Moving threads from board to board in a seek of merits?

[seoincorporation]

Recently I've found a user encouraging others to move their threads from one to another board just in a seek of merits. Actually, the user has done it several times, from alt to beginners, from meta to beginners, and so. The user also explains to others this behavior as a good way of earning merits:

I have the same sentiments with you.
The intention of merit is to prevent spammers and encourage us to make quality posts.  However, what is happening now is instead of making posts to share your knowledge and learn from one another, the forum community is now posting for the sake of earning merits (especially the low rank members like me).

This is the link of my first thread : https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4468266.msg40069856#msg40069856

Moved the above thread twice (from altcoin discussion to service discussion (altcoins) to beginners and help).  I moved it because I noticed that the merit distribution on the altcoin discussion threads are fewer compare to other threads.

Those are the threads being moved from different boards:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4539295.msg40849895#msg40849895
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4539282.msg40849849#msg40849849
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4505759.msg40565087#msg40565087
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4465566.msg40070451#msg40070451


This is the first time I see something like that, and I just don't know how to feel about the matter. The user doesn't seem to be a complete shitposter, but this attitude is kind of annoying to me.
What do you think? Is moving your own threads all over the forum seeking to earn merits a good attitude?

[Jet Cash]

Well I've put him on ignore, so he won't get any merits from me.

I really must formalise my ignore list. I forget why I'm ignoring people after a week or so.

[seoincorporation]

Well I've put him on ignore, so he won't get any merits from me.

I really must formalise my ignore list. I forget why I'm ignoring people after a week or so.

Jajajaj, yes I was tempted to put him/her in ignored, but given the strange behavior, I rather prefer to keep an eye, though. I just don't know what to think. It doesn't seem legit, but I would be glad to see other's insight (and then put this one into my ignored list).

[nngella]

I forbid myself for replying to your comment on my thread.  I think I will reply on this now for me to have the privilege to clean my name.

1.  I am guilty of moving my first thread regarding the common mistakes of beginners regarding airdrops and bounty campaigns.
2. I do believe that you have misquoted my comment on the post of other user.  If you will further study the thread of that other user, it is a discussion regarding the current merit system.  I am just stating one of the possibility and citing an example for it.  For me not to commit pointing of fingers and ad hominem, I used myself as an example for I admit that I am not an excemption to this tendency.  Encouraging others is a big accusation and I do believe that if you read my comment again, it does not contain any encouragement to copy the behaviour.
3. I also moved another thread of mine regarding the SWOT analysis of Merit System from META to Beginners & Help.  And why? Sorry to say this but I find the high-ranked members of META that commented on my post very toxic.  Instead of having a decent discussion on the content of the thread, they began criticizing me, the user. High-ranked members always proclaim themselves that their goal is to share knowledge and learn from one another.  But for them to attack the poster and easily judge them, I think it is so haughty of them.  And what makes them have this attitude? Is it because they have the merit to spare and they feel they have the authority to scrutinuze every post to justify if it is merit-worthy or not? I am just guessing here.  I am also not generalizing.

Here are my reasons.
Thank you for taking the time to read and letting me explain.

[Jet Cash]

I don't really care if it is legit or not. I think it is against the spirit of the merit system, and that is enough for me.

[mdayonliner]

What do you think? Is moving your own threads all over the forum seeking to earn merits a good attitude?

We certainly do not know the real reason of the topic creator. Also don't know whether his/her explanation is valid or not however if it was done for the purpose of seeking of merits the way you (OP) is thinking then it really does harm the spirit of the merit system like Jet Cash said.

PS: I hope the topic creator is explaining the truth (ignoring the blames against high ranked members).  I have very little perimeters to judge his/her actions.

[seoincorporation]

3. I also moved another thread of mine regarding the SWOT analysis of Merit System from META to Beginners & Help.  And why? Sorry to say this but I find the high-ranked members of META that commented on my post very toxic.  Instead of having a decent discussion on the content of the thread, they began criticizing me, the user. High-ranked members always proclaim themselves that their goal is to share knowledge and learn from one another.  But for them to attack the poster and easily judge them, I think it is so haughty of them.  And what makes them have this attitude? Is it because they have the merit to spare and they feel they have the authority to scrutinuze every post to justify if it is merit-worthy or not? I am just guessing here.  I am also not generalizing.

