Silk Road forums

Support => Feature requests => Topic started by: BenJesuit on April 09, 2012, 03:22 pm

Title: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: BenJesuit on April 09, 2012, 03:22 pm
I propose getting rid of the negative Karma feature. It renders the Karma feature useless. I see way too many good posters with negative karma probably left by cowardly trolls. The negative karma serves no function under these circumstance since it's all too easy for someone to leave it without any accountability.

If you're going to keep it, we should be able to see who leaves Karma - good or bad. You'll see a lot less negative karma dolled out when someone has to take responsibility for it.

Moreover, if someone leaves negative Karma, we should be able to see why they did it? It could serve as a learning tool. A certain point of view might not be popular. A certain post might have struck a wrong cord with someone. But since they can simply leave negative Karma on a whim, a poster will never know how to correct or elaborate on an opinion.

I also noticed a little less discussion on the forum since the introduction of Karma. As people were arbitrarily racking up negative Karma, it seems they left off from starting or engaging in any thought provoking threads.

So consider a re-examination of the Karma system. IMO, positive Karma should stay but it would be nice to see who left it and for what post.

Here's an interesting poll that shows that negative Karma wouldn't be a missed feature: http://dkn255hz262ypmii.onion/index.php?topic=17667.0
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: AbraCadaver on April 09, 2012, 03:39 pm
I'm not afraid of negative karma.

I like the responsibility thing, but it too might be open to abuse.


For me it's all about the strength in numbers argument. There aren't more trolls out there than drug buyers, and there never will be. 
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: BenJesuit on April 09, 2012, 04:08 pm
Most aren't "afraid" of it. It just doesn't make sense. Especially without putting the one who leaves it in a state of accountability for having left it.

I see some excellent and trustworthy posters with more negative than positive Karma. What does it infer? Nothing other than that a bunch of cowards left negative feedback because they could in an anonymous manner.

Having a negative Karma feature doesn't reflect well on the community.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: cacoethes on April 09, 2012, 05:03 pm
Most aren't "afraid" of it. It just doesn't make sense. Especially without putting the one who leaves it in a state of accountability for having left it.

I see some excellent and trustworthy posters with more negative than positive Karma. What does it infer? Nothing other than that a bunch of cowards left negative feedback because they could in an anonymous manner.

Having a negative Karma feature doesn't reflect well on the community.

+1.  That's why I'm so liberal with posikarma.  If all full members give out posikarma whenever they can, it helps offset the negakarma left by the trolls.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Fah-Q on April 09, 2012, 06:21 pm
I think SR  should get rid of karma all together. I get negative negative karma just for stating I did not not like a particular brand of xanax. I wasn't disrespectful to anyone or did not insinuate or insult any vendor. It was just stating my opinion. On the other end, I see vendors that get a large numbers of positive karma just because people that liked the product/service that the vendor gives. That should only be left in the vendor feedback page. I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: nedthehead on April 09, 2012, 06:56 pm
Absolutely!! agree completely!   New here, I've made two posts; both were just questions.  Yeah, maybe they were stupid questions, ... probably were.  But I looked around for answers before posting; they were short, my tone was respectful. 

Ding! negative "karma."  No idea why.  Would like to know ... what did I do to offend? ... I could maybe decide whether to do it again.  This way, all I know is somebody had some problem with something.

And here's the worst part; it discouraged me from posting.  Yes, I'm being too honest here.  I know it shouldn't matter.  I shouldn't give a sht what kind of little pluses or minuses are by my name, but I kinda do .. pssed me off enough to post this and risk getting more negatives for this, too.  So be it.  Badge of honor.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: uniwiz on April 09, 2012, 07:12 pm
I think SR  should get rid of karma all together. I get negative negative karma just for stating I did not not like a particular brand of xanax. I wasn't disrespectful to anyone or did not insinuate or insult any vendor. It was just stating my opinion. On the other end, I see vendors that get a large numbers of positive karma just because people that liked the product/service that the vendor gives. That should only be left in the vendor feedback page. I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature.
"I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature."
Really? Where?
 I don't think most understand it, or it's implications.
I like handing out lots of positive karma to helpful people.
Negative karma, to those who abuse the rules, people, or can't read.
Not to hard to figure to neg rep you;) Cause it's always -1 for -1.
So they sort of figured out that feature, even if it's not turned on.
A better one, would be how much positive vs negative karma you handed out. Would tell a lot about a person.
If you are a good person, the karma will average out.
Now if groups forms, which I see that feature is enabled, you could attack some one with lots of negative karma.

