You're The Favoritest

October 1, 2008 4:44 AM

Bricka bracka, firecracka, sis poom bah! Cortex 10,000 favorites, Rah, Rah, Rah! From the 1st favorite he received (Jaltcoh), to the one that's currently the 10,000th (rossination), Sir Cortex has reached a milestone in favoritivity. Thanks for being a magnificent part of the axis of awesome.
posted by cashman to MetaFilter-Related at 4:44 AM (135 comments total)

I think I sense a little favoritism here.
posted by pracowity at 4:54 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

[this thread is closed to further brown-nosing]
posted by DU at 5:03 AM on October 1, 2008 [6 favorites]

Hey. Maybe it's time for another donut.
posted by netbros at 5:06 AM on October 1, 2008

Ha! That's nuthin'....I'm rocking ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY!

See what I did there? It's LOOKS bigger because it's in all caps!
posted by Grither at 5:09 AM on October 1, 2008

Also, ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY has more letters in it than TEN THOUSAND, so it must be bigger.
posted by Johnny Assay at 5:12 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

/me frantically de-favourites Cortex in an effort to reverse time, like the end of Superman.
posted by Jofus at 5:32 AM on October 1, 2008 [5 favorites]

I hear he's planning to use some of those to bail out the favouritancial system and save our favouritonomy.

Congratulations, Josh!
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 5:37 AM on October 1, 2008 [3 favorites]

Like cortex needed another excuse to suspend his campaign. Humph.
posted by lukemeister at 5:43 AM on October 1, 2008

So who has the most favourites? ThePinkSuperhero seems to have the most I've seen, at 10,055 as of this writing. Does anyone have more than her?

And Cortex, you are indeed awesome.
posted by orange swan at 5:44 AM on October 1, 2008

It's all about the post-to-favorite ratio.
posted by The Straightener at 5:48 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

In other news, he's back.
posted by netbros at 6:05 AM on October 1, 2008

Stop tempting me to play with the infodump. I have work to do!
posted by DU at 6:05 AM on October 1, 2008

From the 1st favorite he received (Jaltcoh)...

Well, that's ironic.
posted by Jaltcoh at 6:19 AM on October 1, 2008

I hear he's planning to use some of those to bail out the favouritancial system and save our favouritonomy.

QFT
posted by C17H19NO3 at 6:23 AM on October 1, 2008

Where *did* cortex get that donut?
posted by lukemeister at 6:36 AM on October 1, 2008

orange swan: "So who has the most favourites?"

Top 10, circa August 25 (the last infodump):
Anonymous - 17066
ThePinkSuperhero - 9636
cortex - 8965
Astro Zombie - 8923
Pastabagel - 7225
jessamyn - 6665
loquacious - 6480
languagehat - 5431
Blazecock Pileon - 5387
flapjax at midnite - 5148

AstroZombie appears to be ahead of cortex at this point, but it doesn't look like anyone else has passed 10k. (And despite her awesomeness, I personally would scratch TPS off this list due to the davey_darling effect.)
posted by Plutor at 6:39 AM on October 1, 2008

I stayed up late to see if I could witness this historic milestone but he was at 9996 when I finally went to bed. Hooray for our long-haired overlord!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 6:40 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Flagged.
posted by Elmore at 6:44 AM on October 1, 2008

Hi! In celebration, I've updated the infodump.
posted by cortex (staff) at 6:55 AM on October 1, 2008

Hi! In celebration, I've updated the infodump.

Party on!
posted by lukemeister at 6:58 AM on October 1, 2008

It's all about the post-to-favorite ratio.

I think you mean fave/post. But fave/time might also be interesting. Shows who has the momentum to get the e-Lectoral Votes they need to win the internets.
posted by DU at 6:58 AM on October 1, 2008

So it's Astro Zombie in the lead with 10,581 favourites.

Um, do his comments make more sense when you read the entire thread they're in?
posted by orange swan at 7:00 AM on October 1, 2008

You're The Favoritest

You're the top!
You're the Coliseum.
You're the top!
You're the Louvre Museum.
You're a melody from a symphony by Strauss
You're a Bendel bonnet,
A Shakespeare's sonnet,
You're Mickey Mouse.
You're the Nile,
You're the Tower of Pisa,
You're the smile on the Mona Lisa
I'm a worthless check, a total wreck, a flop,
But if, baby, I'm the bottom* you're the top!

