Turn off post count in general discussion

[SiM]

but leave it on in the sub forums...

[mycarsavw]

Turn off?

I agree - cut down on the amount of useless spam posts that are rife at the moment.

[SiM]

yup typo. off not of

[Saracen]

yup typo. off not of

Thread title edited, so it's a bit clearer.

I'm not convinced it's a good idea. Yes, we get people spamming a bit sometimes, but by and large, most people don't. And there's a lot of useful stuff goes on in GD.

When good, regular active members contribute extensively in GD, why should they be penalised by losing post count recognition of that because a few either don't understand our rules or etiquette, or choose to ignore them?

Personally, it wouldn't bother me if post count was turned off altogether. But some people do seem to set some stock in it. And, I suppose, to a degree, it helps get extra privileges, as post count rises. So, if people are making sensible posts, why shouldn't they count towards earning those forum privileges?

And, would turning it off discourage people from bothering to post? After all, we have plenty of sections for technical and subject-specific discussion. I regard GD as a kind of "nattering round the kitchen table" sort of forum. We could moderate it a lot more firmly, to get rid of any hint of spam, but by and large, I don't think it's necessary. I'd rather have a lighter atmosphere than a rigid one, and take action (often quietly) as and when it's necessary, that not being all that often.

This is not an official Hexus "no" the idea idea, merely my own perspective. Feel free to make the argument for it, and it'll no doubt get discussed by the mod team. But it has been suggested and dismissed before, for various reasons, including the above. But by all means, see if anything new gets suggested.

I'm just not sure turning it off is needed, or would be helpful.

[SiM]

I suppose you are right Saracen...

Actually why not make a "natter" forum where anything that follows the rules (including Haikus ) can be posted without the post counting

[kalniel]

I suppose you are right Saracen...

Actually why not make a "natter" forum where anything that follows the rules (including Haikus ) can be posted without the post counting

You mean like the old banter forum?

[SiM]

You mean like the old banter forum?

lol, I thought we are not allowed to speak of that anymore... (I didn't want to mention that taboo word but, yes, bring back banter!)

[matty-hodgson]

banterrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!

you mean useless spam like this?

turning off post count is gonna discourage some people from actually posting though.
some people take great pride in their 2000+ 3000+ 4000+ or even higher post counts.
why should we remove that from them?

[Funkstar]

I think that would be a very bad idea.

The forums are a lot quieter than they used to be, I personally think if post counts were turned off in GD, or any similar measures were put in place to try and cut down on spammy posts (and lets face it, there isn't nearly the amount of spam on here compared to other forums) the forums would get even quieter. And nots no good for anyone.

[SiM]

Funkstar doesn't want lose his free scan postage

OK, I get the point, its a bad idea. I didn't realise so many people would stop posting if a number didn't increase.

[moogle]

The forums are a lot quieter than they used to be.

It is, before when I used to be off for days I'd come back to see several pages of new threads or posts after clicking the new posts link. Today theres not enough to flow into the 2nd page. I wouldn't mind removing post counts in all, but then the admins would have to give priviledges manually, or it could all just be hidden.

[kalniel]

I'd argue the decreased activity is partially caused by the 20 post for free shipping thing - so many people seem to post up to mid-20s then stop never to be seen again. If people were joining for the sake of joining then I think they'd hang around longer.

Of course it could just be indicative of the fact people aren't buying as much stuff these days, so don't ask for as much help/opinion on things. Certainly I feel best qualified to help others out when I've been researching for things myself. Without a major hardware purchase recently I'm a bit out of the loop regarding best value/components etc. which means I'm less likely to chip in when someone does ask something.

[Funkstar]

Funkstar doesn't want lose his free scan postage

Actually, i think Scan would be more dissapointed than me. Might stop me spending quite so much money

[dave87]

I've got to say I don't particularly post to get +1 on the post count.


If I've got something to add, I will. If not, I'll simply browse...

[Blitzen]

I'd argue the decreased activity is partially caused by the 20 post for free shipping thing - so many people seem to post up to mid-20s then stop never to be seen again. If people were joining for the sake of joining then I think they'd hang around longer.

Of course it could just be indicative of the fact people aren't buying as much stuff these days, so don't ask for as much help/opinion on things. Certainly I feel best qualified to help others out when I've been researching for things myself. Without a major hardware purchase recently I'm a bit out of the loop regarding best value/components etc. which means I'm less likely to chip in when someone does ask something.

I thought the 20 posts for free shipping was not on anymore.
Wasn't it changed to just being a member and you got it?

[Jay]

I couldn't care less if they removed the post count all together but it does give people a good idea of who is more trust worthy. I doubt that this would help as people would just post where they get a count. They tried this on the Steam forums and it didn't really work too well.