What's the point?
There are no penalties.
Some people want to say thank you.
Others want you to know they disapprove.
I get it.
 
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: risky2 on April 09, 2012, 07:41 pm
The problem I see with karma its all one big guessing game - or + karma. We just don't really know what posts are driving it up or down. It could be recent post or it could be a post from a week ago.

Maybe if there was some board 'bot' that sent out a pm on forum accounts like, "this post on <insert post time here> was given a -1". Then we could at least have a idea.

 And the problem with knowing who specifically gives you - or + karma is that it forms battle lines in forums. Like, " oh that guy gave me a +, he's now my cool buddy", or "that guy gave me a neg, screw him I'm getting him back next time."

But yeah I wish something would change with the karma cause of the "guessing game" aspect.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: boringflooring on April 09, 2012, 07:46 pm
anyone here ever worked in retail? You could go above and beyond to help a customer leaving them thrilled with the experience, and maybe 1 out of 10 will compliment your service to the manager/corporate offices. Say the wrong thing to a douche of a customer and 9 out of 10 will make a complaint.  That's the problem with the karma system.  Good helpful advice often goes unrecognized, but rub somebody the wrong way and watch how fast you'll get negative karma......

I like the idea of being able to only leave positive karma.  It isn't perfect, but neither is the current system and it can be skewed given the example i gave
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Stormtrooper420 on April 09, 2012, 08:08 pm
I agree, plus maybe have it to where posters over 250 are the only peopl that can do it or something?? Cuz trolls usually don't post that much so we would get a lot more trustworthy answers. It still wouldn't be 100% but I think it'd be better!

Best Regards,
Stormtrooper
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: LittlePharma on April 09, 2012, 08:29 pm
Uniwiz, I'm new to the forums, but I must say, everything of yours I read is really wise.  I agree with your point of view.  I'd +1 you, but i don't have Karma points yet  ::)
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: BenJesuit on April 09, 2012, 10:01 pm
I think SR  should get rid of karma all together. I get negative negative karma just for stating I did not not like a particular brand of xanax. I wasn't disrespectful to anyone or did not insinuate or insult any vendor. It was just stating my opinion. On the other end, I see vendors that get a large numbers of positive karma just because people that liked the product/service that the vendor gives. That should only be left in the vendor feedback page. I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature.
"I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature."
Really? Where?
 I don't think most understand it, or it's implications.
I like handing out lots of positive karma to helpful people.
Negative karma, to those who abuse the rules, people, or can't read.
Not to hard to figure to neg rep you;) Cause it's always -1 for -1.
So they sort of figured out that feature, even if it's not turned on.
A better one, would be how much positive vs negative karma you handed out. Would tell a lot about a person.
If you are a good person, the karma will average out.
Now if groups forms, which I see that feature is enabled, you could attack some one with lots of negative karma.

What's the point?
There are no penalties.
Some people want to say thank you.
Others want you to know they disapprove.
I get it.

Here's a problem you might not have considered;

I made a post in which someone disagreed because they didn't understand or because they did really think in through. Luckily they also left a post in thread expressing their disagreement. After elaborating, they saw my point, agreed and realized that they simply read it wrong.

There are those who are too lazy to engage in discussion and would take the easy cowardly way out and leave negative Karma. The best way to express disapproval is to "vocalize" it. Through discussion, you can come to common ground, change your or their opinion, or agree to disagree. But with this negative karma feature in place, you see less of that. Less fleshing out of ideas. Oddly enough, some do get demoralized and leave off their idea when they see negative karma given out for their idea.

Negative Karma needs to go. I really doesn't serve any positive purpose. The purpose of a forum is to express ideas, beliefs, and positions. There shouldn't be anything getting in the way of that. It's fairly clear that negative Karma doesn't foster the exchange of ideas. It stiffles them and turns many posters off and in some cases, intimidates them from further participation.

Negative Karma, must go. <----- picket sign slogan. 
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: DeadRa7 on April 09, 2012, 10:04 pm
I came to this discussion looking to start a topic like this, and was pleased when I found this-OP said it better than I could have, so thank you for that.

Ive been on the road for about a month, started asking questions and positively (or so I thought) contributing to the many lively conversations that take place here, and to my surprise find that, as of today, im down for the count by -2...I honestly don't think ive contributed to this community enough to receive any positive, and might have came off as a bit childish at first (mind you, im in my 20's), but certainly haven't offended anyone that I know of.

