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Suggestion Endorsement system

SinnersSalvation

SinnersSalvation

Super-Earth
Joined
Jul 14, 2016
Good morning.

So I had a thought that seemed pretty cool. How about a way to endorse fellow writers here? You can leave positive endorsements for people you’ve written with so that others can see who liked writing with them.

It’s not a rating system. There’s no negative comments associated with them. No star ratings. Just “Do you endorse this writer?”

You choose whether you want to endorse or not, so if you’re uncomfortable sharing your information publicly that you endorse someone you don’t have to do it.

I just thought it would be a fun, positive thing to add to the site. I’m sure people would enjoy seeing their peers endorse them to others.
 
Hmmm...interesting in concept, but difficult in implementation.

For example: a person who is generally quick with replies but only puts out a couple of sentences per reply might get lots of endorsements from similar-styled writers...but that might draw a slower, multi-paragraph writer into a false path.

Not saying it's a bad idea...just need to figure out a few potholes first. :)
 
Sync said:
Hmmm...interesting in concept, but difficult in implementation.

For example: a person who is generally quick with replies but only puts out a couple of sentences per reply might get lots of endorsements from similar-styled writers...but that might draw a slower, multi-paragraph writer into a false path.

Not saying it's a bad idea...just need to figure out a few potholes first. :)
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It's personal to the person giving an endorsement, and it's not required. If you gel well with a partner they may endorse you. If not, they won't, but no endorsement is not a negative endorsement. But yes, you'd likely get a lot of endorsements from people who you work well with, which is kind of the point. Because, let's say Person A gets a DM from Person B about potentially RPing. Person A can look at Person B's endorsements, and see that Person C and Person D endorsed them, and Person A has RPed with both those people. That is an indication they'd likely enjoy writing with Person B.

It's just an additional tool to help people make informed decisions about who they might like RPing with, but also, getting an endorsement from a partner feels good too. So it's a positive encounter.
 
Something similar used to exist, and has been suggested multiple times before, but there is fear of it turning into a popularity contest and so it was never reinstated.
 
Fruit said:
Something similar used to exist, and has been suggested multiple times before, but there is fear of it turning into a popularity contest and so it was never reinstated.
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If endorsements aren't posted anywhere other than on a person's profile, and we aren't tracking how many endorsements someone gets and posting it somewhere, then I don't think it would lead to that kind of behavior. People wouldn't be able to know how many endorsements you get till they look. And even then, just because someone has a lot doesn't mean you'll vibe with them. It's completely subjective to the type of RPer you are, and the type of partner you gel with.
 
I just see it as a way to say, "Okay, I like this person. And that person liked this new person. So I might get on well with that new person as well." Just to get a little more insight into whether you may or may not like to write with them. It shouldn't be the end all, be all, when deciding whether you want to write with someone. But it can be useful to make an educated decision and remove some mystery.
 
it's entirely possible I'm wrong. It's been known to happen from time to time, however limited that may be. (kidding, I've never been wrong lol)

But that's why I posted it up for discussion. If people think it's a bad idea then so be it.
 
Oh. I wasn't really shutting down the idea. It's not even my place to make these kinds of decisions. I'm only saying that it's been brought up before and then shot down for these reasons.

I, personally, think it could be misused. It could evolve to be a toxic and misleading criteria for filtering out prospective partners. I can see people including "Don't message me unless you got X endorsements please" or something similar in their RTs, or even pestering partners to endorse them.
 
Fair, unless we have rules prohibiting that kind of behavior.

Something prohibiting a minimum number of endorsements in your RT, and no pestering for them.
 
InitiateInspiration said:
How about a way to endorse fellow writers here?
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A way of doing this already exists: I've seen plenty of people put messages like "this is a great writer" and "had a lot of fun playing with them" on their partner's profile. I've never seen anyone have a problem with that, but if for some reason they are uncomfortable with those messages on their wall, they're able to delete them themselves or set their profile to private.
 
There's methods for discerning this sort of thing, even if it's not an implemented system.

Aside from the threads that basically amount to a popularity contest (how well known are you comes to mind) you can always look around at a person's public-forum writing (how long a roleplay's been going, how engaging it is, how frequent the replies are, how numerous a person's roleplays are) or, for example, how much attention does a person's Status Update get when posted. It's not as direct as what you're suggesting, or what's been floated in the past, but it's certainly an indicator of how well-liked, or endorsed, a person may be around the site.

There's no guarantees in this thing we do, or in what will be implemented into the site, but there are methods for developing an opinion on someone you're considering writing with. Failing that, you can always make contact, and see if you pass each other's vibe check.
 
I can see the appeal of this type of thing, but I'm concerned that as much as it might be positive when someone happily gives/receives an endorsement, it could also be used to pressure or manipulate writers ("I'll only give endorsements to people who..."). It's also another hurdle for new members, when it's already pretty difficult to break into the scene - at least among more discerning writers.

To put it bluntly: if your partner withholds an endorsement, it probably feels comparatively worse than the endorsement would feel good. And that would definitely happen. I can see a lot of drama ensuing.

Plus, as others have mentioned, if there's no standardized criteria for endorsement, they don't carry any real meaning.

Now, what would be cool is the ability to like posts, statuses, etc. There are a lot of threads where it's not appropriate to reply or too much trouble to reach out through PMs, but having a "like" button would be a nice way to offer support/appreciation.
 
Lydia said:
Now, what would be cool is the ability to like posts, statuses, etc. There are a lot of threads where it's not appropriate to reply or too much trouble to reach out through PMs, but having a "like" button would be a nice way to offer support/appreciation.
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Likes on posts were disabled because they were, I'm guessing by default, cumulatively tracked on profiles, and so they ended up being akin to endorsements.

If that aspect could be disabled, I would 100% be in favor of liking posts for the exact reasons you listed, Lyd.
 
I am admittedly unsure as to the possibility of disabling likes being tracked in that manner, but if it were possible to do so, I think I would be somewhat in favor of it.

As it is now, there's the options of posting on a user's profile saying 'Hey this person posts banger reply after banger reply, awesome RP'er', or maybe making some sort of 'positive' thread where you can gush about how awesome another writer is. As long as it doesn't get abused I believe that wouldn't be against the rules.

'Officially' endorsing a writer though would be tricky, like what would the criteria be? What people favor or would endorse in writers varies from person to person without a doubt.

Also while not a massive concern and utter dealbreaker, there's the thought of using endorsements and such for the exact opposite and using them as potential callouts for some negative reason or another. While mods would handle such issues as they arrive, it's still a potential against it.
 
Fruit said:
Likes on posts were disabled because they were, I'm guessing by default, cumulatively tracked on profiles, and so they ended up being akin to endorsements.

If that aspect could be disabled, I would 100% be in favor of liking posts for the exact reasons you listed, Lyd.
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Yeah, totally preferable to have that disabled, I agree. But also, because "likes" are fairly ubiquitous in social media, I think most people have a good idea of how much evaluative weight they carry. The number is pretty much akin to post counts, in how much it tells you about the user.
 
Revelations said:
'Officially' endorsing a writer though would be tricky, like what would the criteria be? What people favor or would endorse in writers varies from person to person without a doubt.
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It's even worse if you factor in endorsement trading (you endorse me, I endorse you) and then alt accounts on top of that.
 
That's also true. It's just messy all around. There are too many factors where it would prove to be more trouble than it's worth. At least that's how I feel.
 
i do really adore the idea, however, like many have stated above me -- things could get icky fast. sadly, on a site where everyone is supposed to be adults, sometimes that sentiment is lost. i think leaving a comment on that person's profile is a good makeshift way of your idea ^-^
 
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