Why not make lounge posts count on your post count again?

I don't get why they ever stopped. The lounge is a big part of the site. It may not be all car related, but why only make technical/other forum posts count towards your post count? I've never seen another message board where the general/lounge/etc board posts don't count towards your post count. :shrug:

Oh, and I also propose you add the "I'm with stupid" smiley holding a sign to the list. ;)

Because people shouldn't get their post counts raised for posting "in before the lock". :)

I don't get why they ever stopped. The lounge is a big part of the site. It may not be all car related, but why only make technical/other forum posts count towards your post count? I've never seen another message board where the general/lounge/etc board posts don't count towards your post count. :shrug:

Oh, and I also propose you add the "I'm with stupid" smiley holding a sign to the list. ;)
Lot's of boards do it, in fact, I think most of the ones I'm on do it that way. Some boards even take post count off completely - which I'm actually learning to really like.

You'd get a ton of crappy posts like "in first" It would ruin the lounge.

You'd get a ton of crappy posts like "in first" It would ruin the lounge.

Wellll....that already happened, which is why we are having this conversation. :p

I'm guessing a separate BS (lounge) post counter is out of the question as well...

There seemed to be some sort of e-wang mentality in regards to post counts that encouraged people to make absolutely useless posts, often multiple times, just to reach a certain number... Multiply that mentality by the thousands of members and there was a whole lot of wasted space and bandwidth being utlized for essentially personal ego in regards to post count.

I do see some value to having posts be counted, if the premise is not abused, for such simple things as being able to quantify the activity of board members in general and being better able to perhaps attract advertisers interested in a particular demographic, but the PIA factor was fairly high and so lounge post counts were disabled.

I beelieve it would be completely wrong to assume that today's membership (including myself) is actually any more mature than in past years.

However perhaps a modification of the user agreement/rules might allow a more streamlined approach to enforcing a "useless post" penalty?

I know nothing of the details of the board software but I suspect all posts are actually being quantified although not publically visualized in association with a user name so that the security features of the board can be properly implemented. However this is an assumption on my part with absolutely zero facts to back up my hunch.

Post counts do not matter at all to me since I am usually here on a daily basis and so have a general understanding of who is active and who is not. However I do think that folks who log on weekly or monthly may be able to benefit from seeing who is quantifiably active over an extended period of time. I am uncertain of any actual value, but I do sense there may be some benefit to having lounge posts count, so long as people do not associate high post counts with being cool or having a huge e-wang.

However perhaps a modification of the user agreement/rules might allow a more streamlined approach to enforcing a "useless post" penalty?

I think that would be a huge can of worms to open up. What would be considered useless? A funny picture that may or may not fit the topic of a lounge post? I can see the possibility for a mod to go overboard with that enforcement, and the lounge slowing down even more as less people would post and probably quite a few more would leave.

This wasn't directed at you, Ted, it's just a theory I have as to what would happen if this was implemented.

I think it's fine as is. :)

Helps keep the trolling down in the Lounge as well. :cool:

I think that would be a huge can of worms to open up. What would be considered useless?

The same things that caused this discussion in the first place. "In before the lock" posts "First!" posts, etc. This is already in place, actually . We ask people to be cool about that right in the user agreement, so nothing new is required in that area. Then when they get slapped for it, they throw a fit with how trivial it is and they can't believe they we are so uptight, nazi this and censorship that. It winds up being very childish when if there was a bit more respect for the community to begin with, there wouldn't be an issue.

I removed two such posts in this very thread. Yeah, they were jokes, I know but the point stands.

We don't mean to be jerks about things, but sometimes it is easy to look at all the dumb crap and wonder what people think when they read stuff like that. Sometimes, they come here for specific reasons and when there is a good amount of bull**** that stands out, they leave. Not the kind of representation we'd like to offer for this site, which is typically comprised of a lot of great people who mean well and are valuable assets here.

Jason, that pretty much sums it up...

I still do not understand what the attraction is in regards to post counts... It isn't like it is a bank account or something that increases with real value the higher it gets... :shrug:

The same things that caused this discussion in the first place. "In before the lock" posts "First!" posts, etc....

I see your point, and agree with posts like "first!" and "****"...those are fine, but I guess I was just afraid of a snowball type of affect and any post that wasn't directly related to the topic in a serious manner (I'm talking lounge only) would be deleted and infraction points would be handed out.

I see your point, and agree with posts like "first!" and "****"...those are fine, but I guess I was just afraid of a snowball type of affect and any post that wasn't directly related to the topic in a serious manner (I'm talking lounge only) would be deleted and infraction points would be handed out.

We'd never want that to happen and we hope that our moderators are sharp enough to be able to discern the difference.

We'd never want that to happen and we hope that our moderators are sharp enough to be able to discern the difference.

There are days when I'm about as sharp as silly putty. ;) Overall, the Mods pretty much, in my opinion, can understand and interpret fairly and within reason. The crux of the matter is the importance some folks attach to growing it, which is something I simply cannot comprehend... To me it is like placing a high level of importance on always knowing the number of pennies in a top desk change drawer... It may be important to know when the drawer will collapse from the weight but the total value of the pennies isn't worth the effort... Don't even ask how I might know this since my humanity may be exposed... Let's just say I use a plastic bucket to keep all my change in now and empty it once a year into a change machine that donates a percentage to charity. :D

Jason, that pretty much sums it up...

I still do not understand what the attraction is in regards to post counts... It isn't like it is a bank account or something that increases with real value the higher it gets... :shrug:
I could care less about the post count being a status symbol or anything.

I've been on the board for 7 years, and over the past 4 years or so, I've become less interested in modifying my car, etc, so I've ventured away from the technical forums and just post in the lounge....

I'm mainly just curious as to how many posts I've racked up over the years, but I'll never know. :)

Plus, with the recent suggestion of adding multiple member title levels, I'll never be able to go up a level! :cry:

I understand that policing it would be a PITA... but if you did something like deduct 100 from their count when someone gets caught post whoring you'd probably avoid that particular problem. The mod crew here seems to be pretty on top of things... so I suspect after a few spankings everyone else would fall into line.

In the big scheme of things it's not important... but I also wonder on occasion how much time I've spent on the site.

(edit) - OR you could only have lounge posts count for Premium members. :D

Dave K <--- Just became premium member after 11 years of being a cheap assed leech.

I honestly don't care about post counts. Another board I'm on allows you access to certain groups after 100 posts, but since there's nothing like that here, it doesn't matter at all. The other board also counts Lounge posts, but its a cake decorating site, so really, how uptight can you be? :lol: Plus, nobody cares at all about the number of posts (except for a lady who just hit 20k... good grief) and I have never seen a post that didn't contribute to the topic at hand in some way.

I think its fine the way it is, and I agree, it would suck if people went out of their way to make stupid posts to increase their numbers.