[WikiEN-l] Re: What's the issue?

[Nikola Smolenski]

On Thursday 24 June 2004 21:30, Timwi wrote:
> > As an easy example, try this: SETI Online offers online certificates for
> > work units completed. I am coming up on certificate four - 1000 work
> > units - and I'm excited.
>
> This is significantly different from what I was referring to. It is
> already technically possible for us to count the number of contributions
> (I even keep an approximate value on my user page updated). However, it
> is clear to everyone, troll or not, that these numbers don't mean
> anything. Anyone can make tens of thousands of edits; the system does
> not judge how meaningful each edit is.

This could be solved by awarding users with, for example, most articles that 
made it to the main page. They are already pre-selected by humans as good 
articles.

> And *that* is where the problem comes in. By giving awards to people, we
> would be *judging the value* of a contribution. And we're bound to go
> horribly wrong. We're going to be biased against obscure topics that
> nobody finds interesting; we're going to be biased towards people who
> have been here for longer and whom we already appreciate; and we're
> going to be biased against people who are not quite as socially
> competent as we would like them to be.

OTOH, I couldn't agree with this more.

> You already mentioned that we are here for the fun of it. Yes, of course
> we are. Who's denying that? The problem with these awards is that each
> award makes *one* person happy, and a *load* of people unhappy. It is

I don't think it is so. I don't see how someone receiving an award would make 
me unhappy.

> simply no fun to see other people receive awards for something you
> personally feel you have done better, more of, or to a greater
> degree/extent. People are inevitably going to feel that way. It is well

OTOH, this does make sense.