My memory is better than yours July 14, 2011 3:52 AM Subscribe
Why does everything have to be an effing popularity contest?
When I saw vote counts on the otherwise awesome Metafilter Memories page, I sort of blanched.
Voting works on Projects. I get it there. An easy to read indicator of what's worth further investigation.
Favorites? Well, I think not so much. But we've had that debate over and over and over.
But upvoting someone's fond memories of the site, like one could ever be better than another? So what does it say that one person's memories gets 10 votes, and another's gets 0? Bad memory? Bad writing? It's not like there are thousands to read through and we need to figure out a way to sift through the ones that are worth reading. They're all interesting.
I think a "random" button would be far more useful, and leave the voting system back in high school.
When I saw vote counts on the otherwise awesome Metafilter Memories page, I sort of blanched.
Voting works on Projects. I get it there. An easy to read indicator of what's worth further investigation.
Favorites? Well, I think not so much. But we've had that debate over and over and over.
But upvoting someone's fond memories of the site, like one could ever be better than another? So what does it say that one person's memories gets 10 votes, and another's gets 0? Bad memory? Bad writing? It's not like there are thousands to read through and we need to figure out a way to sift through the ones that are worth reading. They're all interesting.
I think a "random" button would be far more useful, and leave the voting system back in high school.
The default is date added.
Vote counts is the last type of view.
Why do you think votes are based on the person who wrote it? Of the top 5 votes, I only "recognize" 2 of the usernames.
Why don't you think people voted based on the memory itself, like it strikes a nerve with them, it's well written, really funny, or just plain old interesting...
I think your thinking that this is based on popularity may say more about you than about the project.
posted by like_neon at 3:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
Vote counts is the last type of view.
Why do you think votes are based on the person who wrote it? Of the top 5 votes, I only "recognize" 2 of the usernames.
Why don't you think people voted based on the memory itself, like it strikes a nerve with them, it's well written, really funny, or just plain old interesting...
I think your thinking that this is based on popularity may say more about you than about the project.
posted by like_neon at 3:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
I can go over there and be less popular than you, if that will help.
posted by louche mustachio at 3:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [15 favorites]
posted by louche mustachio at 3:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [15 favorites]
YOU CAN NOT STOP THE ETERNAL SUMMER IT HAS ALREADY STARTED
posted by Smart Dalek at 3:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
posted by Smart Dalek at 3:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
Winter is Coming.
posted by spec80 at 4:04 AM on July 14, 2011 [20 favorites]
posted by spec80 at 4:04 AM on July 14, 2011 [20 favorites]
(I should add that I haven't submitted an entry to the subsite, so this post is not at all about how many votes I am or I'm not getting.)
posted by crunchland at 4:04 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by crunchland at 4:04 AM on July 14, 2011
I find the term "effing" offensive. If you want to fucking curse, then go ahead and curse. It's not like anyone in the English-speaking world doesn't know that you're thinking fucking when you write effing, and it feels like either you don't think we can handle it, or you can't. I think we can handle it.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:06 AM on July 14, 2011 [43 favorites]
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:06 AM on July 14, 2011 [43 favorites]
I have to agree the vote feature is a little peculiar in this context. Favourites would have done the same job and made more sense. But I'm not so mad about it that I almost swore.
posted by londonmark at 4:10 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by londonmark at 4:10 AM on July 14, 2011
... An easy to read indicator of what's worth further investigation.
I think that's what it's meant to do here. If somebody selects "order by vote count" that's presumably why they'd be doing it.
posted by nangar at 4:15 AM on July 14, 2011
I think that's what it's meant to do here. If somebody selects "order by vote count" that's presumably why they'd be doing it.
posted by nangar at 4:15 AM on July 14, 2011
Looks like Jessamyn was trying to game the Title category. What happened to her, she used to be the good mod?!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:26 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:26 AM on July 14, 2011
I see your point but I think it has more to do with, you know, the Joy Of Datawankery than any real sort of popularity contest. It's not sorting by total number of Metafilter favorites or anything. Like, sorting by User ID Ascending/Descending could be taken uncharitably too ("sort by credibility ascending/descending'") but I think it's better to just take it as a way of playing around with the data.
posted by churl at 4:35 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by churl at 4:35 AM on July 14, 2011
Much more importantly, though, I want to know if we acquired cat-scan.com's assets when we bought them out. Where are the pictures of cats wedged into scanners, Haughey? INFORMATION WANTS TO BE FREE
posted by churl at 4:35 AM on July 14, 2011 [7 favorites]
posted by churl at 4:35 AM on July 14, 2011 [7 favorites]
Information wants scratches.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:47 AM on July 14, 2011 [7 favorites]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:47 AM on July 14, 2011 [7 favorites]
There are like seven thousand stories there. As a busy person, I want to read: the ones from people I know, and the ones that are great. The site supports both of those things. Therefore, I approve of this feature.
posted by Plutor at 4:48 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Plutor at 4:48 AM on July 14, 2011
Would it make you feel better if every memory got some kind of participant ribbon?
