Talk to Tom : What's the Point? – 4/2 @ 1pm ET

This is going to be an interesting chat.

I agree... This should be interesting. I'll try to make it.

I hope I'll be here for this, it will be an interesting discussion! I think the points and cash are a huge benefit of Gather members and if they are taken away there will be so many unhappy people and people will leave becasue of it!

Gather is fun but the extra incentive of points is what many members need! So many people use that cash and gift cards to help with things around the house!

Hi Pam,
First things first now -- hugs to the babies

I need to think about it, and get back to youl

Articles like this make me want to cash in my points immediately. I have to think that Gather is in the process of revamping the system or a staff member would not have posted this.

I like the point system. As with any system, there are people who abuse it. Does it annoy me that some people's sole objective is to accumulate points? Absolutely. Some people are more annoyed with the one word posts and other trivia on here, but I am more bothered by every other article being about points themselves.

I don't know if I'd come to Gather as often without the point system, since some of the people I like would not. Although these are not people obsessed with points like some, I do think that they value them enough that if there were no such compensation, they'd leave, or be here much less frequently.

It's difficult to recreate something for which the method of creation is not known, so I can't give you any ideas about how this might be improved. I certainly don't think you should reveal the method. We'd then have people who are obsessed with points doing only those things that would accrue them. I think there's plenty of that going on already, without the full disclosure.

Personally, I'm really satisfied with the point system. You really can't do much about its abuse, unless you were to make new rules, such as posts of word games beginning with... were declared UNPOINTABLE.

I do have one question. If you were to discontinue points in the future, would you honor the points members have already received to date?

Thanks, Pam.

Thanks Lady Nalita!!!! I'll do that!

And thanks to the rest of you for getting the points conversation started.

I will try to make it. Its going to be late for me as I have a long trip the next morning. But with that said. I urge all to think of the old saying, if its not broken dont fix it. I love the points as its incentive. And when you use the term white noise that may be offensive to those who believe they are sharing something important to them. Some of my comments are short and others involved and time consuming requiring a lot of thought. It depends on the post. But these are people who regardless of what they post are sharing a part of themselves. I agree with Bridget. The pints are just a part of Gather but for many they are what allows us to get things done around the house. Example my Energy Star light bulbs. That was possible for me on a fixed income only because of the points system. Recreate the points system back to my first statement its not broken dont fix it please. its a challenge that keeps me participating here and if you dont think its a lot of thoughtful work dream on. I seldom post more than 2 articles a day. But I have made friends here and their posts are not white noise.

A change in the points system would mean I would spend much less time here as now its about 6 hours a day and there are somedays where its much more.

Need I mention the word Censorship. Who is to decide what is worthy and what is not

I am homebound and if you changed the points system I would lose friends here

Hi Sue -
I'm bummed you're feeling like you have to cash in your points immediately due to my article. That was not the intent at all. During Tom's last live chat on March 11th there were many questions from the community about Gather Points - so he promised to host a follow-up chat focusing only on points. This chat is following up on that promise. I hope that helps ease your fears.

Also - to answer your question at the end of your post... if Gather were to discontinue points the company would ABSOLUTELY honor the points members have already earned by allowing people to "cash out".

Thanks Pam, I came to gather to make mature friends, the points were a bonus that brought me here. If it were not for them I probably would have just a close circle of friends and make no more. That ways I would miss out on meeting some wonderful people and reading some great articles. That is why I left myspace, to get away from the nothing worth it but saying hello to my group of friends now and then.

Lydon my love i didnt know you cared lol

thats why I dont go to myspace.com anymore. Gather is a grownup mypace. Donald hit it wtg Donald

Thank you, Pam. I really haven't finished deciding what to do with them, so this is great news. Yes, I did read through some of that, and there were, seemingly, an inordinate number of points questions. I guess they need to be addressed, yet again.
I didn't mean to make you feel bummed out. Sorry about that!

Dont be bummed Pam. Youre just trying to figure out what motivates us to post and comment and most of all stay with Gather over the others like Boomertown.

We love all of you in New England lol

Let me add that I think Gather, with all of its glitches and real or imagined shortcomings is the best site on the Web. I've expressed disappointment with it mostly because I see some of the upgrades to be geared toward making it more like a MySpace or Facebook, or even a BoomerTown. Those sites exist for people who want that. I like Gather's unique personality, and I hope we don't ever lose it.

