Would you be in favor or removing the like button for hangout?

[arkieb1]

@Matata - I was a lurker not a member back in the good old days..... when pile ups and personal insults used to be over gemstones and arguments over the worth of a cut of a specific diamond rather than one's political views.....

There were a few pretty heated discussions and people with strong POVs (many of whom are not on here any more), even back then....

 

[Sunstorm]

I like it because when I have no time to write or cannot think, I can still acknowledge something or someone I like, such as opinions I agree with or think are positive to this forum. I also often like very well thought over and expressed posts and when I cannot say it better why not just like it instead of being redundant?

I can also like each and every post of gorgeous bling meaning I really love the piece and appreciate the effort put into taking and uploading photos which makes this forum better whereas I can only comment on it so many times without being khm being a pain in the *ss.

 

[kenny]

Giving vs. getting ...

So many here who support Likes mention giving Likes.
Don't read many posts about how important getting Likes is to anyone.
Hmmmm.

Seems groovy on the giving of Likes.
But IMO the potential downside is a person caring too much how many Likes they get or don't get.

 

[Ally T]

I also like the button for reasons others have said - it's a quick acknowledgement of supporting what somebody says without having to quote them to agree, thus keeping posts down where necessary.

I know my particular thread in Hangout at the moment has caused a great deal of political wrangling, bitching & uproar, but the thread, as a Brit, was a GENUINE question that evolved very organically due to very differing opinions.

Whilst I am not a fan of conflict in life & try to keep the peace, I do enjoy the passions & discussions of others.

I think we ALL need to respect opinions without name calling & if we can't be civil & responsible with our words, then we should refrain from replying. None of us know each other for the most part, so we are not in any position to get so aggressive. Who knows, in real life (& this is just pulling names out of the air who have had different views in my thread) @redwood66 & @Tekate might actually get on like a house on fire!

 

[missy]

I also like the button for reasons others have said - it's a quick acknowledgement of supporting what somebody says without having to quote them to agree, thus keeping posts down where necessary.

I know my particular thread in Hangout at the moment has caused a great deal of political wrangling, bitching & uproar, but the thread, as a Brit, was a GENUINE question that evolved very organically due to very differing opinions.

Whilst I am not a fan of conflict in life & try to keep the peace, I do enjoy the passions & discussions of others.

I think we ALL need to respect opinions without name calling & if we can't be civil & responsible with our words, then we should refrain from replying. None of us know each other for the most part, so we are not in any position to get so aggressive. Who knows, in real life (& this is just pulling names out of the air who have had different views in my thread) @redwood66 & @Tekate might actually get on like a house on fire!

@Alex T your thread is an excellent one and there is no need to worry about it causing any unrest here. I think the actual issue was that Kate considered Red a friend and perhaps that is what made it sting even more. Plus having others like her post that was unkind added to the hurt. But, I don't want to talk for her so I will just say that calling someone a hypocrite is never nice especially when it is untrue.

And the likes can be a positive thing when people are kind and not petty but sadly they become a weapon at times. We are all adults but we don't always behave like adults. And the people who use it like a weapon know who they are and I am finished talking about that because our energy (at least my energy) is better served in other areas.

The people have voted and that is fair. We all behave according to our own internal compass and according to the rules of PS when we post here. I love PS and for the most part enjoy PSers. We are a decent group of people and while we might not reflect the general population at large we sure reflect all ranges of behavior like the general population. And sometimes we mess up and it is good to be self aware and just own up to mistakes and move forward trying to do better. FWIW.

Don't many of us post here as a respite from the world at times? Isn't PS generally a pretty nice place to be? To enjoy bling, furbabies, and also good conversation and develop friendly relationships that occasionally become real life friendships? I am speaking for me of course but I am guessing this also pertains to at least a few of you if not more.

Let's keep PS a lively and engaging place to be while also being considerate of others whether or not we agree with them. Because like real life we can choose where we hang out and where we post and to whom we reply and how we reply. And sometimes saying it nicely resonates more strongly than saying it with venom.

JMO.

 

[737liz]

Please keep it. I've 'liked' comments on this thread that mirror my own thoughts on the OP question.

I see the like button as a vote for ideas in project threads asking for help, where someone has suggested a design element that I also would suggest.

It also serves as a thank you to someone who has commented towards something you have asked or said.