Also, if you haven't posted a memory, why do you care? Just don't use the "Order By Vote" feature and this "problem" (to the extent it is one and relates to you) is 100% solved.
posted by toomuchpete at 4:51 AM on July 14, 2011
Also, if you haven't posted a memory, why do you care? Just don't use the "Order By Vote" feature and this "problem" (to the extent it is one and relates to you) is 100% solved.
posted by toomuchpete at 4:51 AM on July 14, 2011
Come on man, this is the internet. You win or you die.
posted by Grither at 4:53 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by Grither at 4:53 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
Never mind everybody calm down I found them okay they were right there the whole time
posted by churl at 4:55 AM on July 14, 2011 [7 favorites]
posted by churl at 4:55 AM on July 14, 2011 [7 favorites]
do i have to participate to get a participation ribbon
posted by Meatbomb at 4:56 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Meatbomb at 4:56 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Also, if you haven't posted a memory, why do you care? Just don't use the "Order By Vote" feature and this "problem" (to the extent it is one and relates to you) is 100% solved.
Personally, I'm not going to participate if there's "voting"; it's a barrier to participation (yes, I'VE BEEN SILENCED ALL MY LIFE). I've written several times on the Gray about what I view as the insidious effect of "favorites" (rather than "bookmarks"); it's all the more troubling when you're supposedly sharing your personal memories of the community. Why does anyone get to vote on whether my memory is a good one?
I'll keep my memories my own, thanks.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 4:58 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Personally, I'm not going to participate if there's "voting"; it's a barrier to participation (yes, I'VE BEEN SILENCED ALL MY LIFE). I've written several times on the Gray about what I view as the insidious effect of "favorites" (rather than "bookmarks"); it's all the more troubling when you're supposedly sharing your personal memories of the community. Why does anyone get to vote on whether my memory is a good one?
I'll keep my memories my own, thanks.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 4:58 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
The first memory I clicked on had 0 votes. I felt a bit sad for the user. "Too bad, you are not one of the cool guys."
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 5:05 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 5:05 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
Winter is Coming.
Oh that's your fucking answer to everything!!!
"Honey, where are the fancy guest soaps...you know the ones for when your parents visit?"
WINTER IS COMING.
"This Michelle Bachman is gaining popularity all the time, what do you make of her chances as a presidential hopeful?"
WINTER IS COMING.
"I think we're out of milk."
WINTER IS COMING.
"For the first time in a long time, I think the snark on metafilter is on the decline."
WINTER IS COMING.
posted by Fizz at 5:11 AM on July 14, 2011 [9 favorites]
Oh that's your fucking answer to everything!!!
"Honey, where are the fancy guest soaps...you know the ones for when your parents visit?"
WINTER IS COMING.
"This Michelle Bachman is gaining popularity all the time, what do you make of her chances as a presidential hopeful?"
WINTER IS COMING.
"I think we're out of milk."
WINTER IS COMING.
"For the first time in a long time, I think the snark on metafilter is on the decline."
WINTER IS COMING.
posted by Fizz at 5:11 AM on July 14, 2011 [9 favorites]
I'm in the top 20, vote wise!!
But I have only one vote, so maybe this voting this isn't all meaningful? Just fun datawankery.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:12 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
But I have only one vote, so maybe this voting this isn't all meaningful? Just fun datawankery.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:12 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
It's not like anyone in the English-speaking world doesn't know that you're thinking fucking when you write effing
More correctly, "effing" is the phonetic version of "f"-ing, and as a phoneticism, it's for pronouncing, not writing. I suppose if you absolutely had to try to spell it, our friend the apostrophe would be your go-to punctuation mark: "f'ing".
posted by UbuRoivas at 5:21 AM on July 14, 2011
More correctly, "effing" is the phonetic version of "f"-ing, and as a phoneticism, it's for pronouncing, not writing. I suppose if you absolutely had to try to spell it, our friend the apostrophe would be your go-to punctuation mark: "f'ing".
posted by UbuRoivas at 5:21 AM on July 14, 2011
WINTER IS COMING.
̢͖̗̬͔͗̿̍ͦͣ̀̚̚☃̷̛ͣ̉͋ͤͥͥ̚̚҉͈̥̖̩̪̝☃̡͕̪̫͖̹͕̼̫̰̓ͪͫͨ̇̉̍☃̌̆ͯͯ̚͏͙̮͕͍̞☃̺̲͇̳͔͚͙̐̆͐͂ͪͫ͂͜ͅ☃̡̣͙͓̠̲ͫ͛ͯ̄☃̣͖͓̙̺̈́̑ͩͬ̀☃̡̻̻̑ͤͭ͐̋̈̆́́̕☃͍̭̗̲̺̘͍̹̏ͯ
posted by DU at 5:22 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
̢͖̗̬͔͗̿̍ͦͣ̀̚̚☃̷̛ͣ̉͋ͤͥͥ̚̚҉͈̥̖̩̪̝☃̡͕̪̫͖̹͕̼̫̰̓ͪͫͨ̇̉̍☃̌̆ͯͯ̚͏͙̮͕͍̞☃̺̲͇̳͔͚͙̐̆͐͂ͪͫ͂͜ͅ☃̡̣͙͓̠̲ͫ͛ͯ̄☃̣͖͓̙̺̈́̑ͩͬ̀☃̡̻̻̑ͤͭ͐̋̈̆́́̕☃͍̭̗̲̺̘͍̹̏ͯ
posted by DU at 5:22 AM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
*considers ironically favoriting this thread*
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:28 AM on July 14, 2011 [8 favorites]
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:28 AM on July 14, 2011 [8 favorites]
But upvoting someone's fond memories of the site, like one could ever be better than another?
