winkle wrote:buttons
a lot of commotion about nothing
For once I wholeheartedly agree with you, winkle. Too many people take the reputation system here far too seriously. If you'll recall, I only introduced it after *much* debate about what to do about the likes of vandugegs, who had been an unwelcome parasite here on the board for far too long.
As a means of enforcing a minimum bar of ethical conduct, and giving me the ability to ban someone without being arbitrary about it, the reputation system has worked perfectly. As Gene points out, if you show a pattern of abuse, deceit, or breaking the
Terms of Use agreement in any way, I will definitley use the reputation system against you as a service to the community as a whole. Toward this end, I'm sure most would agree that the system has been quite effective and beneficial.
Beyond that though, you're absolutely right. The rep system's value is limited and mostly overblown.
-Scott