[XB] Thread Ratings [Paid] 2.1.0

[Stuart Wright]

Please consider to add a REVIEWS tab and place the ratings breakdown and all reviews there. Similar to XFRM.
This would make the addon useful to me. Mixing the thread content and the reviews thereof is too confusing.

What differentiates between a post and a post where the user has clicked the ratings widget to rate the thread (or what the thread is about)? If you’re suggesting separating the two into two different tabs, then that definitely wouldn’t work because people will be replying to previous posts and that continuity will be lost if you split the posts in to different tabs.

 

[Alpha1]

It depends what it is that you want the users to review. The purpose for which I have always used thread ratings is for the users to review the thread. i.e. what value the thread has. Which started by vbulletin thread ratings, to denominate if the thread is good or bad quality and to communicate on Google results how many stars the discussion is rated.
Conflating that what is reviewed with the reviews does not make sense to me. Because there is no continuity between the two. Its like mixing resource versions and resource reviews on the same page.

If you use this addon to have your members review something else than the thread quality itself, then the approach to have replies and reviews mixed in, surely makes sense to me. In that case there is continuity between the two.

 

[Stuart Wright]

It depends what it is that you want the users to review. The purpose for which I have always used thread ratings is for the users to review the thread. i.e. what value the thread has. Which started by vbulletin thread ratings, to denominate if the thread is good or bad quality and to communicate on Google results how many stars the discussion is rated.
Conflating that what is reviewed with the reviews does not make sense to me. Because there is no continuity between the two. Its like mixing resource versions and resource reviews on the same page.

If you use this addon to have your members review something else than the thread quality itself, then the approach to have replies and reviews mixed in, surely makes sense to me. In that case there is continuity between the two.

I’ll start by saying that I’m not criticising you. I’m using my 26 years of managing forums to share my experience of what I think will and won’t work.

It’s irrelevant whether the addon is used to review threads or the subject of threads (auto dealerships in our case, with one thread per dealer).
The point and the difficulty is that replies can include a rating (by clicking a star on the rating widget when replying) as well as written text which can contain anything. That text may well contain written replies (with or without quotes) to previous posts. (E.g. “I agree”).
If you separate out only those replies which include a rating (to the new tab you are suggesting) then you are potentially removing the context in which the replies are made. Because users write their posts in the context of previous posts, moving them some elsewhere will inevitably lead to confusion for the reader.

I understand what you are wanting to do. You want to separate the written reviews of a thread from the thread itself. I don’t believe that this addon, which simply allows people to leave a rating, is appropriate for that purpose.
I would ask you why you would particularly want people to write written reviews of a thread anyway. In my opinion, people are used to using threads in a certain way - replying to the first post and other replies. They may occasionally include an additional comment about the thread itself (e.g. “useful thread”) but only a tiny amount of the time.
So I would not try to separate out the posts with a rating. I think it would cause confusion for the posters and readers of the thread.

 

[Alpha1]

We have been using thread reviews to rate the quality of threads for decades. This has worked great for quality control, SEO and to know what threads to no-index.
Separately from that we have also been using post reviews (reputation system) to rate the quality of individual posts. We have never used a mixed approach, so there is no separating out.
But yes, I agree with you that this addon is not suited to replace ThemeHouse Thread Ratings or its predecessors. Even though it has the same name, the workings are different and not suited for our use case. This is why I have disabled it shortly after importing TH Thread ratings data into it.


Thanks for explaining in what manner the current functionality is useful to you. I mistakenly assumed it was a botched implementation of the popular addons that came before it.

 

[PhineasD]

In my case, for example, I use it to review books. Each thread includes the book's information in the first post, and the comments are reviews, so users can only vote once. For this proposal I also use [OzzModz] Thread Reply Max Posts In Thread Permission.

I also use it in another forum to rate news, but in that case, even if the article isn't well-received by readers and only has one star, I want to continue indexing it because the ratings don't reflect the quality of the text, but rather whether the user is more or less enthusiastic about the new.

 

[Alpha1]

I can see how a reviews thread type is useful. However, in that case you might want to give it the proper schema markup so you enjoy the SEO benefits. Its also nice to see your community reviews listed on the google profile of a business or product.
I use Reviews Management System to review books, services and products. For articles I use Article Management System, which has reviews to rate the quality if the news article.

 

[Stuart Wright]

We have been using thread reviews to rate the quality of threads for decades. This has worked great for quality control, SEO and to know what threads to no-index.
Separately from that we have also been using post reviews (reputation system) to rate the quality of individual posts. We have never used a mixed approach, so there is no separating out.
But yes, I agree with you that this addon is not suited to replace ThemeHouse Thread Ratings or its predecessors. Even though it has the same name, the workings are different and not suited for our use case. This is why I have disabled it shortly after importing TH Thread ratings data into it.


Thanks for explaining in what manner the current functionality is useful to you. I mistakenly assumed it was a botched implementation of the popular addons that came before it.

Personally, I don't think people will bother to rate threads on my forums. I also think it would add a layer of information which isn't really necessary. Plus the thread starters receiving low ratings will inevitably get unhappy. I disable negative reactions to avoid stoking bad feelings. It happens enough as it is.
I've never used a thread ratings system before. I think it would be very useful in a forum like @PhineasD has where books are rated. A simple, one-click rating system is about as much as we really can ask people to do. I was thinking about commissioning an addon to do it myself. If this can be tweaked a bit (to collapse the rating break down as it's too big and to add the threadURL to available structured data) it will be ideal.

In my case, for example, I use it to review books. Each thread includes the book's information in the first post, and the comments are reviews, so users can only vote once. For this proposal I also use [OzzModz] Thread Reply Max Posts In Thread Permission.

I also use it in another forum to rate news, but in that case, even if the article isn't well-received by readers and only has one star, I want to continue indexing it because the ratings don't reflect the quality of the text, but rather whether the user is more or less enthusiastic about the new.

Perfect solution.

I can see how a reviews thread type is useful. However, in that case you might want to give it the proper schema markup so you enjoy the SEO benefits. Its also nice to see your community reviews listed on the google profile of a business or product.
I use Reviews Management System to review books, services and products. For articles I use Article Management System, which has reviews to rate the quality if the news article.

Where is the Reviews Management System? I'd like to take a look, but can't find it.

 

[Alpha1]

Where is the Reviews Management System? I'd like to take a look, but can't find it.

Reviews Management System (RMS) is a very extensive beautiful reviews system by @Bob

Review Management System - Premium

RMS is designed for forum owners to provide an interface for their members to check-in, review and ask questions about various item types (Brands, Businesses, Hotels, Items, Restaurants, Stores and Venues/Events) in the database.

xenaddons.com

Very different purpose from thread ratings, as its a full fledged product/business reviews directory.