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Types of Membership


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Hi Jeff,

I'm curious about the types of membership that are listed with each person's post; The categories are: Full Member, Senior Member, Jr. Member -- I might have missed some. What determines that member's classification?

Richard

The administrator of this particular forum software can configure the classifications however they want. They are based on the number of POSTS and nothing else. The default values were quite off base, I felt, starting with "newbie" or First Time Poster and then moving up the ranks, but the number of posts required was very high. I changed the parameters, I don't remember off hand what the numbers are, but now if you are a fairly regular poster you move up the ranks quickly.

-  JW

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The interesting question is, why does the software accomodate this idea in the first place?

The reason is pretty straightforward. The people who run forums have found that participants compete for status, and that quality of content is not a necessary criterion. What matters is number of posts. Apparently, implementing this system encourages participation and, especially, traffic. Some sites have many status levels. The incredible thing is that people buy into this. On many forums, number of posts actually creates rank. It is all about psychology, and there are many discussions about this on the internet, especially among forum owners who are interested in generating traffic on their site.

For an example, see the site for Inverloch, which is the home of a rather accomplished fantasy comic strip out of Australia that has a wide following among people, in many countries, in their mid-teens to early twenties: http://www.seraph-inn.com/index.html. Fans of this comic participate in a forum that has many levels of recognition, each having an imaginative name. The most exalted level is moderator (they have their own unique moniker), but short of that, the levels depend on number of posts.

I rather doubt that this is what Mr. Wexler is doing. Perhaps he has some other reason for activating this function, or perhaps he hasn't had an opportunity, given everything else he does to support this site, to even think about it. If he decides to continue using this distinction, Inverloch might serve as a good inspiration for coming up with something more colourful than Hero Member.

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The interesting question is, why does the software accomodate this idea in the first place?

I rather doubt that this is what Mr. Wexler is doing. Perhaps he has some other reason for activating this function, or perhaps he hasn't had an opportunity, given everything else he does to support this site, to even think about it.

I actually DID think about it and changed the parameters specifically in response the very thing you mentioned: that participants are ranked, on many forums, by the QUANTITY of posts. I am quite pleased just to have the number of members we have here (and many never post but frequently, even on a daily basis, read everything that's here) and I am not interested in ranking any of our members. The function is ON by default and I have not investigated how it is de-activated (if it even can be turned off). It really doesn't bother me that much now because everyone moves UP in rank very quickly. I did remove the default 1st category which was "newbie" because I really do not like that term.

Regards,  Jeff Wexler

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  • 1 year later...

On Lynn Fuston's 3DB forum I think everyone is a "valued contributor" until you get over 1000 posts up.   It seems counter productive to me to have any sort of status conferred by number of posts--it seems like it encourages pointless posts (like this one perhaps).

Philip Perkins

Sort of true but I don't actually think this list is going to get too many "pointless" posts, well I guess like this one also.  There are lists where if you say something you will get 20 me to posts.  But this forum seems pretty on point.  At least I never feel like I'm wading through a bunch of junk to get to the good stuff.

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Sort of true but I don't actually think this list is going to get too many "pointless" posts, well I guess like this one also.  There are lists where if you say something you will get 20 me to posts.  But this forum seems pretty on point.  At least I never feel like I'm wading through a bunch of junk to get to the good stuff.

I really don't like any of the ranking stuff --- it is a feature of many forums including this one. I have tailored the parameters so that I think everyone achieves high ranking even after one or two posts. Early on I also got rid of the category "newbie" mostly because I dislike the term itself in any context.

We are fortunate here that there is very little pointless stuff and I don't think anyone views their participation here as any sort of contest to achieve any particular status --- other than the continued appreciation of thoughtful and civil discourse.

Regards,  Jeff Wexler

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  • 8 months later...

How about giving merit to the lurkers for number of posts read - by way of counters?

First Time lurker - 0 posts read

Jr. Member lurker - 5 posts read

Full Member lurker - 10 posts read

Sr. Member lurker - 25 posts read

Hero Member lurker - 50 posts read

I'm most grateful to the host and contributors that make this site work so well.  The combined  knowledge/ experience found here certainly does not get taken for granted by guys like me who have set out the trail.

Cheers,

Toby (Hero Lurker)

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How about giving merit to the lurkers for number of posts read - by way of counters?

Cheers,

Toby (Hero Lurker)

I think you will have to live with the self-proclaimed title of Hero Lurker. I did away with most all of the rankings that are by default built into this forum and I believe that now if you just sign up you are considered a "Valued Participant." So, if your participation is still just lurking, lurk away and consider yourself a valuable asset to this group.

-  Jeff Wexler

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I am a lurker for sure. I'm a boom guy, so I spend most of my day far away from the mixer's cart. Paying attention to what is being discussed here keeps me informed on mixers concerns, like work flow and equipment choices. Things being discussed here have a tendency to come up at work, and it's nice to be at least somewhat informed. I can't tell you how much useful information I have gleaned off these boards in the last couple of years. What a great resource. Hopefully one day I'll have more to give back. For now I'm just enjoying the show.

Rich Bullock

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I am a lurker for sure. I'm a boom guy, so I spend most of my day far away from the mixer's cart. Paying attention to what is being discussed here keeps me informed on mixers concerns, like work flow and equipment choices.

Rich Bullock

I have tried to present this group in such a way that there can be discussions from all our members and on a wide range of topics. I know the tendency is to have sound discussions be "mixer centric" but I think we have all done a pretty good job of providing an interesting, informative and helpful community of people including all professional crafts, students and those just interested in what we do.

My hope is to continue, as this group expands, the good framework we have built up to support all of our interests and concerns, whether it be from sound mixers, boom operators, utility people, music engineers, and so on and so on.

-  Jeff Wexler

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