A closer look at this system might prove to be beneficial in the long run; this is no regular forum;peoples money, time, and lives are put on the line here, so even the smallest of details should be closely examined to ensure its full effectiveness.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: mrgrey on April 09, 2012, 10:09 pm
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: cacoethes on April 09, 2012, 10:30 pm
Most aren't "afraid" of it. It just doesn't make sense. Especially without putting the one who leaves it in a state of accountability for having left it.

I see some excellent and trustworthy posters with more negative than positive Karma. What does it infer? Nothing other than that a bunch of cowards left negative feedback because they could in an anonymous manner.

Having a negative Karma feature doesn't reflect well on the community.

+1.  That's why I'm so liberal with posikarma.  If all full members give out posikarma whenever they can, it helps offset the negakarma left by the trolls.

Lol, check it out...  I haven't posted anywhere else to go from -2 to -5...  Look at the little baby trolls in action!

Hey trolls...  Fuck you.  You are all a bunch of cowards.  It isn't enough that you hide behind the anonymity of Tor, but you don't even have the balls to stand behind your attacks.

Keep it coming, girls.  Show me what you got.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: cacoethes on April 09, 2012, 10:32 pm
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...

-1 for being a douche bag.

See how pointless this really is?
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: mrgrey on April 09, 2012, 10:40 pm
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...

-1 for being a douche bag.

See how pointless this really is?

right back at ya ;)  i think its sort of fun...

and yes negative karma is most def needed,  its how we can mark scammer, troller, etc... accounts.   that was one of the entire reasons it was started, because people would scam then switch names, and keep their post count, and use a new name no one recognized, and scam again.  the negative karma allows people to track them and see they are bullshitting. 

plus its fun to fuck with people  for saying dumb shit, asking retarded questions, and whining about negative karma.  if ya dont like all your negative points then maybe start saying smart things and build some points up in the positive side.  in case you havent noticed everyone here as negative karma, even the mods, and they arent crying about it.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: uniwiz on April 09, 2012, 10:40 pm
I think SR  should get rid of karma all together. I get negative negative karma just for stating I did not not like a particular brand of xanax. I wasn't disrespectful to anyone or did not insinuate or insult any vendor. It was just stating my opinion. On the other end, I see vendors that get a large numbers of positive karma just because people that liked the product/service that the vendor gives. That should only be left in the vendor feedback page. I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature.
"I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature."
Really? Where?
 I don't think most understand it, or it's implications.
I like handing out lots of positive karma to helpful people.
Negative karma, to those who abuse the rules, people, or can't read.
Not to hard to figure to neg rep you;) Cause it's always -1 for -1.
So they sort of figured out that feature, even if it's not turned on.
A better one, would be how much positive vs negative karma you handed out. Would tell a lot about a person.
If you are a good person, the karma will average out.
Now if groups forms, which I see that feature is enabled, you could attack some one with lots of negative karma.

What's the point?
There are no penalties.
Some people want to say thank you.
Others want you to know they disapprove.
I get it.

Here's a problem you might not have considered;

I made a post in which someone disagreed because they didn't understand or because they did really think in through. Luckily they also left a post in thread expressing their disagreement. After elaborating, they saw my point, agreed and realized that they simply read it wrong.

There are those who are too lazy to engage in discussion and would take the easy cowardly way out and leave negative Karma. The best way to express disapproval is to "vocalize" it. Through discussion, you can come to common ground, change your or their opinion, or agree to disagree. But with this negative karma feature in place, you see less of that. Less fleshing out of ideas. Oddly enough, some do get demoralized and leave off their idea when they see negative karma given out for their idea.

Negative Karma needs to go. I really doesn't serve any positive purpose. The purpose of a forum is to express ideas, beliefs, and positions. There shouldn't be anything getting in the way of that. It's fairly clear that negative Karma doesn't foster the exchange of ideas. It stiffles them and turns many posters off and in some cases, intimidates them from further participation.

Negative Karma, must go. <----- picket sign slogan.

Yes I do understand.
I was a member of a very public forum that used this feature for politics.
And they were allowed to group attack. You learn, quickly, or get banned.

This system isn't all that bad. Nothing bad will happen if you get too much bad karma.
Everything you have said has happened to me, it's ok. They feel better, I didn't see it as abuse.
I want to say thanks for people who help the community. Reward for good behavior.
But I also need the stick, for not bothering to read. Penalty for bad behavior.
People need to stop being selfish, not likely to happen soon.
It's a simple reward/punish system that could be abused.
Thats why you have mods.  :)
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: uniwiz on April 09, 2012, 10:46 pm
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...