* Not meant to be interpreted literally or sexually.
posted by orange swan at 7:04 AM on October 1, 2008

If you want to get wonky with fave calcs, there's actually a number of thing worth factoring in:

- faves by post vs. faves by comment: posts tend (by my impression) to be more consistent fave-bait, while comments have a somewhat lower bar to entry as it were
- subsite distribution: what works on mefi might not on meta or askme, etc; most people don't post to Music, either
- favorites implementation date: before May 2006, there were no faves, so faves-over-time calcs need to consider this when looking at folks who've been around longer than that
- retrofaving: see above -- anything from before May '06 that was faved was explicitly gone back for somehow or another. What does faving activity look like for that period? Any long-gone members faved significantly solely post mortem?
- the tehloki factor: the man is, as far as I can tell, a unique engine in flagging, like a generalist davey_darling. How is his enthusiasm distributed?
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:07 AM on October 1, 2008

Come on, quant wonks, are you going to let conventional wisdom determine the winner of the Metafilter High popularity contest? Let's get rigorous, already.
posted by The Straightener at 7:20 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

I wish you people would write down the things I say so that you can be less stupid in the future:

The number of your comments that have been favorited by others is meaningless. What you have to do is take the number of comments that you have made site-wide since favoriting went live, and divide it by the number of comments that you have had favorited. That is your M-Score and means everything.
posted by ND¢ at 7:23 AM on October 1, 2008 [3 favorites]

posts tend (by my impression) to be more consistent fave-bait, while comments have a somewhat lower bar to entry as it were

Wouldn't that make the comment-fave bar higher, and comment faves more precious?
posted by StickyCarpet at 7:23 AM on October 1, 2008

I think "consistent fave-bait" doesn't mean "faved a lot and not meaningfully". I think it means "shows more consistent behavior".
posted by DU at 7:28 AM on October 1, 2008

take the number of comments that you have made site-wide since favoriting went live, and divide it by the number of comments that you have had favorited

Another interesting metric would be the number of links provided in comments divided by the total number of comments.
posted by StickyCarpet at 7:29 AM on October 1, 2008

Well, that's ironic.

Jesus, there are some boneheads commenting on that blog.

Cortex, you've got the patience of a saint. How you can be bothered to remain civil in the face of the enormous degree of apparently deliberate obtuseness you must face each and every day is a continued mystery to me, but the fact that you're able to not just do it here, but can also go and dish out huge lashings of it elsewhere as well strikes me as just above and beyond the call.

Don't you ever want to tell us all to just FOADIAGF?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 7:33 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

For those wondering the best way to live their lives less stupidly by writing down the things I say, I would recommend this method: Get a pen and notebook. Go back and write down every comment I have ever made. Check daily to see what new comments I have made and write those down too. Every time you are called upon to think about anything ("What should I have for breakfast?" "Is Dom DeLuise cool?" "Should I run for school board?" "Would it be more awesome to ride a pterodactyl or be a ghost observing the past but unable to change it?") go back and read through every comment I have ever made. If you find a comment directly on point, then your decision is made for you. In the unlikely event that I have not provided specific guidance on that particular decision or opinion, you must make your choice independently, but having just read through all of my comments will have put you in an ND¢-like state wherein you will make the right choice most of the time. Good luck and try to write legibly.
posted by ND¢ at 7:36 AM on October 1, 2008 [11 favorites]

Wouldn't that make the comment-fave bar higher, and comment faves more precious?

Ah, but there's no one-comment-a-day limit. Someone could get n, n', n', ... faves for comments 1-10 on any given day, for example. Plus, comments are held to a much lower standard as far as what's worth posting, so there's less up-front effort/risk involved.

