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RayDonovan

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 30, 2014
189
26
Not sure if I'm supposed to be posting this here but i've checked the FAQ and ran a search and came up short.

Is there a way to view top rated comments in a thread created by anyone of us just like you can do from the posts on the front page?
 

Renzatic

Suspended
Nor should there be. Upvotes are more an indication of popularity rather than quality. I've seen tons of good posts that only get one or two upvotes, while some of the stupidest crap imaginable get 50.

Though if you only want to view the most highly rated posts, just stick to the first couple of pages of any thread. The upvote frenzy tends to die down the deeper you get into a topic.
 

Scepticalscribe

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Jul 29, 2008
63,832
46,278
In a coffee shop.
Nor should there be. Upvotes are more an indication of popularity rather than quality. I've seen tons of good posts that only get one or two upvotes, while some of the stupidest crap imaginable get 50.

Though if you only want to view the most highly rated posts, just stick to the first couple of pages of any thread. The upvote frenzy tends to die down the deeper you get into a topic.

Unfortunately, there is a lot of truth in this observation.

A post which attracts a good many up-votes is not always - and certainly, not all that often - a sign of quality, but of a post which strikes a popular chord with readers.

Indeed, I have seen some appalling posts receive a lot of up votes, and thoughtful, sensible posts receive one or two. This tendency was even more pronounced in the days when we had the dreadful down vote button.
 

Renzatic

Suspended
Indeed, I have seen some appalling posts receive a lot of up votes, and thoughtful, sensible posts receive one or two. This tendency was even more pronounced in the days when we had the dreadful down vote button.

Ah, the downvote button. I do not miss those days.

While I'm sure we've all upvoted or downvoted based upon our personal likes or dislikes, I try to limit how often I used them, and would only give an up for someone who I thought had a particularly good point argued well, and saved my downs for really, incredibly, unabashedly stupid posts.
 

Scepticalscribe

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Jul 29, 2008
63,832
46,278
In a coffee shop.
Ah, the downvote button. I do not miss those days.

While I'm sure we've all upvoted or downvoted based upon our personal likes or dislikes, I try to limit how often I used them, and would only give an up for someone who I thought had a particularly good point argued well, and saved my downs for really, incredibly, unabashedly stupid posts.

Agreed. And likewise.

While it lasted, I thought the down-vote gave rise to easy and cheap abuse - individual choosing to hide behind a downarrow without arguing or identifying themselves - and enabled a nasty atmosphere to develop on some threads.

Actually, I hardly ever used it as I thought it encouraged cheap negativity.

Ditto on the up vote; I will generally use it when someone makes a good post and - most of the time - I will usually add a supporting post as well.

In summary, to the OP, there is, at best, a tenuous relationship between the number of up votes a post receives and the quality of the post in question.
 

AngerDanger

Graphics
Staff member
Dec 9, 2008
5,452
29,002
Oh no, i wish that were the the case.

As you should. If you like something others consider to be the stupidest crap, it reflects poorly on you. Options that don't interest an individual should be unavailable to others. :mad:

On a serious note, popular comments reflect the average taste of the users who read them. Realistically, most of us are average in many ways; I cannot see a problem with that.
 

grahamperrin

macrumors 601
Jun 8, 2007
4,942
648
Nor should there be. ... some of the stupidest crap imaginable get 50. ...

For the first open test of the redesign of MacRumors Forums, observations include:

  • less content per screen
  • no allowance for thirty, forty or one hundred posts per page
-- in other words, more navigation may be required.

In that context, I welcome the possibility of navigation that is more user-friendly; of previewing and jumping to a post that is both (a) well-liked and (b) not crap.
 
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