-1 for being a douche bag.

See how pointless this really is?



right back at ya ;)  i think its sort of fun...

and yes negative karma is most def needed,  its how we can mark scammer, troller, etc... accounts.   that was one of the entire reasons it was started, because people would scam then switch names, and keep their post count, and use a new name no one recognized, and scam again.  the negative karma allows people to track them and see they are bullshitting. 

plus its fun to fuck with people  for saying dumb shit, asking retarded questions, and whining about negative karma.  if ya dont like all your negative points then maybe start saying smart things and build some points up in the positive side.  in case you havent noticed everyone here as negative karma, even the mods, and they arent crying about it.

MrGrey,

You know I respect you.
I need a program to give you a +1 every 72 hours.
Mr Dank -1 every 72 hours.
How much Warweed going to charge for that feature? :'(

Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: mrgrey on April 09, 2012, 11:02 pm
thx uni :)

if ya get that script lemme know, +1s for uni and -1s moonbear every 72 hours! hah ;)
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: cacoethes on April 09, 2012, 11:29 pm
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...

-1 for being a douche bag.

See how pointless this really is?

right back at ya ;)  i think its sort of fun...

and yes negative karma is most def needed,  its how we can mark scammer, troller, etc... accounts.   that was one of the entire reasons it was started, because people would scam then switch names, and keep their post count, and use a new name no one recognized, and scam again.  the negative karma allows people to track them and see they are bullshitting. 

plus its fun to fuck with people  for saying dumb shit, asking retarded questions, and whining about negative karma.  if ya dont like all your negative points then maybe start saying smart things and build some points up in the positive side.  in case you havent noticed everyone here as negative karma, even the mods, and they arent crying about it.

You can actually switch names and still keep your post count?  Really?  How asinine is that?  Makes more sense to simply remove that ability than to use a karmic rating.

+1 to you for teaching me something new.  If I can give you + after giving you -, that is...

Edit: It seems I can.  Well, everything balances out, doesn't it?  Even Steven...
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: mrgrey on April 09, 2012, 11:36 pm
i guess im feeling generous too ;)

and yes people switching names and keeping their post count was a little big some took advantage of,  a lot features on sr may not make sense but there really is a reason for them.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: cacoethes on April 10, 2012, 12:05 am
Don't get me wrong...  I think the whole concept of Silk Road is a stroke of genius, and I appreciate the amount of thought that's gone into it, the constant improvements that have been made, and the fact that comments in the forums are often taken into consideration by SR admin.

I may not agree with every decision, but I realize this isn't a democracy, and I still find the experience to be overwhelmingly positive...  I participate in the forums because I enjoy it.

Our confrontation, mrgrey, worked out to the better because we didn't hide behind a cloak of anonymity when leaving negakarma.  Which is my whole point, really...  If you're gonna ding someone, let them know why.  Communication solves so many problems.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: DeadRa7 on April 10, 2012, 07:23 am
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...

You sir, are an ignorant fuck.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: betaraybob on April 10, 2012, 08:51 am
Absolutely!! agree completely!   New here, I've made two posts; both were just questions.  Yeah, maybe they were stupid questions, ... probably were.  But I looked around for answers before posting; they were short, my tone was respectful. 

Ding! negative "karma."  No idea why.  Would like to know ... what did I do to offend? ... I could maybe decide whether to do it again.  This way, all I know is somebody had some problem with something.

And here's the worst part; it discouraged me from posting.  Yes, I'm being too honest here.  I know it shouldn't matter.  I shouldn't give a sht what kind of little pluses or minuses are by my name, but I kinda do .. pssed me off enough to post this and risk getting more negatives for this, too.  So be it.  Badge of honor.

needlenose ned? ned the head? got the shingles real bad senior year, almost didn't graduate? bing again! positive karma for you sir
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: phubaiblues on April 10, 2012, 09:34 am
First: I really appreciate the people who keep improving on SilkRoad.  This site would be lost without all the volunteers who provide useful information, and help newbies, and of course, the moderators. 

I know what they were trying to do, with the Karma, was simply provide a way for people who don't log in every day, to know who's trustworthy, and who's just a whiner.  Who helps, and who causes problems.

But Karma just isn't working the way I'm sure it was supposed to work.  I don't use it.  Does anybody?  I mean, I've posted positive feedback, and I won't post negative feedback.  But I've seen too many people on here, some of them friends of mine, who are always trying to help people, and to see them get negative karma just tells me it doesn't work. 

