Merit & new rank requirements

[jljahid1020]

The way activity is calculated is complicated to understand, but simply put you can only get 14 activity points every two week period. This is basically all you need to know but I will explain the intricacies and technicalities of the system below to avoid any confusion:

★ You can only get 14 activity points every fortnightly period.
★ The fortnightly periods are fixed and do not start when you sign up.
★ A list of all the dates of the activity periods can be found on this spreadsheet (credit goes to jambola2 for compiling it).
★ You can technically get more than 14 activity in two weeks if you sign up between periods.
★ You only need to make at least one post in each activity period to be able to collect the activity at a later date. For instance, you could make one post in three different periods and you would then have 3 posts and 3 activity, but a potential activity of 42. Once you made the 42 posts you would then have 42 activity but no more. If you made one post in 35 different periods you would then have 35 posts and 35 activity but a potential activity of 480. That means you would be a Junior Member but if you made the full 480 posts you would instantly become a Hero Member.
★ If your post count eclipses your activity by 14 or more then you will only need to make one post in the new period to get the full 14 activity. For instance, your post count is 200 but your activity is only 28. To get another 14 activity you will only need to make one post in the new period and you will then have a total of 42 activity.

Ranks and activity:

Brand New: 0 posts
Newbie: 1-29 activity
Jr. Member: 30-59 activity
Member:   60-119 activity
Full Member: 120-239 activity
Sr. Member: 240-479 activity
Hero Member: 480 activity
Legendary: Somewhere between 775 and 1030 activity

Merit:

In addition to Activity you now need Merit to achieve each rank. The required merit is detailed below:

Brand new: 0
Newbie:   0
Jr Member: 0
Member: 10
Full Member: 100
Sr. Member: 250
Hero Member: 500
Legendary: 1000

Here is a table of the activity periods and time it will take you to achieve each rank:
Code:
1 X 14 = 14
2 X 14 = 28
3 X 14 = 42  ---  Junior. Member (1.5 month)
4 X 14 = 56
5 X 14 = 70  ---  Member (2.5 month)
6 X 14 = 84
7 X 14 = 98
8 X 14 = 112
9 X 14 = 126  --- Full Member (4.5 month)
10 X 14 = 140
11 X 14 = 154
12 X 14 = 168
13 X 14 = 182
14 X 14 = 196
15 X 14 = 210
16 X 14 = 224
17 X 14 = 238
18 X 14 = 252 --- Senior Member (8.5 month)
19 X 14 = 266
20 X 14 = 280
21 X 14 = 294
22 X 14 = 308
23 X 14 = 322
24 X 14 = 336
25 X 14 = 350
26 X 14 = 364
27 X 14 = 378
28 X 14 = 392
29 X 14 = 406
30 X 14 = 420
31 X 14 = 434
32 X 14 = 448
33 X 14 = 462
34 X 14 = 476
35 X 14 = 490  ----  Hero Member (1.3 years)
36 X 14 = 504
37 X 14 = 518
38 X 14 = 532
39 X 14 = 536
40 X 14 = 550
41 X 14 = 564
42 X 14 = 578
43 X 14 = 592
44 X 14 = 606
45 X 14 = 620
46 X 14 = 634
47 X 14 = 648
48 X 14 = 662
49 X 14 = 676
50 X 14 = 690
51 X 14 = 704
52 X 14 = 718
53 X 14 = 732
54 X 14 = 746
55 X 14 = 760
56 X 14 = 784  --- Legendary rank (2 years)

-------------------

Activity FAQ:

Why is my activity stuck/not moving?

Because you can only get 14 activity every two week period. You will have to wait until the next period starts to get another 14.

Why has my rank/activity not updated?

It can take up to an hour to update. Just be patient.

Can activity or my rank decrease?

Yes. It can only decrease if you have all the posts you made from a particular period deleted or the threads you posted in trashcanned. If you do it's possible to drop rank until you have enough activity again.

Can I get more than 14 activity in two week period?

No. However, you can technically get more than 14 activity in a fortnight if you sign up in between periods, but you can't get more than 14 activity in a fortnightly period. For instance, if the period starts on a Wednesday and you sign up on Tuesday you can get 14 points on Tuesday and another 14 on Wednesday providing the period has started. You will then have 28 activity points but won't be able to get any more until two weeks' time when the new period starts.