The shotgun vs. uzi theory of favorite allocation, if you will.
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:39 AM on October 1, 2008

Congrats on joining the club, cortex. We really should have jackets made.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:41 AM on October 1, 2008 [5 favorites]

Favoritism of spouses of the popular:

46137   7418  // Secretariat faves cortex 0 times
14474   17721 // stynxno faves tps 136 times, 100 of them on September 22
14474   7418  // stynx faves cortex 6 times
46137   17721 // Secretariat faves tps 1 time

posted by ardgedee at 7:42 AM on October 1, 2008

This post will most certainly aid in keeping the favorites system from becoming a popularity contest.
posted by katillathehun at 7:43 AM on October 1, 2008 [3 favorites]

I have favorited cortex comments exactly thirty times, mostly puns and other assorted wordplay. Most of the rest of you need to start pulling your weight if he's going to hit 100,000.
posted by Kwine at 7:45 AM on October 1, 2008

Who will be the Bill James of mefimetrics? What PECOTA slouches toward Portland to be born?
posted by lukemeister at 7:45 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Mefibermetrics?
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:48 AM on October 1, 2008

Faving comments in this post gives me a dizzy feeling.
posted by DU at 7:48 AM on October 1, 2008

I wish you people would write down the things I say so that you can be less stupid in the future:

The number of your comments that have been favorited by others is meaningless. What you have to do is take the number of comments that you have made site-wide since favoriting went live, and divide it by the number of comments that you have had favorited. That is your M-Score and means everything.

I prefer this standard, because I have 72 comments made/354 favorites given, making me far superior to Cortex's flimsy 4226/10001. By this standard, I should be a mod.
posted by Damn That Television at 7:52 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

By this standard, I should be a mod

You're more of a rocker to me.
posted by lukemeister at 7:55 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

He's saving them up. When he hits 35,000, he can trade them in for a BIKE!

(I don't even have enough for the clock radio.)
posted by louche mustachio at 7:56 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

...and boom goes the dynamite.
posted by mattbucher at 7:57 AM on October 1, 2008

*starts preparing draft list for MeFi rotisserie league*
posted by lukemeister at 7:59 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Ten thousand? Fuck, man, I was so stoked to break the four digit mark, and now I have to strive for five?

*rolls up sleeves*

*grumbles* workin' my ass off here... five digits... witty bastards... with their good anecdotes... totally not fair...
posted by quin at 8:17 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

Cortex is indeed awesome.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:23 AM on October 1, 2008

Holy mackerel, do I ever have me some serious, insightful, witty and intelligent commenting to do. How can one keep up appearances around here?
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:25 AM on October 1, 2008

I got a job lot of dodgy import favourites cheap. Not as robust as the real thing but look convincing from a distance.
posted by Abiezer at 8:31 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

Clearly the time is near when we will switch to a favorite-based economy.
posted by Pope Guilty at 8:33 AM on October 1, 2008

Mefibermetrics?

CORTEX IS A MUSLIN!
posted by inigo2 at 8:38 AM on October 1, 2008

[Walks up to microphone, clears throat, takes deep breath, pinches nose]

Ahem:

"Favorites are the worst thing about MetaFilter. It was already going downhill, and they cut the brake line."
"How many of that 10 000 are based on what was said, rather than who was saying it? Not many, I'm betting."
"Wow, I'm embarrassed for some of you."

Thank you.

[Bows deeply]
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:49 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

I still think the "both holes!" > "jesus cortex" > jesus cortex exchange is my favoritist.
posted by cowbellemoo at 8:54 AM on October 1, 2008

Thanks for taking one for the team, Alvy.
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:56 AM on October 1, 2008

Someone needs to cross-reference the frequency of "amirite" in cortex's favorited comments.
posted by middleclasstool at 9:13 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

10K, SAIT
posted by yhbc at 9:22 AM on October 1, 2008

Congratulations on hitting ten large,
It's nice to see you get some recognition.
Fetid serosanguinous weeping discharge,
I guess, is a popular condition.

/Not sure what that even means. The poem, I mean. I just wanted to rhyme "Fetid serosanguinous weeping discharge" for the triple word score. Congrats on being named prom queen. This place wouldn't be the same without you. And for once, I don't mean that as an insult, brother.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 9:28 AM on October 1, 2008

Big whoop, I'm ten feet tall and made out of radiation. Take that, favoritists!
posted by Mister_A at 9:30 AM on October 1, 2008

I have seen Mister A's radiation and I can vouch that it is impressively radioactive.
posted by cortex (staff) at 9:33 AM on October 1, 2008

Radioactive A is radioactive.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 9:38 AM on October 1, 2008

In other news, he's back.

