Vote Distribution on Hive. Voting on Comments.
I think it has come the time to talk a bit about vote distribution and how I see it on Hive...
I don't speak for Hive in general, but from my perspective and for what I do and why I do it this way (and why I will make some changes in the future).
I strongly believe the resilience of HIVE grows the wider its distribution is. And the way to distribute HIVE to more hands is to vote on more people.
Sometimes I am torn by this, because some content or authors deserve a higher vote from my part based on the quality of their work, and usually my max weight is 30% on full posts to allow me to vote on more people.
Then, I also vote on most of the comments written by humans on my posts, mainly because I appreciate comments and this is a way to show my appreciation (besides replying to them), but also to stay consistent with my idea to distribute HIVE as wide as possible.
However, I couldn't help but noticing something that started to happen on my posts but also on the posts other other people who value interaction.
And that is the proliferation of low-value low-effort comments, sometimes unrelated to the post or making no logical sense.
In the past, I sometimes decided to ignore such comments every once in a while, especially from regulars, on the principle: if I can spend 2 up to 6 hours to write a daily post (the latter for my weekly roundup), you can write more than 3 words in a comment... 😉
Generally, I reply to comments, but if all I can find to say is "thanks", it's likely there wasn't much to stir a real reply.
This situation has been on my mind for some time and I admit I don't like to distribute upvotes on 3-word comments only to keep spreading HIVE far and wide. There are other ways to achieving the same or wider distribution.
I probably would have postponed talking about it as I often did, but Zoltan (@ph1102) reminded me about the issue in his comment.
I don't know what is true... People don't like to think or don't want to think, as Zoltan mentioned, or they don't want to get involved, don't have or don't want to share their opinion, or simply as I replied it's a matter of trying to achieve maximum with minimum effort. In any case, we all need to raise our bar. That's the only way up, instead of down.
I mentioned at the beginning of the post some changes in the future. Going forward I'll make more differences regarding my upvotes on comments than in the past, and there will be a higher number of low-effort comments left without an upvote. I will also start to upvote some exceptional posts with 50% too, instead of the max of 30%. Still trying to spread HIVE as far and wide as possible.
How do you feel about low-effort comments on posts?
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I am generally still replying to all comments, but if you generally have just a 2 or 3 word comment, it doesnt make sense to comment imo. The double thanks ones are probably even more so not necessary. Where a thanks for the post & comment happen. 😅
Unless it's a question, then it doesn't matter how short it is, in my opinion.
Yeah, that's kind of awkward sometimes.
I think most times many people don't take their time to read and digest the author's viewpoints enough to have a reasonable comment, which is bad. Most times I prefer to ignore the post without commenting whenever I know I don't have something to share in the conversation.
I do the same thing. If I don't have enough to say, I'd rather skip it. In some ways, I understand people who comment briefly. Sometimes I'd like to comment something on a post I checked out, but I'm so tired when I do it that I can barely articulate anything. If I push myself, I can come up with a comment, but often I'd rather skip it and lie down and rest instead.
Exactly my point. It’s better to skip and maybe get back at it later if possible than to convey the wrong message to the author or add something of no value to the discussion.
I hope you’re having a lovely weekend over there.
Thanks. It was pretty much a summer day, but we're getting ready for a rapid decrease in temperatures. Today was pretty tiring, we were cleaning flower pots and moving them into the house, and some of them are quite heavy.
Pretty much the same as you do!
Laziness and / or ?...? has probably always been a part of the uhhh ... "human condition." But, lately? Has there ever been a time in human history when the "something for nothing" sentiment was seemingly so strong? So prevalent?
[Personally, while I cannot know, I doubt it as I imagine the end result would've typically been starvation and death ...]
If the answer is "No!," then does it not logically follow to ask the question, "Why is that the case?" I have and could still write whole posts in answering ...
Anyway, to the point of your post, I am writing to do what I can to "set your mind at ease," about adjusting your approach and not rewarding the essentially meaningless effort far too common on our Hive blockchain. To reward behavior is to get more of it ...