Is like Mormons praying their dead relatives into a higher level of heaven.
posted by three blind mice at 5:28 AM on July 14, 2011
Is like Mormons praying their dead relatives into a higher level of heaven.
posted by three blind mice at 5:28 AM on July 14, 2011
I agree with crunchland, "voting" in this context seems too weird and competition-like for what ought to be a lighthearted stroll down memory lane for everybody. If you think about MetaFilter Memories as a group of old friends hanging out and reminiscing, would we be keeping score of who has the "best" memory? Or would we all just be smiling and laughing and slapping the table and "Oh yeah, I remember that" and just enjoying the memories?
posted by Gator at 5:32 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Gator at 5:32 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Aw, I think you're all pretty princesses.
posted by FunkyHelix at 5:33 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by FunkyHelix at 5:33 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
They're my memories and I'm the first to admit that they're not as good as anyone else's. I'm all for datawankery.
posted by arcticseal at 5:33 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by arcticseal at 5:33 AM on July 14, 2011
The effing rant was funnier and truer when it was Louis CK on the n-word. Effing is now its own thing with legitimate usefulness, at least for those of us with five year old children.
posted by norm at 5:34 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by norm at 5:34 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Where was this thing even announced? Am I missing a link, or what? I saw the call for submissions a week or so ago, but didn't even know it was live. What's the official story? How did Matt come to acquire the cat-scan domain?
posted by Devils Rancher at 5:46 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Devils Rancher at 5:46 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Or would we all just be smiling and laughing and slapping the table and "Oh yeah, I remember that" and just enjoying the memories?
That's actually pretty much what I'd interpret votes to mean in this context.
posted by jacquilynne at 5:50 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
That's actually pretty much what I'd interpret votes to mean in this context.
posted by jacquilynne at 5:50 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
If you think about MetaFilter Memories as a group of old friends hanging out and reminiscing...
... and I walk in late. It's nice that someone says, "Oh man, you should have heard Scody's story. Hey, Scody, tell it again!". That's what I think the favorites are good for.
And I'd like to think of this thread, here on MetaTalk, as the plate of beans that crunchland brought to the party. Thanks, crunchland, it's perfect.
posted by benito.strauss at 5:52 AM on July 14, 2011
... and I walk in late. It's nice that someone says, "Oh man, you should have heard Scody's story. Hey, Scody, tell it again!". That's what I think the favorites are good for.
And I'd like to think of this thread, here on MetaTalk, as the plate of beans that crunchland brought to the party. Thanks, crunchland, it's perfect.
posted by benito.strauss at 5:52 AM on July 14, 2011
I'll take all the votes he don't want.
posted by ColdChef at 6:05 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by ColdChef at 6:05 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
But they're not favorites, they're "votes." It may be beanplating, but favorites have a different connotation than votes. Why else do we allow both favoriting and voting on Projects? While it can be argued (and a lot of people do) that favorites are used for scorekeeping around the site, votes are pretty explicitly for that purpose. It's just weird. Nobody would tell a latecomer to the MeFi Memories party that so-and-so has the current high score. It'd feel less weird if it was "That's one of my favorite memories/stories" instead of "That story gets X number of points."
posted by Gator at 6:10 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Gator at 6:10 AM on July 14, 2011
I'm sad that the happy birthday meTa is grar-inducing, and that it was posted when mods and mathowie are bound to be asleep.
I'm voting for all of them, because all of them are awesome in their own way.
posted by rtha at 6:11 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
I'm voting for all of them, because all of them are awesome in their own way.
posted by rtha at 6:11 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
I expected this sort of snark and pile on about thread, so I am chiming in to say I agree with crunchland. Favorites make me sad, as anyone who even pays a little attention to my limited participation in this site can see. Voting systems outside of Projects seems icky.
posted by terrapin at 6:12 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by terrapin at 6:12 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Where was this thing even announced?
The annual cat scan thread.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:14 AM on July 14, 2011
The annual cat scan thread.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:14 AM on July 14, 2011
Why does everything have to be an effing popularity contest?
Because that' how we determine who becomes the Sofa King Cool.
posted by Debaser626 at 6:20 AM on July 14, 2011
Because that' how we determine who becomes the Sofa King Cool.
posted by Debaser626 at 6:20 AM on July 14, 2011
Maaaaan can you tell that I hadn't slept forever (and was thus having a bad day) when I wrote mine.
As to on-topic... yeah, the voting is a bit unnecessary for sorting only 109 memories, but I honestly hadn't even noticed it was a feature.
posted by Kattullus at 6:20 AM on July 14, 2011
As to on-topic... yeah, the voting is a bit unnecessary for sorting only 109 memories, but I honestly hadn't even noticed it was a feature.
posted by Kattullus at 6:20 AM on July 14, 2011
"the voting is a bit unnecessary"
I recant that... I didn't realize how neat it will be to come home drunk, read all the memories and vote for them all because you're all so wonderful guys no really you all are so wonderful no listen just listen okay you're all really really wonderful no just listen to me just listen already I'm not just saying that because I'm drunk you're all really wondeful
Happy MeFiversary all... Jebus how I love this place
posted by Kattullus at 6:25 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
I recant that... I didn't realize how neat it will be to come home drunk, read all the memories and vote for them all because you're all so wonderful guys no really you all are so wonderful no listen just listen okay you're all really really wonderful no just listen to me just listen already I'm not just saying that because I'm drunk you're all really wondeful
Happy MeFiversary all... Jebus how I love this place
posted by Kattullus at 6:25 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
That would suck to write up something you were proud of and get zero votes.
posted by smackfu at 6:31 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by smackfu at 6:31 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I agree it can be seen as a little weird, but like a few people said we wanted a sort by good stories list if you didn't have time to read 100+ pages.
