[TX_Dj]

Hey all...

If you're not aware, I'd like to point out that our forum permits users to "adjust reputation" for other users. This is what the "Green Square(s)" in the header of each user's posts is for. You know, the one that when you hover over it, it says something like "TX_Dj is on a distinguished road."

I'm not so sure why it uses that verbiage, but this system is in place so that when users who read a post that was helpful to them (or if it was entirely offbase and mis-informative), those users can "agree/disagree" and will alter the poster's reputation score.

As the forum grows, this will become more important to help new users determine who among us have been the most or least helpful towards other users.

You can access the reputation system by finding a post that you wish to "rank", and click this button at the top right of that post. This will pop up a dialog box which asks you if you agree or disagree with the poster's statements, and even permits you to make a comment if you wish.

In the last few days, I've tried to ensure that I rate helpful posts to help get this ball rolling a little faster. I'd like to request others to do the same. So having said that, if you have any "favorite people" on the forum, try to dig up some of their posts that were helpful to you, so that you may contribute to their reputation with a quick "agree/disagree" vote.

I think if we all pull together and do this, it will really help everyone understand that it's not how many posts someone's made, but the content of those posts, that determines if someone is likely to be giving good information. This is especially crucial on our forum, as many of our new users have little or no background on the subject and have difficulting weeding out the good stuff from the BS. Let's all pitch in and help to improve the community.

[david85]

I was wondering why I got my first positive rep earlier today...... Did you actually dig up my very first post???

I agree though, we should be using this feature more often.

[Coley]

Something I would like to see is the elimination of the political topics.

The EVDL list did this and it removed a lot of the rants, that seem to go no where.

EVs are the main topic and not politics.

[david85]

Originally Posted by Coley

Something I would like to see is the elimination of the political topics.

I would be very sorry to see that happen. Most other forums already do this, but I still like to think we can do better. Just doesn't feel right to ban something like that because I think it is a topic worth discussing, but I will admit to being a bit of a political junkie.

Can't comment on the EVDL because I've never posted there. Only heard from others about it.

[ice]

Thanks for the reminder! Very nice post. Rep added...

[TX_Dj]

I agree with both sides (no wonder, I sit very close to the center of the political compass ) on the political topics... That's not really the focus of this forum, but at the same time, it can be very educational/entertaining to see others points of view...

I do think, however, that the political content should find its way into a dedicated section of the forum, one that is not necessarily the first thing that new users see when they come into the forum... Perhaps if enough are interested in such a compromise, we could convince Robert to make an area specifically for the polit-banter?

[david85]

That could be a solution, but from what I've seen discussions of Perpetual Motion (Generator on Motor, Wind Powered), crude oil, and climate change seem to get at least as heated as politics (often one leads to another). Shurely those are not topics that should be banned.

Any topic can get heated if we let it get out of hand. I think the forum has matured enough by now to have enough long term members to step in and keep things civilized even if we are not all moderators/admins.

[Astronomer]

Originally Posted by david85

I was wondering why I got my first positive rep earlier today......

How does one go about finding this out? I can't find anything in the user CP to determine what you cranks... er, I mean, fellow EV enthusiasts are saying about me.

[TX_Dj]

Well, that's the unfortunate thing, I guess. There does not seem to be a place that's active on this forum that the average user can investigate their own reputation points and comments others have made... But it does alter the scoring (the green squares under your post count). The scoring is done in a very technical way- users who have a higher reputation add more rep points when they give rep to another user, whereas users who have lower reputation add fewer points to the score. This somewhat prevents others from "cheating the system" because every user can only contribute so many points per day, and so many points based on their own reputation. Otherwise a dishonest user could register another account and just give themselves mega rep...

When you get a significantly positive or negative reputation adjustment from another user, it will send you a notice about the award. I'm not sure what the threshold is there.

[1clue]

<soapbox type="curmudgeon">

Regarding the political topics, I personally can't understand why one forum needs to be all things to all people. If I were starting a forum on electric vehicles, there would be no "off-topic" section. The only way politics would enter into the forum would be with respect to how laws of some country apply to electric vehicles.

For some reason, people seem to think that users can only be members of one forum so they must provide an area for every topic someone might want to talk about. If you want to talk politics (or food or RC jets or global warming in the abstract even, not related to EV's) then go find a forum that is dedicated to that.

I guarantee that not everyone here is interested in all the things I'm interested in, and if I posted about some of the things I post to other forums, you guys would wonder what the heck I was talking about and why I would want to talk about it.

</soapbox>