A 'Like' Button

  • Hey Guest, Early bird pricing on the Summer Moot (29th July - 10th August) available until April 6th, we'd love you to come. PLEASE CLICK HERE to early bird price and get more information.

Dave

Hill Dweller
Sep 17, 2003
6,019
9
Brigantia
I dont know how hard it would be to implement, but a 'Like' button at the bottom of each post, I think is a good idea.
 

Mesquite

It is what it is.
Mar 5, 2008
27,852
2,922
62
~Hemel Hempstead~
I dont know how hard it would be to implement, but a 'Like' button at the bottom of each post, I think is a good idea.

It's been suggested a few times and the response has been no.

If I remember rightly the main reasons against it were it cuts back on involvement of people in making comments, buddies just bigging up their mates and at the end of the day it honestly doesn't mean anything in the great scheme of things
 

Dave

Hill Dweller
Sep 17, 2003
6,019
9
Brigantia
It's been suggested a few times and the response has been no.

If I remember rightly the main reasons against it were it cuts back on involvement of people in making comments, buddies just bigging up their mates and at the end of the day it honestly doesn't mean anything in the great scheme of things


Ok. What about a thanks button then? I saw it as a form of politeness, rather than buddies bigging up their mates. I think the cutback on people making comments is why I suggested it. You can sometimes post something and recieve zero response which is a bit disheartening.
 

Mesquite

It is what it is.
Mar 5, 2008
27,852
2,922
62
~Hemel Hempstead~
Ok. What about a thanks button then? I saw it as a form of politeness, rather than buddies bigging up their mates. I think the cutback on people making comments is why I suggested it. You can sometimes post something and recieve zero response which is a bit disheartening.

Thanks or like... what's the difference? The reasons for not having it are exactly the same and doesn't achieve anything.

We've all had posts where no one has responded and yes it can be a bit disheartening but that's life.

It's a constant frustration for me with the photo comp with the low numbers of people who actually bother to vote, typically anything around 5%-10% of people who look at the heat threads actually make a vote which is a real shame. There's a lot of talented photographers on the forum who make the effort to to post entries but they're not getting the respect from the members that they deserve.
 

Dave

Hill Dweller
Sep 17, 2003
6,019
9
Brigantia
Yeh, ok just a suggestion. Message received and understood.
I dont have any mates on BCUSA, but If I post some leatherwork, and get a few 'likes' It gives me a bit of a boost. Which is probably why I prompted it.
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,966
4,616
S. Lanarkshire
I'm as guilty as everyone else Mesquite :eek: :eek: and I promise I'll try harder.

I have suggestion there though (sorry Dave, thread hi-jack) how about instead of a one vote, we try to make it so that folks have three ?
My biggest problem is making my mind up which one I actually think ought to be first, and it's always a very tight choice.
I keep thinking, I'll look again later and pick then. :eek:

M
 

Ogri the trog

Mod
Mod
Apr 29, 2005
7,182
71
60
Mid Wales UK
Ok. What about a thanks button then? I saw it as a form of politeness, rather than buddies bigging up their mates. I think the cutback on people making comments is why I suggested it. You can sometimes post something and recieve zero response which is a bit disheartening.

The reasons for getting no reply are many and varied - and no doubt range from "I didn't read it" all the way to "I am intentionally not going to reply" and several stages in between.

The forum sometimes needs a lot of maintenance input from both the Admin and Moderation team - and sometimes it almost runs itself - but all those positions are voluntary and take time out of normal forum enjoyment to implement, so extra features can be as much a problem as a blessing. Then there are the cost implications of additional features that someone has to pay for at installation and they become difficult to justify.

Please don't take the comments above as a slight, your suggestion is welcome, as we always welcome suggestions as to how the forum could be improved.

ATB

Ogri the trog
 

Dave

Hill Dweller
Sep 17, 2003
6,019
9
Brigantia
Fair play Ogri, just the idea of people only posting a thanks 'to big up their mates' struck me as having a unfairly low opinion of everyone on here. I dont get that argument.

Unless of course that does happen, in which case it could equally apply to the photo comp. Maybe an idea, to make the entries annonymous, if thats the case

Plus I reckon it encourages people. Not the opposite.

No offence intended Steve, I can understand your frustrations with the photo voting, and I hope you dont think its a thankless task, as Im sure you put a lot of effort into it. And I'll start voting more regularly.
 
Last edited:

Mesquite

It is what it is.
Mar 5, 2008
27,852
2,922
62
~Hemel Hempstead~
I'm as guilty as everyone else Mesquite :eek: :eek: and I promise I'll try harder.

I have suggestion there though (sorry Dave, thread hi-jack) how about instead of a one vote, we try to make it so that folks have three ?
My biggest problem is making my mind up which one I actually think ought to be first, and it's always a very tight choice.
I keep thinking, I'll look again later and pick then. :eek:

Having a multiple choice on the vote is something I've thought about in the past but in the end I went against the idea as it means the person voting hasn't actually put their vote where their heart is and chosen their favourite picture.

The other thing I thought a multiple choice system might lead to was more tie breaks which can string out the process.

Fair play Ogri, just the idea of people only posting a thanks 'to big up their mates' struck me as having a unfairly low opinion of everyone on here. I dont get that argument.

Unless of course that does happen, in which case it could equally apply to the photo comp. Maybe an idea, to make the entries annonymous, if thats the case

Plus I reckon it encourages people. Not the opposite.

