Do you like likes?

[Leo]

I like seeing likes in order to measure the popularity of views more generally. Seeing a post get, for example, ten likes and eight more than anyone else gives me a better idea of what the general opinion is of the community at large. Conversely, thematically similar posts that receive none tell me what is more an unpopular position overall. Also, I can understand a specific person's positions by taking note of what types of posts elicit their "like" reaction, without having to read everything they post. So for these reasons more than anything else, I prefer forums with like options.

Does this condition which posts you like and which posts you don't like? Or do you make your decisions independently of the "likability" rating of the posts?

 

[November]

Great replies! Thanks guys 😀

Was I wrong that when HH said "emoticons" I thought she meant the choices of reactions when you press the Like button on here? Or did you mean emoticons in general?

🙂

No you are not wrong. I was referring to the 5 reaction choices.

@thrasherpix Do you mean that now people play it fast and loose with likes?

I totally do. I have never really liked the likes but am aware they are part of the online experience. I will be very free with my like rights. I probably use them wrong - I'll give likes to someone who I don't agree with but thought they have made a good point, or I will use a like as a "thanks" or just for the effort someone has put in from a perspective I have not thought of. I hate being surrounded by people who agree with each other all of the time, it is such a bore so I will often like thing that are completely out there just because its different to what everyone else is on board with.

I like the post on bulling @MrsDupas I haven't read all the links yet but I can defo see why I tend to get targeted online now haha.

@Taake haha, it'd be a great plot for an episode of Black Mirror (if they don't have it already).

Black Mirror has already done this 🙂
@Taake

Oh dear, imagine having an actual badge saying how many people like you and having to update it all the time and that'd be your social worth... what a nightmare

And so has The Orville 😉 (ta @thrasherpix )

We live in an extended high school state where the popular guys run the show (at least in social media, which is pretty much life for many of us).

That is such a good way to put it! Its like the waves of trends that went through school. My facebook was packed FULL of baby photos and instaperfect family moments, they all look exactly the same. Anyone posting outside of the current trend is basically shunned. Its so strange yet interesting to watch. I am waiting for the waves to crash and the divorces to start. And then I will laugh.

Keep up the talking! Its great to read others opinions 😀

 

[AnthonyCordova]

Does this condition which posts you like and which posts you don't like? Or do you make your decisions independently of the "likability" rating of the posts?

I definitely form my own opinion regardless of the number of likes on posts, but when I see certain posts become extremely popular with lots of likes, I do sometimes stop and ask myself if I'm missing something, if there are sides to the prevailing opinion that I should reconsider, etc. I'd like to think though that I come to my own conclusions independently.

 

[Annie Hall]

I initially found it a bit too long for answering, but after witnessing AGAIN another person blowing out of proportion a couple of comments, I decided to give you my point of view:

Do you feel that likes shape the online world?

A B S O L U T E L Y: "No likes, no opinion"

Do you notice likes encouraging a sense of entitlement and allowing arsehole behaviour as long as it is popular?

A B S O L U T E L Y. But why not? If many people like me, then I must be doing something right and everyone else is wrong. "Back off if you don't agree with me!" (sorry, I still don't have enough likes to express myself in this way).

How do a lot of clicks translate into world domination?

Other people have already said succinctly. It breeds entitlement and arrogance, sometimes I just would love to say: "Buddy, your argument is incorrect in this particular minor case, cut your loses and move on. It's not the end of the world, tomorrow you might be right. And besides, these are beloved but fictional characters, there's no need to have a heart-attack over a disagreement."

But I'm sure that I'd be out of any forum real fast.

Do you notice people that are only open to positive replies/reacts and take offense to anything less than encouraging (in anything from personal opinion to fact)?

Nah, never... well, maybe... Ok, I SEE it all the time. Do you want me to give you some recent examples?

Can those who feed on likes experience a disconnect between online importance and real world skills?

I truly doubt that winning in the online popularity contest is a strategy that many can use in the work force. There are a few people that do it, but it's a reduced group and they usually do not participate in anonymous forums, they sell their online brands elsewhere.

Now, @HoppyHippy, tell me the truth, am I too cynical about this? It's just tiring...

 

[nightshade]

I rarely use likes, I'd rather leave a comment on something. I certainly don't care if a post gets likes, maybe this is as I rarely use social media.

 

[November]

Just a thought for the newcomers, do likes look cliquey? Are they more so in particular circumstances. Like personal opinion vs stating stories. Does it ever deter you from having an opinion? In relation to what has been brought up, do popular posts get the most views even in smaller online communities? And how can that influence your thought process on a particular topic?

