# Adding optional likes as a response to posts? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [January 27, 2020, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073 "2020-01-27T19:41:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2020, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/1 "2020-01-27T19:41:20Z")
Any chance of adding “likes” to this board, like Stack Exchange? No need for downvotes like Reddit, but I’d like to acknowledge posts like RTFirefly’s in BBQ without a full fledged reply. I realize vBulletin may render this idea an unholy PITA, but if not, it might be worth pursuing. OTOH, I despise downvotes/dislikes. All they ever seem to do is make a board meaner. Life is hard enough without that sort of crapola. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2020, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/2 "2020-01-27T19:53:37Z")
I think it can be done with this version of vBulletin (though I believe it’s called _Reputation_). It’s a mostly useless feature, IMO, that ought to be kept off. The only point to it is, like you said, thumbs-upping a comment without posting to say _Me too!_ We don’t have a lot of that here, at least not that I’ve seen, so enabling Likes wouldn’t add anything to the board. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2020, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/3 "2020-01-27T19:55:58Z")
This has been discussed before. > **[Likes, Thanks, Reputation etc...](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=732824)** > > I feel like this is something that’s be kicked around over time around here and it seems like from a technology standpoint the board software has stagnated a little, so I figure it’s worth bringing it up again. What’s the current position on adding... And again more recently, less than a year ago. [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=874005](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=874005) It has been debated to death, and I think this feature is not “like”ly to happen any time soon. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2020, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/4 "2020-01-27T20:18:59Z")
OK. If that’s the group will, I’m fine without it. I simply find it occasionally useful elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2020, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/5 "2020-01-27T20:59:13Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > OK. If that’s the group will, I’m fine without it. I simply find it occasionally useful elsewhere. IMHO though its more in keeping with the tone and nature of this board to not have something that cheap/easy/simple; pick your own descriptive. Personally I don’t care if someone “simply” likes my post; I am more interested in the why. And the places I’ve been that had likes it was more the who than what was said most times. Working as we do here it gives me more a sense of where I reach others and where I fail - and likewise for others. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2020, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/6 "2020-01-27T22:42:41Z")
I find it works in some places, not others. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/7 "2020-01-28T03:22:26Z")
Do we have to have this debate _again_? ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/8 "2020-01-28T05:21:00Z")
Nope. As a guy who disappeared for 8 or so years, I’m not about to get pushy about a format most of you seem to prefer. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/9 "2020-01-28T12:25:35Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > I think it can be done with this version of vBulletin (though I believe it’s called _Reputation_). It’s a mostly useless feature, IMO, that ought to be kept off. I was a member of a discussion site that used the “Reputation” format. It was based mostly on popularity and, since a member’s “Reputation” points were displayed below the member’s avatar, it was a status symbol denoting seniority and prestige. It was actually done away with because some were engineering the acquisition and hoarding of “Reputation”. I also associate “Likes” with Facebook, which is a notoriously shallow site in terms of any real discussion or debate. Truth be known, I hand them out like candy at a kid’s party. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/10 "2020-01-28T16:04:06Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > I was a member of a discussion site that used the “Reputation” format. It was based mostly on popularity and, since a member’s “Reputation” points were displayed below the member’s avatar, it was a status symbol denoting seniority and prestige. It was actually done away with because some were engineering the acquisition and hoarding of “Reputation”. We did away with Reputation Points (Greenies) on a site I moderate for the same reason. It was just people giving points to their friends every time they posted something, signifying nothing. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/11 "2020-01-28T16:22:49Z")
Like user icons and a separate forum for thread games, this is a feature which would - guaranteed - lead to the inevitable destruction of these boards. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/12 "2020-01-28T17:02:18Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > I was a member of a discussion site that used the “Reputation” format. It was based mostly on popularity and, since a member’s “Reputation” points were displayed below the member’s avatar, it was a status symbol denoting seniority and prestige. It was actually done away with because some were engineering the acquisition and hoarding of “Reputation”. Since I have seniority but not prestige, I can only give half-hearted support to this feature. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/13 "2020-01-28T17:12:57Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > No need for downvotes like Reddit, I disagree. /downvoted Slightly more seriously, I’m here to read what people have to say. If someone likes a comment, they can darn well say it, while staying the hell off my lawn. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/14 "2020-01-28T18:10:56Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > Nope. As a guy who disappeared for 8 or so years, I’m not about to get pushy about a format most of you seem to prefer. You’re cool. I like you Squink. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/15 "2020-01-28T18:37:17Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > The only point to it is, like you said, thumbs-upping a comment without posting to say _Me too!_ I can see the value in that, but the problem with that is, not everyone’s "Like"s mean the same thing. Some people would “Like” everything, as a way of saying “I acknowledge that I read your post and it was worth reading.” Some people would use it to mean “I agree with what you say.” Some people would reserve it for the rare times they were really impressed by something someone said. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/16 "2020-01-28T21:50:41Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > Nope. As a guy who disappeared for 8 or so years, I’m not about to get pushy about a format most of you seem to prefer. SQUINK! I thought you went out back and the hogs ate you. 😃 Welcome back! Jenny your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/17 "2020-01-28T22:41:17Z")
Like 😛 ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/18 "2020-01-28T22:47:11Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > I can see the value in that, but the problem with that is, not everyone’s "Like"s mean the same thing. > > Some people would “Like” everything, as a way of saying “I acknowledge that I read your post and it was worth reading.” Some people would use it to mean “I agree with what you say.” Some people would reserve it for the rare times they were really impressed by something someone said. Hell, I’ve used them to mark which posts I’ve read so I’d know where to start up next time. Started a big-ass fight on another non-vB message board doing that. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/19 "2020-01-28T23:45:12Z")
There’s reason to believe that the “like” button degrades interaction and behavior and information and understanding – The Atlantic: “The Like Button Ruined the Internet: How “engagement” made the web a less engaging place” > **[The Like Button Ruined the Internet](https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/03/how-the-like-button-ruined-the-internet/519795/)** > > How “engagement” made the web a less engaging place > [@](#): > > Once other people start telling you what they like via Like buttons, you inevitably start hewing to their idea of what’s good. And since “people tend to be extremely similar in their vulgar and prurient and dumb interests and wildly different in their refined and aesthetic and noble interests,” the stuff you publish will start looking a lot like the stuff that everybody else publishes, because everybody sort of likes the same thing and everybody is fishing for Likes. > > … > > You don’t have to spend more than 10 minutes talking to a purveyor of content on the web to realize that the question keeping them up at night is how to improve the performance of their stories against some engagement metric. And it’s easy enough to see the logical consequence of this incentive: At the bottom of article pages on nearly every major content site is an “Around the Web” widget powered either by Outbrain or Taboola. These widgets are aggressively optimized for clicks. (People do, in fact, click on that stuff. I click on that stuff.) And you can see that it’s mostly sexy, sexist, and sensationalist garbage. The more you let engagement metrics drive editorial, the more your site will look like a Taboola widget. That’s the drain it all circles toward. ---
**Author:** ![Cleophus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e57/32.png) [@Cleophus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cleophus)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2020, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073/20 "2020-01-29T02:27:52Z")
I don’t see a strong reason to want a “Like” button or equivalent other than the expectation of receiving likes from a large number of lurkers and infrequent posters presumed to support you, and using that recognition in an attempt to bolster otherwise unpopular posts. A way to say “Look at all the people who agree with me!”, in other words. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adding-optional-likes-as-a-response-to-posts/847073.md?page=2)