That's the mean matter, and why I told you I do dislike the SWOT post. You are assuming that high rankers own the merit. This is not true, and also it is a proof of your own lack of information (everyone eaerning merits can give merit, it is not about the rank!!!). I have now zero smerits, for I spend a lot of time looking for good newbies and encouraging them to rank-up (if you are curious just check my post history). The problem I have is you are talking about high-ranked members as a kind of "enemy", as if we have all the merits and judge others.
That's not true. For instance, Jet Cash has made an amazing project to help other to rank-up, and he's also a merit source. If we don't like or agree with your posts, It doesn't mean we are your enemy or that we are a kind or tyrants! I have the right of disliking what I want, and it doesn't make me the enemy.

Notice what I said in the thread: "This is the first time I see something like that, and I just don't know how to feel about the matter. The user doesn't seem to be a complete shitposter, but this attitude is kind of annoying to me."

I was just asking about other's opinions, not attacking you. But you have already created a post complaining about "high rankers" just because a couple of us disagree with your attitude: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4542474.msg40888097#msg40888097

You are just taking it too personal.

It is just the first time I see someone moving the threads from one to another board again and again. This kind of behavior is rare, that's all. Also, I do think you are giving ideas for others to do the same by the post I quoted.

]
We certainly do not know the real reason of the topic creator. Also don't know whether his/her explanation is valid or not however if it was done for the purpose of seeking of merits the way you (OP) is thinking then it really does harm the spirit of the merit system like Jet Cash said.

PS: I hope the topic creator is explaining the truth (ignoring the blames against high ranked members).  I have very little perimeters to judge his/her actions.

I hope too. I'm not an inquisitor and I've never been. On the contrary, I spend a lot of time trying to help good newbies to rank-up, but the explanation of this one is just vague to me.
Maybe this is better if I just put this one into my ignored list,  I just don't like when someone accused others to be mean to them just because they disagree.

[Jet Cash]

Volumes have increased quite dramatically over recent years, and one is having to take a broad brush solution to many problems. Trying to find a solution seems to take massive amounts of time. For example, is it fair that I have put the wholle of the mining section back on ignore because my thread was deleted. Probaably not, because it means that I won't be awarding any merits there. However, I disagree with their current policy, and I can see no benefit in my spending time hunting through the threads. The same thing applies to this poster. If one sees behaviour that is likely to be contrary to the spirit of the forum, then one may not have the time to investigate it further. Red tagging somebody is more serious, and should not be undertaken lightly, but my ignore list is a personal project. However, I think it would be useful if we could have a group ignore list. This would be useful in keeping merits away from the Bitcoin talk underworld.

[LFC_Bitcoin]

Well I've put him on ignore, so he won't get any merits from me.

I really must formalise my ignore list. I forget why I'm ignoring people after a week or so.

Once people go on ignore for me that’s it, I forget why too, there are so many on my list. It’s like a black hole, once you go on there you don’t get out.

[The Sceptical Chymist]

However, I think it would be useful if we could have a group ignore list.

This community can't even reach a consensus about whether the sun is going to come up tomorrow, so I don't think a communal ignore list is going to work.  Everyone has their own standards as far as that's concerned.

I'm beginning to have a bitter distrust of noobies these days, especially ones who post about merit or who jump right in and become scam-busters.  This kind of came about after warningsigns defaulted on that huge loan from Condoras, though there's always been a baseline level of skepticism/cynicism/pessimism about them. 

As for nngella, I think I told you this exact thing was going to happen.  You got put on Jet Cash's ignore list, though it wasn't for the reason I figured it would be.  At least I think it was you; I can't find the post where I stated it.  I gave you a merit the other day for a post I thought was pretty good, but it looks like you're getting greedy by pulling this section-switching crap.  Despite your explanation, I think your motivation for doing this was to earn more merits.  And did you not expect any criticism when you started up a thread in Meta about merits?  Everyone is tired of reading threads about "merit analysis", especially from newbies.

[DdmrDdmr]

<...>

I’ve had a glimpse through your posting history, and those posts that are not bounty report related seem to be rather well versed, even if the arguments expressed in them may differ from many of the member’s point of view. Regardless, it kind of looks like when you set your mind to it you have potential of coming-up with a fairly decent post, rather distant from many irrelevant posts that are written on a daily basis.

You have been criticised to some extent on some of your posts by forum members whose opinion I respect, but also awarded with merit by members that I consider just as respectable as the former. What you’ve suffered is a (normal) case of split opinion, were the critics have spelled it out in the shape of a discrepant post, and the favourable reviews took the shape of sMerit.
I would assume therefore that the topics exposed (for example SWOT Analysis of Merit System) are not consensus prone and that, even if the arguments may be wrong, some have appreciated your effort and opinion. That is part of the nature one should expect, so it’s a question of soaking it up and getting back on track.

