Best answers reduced

[The Stealthinator]

I had 74 best answers in the old platform, but now I have only 52. It was said this is going to be fixed, but it doesn't look like it now 🙁((

My best answers that are currently listed are all in different categories to what was in the previous platform.

 

[lourson]

@inzone: Yes we considered this, although it might still be improved based on feedback. With the new system, after 100 Best Answers, a small number will start showing up next to the badge to indicate by how far past the upper threshold you've exceeded. Therefore a user can have a badge "Graphics Card Master 250" while another one will be only "Graphics Card Master 147". This number is not very visible however right now on badges and sometimes it's even a little mixed into the icon itself.

 

[inzone]

I have several badges where I can see this number and I do like this feature however while some are complaining of missing best answers and possibly badges I seem to have the opposite condition. I think the best answer count might be accurate or close to it but the badges are out of control and it may well be the new tag system and the excess number of best answers piling up over the years and they are now being applied due to tags. Sure would be nice to have the ability to organize your own badges.

It will be interesting to see what the final product ends up looking like and while you can't possibly satisfy everyone I think the majority will be.

 

[Brett928S2]

I have a question. Under the old system when you got 150 best answers in a section like say Graphics Cards and you received the gold badge , the best answer count stopped at showing 150. Now I continued to receive best answers in that section, were the bset answers continued to be counted even though it didn't show it.

Now because of this limit a person that recieved the gold badge and could only see 150 best answers could tend to not want to hang around that section because there was no further advancement to be had. There are members that come here and go only to specific sections because they know that section and could be considered experts in that field and those are the people that you want to encourage to stay there to assist with the quetions posted because they will provide expert advice and/or solutions. Under both systems the badges were in three steps Bronze, Silver and Gold , and now it's Expert , Authority and Master , has anyone considered not having a limit of three and that maybe it should be more. That way a person that wants to stay in a section and earn the recognition of being the one to get advice from. For myself I saw that once I got the Gold badge in a section I felt like that was it and I moved to the next and then the next and so on , where I would have stayed in my favoite section and just advanced to each new level.

Hi

Interesting perspective..... I was almost exactly the opposite lol...

When I was posting in LAPTOPS ...I wanted to get the GOLD badge as I wanted other users who I was helping to KNOW they were getting the correct advice by looking at my Gold badge.... after I got it with 150 BA`s it did annoy me slightly that It didnt register more than 150... I suspect I probably had between 250 and 300, but never knew 🙁

So the number of BA`s on future badges is good idea I think...

Once I got my gold I didn't move to other sections as owning a Laptop repair company, it was where I was best suited to give advice....

Most of my other BA`s were caused by people wrongly posting questions in Laptops ..(Windows 7 etc etc) in the wrong section lol...

I STILL do NOT understand why as the TOP poster on the site as a whole and in Laptops in particular, with hundreds of BA`s in Laptops, I am now second or third...🙁 and I am NOT even a Laptop Master 🙁 🙁

Thats why I feel that something has been STOLEN from me I think....

I understand the technical reasons, but they don't help...lol

All the best Brett

 

[jpishgar]

So the number of BA`s on future badges is good idea I think...

And you can see this number currently - it's a very good way to gauge how over-and-above qualified the user is in their field of expertise.

Once I got my gold I didn't move to other sections as owning a Laptop repair company, it was where I was best suited to give advice....

This is generally the case. Users who get acclimated to a given section build up a reputation as a good source of information on subjects, and most stick around. Even in the previous version of the forum where the highest you could go was Gold, most Gold level users remained highly active in their areas, and the badges were meant as a ready sign of trust. This really is the goal of the badges system, to not only reward and incentivize answers, but also to provide users asking for help a quick way of determining if the answers provided are coming from solid experts.

I assembled an FAQ on badges, and some of the transitional issues you guys have asked questions on. Please be sure to reference this first if you have any questions, and feel free to refer other users to it as well who might be uncertain about some of the changes. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-1631966/badges-reputation-faq.html

 

[Brett928S2]

So the number of BA`s on future badges is good idea I think...

And you can see this number currently - it's a very good way to gauge how over-and-above qualified the user is in their field of expertise.

Once I got my gold I didn't move to other sections as owning a Laptop repair company, it was where I was best suited to give advice....

This is generally the case. Users who get acclimated to a given section build up a reputation as a good source of information on subjects, and most stick around. Even in the previous version of the forum where the highest you could go was Gold, most Gold level users remained highly active in their areas, and the badges were meant as a ready sign of trust. This really is the goal of the badges system, to not only reward and incentivize answers, but also to provide users asking for help a quick way of determining if the answers provided are coming from solid experts.

I assembled an FAQ on badges, and some of the transitional issues you guys have asked questions on. Please be sure to reference this first if you have any questions, and feel free to refer other users to it as well who might be uncertain about some of the changes. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-1631966/badges-reputation-faq.html

Hi Joe

Interesting FAQ... lol

Much better and clearer than the old one, maybe because some of the glitches in the changeover are being fixed and adjustments made...

I will wait to see what happens....

All the best Brett

 

[jpishgar]

Hoping it clarifies as much as possible. We're doing our level best to ensure not only our forum veterans but also new users on the scene are taken care of, and that the badge system is as great as it can be. We appreciate your patience, and willingness to give the new setup a chance and an opportunity to impress.

 

[jpishgar]

I have a question. Under the old system when you got 150 best answers in a section like say Graphics Cards and you received the gold badge , the best answer count stopped at showing 150. Now I continued to receive best answers in that section, were the bset answers continued to be counted even though it didn't show it.

Yes, though these are applied to tags, specifically now.

As for expanding badges beyond the 3 levels, that's a good question, and something we might consider changing at some point. Possibly going up from 3 to 5, or even 7-10 in sections where it is warranted. For now though, there are no plans to change the three-tiered structure.