Maybe it just needs a new name. Thanks instead of Votes?
posted by mathowie (staff) at 6:38 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Maybe it just needs a new name. Thanks instead of Votes?
posted by mathowie (staff) at 6:38 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
It would be more interesting if the names of the contributors were hidden.
posted by adipocere at 6:45 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by adipocere at 6:45 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
The annual cat scan thread.
Thanks! I forgot to look for the annual thread.
posted by Devils Rancher at 6:50 AM on July 14, 2011
Thanks! I forgot to look for the annual thread.
posted by Devils Rancher at 6:50 AM on July 14, 2011
I have 0 votes and I don't mind the wording. Some people wrote really great stories! But the title "Thanks" is nice too.
What I do especially enjoy is that when you sort by user number I am 34! Which is younger than my actual age!
posted by onlyconnect at 6:52 AM on July 14, 2011
What I do especially enjoy is that when you sort by user number I am 34! Which is younger than my actual age!
posted by onlyconnect at 6:52 AM on July 14, 2011
But upvoting someone's fond memories of the site, like one could ever be better than another?
One could be more interesting than another to read, yes.
Looking over the list, there are a lot of names I recognize; some belong to popular people, some I sort of know to see, and some I am not familiar with at all. I think that if it were truly a popularity contest, the top ten would be packed with cool kids.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 6:54 AM on July 14, 2011
One could be more interesting than another to read, yes.
Looking over the list, there are a lot of names I recognize; some belong to popular people, some I sort of know to see, and some I am not familiar with at all. I think that if it were truly a popularity contest, the top ten would be packed with cool kids.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 6:54 AM on July 14, 2011
I vote we change vote to thanks. Thanks.
posted by exogenous at 7:16 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by exogenous at 7:16 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
You know nothing, Jon Snow.
posted by feckless at 7:18 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by feckless at 7:18 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
The first memory I clicked on had 0 votes. I felt a bit sad for the user. "Too bad, you are not one of the cool guys."
That was probably mine. Don't worry though, I am most certainly one of "the cool guys"; my cats and dogs are constantly reminding me of how completely awesome I am and how they couldn't bear to be without me.
Though, now that I think about it, that confirmation of my worth does generally seem to happen around the same time as when I feed them...
But I'm sure that's just a weird coincidence.
posted by quin at 7:19 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
That was probably mine. Don't worry though, I am most certainly one of "the cool guys"; my cats and dogs are constantly reminding me of how completely awesome I am and how they couldn't bear to be without me.
Though, now that I think about it, that confirmation of my worth does generally seem to happen around the same time as when I feed them...
But I'm sure that's just a weird coincidence.
posted by quin at 7:19 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Mmm, thanks for linking to it--I couldn't figure out how to get back to it without making (shudder) some effort. I managed to miss the deadline but wanted to see other submissions anyway.
Votes are a little weird, I agree on that, but probably well-intentioned so I'm going to give grar a miss on this one.
posted by librarylis at 7:21 AM on July 14, 2011
Votes are a little weird, I agree on that, but probably well-intentioned so I'm going to give grar a miss on this one.
posted by librarylis at 7:21 AM on July 14, 2011
I'm just sorry more people didn't submit memories; they make for great reading. (I'm also sorry I didn't title mine; this is what comes of doing things in a rush at the last minute.)
Also: Migs! jonson!
> Effing is now its own thing with legitimate usefulness, at least for those of us with five year old children.
And if this place has five-year-old members, I will fully support mealy-mouthed substitutes. If not, not.
posted by languagehat at 7:22 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
Also: Migs! jonson!
> Effing is now its own thing with legitimate usefulness, at least for those of us with five year old children.
And if this place has five-year-old members, I will fully support mealy-mouthed substitutes. If not, not.
posted by languagehat at 7:22 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
Of course you realize that if I had said "fucking popularity contest" in my original post, we would have had complaints about people worried about the work-safetyness of it.
Thanks instead of Votes?
I can get behind that, I guess.
posted by crunchland at 7:26 AM on July 14, 2011
Thanks instead of Votes?
I can get behind that, I guess.
posted by crunchland at 7:26 AM on July 14, 2011
librarylis: " I managed to miss the deadline"
There is no deadline!
Mathowie has said that they never turned off the submission form. Anyone who wants to post a memory can do so.
posted by zarq at 7:45 AM on July 14, 2011
There is no deadline!
Mathowie has said that they never turned off the submission form. Anyone who wants to post a memory can do so.
posted by zarq at 7:45 AM on July 14, 2011
I wish amberglow would have posted something. I hope he's alright.
posted by Curious Artificer at 7:46 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by Curious Artificer at 7:46 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
Mathowie has said that they never turned off the submission form.
Click, click:
Looks like you contributed a MetaFilter memory on Jul 12, thanks! You only get one shot.
What, like ya'll weren't thinking the same thing.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:48 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Click, click:
Looks like you contributed a MetaFilter memory on Jul 12, thanks! You only get one shot.
