Making Lounge Posts Count/Games Posts Not Count

[Glove Slap]

This came up in RT today.

I remember about 2 years ago that a change was made in that Lounge and News posts no longer counted towards ones post counts. A reason for this was that people were seriously abusing the Random Thoughts threads, making several consecutive posts after another and making it a competition to get as many parts per months as possible.

Since then, this practice has ceased, and there have been very productive discussions in RT recently. At the same time, posts in the Games forum have continued to count towards our post counts even though they're essentially reposing what the previous poster said and changing one or two digits.

Would it be possible to make posts from The Lounge and News count in our post counts again, while stopping posts from Games counting? Or if not, may we have an explanation of why the switch should not be made?

Thanks for reading .

[₫anny Jerz ♔]

I am indifferent to posts being counted in The Lounge, though I tend to lean towards allowing them to count simply because the quality of discussion in that forum has improved recently.

I'd be all for disabling post count in the Games section, though.

[BILLY SHEARS.]

What Danny said.

[Ginger Spice]

I understand why people don't want posts in the Games section to count, although I don't see why it's a big deal either way.

However, I'm all for posts counting in the Lounge. I feel sometimes the conversations there are more intellectual/on topic than in the music threads.

[#Jazzy]

I say get rid of post counts completely.

[Glove Slap]

Jan 10, 2012 18:04:22 GMT -5 #Jazzy said:

I say get rid of post counts completely.

But...what about recertifications?

[hidizzyguy]

I also believe that post counts should be eliminated.

Because the amount of actual music related discussion that goes on in the lounge is rather insignificant, it doesn't make sense to count posts in that section of a music forum.

The "Games" section is actually important enough for it to be a stand alone section in the music-discussion portion of this board, so I don't see why posts here wouldn't count in overall post counts. While there is no actual discussion going on, it's an activity that is music related and interactive. If post counts are not to be counted, it should be moved to the off-topic area of the board.

[Rurry]

I posted on a forum a few years ago that disabled post counts. People were a bit pissed at first but eventually no one really cared...they wound up bringing them back a few years later though. I'm pretty indifferent towards them either way.

I think it'd be fine if Lounge posts counted though. I don't see that section as inferior to any other part of the board.

[dbhmr]

Jan 10, 2012 18:39:11 GMT -5 Rurry said:

I posted on a forum a few years ago that disabled post counts. People were a bit pissed at first but eventually no one really cared...they wound up bringing them back a few years later though. I'm pretty indifferent towards them either way.

I think it'd be fine if Lounge posts counted though. I don't see that section as inferior to any other part of the board.

BUT YOU'RE AT 11,000 EXACTLY!!

[Slizzard]

I would like posts from The Lounge to count.

As for Games section posts, I'm indifferent.

[ry4n]

D'aww but like 50% of my posts come from Games xD

But really, I'm all for Lounge/ Ent posts counting as they're not spam central or contain the majority of the board's threads.

As for Games, I'd prefer if they still counted but I wouldn't be terribly upset if they didn't.

[bb]

Being a newer member, I've come to value the post count. It's a great way to monitor progress for me personally--- for example, I like making sure my landmark posts are of quality. It's a good way of checking that I'm contributing to the board positively. Also, not to imply that I give more respect to older/more senior members, but it's nice to know how experienced each member is. For example, I might be more inclined to listen to a poster who had 13,000 well-spoken posts than someone who had posted 300 times (like me).

As for counting posts in The Lounge, I think that's a great idea. "Random Thoughts" is one of my favorite places to read (I don't always contribute to it, though) because people offer up interesting and evocative anecdotes and opinions. There are some less useful (but yet hilarious) posts of sarcasm and joking, but that really occurs everywhere and not that much more on The Lounge to warrant cutting it.

[Max Ryder]

The post counts at R&R were deactivated after about a year or so because, being so numbers oriented, we all became obsessed with them and we had a post count chart and stuff. Of course, that resulted in a lot of nonsense posting and stuff for the sole purpose of increasing post count. I was saddened at first but I always understood it.