Thanks Sue and Carol - I am no longer bummed!

Sue - I love to hear more about what you think makes Gather different and special in comparison to MySpace/Facebook and the rest...

Hello Pam - tough choices here:
"Do they inspire you to visit the site more often and make thoughtful contributions or do they degrade the experience by spreading white noise across our community?"

It's Both! I mean chats, games and contests may be recreation for some, but mostly they seem like blatant "point gleaners" And while that in itself may be fine, it detracts from the content and the serious posters. (I like to think of myself as more of the latter than the former. It's a conceit I indulge - sorry.) But I don't have an answer. I still refer to Gather the way it was first promoted to me, as "a website for people who listen to NPR". Yet, I know many more recent members think of it as a social site to milk for points. Perhaps I need to realign my expectations - I mean, "Who am I to expect quality content all the time?" I can adjust.
So, my comment to Tom is:
There's no need to change anything just for me. I'll go with the majority and adjust my expectations accordingly. Now, what are we going to do to achieve world peace?

You know, Pam, I've been thinking about what to write next, and although I have several ideas, they're all political articles. It might be a nice break to get away from that and develop some of my ideas about Gather's unique qualities. Thanks for the inspiration. I'll write one and dedicate it to you.

Oh, my gosh, I just read Richard's comment. "a website for people who listen to NPR" I never knew that. hmmmmmmmmmmm

Sue... I'm blushing.. but honored!

This is going to be a very interesting chat! Thank you for offering this to all of us.

Have a nice day!

gather gets me out of the me and into the we. Posts i would have just deleted I look at and read now. its not so much about the post itself but perosn who posted it. Get my drift?

This will certainly be an interesting discussion, I'm sure. The points are a nice incentive, but there is a lot of abuse that happens - a lot of the garden variety 'help me get to 3,000 points' articles. I don't mind a few of them, but there seem to be more and more every day, and they really do make it harder to find good content. That said, I'd be here much less often if the points were eliminated.

I don't envy y'all having to figure out how to handle this particular issue. It's very hard to make everyone happy. On one hand, you'll have the 'anything that's not top-notch lit is junk' crowd, and on the other, you'll have the 'we should be able to post whatever we want because it's no one else's right to determine what makes up 'good' content' folks. And of course, those who fall somewhere in the middle.

I won't be able to make the chat unfortunately. Right at that time, I'll be loading up my 3 grandkids for a 300 mile trip to visit their cousin. By the time I can check it that evening, the article will probably have 150 comments and take forever to download on my laptop!!

If the points were gone, I would be here but not nearly as much. I'd check in with my small group of close friends but wouldn't stay around to read and look at images as I do now. I greatly appreciate the reassurance that if there WERE changes, Gather would honor the current point accumulations as I have over 10,000.

Hi, Pam.

I started coming to Gather for the writing contests, to read and to submit, and soon became enamored of the point system. This was before complaints arose about abuse of the point system and abuse of the critique system. Now that I'm aware of all the complaints, I've decided I don't care if the points and the contests are being abused. I like the points. I like buying books with the points I earn. If people want to play alphabet games to earn points, big deal. Those who don't like that don't have to play. If people don't like getting e-mails asking them to read chapters or poems, well, they don't have to read those e-mails, they don't have to belong to groups that annoy them or be friends with folks they don't like. Just block out everyone if you want. That's what I do when I'm in that kind of mood.

Anyhow, without points on Gather, reward points, I don't think I'd stay.

Thanks for asking.

The points don't affect my participation in Gather at all, in fact I rarely look at that figure. I'd be here (and was back in the beginning when there were NO rewards for those points) anyway. The only abuse I see is when the "cash option" came into play, and articles became mindless point accumulation games.

That would be interesting....I'd stay without points, but I do spend more time here because of the pts.

For me getting points I can exchange for gift cards or to use as donations are just a bonus. I was first invited to Gather by Borders Books. I knew nothing about it---I never heard it was a website for people who listen to NPR---but because of the invitation I received, I came to check it out. At the time I really needed a way to connect with other people and a space where I could write (mainly about my life) and be responded to. I don't know if I knew about the point system or not when I joined.
If Gather eliminated the point system and did not implement some other kind of incentive for the people who come here who depend on points, I think Gather stands to lose a lot of members. I have continued on at Gather through lots of bumpy times when some friends left, so I imagine I would continue on at Gather even if the point system was eliminated.