If everybody on here were good, well-meaning members of Silk Road, sure, then I guess it would show who you can best rely on, or something like that.  But, since we have all kinds of idiots, trolls and just plain mean-spirited assholes, who post negative karma for no reason I can figure, it just doesn't serve any purpose.

I don't know a single instance where 'Karma' has helped me.  The truth is, like most forums, the only way you are really going to know who you can rely on, on here, is by logging in daily for a while, and even then, I suspect most are like me: I started out reading everything, but as the site grew--and boy has it grown--I tend to stick more and more to just the forums that apply particularly to me.

And when I occasionally do want to read or post on, say, the Security Forum, or elsewhere, the Karma has not really helped me, as again: the few screw it up for the many. 

So, with total gratitude to those who thought this up, unfortunately I'm for just removing Karma altogether, as an idea where the reality didn't measure up to the good intentions of those who designed it.  I guess you could try it with just 'positive' for a while, but even that, I don't know if it will really serve any good purpose.  But I call on all good members of SR to just refrain from posting negative feedback, as it's mostly just used by trolls.

Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: AbraCadaver on April 10, 2012, 09:53 am
I call on all good members of SR to just refrain from posting negative feedback, as it's mostly just used by trolls.

Any objections to negging actual trolls? I still firmly believe that it's not practical to organize large numbers of trollings, the demand for banned substances is much stronger than the demand for the banning of them. You can't really troll this forum in an effective way in the long term
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: mrgrey on April 10, 2012, 07:45 pm
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...

You sir, are an ignorant fuck.

and some more negative karma coming your way too ;)

you are stacking em up man, +0 and -8 ... i guess that shows the karma system is working in this guys case!
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: vlad1m1r on April 14, 2012, 03:12 pm
I think SR  should get rid of karma all together. I get negative negative karma just for stating I did not not like a particular brand of xanax. I wasn't disrespectful to anyone or did not insinuate or insult any vendor. It was just stating my opinion. On the other end, I see vendors that get a large numbers of positive karma just because people that liked the product/service that the vendor gives. That should only be left in the vendor feedback page. I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature.
"I think there is to much misuse/abuse of the Karma feature."
Really? Where?
 I don't think most understand it, or it's implications.
I like handing out lots of positive karma to helpful people.
Negative karma, to those who abuse the rules, people, or can't read.
Not to hard to figure to neg rep you;) Cause it's always -1 for -1.
So they sort of figured out that feature, even if it's not turned on.
A better one, would be how much positive vs negative karma you handed out. Would tell a lot about a person.
If you are a good person, the karma will average out.
Now if groups forms, which I see that feature is enabled, you could attack some one with lots of negative karma.

What's the point?
There are no penalties.
Some people want to say thank you.
Others want you to know they disapprove.
I get it.

I saw a few days ago I was given negative karma though I can't imagine for the life of me why! The other upsetting feature about it is that I like to help people new to SR, particularly those who're unfamiliar with ways to conceal their browsing feature but of course they can't award karma until they become full members and have long since forgotten all the little people who helped them get to the top! Still life goes on. :-)

V.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: DeadRa7 on April 15, 2012, 10:42 am
i just gave you some more negative karma for whining...

You sir, are an ignorant fuck.

and some more negative karma coming your way too ;)

you are stacking em up man, +0 and -8 ... i guess that shows the karma system is working in this guys case!

What the fuck are you talking about?  How about you stop turning all that blow your buying into crack, because you sure sound like you've been hitting the pipe a little bit too much lately...fuck karma, I'm just here to buy drugs
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: vlad1m1r on April 15, 2012, 05:34 pm
Absolutely!! agree completely!   New here, I've made two posts; both were just questions.  Yeah, maybe they were stupid questions, ... probably were.  But I looked around for answers before posting; they were short, my tone was respectful. 

Ding! negative "karma."  No idea why.  Would like to know ... what did I do to offend? ... I could maybe decide whether to do it again.  This way, all I know is somebody had some problem with something.

And here's the worst part; it discouraged me from posting.  Yes, I'm being too honest here.  I know it shouldn't matter.  I shouldn't give a sht what kind of little pluses or minuses are by my name, but I kinda do .. pssed me off enough to post this and risk getting more negatives for this, too.  So be it.  Badge of honor.

needlenose ned? ned the head? got the shingles real bad senior year, almost didn't graduate? bing again! positive karma for you sir

I dated your sister until you told me to stop - bing! What a film...!

