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4-1-1 (Reply to this comment)
by HJS33
I definitely think that the system is flawed somewhat, but I'm not sure if I agree with your criteria on editors/advisors. I have a lot of experience/information with regard to the category I am an advisor in, but I don't think that I could write 50 VH reviews on the topic and keep my advisor status (fyi, I rate well over 500 per month in my category). My forte is definitely reading over writing. Just my two cents, although I do feel that you make some excellent points.
:)
Heidi
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Jan 08 '04
2:08 pm PST
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411, (Reply to this comment)
by goodluckcharm
Nothing is fair in life. We all have found that out. You put great time and effort in your reviews and don't want to be compared to some of the people who don't give a hoot about how many reviews they write a month or who trusts them. Could they be related to epinions; staff? Maybe. I'm beginning to think that. No matter what happens, continue to do your best because your review are top quality. You know that, I know that, and your readers know that.
John
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Oct 13 '02
7:17 pm PDT
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Great Point (Reply to this comment)
by AlvinKing
Great Point, it's Months Later, and I still agree...
Alvin King
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Aug 29 '02
1:22 pm PDT
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Got a TR Hat (Reply to this comment)
by AliventiAsylum
in Online Stores & Services while I was away. Blows me away because all I did was relocate 2 older reviews to that category and BAM! Now I was away for most of February, so watch it all disappear.
I'll be the first to say I didn't think I deserved that.
Patti
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Mar 04 '02
10:56 am PST
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I'm stumped, too! (Reply to this comment)
by 4rhodes
I have been given Editor Status in Beauty twice and have had it taken away, twice. I lost it in November and had it returned in December. I just lost it again this month.
The note that I received regarding my status said that the reason I could have been stripped was because I didn't write about new enough stuff, I didn't write enough comments or I didn't have enough quality people on my web of trust.
In November I was really hurt. I thought it was backlash because of my participation in the events of October. Last week, I was just confused. I wrote to a member and asked if I had done something dire? I have never been better with my writing and have contributed more in the past 2 months than I had in a year. Plus, I made it my business to review and rate every beauty posting for well over a month.
I'm not angry, just very confused. I have posted a new review last week and have two more I can write about. It takes me over an hour to write each one and I try to make them as informative as possible.
I'm glad you wrote. I'm also trying to figure out why there are members who are editors and top reviewers who are no longer active at this site, yet continue to receive hits because they were so popular when they were here?
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Feb 27 '02
8:30 am PST
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Re: Re: Minimum Amount of Epinions Submitted (Reply to this comment)
by sweetcece
Tom,
I tend to believe that the Member Advisory Board will not really have any true "power". I really believe that as members we had more input into the system when we had chats one on one with epinions management.
However, there hasn't been a chat for several months, and I believe that they are not going to have one for fear of what kind of things that they would be asked.
As you know, I was really disappointed several weeks ago with the top reviewer situation. Since then I haven't been writing nearly as much out here as I have in the past and I have been focusing more on my web site instead.
To me that makes more sense to me because I can have more control over my own content and how I want to use it than here at Epinions.
Have a nice day, CeCe
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Feb 26 '02
4:56 am PST
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amen, brother (Reply to this comment)
by jankp
Hope you're not just preachin' to the choir and the staff reads this. I may have been punished for my SCADS entry, but it's amazing who gets or doesn't get hats anymore. Truly bogus many times.
Jan
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Feb 25 '02
8:55 pm PST
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Amen brother... (Reply to this comment)
by jay1051971
Although, I think top reviewers should have at least 60 in their category...
(That's how many I have in music....)
Great review.. The process is seriously flawed.
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Feb 25 '02
7:36 pm PST
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Re: Re: The whole thing is a joke. (Reply to this comment)
by gracef
Perhaps the Editor and TR roles should be scrapped altogether.
If they scrap the systems entirely, I'll be on the first bus out of town. Some people just don't do the politics required to be popular around here. I'm one of them, and I would never delude myself into believing that I could be.
