Popular Post Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Popular Post Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) They are so freaking lame and add NOTHING to discussions. EDIT: I'm going to be posting rebuttals to the most common arguments in favor of reactions here. 1. It gives an indicator of the popular opinion. First, who cares. We should decide on something based on whether it's right or wrong, not based on what the hivemind thinks. Second, it doesn't even somewhat reliably do that anyway. It's a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of the GW2 playerbase. Talk to any statistician and they'll laugh you out of the room if you try to present a pool of ~90 people's immediate reactions as representative of the general population who play GW2, which is in the millions. 2. It's not hurting anything. It's also not helping anything either and some people (like me) find them irritating and childish. It's like you're trying to have a conversation with 4 or 5 people, and there's other people in the background yelling out random scores based on who they think had the "best" and "worst" reply. 3. It provides a way to comment quickly on a topic. Except you don't even know what exactly they agree with, if they actually agree or are being ironic, if they've even READ the original post fully, or even who posted the reaction in the first place. From a discussion standpoint, the reactions are COMPLETELY useless. They provide no new information, insights, user personalization, or perspectives. They don't even provide humor. And if people can't even take the literal 5 seconds it takes to post a simple, "I agree, this should be done," then they have no business being here. This is the GW2 forums, not Twitter. 4. You're just being too sensitive. Completely irrelevant and isn't actually a reason to keep them, but I'll entertain this for a second here and just say that I've been in some hardcore forum communities. Trust me. I'm not a snowflake. lol EDIT 2: MAJOR UPDATE I checked out the official Invision forum software and... YOU CAN'T DISABLE REACTIONS. You can only mitigate them. LOL Welp, boys, looks like reactions are here to stay. >_> Congratulations to everyone who wanted them to stay. It turns out Invision is so retardedly designed that it defeated us. I don't know what ANet's reasons are for picking this forum software over XenForo, but I hope it was a good one and not just because they picked whatever the first result in a Google search was. Edited November 11, 2021 by Arnox.5128 17 5 30 60 17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) So here, we got six reactions and no replies whatsoever. I rest my case. Dump it. Edited November 8, 2021 by Arnox.5128 3 4 16 33 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linken.6345 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 How the crap is this even a discussion? I am the laugh emoji since that is how I took this thread when reading your op. I dont see how this post make it any better. 15 7 10 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQuickFox.3826 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) People on this forum are so easily confused. Edited November 9, 2021 by TheQuickFox.3826 4 1 13 12 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 14 minutes ago, Linken.6345 said: How the crap is this even a discussion? I am the laugh emoji since that is how I took this thread when reading your op. I dont see how this post make it any better. Could you rephrase? Are you for or against the reaction system? If for it, why? 3 6 17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwiceDead.1963 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) I mean your post isn't really a discussion starter either, but for whatever it's worth I agree. It's supposed to be an accessibility/convenience thing, but just like up/down vote systems these forum interactions really don't do anything to foster discussion because you provide easy and vague 'answers' that could mean anything, but suffices to convey "I agree/disagree" without having to tell anyone why/argue your case. It's also perfect for knee-jerks. It's not really about adding to discussions though, it's just to garner forum interaction and possibly increase it's population by making it easier to.. participate in whatever people post. If Anet wanted to retain discussion as the focus, they wouldn't have added reactions. On the other hand, there's also the case where none of those 20(hypothetical) reactions has anything of value to add to the discussion anyway without retreading ground, so they can easily throw in their lot with whoever already wrote a better answer than they could. I still don't like it, but it is pretty much everywhere in the mainstream and sadly it's here to stay. Much as I hate it but long gone are the days where people were forced to type mini-essays on their cellphones. 21 minutes ago, TheQuickFox.3826 said: People on this forums are so easily confused. Now I did find this funny, but a lack of varied reactions is a different discussion that should be had since it's here to stay. Right now we have four, two to convey I agree, one that goes into SUPER AGREE. Completely Redundant. One makes you Sad which could literally mean anything because people can be happy/sad or down/sad or funny/sad, and then we have Confused. Confused is as close as you get to outright disagreement on the spectrum on here (and is what people mostly use it for), but it doesn't actually convey that as it could mean "I don't get it, please elaborate" but when used on here it could just as easily be "WTF mate this is some crap yo' " because nothing gets closer. It's kinda silly but I suppose 'Open to interpretation' is the whole idea to avoid toxic behavior or something. On the other hand, nobody is forcing anyone to sit down and decipher reactions in a "What could it mean?!" mystery fashion. They are what they are, insufficient. Edited November 8, 2021 by TwiceDead.1963 7 2 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 14 minutes ago, TwiceDead.1963 said: I mean your post isn't really a discussion starter either Yeah, that's true. In my defense, I thought it was generally agreed upon that they were garbage and didn't need an explanation as to why they should be disabled entirely. Your explanation though is perfect and what I would argue as well. 2 3 18 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Epsilon Indi.2031 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 To be fair, the average GW2 player gets confused easily by simple game mechanics. I, for one, am glad they have a way to participate in the forums. 4 9 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linken.6345 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 1 hour ago, Arnox.5128 said: Could you rephrase? Are you for or against the reaction system? If for it, why? Im for it since rather then having people gang up on a OPs suggestion I rather thanks or like a post that refute the suggestion better then I myself can. So if your post got alot of confused emoji and the on you argue against got likes and thanks you should be able to see how the sides of the conversation is going. 