What happens if I miss a period?

Nothing. You just won't get that activity and you miss that activity forever. Just make sure to post in the next period to get another 14.

Why can't I change my avatar?

You need to be a Full Member and up to be able to have an avatar.

When do I become Legendary?

You will become Legendary randomly somewhere between 775 and 1030 activity.

Does time spent online count towards activity?

No. It counts towards absolutely nothing and is a meaningless statistic.

Do only certain boards or posts have to be a minimum character length to count towards activity?

No. All boards and posts of all length currently count towards both.

If I create an account and leave it for x amount of time will I become a higher rank when I return?

No. You will still be a newbie. Activity measures how active you are on the forum and is to prevent against lazy account farming. If you do not make at least one post in each period then you will not get that activity.  

Why can't I post images?

Because you need to be a Junior Member to do that. To become a Junior Member you will have to have posted in three activity periods and have at least 28 activity. However, you can bypass these restriction by buying a Copper Membership for a small fee here.

-------------------

Merit FAQ:

What is Merit?

Merit is a new system created in order to reward quality contributions to the forum. Now to rise through ranks you will also need to acquire Merit in addition to Activity.

How do I receive merit?

You are awarded merit by people of the community if they find your post helpful or informative.

How do I send Merit?

There is a +Merit button at the top right of every post. To give merit click on it and follow the instructions.

What is the difference between Merit and sMerit?

There are two types of Merit. You cannot send your merits, just sMerit. For every Merit you receive you will have 0.5 spendable merit to reward posts as you see fit.

Can I ask for merit?

There is no need to do this and this behaviour is usually seen as 'merit begging' which is frowned upon by the community and may lead to you receiving negative feedback. Keep making quality, constructive posts and you will surely be rewarded over time.

Can I sell merit?

Selling merit is disallowed.

Can I give merit to my alt accounts?

No, this is frowned upon and will almost certainly lead to you receiving negative feedback if discovered.

Can I be demerited or lose merit?

No, not currently. Even if your post is removed the merit will still stay.

What is a merit source?

There are a certain number of special Merit sources who receive additional amounts of merit to give away. The list is not publicly available but is know to Staff.

How do I become a merit source?

If you want to be a merit source:

 1. Be a somewhat established member.
 2. Collect TEN posts written in the last couple of months that have not received nearly enough merit for how good they are, and post quotes for them all in a new Meta thread.
 3. We will take a look at your history and maybe make you a source.

Is there a limit on how many merits I can send?

Yes. You can give a max of 50 merit to a user every 30 days.

Note: Please do not make useless 'thanks for the info' type posts in here as they will be removed, as will any questions that have already been answered or explained. If there's something that isn't clear or needs to be added then that's fine and I will add the details to the op as needed.

Please report any threads that ask questions that have already been answered here as they are now unnecessary and will be removed. Thanks.

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[milugau]

~

Next time, you should only give link to original topic.
Quoting long contents like this might lead to annoying feelings of readers, hurt their fingers a bit. 

[aksen]

Hello guys, to my opinion merit fair system , just the problem because people don't receive merit in the next:

1) Poor english.

2) Very lazy and don't read useful information  and share with another users.

Thank you for reading

Here is my opinion about these two:

1) I agree that this happens but I am strictly against this. This forum has members from all over the world and thus the English of some members will be bad in comparison to native speakers. Still, if his content has information and value, we should appreciate it.

2) Lazy is also good sometimes as they will find some easy ways to get merits (not merit abuse).

[Sova_tmb]

Hello guys, to my opinion merit fair system , just the problem because people don't receive merit in the next:

1) Poor english.

2) Very lazy and don't read useful information  and share with another users.

Thank you for reading

And you do both of those. What are you implying here? You want merit, well your post history is horrible, filled with bounty forms. I looked into it earlier today and decided not to merit you. Good luck, with ever ranking up. Ass-licking won't take you anywhere .

It's my opinion mate and i'm not asking to give me merit.