I personally think the post counts being visible is a fun feature of any message board. But there is a level when crossed where it can interfere with the board itself. I don't think it has ever really become an issue here at Pulse but should it ever happen, it's a quick and easy situation to resolve to remove them.

My stance on it is that it shouldn't count in forums for posts that don't generate worthy discussion. I actually totally forgot that the off topic forums didn't count toward the total. But your post count should represent your contribution to the board and being a music centric message board, your contribution is equal to what you contribute to music discussions. So I do understand why the off topic forums don't have post counts. I personally wouldn't disagree with having News & Entertainment count toward the total since that forum is generally discussion based but The Lounge is still a highly nonsensical forum and now that it's been brought up, the Games forum is simply for quick back-and-forth replies that are just a pass-time rather than a contribution.

This post is my perspective as a poster rather than a ruling as an administrator.

[Rurry]

Oh yeah, I think News & Entertainment should count at the very least. I actually wasn't even aware that it didn't.

[.indulgecountry]

I think the News/Entertainment forum should count, but I wouldn't mind seeing the Games section losing that ability (as per above reasoning).

I'm indifferent on The Lounge though, because I feel like there's a lot of people (mainly just newbies) who post in threads like RT with total nonsense, and I don't think that should be rewarded.

[Slizzard]

^ People post nonsense in other forums too.

I wasn't aware that News/Entertainment posts don't count, they definitely should at the very least.

[hymen]

I feel like there's actually more music discussion in the Lounge (or at least Random Thoughts) than in the CHR/Pop forum. When I say this, I mean that there are actual discussions about music - the most recent example being the several pages discussing Fleetwood Mac. In comparison, the CHR/Pop forum is a mess and is very rarely conducive to any real music discussion. There's a lot of bickering, stan wars, and stanning with daily iTunes & radio updates sprinkled in. There is no real discussion in the CHR/Pop forum.

[BILLY SHEARS.]

I strongly disagree that the Lounge is a 'highly nonsensical' forum.

[Glove Slap]

I don't see how The Lounge can be considered to be nonsensical when a good chunk of the replies in General Music News and CHR/POP (and some of the album threads) is "______ is slaying", "Go _____" "what a bullet/sales/downloads, ______ is smashing/slaying/a legend", or just "!!!!!". None of that is contributing to any discussion.

[Max Ryder]

Truefax.

I did want to have it so that those posts could be removed if they didn't contain anything valuable but it didn't seem like a popular idea. I personally really don't like posts like "Go ___!!!!" and whatever else. If only we could have those not even appear in the first place.

[Glove Slap]

Is there a way of setting a minimum limit on words per post? Perhaps around 10 or 15?

[josh]

Jan 11, 2012 12:08:22 GMT -5 Glove Slap said:

Is there a way of setting a minimum limit on words per post? Perhaps around 10 or 15?

People would still get around that though. Extra spaces, repeating words, etc. Unfortunnately.

But I never realized Lounge posts don't count until yesterday when the discussion started. It makes no sense to me, but then again I never saw the post count abusing that happened here...

[BILLY SHEARS.]

I don't want to rehash things I've already posted, my opinion is no more important than anyone else's and I don't want to it to seem like I'm just shooting down ideas, but I also don't want rules to be implemented that I hate and have not said anything.

I don't like either of those ideas. I would simply not want to post on a forum that deleted my posts (or anyone else's). I would not enjoy it and would probably cease posting altogether if that started to happen. That's not supposed to be a threat, it would just change the character and motivations of the board in a way that would mean I could no longer enjoy it.

I also don't think that there's more inherent value in long posts than shorter posts. Plus a ten character limit would just change 'Smash!!!' into 'Smash!!!!!'.

The point more is that posts in the Lounge aren't of inherently less value than posts in other sections, than that posts of low quality have to be 'dealt with'. If I may be horribly cheesy: be the change you want to see in the world. RT at the moment is proof that if you post about things you want to talk about in a style you enjoy reading them in then other people will join in.