If you thought he ever went away at all, you're worryingly naïve.
posted by dersins at 9:41 AM on October 1, 2008

CORTEX IS A MUSLIN!

I didn't know that! Can I make myself a new summer dress out of him now?
posted by orange swan at 9:42 AM on October 1, 2008

Next to someone made of radiation, I feel like I hardly matter.
posted by fantabulous timewaster at 9:46 AM on October 1, 2008 [4 favorites]

Mister A's radiation has impinged on my retinas, but it was of too low a frequency to chemically trigger my photoreceptors, thus I did not "see" him per se.
posted by DU at 9:47 AM on October 1, 2008

<smell>Doesn't anyone find it at all suspicious that Mr. 10,000 Favorites just happens to have easy access to the very workings of the favorites system?</smell>
posted by Sys Rq at 9:47 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

If you thought he ever went away at all, you're worryingly naïve.

Huh, Holden is both a full-time staff member and a member of the Board of Directors(as of 9/8/08). I thought that was frowned upon?
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:50 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

<cabal>Quiet, you fool!</cabal>
posted by cortex (staff) at 9:51 AM on October 1, 2008

I'm not impressed.

Cortex's favorite-to-activity batting average* is a pedestrian .530.

ThePinkSuperhero? She's lapping the field with a 1.461.

Even I'm rocking a .663.

Cortex gets high marks for plate appearances, though. You could say he's the Cal Ripken of MeFi.

FABA = (posts [all sites] + comments [all sites] + questions + answers + playlists) / favorited by others.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 11:06 AM on October 1, 2008 [4 favorites]

I'm kidding around, of course.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 11:07 AM on October 1, 2008

<cabal>∄</cabal>
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 11:08 AM on October 1, 2008

something something VORPie something mother's basement something something Eckstein something heart
posted by cortex (staff) at 11:09 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

Actually, that reminds me of my old dream of making a baseball-card-generator for mefites based on infodump stats.
posted by cortex (staff) at 11:10 AM on October 1, 2008 [3 favorites]

Oh flabbertygibbet, I wrote the equation backward.

FABA = favorited by others / (posts [all sites] + comments [all sites] + questions + answers + playlists)
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 11:11 AM on October 1, 2008

Actually, that reminds me of my old dream of making a baseball-card-generator for mefites based on infodump stats.

May I say?

Fuck YES.
posted by middleclasstool at 11:19 AM on October 1, 2008

You could say he's the Cal Ripken of MeFi.

Which makes me Barry Bonds, I suppose.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 11:21 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Really, again, you should be using the modified FABAM6 calculation to limit both content and favorites activity to that occuring after May 2006.
posted by cortex (staff) at 11:21 AM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

Stynxnosterone!
posted by cortex (staff) at 11:22 AM on October 1, 2008

Which Mefites' stats have dropped suspiciously since testing became mandatory?
posted by lukemeister at 11:26 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

1.467

And that's without HGH. I'm so far beyond baseball, I'm Mia Hamm.

Er, wait. What?
posted by robocop is bleeding at 11:33 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Please! Please! This is supposed to be a happy occasion! Let's not bicker and argue about who outranks who on some arbitrary scale. How meaningless it all is. Isn't it better that we're all happy together, that we're all working towards a common goal of joyfulness. Let's have peace, not petty gamesmanship. This is a beautiful day with sky and clouds and sheep in the field. What more do we need? What more could we possibly want? There's no need to judge personal worth according to the strictures of FABA. We all know that what really matters is what's in the heart. Look inside yourselves and into the souls of others and rejoice in our wondrous humanity.

1.782... eat my dust, robocop is bleeding!
posted by Kattullus at 11:40 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

My favorite color is chocolate.
posted by not_on_display at 11:45 AM on October 1, 2008

FABA is not the best metric, in my opinion, since it skews heavily in favor of one-time drive-by celebrity posters. I prefer the FABULOUS meter, myself, which includes more etherial factors such as Number of Public Offers to Have Your Babies From People Not Actually Capable of Carrying Babies and shoe size.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 11:52 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Um, do his comments make more sense when you read the entire thread they're in?