What, like ya'll weren't thinking the same thing.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:48 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Much more importantly, though, I want to know if we acquired cat-scan.com's assets when we bought them out.
The site had been dormant for years before we got it; all those cat scans were lost, like tears in the rain. We've got a link to the archive.org cache of the site, but it's all structure and no images, which is why I got a few mefites to help out on the sly to provide me with some fresh cat scans for the new terrible old page we also link to.
Of course you realize that if I had said "fucking popularity contest" in my original post, we would have had complaints about people worried about the work-safetyness of it.
So you're saying it's difficult to do well-meaning things around here without getting hit by some sort of overt criticism that doesn't have much of anything to do with what you were trying to accomplish?
I think it's fine to look at the "vote" button there and feel like "eh, I dunno" and say something or talk about a different sort of label for it, but posting a grumpy metatalk post in the middle of the night making a big deal out of seems kind of as far from the mark as far as people just posting happy or poignant site-related memories as does any horrifying connotations that come with there being some form of "this is good" button.
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:51 AM on July 14, 2011 [9 favorites]
The site had been dormant for years before we got it; all those cat scans were lost, like tears in the rain. We've got a link to the archive.org cache of the site, but it's all structure and no images, which is why I got a few mefites to help out on the sly to provide me with some fresh cat scans for the new terrible old page we also link to.
Of course you realize that if I had said "fucking popularity contest" in my original post, we would have had complaints about people worried about the work-safetyness of it.
So you're saying it's difficult to do well-meaning things around here without getting hit by some sort of overt criticism that doesn't have much of anything to do with what you were trying to accomplish?
I think it's fine to look at the "vote" button there and feel like "eh, I dunno" and say something or talk about a different sort of label for it, but posting a grumpy metatalk post in the middle of the night making a big deal out of seems kind of as far from the mark as far as people just posting happy or poignant site-related memories as does any horrifying connotations that come with there being some form of "this is good" button.
posted by cortex (staff) at 7:51 AM on July 14, 2011 [9 favorites]
It is now thanks. You are now welcome.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:55 AM on July 14, 2011 [11 favorites]
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:55 AM on July 14, 2011 [11 favorites]
Whoa. Wouldn't have found this without the Memories page.
Hot damn.
posted by schmod at 7:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
Hot damn.
posted by schmod at 7:59 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
I just changed it all to thanks. I admit that vote was clunky, but we couldn't make it favorite because it couldn't integrate with favorites elsewhere on the site. Thank is still slightly weird, but eh, I really love the sort by ratings list and it's helped me find a bunch of stories. There are so many that it's hard to read more than a couple dozen in any one sitting.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 8:00 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by mathowie (staff) at 8:00 AM on July 14, 2011
I think thanks is great (thanks for the memories!), and I didn't see the site until just now. Maybe "vote" would have seemed weird, but the sort feature makes a lot of sense. "Popularity" may be a bug in humans as much as in websites...
I'm now campaigning to replace or supplement favorites with "thanks." Not kidding.
posted by Mngo at 8:09 AM on July 14, 2011
I'm now campaigning to replace or supplement favorites with "thanks." Not kidding.
posted by Mngo at 8:09 AM on July 14, 2011
mathowie: "I just changed it all to thanks."
Errr... we can't see the thanks counts anymore.
posted by zarq at 8:11 AM on July 14, 2011
Errr... we can't see the thanks counts anymore.
posted by zarq at 8:11 AM on July 14, 2011
UbuRoivas: " More correctly, "effing" is the phonetic version of "f"-ing, and as a phoneticism, it's for pronouncing, not writing. I suppose if you absolutely had to try to spell it, our friend the apostrophe would be your go-to punctuation mark: "f'ing"."
Believe it or not, "eff" as a euphemism is almost 70 years old, and I'm betting that citation was written.
posted by Plutor at 8:15 AM on July 14, 2011
Believe it or not, "eff" as a euphemism is almost 70 years old, and I'm betting that citation was written.
posted by Plutor at 8:15 AM on July 14, 2011
OED puts it back even farther!
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:21 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
1929 R. Graves Good-bye to all That 79The thing to do with "effing" is to then apply another layer of taboo avoidance to it by spelling it out, like, "I've got six words for you: Ee Eff Eff Why Oh You."
He was charged with‥using obscene language to the bandmaster; the bandmaster, who was squeamish, reported it as: ‘Sir, he called me a double effing c—.’
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:21 AM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
Counting Thankses just seems small and weird and petty and I do not like it.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:29 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:29 AM on July 14, 2011
Counting Thankses just seems small and weird and petty and I do not like it.
Should they be renamed "people who admire your awesomeness"? Would that be better?
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:34 AM on July 14, 2011
Should they be renamed "people who admire your awesomeness"? Would that be better?
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:34 AM on July 14, 2011
It's probably too late for this, but if we're gonna do voting, then we outta DO voting, like the funniest, most moving, in jokiest, geekiest, most delicious, strangest etc.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:39 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:39 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I tried telling the cat how awesome I was, but he didn't even thank me, let alone vote for me. My fragile ego can cope with it though.
posted by arcticseal at 8:39 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by arcticseal at 8:39 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Counting Thankses just seems small and weird and petty and I do not like it.
Maybe keep the option to sort by votes/thanks, but hide the actual number? Also, it seems kinda weird that the dropdown option is still "sort by votes", though "sort by thanks" maybe sounds even weirder.