[hidizzyguy]

I think that just means that you need to change what certain threads are about. The non-sensical stuff that happens in the CHR/Pop or General Music News threads tend to happen because people choose to take their meaninful conversations into the Random Thoughts thread or Opinion section because it's more welcoming of that type of off-the-cuff idea exchanging.

Isn't that why we have moderators? If you want certain discussions to occur in certain threads, well, there should be effort made to direct it there. It does happen from time to time.

I understand that, currently, a Fleetwood Mac discussion occurred in Random Thoughts - but, that could have easily been taken to the Opinion section of the board had someone just taken it there. And guess what, all those posts would have counted.

The only reason why I bring all this up is because The Loung is specifically described as being a non-music related section of the board. So, I see the two options as being either changing that description, or moving the discussion elsewhere on the board where it's meant to be housed.

[BILLY SHEARS.]

You can't go off topic in Random Thoughts.

[hidizzyguy]

Then create a Random Thoughts, music related section in the Your Opinion Please section or in General Artist Discussion section. Those two already are titled in such a way that it sounds like random, general music discussion such as the type ya'll are describing - it just hasn't been implemented in that way.

We are not restricted by the current set-up of the board - it can change.

[BILLY SHEARS.]

I really don't see how you could read that post and respond the way you did. Nobody actually has a problem with music discussion in RT. The point of this thread was that there is substantial discussion in the Lounge and that's a good thing and there's no reason posts there shouldn't count towards one's post count. The point of this thread was not to try and find ways of moving substantial discussion out of the Lounge or discouraging it. I can't wrap my head around you having drawn that conclusion.

[hidizzyguy]

Because more than one person just complained about how there is non-sensical discussion in actual music related sections of this board and how that should serve as a reason why meaningful discussions held elsewhere SHOULD be counted. So, I'm just saying that if you just move your meaningful discussions to areas of the board that DOES count posts, then it would help relieve some of these issues. Especially because this music-related meaningful discussion is being held in an area where it's really not supposed to happen.

I'm trying to see it through the lens of an admin.

[BILLY SHEARS.]

I'm sure the only way the admins are seeing it is shall we turn post counts on in the Lounge yes or no.

I think the problem is that you think the Lounge = nonsensical and everywhere else = sensical. Leaving aside the music in RT issue (which isn't actually an issue), let's look at the Lounge as whole. I go in there and without scrolling down I see threads about sex changes, personality tests, marrying for money and puberty. Those are clearly not nonsensical. Where would you have us move them?

[hidizzyguy]

Okay, let me break it down a little more to how I see it. As someone said, there are at times more meaningful discussions about music held in the Random Thoughts thread than in other sections of the board such as CHR/Pop, etc. And, I agree. I would also say that the culprits of such non-sensical posts in such threads are being committed by new members, or members that are a little less aware of pulse rules.

If there was a way where meaningful discussions about music could somehow be encouraged and taken to those areas of the board, it might even help out how those areas function in the future. Why? Because when you first type in this board's address in your browser, unless you have it set up to actually log you in, you don't have access to the off-topic sections of the board. So new comers, or lurkers, only have those other threads to judge how this board operates. And CHR/Pop is one of the threads at the very top of the page.

As the #1 source for music charts and discussion, posts should be counted if they deal with music charts and discussion.

Right now, as it stands, The Lounge is for NON-MUSIC, off-topic related discussion. Because that strays away with the board is intended to be, I don't see why posts in those areas should be counted.

Take your meaningful discussions to the areas where posts are counted and where you feel there is non-sensical issues occurring. Because, as you said it: "if you post about things you want to talk about in a style you enjoy reading them in then other people will join in."

And yeah, I also see The Loung as the hub of non-sensical. Out of the 47 threads that are visible on page one, maybe 5 are actually related to music. Are you saying that you want to make The Lounge more sensical, and music related? If yes, that's why I suggested one of the options be that the description of The Lounge be change to reflect that.