Swim monkey tree flower.
posted by Astro Zombie at 11:54 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

You can be Tiger Woods, Kattullus.

Don't make me get up in your grill with a tragi-comic story about anthropomorphic chipmunks coming to the sad realization that all the years they spent rescuing and ranging were for naught. Their failure to address the root causes of societies ills damned them to a life of ever more quixotic quests in the desperate hope to hide from the truths following the death of their mechanic mouse friend and their own burgeoning homosexuality. Cuz I'll do it!
posted by robocop is bleeding at 11:55 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Really, again, you should be using the modified FABAM6 calculation to limit both content and favorites activity to that occuring after May 2006.

I'll let you commiserate over that with Deacon Jones.*

* Deacon Jones is credited with inventing the NFL term "sack," and for a long time, claimed to be the NFL's all-time leader in sacks, but the statistic was not begun to be officially kept until after he had retired.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 11:56 AM on October 1, 2008

Can someone do my math for me and tell me how popular I am? Math is hard and stuff.

*drops tiny hankie*
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 11:58 AM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Which makes me Barry Bonds, I suppose.

I did notice you had a steep rise in favorites after 2006...
posted by inigo2 at 11:59 AM on October 1, 2008

Sorry to say you're at only .598, jessamyn.

I suggest taking an improv class. Or perhaps doing something with your hair.

I kid, I kid. ;-)
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 12:01 PM on October 1, 2008

jess, you are more popular than cortex, at .598. He's only at .531, after his most recent spurt of favorites received since this started.
posted by yhbc at 12:09 PM on October 1, 2008

See, my response was positive, his was negative, but we reported the same number. Glass half-full, glass half-empty.
posted by yhbc at 12:10 PM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Do the compliment sandwich next.
posted by cortex (staff) at 12:16 PM on October 1, 2008

Speaking of which, I never fail to be astounded by the size of the donut in Cortex's photo.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:17 PM on October 1, 2008

MetaFilter: statistical posturing about a plate of doughnuts
posted by Cranberry at 12:19 PM on October 1, 2008

cortex, you are indeed the cheesiest , most full-of-bologna mod since sliced bread!
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 12:22 PM on October 1, 2008

Astro Zombie: Speaking of which, I never fail to be astounded by the size of the donut in Cortex's photo.

Same with me! Every once in a while it just hits me... I can be steeping tea at work, crossing an intersection, paying for groceries, on the phone to my parents and suddenly: BAM! The thought of that giant donut hits me and suddenly I find myself screaming: WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH WAAAAAAAAAAAAH THE ENORMITY OF THAT DONUT CONSUMES ME IT CONSUMES ME AND DON'T LECTURE ME ABOUT WHAT ENORMITY MEANS BECAUSE THE DONUT IT IS CONSUMING ME WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRGHHHH

And then I go unconscious and wake up a few minutes later having forgotten all about it. Usually I go unconscious because someone punches me.
posted by Kattullus at 12:30 PM on October 1, 2008

Speaking of which, I never fail to be astounded by the size of the donut in Cortex's photo.

It's not the size of the donut, it's how you're stickin' it in the chicken.
posted by Skot at 12:30 PM on October 1, 2008

Anyone who uses enormity when they mean enormousness deserves to get punched.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:37 PM on October 1, 2008

Oh god I can't do math today I'm so hungover. I'm only on the gray because it stops the eyeball pain of being at work.

so, kudos to all the people who are witty, popular and wise.

As usual, Mr. Shatner is a perpetual favorite at the 'Cons.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 12:43 PM on October 1, 2008

cortex leads everyone in the key 'Puns Created' stat.
posted by lukemeister at 12:46 PM on October 1, 2008

Mr. Zombie, meet Mr. Merriam-Webster:

usage Enormity, some people insist, is improperly used to denote large size. They insist on enormousness for this meaning, and would limit enormity to the meaning “great wickedness.” Those who urge such a limitation may not recognize the subtlety with which enormity is actually used. It regularly denotes a considerable departure from the expected or normal enormity of their situation burst upon them. “How did the fire start?” — John Steinbeck>. When used to denote large size, either literal or figurative, it usually suggests something so large as to seem overwhelming enormity of the desert or the sight of a tiny flower — Paul Theroux> enormity of the task of teachers in slum schools — J. B. Conant> and may even be used to suggest both great size and deviation from morality enormity of existing stockpiles of atomic weapons — New Republic>. It can also emphasize the momentousness of what has happened enormity of the Russian Revolution — George Steiner> or of its consequences enormity of the misfortune — E. L. Doctorow>.