"Effing" makes me think "ineffable".
posted by Vibrissa at 8:40 AM on July 14, 2011
Maybe keep the option to sort by votes/thanks, but hide the actual number? Also, it seems kinda weird that the dropdown option is still "sort by votes", though "sort by thanks" maybe sounds even weirder.
"Effing" makes me think "ineffable".
posted by Vibrissa at 8:40 AM on July 14, 2011
We're sort of done tweaking with it and we'd like to just enjoy it at this point.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 8:46 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 8:46 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
July is National Let's Try Obscuring Thanks Counts Month
posted by 7segment at 8:49 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by 7segment at 8:49 AM on July 14, 2011
You people will complain about anything, won't you?
posted by grouse at 8:50 AM on July 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
posted by grouse at 8:50 AM on July 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
No request for any tweaking here, really; tongue's mostly in cheek, there's just nothing wrong that I can see with giving people the tools to find interesting and notable pieces, and vote counts seem like a pretty neutral way to do it. Counting Thanks just feels and sounds gauche to me in the same way that it would be weird to keep track of who gave you a Valentine's card or sent a Thank You note.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:51 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:51 AM on July 14, 2011
That's cool; I was just in complain-about-completely-trivial-things mode (a side effect of reading the site at work, I think). Enjoy-reading-people's-stories-and-memories sounds like a more fun mode to be in, though.
posted by Vibrissa at 8:51 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Vibrissa at 8:51 AM on July 14, 2011
I DONT CARE ABOUT YOUR THANKS BUT DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO WEDGE A CAT IN A SCANNER??!?
Actually not hard at all. Yorvit was very cooperative.
posted by gingerbeer at 8:54 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
Actually not hard at all. Yorvit was very cooperative.
posted by gingerbeer at 8:54 AM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
grouse: "You people will complain about anything, won't you?"
What do you mean, "you people"?
posted by zarq at 8:56 AM on July 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
What do you mean, "you people"?
posted by zarq at 8:56 AM on July 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
He means the people who read the posts down here.
posted by Dano St at 8:58 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Dano St at 8:58 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Don't worry Zarq, we all know you have the mods' backs.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 9:00 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Admiral Haddock at 9:00 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Maybe it just needs a new name. Thanks instead of Votes?
Can't you just make it favourites everywhere. You know, so us haters can save the mental anguish of deciding which popularity contest is more despicable and all that.
posted by Chuckles at 9:16 AM on July 14, 2011
Can't you just make it favourites everywhere. You know, so us haters can save the mental anguish of deciding which popularity contest is more despicable and all that.
posted by Chuckles at 9:16 AM on July 14, 2011
but we couldn't make it favorite because it couldn't integrate with favorites elsewhere on the site.
Oh. Thanks then, I guess... :)
posted by Chuckles at 9:19 AM on July 14, 2011
Oh. Thanks then, I guess... :)
posted by Chuckles at 9:19 AM on July 14, 2011
OFFS
posted by edgeways at 9:23 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by edgeways at 9:23 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Admiral Haddock: "Don't worry Zarq, we all know you have the mods' backs."
?
Assuming you mean my comment to grouse, that was a joke.
posted by zarq at 9:47 AM on July 14, 2011
?
Assuming you mean my comment to grouse, that was a joke.
posted by zarq at 9:47 AM on July 14, 2011
I would have guessed that everybody here has made enough carefully-crafted posts and comments that ended up getting zero favorites or followups to be inured to the tragedy of "getting no votes".
posted by dfan at 9:58 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by dfan at 9:58 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Some things are better than others. Some people think some things are better than others. Sometimes they're right; sometimes not. Lots of people like to express their view on what things are better than others. This is natural human behaviour, and not so very bad, really.
posted by Decani at 10:26 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Decani at 10:26 AM on July 14, 2011
The only way to win is not to play.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 10:26 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 10:26 AM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
i vote for changing it to awesomes. because even if you only get 1 awesomes, that is still pretty heartening.
posted by lrobertjones at 10:54 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by lrobertjones at 10:54 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Everyone needs a grilled cheesed sandwich.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 11:04 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 11:04 AM on July 14, 2011
I was made to understand there would be grilled cheese sandwiches.
posted by Kattullus at 11:11 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Kattullus at 11:11 AM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
People! Cat-scan.com has been restored! Cats were wedged into scanners anew! This is a time to rejoice not to grump and snark.
And now I want a grilled cheese. Dammit.
posted by grapesaresour at 11:44 AM on July 14, 2011
And now I want a grilled cheese. Dammit.
posted by grapesaresour at 11:44 AM on July 14, 2011
This is why I only eat Effington Farms Ham. "The Best Effing Ham You'll Ever Have!"
posted by Eideteker at 11:54 AM on July 14, 2011
posted by Eideteker at 11:54 AM on July 14, 2011
This is so silly. Have you guys read the posts that are garnering lots of votes? People being brought back from the brink of suicide! People falling in love! People recovering from PPD or drug addiction or cancer with the help of metafilter! These are excellent things, and should be all brought to the attention of the community!
I love you all!
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 12:05 PM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
I love you all!