I especially use it when someone comes on with knowledge that is educational, be it in the jewellery threads or in hangouts. As a means of saying 'please tell me more' and 'this is interesting'.

And then, yes, they also serve as a validation to the poster; acknowledging their pov or contribution. I admit that I'm not confident enough to keep posting my ideas if I'm not getting any feedback; I would worry that I am just wasting people's time with unwanted suggestions or comments. I would stay and read, but without encouragement, spewing my ideas into the binary void would make me question if people would prefer i go away. With an occasional like or response, I know that I'm not completely wasting people's time by posting. Yeah the politics threads are a bit dicey, but overall even there it's a useful tool.

 

[Matata]

@arkieb1 I remember those discussions. I lurked for a long time, fearful of facing a fire breathing dragon if my input or question was deemed unsatisfactory, lol. But after reading for months I began to see the pattern with posters and there were quite a few who were crotchety but invaluable when it came to diamond info. Back then there was also the Steam Room where an admin would give a member access if that person participated in a contentious discussion and the bumps were (or weren't) worked out in private. I was given access to it once and saw a different side of those posters and realized they were all good people.

 

[luv2sparkle]

I am for the 'like' button for the reasons others have said. It is just an acknowledgement of agreement and its an easy way to do so without commenting on a post. I don't think it is about popularity at all. I think we are all adults and don't really get caught up in it like that.

 

[chrono]

I never saw it as a popularity thing as I don't keep track of who pressed like or didn't. I mostly view it as a quick way to agree without clogging up pages of "I think/feel the same". I also do it as a means of acknowledging a reply or comment.

I also don't look too deeply into why someone LIKEs or doesn't LIKE my post. I also don't read everything or might skip a few pages of a fast moving thread so not pressing LIKE doesn't mean anything more than I really didn't read those posts. It doesn't mean I agree or disagree.

I often times just walk away from something I disagree with because it's not worth fighting over with friends.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Chrono hit the nail on the head, once I post a thread unless I'm looking for advice or someone tags me, I do not go back and look at it.

It never occurred to me that someone would keep track of how many "likes" their post gets or who "likes" them or even better who "likes" someone else's post.

So yes if you use an otherwise innocuous feature in that way there is bound to be negativity associated with it.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

Is it actually a thing to track how many likes you have or how many someone has?

I thought it was more of an Instagram thing where they depend on followers to get paid for advertisements. I always like everything from the figure skaters I follow so they can continue to get sponsorship.

I will confess to tracking how many kudos I get for my stories though. If you've read every chapter of my 20 chapter story and have not left a kudo, you are a sh*t. I stand by that!!!

That said I write wild stories that I know may not be popular anyway because one cannot squash the tragic artist in me. Tragic artist likes to be heard!

 

[alittlelight]

As a longtime lurker but relatively new poster, I think the likes are a lovely way to acknowledge people’s beautiful things in the other forums. Perhaps remove them from the Hangout where it seems what you are “liking” is someone’s opinion (and perhaps by extension disliking all differing opinions.)

 

[junebug17]

As a longtime lurker but relatively new poster, I think the likes are a lovely way to acknowledge people’s beautiful things in the other forums. Perhaps remove them from the Hangout where it seems what you are “liking” is someone’s opinion (and perhaps by extension disliking all differing opinions.)

This is a good idea IMO - I like it, pun intended!

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

I think it would be more harmonious to have the option to "like" an opinion that one agrees with.

If you remove the like option a person might feel more compelled to respond and retaliate to an opinion they don't agree with leading to more conflict.

I also don't think there is anything wrong with disliking differing opinions anyway as long as you're not censoring the individual who has the differing opinion.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

No, we don't need to remove it from hangout. We are all adults, this isn't high school, if you don't like it then don't use it, if you are keeping track of how many likes or who is liking your posts for personal reassurance or self-worth then you have a much bigger problem than a "like" button on a jewelry forum.

 

[Demon]

I like it because I'm not very 'chatty', often. If someone posts something I agree with, it keeps me from having to, as has been said, post lots of "'me too's" & "same here's". Especially as it's often said more eloquently than I would have.

 

[Vera W]

I'd like politics removed as well.

Agree!! @redwood66

 

[lyra]

I also like it because I do lurk a lot. Many days lately I haven't felt in the mood to post, and at least this let's me participate, in my mind anyway. I've never used the like button as a means of choosing sides, never thought about that at all.

