Promoting Positive Reinforcment

There is so much negativity ad animosity in the brewery of late I thought it was about time to start a campaign for promoting positive reinforcement better known as the 'like' button. I really miss this as it is a very convenient way to quickly express support to a poster. I have no idea why we lost it but I vote we lobby Ethan to bring it back.

Cheers

Ian

ruffrecords said:

There is so much negativity ad animosity in the brewery of late I thought it was about time to start a campaign for promoting positive reinforcement better known as the 'like' button. I really miss this as it is a very convenient way to quickly express support to a poster. I have no idea why we lost it but I vote we lobby Ethan to bring it back.

Cheers

Ian

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^Like

^Also like!

* like*

'like' is a four letter word , its not much extra trouble to type it ,

Surely for balance if we do go back to like buttons we need a dislike button too ,
If someone does like your post ,I find if people take the time to type a few words to that effect much more meaningful than a simple like . The 'like whore' phenomenon in main stream social media has led to distortion and bias ,it also leads to middle of the road comments ,were the poster plays it safe for the purposes of coming out top of the like list . Again in the case of a dislike button ,its a bit to easy for people to simply 'dislike' without foundation or the need to qualify to some degree their position . So on the basis of what Ive said above I wouldnt support bringing back the like button , if people like or dislike a comment its not too much extra trouble to point out the reasons why ,that energises the discussion .simple unqualified likes/dislikes only polarise it .

Another point I've made in other posts along the way is what constitutes a 'negative' post ,is it something that causes us to feel uncomfortable or confronts or questions our beliefs , I certainly wouldnt call that a negative thing at all ,I'd say its all part of good open discussion . 'Playing the man ,not the ball' on the other hand is the perfect derailing tactic to shut down debate.

Tubetec said:

Another point I've made in other posts along the way is what constitutes a 'negative' post ,is it something that causes us to feel uncomfortable or confronts or questions our beliefs , I certainly wouldn't call that a negative thing at all

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Most posts that I would  consider negative are  ones that question the judgement of a prior poster rather than addressing the topic. These certainly make me feel uncomfortable on behalf of the original poster. I also cannot understand why anyone would want to confront or question a belief.? You might question a fact but how can you question a belief? By definition a belief is beyond question.

I think a like button is a good idea because there is far too much negativity on social media and it is an unfortunate fact that overtly negative people tend to be the ones that respond most often. And anyway, it is nice to give and receive praise and anything that makes that easier is a good thing in my book.

Cheers

Ian

I like,  But not a dislike button.  Ignoring the post says it all.

I think the Like button is a good idea, as long as it's used responsibly and with respect. I've seen people use the like button at Gearslutz as a method of shaming or promoting an idea without any additional input. It can stoop to a juvenile level and can also be used as a vengeful tactic via previous third parties(liking someone's post against a person you've previously disagreed with). It starts to promote a group gang-up type mentality.

To me, the nastiest level of discussion is when it reaches Ad Hominem. At that point, there is no discussion. Any Ad Hominem should be highly discouraged(which I think it is) especially with the amount of political discussion going on. The current state of politics is tense enough as it is.

In fact, if I ran the forum I think I would ban all political discussion period, as it's an entirely subjective subject matter that often leads to heated debates.

This idea has already been run up the flag pole so we'll see.

I am not sure how it will reduce animosity, but it was a nice feature that I also miss. It could be helpful in technical threads to help newbies separate the wheat from the chaff... Presumably technical posts with more likes could be more accurate/useful.

I have speculated about don't like buttons so people could get real time negative feedback (a form of group self-moderation).  Positive feedback in system control leads to instability, while negative feedback keeps systems under control and away from the ditches.  ;D

Of course not quite that simple when herding cats.  :

I have run out of ideas (for now), so why not? 

JR

desol said:

In fact, if I ran the forum I think I would ban all political discussion period, as it's an entirely subjective subject matter that often leads to heated debates.