P.S. To be as fair as I can manage, the only really exception is how we deal with the comments of those commenting in what is clearly not their native language. Still ... I am well aware of the efforts of those, for whom this possible exception applies, who clearly demonstrate considerable effort to communicate their supporting ideas, even though in "broken English." Or whatever language ... In those cases, I have gone out of my way to reward them making the effort ...
It reminds me of this quote: "Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times".
Expecting "something for nothing" seems like "weak men". And we are starting to live hard times more often. Maybe we should be happy because that means they will build "strong men".
Great point! I thought about that too that is why I finally took the decision to make a change.
You have a point. But even they should comment on the topic when there are so many translation and summarization options in different languages. The comment doesn't have to be perfect in English since I am not a native English speaker either, but you can sense when someone hasn't checked out your post even diagonally.
If you don't mind me asking, what is your native language? If answering is more than you care to divulge in an effort to protect your privacy, I fully respect and understand that (I say Rocky Mtns, America for this very reason ... 😉), so no need to answer.
Also, are you writing these posts in English from your learning it? Or are you using a translation aide? If the latter, which one do you find preferable?
Romanian is my native language.
That's how I write. Sometimes Grammarly warns me that I added the comma in the wrong place (usually before "because" because that's how I would do it in my language), or that I used the wrong tense in context, but generally, that's how I write in English. Probably running this through ChatGPT would improve the readability of the text and would make me look smarter (rephrasing, using different synonyms, etc.), but I'd rather remain in this raw form for the time being. 😃
Yep! Just be yourself ... Has my vote! 👍😉
Thank you! 😀
I still reply but I do agree that the low effort comments are kind of an issue. Sometimes I don't upvote them but I will definitely upvote a good comment on my post. At some point, I try to figure out if they at least read the post. I think the changes you are doing are good so I would try that out and adjust as you want to.
And that's unfortunate, because people forget about reputation, the kind that is not measured in upvotes but in what people think of you by your actions.
Absolutely! I understand the value of a good comment and also that it sometimes takes effort to write it. I will always appreciate such comments, reply, and upvote them.
Here's the thing. I am still ok if someone began reading the post and found something they wanted to comment on, even if they didn't read the whole post. I know few people read posts entirely. Time is limited.
Let's see how this goes... I still want everyone to comment, but make a little more effort, maybe? 😀
I think sometimes reader do not pay attention to the post or the content is not digesting by his mind that's why the reader do such a short comment. If I talk about myself, I just leave that content which is not understandable by me.
I think you approach it well. If you don't understand a type of content, there are two options:
Well, I feel some people are lazy to make comments. Well, the major thing is just that people upvote comments that are meaningful
It is not a must though, lol
That is probably true.
"Proof of brain" suggests that is what we should do. Sometimes I preferred to ignore this best practice to spread the token to more hands for a wider distribution.
Definitely agree with Zlotan that people don't want to think. It seems thinking has become overly hard or unnecessary that some will just rather settle on 'default mode' and operate with it. I tend to ignore low-effort comments because the author doesn't give me much to work with in continuing the conversation.
It's not because thinking has become overly hard. It's because enough people stopped using it as much, which in turn makes it hard for them because their "thinking muscle" (as one of my math teachers called it) trophies.
I totally understand you on this. In the past, I used some of these generic low-effort comments as a way to expand in the reply and communicate some things I may have forgotten to add to my post.
Right! That's a better way of saying it, the thinking muscle has entropied because it isn't used often anymore.
I think it is very understandable in those cases, we sometimes miss explaining some points while writing a post and a comment can be a great way to expand on it and make it more understandable.
Oops! Looks like autocorrect played me a trick up there: trophies instead of atrophies. But you got the idea, which is great.
Yes, I often explain further in the comments section. There are times when the comment sections on some posts are more interesting than the posts themselves.
