It only takes 1 rating of a 1 to change 7 8's to a 7.hehe,Did that make any sense?

right but some things deserve low scores, some things deserve high scores. It shouldn't matter if a 1 can change an 8 to a 7, it's supposed to. People are starting to sound more like they want the ratings to just be put to 6-10 because anytime someone gets anything less than a 6 they feel they have been "wronged."

It's fairly easy for an admin to check a specific individual's rating history....and alarm bells tend to ring when you find a large number of works say, rated 7, 8 or 9 as averages, when the individual's ratings are all '1'...it means the consensus is at odds with the individual and one asks 'why?'.

If a work has 10 ratings, all 'high' except for one....that's odd.

If two works are in that boat....that's suspicious.

If all an artist's works are so...then questions are raised about whether it's taste or vindictiveness on the part of the rater.

As for 'losing' ratings after the crash, one of mine went from 10 to 6 [sniff].....but life goes on...

Personal vendetta ratings would be near destroyed if people could see who gave the ratings, but I'd hate to think how many problems would come from making it that way instead.

What would help is if more people rated skins. I know there are a lot of people with the ability too

I can rate. But I know not how to fairly rate skins other than the ones I downloaded.

things you don't use are often hard to rate. However, walls, icons (od, ip, and otherwise), bootskins, things like that only need a look for the most part.

you are not supposed to rate the ones you don't download. at least thats my opinion

there's not much of a supposed to about it...more of a do or don't

...though the deciding factor usually seems to be, take time to or keep moving on. For the most part, things only get rated if they are really good, or really bad. Which makes the default 6 all the move necessary and accurate.

Yes making that assumption about the general body of raters is true, but it would be far better if people would only rate what they download and have actually seen what its like. I have found many skins innacuratly rated because the raters only looked at the preview. I have noticed several in the bootskin section where the preview isn't 16colors.

things like windowblinds, desktop object themes, winamp skins, can't be completely accurately rated one way or the other unless installed and looked at with their own two eyes

Here is another reason I do not rate: If the persons work I rated thinks I did not rate his work like he thinks it should have been rated, that person can rate my stuff even lower. I only have one 8 amonst a bunch of 4's so I really don't want to piss anyone off.

what? nobody knows you rated their work. I think the admins might, but us normal people can't see who rated their work.

yes but i like the leave good comments as well!

If that person goes and rates yours low because you rated theirs low for a good reason, then they are in the fault. They shouldn't do that.

well i have rated a few and will contiue to do so i guess to those skin i use all the time.

I think that rating without commenting should probably be nixed as a means of better controlling abuse of the system.

Personally if I rate something I will comment upon it because it seems an integral part of the process for me. Though if anyone checks you will see I have not spent much time rating anything, which is something I am starting to do a little each day. Pick an area of the site and browse through and look at the submissions. Wall, icons, and screen shots I do not feel need to be downloaded as long as you can get a good shot of them so you see the style and structure of them. Skins, Themes and Cursors I am thinking need to be downloaded and installed so you not only see a shot but can get a feel for how they function also....

anyway...

IP : Form = 7.5
Grammar= 7.0
Overall Content= 8.0

heck man, even Jim Jones got better than that!


/me leans over and whispers to yrag, don't drink the coolaid
[Message Edited]

Wall, icons, and screen shots I do not feel need to be downloaded as long as you can get a good shot of them so you see the style and structure of them.

Eh I have to disagree with regards to icons, both dock icons and IP packages. Sometimes the dock icons look a LOT better in the preview than on your dock. Or it just doesn't look good on my dock.
Good points though.

Ratings, bah humbug. I'm starting to sound like old crab. By the way, where is old crabby?

he recently posted in the marathon thread.

I don't understand why you have a rating system anyway. I have seen skins get a 9 that I though were terrible, while other skins were given a 5 that I though were terrific. When your dealing with taste, there is no accounting for it. As the saying goes. "beauty is in the eye of the beholder". Also, as has been indicated, giving your freinds a high rating seems to be the in thing. If you really want the rating system to work, maybe it should be restricted to the top skinners who have proven their knowledge and artistic worth. Just a thought, don't jump all over me. I respect anyone who has the patience to make these skins.

Because it helps keep people from really trashing beginners whom might not get rated high enough so everyone can see their submissions.

It is a safe guard for those working their way up the learning curve.

It is also something that I feel is definitly needed and is extreamly useful.

anyway...