# Reputation Spec: Proposal and Critique

**URL:** <https://meta.discourse.org/t/reputation-spec-proposal-and-critique/29696>\
**Category:** Feature\
**Created:** [6월 5, 2015, 5:55오후 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/reputation-spec-proposal-and-critique/29696 "2015-06-05T17:55:22Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 12

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**Author:** ![Remah](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/remah/32/70590_2.png) [@Remah](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Remah)\
**Post date:** [7월 21, 2016, 7:51오전 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/reputation-spec-proposal-and-critique/29696/12 "2016-07-21T07:51:54Z")

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Likes-to-Post Ratio is simple but I think that it will have a negative impact on discourse in many forums.

**Many users will be reluctant to comment if they think that their comments will not receive likes.**

Here’s two specific examples of negative consequences from using the Likes-To-Post Ratio.

Example 1 - Software support forum  
When I report a bug with the software and the support staff agree that it is a bug I usually get a like. If they find my bug report incredible and nobody else has reported the bug then I don’t get a like. As often happens, other users will report the same bug at a later date. The support staff see that it is a “real” bug so the confirmation reports get a like but my original bug report doesn’t receive a belated like.

If a reputation system used Likes-to-Posts Ratio then I would be “losing” reputation for reporting bugs early. I could get a better reputation by only confirming bugs that had already been reported by someone else.

Example 2 - User who don’t give likes  
There are many users who are stingy with their likes.

I looked for a ratio of Likes received: Likes given greater than 10:1 and found that at 41 likes and below there are many users who are that stingy. At a glance, I’d say 25% (someone else could generate a report that gave the exact results). Above that level of likes received there are only a few users who are that stingy and they appear to be developers.  
185:2 Plugin developer  
63:3 “great contributor” contributed 25 accepted pull requests  
61:1 “I work at Apple as a senior web application developer”  
53:5

A ratio of 10:1 is, in my view, quite extreme. Such users user will improve their relative reputation at the expense of other users by not giving any likes.

**I don’t think that stinginess in giving likes should improve your reputation in comparison to other users.**

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_[View the full topic](https://meta.discourse.org/t/reputation-spec-proposal-and-critique/29696)._