Regarding the game behind moving threads, well you must admit that it would get rather weird here if this became a habit. If the motivation behind moving the post is to seek merit, the chess-move will probably render no advantage and will probably result in a failed gambit, whilst looking more like a shell game to the third-party observer.  This is yet another feature you’ll need to get used to: not all your posts are going to get merited, nor have the visibility that you want them to have. Shell games will definitely not help.  

[LoyceV]

Well I've put him on ignore, so he won't get any merits from me.

I have mixed feelings about this. Although I don't appreciate the "merit shopping", I understand his frustration too. He's not a total spammer, his posts (if I ignore the many social media links) are quite decent, and I don't think he's one of the spammers for which the Merit system was introduced.
He's also not making a secret about it. He could have moved his threads without anyone ever noticing why he did it.

Update for the sake of argument while playing Devil's advocate: what if I move a thread from altcoin discussion to another board, not to earn merit, but because my thread quickly disappeared due to the massive spam on the altcoin board? I would like to have more readers and responses, so moving the thread would make sense if it also fits another board.
Would that be frowned upon as much as moving a thread to earn more merit?

[seoincorporation]

Update for the sake of argument while playing Devil's advocate: what if I move a thread from altcoin discussion to another board, not to earn merit, but because my thread quickly disappeared due to the massive spam on the altcoin board? I would like to have more readers and responses, so moving the thread would make sense if it also fits another board.
Would that be frowned upon as much as moving a thread to earn more merit?

I don't think so, but notice the post I quoted from the user:

I have the same sentiments with you.
The intention of merit is to prevent spammers and encourage us to make quality posts.  However, what is happening now is instead of making posts to share your knowledge and learn from one another, the forum community is now posting for the sake of earning merits (especially the low rank members like me).

This is the link of my first thread : https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4468266.msg40069856#msg40069856

Moved the above thread twice (from altcoin discussion to service discussion (altcoins) to beginners and help). I moved it because I noticed that the merit distribution on the altcoin discussion threads are fewer compare to other threads.

That's why I felt confused, that's all. This is the first time I find something like that.

I don't like the user mindset, for he's explaining to newbies that only high rankers have the change of giving merits, and it doesn't true. Besides, he's writing some threads about how high rankers are judgy and mean, which is not true. That's all. If you don't agree with someone it doesn't mean you're attacking the person, as The Pharmacist pointed out, this is a discussion forum, and we don't need to agree in everything.

The problem is that he's talking about how he moves his own threads in a search of earning merits. That's kind of weird, and alongside with his "high rankers hate feelings", the attitude gets weirder.

[NadiaHel]

3. I also moved another thread of mine regarding the SWOT analysis of Merit System from META to Beginners & Help.  And why? Sorry to say this but I find the high-ranked members of META that commented on my post very toxic.  Instead of having a decent discussion on the content of the thread, they began criticizing me, the user. High-ranked members always proclaim themselves that their goal is to share knowledge and learn from one another.  But for them to attack the poster and easily judge them, I think it is so haughty of them.  And what makes them have this attitude? Is it because they have the merit to spare and they feel they have the authority to scrutinuze every post to justify if it is merit-worthy or not? I am just guessing here.  I am also not generalizing.

You haven`t been attacked. That`s the mean problem in here, under my point of view. If you are posting about merits and also providing erroneous information -merits awardees are not only the higher ranked ones, then it is normal if you get some critics as a result.

Moving a thread from one to another board trying to win merits do not seems legit at all to me. Also, the user indeed said why and how she/he made that, even speaking about that as a good idea.
But I do believe everyone has the right to commit some mistakes. Since the user is not a shitposter -maybe a merit seeker, but not a shitposter, I think this is just a mistake, and I don`t think she/he is going to make it again.

To the user, not all your threads are going to have a nice answer, not only by higher ranked users but also from newbies. That`s completely normal, so don`t take it personally and become a troll by crying about that. This is a discussion place, with too many different minds, and it is normal to disagree at some point.
To the OP,  I think this is normal to have some mixed feelings about that. The user has been trying to earn merits kind of desperately and she/he did encourage others. But maybe it is not going to be repeated since she/he likely has understood that it wasn`t the correct behaviour. In fact, all that I can see is that you both agree on the matter, to move threads in a search of merits is weird and even the user has told you it was a mistake.