Hey 👋! Remember me? I always read you with alot of interest. I do agree with your opinions but you missed talking about an important point. I prefer you didn't wanted it to be ai debate so you skipped it. Peakd alpha feature allows readers to get AI summary of post. So now within hive Frontend, some users are not reading full post. It's annoying how ai is stealing our organic enagagement.
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Yes, I do remember us talking in the past. Thanks for dropping by again and for appreciating my content!
On AI summaries or other types of content processing, I am not against them. I surely love it if someone reads my full post, but I also understand the time constraints and a summary is better than not reading anything (maybe the title) and commenting on it. I sometimes use AI summaries to get the gist of some posts, and if I think it's worth reading it fully, I do afterwards.
The lack of my sudden drop to engage with u was,
I was busy in some hive work in backend so my engagement dropped
I was curating in leo tag, you were a good leo author. Now since leo is more generalized, you are now competing with more author in leo curation category. I do remember that old days leo vote was a beast. And how can we forget that spt 25$ vote. Good old days. Now I am not too active in layer 2 curations from community accounts. Also, if u noticed I stopped using any tribe tag in my posts too.
If you are some internal from leo ladder then I am not aware of it. I just upvoted all those days to support good content. Now if u get any curations from my side it will be mostly in layer 1. For example hivepakistan. I will continue to support u just cause I like your writing style. I am a non native English speaker and you use plain and basic English. It doesn't give me a tough time just to understand you as an author.
We never talked off-topic, if it's something u don't want I can try to stick to main blog discussions only in future. :)
That's ok, we all have stuff to do that is not visible or maybe not even connected to Hive, so don't worry. I don't really keep track of who has been or who hasn't been upvoting me lately, but I guess like everyone, I do appreciate upvotes, lol. And thanks for the feedback on my content, it is helpful.
As for off-topic comments, I welcome them if they are likely to generate a conversation.
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I think you always give good response and comments. Nevertheless, I think as long it is a decent comment which acknowledge the author or a constructive comment, it should be fine.
That's the preferable option.
Sometimes these are ok too because authors need to know when their work is appreciated, but such comments should maybe come every once in a while. A constructive comment, as you said, or a question, that add something to the post or discussions are more useful.
https://twitter.com/jewellery_all/status/1713301761929380097
Thanks for the mention! Appreciated!
The irony is that my comment was short and I was talking about laziness... 😃
Jokes aside, I was tolerating a lot of comments on my posts and was upvoting ALL of them... In some weird way, I was guilty that so many people were leaving "low-effort comments" as I was incentivizing them! The same pattern happens when some whales randomly upvote low-effort content on HIVE... Incentivizing them to continue with shitposting...
I will do a better job and follow your strategy with selective upvoting from now on!
The funny thing is that a few of the regular commenters who may have been "targeted" indirectly by my words decided to put a little more effort today.
So, more is possible... But when I incentivized low-effort comments, I gave them no incentive to try a little harder...
It will be more effort on our part to incentivize better content and keep the distribution wider too, but hopefully, it will be worth it.
Hahahahaha... I read the comments before writing mine and I noticed that... 😂 🤣 I forgot to mention another important reason why people make "shallow" comments... Many times, people are afraid to say their opinion as they think they will sound stupid, or "wrong"... It's better to leave a short comment than to "stir the pot"...
But again, being passive isn't the "web3-way"!
Yes, I agree, and I noticed that. But here's the thing: taking the safe (almost invisible) route doesn't make anyone remarkable. When we talk about creating content, even less.
I respond to and vote on all comments I receive but your reasoning in this post is logical and reasonable and I think I will start not voting on comments of 2-3 words.
Thanks
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Yes, I did the same, but unfortunately, I have seen a proliferation of very short comments. I believe they are okay on Threads, maybe even during a conversation on a post, but not as a rule as the initial comment on a post, the one that would be the ice-breaker.
Actions speak louder than words, if you can see that the commenters are supporting the chain, with power ups then their comments and posts are more valuable, even if they don’t say much.
