Not upvotes and downvotes as on Reddit. And not the menu of choices Facebook now has. Just the option to like a comment, as you have on Twitter.
When someone says something smart, or makes a funny joke, I’d like to be able to tip my hat to them, without clogging up the thread with a separate post that says “Cosigned” or “LOL”.
Previous threads:
No “Like” button, eh? https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=848734
Should this board have ‘like’ feature? https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=838375
Note how one of those posters was then banned …
I know we’ve had threads discussing this before, with various people coming out for or against.
Is there any way to enable this in the board’s vBulletin software? Because if not, it ain’t happening.
No, absolutely not.
The farther the board stays away from being Yet Another Social Media Platform, the better.
Hmmm, idea: I often have to explain to people that no, sorry, I’m not on Facebook, too bad, because of course I do want a constant stream of adorable grand-nephew photos…
Now I think I’ll say “Sorry, not on any social media. Though I do spend time on anti-social media…”
Terrible idea, adds nothing to discussion.
I’m not trying to be contrarian, but I strongly support it. I’m very active on social media. I don’t necessarily want to respond to every post, but a ‘like’ would be good for some of the threads on here.
Absolutely not. If you like something, making it public adds nothing to the discussion.
IF…it could be like avatars, people being able to opt out of seeing them, then, I suppose maybe it’d be okay.
Def not ‘needed’, but if those who fancy them are the only ones to see them, I don’t see a big problem.
It’s not an option in the version of vBulletin currently in use on the board.
To the best of my knowledge we’re not currently scheduled for an upgrade.
We hope you show your appreciation of posts and users by other means, including active participation in discussions; that’s the biggest LIKE of all. 
Jenny
your humble TubaDiva
It would still facilitate cliquish behavior, trolling, and bullying among those who did have it turned on.
How would “liking” posts facilitate bullying?
I would envision a “like” feature on the SDMB as a way of indicating “That was useful information” or “That is a good addition to the thread” or “Your attempt to amuse me succeeded,” without cluttering up the thread with content-less posts.
But of course it’s a moot point if the board software won’t support it.
Counterpoint. We’ve had threads where everyone wants to add their two cents but they don’t add anything, either.
And on and on. Sometimes the threads even get to people repeating the phrasing of the first few respondents, just with “Yeah,” at the beginning and “, too” at the end.
Plus from a selfish standpoint I know sometimes people sensibly chuckle at silly posts but don’t respond to say “I laughed” so I’d like a way for people to signal that.
God forbid we ever consider anything that might make us more appealing to new people. I mean I love this place, but it wouldn’t hurt to add some more modern bells and whistles once in a while so we don’t look like a total relic of the 20th century in every way imaginable to outsiders.
I mean we don’t have new content from Cecil anymore, we regularly lose longtime members, and the amount of quality newbies doesn’t exactly seem to be outpacing those losses. Maybe doing something new or different just might not be the end of the world here. Ok, so “likes” aren’t a possibility right now, maybe something else might snazz the place up a little. Just my two nickels.
TreacherousCretin doesn’t like “Like” buttons. Dumbing down the board to facilitate laziness.
There already is a way. They can type “I laughed.” Typing a dozen or so keystrokes shouldn’t overtax anybody’s available time or brainpower.
I’m not sure reducing the number of actual posts in favor of “likes” will be a good thing. Wouldn’t this cause threads to fall even faster and reduce the number of posts recorded?
Nothing like seeing a thread that you’re following has new posts only to discover it’s ten people saying “I laughed.”
Is that worse then seeing the thread you are following drop off the page because “likes” and votes don’t count as posts?
I would say yeah. At least then I know there’s no new content, and if I want it back to the front, I can post something in it. If a thread constantly gets pushed back to the top with a dozen “I laughed” and “Cosigned” and “I agree” posts, it can get a little annoying to click on.