As it is, a person that is popular is considered a "great writer" and even "the best writer on the site" even if the person has poor grammar and no command of the English language. The person who dares to give such a person less than a VH rating is sure to be burned in a firestorm of controversy.
No thanks. It's silly enough as it is. It would be worse if there were absolutely no TR/Editor system in place. Some of the selections may be a joke, but not all of them are.
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Feb 25 '02
3:09 pm PST
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Re: RE: We don't need no stinkin' Badges! (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Hey Gasman....
Congratulation to Canada for winning Gold in Men's and Women's hockey. Was a great game on Sunday.
Send some more Canadian hockey players to Los Angeles. The Kings did okay while Wayne Gretzky, The Great One, was here. Now, the Mighty Ducks are cellar dwellers and we need more firepower... or a new Mighty Ducks movie from Disney.
Cheers,
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
11:30 am PST
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Re: I did everything to... (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thank you Scott/Guile176. If I were to select a Games editor, it'd be you. That you are not selected is indication enough that the Editor selection process is bogus.
Maybe someone can explain how a new member can join the site (less than 4 months of service and a six-meber trust list), and become not only a Top Reviewer but also an Editor in games... and all the while have only about 400 member hits to his reviews.
BLOWS my mind. It's ridiculous.
Thanks for commenting,
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
11:25 am PST
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Re: Even though I'm now a TR, I tend to agree that it's all Bogus (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thanks for the comment. Well, I read and enjoyed your piece on being selected TR in books. Being that you have over 100 book reviews to your credit, your selection as TR seems natural to me... especially since most all of your reviews are first reviews. Don't sell yourself short... you are a Top Reviewer in books.
Thanks for visiting and commenting,
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
11:12 am PST
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Re: I agree (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thanks Pat. I think the elimination of the Content Partner program really served to throttle-down new visitor traffic. Before things at Epininos can get better, long standing problem areas (like TR and Editor selection) need to get resolved. And things are just not happening in a very timely fashion. It's been almost four months since the discussion of a member advisory board was presented... its becoming a distant memory.
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
11:06 am PST
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Re: Don't be too harsh now! (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thanks Arun/LordAngel.
Maybe 250 new reviews won't be posted to Hotels & Travel over the next 30 days, but there certainly are thousands of reviews in inventory, so to speak, and some of them could use a fresh read and rating.
Editors do get paid extra (extra income share) for rating reviews. But how are editors selected? Based solely on rating activity in a category? I seem to read a lot of lipstick and mascara reviews from those writers in my WOT, but there is no way that I think I would or even should qualify as an editor in beauty.
Thanks for adding your 2¢,
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
10:43 am PST
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Re: I must agree.. (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thanks for that report, Melissa... write three solid reviews in the Beauty category and become TR. That's quite remarkable.
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Feb 25 '02
10:33 am PST
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Re: Another member leaving or left (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thanks for the update on Dan -- the_wood. Seems like quite a few movie reviewers have slowed down or left the site. Simple burnout might be a possible explanation. That's too bad....
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Feb 25 '02
10:29 am PST
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Re: The whole thing is a joke. (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thanks for commenting, Jeff.
The more I think about it, the more I come to see the hat dancing at Epinions to be a distraction.
Perhaps the Editor and TR roles should be scrapped altogether.
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Feb 25 '02
10:22 am PST
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Gosh, how do we get the system to do that? (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Hmmmm: "...community ratings mean relatively little in regards to quality...." In a certain sense, true. But, currently, community and editors ratings are the only tools we have to separate "good" reviews from "sub par" reviews.
"...anything that depends on numbers can and will be gamed." -- I think, maybe, what you are hinting at is finding some category managers who are knowledgeable in their fields and capable of editing content to refine and police submissions in their categories. I think this is how Epinions started... but that was a little before my time.