 

[Arcadian]

I don't really care one way or another. I'm going to say what I'll say within reason (I don't like to pixel fight)

Pricescope has a lot of very highly intelligent individuals who have some strong feelings and it can be seen all over the place, not just in hangouts.

When the discussions devolve to straight fights...yeah time out! When that happens it makes me wonder why we can't have nice stuff....


I use the button how I use it. which means I'll do so to acknowledge your position even if I don't totally agree, or I agree with your position, or you posted something funny, or sarcastic, or "I see you", or, whatever the hell I might be thinking at the time...


I'm just weird that way.

 

[doberman]

I'm not a frequent poster but I do enjoy being able to like a post, whether it's something someone wrote or a photo of some beautiful jewelry. It wouldn't occur to me to view liking someone's post as a engaging in a popularity contest.

 

[mrs-b]

I like having it as an option. It's a real time saver, and sometimes you can get caught in an endless back and forth with someone, where both of you are trying to acknowledge each other, with no end in sight. So a 'like' after a certain point says 'I see you, I appreciate what you're saying, and I have nothing to add at this point.'

And sometimes comments aren't necessary. To me, they're the online equivalent to a head-nod.

And if it comes to that, and people are counting likes and getting either offended or competitive, the same thing can happen with numbers of comments on a post. So I don't see the difference.

To me, the 'like' doesn't mean 'I like this' so much as it's an online 'yup'.

 

[MarionC]

Agree!! @redwood66

I like the political posts even though they get heated at times. I like to know what others are thinking. For that reason I always turn to the comments section of the NYT to get a feel for the “climate”.

 

[Jambalaya]

It never occurred to me that the Like button is high-schoolish or that it's about garnering a number of likes. To me, it's a useful way of acknowledging something that's been said without having to type out something to that effect, if all you want to do is agree or just acknowledge someone's input.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

the trouble with likes is what do you do when a post is sad and you still want to echknowled the poster
my Bruce Springsteen forum just expanded our like options to include a hug

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I like the political posts even though they get heated at times. I like to know what others are thinking. For that reason I always turn to the comments section of the NYT to get a feel for the “climate”.

i will often like a post i don't agree with if its a well written and thought out post or a nice reply to someone

 

[chrono]

For sad posts, I still press LIKE to acknowledge the person and what they are feeling. It's an easy way out for me especially since most of the time I have trouble choosing the right words to type.

 

[doberman]

And so far as politics goes, I'm definitely liberal but I still enjoy and like many posts from @Dancing Fire (as long as they aren't about Trump)

 

[Demon]

And so far as politics goes, I'm definitely liberal but I still enjoy and like many posts from @Dancing Fire (as long as they aren't about Trump)

Lol. And that shows the limits of the like button - I can only click it once! (DF is a good sport though. Even though I don't agree with him at all, he never gets nasty about it)

 

[smitcompton]

Hi,

I voted against the like button. What bothers me is that Pricescope includes something they categorize as "reactions score", which indicates that your likes do count as something that Administration thinks is a positive contribution an individual makes to the Forum. So getting likes do count.

I understand that its easier to use the like button, but there are times i wonder why someone likes a post when its basically a neutral comment. I do ask myself, what is there to like about this.?

If we want to make a comment or statement, why do we need people to make a like on it. Are we really supposed to need people to care about our comments. It is really passing judgement on what we say. If they pertain to the discussion I assume some will agree and some disagree and some not care one bit. I do find it very teenager-ish myself.

The political threads change in tone when the posters change. i think 2016 most people agreed to let everyone have a say with little or much less than 2008-12 vehement discussions. It worked pretty well, until both right and left newer folks arrived and the wars began again. Its no bed of roses when you post on the Political threads, and both opinions and facts are worthy posts. But, I assure you that the 2008-12 election, hiding in its own space was horrible. It was quite absurd and irrationally nasty. AAdmin closed it down and re-opened in 2016 with the proviso to be better behaved. I think it was better behaved,. Not perfect of course. A little spice is good. But likes don't add much. in fact can incite others.

Annette

 

[Dancing Fire]

Lol. And that shows the limits of the like button - I can only click it once! (DF is a good sport though. Even though I don't agree with him at all, he never gets nasty about it)

No reason to. I love all the liberals here. I don't have any PSers on my ignored list. I think there is about a dozen liberals who have me on their ignored list... If there were a "dislike button" every liberals will click the button on each of my post...