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 12:05 PM on July 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
Here's one thing that really fucking irks me, FWIW. The word "nowadays." My community college students use it all the time and I want to beat them over the head with a huge cucumber and scream at them "IT'S NOT A REAL WORD GODDAMNYOU!"
posted by tr33hggr at 12:30 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by tr33hggr at 12:30 PM on July 14, 2011
do i have to participate to get a participation ribbon
posted by Meatbomb
Had I participated, it would have been something about how Meatbomb became my neighbor for a while as the result of a Metafilter post. Good times.
posted by StickyCarpet at 12:41 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by Meatbomb
Had I participated, it would have been something about how Meatbomb became my neighbor for a while as the result of a Metafilter post. Good times.
posted by StickyCarpet at 12:41 PM on July 14, 2011
Here's one thing that really fucking irks me, FWIW. The word "nowadays." My community college students use it all the time and I want to beat them over the head with a huge cucumber and scream at them "IT'S NOT A REAL WORD GODDAMNYOU!"
Merriam-Webster disagree.
posted by Lexica at 12:53 PM on July 14, 2011
Merriam-Webster disagree.
posted by Lexica at 12:53 PM on July 14, 2011
Nowadays it is.
Well it wasn't, back in the day.
posted by Devils Rancher at 12:55 PM on July 14, 2011
Well it wasn't, back in the day.
posted by Devils Rancher at 12:55 PM on July 14, 2011
It even features, predictably enough, in a fairly well known Shakespeare quote : "Truth, reason and love keep little company together nowadays." - Midsummer Night's Dream.
posted by Kattullus at 12:58 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 12:58 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
As long as I'm antedating usage with the OED, I am pleased to note that "nowadays" to the late 14th Century, with Chaucer: "For any wit that men han now a dayes."
posted by cortex (staff) at 12:58 PM on July 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
posted by cortex (staff) at 12:58 PM on July 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
Shakespeare and Chaucer are hacks! Double negatives and all that, posh!
posted by tr33hggr at 1:20 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by tr33hggr at 1:20 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
And what, you are wondering, does this have to do with anything? Well lemme tell you. Nothing, except this is my first visit here in over a year, preceded by several years of waning time spent on the various MeFi sites, and I've seen enough good stuff today to want to come back tomorrow. And maybe the day after that! Yes, yes, I am again in love with the blue, the gray, the green!
posted by tr33hggr at 1:29 PM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by tr33hggr at 1:29 PM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
"lemme" is a real word?
And what is a "real" word anyhow?
posted by edgeways at 1:31 PM on July 14, 2011
And what is a "real" word anyhow?
posted by edgeways at 1:31 PM on July 14, 2011
"lemme" is a real word?
Twain, 1876. "Gonna" only goes back to 1913; real whippersnapper, that'n.
posted by cortex (staff) at 1:39 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
Twain, 1876. "Gonna" only goes back to 1913; real whippersnapper, that'n.
posted by cortex (staff) at 1:39 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
"lemme" is a real word?
It's in the Oxford English Dictionary, dating back to 1876.
And what is a "real" word anyhow?
Appearing in a major dictionary would be a sufficient but not necessary condition.
posted by grouse at 1:40 PM on July 14, 2011
It's in the Oxford English Dictionary, dating back to 1876.
And what is a "real" word anyhow?
Appearing in a major dictionary would be a sufficient but not necessary condition.
posted by grouse at 1:40 PM on July 14, 2011
There oughta be a live webcam of cortex flipping through his OED.
posted by carsonb at 1:42 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by carsonb at 1:42 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I wish I had a physical copy to flip through, but it's (arguably far more sensible) online access, so it'd be a pretty boring screencast at best.
posted by cortex (staff) at 1:53 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by cortex (staff) at 1:53 PM on July 14, 2011
I have the OED but my GIF animation skills are rusty. Have at it.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:32 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:32 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
OMG it's Mirror Jessamyn
posted by desjardins at 2:54 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by desjardins at 2:54 PM on July 14, 2011
proposed new word, thenadays - the opposite of nowadays. e.g. Thenadays, nowadays wasn't a word, but times have changed.
posted by nomisxid at 3:10 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by nomisxid at 3:10 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Oh that's your fucking answer to everything!!!
The summer solstice was on June 21st. The days have been getting shorter ever since.
WINTER IS COMING.
posted by y2karl at 3:26 PM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
The summer solstice was on June 21st. The days have been getting shorter ever since.
WINTER IS COMING.
posted by y2karl at 3:26 PM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
So, sort of a serious suggestion. Shouldn't these memories have comments?
posted by Kattullus at 4:07 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by Kattullus at 4:07 PM on July 14, 2011
I met someone at a party once who was also a regular MeFite. She told me her user name. I didn't tell her mine.
posted by philip-random at 4:13 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by philip-random at 4:13 PM on July 14, 2011
Kattullus: So, sort of a serious suggestion. Shouldn't these memories have comments?
I'd rather see flags.
posted by gman at 4:16 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I'd rather see flags.
posted by gman at 4:16 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Goddamn that dude is not just driving the Bitter Bus, but manning an entire Bittertown Metro Regional Transit Authority.
posted by chiababe at 4:46 PM on July 14, 2011 [8 favorites]
posted by chiababe at 4:46 PM on July 14, 2011 [8 favorites]
It encourages participation. I've found that links to cool things without me commenting in the thread much get heaps of Favorites, which my brain translates to Likes. So I'll keep trying to post good links and pithy comments in the hopes of getting Favorites.