Just to springboard off of Arlene's thoughts a little: The problem with the endless games and one-word posts is that they skew the distribution of points, and make it harder for those who don't post tons of games and quotes and the like to actually accrue points. Gather (I'm guessing, anyway) doesn't have an *endless* supply of points to hand out - I assume they're divided among members based on participation. After all, they don't print cash in the basement and ad revenue only goes so far. So if someone spends an hour writing a story or creating a photo essay and winds up with 10 pageviews and 10 comments and someone else posts 10 one-word answer games and 6 jokes in that time and accrues 100 pageviews and 90 comments, it seems like the latter person would accrue more points. BUT are they really adding more quality to the community? Or does it even matter anymore? What does Gather itself want the community's aim to be? Or do we as community members make those determinations? How many games are too many? How many C&P quotes are too many? Jokes? Who determines 'value'? From where I sit, the points discussion is far more complicated than just determining whether or not there should be points....

Pam, please do correct me if I'm wrong on this! It just seems like common sense to me, based on other businesses I've worked with in the past.

HI Pam, thanks so much for the update. I will definitely try and join Tom on Wednesday. However as I am in new zealand it is often difficult to join in on the livechats. So I will type my perspective here as well :

When I first joined Gather, I was not aware of the points. I wanted to be a part of the place where I could share my ideas, communicate and connect with people and basically have some feedback on my writing. I found all of this in Gather even without the points. Also, since I am an overseas member, points at this stage, does not mean much to me.

But I feel having points or some sort of reward for contributors is a positive thing. I understand a lot of members Gather treat the points as an extra source of income. There is nothing wrong with that either as long as it does not affect the quality of outputs.

I feel the point system currently is not the best. There should be modifications to include overseas members and more emphasis should be given on good quality content.

Luna's last two paragraphs - yes. I'm in the US so it doesn't affect me, but it does seem unfair that Gather has been saying that changes allowing international members to cash in would be coming 'soon' for over a year and a half now. I realize it's a complicated issue, but it does feel a little like those not in the US have been strung along for a while now, hoping that maybe next month they'd be able to make use of their points.

Honestly, without the point incentive, my time here would be very limited here. I have some friends that I would want to keep in touch with and read what they publish, but that's about it. I don't even think many of my friends would be publishing much if there were no incentive.

In response to "Do they inspire you to visit the site more often and make thoughtful contributions or do they degrade the experience by spreading white noise across our community?":

I wouldn't be here in the first place, most likely, without the point system. I heard about Gather through bzzagent at a time I was looking for places to help me break through the rust and dust on my writing skills, and it was the points for participation factor that tipped the balance in favor of Gather over other sites.

Since joining Gather and getting to know a lot of great people here, I've looked at several other pay for participation sites and heard of even more, but haven't been interested because I'm happy enough here. I've come to value Gather's special blend of formal and casual writing, so that I feel comfortable posting what and how I wish, and the fantastic community here and the wonderful friends and acquaintances I've made among them. The style and community would keep me here even without the incentives, but I would be more inclined to look at other sites offering them. I'm sure I would also not be here as much, or as often.

I don't publish or comment just for points, waiting to publish until I have something I feel needs said or that I want to share, and only commenting when I have something to say or to show support for the person who posted.

So, in summary, for me the answer to the first part of the question is Yes - the points inspire me to visit the site more often and make thoughtful contributions.

In response to "Is there a better way for Gather to compensate members?
If you could recreate the points system, what would you recommend?":

I like the system as you have it.

In response to "How do points affect your experience on the site?":

I have no doubt that I have viewers who wouldn't come by if there weren't points in it. Some of them really read, and post thoughtful responses. Some started out that way but have become friends. We all need to be read and to feel like what we say matters to people, and Gather's point system sparks that participation and interaction to a greater degree than we could have had on your random message board or someplace like myspace.

The following is taken from your information pages regarding points;

Our algorithms will change over time. Our compensation will evolve as the Gather community does. One thing's for sure: the bigger we get, the more you'll earn.

I think with a statement like that, the notion of removing points altogether is wrong.