7 1 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) 19 minutes ago, Linken.6345 said: Im for it since rather then having people gang up on a OPs suggestion I rather thanks or like a post that refute the suggestion better then I myself can. So if your post got alot of confused emoji and the on you argue against got likes and thanks you should be able to see how the sides of the conversation is going. Except it doesn't mean anything because you have no idea what they're arguing. You can't even see who posted the reaction. So there's no discussion. And if people can't even be bothered to make a simple post as to why they disagree and need reactions, then maybe they shouldn't be saying anything at all. Quality discussions and a good exchange of ideas are what we should aim for, not who has the most popular take or who can get the most "heart" emojis. Edited November 8, 2021 by Arnox.5128 2 2 18 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mythical.6315 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 It’s best to just ignore them. 3 4 1 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) 3 minutes ago, mythical.6315 said: It’s best to just ignore them. Technically it's not that big a deal, but if we can change it, why even deal with it? Someone's gotta be at least a little persistent about these things or else nothing really gets done, you know? What do the moderators want to say about this? Site staff? What are their positions on this? Edited November 8, 2021 by Arnox.5128 1 23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mythical.6315 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 1 minute ago, Arnox.5128 said: Technically it's not that big a deal, but if we can change it, why even deal with it? What do the moderators have to say about this? Site staff? What are their positions on this? Considering that they added these with the forum update, I believe it’s fairly clear what their position is on this. 7 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 Just now, mythical.6315 said: Considering that they added these with the forum update, I believe it’s fairly clear what their position is on this. Sure, at the time, they probably thought they were fine, but the forums were updated a long time ago now. Perspectives change. New information comes to light. 1 23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mythical.6315 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 1 minute ago, Arnox.5128 said: Sure, at the time, they probably thought they were fine, but the forums were updated a long time ago now. Perspectives change. New information comes to light. Several months ago. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 Just now, mythical.6315 said: Several months ago. I stand by what I said. We need to hear from site staff. 4 25 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mythical.6315 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) 4 minutes ago, Arnox.5128 said: I stand by what I said. We need to hear from site staff. Good luck. There’s no “we”. What you mean to say is that you need to hear from site staff. Edited November 8, 2021 by mythical.6315 12 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 Just now, mythical.6315 said: Good luck. There’s no “we”. What you mean to say is that you need to hear from site staff. Oh, you like this reaction system then? 1 1 17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mythical.6315 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 Just now, Arnox.5128 said: Oh, you like this reaction system then? I don’t really care for it. I mostly use it to track which posts that I have read if I’m following a particular thread. 2 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 Just now, mythical.6315 said: I don’t really care for it. I mostly use it to track which posts that I have read if I’m following a particular thread. Then why are you fighting me on this? If you dislike it or even just think it's pointless then you won't mind seeing the staff get rid of it. Maybe you think I'm pushy on this, but we both know that if I wasn't, nothing's going to get done. 2 26 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mythical.6315 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 Just now, Arnox.5128 said: Then why are you fighting me on this? If you dislike it or even just think it's pointless then you won't mind seeing the staff get rid of it. Maybe you think I'm pushy on this, but we both know that if I wasn't, nothing's going to get done. Where was I fighting you on this? 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnox.5128 Posted November 8, 2021 Author Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) 2 minutes ago, mythical.6315 said: Where was I fighting you on this? Well, you made a statement of disavowal. "Good luck. There’s no 'we'." If that was not your intention though, then nevermind. Edited November 8, 2021 by Arnox.5128 1 19 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mythical.6315 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 4 minutes ago, Arnox.5128 said: Well, you made a statement of disavowal. "Good luck. There’s no 'we'." If that was not your intention though, then nevermind. I said good luck because it’s unlikely that you’ll get a response from them. I made the “There’s no we”statement because you’re not speaking for everyone and especially if you’re the only one here taking issue with it. 13 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asum.4960 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 (edited) I personally don't like them either. "Like" and "Thanks" have uses to convey agreement without having anything to add to the discussion beyond what was already posted (which we already had a means for in the old system but better with Like and Helpful), but especially the "Confused" spam, although largely to be ignored, is just kind of silly and counterproductive. It's clearly largely meant/used to convey disagreement, but it's entirely unproductive since it doesn't convey what was disagreed upon and why - which is kind of the most important part of a discussion - and leaves nothing to respond to. Giving people the means to voice unproductive criticism with the click of the button while constructive criticism takes time and effort to write out just leads to deterioration of discussions. Unconstructive criticism, imo, shouldn't be the easiest to give. /E: I can almost appreciate the person going to all the 15 last posts featured on my profile at the time of/directly after making this post and reacting with Confused to every single one of them back to back, I hope it was worth the effort 😄 Edited November 8, 2021 by Asum.4960 5 1 8 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danikat.8537 Posted November 8, 2021 Share Posted November 8, 2021 I've mostly gotten to the point where I ignore them. But I do find them somewhat amusing since I found an option buried in the forums menus to sort posters by 'reputation' which seems to count any reaction as a reputation boost. Which means as far as the forum is concerned those people who go around and spam confused reactions on anyone they don't like are boosting the recipients reputation. 😃 1 1 5 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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