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 4:59 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 4:59 PM on July 14, 2011
I thanked everyone who wrote. And I read all of them too.
I was thinking I would write one but now that I know I only get one shot, maybe I should wait because maybe there is going to be a better memory coming up (though I sort of doubt it unless Mick and I finally get to make one of them there babies people keep talking about) and I don't know it yet.
posted by keli at 5:29 PM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
I was thinking I would write one but now that I know I only get one shot, maybe I should wait because maybe there is going to be a better memory coming up (though I sort of doubt it unless Mick and I finally get to make one of them there babies people keep talking about) and I don't know it yet.
posted by keli at 5:29 PM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
I met someone at a party once who was also a regular MeFite. She told me her user name. I didn't tell her mine.
If she's who I think she is, philip-random, then she already knows it.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 5:39 PM on July 14, 2011
If she's who I think she is, philip-random, then she already knows it.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 5:39 PM on July 14, 2011
There was a peroid when I just kept running into Mefites by accident out in the wild
posted by The Whelk at 5:59 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by The Whelk at 5:59 PM on July 14, 2011
POEMFILTER!
posted by clavdivs at 6:34 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by clavdivs at 6:34 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Backdoor Man. A minor hit in Australia. Using sound bites from right wing anti immigration politician, Pauline Hanson, set to video of long running Prime Minister, John Howard. Completely out of the box.
posted by uncanny hengeman at 6:41 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by uncanny hengeman at 6:41 PM on July 14, 2011
Whelk, did you tag them appropriately and release them? We're still working on the infographics for the migratory habits of North American Mefites.
posted by cmyk at 7:43 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by cmyk at 7:43 PM on July 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
If you hold a Rifftrax's viewing of Plan Nine From Outer Space, they will come.
posted by The Whelk at 7:56 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by The Whelk at 7:56 PM on July 14, 2011
I met someone at a party once who was also a regular MeFite. She told me her user name. I didn't tell her mine.
If she's who I think she is, philip-random, then she already knows it.
posted by BitterOldPunk
That wasn't a party. We were just drinking.
posted by philip-random at 8:25 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
If she's who I think she is, philip-random, then she already knows it.
posted by BitterOldPunk
That wasn't a party. We were just drinking.
posted by philip-random at 8:25 PM on July 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Ha. I *thought* I recognized a cat on the cat-scan site, but was sooo confused as to how that was possible. Until now.
posted by iamkimiam at 8:41 PM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by iamkimiam at 8:41 PM on July 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
is it bad that logging into Metafilter reminds me of this a bit
BONJOUR!
posted by The Whelk at 9:58 PM on July 14, 2011
BONJOUR!
posted by The Whelk at 9:58 PM on July 14, 2011
Plutor: "There are like seven thousand stories there."
I see 157 with no "more" button. Am I missing it? How do I see more stories?
posted by IndigoRain at 10:16 PM on July 14, 2011
I see 157 with no "more" button. Am I missing it? How do I see more stories?
posted by IndigoRain at 10:16 PM on July 14, 2011
I have the OED but my GIF animation skills are rusty. Have at it. --- I figured someone else would have done it by now, but, here you go.
posted by crunchland at 10:31 PM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by crunchland at 10:31 PM on July 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
How about you change it to "cheers!" lol
posted by 1000monkeys at 11:26 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by 1000monkeys at 11:26 PM on July 14, 2011
Hey, since we're here, can we change favorites to spouses? We'll feel more loved when we get a few of them now and then. Really loved.
posted by secret about box at 11:31 PM on July 14, 2011
posted by secret about box at 11:31 PM on July 14, 2011
Do we have to become Mormons?
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:27 AM on July 15, 2011
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:27 AM on July 15, 2011
When I give votes, favourites and thanks to things it just means that I've gone woh! I don't expect to get many wohs because my comments are not usually very woh-worthy, and yet I write comments anyway.
In the end, as you said, it doesn't really mean all that much but transitory feelings of woh are something to be cherished just because it's a good feeling when someone notices what you've said.
I post because it's what I'm thinking/feeling at the time and I can be arsed actually typing it out. What's so bad about someone taking notice of that (even if most of the time they don't?)
posted by h00py at 4:48 AM on July 15, 2011
In the end, as you said, it doesn't really mean all that much but transitory feelings of woh are something to be cherished just because it's a good feeling when someone notices what you've said.
I post because it's what I'm thinking/feeling at the time and I can be arsed actually typing it out. What's so bad about someone taking notice of that (even if most of the time they don't?)
posted by h00py at 4:48 AM on July 15, 2011
I wish I had a physical copy to flip through, but it's (arguably far more sensible) online access, so it'd be a pretty boring screencast at best.
I do. Next time you're in Philly, we can do this thing.
posted by desuetude at 8:41 PM on July 15, 2011
I do. Next time you're in Philly, we can do this thing.
posted by desuetude at 8:41 PM on July 15, 2011
Fucking fuck fuck.
MetaFilter is rated AA for coarse language and mature subject matter.
posted by chunking express at 6:23 AM on July 16, 2011
MetaFilter is rated AA for coarse language and mature subject matter.
posted by chunking express at 6:23 AM on July 16, 2011
Fucking A!
posted by a humble nudibranch at 11:37 PM on July 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by a humble nudibranch at 11:37 PM on July 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
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posted by louche mustachio at 3:53 AM on July 14, 2011 [9 favorites]