I haven't read those bullying links, I am sorry, attention span of a bunny truthfully. Perhaps they address this? The attention span is probably attributed to using so many likes 😛 Anyone studying that yet? There is a definite trickle down from popular American culture in fandom, do we now yield the power to influence mainstream tv. For example Game of Thrones, a show that may not have gathered such a following before social media.

When I read the forums I don't tend to read who posted what until after I have read and liked. I don't have banners turned on so Avs are the only identifier. Usually I don't care to look until they are engaged in a one on one conversation. I'll always check before leaving Karma though, to access what sort of tone I can use in my comment haha.

 

[thrasherpix]

I did notice some that seemed cliquish when I first arrive. I'm not used to Likes and thumbs up (save for YT) so it didn't bother me. Sometimes it even made me laugh (as in serious amusement, I don't mean this sarcastically) that someone else would get a like for saying almost the same exact thing I said (even when mine was not longwinded so they were the same length) when I didn't earlier (though it also occurred to me that I might be on ignore, though I realized I wasn't, at least not for the vast majority skipping mine), but I realized they probably knew each other and was like just a "glad you're here." (And it's not just me that I've noticed it about. And this is also a little different from the shippers in which I could already tell a lot about a post by whoever liked it in droves, something that doesn't seem to happen since many of the most ardent shippers left this place.)

But it should be noted that it's not just outright bullying that drives so many girls to suicide. Sometimes it's just the exclusion.

I forget where I read it (explained in detail) but the reason why suicide spiked sharply in teen girls while only a little in teen boys is because boys tend to use the net for games more while girls are much more involved in the social networks, and being undervalued (and also being tricked by all the people posing--Buffy's speech to Jonathan in Earshot is one many should hear/read). That is they think everyone is doing better than them that makes them feel like failures (and it doesn't help when writers try to write "inspiring" women for them that don't make significant mistakes or suffer failure as that would be "misogynistic" which adds to the alienating factor for real people who do screw up), then it erodes their sense of self-worth and confidence, and feel they will never be successful, happy, or the like, and even that they don't deserve to be.

 

[FirstEvil78]

I’m still relatively new, so let me answer:

do likes look cliquey?
Yes, they does. You can quickly look at the distribution of likes and easily figure out who are more likely to like each other within small groups of people.

Are they more so in particular circumstances. Like personal opinion vs stating stories.
More when making a personal opinion. But stating facts is not controversy-free, people interpret a situation or a scene in different ways.

Does it ever deter you from having an opinion?
Not from having an opinion, but yes from posting. I think hard before making a post and, more often than not, I decide against it. It didn’t help that I was censored twice while trying to stand up for somebody that was being “bullied.” I kinda lost interest in participating. Also, doesn’t help the fact that this board has a very large fan base, but only a handful of people actually interact. It’s not easy to be new, especially when everyone else has already been discussing the same topics for several years and have develop a “relationship.” I can understand why many of us are only lurking.

In relation to what has been brought up, do popular posts get the most views even in smaller online communities?
I’m not sure I understand this question.

And how can that influence your thought process on a particular topic?
I try hard to think of the downsides of my opinion, if it’s seems too controversial, I just keep it to myself. I don’t like people immediately getting defensive and offensive. Let’s just say that I’m trying to steer clear of potentially controversial posts.

 

[Bluebird]

I kind of feel like a lurker at times, cos I don't post very often. I'm not sure I agree with the idea that the oldest members are the most cliquey with the most likes, as I've seen new members join and within months or weeks have become as ingrained as any other member, with their own BB friends or cliques, so it's not limited to a time limit, it's just the natural ebb and flow of people and relationships over the years. I have been registered for 11 years and have far less likes or reputation (?) than most who have been registered for only 2/3 years. Now do I take any meaning from that? Yes, but only that consistent interaction breeds interaction. Being a bit of anti social type, I shy away from so much interaction, at least nowadays, as, personally, it's easier to relax away from the internet.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

I've seen new members join and within months or weeks have become as ingrained as any other member, with their own ... cliques,

Cliques are not allowed on BB. It's in the rules.

 

[November]

I have been registered for 11 years and have far less likes or reputation (?) than most who have been registered for only 2/3 years. Now do I take any meaning from that? Yes, but only that consistent interaction breeds interaction.

Yeah if I go by the currently recorded rep points, I am only liked about half the time 😛 Where as our little pumpkin belly of 2019 has been here a very short while and laps up the love.

For me, I don't feel so intimidated posting on BB because of the rules and moderation, but I was interested to know from a newbies perspective as many of us here don't use other forms of social media as intensively as we use this one. Its comfortable to know opinions are welcome even if not "liked". The more you post, the ore you are known, which spans most interactive sites. It takes time to form bonds in any new relationship, and to access the tone of community.

