow. And lastly...trolls would have to be tolerated and allowed to run amock for as long as it took for a staff member to become alerted to their presence....which can often be plenty long enough for them to cause a great deal of drama and mess all over the site.

I do realize that the Rep System as it stands now is often not utilized in the way we intend it to be. But, as a tool for expressing approval or disapproval toward our peers, it is a VERY minor, teeny tiny blip on the radar of significance and importance. And if we tried to change the parameters that it is currently run with (ie: not allowing anonymous comments) then it would STILL not be utilized as intended. Changing those parameters would NOT change the fact that people misuse it....it would simply change the nature of the misuse.

I feel that we, the staff, are very fair in our willingness to look into and address ANY complaint about a Rep Comment, if it is brought to our attention via private communication. We look into it promptly and without judgement toward the person bringing the complaint. Unjust Neg Hits are immediately neutralized. And people who use the system to abuse members have their ability to use it at all cut off completely. I don't see how this can be construed as unfair, or that the staff does not care about the Rep System and its affects on our members.

It seems that the primary point of complaint is the fact that comments can be left anonymously. We have explained our reasons for this method many times...but I will try to explain them one more time.

1. Sometimes, SOME people may feel a strong need to express disapproval of words or actions of another member, and yet not want to become embroiled in either public debate...or a private one in PMs. Not all people are skilled at or comfortable with confrontation....but their opinions are no less valid and their need to occasionally express them no less urgent than your own. An opportunity to leave an unsigned comment helps.

2. If Neg Hits no longer had the option of remaining anonymous, the "game" would simply shift to retaliatory hits. Of course, you're reading this and going, "No way! I'd never do that!" Of course you wouldn't. But the other person reading this WOULD. It's human nature.

3. If we turned off the feature that allows Rep Comments to be anonymous...this would affect ALL comments left previously. How fair would that be to suddenly remove someone's privacy that they were counting on, for whatever reason? How much hurt and division do you think it would cause if past private thoughts were suddenly made public?

98% of the people who complain about Anonymous Neg Hits have left them as well....sometimes many times. Not all of them are "cowardly." Not all of them are unjust. Many of them DO fit within our current understanding of how we would like the Rep System to work.

I know not everyone will agree with our methods. But we DO have our reasons. And we feel strongly enough about those reasons to not change them just because some members are very good about expressing their dissenting opinions. We DO listen....and we DO discuss the merits of whatever new points are brought up. The Rep System is one of our most frequently discussed issues among the staff....just to be sure we are still on the right track. And as of now, we do still feel this is the right track.

If you feel you have been unjustly Hit...then send a PM to one of the Admins and we will look into it and adjust it as necessary. Complaining about it in the public forums is NOT the way to get our attention. All it does is taint the overall atmosphere of the site by making private disagreements public.

[JLC]

The public portion of this discusison has been moved into the Quarantine Room:

http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=53836

If you wish to discuss this issue directly with staff, please direct your PMs to Raj (Iceman25).