I think people should be quizzed on the rules when they register. This would make sure that they have read the rules instead of skipping over them.

What do you think?

Basically, I think that people who won't follow the rules, won't follow the rules whether they are quizzed on them or not.

 

I don't see why having a quiz would make people necessarily behave any better. It would just be another hurdle to brush aside.

 

If anything, I think the potential to annoy otherwise good members into quitting their registration half way through is greater than the potential of 'shaping up' otherwise rules breakers.

 

Really, it's a statistical question: what percentage of members, who were once rules breakers, eventually became good members once they were 'gently reminded' of the rules? I suspect that this number is low... that most rules breakers don't give a hoot about the rules and would rather try to shout their message from whatever mountaintop they can find.

 

And is the above percentage greater than the percent of people who would be annoyed by having to be quizzed on the rules? I think I can honestly say I've never formally read the rules. I just try to treat everyone with respect and obey good net etiquette. That's really all the rules are there for anyway.

If anything, I think the potential to annoy otherwise good members into quitting their registration half way through is greater than the potential of 'shaping up' otherwise rules breakers.

 

This is always the big question. We know rule-breakers are usually loud and stomp around a lot. What about the otherwise good members who might have joined but quietly decided not to because of something they found objectionable?

 

I could see a quiz giving potential members more of an "elite" feeling of being part of the community, but I'm not sure a quiz on the rules would give that feeling. It would be great to have more people understand the spirit of the rules rather than cherry-pick the ones that benefit their arguments.

I think a quiz about forum rules and etiquette is a great idea, but it should be voluntary and accessible at all times for every member.

 

Such a quiz could encourage people to read and think about accepted behaviour and in the long run raise the standard of our posts.

 

If members completing the test would be rewarded with reputation points equal their top score, then it would be more like a treat for members who think it's fun and not a hurdle for those who don't like it. Newcomers who cares extra about their first apperance could do the quiz and then gain a little positive rep before they start posting, those that don't care don't have to bother with it, old members can still do it for fun and an inexperienced newcomer who made a bad first post can do the quiz to redeem him/herself and turn a few negative points to a few positive ones, instead of feeling defeated and silently leave in disappointment.

 

For a new member a few negative rep points can be devastating and give rise to others to downvote them even more. But a system like this would increase the grey zone of acceptance and give people who really care a second chance before the situation gets out of control.

 

If the quiz have ten questions then the impact on rep balance is small, most older members already have a head start of ten points from the old rep system and since you only gain your top score, the max you could get is ten points so bad members would still accumulate neg rep.

For a new member a few negative rep points can be devastating and give rise to others to downvote them even more. But a system like this would increase the grey zone of acceptance and give people who really care a second chance before the situation gets out of control.

 

Your idea is intriguing. This would have to be an Admin task, since I know of no way to give more than one rep point to anyone for a single post. But I agree that some of the folks who make a bad first impression are capable of changing, and as long as they want to stay and be productive, we should encourage that.

 

I've also long felt that we should amend the Etiquette Guide to request that OPs can't be voted down (or somehow force the software to do this). I hate penalizing people for asking questions. After the thread starter, all posts are fair game, but I don't think people should get negative rep for starting a discussion, even if the topic is not high quality.

Could the starting positive points for a new poster be raised to 10 then that would help negate the effect Spyman writes about? This should be plenty of buffer for a few poorly-thought initial posts and keep a person in the positive. I, as a habit, tend to negate any negative points in starting posts or ones I don't think deserve them.

Could the starting positive points for a new poster be raised to 10 then that would help negate the effect Spyman writes about? This should be plenty of buffer for a few poorly-thought initial posts and keep a person in the positive. I, as a habit, tend to negate any negative points in starting posts or ones I don't think deserve them.

 

That was the protocol some time ago, which is why you might see some members with only a few posts and none upvoted, but they have 10 rep points.

 

The rep system was very different in the long-ago past. At one point the reputation (or whatever we called it then. Karma?) you gave was a function of your longevity/seniority and (IIRC) your own level of rep. I think a vote from me and a few other senior members was worth more than 10 points at a time, up or down. The whole setup proved to be unwieldy and was scrapped. I think what we've found is that tweaks to it always have some new unintended consequence, and it always makes somebody unhappy.

 

I think what we've found is that tweaks to it always have some new unintended consequence, and it always makes somebody unhappy.

Yes, I can appreciate that this might be the case.

Instead of implementing such a quiz at point of site registration, it would be cool if staff could assign it as a requirement that users pass before they are allowed to continue posting.

 

So, people join sign and check the "yep, I've read and agree" box and start posting. At some point, they're a problem and seem not to follow site rules.

 

Then, mods can assign a "to-do" item or requirement... "You must pass this quiz with at least 80% correct before your posting privileges can be returned." Treat it like a training event, or a prerequisite of some sort.

 

I don't believe site infrastructure can really support this the same way a learning system might, though... Just wanted to throw that out there as food for thought.

Instead of implementing such a quiz at point of site registration, it would be cool if staff could assign it as a requirement that users pass before they are allowed to continue posting.

 

So, people join sign and check the "yep, I've read and agree" box and start posting. At some point, they're a problem and seem not to follow site rules.

 

Then, mods can assign a "to-do" item or requirement... "You must pass this quiz with at least 80% correct before your posting privileges can be returned." Treat it like a training event, or a prerequisite of some sort.

 

I don't believe site infrastructure can really support this the same way a learning system might, though... Just wanted to throw that out there as food for thought.

 

For some offenders it wouldn't be unreasonable to refuse to allow them to continue participating until they had written a short blurb explaining what rules they had broken in some post, but I'd hesitate to use anything like a quiz or essay on a regular basis. Only for the hard cases.

I had multiple choice / automated system grading in mind, but understand your point.

Edited February 20, 201411 yr by iNow

I think bignose’s point is valid, I for one, at the start would have brushed aside any such hurdle because my idea was ‘so valid’ as to ignore any such restrictions, simply to show that my amazing idea simply, must be shared with a community that could appreciate it; having since come to terms with the chasm of my understanding, I am eternally grateful that I was accepted and later taught my mystification.

I had multiple choice / automated system grading in mind, but understand your point.

 

The hurdle there is in implementing it. I'm not sure the board software would support an automated quiz.

Agreed.

 

I don't believe site infrastructure can really support this the same way a learning system might, though... Just wanted to throw that out there as food for thought.

I'd be happy with a system that would require those who get suspended to put a check mark next to each rule to state they've read it. It doesn't force them to actually read, but I don't know how much clearer we can make it that you need to follow rules in a community with tens of thousands of members.

You could implement it as a poll with public votes and keep a running total of the votes and lock it whilst the accused is not participating.