Just a Food for Thought Comment

Question

I just went to my G2G page and happened to actually notice my totals of questions answers etc.  I find it absolutely disheartening to find that 6 different times my answers were actually thumbed down!  Are we grown adults in here or not?  Who ever is doing this, did you ever hear the saying if you have Nothing Nice to Say, say Nothing at all!  In all my years on wikitree i kno of one time where someone was actually being outright rude to me on here and left a rather nasty response to me about information i'd found, we basically got into a heated disagreement, and sure enough they had (pretty postive it was the one that disagreed) downed my legit answer of research, just because they didnt' like the "facts" that I'd found.  I think I have downed 1 persons negative nasty response to me Once as well, & even then I did feel bad for doing it..but i'd hoped that doing so would help the person to see that thier nastiness comments weren't appreciated.

We don't have to agree on wikitree, we don't have to like each other, but deliberate use of the down rate, when someone is just trying to help with information, or because u don't agree with what answers they've found or their viewpoint on any given subject on wikitree, is just childish, vengeful, and basically brat like behavior.  Please think b4 you downrate another wiketree'r, you don't know when the person you do this to, may find it so offensive and hurtful, that they may just quit!  I won't, I found it "brattish-funny".  So whoever is doing this to me...go for it I will continue to research and provide answers, ESPECIALLY the Factual Answers that go against the traditional beliefs of specific genealogies.

Comments

Unfortunately, Arora, there are those few people who seem to thrive on finding fault with others when there is really no fault to be found. I've got 15 down votes, and for what reason I have no idea. There have been suggestions that it is likely that some people have selected the down button by accident, but that certainly doesn't account for all of the down votes.

I've gotten comments and answers sometimes that have seemed rude to me. Rather than down vote the answers, I rant a bit to myself, and then let it go. If someone actually crosses the line into more than rudeness, then there are solutions that can be used, like flagging an answer as inappropriate. I've never done that myself, so I don't really know what followup, if any, is made.

At the present time, I can only suggest that you ignore those down votes, because you know that you have done nothing to earn them. It would be nice if only positive votes be possible.

---

I have a lot more than that Jim. Also I am one of those who very nearly quit right at the start because of someone downvoting me when I was so new that I didn’t understand the difference between an answer and a comment. I consider unexplained down votes to be childish. The only down vote I ever given was by mistake and I could not find where I had hit the wrong button to be able to reverse it.

Answer 1

Don't take it too personally. Down votes sometimes happen by accident, or by someone who simply disagrees with you and doesn't want to post a comment. I currently have 24 down votes, which is .0037 % of the number of up votes I have received. I don't think we really need to worry about down votes.

Comments

This is coming from me, a noob, looking in from the outside, not a member. I wouldn't worry about down-votes, or even up-votes. I've never cared to look at something like that and only just now looked because you brought it to my attention. My point, don't worry about it.

Answer 2

Hi Arora, maybe try just commenting for a while, that way u can't earn down votes. It is a very sad thing, this down vote facility, but don't let it get you down, we all have plenty of them some by mistake and some deliberate.clearly you must be doing something right and someone is jealous. I first got upset, now I look at is as an achievement. If you can P...s somone off then you are a Great Genealogist. Hang in there girl!

Comments

Hey Shirley & Shaun, its not getting me down, really, i found it initially disheartening, but after a few minutes I was more amused by it.  its easier to be annoying on that famous social site & recieve fewer thumbs down. lol  Shirley 24!  I'd love to kno who did em, I'd give em a piece of what for verbally.. geeez.. & Shaun, I'm always p'sn someone off genealogically. lol been doin it for years.  In fact I do kno of at least 1 right now that doesn't like me sharing everything I'm finding for projects and for some that are looking for very specific types of ppl in thier research.. but I will continue showing the infos, because that's how the genealogies get connected with facts. lol

---

Absolutely wonderful Arora, You've got spirit, you keep going an please tag us in when you find that some-one, I think it will be quite entertaining 

Answer 3

Hi Arora,

I read the G2G forum daily. I have never used the Up/Down vote function, but if I look at my G2G profile I have given out 10 up votes and 10 down votes. I have figured out on my cell phone I use my left thumb to scroll the screen. What happens to be on that left edge of the screen but the Up/Down vote. Now I try to use my right hand to scroll but I still at times use my left thumb from habit. I wished there was a warning on the down vote?

Answer 4

Glad to read your post! Keep the fight to change the policy alive Aurora 

I totally agree with what’s already been said, and just to repeat views other people have already stated in the past; we should get a warning ‘are you sure you wish to down vote this answer, please add a comment as to why’ 

At first I thought we should get rid of the button but after my post below the reasoned answers mean I think the above option is not only the best for feedback but possibly the only programming option available. 

https://www.wikitree.com/g2g/612217/another-rant-about-downvoting-thanks-for-listening

Comments

I need those up votes Lizzie, I trade them in for coffee at my local fast food place every morning. I gave you another up vote today to help cancel out another one of those 7 again. 

---

 thanks Rodney!  I always give you an up vote when I see you too (I couldn’t leave you short on coffee 

Just checked, good to see no one else has downvoted me since May but as Shaun said..... I’d not noticed my behaviour change but I’ve commented a lot more than answered recently! I’m actually quite shocked at myself, I shouldn’t be subconsciously conforming my behaviour because deep down I don’t want a random unknown downvote and not know why! lol! #obsessedmuch