Thread: A 'Thanks' add-on for our website

vBulletin provides an add-on call "Thanks" button. When this add-on is installed, every post will have "Thanks" button shown in the post body. I feel that this will be very useful to overcome the "Reputations" issues:

a) Can't rep same people again
b) Need to spread reputations before awarding same person again

No such issue with "Thanks" button.

The reputations option is indeed a very good method. It allows the poster to earn valueable points. But this is exactly the problem also.

a) Our active member list is small - less than 30 in fact. What I mean by active members is people who answer queries or write nice threads.
b) The reputations system does not allow the same person to be given reputation again and again. This is meant as a protection against reputation fraud.
c) If I give rep to one member, then I must award rep to at least 10 persons before I can rep the same member again. This limit was much higher earlier till I requested for the reduction.
d) I cannot give more than 5-6 reputations per day.
e) So if I wanted to give reputations to some person (and I can't), then I have to spread reputation to 10 people first and at least wait two days. I may forget it the next day.

The reputations system has also another advantage that also works as a disadvantage:

a) When someone gives a rep, the awardee gets points that is equal to rep power of the awarder. For instance, if I give someone a rep, s/he will get 21 points (my current rep power). If that person returns me the favour, and her/his rep power is 1, I will get only 1 point.
b) This is because, I have "built" my rep power based on post count and reputations received but that person as a starter, starts with 1.
c) The above system seems very fair. But it can be misused.
d) A group of people can gang up together and start to give each other reps. Rep power increases (by 1) after every 1000 posts and also 100 rep points.
e) Soon the "group member" will have very healthy rep power. And once this happens, this can lead to hyper inflation of rep points.

The "Thank You" button does not place any such restriction. It does not have any of the stated drawbacks of the rep system. It has its own counting system. It counts one "Thank you" as one point. And one point is what any one will get regardless of the seniority or rep power of the member.

I am not saying replace "Rep" system. It stays. But we have a "Thank you" system as well.

A poll is added. Please vote. With due apologies to Punch Farce, sorry, this is a digital poll - either we have it or we don't - no "I don't care" option.

Thanks button will be nice. Hope admin is not concerned about server load.

I guess reputation button is working fine. It determines the writers to submit great posts and earn a healthy reputation.

Originally Posted by HACKdown

I guess reputation button is working fine. It determines the writers to submit great posts and earn a healthy reputation.

HACKdown, Thanks for voting. But you may not have understood the problem.

vBulletin Reputation Settings

Thanx Just4kix for clarifying. After reading your above post I feel thanx button would be really cool..

The drawback of the "Thank you" add-on is that it means adding a new widget to the forum software. This means some extra bandwidth usage on the server as well as the client.

Usually any new add-on will slow down performance (Mozilla Firefox is an example). But I am member or another site that has this feature and although their host may be different (and possibly more powerful), I have not seen any degradation. Not being a webmaster or system admin myself, I cannot pass any judgement on this.

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Edit (28-April, 6:54 pm)
I think that we need more participation

Aaron is spending big $$ for hosting, I think the servers are good enough, we will not see any significant slow downs with that addon. I dont really like the rep system...just 1 dot for me :P

If the servers don't see any significant slow downs as said by Rajan, I think that the thanks option is a very useful addition to IBF.
Nice idea just4kix. Hope Admin takes this idea seriously and implements it.

I have already voted for Thanks option

thanks button needed on IBF all have it.but reps should also not be removed!

Voted Yes

thnx button ++++++++++

Having an add-on won't cause any (not even 'not much') problems for the server, especially for an add-on like this. It was only now that I noticed that we don't have any of the most famous (and useful) add-ons here. I believe that we are on a powerful server, since Admin is paying a big amount for it. So, it wouldn't be good to waste the resources Admin is paying for.

What is actually required is to change from
forum to forum option.
Say I am on Bsnl broadband.
Cannot switch to say Airtel broadband.
I have to go to main forums list and select Airtel BB forum.
or
Say you are on Latest posts page.
select BNSL forum
then cannot go to Airtel forum
back to latest posts page !