V.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: vlad1m1r on April 15, 2012, 05:36 pm
My only real gripe as I said is that I tend to spend more time helping newer members but I have to pick the brains of more experienced users like yourselves so perhaps it's not the fairest system if you have a lot of time for noobs but sometimes need a little help yourself.

In any case, as we've said the system solves more problems than it causes!  :)

V.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: BenJesuit on April 17, 2012, 01:07 am
After a while, posters will just ignore the whole karma thing as it really isn't a viable indication of trustworthiness, helpfulness, or insightfulness. New posters will figure that out quickly enough to not worry about it.

Having added the Negative Karma feature is what made the system functionally irrelevant. Sure, it can alert you to some trolls. But "troll" is a matter of perspective. In this place, a troll can be someone who is overly paranoid but has good advice about security. Or a troll can be someone who warns about something fishy going on with a vendor only later to be found out that they were right on the money.

Anyway, the staff here should really consider getting rid of the negative karma feature and just have a system of +Karma. It would then be like most forums with either a rep system or a thank system.

Let's keep it real. Some posters may be doling out negative karma when they are high and probably wouldn't have when sober.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Gusman17 on April 26, 2012, 01:57 pm
Word. I see I got my 1st negative karma point and I don't even know what I did. Not like I've posted controversial opinions anywhere here.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: mntmnwva on May 02, 2012, 04:02 pm
Word. I see I got my 1st negative karma point and I don't even know what I did. Not like I've posted controversial opinions anywhere here.
Welcome to the club, it seems there is no real substance to this "karma."  :-X
(watch that get me another -1 karma, lol)
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: venturebros on May 02, 2012, 07:01 pm
Does it really matter? like affect you negatively. Then I wouldn't worry too much about it.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on May 02, 2012, 07:18 pm
- its used to "beat someone about the head with"
- its misused to make someone appear a troll.
- the reasons/motivation for applying negative karma aren't applied to the next person.

- afraid to say but this karma thing is a sinister aspect of SR; its like questioning ministers about their expenses, the lack of a decent response
  gives you impression someone doesn't want to know or something suspect going on...
- pretty obvious some are taking it as a competition or to big themselves up, i don't care if the individuals have +35 karma and i don't have time
  to type up 300 line posts i help where i can and i dont know much about politics, but its very clear how its being abused and those they do know  seem to be pretending know nothing about it -is the biggest disappointment.
    you know what i mean?! -when you know management at work are allowing boxes to go out the back door you find out, and when you
    question it, that uncomfortable 'silence' -they know you know and the answer is a bit flimsy..?!

- last of all i see individuals who should have plenty +karma and have null....?!
  clearly not much fairness going on, but then what goes on here the same injustice is out there.




Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on May 04, 2012, 08:54 pm
Does it really matter? like affect you negatively. Then I wouldn't worry too much about it.

- whats the efffect when someone is doing something for free or giving their free time to charity and a customer takes off at them/ is rude / takes out their frustrations which is unwarranted, or simply does not appreciate "they doing it for free"?! -well i wouldnt blame them packing
 it in and realising "its just not worth being treated like this"

- it certainly doesn't do much positive for society and we wonder why there is little care for the next man.


Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: phubaiblues on May 05, 2012, 03:05 am
The truth is, the karma thing--though well intentioned--just isn't serving a very good purpose.  I realized right away that negative karma seemed to just be a toy in the hands of chronic haters on here anyway...too many of my friends, people I respect, were getting negative karma for no good reason at all.  I just disregard it, the same way I've learned to disregard posts by fake/new usernames for the sake of hiding identity while ranting a bit. 

I welcome newcomers, and their questioning posts, but I think in another thread of mine, you'd suggested perhaps some sort of 'sandbox' for first 30 days or so, where maybe they would have some restraints or what-have-you... 

It's unfortunate that, as always on the net, the few can screw it up for the many...it's been happening since the old listserve days, before the web had even got going...

But yeah, I'm in favor of getting rid of negative, and positive I just use to thank people for thoughtful posts....
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on May 05, 2012, 06:59 pm
..sensible comments phubaiblues, agree with most of your points.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Chuck Schumer - Democrat on May 11, 2012, 06:11 pm
I'm not afraid of negative karma.


Good thing!  Haa haa, sorry couldn't help it. ;D
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: sourman on June 05, 2012, 03:34 pm
I completely agree with all your points, BenJesuit. In fact I sent you a +1 cause fuck -1s haha. I still have no idea why I have -1.

