Just wondering if such an idea has ever been thought of? It would save a lot of wasted posts- users instead just hit a thumbs up if they agree with a post- they can then add any further relevant comments in a new post if required.
Whether or not someone "agrees" with a post does not determine its value.
Just wondering if such an idea has ever been thought of? It would save a lot of wasted posts- users instead just hit a thumbs up if they agree with a post- they can then add any further relevant comments in a new post if required.
what i meant by the wasted posts- was posts that simply have "i agree" or "+1" etc.
I've seen that on social networks and usually find them to be lame and fairly annoying (personal opinion). I think they would be even less meaningful in a forum context.
Something more meaningful would be an indicator pointing out that a solution has been reached on a thread and possibly highlighting the post in the thread that best describes said solution. This would potentially keep users from reposting existing solutions because they overlooked the solution already given. It would also allow people visiting the thread (because they had a similar problem) more quickly find the solution information.
Highlighting the solution post would likely have to rely on the thread creator or an administrator and some threads don't necessarily have a "solution" as they are discussion related, but that's OK too.
Usually these like and dislike buttons are used to down rank people you don't want in order to have there posts hidden, this is most certainly how it works on youtube for instance.