[JayJuanGee]

~

Next time, you should only give link to original topic.
Quoting long contents like this might lead to annoying feelings of readers, hurt their fingers a bit. 

Actually, the better practice for posting any links is to post the link with either a short description of the content, and/or a comment about the content.  Another thing is to provide a short snippet about which portion of the substance of the link that you would like to make a comment... In any event posting links should be accompanied by some kind of comment that shows why you are posting such link (rather than the link by itself). 

I completely agree that it is annoying as fuck to see the substance of a whole post copied and pasted, without any reference to why you are posting it.. and even if you reference why you are posting it, you frequently do not need to copy and paste the whole thing.

[Sova_tmb]

Hello guys, to my opinion merit fair system , just the problem because people don't receive merit in the next:

1) Poor english.

2) Very lazy and don't read useful information  and share with another users.

Thank you for reading

Here is my opinion about these two:

1) I agree that this happens but I am strictly against this. This forum has members from all over the world and thus the English of some members will be bad in comparison to native speakers. Still, if his content has information and value, we should appreciate it.

2) Lazy is also good sometimes as they will find some easy ways to get merits (not merit abuse).

But in local board less people. English is a international language and main for many people.

[Xiaolongnu]

~snip

Here is my opinion about these two:

1) I agree that this happens but I am strictly against this. This forum has members from all over the world and thus the English of some members will be bad in comparison to native speakers. Still, if his content has information and value, we should appreciate it.

This is an international forum, English is main language. Also, we have local board for languages that have big community.

2) Lazy is also good sometimes as they will find some easy ways to get merits (not merit abuse).

It doesn't work in Merit's situation.

[d5000]

I actually would like an even stricter Merit system: a system were you need to continuously earn merits to be and stay a certain rank. A system where you are never done earning, because only your last 3-6 months are counted. This would remove a lot of paid spam.

In the past I supported similar ideas, but now I am against them again - the problem is that you always punish honest people with such a system, mostly members who wear signatures which are un-paid, and visit this forum not so frequently. Like most of the Core developers, for example ...

The goal of "decaying merits" is obviously to rank-down accounts which achieved a high rank automatically by spamming (via Activity) before the merit system was introduced. That goal can be achieved also by other, less drastic means. As people told me, what is currently being done is that the worst spammers/farmers are (slowly) being banned. So in a couple of months we can expect that only few "farmed Legendaries/Heroes" will be left.

I am currently beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel - the usually megathread-dominated "Bitcoin Discussion" subforum seemed, today, a bit more interesting that it used to be in the last months. At least a handful of serious threads at the first page. Maybe it's beginning to work

[poutintsev]

Certain users are designated as "merit sources". They can create new merit out of nothing, up to a limited number per month (which differs per source). I will not be posting a definitive list of merit sources (so that people don't bug them too much), though you'll soon figure out who they are if you pay attention.

This is so unfair! On what basis you selected these users? Cronyism?

In order for Merit system to be fair all users should be given e.g. 10 S-Merit and they could send it to each other.

[d5000]

This is so unfair! On what basis you selected these users? Cronyism?

Read theymos' first post completely Everybody can apply to be a merit source.

In order for Merit system to be fair all users should be given e.g. 10 S-Merit and they could send it to each other.

That would work against the goals of the merit system, as it would encourage account farming. It would take 2000 spam-bot accounts to create a Legendary ... no problem for people with the necessary technical knowledge.

[poutintsev]

This is so unfair! On what basis you selected these users? Cronyism?

Read theymos' first post completely Everybody can apply to be a merit source.

In order for Merit system to be fair all users should be given e.g. 10 S-Merit and they could send it to each other.

That would work against the goals of the merit system, as it would encourage account farming. It would take 2000 spam-bot accounts to create a Legendary ... no problem for people with the necessary technical knowledge.

I read those whole post. I'm pretty sure if I or someone like me applied to become Merit source he would not accept me.

Merit system is being abused already, but that way everyone could do it, not just selected few. This is hat equality is about. Either everyone can do that, or no one. Those are the only options.

[TheQuin]

I read those whole post. I'm pretty sure if I or someone like me applied to become Merit source he would not accept me.

Correct.