Now, a stauncher advocate of civility and tolerance than me you'll never find. Except when it comes to prescriptivists, those fuckers gotta die!
posted by Kattullus at 12:46 PM on October 1, 2008

And people who forget to close html tags. Those fuckers gotta die too.
posted by Kattullus at 12:47 PM on October 1, 2008

Astro Zombie: Speaking of which, I never fail to be astounded by the size of the donut in Cortex's photo.

Optical illusion. Cortex is 12 inches high.
posted by The Whelk at 12:50 PM on October 1, 2008 [3 favorites]

Anyone who uses enormity when they mean enormousness deserves to get punched.

Indeed! How dare anyone go with the more popular, yet somehow still nonstandard usage! The gall!
posted by Sys Rq at 12:52 PM on October 1, 2008

I love it when people quote dictionaries to me to make points about language. Dictionaries don't tell you how words should be used, they tell you how words are used. Look up martini in a dictionary and it will often say that it is a gin or a vodka based cocktail, when it isn't, and anyone who says so should likewise be punched.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:54 PM on October 1, 2008

Speaking of which, I don't really care how people use the word enormity. I just like getting drunk on gin martinis and punching people.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:54 PM on October 1, 2008

Cortex is 12 inches high.

He'd have to be at least a little bit high, amirite?
posted by Sys Rq at 12:55 PM on October 1, 2008

It's all about the post-to-favorite ratio.

Well in that case, Hitler wins with a 47:1 ratio.



Let the record show that The Straightener is pro-Hitler!!1!
posted by clearly at 12:59 PM on October 1, 2008

I just like ... punching people.

You should hang out with this guy.
posted by dersins at 1:00 PM on October 1, 2008

But I didn't ask for a twelve-inch pianist!
posted by yhbc at 1:27 PM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

Maaan... whenever one thinks one is doing well along comes Hitler and tops any metric out. Showoff motherfucker.
posted by Kattullus at 1:35 PM on October 1, 2008

I'm going to call my memoirs "The enormity of quin".

See, because it works on several levels.
posted by quin at 2:09 PM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

Dudes, dudes, dudes. Believe me, I am no statistical wunderkind, shit, I can just about count my change at the store. But I believe there's this whole outlier thing which as I understand it was invented specifically to address that one time when zombie Hitler starts racking up favorites from beyond the grave.
posted by The Straightener at 2:32 PM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

Cool Papa Bell: "I'm not impressed.

Cortex's favorite-to-activity batting average* is a pedestrian .530.

ThePinkSuperhero? She's lapping the field with a 1.461.

Even I'm rocking a .663.

Cortex gets high marks for plate appearances, though. You could say he's the Cal Ripken of MeFi.

FABA = (posts [all sites] + comments [all sites] + questions + answers + playlists) / favorited by others."

At first I was all like "Awww... pedestrian."

( 643 / 1262 ≈ 0.510 )

Cool Papa Bell: "Oh flabbertygibbet, I wrote the equation backward.

FABA = favorited by others / (posts [all sites] + comments [all sites] + questions + answers + playlists)"

And then I was all like "Holy crap, awesome!"

( 1262 / 643 ≈ 1.963 )

For those of you keeping notes, I've achieved this by commenting only when I have something exceptionally brilliant to say.

Which I guess maybe explains why I have fewer than a thousand comments even after almost a full year of membership...
posted by Rhaomi at 2:49 PM on October 1, 2008

Actually, that reminds me of my old dream of making a baseball-card-generator for mefites based on infodump stats.

My pizza offer remains unclaimed.
posted by Rock Steady at 5:01 PM on October 1, 2008

*removes any and all favourited cortex comments*
posted by terrapin at 5:33 PM on October 1, 2008

Hmmm, there was only one. That was easy.
posted by terrapin at 5:36 PM on October 1, 2008

I just like getting drunk on gin martinis and punching people.

