Just something I saw from another site, they made it so all posts besides the original was shown as "Anonymous" author, and, once votes were made, they were then revealed. I'm not sure how it is done, but am aware it can be done, and think it would help just a little, making sure there aren't any pre-vote biases.
It would require a specialized software plugin, and would not eliminate the worst kind of bias we have had to deal with, where the entrant would tell his or her buddies which piece to vote for. Sometimes the buddies would join the site for no other purpose than to tip the vote. Pretty pathetic, especially for those contests with no prize other than bragging rights.
Are we unable to access said software? Maybe it's expensive or incompatible? I don't know much about such things.
It has to be written or purchased, and the site costs money just to maintain normal operations. There would have to be a pretty cleaqr benefit to justify it. Moreover, any custom piece of software adds a risk of introducing defects that can interfere with the site's normal functioning.