I don't like to play detective when I reply to comments. Sometimes I do, when I see repeated patterns of behavior, but I'd prefer to reward the value brought through the comment.
I think it is also dependent on the type of posts. When I am joining giveaways, I usually just type a low-effort comment of "Count me in"; and that can be expected. If I am to attribute it to your posts, I think the goal update is the most difficult one to make a good comment on. I read the update, and see the progress, but there is very little in terms of conversation I can provide. I want to show my support because those types of posts inspire me, and also remind me to continue growing my account. But unfortunately I can only comment with generic comments like "Congrats on the progress", and also add a few things regarding the update.
For thought provoking posts, I tend to write a lot more. I do see some comments that didn't seem to read the whole thing and was just a reaction to the title. Those ones are a bit of a shame, but I understand that they are just doing it for the upvote.
That's a valuable feedback! Thank you! I agree, sometimes (but not always) the goals update posts are not very provocative in providing a thoughtful comment or in generating a conversation, especially after you see it a few consecutive weeks in a row without any major milestone reached. Maybe encouragement every once in a while is ok, but if you don't have anything to say, it's ok. It is one day of the week. I have often wondered if I should continue posting them, but somehow my friends in doing them keep motivating them to write them publicly.
As for posts that only ask for a few-word comments (like giveaways), I agree, that's hardly any reason to post a thoughtful comment there.
I am only active with those that active with me. I don't have time to read/write to anyone who doesn't care because I really don't care. I used to give people chances but today it your first impression I judge right off the bat. Don't like it? Too bad I am human and will judge everyone like I get judged by everyone. For example gadrian. I tried to chat with you so I can learn something. But you never came around. So I moved on. I give what I recieve back.
On Hive? I rarely if ever don't respond, especially if the comment could lead to a conversation.
If you mean discord, I am not really active there. Your (and anyone else's) better chance is on Hive with me.
https://twitter.com/lee19389/status/1713557031796490528
#hive #posh
Hmm interesting topic.. I actually like to see things in a positive light, so I do appreciate every single comment, even a single "Thanks". Sometimes, I think we don't always have stuff to say, and we just want to express our thanks to someone who wrote an interesting post that we enjoyed reading. And I don't think there's anything wrong with that.
As for upvoting, I think that's a separate matter. It's really up to our discretion. There's nothing wrong not upvoting comments too. Hehe!
I was of the same opinion, to be honest. What changed my mind is that they became dominant and often felt like they came for the upvote.
Ah maybe a good litmus test is not to upvote comments that you feel are not worth one. After all, management of voting power is also important since it's not infinite.
I will do that. I will also vote on comments with different weights more often going forward. But it's still difficult not to upvote at least with the minimum upvote above dust someone who I see is trying to say a few words, especially if I know they don't speak English natively...
Yeah, I share this view too
I've been working on this platform for about 11 months now and I've rarely taken a break and in my opinion, commenting on other people's posts is more special than getting people to see you. Let's look at your post and see how hard you are working.
You definitely are trying with your comments. Sometimes the language barrier can be a problem, but I see that you put effort into your comments. Thanks for appreciating my work too!
Most welcome dear.
Hello @gadrian. I understand what you and Zoltan are getting at here with the short comments. I know for myself that I will not comment very much if I am blank in my thoughts, or if I am extremely tired. I will not comment much if I do not understand the post or if I am not focused on what I have read in the post. I think it would mainly be people are not focused on what they have read that causes the lack of words in the short comments. I can see how you and Zoltan would find these 3 word comments offensive. Barb !BBH !CTP #ctp
I believe some of them have circumstances, as they don't speak English well, and they try to keep communication to a minimum, being afraid not to make mistakes. That's why I think we can have some understanding in these cases.
Oh yes I understand that @gadrian not wanting to make mistakes with English and that some people here don't speak English very well. Hive is global with many different languages here. It's amazing!