I'd hope people are not intimidated to post from their lurking, but I can understand why.

 

[Anyanka Bunny Slayer]

...this board has a very large fan base, but only a handful of people actually interact. It’s not easy to be new, especially when everyone else has already been discussing the same topics for several years and have develop a “relationship.” I can understand why many of us are only lurking.

I've only been here a little over three years, but it seems like only yesterday that I was new. (I never lurked, I just jumped in and started posting lol) Was I a little nervous because I didn't know anyone? Of course! Everyone seemed to know everyone else, and I felt like I was crashing a party or something; even though people were were very welcoming and friendly.

I totally understand that it can be somewhat nerve-wracking when you're new. "What if I post this and everybody hates me?" or "If I join this conversation, will they think I'm barging in?" Or even, "They all know each other, nobody's going to pay attention to what I say. I'm just going to read stuff for awhile."

But you see, many of us also had similar feelings when we first joined! It's kinda like being a kid, going to a new school for the first time: yes, you might be really nervous and everything, but you just have to take a deep breath, relax, and join the party. If you don't, you'll always be on the sidelines instead of being part of the gang. And that's no fun. 😛

The more you post, the more you are known...it takes time to form bonds in any new relationship, and to access the tone of community.

My point exactly. 🐇🐇🐇

 

[Buffy Summers]

I realized after reading the discussion in this thread, that I don't ever read who liked things, or look to see how many likes anyone has...

 

[Echo126]

A lot has been said about likes in here hehe. For me, while I do prefer comments, there are moments where someone basically writes what I was thinking (probably better than how i would write it) and it just makes sense to just like it. Why would i repeat what has already been said? That seems a bit silly. I guess for me, likes represent something like, "i totally agree with what you said and how you said it. Couldn't have done it better 🙂". Then again, I'm someone who doesn't talk a lot. I'm a woman of few words i guess lol. I like to keep it short and straight to the point. Everyone is different, right? And that's totally ok. 🙂

That's why i use them. But i certainly understand where you're coming from.

 

[Hunga Munga]

I like 'likes' . I don't do social media so I couldn't care less about that stuff but forums have been pretty important to me . In my opinion there's no better place to delve into an interest .
I also like the random nature of forums . It takes allsorts to make a world and these divergent perspectives have gifted me a broader understanding of all kinds of topics .

I give out likes for funny , for nice writing , for honesty, for making me think different and for trying . I don't care overmuch about being popular but when I get a few likes , I know I m entertaining somebody , for whatever reason 🙂 .

 

[November]

I give out my likes as a "thanks for posting your thoughts" a lot. I figure why be stingy if its there to use? If they weren't it may encourage more to post thoughts or appear less clique -like. But if they weren't there more would be disappointed that they couldn't use them I am sure.

Sometimes I go to check which of my posts were liked cos usually I've forgotten what I have posted. I do like the likes that remind me of old posts that give me a laugh.

 

[katmobile]

It's nice to know someone thinks you've made a good point. It's not about numbers for me I know what the consenus is here and often I don't agree with it.

 

[November]

It's nice to know someone thinks you've made a good point. It's not about numbers for me I know what the consenus is here and often I don't agree with it.

Are you judging that by the likes posts get? Or the opinions posted? I feel like there is a very wide range of opinions posted on any one subject, that's why I like it here, for the diversity. I agree it is nice to get a like to know someone appreciates the effort in posting. It would be a very boring place if we all agreed.

 

[katmobile]

I like having my opinion validated by someone else. Sometimes it feels lonely to be in a minority of one but I don't judge by numbers. I don't mind being in a minority (God I'ld never post much on here if I did 😎 ) just in a minority of one sometimes makes you question yourself. As for debate I think you need a mixture you need people to confirm you're not crazy but sometimes being challenged too is good occasionally someone says somethng that makes you think about something from a completely different perspective or gives the language for an idea you've had that you've never truly been able to find before and such moments are treasures.

 

[Nix]

Do you feel that likes shape the online world?
To a certain extent yes. Some people thrive on them and make "likes" important.

What emoticons do you think should be an option in replies? Do you feel the limit of 5 emotional reactions to be restrictive?
I think this...

Do you notice people that are only open to positive replies/reacts and take offense to anything less than encouraging (in anything from personal opinion to fact)?
Definitely

Do you post with the aim of receiving likes or with the aim of expressing yourself?
To express myself and my opinions and to interact with others. Not to get a "like", they are nice to receive but they do not dominate my world unlike some people I know.