Can I ask a question?

Agree with the last few posters. I think we'd end up with a ton of posts for the sake of posting, and also fragment the community into a ghetto section and a "regulars" section.

I was just thinking about something just now so I'll just throw it out there.

We should take advantage of the chat more somehow. Like deciding contests from there and stuff like that.

Not sure about time scheduling and whatnot for everyone for that to work properly, but I think we should use it more.

Everything could be weighted.

Posts take 50 to equal one point.
Giving Karma (limit to once per week?) gives one point.
Receiving Karma gives you one point.
Contributing a story gives you 10 points.
Contributing original art or photos gives one point per each.
Grandfather certain top givers?

Could be a mess but on the other hand how hard would it be for a casual lurker to kick in some karma or make a simple post now and then. And if they are a twice a year poster who really minds if they are angry that they cannot see the 'earned' areas of this site. A site that is mainly a playground for about maybe 30 top contributors. So what if a bunch of non contributors/commenters drop off?

I know I am going to get some flak for my above statements but I am just thinking out loud. Not up to me. Just contributing some suggestions to either bump up the interaction or kill off some of the bandwidth eaters.

I have 5 new commissioned pieces of renderings that are in process of being completed. Will share them when they are finished. Would it hurt a few people to comment on them? That is what frustrates me at times. I don't write stories but I do contribute art that I paid for and then rarely do people comment. Most contributors I believe would give even more if a little praise or critique were given.

Carry on.

I can only speak from the perspective of someone who doesn't have much time to post, but an incentive system isn't going to suddenly make me more clever (with more to post), or be more interested in other people's stuff (to give karma) that I wasn't interested in before. I'm not going to sit around banging my head against the desk and suddenly have a lightbulb come on and come up with stuff to add. If I'm indicative of others who don't have much time, it's more likely you'll see people throwing karma around that they don't really mean, and posting nice long garbage. I don't think you can incentivize creativity.

Anyway, that's just my 2 cents. I do respect the opposing viewpoint, even if I have a different take on it.

Since joining the group a couple of months ago I have started only one topic. I am neither an artist or a writer so I can only post on subjects other people have done. I have "thank you'd" many times when I like or agree with something I have seen. Since I try not to be negative I either don't comment or I just ignore postings I don't like or agree with.
Example: I have followed the Supersexyheroine topic for weeks now. I enjoy the postings but am ambivalent on the subject. So I have not posted.
Example 2: I don't care about British soccer at all so I completely ignored that topic.
Example 3: Teenage girls should not be featured on a website that has adult topics.

These are just a couple of grumblings of mine. Take them for what they are worth.

For me it's the lack of new story content that prevents me from posting more. If more stories were coming in I would look to be more active.

Sarge395 wrote: Everything could be weighted.

Posts take 50 to equal one point.
Giving Karma (limit to once per week?) gives one point.
Receiving Karma gives you one point.
Contributing a story gives you 10 points.
Contributing original art or photos gives one point per each.
Grandfather certain top givers?

Could be a mess but on the other hand how hard would it be for a casual lurker to kick in some karma or make a simple post now and then. And if they are a twice a year poster who really minds if they are angry that they cannot see the 'earned' areas of this site. A site that is mainly a playground for about maybe 30 top contributors. So what if a bunch of non contributors/commenters drop off?

I know I am going to get some flak for my above statements but I am just thinking out loud. Not up to me. Just contributing some suggestions to either bump up the interaction or kill off some of the bandwidth eaters.

How many points would you suggest someone needs to see the earned content? If it's too high, not only lurkers, but also newcomers may be discouraged. If it's too low it means it's too easy to gain access too the earned content. And once you have access, there's no more extra motivation to post, as there's nothing more to gain.

Honestly, I like the idea of a premium user status; but I see it more like a bragging rights reward. A fancy title or button that just shows that this user is an active member. But with no special rights that a newcomer might want right away.

I have 5 new commissioned pieces of renderings that are in process of being completed. Will share them when they are finished. Would it hurt a few people to comment on them? That is what frustrates me at times. I don't write stories but I do contribute art that I paid for and then rarely do people comment. Most contributors I believe would give even more if a little praise or critique were given.

When it comes to feedback, maybe show the amount of comments/ratings/chosen favorites for stories/images as part of the profile as well (like number of posts and karma). Maybe also add direct links to the member's galleries for stories/images if these exist.

We should take advantage of the chat more somehow. Like deciding contests from there and stuff like that.

Not sure about time scheduling and whatnot for everyone for that to work properly, but I think we should use it more.

It may be hard with many different time zones, but the chat is really underused.

Well, at least this topic is generating some interaction and comments.

Probably not a good idea to have an 'elite' area that just encourages people from throwing away thank you's and Karma.

Stories used to bring in a lot of buzz and fun.

Post when you have time, post what you have, but if you see or read something you like just give a little thanks by hitting the thank you button now and then. I for one love seeing comments, thank you's and the occasional karma point that gets me a free cup of coffee every 100 punches.

Sadly I have a lot of free time since it is winter in A$$crackistan and not much is happening.

I've been told I'm not observant. I guess so- Reading your mention of it, Sarge, was the first I ever even noticed the "Thank You" button.

I`m an observer but hope, my 2 cents are all right anyway:

Topic: As everyone else does, I also dont think there is any problem with how you manage the site - quite the opposite actually: I believe, with this few content out there the last months, its you who was able to keep the members sticking to the site.

Reward system: Generally, I`d have to think it is a good idea. If i`d post storys and images and get no others in return, I would be upset as well. For my part I can in all honesty say, that its not the point that I dont think, my storys/art would be worse then the content posted (dont missunderstand me: I dont say, it would be on the same level or above. I just cant say it since I never tried). Its just that I dont have any fun in doing something like that, because I do writing for a living and dont really wanna do that in my sparetime as well. So I try to hand out some karma occasionally (too often wouldnt really make sense IMO), post comments and just enjoy everything i get 2 read and watch. If that means, I will not longer be able to access all areas of the forum, I can totally understand that.

But, as also had been mentioned before: To find a balanced system is extremely difficult since it would be really contraproductive, if only the main contributors would stay on the site (since the others would leave because the different areas were too difficult to reach). `Cause I don`t think the maybe 25 guys would like it if only a minority has access to their stuff - but of course i could be wrong. On the other hand, if it is too easy, there isnt any point in trying to come up with a new system. So maybe this isn`t a solution either...(but i dont have a better one)

Sorry for my writing, i`m not a native and the later the night (2.45am), the more problems i get with spelling :0

Concerning the underused chat, maybe it would be better to have a separate button for the chat instead of making it a subcategory of the Community/Forum. This way it's easier to open it in a separate tab while they're browsing the site.

If the chat room were on IRC, I would be present in it 24/7.

goobers wrote: If the chat room were on IRC, I would be present in it 24/7.

You can still read pretty much anything that's been posted there in the history. This also shows that over 60% of the overall chat activity happened in the last 48 hours - hope thris trend keeps up.