But it makes a good example, this thread, I mean, of how imaginative can the people become in order to earn some merit at some point. I guess this is happening because the people puts a lot of effort in a thread and sometimes get nothing in return. But this is normal, nngella, as I said to you, just don`t take it too personally.

[friends1980]

The guy's working on his post's visibility. Give him a break. Engage him as creative marketing manager in an ICO.

[nngella]

I think it is best to revisit THE FACTS:

This is the main thread of my quoted reply:

Now... hold on... I know what what you guys think: "Look! Yet another a$$hole complaining about the merit system". Just read the post below before posting.

Let me tell you a few things about myself:

Before joining this forum, I have been reading the broads here for about a year on everything Bitcoin & Altcoin related, Exchanges, Trading, what to invest in and what not etc.
As you can see, I have joined at the end of Oct 2017 and by the time the Merit system was implemented, I was a Jr. Member thus 0 Merit by default.
Since then, I have managed to get approximately 0.5-1 merit per day and managed to rank to Full Member before having the necessary activity.
I even had my own FREE post review service thread: vlad230's post review service - Jr. Member and up where I helped people increase the quality of their posts (across 10 pages) and have seen a big difference on the post quality that people had before the Merit System was implemented so, this system has definitely helped to improve the forum.

I have noticed that It's been about a month since I have not received any merit although my posting habits have not changed, I'm mainly interested in Mining, Bitcoin, Altcoins, Trading, helping people with whatever I can etc. and I do have a few threads that I manage and try to create a good resource especially for miners on this forum:

• [CryptoNight] CPU mining guide & coins that will get you a return
• [CryptoNight] Forked coins, ASIC resistance and current algorithms
• Kraken, Bitstamp exchange via Revolut & Mr. Tango
• [NEW FEATURE] Seeing a post that quoted your post
• Happy Bitcoin Pizza Day everybody!
• etc

I have noticed however that the majority of merit is only sent out in some particular boards (Meta, Reputation etc.) or for stuff that is not really Bitcoin & Altcoin related like hundreds of merit statistics.
I am not really interested in being a blood hound for scammers, rule/merit abusers (although I appreciate the people who do it) and what not, nor am I interested in merit statistics but does that mean I don't get to rank up on this forum?

On the other hand, I see there is a lack of merit sent out in the Mining, Altcoin, Economics or Local (Romanian - no merit sources here BTW) boards where people have real issues that need to be sorted out. Isn't this the purpose of the community?
I realized some of the boards I mentioned have become spam hang-outs for a lot of people (and this may get your post buried instantly, thus limiting the people who can see it) but for some that are really interested in these topics is really hard to go on.


Maybe a solution for this issue would be to:

• select a few merit sources that are interested in these topics and regularly posts there for a better distribution of merits
• have something like a "Rank-a-Thon" (similar to Hackathon   ) where a list of users would be selected and the merit sources would go to their posts and merit whatever they find good
  UPDATE: I think a good start to creating the lists of users that the merit sources would review would be people whom already got the activity but are missing the merits

What do you guys think?

This is my reply :

I have the same sentiments with you.
The intention of merit is to prevent spammers and encourage us to make quality posts.  However, what is happening now is instead of making posts to share your knowledge and learn from one another, the forum community is now posting for the sake of earning merits (especially the low rank members like me).

This is the link of my first thread : https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4468266.msg40069856#msg40069856

Moved the above thread twice (from altcoin discussion to service discussion (altcoins) to beginners and help).  I moved it because I noticed that the merit distribution on the altcoin discussion threads are fewer compare to other threads.

Threads that have been moved to different categories:
1. COMMON MISTAKES of BEGINNERS during ICO, AIRDROPS, and BOUNTY CAMPAIGNS
Links:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4465566.msg40034893#msg40034893
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4505759.msg40565087#msg40565087
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4468266.msg40069856#msg40069856

2. How to Get a Merit
- Main thread link is missing (the thread is about me, a newbie, asking for high-ranked members their criteria and parameters on giving a merit.  It is encouraged to answer in an objective form and not subjective (i.e. make quality posts, etc).  One newbie also commented on the post that it would be beneficial for us if high-ranked members will quality the number of merits per the said criteria.

@The Pharmacist commented and warned me to "nuke" the said post because it is highly discouraged by this community.  Hence, I locked the post and(most likely) the moderator deleted it.