You are like a brother to me. Or, y'know, distant cousin. That way, hanky-panky is acceptable.
posted by turgid dahlia at 5:38 PM on October 1, 2008

10,000 favourites by cortex on the site,
10,000 cortexian faves
take one down, assholish clown
9,999 favourited cortex on the site

this is my 666th Meta comment ... in 8 years
posted by terrapin at 5:39 PM on October 1, 2008

Well, that's ironic.
posted by Jaltcoh at 8:19 AM on October 1 [+] [!]

What, in some Alanis Morrisette way?
posted by garlic at 6:04 PM on October 1, 2008

I gave a presentation this morning to our corporate comms people on social media - specifically about issues relating to founding and fostering positive/healthy online communities.

The feelings I have about belonging to online communities, particularly this one, means I speak passionately about the issues involved.

Cortex has had a small but signicant impact in what makes this place so special.

So, slightly off topic, and, well, I guess a little mushy, I just wanted to take the opportunity in this thread to say thanks.

Thanks Cortex.
posted by Samuel Farrow at 6:14 PM on October 1, 2008 [1 favorite]

It's just cortex being cortex.
posted by lukemeister at 6:29 PM on October 1, 2008

this is my 666th Meta comment

You little devil.
posted by cortex (staff) at 6:32 PM on October 1, 2008

Cortex! Cortex! Cortex!
posted by jamjam at 6:36 PM on October 1, 2008

The great thing is that the Red Sox are paying cortex's salary while mathowie gets all the production.
posted by lukemeister at 6:43 PM on October 1, 2008

Oh flabbertygibbet, I wrote the equation backward.

Hey, now, brother...
posted by flibbertigibbet at 6:59 PM on October 1, 2008 [2 favorites]

Which I guess maybe explains why I have fewer than a thousand comments even after almost a full year of membership...

What? I have around 2300 posts and comments total, and I've been here for four years.

holy crap, I've been here for four years. WTF me.
posted by davejay at 10:23 PM on October 1, 2008

"It's all about the post-to-favorite ratio"
...
"I prefer this standard, because I have 72 comments made/354 favorites given, making me far superior to Cortex's flimsy 4226/10001. By this standard, I should be a mod"
...
"Well in that case, Hitler wins with a 47:1 ratio"


Cortex, Damn That Television, and Hitler all make very respectable prom queens, but ain't nobody be beatin' the Woz.
posted by dgaicun at 4:40 AM on October 2, 2008

woz hax
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:12 AM on October 2, 2008 [1 favorite]

You are like a brother to me. Or, y'know, distant cousin. That way, hanky-panky is acceptable.

I didn't think that was even an issue in Australia.
posted by Astro Zombie at 8:02 AM on October 2, 2008

I'm more culturally sensitive than most folk around here, because I know inbreeding is totally taboo in the States.
posted by turgid dahlia at 6:15 PM on October 2, 2008 [1 favorite]

10,581 Sparber Fans Can't be Wrong.
posted by mwhybark at 11:07 AM on October 3, 2008

I'll get up to fifty million, I swear to God.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:23 PM on October 3, 2008

I'll get up to fifty million, I swear to God.

I'm pretty sure there's a clause in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act that does that.
posted by lukemeister at 4:55 PM on October 3, 2008

I'll get up to fifty million, I swear to God.

I don't doubt it for an instant, Max (if I may). Just yesterday a non-MeFite pal Google-reader-shared a link to one of your essays, the Wally Wood thing. Someday I expect to see you clutching an Emmy. Just don't forget to thank Matt.
posted by mwhybark at 5:02 PM on October 3, 2008

I'll get up to fifty million, I swear to God.

Max, in just 3 seconds I counted over 15 ways I'm one step removed from you by friends, collaborators, fans, or associates. You must use this power for good!

and my good, I mean more Brandy and Bunny watch Blaxploitation
posted by The Whelk at 12:48 PM on October 5, 2008

Brandi, I mean. More brandy is also good
posted by The Whelk at 12:48 PM on October 5, 2008