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Does Post Count Matter?
The answer is no, it does not. I used to be one of those people who would post anywhere I could, just so I could gain post count. As a result, I posted in threads I knew little about, my posts where short and sometimes incoherent, and many times were blatant spam. All of this to get a number next to the word Posts and it didn’t matter. I’ve grown older, matured, and have gotten smarter (at least I’d like to think so). I quit posting when I could or if I felt like it and instead, I posted when I felt it could really propel the conversation forward or add some worthwhile insight to the topic. As a result, I’ve heard numerous people comment on my intelligence and I’ve found that it also depicted a better image of me in general. Whether or not I’m smart or nice is purely irrelevant. What is relevant is that despite how I really am, the image that people got of me was a positive one.
That is from a first person point of view, but I’ve also witnessed this same thing as a spectator as well. I’ve met members who’ve gotten hundreds of posts in a matter of days. They generally posted short, thoughtless posts. These are the members that people consider “n00bs”. But new members aren’t always like that. I’ve met numerous members who I’ve both agreed and disagreed with, yet they proved that they were intelligent and worthy of respect because their posts were hardy, long, and were well thought out. These are the types of members who stand out and appear to be mature and smart, not the ones with the most post count.
Lots of people want to give post count other meanings. Such as a gauge of how dedicated, active, and/or the amount of time a member has spent at a forum. That is utter rubbish. I’ve been to websites where the head administrator has had over 7,000 posts and moderators with over 4,000. Yet they’ve co-administered with other staff who had less than 1,000 posts, or staff who have been there for mere months. These people gain these positions because the forum staff viewed them as intelligent and responsible, paying little attention to post count or their joined date. Though it is nice to get 1,000 posts on a forum or look back at all of the time you’ve been a member, these sorts of things are trivial. They’re hardly worth worrying about and do not display maturity, responsibility, dedication, or intelligence. Your individual posts do. The old idiom “quality over quantity” is especially true in this instance.
So next time you decide to post, make it worthwhile, give new members a chance, and don’t judge a member based on their post count. It means nothing.
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Very nice Lucifer.  It bascially sums up everything about the whole post count myth in many BBSs. So you're saying that members should be judged by the quality of their post, not by their quantity (ie. post count). Right?
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Ex-admin, designer and founder of Studio Zero. Currently working as a Dentist 
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I got scared thinking Chris wrote that. =P
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Very nice Lucifer. It bascially sums up everything about the whole post count myth in many BBSs. So you're saying that members should be judged by the quality of their post, not by their quantity (ie. post count). Right? Yes. And it's not really that you should, but that it's true. Generally, members are more impressed by intelligent, wholesome posts rather than post count. Especially if that post count is made up of spam.
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I got scared thinking Chris wrote that. =P I agree with the actual essay, but I didn't write it. 
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I should probably read this a few times because my posts haven't all been the most inteligent, and a few have been spam... probbaly alot of them actually >.>
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k
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Somebody that thinks like I do! I've never been one to go around posting my ass off. Hell, just look at ZD. I was probably on more in the day than most anyone and for 1 1/2 years I only maintained a post count of about 300. Another 6 months and it was still under 1000. The whole time I was only making sensible posts to help people or to better myself. I was building my personality then, not my post count. Edit: Say, can someone give me a lil' info on the Articles board? I've always been good with this kind of thing.
Last Edit: Jul 8, 2006 18:06:19 GMT by Aaron
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The Articles board is a board where members and staff submit articles on just about any topic. From analyzations to humorous to debatable topics, they range in what they discuss.
If you want to submit an article, you can either PM it to myself or Joe (best bet is me however). We're pretty flexible on what gets into the article board. The only thing that most likely won't get your article into the board is any form of prejudice, unless worded extremely nicely.
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So would an article on atheism be allowed? That is, if I warn believers before-hand and use facts rather than religious attacks?
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Click. I think that thread basically explains most of however is done. An article on Atheism would probably be fine, as long as it doesn't really offend (SP?) someone who is of a religion. I'm an Atheist myself, so I'd have to find someone to run an Article on Atheism is by, but that's besides the point. Basically, as long as it doesn't flat out say something like "Your religion sucks. Go cry." that should be fine. Something that says stuff like "This is why I think Atheism is great:", etc. would work.
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Post count doesn't matter to me. I had a member on my board who kept posting like a mad man just to be number one. He'd make posts like: "Too cool" to be followed by "no doubt" as his double post. Needless to say i banned him for life 
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Well, I usually have a high post count on forums that I like.
I do think post count matters. The reason? If your posts make sense, then wouldn't people think better of you if you posted tons of good and helpful posts?
Anyone who spams to get a high post count is just a "n00b" though. They can't help anyone with those posts, so why bother having them around?
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racinfan44
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I used to be one of those I-need-a-high-post-count type of people until I took a few day break from Proboards. I deleted all of my accounts, most of them anyway, all of my Proboards and everything on my bookmarks. A few days later, I came back to Proboards with a different goal in mind. Quality not quantity. I lost thousands of posts when I deleted my accounts and Proboards but I gained a lot of knowledge which is postless and yes I mean postless. 
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As much as people say that it really doesn't matter, your post count does matter. Newer members or people who are unfamiliar with you will often look to your post count (among other things) to see how active or well known of a member you are.
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As much as people say that it really doesn't matter, your post count does matter. Newer members or people who are unfamiliar with you will often look to your post count (among other things) to see how active or well known of a member you are. To a certain extent, that is true. Typically though, a new member will see who is active throughout the community by seeing who posts a lot or who is on a lot. They also look at the staff members, and see who the staff members interact with more than others and seem to show respect the most with their posts.
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∞