@The Pharmacist, requesting for you to verify the statement above.
Links:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4539282.msg40849849#msg40849849
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4539295.msg40849895#msg40849895

EXPLANATION

Recently I've found a user encouraging others to move their threads from one to another board just in a seek of merits. Actually, the user has done it several times, from alt to beginners, from meta to beginners, and so. The user also explains to others this behavior as a good way of earning merits:

I have the same sentiments with you.
The intention of merit is to prevent spammers and encourage us to make quality posts.  However, what is happening now is instead of making posts to share your knowledge and learn from one another, the forum community is now posting for the sake of earning merits (especially the low rank members like me).

This is the link of my first thread : https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4468266.msg40069856#msg40069856

Moved the above thread twice (from altcoin discussion to service discussion (altcoins) to beginners and help).  I moved it because I noticed that the merit distribution on the altcoin discussion threads are fewer compare to other threads.

I am MISQUOTED

I think I was misquoted on the statement above.  I DO NOT ENCOURAGE others to move their threads to seek merits.  I may be guilty of moving my thread to earn more viewers but when you examine my post, I am just replying to the original thread and not encouraging others.  As I have said, encouraging others for a bad conduct is a big accusation.

MOVING THREADS MISTAKES

My post Common Mistakes of Beginners/Newbies during ICO, Airdrops and Bounty Campaigns was moved from Service Discussion (altcoins) to Beginners & Help because of the suggestion of one member:

Thanks for the tips! All correctly on topic! Addition: in status "newcomer", should not write posts in other themes, except as "for newcomers"! It matters!

Thank you for the recommendation.  I moved this topic to "others-Beginners & Help" section.

My 2nd post How to Get a Merit was moved from Beginners & Help to Meta because the question is directed to old users of this forum hence I decided to move it.  The post is not meant to earn a merit so accusing me that moving this post to earn a merit is way of the mark.

If you will notice that I moved the post twice
1. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4539295.msg40849895#msg40849895 (from Beginners & Help to Bitcoin Discussion - I forgot to change the scroll bar to move the post to META hence it moved to the default scroll bar of Bitcoin Discussion.  You can see the content of the post that I stated that the post is moved to the META)
2. The second post - I successfully moved the topic to META.

@The Pharmacist, kindly verify the first paragraph above (i.e. The post is not meant to earn a merit...)


High-Ranked Members Concern

First, I would like to say that I am not generalizing all the high-ranked members.  I always use the word SOME and not ALL.
High-ranked members are very vocal regarding merit-begging and really condemn the said behavior and I commend the high-ranked members for this.
However, what I am frustrated about the behavior of assessing if the post is merit-worthy.

Let me give an example:

I have this post sharing my newbie experience.  The post does not involve any relation to Merit.  The post does not have any word "merit" on it.

However, someone started a discussion regarding this:

I was going to give you a merit for your post, but I see that you are still flying a bounty signature, so that still seems to be your primary motivation.

I think the same attitude with discouraging merit-begging posts, we should also have the attitude to discourage off-topic reply like this.
Instead of commenting and focusing on the topic, the off-topic reply regarding if the post is merit-worthy leads the discussion regarding if someone must give the poster a merit or not.  It frustrates me that the main purpose/topic of the thread that I started is getting neglected and instead the discussion of the thread is diverted to the off-topic of my post being a merit-worthy or not.

I hope this clearly explain my case.

[seoincorporation]

I hope this clearly explain my case.

Ok, let's be clear about that because I'm getting tired. I'm not accusing you directly, I'm asking to the community about how legit can be to move a thread to one from another board with the mindset of earning merit.
This is just a discussion about how legit a new action seems, not about you. I'm not accusing you, I don't ask for you to be banned, I just ask a legit question to the forum, that's all.
You are taking this too personal. If someone just disagrees with you it is normal, you don't need to put thousands of deleted posts (by the way impossible to check out), you can explain if you find it legit and why, that's all.
I can't see the drama.
I just found something I did have doubts with and ask to the community, but you are taking it too far, too personal. Relax, chill out!!! I even wrote that I don't think you are a shitposter, I just made a question about a new and strange behavior in the forum.

I will lock the topic now. For my answer is there: to me, if a user is doing that again and again, then I will consider it against the merit spirit but this is (indeed) just a personal appreciation.
The Meta board is about how the forum policies works, as well as other factors. Policies change a lot, so I was trying to get into a debate and to discuss a whole new behavior.
 So just chill. Nobody is attacking you. You are in a forum, and it is probable that some people disagree with you. This is not about ranks or merit awareness, or because we feel more important, this is just a fair question.