Excellent points, Grace.
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
10:09 am PST
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Re: I must add to all these comments ... (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Just goes to show that people at Epinions really are confused how things happen when it comes to selecting TRs and Editors.
Thanks Angela!
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
9:53 am PST
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Re: Ok comment #89 (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Well, Jo, in the scheme of things... five months is not a long time for someone to take a sabbatical from the site. One shouldn't lose one's status as a "Most Popular" reviewer for taking time off... so long as one meets some minimum standard. (This issue is separate from "Top Reviewer" status.) Hank Aaron hasn't played baseball in years, but that does not negate the fact that he is still the all-time greatest homerun hitter.
I agree that activity at the site should be rewarded. Maybe the answer is that some "writing frequency" criteria should be developed and indentified.
Best,
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
9:48 am PST
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Re: I need a beer... (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Mike: I think you found a good beer... just read your Top-10 American beer list. Looks pretty good to me!
Cheers,
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
9:34 am PST
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Re: Minimum Amount of Epinions Submitted (Reply to this comment)
by 4-1-1
Thanks for the comments, CeCe...
I wonder if a Member Advisory Board at Epinions is going to be effective at all. I am beginning to suspect that such a board will only serve to act as a buffer between management and the community and that issues and material will get funneled through the MAB... but the throughput will produce little in the way of tangible results.
Best,
Tom / 4-1-1
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Feb 25 '02
9:32 am PST
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RE: We don't need no stinkin' Badges! (Reply to this comment)
by the_gas_man
REALLY? That is fascinating movie trivia worth knowing and I for one am sure glad someone had the presence of mind to point it out to us movie buffoons. R knot U glad Tom?
BUT ON A MORE IMPORTANT NOTE:
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS! WE ARE NUMBERS ONE AND (oh yes,) ONE IN BOTH THE WOMEN'S AND THE MEN'S HOCKEY. GOLD BABY, GOLDEN BABIES!.
Not that it's really as important as this review. I mean what on earth could compare to the frustration of not wearing a TR hat as much as being the second best in the world as all around hockey players.
If anyone from the United States would like to borrow my TR hat, they are more than welcome to have it for a few months. Canadians need not apply, you can win your own, as I have, and both our Canadian Women's and Men's Hockey teams have.
Of course, if an American would like to challenge me for this beautifully decorative, bright blue, Top Reviewer's cap, I would have to insist on a challenge game of pick-up hockey to determine if you are suitable and worthy to wear it. Nothing too hard, just a bit of Canadian style hockey for 60 minutes on the rink of your choice. What?... No takers? *LOL*
Hmmmmm.... Maybe Epinions does have ulterior motives for handing out TR badges to some people.
They are given to the best of the best, after all.
Well Tom, we kicked butt tonight didn't we? (We being the collective Canadian population vs the collective US population) Not that it means too much, because tomorrow mourning in the U.S. as opposed to tomorrow morning in Canada, we will still be buying gobs of U.S. products and sucking up U.S. made entertainment as though we were one of you guys. WHICH WE AREN'T. Cause we play hockey for breakfast.
BECAUSE: WE ARE CANADIAN AND WE'RE NUMBER ONE!
That doesn't mean that we still can't be friends you know. I've always had a soft spot in my heart for the down trodden of the world. If there's anything I can do to ease your pain this morning, just let me know and I'll UPS you a case of the finest Ontario wine or even a case of real Canadian beer. WHICH IS ALSO NUMBER ONE!
What was this review about again?
Oh yes, We don't need no stinkin' badges. I think I agree with your viewpoint Tom.
Regards, Cheers and all the best, (with the exception of hockey expectations.)