No offence intended Steve, I can understand your frustrations with the photo voting, and I hope you dont think its a thankless task, as Im sure you put a lot of effort into it. And I'll start voting more regularly.

The 'big up mates' was just one of the reasons that I remembered were put forward during previous discussions on the idea as a reason not to go for it and not my personal view. Personally I don't think having a like button would enhance my enjoyment of the forum.

With regards to making the vote anonymous I do do that from time to time to see what happens. The current Bushmoot heat being the latest one that I've done so with and it's running at 6% of visitors are actually voting which is about the average for when the vote's public. So it doesn't make any difference either way and I've come to accept you can't make folks vote if they aren't willing to.
 

Fadcode

Full Member
Feb 13, 2016
2,857
894
Cornwall
many of the other forums do have like and unlike buttons, I actually think they do not serve any purpose, except to stop free speech and opinions, I had the misfortune to say something on another forum, which basically was " that even if you pay a large amount for a custom knife, this doesn,t guarantee you are getting quality", this was in response to a member putting up for sale a knife he had spent £800 on but had reduced the price to around £400 because he had damaged the blade whittling a piece of wood. I was lambasted for my view on the situation by receiving loads of unlikes, even though I believe my point was relevant, but obviously not to people who spend lots of money on knives that basically are only fit to sit in a drawer.
I think it is good enough to see how many views and further comments are made on a topic, rather than how many agreed or disagreed on it, if members feel they need to make a comment, one way or the other they will, after all that is what forums are about.
 

mousey

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jun 15, 2010
2,210
254
42
NE Scotland
Well if you did have a like button you'd just assume that all the folks who didn't push it disliked it. Just keep track of thread views and like button pushes :)

I like stuff and agree with things all the time, however I don't like or agree with them enough to push a button. If I really like [or not] something I'll bother to reply.




Maybe we could have a smiley face meter, somehow get the thread to track how many smiley faces have been posted, as an indication to the threads happiness?
 

dewi

Full Member
May 26, 2015
2,647
12
Cheshire
I dont think a dislike button would be appropriate.

What happens if you'd like a dislike button, but dislike a like button? Surely liking a like and disliking a dislike is like liking a like button you dislike?
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,966
4,616
S. Lanarkshire
To be perfectly honest, the company we have on here now is such that I really doubt that the bigging up friends thing would happen again….but then we didn't expect it years ago either, and there was a hidden edge to it in that a bushcrafting school 'character' and his coterie of friends really ran rampage with it. It was all rather sleekit.
It left long memories of a rather nasty, bitter and spiteful situation, that spread across several forums.

It's not the Like button's fault, (ours was a give rep button) but the folks who chose to misuse it…..bit like knives, etc., that way.

Forums like BcUK thrive because people take the few moments to join the conversations :) chip in their tuppence ha'penny worth, spark a debate, show something interesting, share something good :D
Those few moments typing give folks a feel for the character of others, and it's surprising just how many real friendships have been generated from Tony's bright idea to post some photos of a course online so that the others who'd been there too could see them, and maybe get in touch.
2003 that was, and now there are many folks here surprised to find they've been pulling up a log around the virtual campfire for over a decade :D

Me ? oh I'm a chatterbox :eek: :eek: and I speed read and touch type. Then the Boss asked me to be a Mod :yikes: my response was, "Are you sure ???". It seems he was…..and not all that long afterwards all that messy Like stuff excrement hit the whirling thing :sigh:
Most unpleasant.
An anomally on the forum though, which is generally laid back even if some of the conversations do get a bit 'robust' :evilgrin:

cheers,
Toddy
 

dewi

Full Member
May 26, 2015
2,647
12
Cheshire
Robust conversations? I want some of that... nothing gives me more pleasure than a robust conversation.

In fairness, and without meaning to offend Dave as he's a thoroughly good bloke with the best of intentions, the whole like thing is bit too much like a pat on the head to me. I express my opinion, and like or loathe it, its my opinion. If I feel like defending it, I will... if not, I play FreeCell for an hour... either I get into a debate, or I increase my legendary score. I'm not sure whether I'm so bothered whether people like what I write or not... its just an opinion. This whole thing in society about people getting offended about the way something is worded, or the opinion of another is pretty much a result of things similar to like buttons. People want that 'high score' of likes... so they'll say what they think people will agree with so they get their fix.

Just my opinion... feel free to hit an imaginary like or dislike button... I care ye not. Hath FreeCell to conquer.
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,966
4,616
S. Lanarkshire
Spider solitaire and Mahjong here :)

On the whole I'd rather not have a forum of clones or yes (or no) men. The sheer scale of the background knowledge of the members is very humbling. I don't think there's a single topic that someone doesn't know something about; it's a quiet pleasure to read through :D
The enormous range of experience, abilities and information offered is staggeringly good.

M
 

dewi

Full Member
May 26, 2015
2,647
12
Cheshire
More so when that translates to the meets arranged here. Never ceases to amaze me the knowledge base of people who turn up, not to mention their practical skills.

Its a good ole place here. Very enjoyable.
 

Imagedude

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Feb 24, 2011
2,004
46
Gwynedd
If people like a thread then surely they can take the time to type a thank you/like message of ten letters or longer...
Britishblades had a rep system and that went horribly wrong at one stage...
 

BCUK Shop

We have a a number of knives, T-Shirts and other items for sale.

SHOP HERE