So Ratings Not So Meaningless?

For months I've head many people say ratings were meaningless...

Soon it will cost $25L to rate someone - and what?


Outcry!

Unless they reset the ratings to zero, then yes, I think it is meaningless to rate anyone at the new price.

If we wipe the slate clean, then there is a chance that having to actually spend real money to rate might make the system useful.

They are completely meaningless. When you have a person who started in July of this year and already has over 700 positives in each category and yet has never built a thing....that tells you they are meaningless.

I agree with kris. I am not sure about the purpose of the cost increase since it is disproportionately detrimental to newer members with lower ratings. Even with the 50% reduction, the stipend bonus is still based on number of ratings.

Merwan we knew the Ratings were broke now they are Fubar.

For those that dont know what Fubar is it means "Fucked up beyond all recognition"

Just because its L$25 to rate someone does not mean that it will fix the ignorance used when gaming the rating system.

Changing the Rates to Zero wont help either
Raising the prices wont help.

It needs more than a percieved bandaid to fix the problem...part of the problem is Rates are still tied to making the Delta Bonus...so the only thing the $L25 has done is slowed down the rate that newbies can attain the same status as the midbies.

It needs a complete overhaul and seperation from the income. Period.

There needs to be a system that cannot be gamed. I offered a solution on several occasions but no one listened to it or they choose to ignor it as idle ramblings.

Either way I said it before and now here it is in everyones faces and its creating disparity across the board.

Shakes head slowly......

Shadow

Ehh... it WILL make users think twice about back-rating though. I agree it needs a complete overhaul, but this is a nice stop-gap.

They've been meaningless for a long long time..

But now by more or less making new ratings 25 times harder to get - it not only becomes meaningless - but also grossly unfair.

There will be no way feasable for anyone to climb to the lofty top 10 - ever. And that is the sad fact of it. There are several rate minin' fools up there now who can pretty much sit pretty because it will never matter again how good somone is - I think it's pretty fair to assume that noone will ever be able to challenge them.

To change the way ratings are done is probably needed - to give them meaning.. but unless you do something to level off that field then the move essentially loses it's balls and you may as well say 'we only really want to drain off some excess money'.

Dress it up and down - but I think thats pretty much the way it looks... Personally I'm more than willing to bite the bullet and say 'fuck it - zero my ass out'. I've never gone to a single rate party in SL ever - I like to think I pretty much earned and deserved a good 90% of what I got (even the negs)..

But I'm also like to think I'm a fair man as well.

I think it's not the *fun* thing to do - it's probably not going to be the *popular* thing to do -- I do, however, think it is the *fair* thing to do.

Siggy.

Reset everyones ratings to 0 and then we can use the new ratings as an indication of wealth. Those with money will rate, those without won't. Should really improve the ratings system (NOT)...

Theres only one rating system that can't be gamed...remove it from the game entirely. The best recognition comes when people enjoy your work and tell you so. When I come in world to an IM from someone that says I really like what you did... or something to that effect... it makes my day. They took time out of their life to say something positive.....and time is worth much more than money any day.

Phil showed up in At the edge tonight and said " We did not mean the rating to be a game" Now tell me! This is a game no?! He needs to rethink and stop this joke of a answer.

Seperation from income needed, indeed !

It cannot be free because of the abuse potential (tragedy of the commons). But tying it to money is wrong as well, for the many reasons that have been pointed in the past. This is why I suggest it be tied to either of the two truly scarce things in SL: time, or computer/network resources.

I'd go with the latter, BTW. Make it so I can rate N people per given period of time.

I don't think so. I have money. I have no intention of rating under the new system unless someones work is absolutely exceptional or their behaviour is exemplary.

I dont think it'll just be a case that the more wealthy will just rate for the hell of it. I could be wrong, but I think there is potential for the system to be far more realistic an indicator for the categories they reflect IF they reset them all to zero.

And I say that as someone with a LOT of building rates that you can see are not just from arbitrary triple rates, and is reflected in the messages I receive from people who rate me.

You'll also see if you look that I was never a big rater anyway - I rate where ratings are deserved. Even if someone gives me a triple with 'for stipend' or some crap as a message at an event or whatever, I'd only ever rate back on appearance IF I actually think they've put some effort into their avie, since its the only thing I can assess at the time. I'm not going to rate someone I dont know on their behaviour and building skills unless I've seen the evidence, whether its L$1, L$25 or L$100 to do it.

It's just that at L$25 I'd have to REALLY mean it

But I still dont mind losing every rate I've ever had, despite the fact I believe most of mine were 'fair', if it means that the system was anything other than a big joke.

Jesrad Seraph, I hope I haven't missunderstood your point you were making.

But, when I said its tied to income.
I meant it in the sense of the Stipend delta.
I dont mind rates costing money.
I do mind the fact that because of the rates it determines how much stipend I make per week.

Especially when you have the Lazy Elite Rate Minors that havent buil't or created a damn thing sitting at the top of the list making 6-12k per month because they have a super enormous amount of rates.

Simply Put

Sure charge to rate...but dont tie it to income comming in.

Shadow

And Yes Talen I totaly agree with you. I guess thats why it infuriates me so that this change is nothing more than what Siggy mentioned a way to drain off cash out of the world. Problem is now People will stop rating because they dont want to loose what little cash they do have.

Shadow.

YOu have got to be on Drugs! LOL!

His answer isn't a joke. the rating system has been gamed to death . when someone that has only been in world 2 or three months or less and has over 7-900 rating points in each category.....thats the joke.

If you want to insult people, perhaps you'd like to include your reasoning? It's an opinion, Blake, and I think most of yours stink too, but at least I bother to tell you why. Although you usually resort to insults in return anyway, so on second thoughts, dont bother.

I still say it's time for LL to realize that since our $RL money is so involved in the game, that WE the players need to have a way of voicing our opinions BEFORE these changes take place, not AFTER.

The outcry is really something that has been brewing ever since LL decided that $L would have $RL value. When you do that, people then feel they should have a voice (and rightly so) on how ANYTHING changes their $L bottom line.

It's time to evolve the game even further and instead of LL making judgements to change something, they need to send out "REQUEST FOR COMMENTS" on any and ALL changes that will effect someone's $L balance.

I agree with Catherine Cotton in this, the day $L were given $RL value, was the day SL changed, and not so much in the good it seems.

LL never decided that L$ would have $RL value. That's something that *the SL residents* decided the first time two people agreed to exchange some quantity of cash for L$.

Yes. A fine example of the few dictating the course of the game for all for all time.

Ok..Who in their right Animal Cracker Mind is going to spend "REAL MONEY" to rate someone?

Ratings should be wiped out entirely. I've been around since April '03, and I've seen people that joined a month ago with literally five times my ratings. It's a system in BAD need of a fix, and raising the cost isn't gunna cut it.

I would. If deserved. As per my post above. And if you're going to continue your insults for my opinions, I'll be spending my first L$25 negging you.

With LL's support this happened. When LL decided to pay $RL cash for dwell, they assigned $RL cash value to the game, the time we spend in the game, and the $L.

LL didn't have to support the selling of $L for $RL. LL didn't have to accept $RL cash for land, LL didn't have to pay people because people were coming to their land.

Ricky you know that LL gave their blessings to GOM and IGE - enabling the establishment currency exchanges as independent businesses.

LL is also talking about helping GOM set up in the KidGrid.