Most forum reputation systems don't keep a separate record of negatives. You just get one bar or other scale depicting your reps, and any -1 votes deduct points from your overall rep level rather than being registered separately. IMHO, this is the way to do it. People clearly abuse the negative karma and it's especially retarded cause we have no way of seeing who left it.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: goblin on June 05, 2012, 08:55 pm
Agree! No more - karma. It serves no practical purpose, otehr than to get people angry. What the fuck for?

goblin
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on June 05, 2012, 10:16 pm
- even mods with 1000 odd posts with quite high positive karma seem to have 'round 50% as negative karma, so :
  doesn't seem to have much purpose nor point?!
  doesn't separate a real troublemaker from another...
  is its purpose to selectively enforce banning orders and eventual account closure when you've reached -50 ?!
 
- its not even worth pursuing this any further the writings on the wall.

Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: oscarzululondon on June 05, 2012, 10:32 pm
- even mods with 1000 odd posts with quite high positive karma seem to have 'round 50% as negative karma, so :

Curious, I noticed this too. It's almost exactly 50/50 for mods. This happens to be the only interesting thing about Karma though.

If you could see what the negative Karma was given for then maybe it would be more useful but I doubt the site admins know how to program that into this pre-made forum.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: sourman on June 10, 2012, 08:59 pm
So I just got another -1 for no apparent reason. I only made 2 posts recently; one was in this thread and the other a run-of-the-mill cannabis review. It would be nice if we could at least see who is giving us negatives, and for what. How am I supposed to "learn" from the negs if I can't even see what post triggered them?
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: workforit69 on June 10, 2012, 09:49 pm

Lets first begin by agreeing that the thing labeled on the left there as karma is far from that. I am a huge believer in karma but from my experiences with it on other sites I can tell you that it will most probably become an annoyance to users due to how arbitrarily it can be given out, sometimes by people who might not even know what it actually means. I already see posts popping up here and there with complaints about it and I can say with a high degree of confidence that it will only get worse.

At a minimum the karma gods should have to at least explain why they gave someone a negative score.... based on my experiences with it so far on this site I will only say that a couple of the people that gave me negative karma either don't know what it means or do and just wanted to give me a negative score anyway out of spite or some other random emotion they were feeling that day because they didn't agree with what i said or how i said it or ...... bottom line it had nothing to do with karma.

If on the off chance the use of it doesn't collapse on itself it would be great if it could be called something else ... as  a person who is huge believer in real karma i find it kind of annoying that the word is being misused.

OK enough of this and back to ignoring the "karma" scores...
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: soyyo1114873 on June 11, 2012, 01:10 pm
I agree, Jeezus, I fuckin' agree!
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: genghar on June 11, 2012, 01:46 pm
Thinking back to my posting history, I can only think of 2-3 posts of great contention.  I now have -6 karma.  It's weird, but hey, if you're judged for having bad karma and not on an individual post basis, then that's totally not on you to deal with.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: MojoMan on June 12, 2012, 01:46 am
Admin's probably can't remove karma as it's a standard forum feature they can't program.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: GunsoftheNavarone86 on June 14, 2012, 07:21 am
I agree with the OP -- I don't care about karma that much, but as you can see I have very few posts here at all. I've never got into an argument with someone on here, and I mostly stick to the drug safety section where I post nothing but what I feel is straight forward helpful advice. For some reason I have gained negative two karma but no one ever posted anything negative in response to me. It just seems like sometimes if someone is in a bad mood you are going to get negative karma. Like the OP I believe if you have to put your name behind that karma it would truly show what is from spammer and what is from legitimate users. Otherwise, what is the point of the thing at all if its just a measurement of how many spammers randomly hit your "+" or "–" buttons?
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: fsgr on June 14, 2012, 08:00 am
You get negitive karma when you call out or expose scammers and dodgy vendors.

People go out of their way to hate but dont care for the positive when comes.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: soyyo1114873 on June 29, 2012, 05:06 pm
Hey trolls...  Fuck you.  You are all a bunch of cowards.  It isn't enough that you hide behind the anonymity of Tor, but you don't even have the balls to stand behind your attacks.
Applause, applause! I love it when somebody has the balls to call out the motherfuckers who's only joy in life seems to be to snipe and bite from behind their mommie's skirts.