The Gasman
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Feb 24 '02
7:41 pm PST
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Re: Re: " Badges? "We don't need no stinkin' badges." (Reply to this comment)
by mtbat
can't pass it up-the use of the phrase in Blazzing Saddles was done as a tribute/poke at the movie Sierra Madre-but it was in the Bogart movie first! Trust me-Sierra Madre pre-dates Blazzing Saddles by about 20 years. and if you haven't seen it you should-it's a fantastic movie
F/mtbat
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Feb 24 '02
2:18 pm PST
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Even though I'm now a TR, I tend to agree that it's all Bogus (Reply to this comment)
by lorendiac
A few days ago I found out I was going to be promoted to "Top Reviewer in Books." The first time I've held such a title since the Advisor program was scrapped. At first I thought it had to be a joke - I wrote no book reviews in the first three weeks of Februrary, 2 in January, 3 in December, none in November . . . I admit that what I did write was of high quality, but I always thought a TR was supposed to a bit more than 5 reviews in a period of almost four months.
But if they insisted on giving me the title, I figured I'd see what happened. (I expect absolutely nothing to change in my life, but I'm willing to let them prove me wrong.) In an effort to be totally frank and earnest with my fellow Epinionators on how I feel about this, last night I posted a General Comment called "How I became a Top Reviewer (and why I don't care)." In which I discussed in excruciating detail just what a totally useless and nonrewarding title that is to have. I just hope no one thinks I somehow "stole" the "recognition" to which he was properly "entitled," but if anyone does think that, I'll just have to live with it.
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Feb 24 '02
2:12 pm PST
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Re: " Badges? "We don't need no stinkin' badges." (Reply to this comment)
by the_gas_man
The 101st comment on this most excellent rant, that drew more comments than I've ever seen.
The quote actually came from "Blazing Saddles", I think, but, I can't be sure, it was so long ago. I don't think I've seen the movie with Bogart.
What was this review about again? Oh yeah: Will Epinions cough up a free potty chair for each and every Top Reviewer and Editor or not? We can't be expected to read, rite, review, rate, and rant all day and all night without relieving ourselves at will. I tend to rate NH to everything when I've got to go to the bathroom and it simply isn't fair, that someone should get an NH just because I have a full bladder. Is it?
That's my final word on your review Tom! I am steamed up about this issue! Hopefully when the Canadian Men's hockey team beats the bejeezus outta the American team, I'll feel better. Eh?
Cheers!
Gasman
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Feb 24 '02
7:10 am PST
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Re: Don't be too harsh now! (Reply to this comment)
by bonniesayers
From what I have always understood rating reviews is only part of the Editor process. I have seen many this past week blow through the just in rating but no one leaving comments.
I believe commenting, offering suggestions and tips to reviews that have been rated lower are what is also needed.
Just my observations and understanding on this matter.
Bonnie
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Feb 23 '02
6:45 pm PST
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Re: Re: Sheesh! Okay, okay, I'll give it back... (Reply to this comment)
by mtbat
actually the phrase We don't need no stinking badges came from the movie Sierra Madre starring Humphry Bogart first :)
F/mtbat :D
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Feb 23 '02
6:16 pm PST
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I agree (Reply to this comment)
by pmills1210
I don't begrudge any TR or E anything, but I think Epinions is too subjective in their selections, especially after EBD and the Lexiphiliac and Scads write-offs. I read a piece this week by SMITHSWOODSIDE where he has had a very hard time getting rid of someone who he feels is a plagiarist and multiple accountant (and many feel the same way about this person). I guess the principle used to select their top reviewers and editors at Epinions is based on the Peter Principle. Maybe I should write no Epinions over the course of the next month. It helped at least one person retain editor status while active writers lost their hats. You hit it right on the head several months back, though - the death spiral has begun here. Thanks for sharing!
Sincerely, Pat
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Feb 23 '02
2:27 pm PST
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I must agree.. (Reply to this comment)
by bops_mom
someone who I find to be a great writer, made Beauty TR when she'd only written three Beauty reviews in the last YEAR. Uh, hello, Epinions?????!!!
Melissa
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Feb 23 '02
1:49 pm PST
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