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Like

IMO, the "like" and "dislike" buttons represent the zero-level of interactive discussion, of which I'm sometimes guilty, using the "+1" formula, which is justified when the OP has clearly and fully expressed his arguments.
However, "Dislike" needs to be complemented with substantiated arguments , otherwise it is only an expletive.
So "Like" and "Dislike" are not symmetrical.
I would not want the presence of a "Like" button to be the cause of a drift that infects our group of diseases that affect social media.
I advocate expressing praise and criticism in the most explanatory way.  "Like " and "Dislike" are terribly binary (ternary?).
If an opinion deserves to be expressed, it deserves that it be done as clearly as possible, "now, or remain silent". 

abbey road d enfer said:

IMO, the "like" and "dislike" buttons represent the zero-level of interactive discussion, of which I'm sometimes guilty, using the "+1" formula, which is justified when the OP has clearly and fully expressed his arguments.
However, "Dislike" needs to be complemented with substantiated arguments , otherwise it is only an expletive.
So "Like" and "Dislike" are not symmetrical.
I would not want the presence of a "Like" button to be the cause of a drift that infects our group of diseases that affect social media.
I advocate expressing praise and criticism in the most explanatory way.  "Like " and "Dislike" are terribly binary (ternary?).
If an opinion deserves to be expressed, it deserves that it be done as clearly as possible, "now, or remain silent". 

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You make some very good points. I never go anywhere near mainstream social media so I have no idea how well intentioned ideas such a the like button have been corrupted. I would not wish to see a like button here become tainted in that way. On balance it is probably better to make the effort and give praise where it is due.

Cheers

Ian

> ban all political discussion

PRR said:

> ban all political discussion

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Well, isn't just a bunch of speculative non-sense anyway? And what good does it do, really, other than create the possibility for combative discussion. I was a member at another forum that didn't allow it, and it really kept the forum running smoothly. No blow ups, heated debates, etc. Was quite nice. 

+1

Ian

Reddit's approach is nice, where threads are weighted by votes, and they rise and fall on the page not by age or reply frequency, but by value consensus.

Also I'll take damning criticism or enlightening replies over a thumb icon, as the 'like' button lets people chime in without paying for it by having their ideas occasionally challenged.

ruffrecords said:

+1

Ian

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+2

Mike

madswitcher said:

+2

Mike

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+1

although I do enjoy learning while checking up on the various claims and opinions I come across. I'm definitely more equipped to have some discourse with people who I encounter that want to chew fat on some world events and I have this place to thank for that among other things.....

It's a tough call for me.... There is definitely a lot of dross in some of the stuff but, some real neat stuff too...

As far as the likes, IDK....I really don't care and would echo Tubetec's view although I'm just going off of his perception that makes enough sense to me to give pause..... I do feel giddy when I get more likes than dislikes on my video of how to make a repair on my truck but, I really don't put too much weight on it. I definitely appreciate the comments more....

And I definitely want to hear about any errors in my thinking or process...I don't take praise well anyhow...... I'm well aware that the more mistakes I make, the better I get at avoiding them...........

JohnRoberts said:

This idea has already been run up the flag pole so we'll see.

I am not sure how it will reduce animosity, but it was a nice feature that I also miss. It could be helpful in technical threads to help newbies separate the wheat from the chaff... Presumably technical posts with more likes could be more accurate/useful.

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This is interesting. I haven't been around long enough to see this but it sounds good. So would it be considered for technical related threads only???

cursory read through ,and semi digested on a belly full of beer ;

scott2000 said:

This is interesting. I haven't been around long enough to see this but it sounds good. So would it be considered for technical related threads only???

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I can't speak for Ethan, but he is aware of the recent request (not the first time).

I would lower expectations for something complicated. AFAIK the like button we had before was a relatively standard forum feature, but it was turned off for a reason, so we'll have to see what happens.

JR