Zwielicht
Elite Member
- Aug 31, 2013
- 21,128
- 40,594
I've looked around the forum and I've noticed that there aren't any threads that directly deal with this issue, so I've decided to create one myself. Many new members are often in a rush to increase their post count for various reasons (which I will get to in a moment). However, did you know that your post count doesn't mean as much as you might think it does?
Common Reasons That Users Inflate Their Post Counts
This is for those of you who do not know why a user would inflate their post count. If you already know these reasons, skip to the next section called "What Does Post Count Really Tell Us".
What Does Post Count Really Tell Us
Post count, aside from telling us how many posts the user has (lounge posts do not count), also tells us how active a member is on this forum. That's it. A high post count does not mean that the user has a good reputation on this forum, that the user contributes information that others have found useful (which I will get to in the next section), or that the user knows what they are talking about. Additionally, someone who has procured a post count of 1,000 in 2 months is more than likely not someone who is helpful and knows what they are talking about, they're just someone who has a lot of posts on a forum.
Why A Post Count Does Not Mean The User Is A Respected Member
The reason that it may seem like a higher post count means the user is more respected is because those users who have a high post count earned that respect by contributing to this forum. They've either taken the time to do research on a person or subject (W130SN), consistently offer good advice on the forum (Techxan), or they just create useful posts (rabbitking). They don't spam threads with 1 sentence posts that offer no value to the original question.
Other Factors That You Should Consider Looking At Over Post Count
Common Reasons That Users Inflate Their Post Counts
This is for those of you who do not know why a user would inflate their post count. If you already know these reasons, skip to the next section called "What Does Post Count Really Tell Us".
- They're trying to get their post count to 15 so that they can PM other members.
- They're trying to get their post count to 100 so that they can become a JR. VIP (after meeting the other prerequisites).
- They are increasing their post count for unethical reasons that I will not mention.
- They believe a higher post count signifies more authority.
What Does Post Count Really Tell Us
Post count, aside from telling us how many posts the user has (lounge posts do not count), also tells us how active a member is on this forum. That's it. A high post count does not mean that the user has a good reputation on this forum, that the user contributes information that others have found useful (which I will get to in the next section), or that the user knows what they are talking about. Additionally, someone who has procured a post count of 1,000 in 2 months is more than likely not someone who is helpful and knows what they are talking about, they're just someone who has a lot of posts on a forum.
Why A Post Count Does Not Mean The User Is A Respected Member
The reason that it may seem like a higher post count means the user is more respected is because those users who have a high post count earned that respect by contributing to this forum. They've either taken the time to do research on a person or subject (W130SN), consistently offer good advice on the forum (Techxan), or they just create useful posts (rabbitking). They don't spam threads with 1 sentence posts that offer no value to the original question.
Other Factors That You Should Consider Looking At Over Post Count
- iTrader scores - These are scores received when someone does business with a forum member here. A user with a low iTrader score (which you don't see often since these users are often banned) with multiple bad reviews is not a user you want to deal with.
- Thanked-to-post ratio - This is how many times someone has been thanked in their posts (this is probably confused with the "Thanks" that a user has given out by new members). I personally don't pay as much attention to this, although I've noticed that most respected members here have around a 2:1 ratio (with most of their posts being thanked by members).
- Contribution Threads - These are threads in the freebies section or BST section that other members have found useful. If a member here has even 1 thread that has helped the forum members here, this can be seen as a good sign.
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