I don't know. To me, that just makes it a popularity contest. And if you start looking at which posts got "likes", I can see that becoming pretty labor intensive, and by the time it's finished, I'm still not sold on the idea that it yields anything particularly meaningful. In the end, what's needed is a qualitative analysis, not a quantitative one (of the advice, that is).
Oh, dear. This may not be a majority opinion, but I'm really not in favour of popularity contests, no matter how they're framed. I am definitely not in favour of 'member of the month' or 'best critique giver' or 'most helpful' tags—awarded either by 'judges' or by 'numbers of likes' or whatever electronic gimmick might decide these things. This kind of contest creates a spirit of competition which really won't do much for our collective purpose here. Helpful people help other people. Some help fewer people, or help to a lesser degree than others. I don't think this principle needs to be formalised in any way.
i agree... 'likes' can be misleading, as they're given for many reasons, not all of which have to do with the quality of the post or the amount of help given...
I say no to this 'popularity' contest idea. No one is ever going to be happy with the criteria for picking a person and all it will do is create animosity. I'm totally against it, and honestly at this point from hearing too many people complain about 'likes,' I'm not so sure I'm not against getting rid of those too.
As they currently stand, I think the "likes" are okay. They are a chance to show agreement, or thanks for being helpful, or even to show personal support. I'm fine with leaving them as they are. I'm also not against the idea we started with, that of recognizing those who give good advice. I've long thought that there should be a way for newcomers to discern whose advice is most reliable. I'm just not sure there's any way to do it that satisfies everybody (as the ubiquitous Murphy said, "If you try to please everybody, somebody won't like it") but I'm sure that popularity is not it. Currently, if someone advises something that is flat out wrong, they get jumped on in one quick hurry. Maybe that's as good as it gets.
Well, it's pretty hard to be wrong when it comes to writing, as most aspects are personal and learned through trial and error. Take for example if someone asks if they should make character sheets before writing a novel. Is there really a 'wrong' answer? This isn't an English class. It's a writer's forum where one should come for suggestions, help, companionship, and feedback, not absolute answers. Sure it can be frustrating to newcomers to forums such as these not to get a definitive answer, but eventually they will have to understand this is writing not math.
I think part of becoming a writer is to realize not all advice is helpful and to learn to sort through it.
Yeah, I think maybe just learning the ropes, getting to know the individuals on the forum, and paying attention to what people say is the way forward. By the time a person starts writing, they should be able to develop judgement as to what comments are helpful and what aren't. Some artificial 'rating' system just takes away from personal responsibility. Folks need to use their noodles, not look at some rating system to decide whose advice is worth taking and whose isn't. In my opinion, anyway...! "Likes" just show agreement and appreciation, and are fun to wake up to. I like the fact that they're not anonymous, but you can actually see who has 'liked' your posts. It helps build camaradarie, but it's not any indication of quality. Just a fun and friendly interaction, like saying 'hi.'
Even though a lot of creative writing is based on subjectivity and personal preference, things like proper manuscript format when submitting to a publisher are not. I've made mistakes when giving advice, and people new to writing have assumed my advice was correct because I've been here a long time and have a lot of posts/likes. I think it's important to let newer members know that certain members know what they're talking about and should be listened to.
Well if someone just takes some stranger's advice without the stranger giving them some kind of references to look at, then that new person is probably doomed to fail anyway. Sorry if that seems cold-hearted, but I think it is true. As Jannert said, it's a lesson to live and learn in life.
