Dinorius_Redundicus
kuid 68213
I was looking at the FAQ on another forum (GameDev.net) and came across an interesting scheme designed to improve forum behaviour by self-moderation (as crazy as that sounds).
http://www.gamedev.net/community/forums/faq.asp
It's based on a peer rating system. I wondered what people here felt about such a scheme, or if they had experience with it elsewhere. Would it work for us?
This is an extract of their FAQ;
What are these rating numbers under users' posts?
The rating system was implemented recently in a new revision of the site software. Its purpose is threefold:
-To serve as a method of isolating problem users by the community's ratings of troublesome/disruptive posters,
-To give users an idea of their "position" in the GDNet community and what others think of them, and
-To allow users to ignore other users below a certain rating threshhold.
Your rating does not affect your site privileges; it is intended solely for the above purposes. In particular, you will not be banned or suspended if your rating drops too low. You're free to ignore them if you want.
How can I find out how other users rated me?
In your Control Panel you can access the Personal Rating section and see the users who have rated you positively. Users who have rated you negatively are hidden to prevent revenge ratings. Moderators and staff will not tell you who rated you down for this same reason; don't ask.
My rating just dropped a point! Why?
Don't worry about small changes in rating. Gamedev has a very diverse audience with from many different walks of life; this includes people who may take offense at something the majority of people consider to be completely harmless. Don't sweat the small stuff; if one guy can rate you down a point, another guy can rate you back up.
I rated someone, but I changed my mind about them. Can I give them a new rating?
You sure can - just hit the 'Rate this user' link again. Your old rating will be repealed first, as if you'd never made it.
Bah! This is just a method of repressing people with unpopular views!
It's a form of community self-moderation, yes. But it's still very possible to express an unpopular opinion - if you remain polite and calm as you do so, people generally won't rate you down. Sure, there's always a few who will use the rating system as a way to express their disagreement with your viewpoint, but there's an equal if not greater number of people who will actually rate you up for having both the guts to speak out and the intelligence to do it well.
Why do some people seem to be able to affect my rating more than others?
The higher your rating, the more effect you can have on other users. The basic principle is that if you've got a high rating you must be helpful or trustworthy, so we allow your opinion to carry more weight. This is also the reason that all the staff and mods have such high ratings - they were given high values at the very beginning so that they could 'seed' the system, rating up the people they knew to be most helpful and trustworthy in an effort to get things rolling.
What are these "warning levels" above some users' posts?
A user who has a warning level showing up has misbehaved in some way. Warnings can be issued by moderators for any disruptive behavior or violation of the rules. Warning levels are incremented in amounts of 10%, and are taken into account by moderators when punishments are issued.
If after 2 weeks you've stayed out of trouble, your warning level will automatically reduce by 10%. Time suspended does not count towards this. Note that every warning issued is permanently recorded and your warning history is available to moderators.
There is no set level at which you will be suspended or banned, and either can happen without a warning being issued, but the higher your warning level already is, the more likely it is that a moderator will be harsh when issuing a punishment. Your warning history will also be taken into account.
If you currently have a warning level displayed above your posts, clicking on it will allow you to view your warning history. You are unable view the warning history of others. If you have a warning level, you have probably also recieved a brief PM explaining it.
http://www.gamedev.net/community/forums/faq.asp
It's based on a peer rating system. I wondered what people here felt about such a scheme, or if they had experience with it elsewhere. Would it work for us?
This is an extract of their FAQ;
What are these rating numbers under users' posts?
The rating system was implemented recently in a new revision of the site software. Its purpose is threefold:
-To serve as a method of isolating problem users by the community's ratings of troublesome/disruptive posters,
-To give users an idea of their "position" in the GDNet community and what others think of them, and
-To allow users to ignore other users below a certain rating threshhold.
Your rating does not affect your site privileges; it is intended solely for the above purposes. In particular, you will not be banned or suspended if your rating drops too low. You're free to ignore them if you want.
How can I find out how other users rated me?
In your Control Panel you can access the Personal Rating section and see the users who have rated you positively. Users who have rated you negatively are hidden to prevent revenge ratings. Moderators and staff will not tell you who rated you down for this same reason; don't ask.
My rating just dropped a point! Why?
Don't worry about small changes in rating. Gamedev has a very diverse audience with from many different walks of life; this includes people who may take offense at something the majority of people consider to be completely harmless. Don't sweat the small stuff; if one guy can rate you down a point, another guy can rate you back up.
I rated someone, but I changed my mind about them. Can I give them a new rating?
You sure can - just hit the 'Rate this user' link again. Your old rating will be repealed first, as if you'd never made it.
Bah! This is just a method of repressing people with unpopular views!
It's a form of community self-moderation, yes. But it's still very possible to express an unpopular opinion - if you remain polite and calm as you do so, people generally won't rate you down. Sure, there's always a few who will use the rating system as a way to express their disagreement with your viewpoint, but there's an equal if not greater number of people who will actually rate you up for having both the guts to speak out and the intelligence to do it well.
Why do some people seem to be able to affect my rating more than others?
The higher your rating, the more effect you can have on other users. The basic principle is that if you've got a high rating you must be helpful or trustworthy, so we allow your opinion to carry more weight. This is also the reason that all the staff and mods have such high ratings - they were given high values at the very beginning so that they could 'seed' the system, rating up the people they knew to be most helpful and trustworthy in an effort to get things rolling.
What are these "warning levels" above some users' posts?
A user who has a warning level showing up has misbehaved in some way. Warnings can be issued by moderators for any disruptive behavior or violation of the rules. Warning levels are incremented in amounts of 10%, and are taken into account by moderators when punishments are issued.
If after 2 weeks you've stayed out of trouble, your warning level will automatically reduce by 10%. Time suspended does not count towards this. Note that every warning issued is permanently recorded and your warning history is available to moderators.
There is no set level at which you will be suspended or banned, and either can happen without a warning being issued, but the higher your warning level already is, the more likely it is that a moderator will be harsh when issuing a punishment. Your warning history will also be taken into account.
If you currently have a warning level displayed above your posts, clicking on it will allow you to view your warning history. You are unable view the warning history of others. If you have a warning level, you have probably also recieved a brief PM explaining it.
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Doesn't work that way here.
