Best Answer badgering

[jedimasterben]

A while back whenever THGF started the whole "best answer" thing, I thought it would do well in threads that asked a question. It would help people that came searching from Google or searching the forum by having the answer right at the top of the page, instead of possibly having to read pages of replies to find an answer.

However, it's not that simple. With trying to make it easier for new users, some members see this as an opportunity, and want to get selected as best answer. To every reply they make.

I've seen threads where someone will ask a simple question, and two or three users will pounce on it, none of them correct, all badgering the OP to mark them as best answer. Whether it's for the points or because it makes them feel special, I don't know, but it's really starting to piss me off, especially one user in particular.

I don't think that it is right for them to badger someone like that, to pressure the OP, especially if they are unsure if the member is correct or not.

Does anyone else feel the same way?

 

[EXT64]

Yep, and then if members don't badger them, Tom's Hardware will! I remember I started a question thread, got no good answers, and then started getting emails telling me to select a best answer :lol:

 

[randomizer]

@EXT64: I thought this thread would be about that actually

@jedimasterben: I've not come across this too much myself, could you link me to some examples?

 

[jedimasterben]

EXT64: On one thread I made, I got 35 emails from Tom's to select a best answer. 35. freakin. emails. It was ridiculous. But, the last one that I made hasn't asked once yet, and that was a while ago.

randomizer: I'll look back through my history (best examples were about a month ago, just didn't make this thread up until now) and PM you with specifics.

 

[jedimasterben]

On a completely unrelated note: http://badgerbadgerbadger.com/

I think I'm going to link that every time I see someone doing it, :lol:

 

[EXT64]

I just gave in on mine and selected one. Perhaps they have already fixed it, I have not tested in a while.

 

[aford10]

I have seen this fairly often. As soon as I read this, a 2 or 3 members came to mind.

 

[Reynod]

Yeah well I decided not to help anyone anymore up in CPU's ... so that should tell you just what I think of this whole token economy thing.

Pathetic.

The hammers mean nothing ...

LEMMINGS !!!

heh heh ...

 

[aford10]

smells like jealousy

btw, trying to circumvent the profanity filter is still against the ToS. Keep it clean old man

 

[tecmo34]

I just gave in on mine and selected one. Perhaps they have already fixed it, I have not tested in a while.

I have two stickies I get emails requesting me to select a best answer... I just live with the email notification, as they should have been discussion threads not questions.

I don't have an issue with those members that have "If you like my answer, select me as the best answer" in their signatures but those who badger the an OP to select them as the "Best Answer"...

 

[Reynod]

Yeah ... I stated that as a joke and somebody else thought it was a real good idea ... my apologies.

I gave up after getting two best answers when I realised that the OP gives out the results ...

It's just a game of posting madly and sucking up to the user with the problem.

Some of the best answers that get selected just make my stomache churn.

Pathetic really.

A user driven token economy.

Thats a bit like asking a class full of kids who they think should get a "blue ribbon" r at the end of each day ... usually the sociometric stars in the class ... certainly very few of the geeks as such.

Having a hammer then really means you like to post a lot .... thats about all it tells you.

None of the real expects here have hammers ...

In fact most of the really clever lot we had here 18 months ago have left.

Now Ben ... select me as best answer please ... or tomorrow you will awake with dead pixels on your monitor and a clunky PSU fan ...

 

[king smp]

Sorry to bring back an old thread
but I was reading this post and it had me thinking
I sometimes in my posts will state to the OP
"please select a Best Answer if somebody really helped even if that is not me"

I thought that was okay but now I am not sure

 

[aford10]

Yep, no problem with that.

 

[king smp]

Thank you

 

[tigsounds]

Having a hammer then really means you like to post a lot .... thats about all it tells you.

None of the real expects here have hammers ...

In fact most of the really clever lot we had here 18 months ago have left.

Now Ben ... select me as best answer please ... or tomorrow you will awake with dead pixels on your monitor and a clunky PSU fan ...

I thought the little hammer was an indicator that a person has been active at Toms for some time, not that they did anything so special. The hammer I got 'just appeared' after I was here for one year. Is there another hammer I'm unaware of?

 

[aford10]

It's for having 5 bronze badges.

 

[Saga Lout]

It's for having 5 bronze badges.

That explains it - in the UK site, I only show up as having three and they were automatic!

How's the site upgrade coming along?

 

[aford10]

I haven't heard much recently about it.

 

[tigsounds]

I haven't heard much recently about it.

Umm.... how many months just to change the home page? And it's not really changed yet?

The term "get used to it" comes to mind.

BoM should have hired a programmer that has more time in the evening after school to devote to the project. Rumor has it that the kid they did hire plays Jr. Varsity football after school too.

 

[tecmo34]

I heard it was Chess Club

After the issues seen with the German site after their change, be glad they are trying to get it right / fixed. They could switch today but the format would be worse. I rather have it right vs "now & wrong". I will agree getting it right is taking a while or at least a lot longer than people expected.

If you ever want to get an idea of the possible format, check out the Germany Site's forum.

 

[Saga Lout]

BoM should have hired a programmer that has more time in the evening after school to devote to the project. Rumor has it that the kid they did hire plays Jr. Varsity football after school too.

My big fear is that they'd employed the former AOL trainee programmer.

 

[Saga Lout]

And another thing .... surely if you're combining sites, which is what I thought was happening to cure the difference between the main US site and other subsidiaries, such as the UK site, you would combine first and fix afterwards.

If you fix the US site and get it working and designed the way you want it, then parachute half a dozen flawed sites in over the top, there's always going to be more work to be done.

I'm only a very basic (every pun intended) programmer but it seems to be the logical path to me.

 

[EXT64]

Logic? Pffft. Tom's doesn't need no stinking logic!