Post Count Poll

[ziggy13]

i accidentally voted for yes, but i dont think forums benefit from post counts

[slade]

we should definately keep the post count. it is useful for many reasons, especially for new users. and there is no reason for not having it; not many people are post whores, and if someone does post whore to get their post count up, a mod can just reset it.

[athomas]

I like the post count. It helps us identify newer people to the forums.

I also like post counts in conjunction with date of enrollment. It adds a layer of understanding about what that person has to say. Its another means of filtering information, and that can't be bad.

[PBX Ronin 23]

There seems to be enough compelling post in defense of the Post Count that I may need to reexamine my position on it. But how's about these other options:

1. Instead of post counts, how's about "Member Since" clearly visible
2. Phase out PC slowly and replace it with "EBay-type Feedback" for trading purposes.
3. Pro Rate the value of a post based on the amount of words in them. A 'smiley' get's 1 pt.....a dissertation gets 20 pts.

Possible food for thought but I can now see more clearly the position of the pro-post count people.

[thelane]

I agree. I do get annoyed in the Tippmann forum when I see people who have 4000 posts acting like know-it-alls when 3995 of those posts are spam. Then you've got me, a platinum member with just under 3000 posts. Hey, maby we should do that. Have a rank system like on the tippy forum. Over there we've got:

Guest (0 stars)
Member (1 star)
Gold (2 stars)
Platinum (3 stars) <-- me!
Moderator (4 stars)
Admin (5 stars)

I've always liked that system.

well not to flame or anything but if there are people that dont really know much and arent postwhores feel like not smart see? but i am kind of knowelagble so i know what it feels like both ways and about the post count its fine like when i am wrong about somthing you look at my like 90 posts and say 'ok he is new hees ok 'ya know?


-lane the flying skwril

[kosmo]

BUMP....



No, really though. The only good thing about post count is that you can hopefully trust someone a little more when buying something from them if theyve been here a while. And even that has failed on more occasions than I care to think about. Buyer feedback ratings would be a much better solution to that. And people can already tell how long someone has been here, its right next to their post count. The bottom line is paintball has grown from a hobby industry of people who were technically inclined enough elevate timing an autococker to an artform, to a massive horde of battery operated 12 year olds. That is the price we are paying for the growth of the sport, and we are going to take the good with the bad. There will invariably be scum in the water. And in my opinion, having a post count invariably adds to the problem as it is just another thing that appeals to the competitive nature that draws so many immature people to the sport.

[Automaggot68]

well not to flame or anything but if there are people that dont really know much and arent postwhores feel like not smart see? but i am kind of knowelagble so i know what it feels like both ways and about the post count its fine like when i am wrong about somthing you look at my like 90 posts and say 'ok he is new hees ok 'ya know?


-lane the flying skwril

Are people forgetting about feedback threads?

[v_3Sterns]

Maybe we're pondering this a bit much?

[maglover728]

If you are looking to buy or trade with some one that has little or no feed back, I think that knowing that they are/are not a contributing member of the site helps make the decision. Yes you can do a search for the posts that they have made in the past but if you have a quantity of quality, all the better.

I think.

[RRfireblade]

Ditto.

[Lohman446]

Emphasis should be placed on quality not quantity. Perhaps the elimination of the post counter would lead to some people not seeing any value to posting worthless material....but then again maybe not.
.

Not a chance... I'm an attention whore, not a post whore... I post seemingly worthless material just for the knee jerk reaction I get

And I do agree, I like the post count... it helps being one factor, in many, when considering someones post or BST offer.

[Wheelman]

I gotta vote down the post count. While it is nice to look up and see "hey I just hit 1000 posts, cool" we have some around here that clutter the place up with a lot of useless bs to make there pc higher.
I don't think that a persons post count should have any bearing on them when making sales and trades because I've seen that go bad too, that's why feedback is very important. If a person does not have feedback, well you can take the chance (which I have done in the past and have yet to be burned, but that was past...things are changing) then there are third party services.
I admit I have put my share of usless posts up around here (nowhere near as many as some) but hey, we all have our moments. If it was something that was buried deep inside you profile then I don't see a big deal, if people wanna see the size of your online penis then make em look for it.
While were at it can we crack down on some of the bs in the friendly corner, do we need Mango letting everyone know he found a new smiley to tell you you gay and make a whole new post about it or a post telling everbody they get an F. I'm not trying to single anyone out on this (exept maybe you Mango ) but it's these kinds of posts that suck people into saying stupid things just to up their post count and it has seemed to snowball recently...

I don't claim to be holier than thou on this subject I have been guilty of it myself and I am at the point now where I have more repsect for guy with lower post counts than the ones with the higher ones. Theres the thing if they aren't there people won't look at them and we can look at what people have had to say as opposed to how much they have had to say.

What I do wanna know is this, I have been here over 3 years and I have posted my share of usless bs, sold a lot of stuff and had some meaningful things to say and I have what? maybe 1200 posts, how the hell can someone with 6 months here have 1500 or more?! That seems to me like a lot of dead braincells somewhere, you need to get outside and enjoy the day, not sit in front of the computer making other people guess you mental condition.
I gotta exempt the mods and maybe shartley from this rant, Mods you have a very difficult job and I sure as hell know I wouldn't want it (well there are times it would be nice )
Other than that I say get rid of 'em because I think they are gonna be our downfall.

Thats my opinion, we welcome yours.....

[slade]

For those of you who say that post count has no bearing on BST, think of it this way... ive only used the BST forums to complete a sale once (that will soon be changed ), and that was to buy macro from squid, for which i have no feedback and no one would even know about anyway. who would you be more comfortable trading with, me or the person who registered yesterday and has one post? True a person with a high post count could rip you off, but its not as likely as a person with a low post count. if postwhoring is really a problem, just reset the post count of people with excessive useless posts.

[Wheelman]

= if postwhoring is really a problem, just reset the post count of people with excessive useless posts.

It was threatened, but I don't think they ever followed through with it completely. but that adds another problem, say your in BST and working out something with someone who recently had thier post count reset, now does this make this person any less of what he was before because he has 12 post on his count this week ans opposed to the 3000 he had before you knew who he was???

[kosmo]

Sweet mother of god, theyd better not reset my post count... Its taken me almost 5 years and Im not up to 300 yet! I digress... for those who think post count is necessary for BST forums, there are much better options. Something like Heatware that actually provides feedback and a rating. And honestly, Id be more leary of dealing with someone who has only been on here a few months and has a few thousand posts, because I dont want to do business with a 12 year old spazz who cant be held accountable when he neglects to ship the package and/or pay. At the very least, lets look at this logically.

What are post counts good for?

1. Provice minimal feedback regarding the reputation of a prospective business partner.
2. ..... Ummm, Bump

Why are post counts bad?

1. Provide an atmosphere promoting useless bandwidth harboring jibbarish.
2. Give people credit for wasting my life by forcing me to filter through hundreds of posts with such constructive comments as "LOL! ROFL!", "Get an intelliframe, because I like it better than what YOU have on YOUR gun right now", and "Wow, youre timmy is the best spider clone Ive ever seen!"
3. Provides misinformation about how long a person has been here and how trustworthy they are, which people misinterpret as a viable resume for prospective online transactions.


There, 3 reasons to 0 valid reasons. I mean, why not at least get rid of post count for a little while as a trial session or something? If it works, then hey all the better. If it causes problems with BST forums, bring it back.