If you want to be a merit source:

 1. Be a somewhat established member.

Merit system is being abused already

It has been from the start but as time goes on they are running out of the distributed sMerit to use. That means it is becoming far less of a problem and will soon die out.

[TianaStam]

Hello guys, to my opinion merit fair system , just the problem because people don't receive merit in the next:

1) Poor english.

2) Very lazy and don't read useful information  and share with another users.

Thank you for reading

Here is my opinion about these two:

1) I agree that this happens but I am strictly against this. This forum has members from all over the world and thus the English of some members will be bad in comparison to native speakers. Still, if his content has information and value, we should appreciate it.

2) Lazy is also good sometimes as they will find some easy ways to get merits (not merit abuse).

But in local board less people. English is a international language and main for many people.

There are a lot of people in local boards and Merit doesn't belong only to main (English) boards, people activly exchange it in local boards, but here the main term is the same - the post should to have sense, be on topic and be interesting.

[d5000]

I read those whole post. I'm pretty sure if I or someone like me applied to become Merit source he would not accept me.

Like TheQuin already wrote, it's likely that in the present, you would not be accepted as you seem to lack experience. What I meant is that it is generally open to everybody - the path towards achieving the rank of a merit source being simple: contribute to the forum, read & educate yourself about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, and then after a year or so you can apply. You already have some activity, so for you it may not be too far away (I haven't checked your post history, however).

All forums and online communities have to do some "selection" for positions that require a bit of trust. And merit sources require trust as they could abuse their power (e.g. sell merits, or merit only topics from friends etc.).

And if you see merit sources abusing their "power", then you can detect it and start a thread about that. All information about merit transfers (at least of the last months) is public.

[cryptoherr]

hey why do i not get added any activity Posts (you can see my last Posts were 14 days ago) so i should be able to get new activity every 14 days Right ?

[InvoKing]

hey why do i not get added any activity Posts (you can see my last Posts were 14 days ago) so i should be able to get new activity every 14 days Right ?

Hello ! Nope, activity periods are fixed and weren't calculated from the time you joined the forums
You can find when your activity will increase here (periods intervals) : https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12saLhlUoqIdairxzuSPu6EYGrt7FN2lOstO1yDjCEbA/htmlview?pli=1

[SuiMikira]

Thanks
i couldt Turkish do you have?

You are typical shitposter. If you can't try to post good things then just read.

[R-J-F]

I actually would like an even stricter Merit system: a system were you need to continuously earn merits to be and stay a certain rank. A system where you are never done earning, because only your last 3-6 months are counted. This would remove a lot of paid spam.

In the past I supported similar ideas, but now I am against them again - the problem is that you always punish honest people with such a system, mostly members who wear signatures which are un-paid, and visit this forum not so frequently. Like most of the Core developers, for example ...

The goal of "decaying merits" is obviously to rank-down accounts which achieved a high rank automatically by spamming (via Activity) before the merit system was introduced. That goal can be achieved also by other, less drastic means. As people told me, what is currently being done is that the worst spammers/farmers are (slowly) being banned. So in a couple of months we can expect that only few "farmed Legendaries/Heroes" will be left.

I am currently beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel - the usually megathread-dominated "Bitcoin Discussion" subforum seemed, today, a bit more interesting that it used to be in the last months. At least a handful of serious threads at the first page. Maybe it's beginning to work

My problem with the current merit system is simple: I was a Hero member, my account was hacked and I had to start all over again since I could not get any help with recovering my account. A week or so away from becoming Hero again and they kick in the Merit system and now I'll most likely never get back to Hero. Just my 2 cents...

[tranthidung]

My problem with the current merit system is simple: I was a Hero member, my account was hacked and I had to start all over again since I could not get any help with recovering my account.

'Start over again', what does it mean?
Can you explain a bit more about your case?
After the hack, your account's postcounts dropped and you had to collect activities again, or you actually lost the Hero-ranked account forever and had to start from zero with a Newbie account/
Which one is your case?

[sncc]

Thanks
i couldt Turkish do you have?

The link to the Turkish local forum is as follows.  In the main board posts should be written in English.

Türkçe (Turkish)
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=133.0