Boohoohoo to all you babies, you think you're doing anybody any harm? Why don't you go suck on your mommie's tits, apparently you haven't grown up yet.

soyyo
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: jim765676 on July 11, 2012, 01:42 am
how do you even leave karma? I cant seem to find the button, and when i asked somewhere else i got these 5 neg karma points....
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: jurdermunkie on July 11, 2012, 10:45 am
I agree 100%!! Look at most talk show or some form of public speaking. They will always have some not agree but tip toe on words. The ones like myself who do not always appeal to the popular. It takes balls to stand your ground with unpopular speech. The ones who could give a fuck are what opens things up for debate. I think its dumb feature.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: InkIndulgence on July 12, 2012, 03:32 am
I'm so glad I found this post!

I only made a few posts last night about how glad I was to be here, and when I logged in today I had a -1 karma point! The hurt kid in me who just wants everyone to like them was, for a moment, crushed! I actually thought for much longer than was necessary about what my 2 or so posts about being excited on the site could have offended someone for, or somehow be in distaste!

But then again someone also gave me +1 karma and that swelled my lil heart right back up with joy, so thank you!
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on July 12, 2012, 10:08 pm
...if you give cave trolls enough guns and weapons they would soon wipe each other out, perhaps the forum karma is an experiment


TWM
 
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Ahoyhoy on July 14, 2012, 12:52 pm
I'm no mathematician, but if I have a positive karma of 16 and a negative karma of -9, doesn't that mean I have a positive karma of 7?
No need to show the negative karma, just a case of simple subtraction....
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Discordian on July 15, 2012, 12:43 pm
Karma Questions:

How does a user leave positive/negative karma?
                         What is a "Full Member" (seems only they can leave karma)?

Are there any effects from receiving karma?
                         Does a user with a certain amount of positive karma get discounts, access to hidden forums/features?
                         Does a user with a certain amount of negative karma get banned or anything special?
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: LeisureLass on July 15, 2012, 01:06 pm
I obviously pissed someone off early in my posting career because I get a -1 every three days like clockwork.  It doesn't matter if I've been away for a week, posted awesome stuff or posted crap, I get that -1. ::)
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Imaginarytailus13 on July 15, 2012, 01:55 pm
Karma Questions:

How does a user leave positive/negative karma?
                         What is a "Full Member" (seems only they can leave karma)?

Are there any effects from receiving karma?
                         Does a user with a certain amount of positive karma get discounts, access to hidden forums/features?
                         Does a user with a certain amount of negative karma get banned or anything special?

A user with a 100+ posts, anyone with posts exceeding that number can give out karma. You may only give karma out to a user once every 72 hours. No. I don`t think there are special privileges for people with a lot of positive karma. Many users have negative karma, while some may have been given out for legitimate reasons, most is just abuse of the system. The amount of negative karma won`t probably get you banned unless there is evidence that you deserve to be. You can report to moderators for such requests accompanied by a explanation. 
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: sourpatchkid on July 15, 2012, 05:09 pm
how do you even leave karma? I cant seem to find the button, and when i asked somewhere else i got these 5 neg karma points....

damn, that sucks. Well, you can't give positive/negative karma until you are a full member, which means 100+ posts, I think. Once you hit that mark, the karma option will be available for you.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on July 15, 2012, 06:30 pm
I had a good nights sleep very relaxing weekend thanks.

TWM
 
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Eatshitanddie69 on July 18, 2012, 08:36 am
This is a really good idea! NOT
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: Imaginarytailus13 on July 18, 2012, 04:26 pm
I think we should all get over it, we have other matters at hand that need attention. I could care less about how many minuses I or one has. 
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: SRTRAVLER on July 20, 2012, 05:49 am
karma needs to go
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: hojo on July 10, 2013, 04:17 pm
karma needs to go
Bumping an old thread for a good reason. I provide honest feedback and my opinions and do not attack people here. I got a bunch of negative karma recently for sharing my opinion on PGP Encryption. I really think it is a vendors right to use or not use it and require it or leave it optional. If someone doesn't want to use a vendor because of this that is there option. Heck i understand some people will disagree with this but really is this a good valid reason to throw negative karma my way. Jesus that is freaking sad. I guess it's not that big of a deal but it pissed me off when i realized what happened. My buyer stats validate the kind of SR member i am in the end but i'm just wondering how much people look at karma and if it really matters in others opinions. Feedback requested....not looking for karma good or bad.
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on July 13, 2013, 10:09 pm
for +Karma give of it Yourself.


Peace
TWM
Title: Re: Remove the Negative Karma feature/Leave only Positive Karma
Post by: mrhendrix on July 23, 2013, 08:40 am
Tru, i have also been a victim of "random" negative karma. Hopefully in time it will all balance itself out.