I'd just like to know fer sure how it WORKS!

Sure, I'd love to know exactly how the algorithm works. ;) But I sincerely hope that they NEVER tell us! I mean, come on - let's say they tell us that rating an image gets you 1/2 point, viewing without rating gets you 1/4 point, and watching a video gets you a full point. Can't you just see 100 people sitting around 24/7 in 'earn mode' clicking on as many videos as is humanly possibly strictly to accrue points? And I'd guess that that kind of behavior would mean less points for everyone else....

Good question, But when you're asking about "points" are you excluding the people on the cash payout?

Honestly, I probably wouldn't spend as much time and effort posting on Gather if you take my $ away.

Would you still come to Gather if there were no points? Why or why not?
No, honestly I probably would not. I would devote my time to other sites that have a point system of some kind.

I think gather is fine how it is. Points (well cash for me now) do motivate me to stop in here often (several times a day). Sure some people go a bit over board with their posts (the point checks. . . the games. . . ) but if gather were to ban the point check articles, and make a section for games only, I think the problem would improve. But you're always going to have people who abuse the system.

Instead of worrying about who's posting games that are 'white noise' maybe gather should focus on the people who post stolen photos from the internet, which is a clear violation of the TOS and a very clear sign that that person is just trying to get points. If a person is posting lots of their own pictures, that is one thing, but someone who floods the recent images section with pictures they have ganked off of a "free use"(which often times. . aren't) site, is something that gather needs to wake up to and do something about.

I am no longer on the point system, however:

Gather Points; do you love 'em or hate 'em? LOVE 'em!

Do they inspire you to visit the site more often and make thoughtful contributions or do they degrade the experience by spreading white noise across our community? They inspire me to visit and contribute every day.

Is there a better way for Gather to compensate members? It would nice to have a point breakdown like Boomertowne does.

If you could recreate the points system, what would you recommend? The only thing I would change is requiring a name with a rating. It would virtually eliminate the DB's.

Would you still come to Gather if there were no points? Why or why not? NO. While I enjoy the friends I have made, I would not come here if I wasn't paid to do so. I could still be in contact with the friends I've made through IM or email. And I wouldn't have to put up with the "trolls" that give low ratings because they don't like you.

How do points affect your experience on the site? It makes me more willing to post content on a daily basis.

Thanks to Luna for directing me here!

I don't get points anymore, either, but I assume that since points are the foundation for cash, this discussion involves both forms of payment.

While I don't dwell on points, many people here who write articles that intrigue and engage me DO care about points. That is a reality I have come to see. That makes ME care about points. I like a diverse community. If there aren't enough people on Gather (and I do think you'll see a much smaller number without points), how will Gather stay in business?

When I first came to Gather, I asked experienced members how THEY felt about points and got a diversity of opinions. Some hated them, some loved them. Time is money to people and getting some perks mattered to many. In some cases, I read accounts of people who'd gotten their Christmas gifts from Gather. They couldn't manage without that. Some are disabled, unable to work and every bit helps.

I have to ask: How would Gather be financially sound without the point system? Doesn't the site depend on people seeing and reading ads, buying books and other products that are featured and discussed, etc? I'm no business expert but it just seems to me that both go together. I hope someone enlightens me about this.

At the same time, I don't focus on points. Mine build up as they will and I don't watch them with an eagle eye. I come here to play, to write serious as well as humorous articles and to communicate. I've never seen the point system as being lucrative enough to be my motivation for being on Gather.

OK I admit it - I'm addicted to points! BUT...I don't post (any longer, that I know of) to "post anything" types of groups and I only play "games" once n a while. Over the last decade I have written for sites that pay, sites that don't and sites I've paid to post. It is far better to get paid than to pay :)

Gather points are a nice bonus. I'm more interested in reading and skaring stories, poems, etc.

I mean sharing stories, poems, photos, etc. I've met some teriffic people on Gather and that is priceless to me.

I will not be able to make the chat (since I will be at work at that time), but I will drop by to read the transcript. As for the points, I would like to know how they are figured. I am not sure how the point system works. I do like the idea of a reward system and that makes me want to be more active on here. I agree with much of Shannon W's comment above, including the statement about the rating system.

Whenever there is a question regarding points, I always find more people who like the bonus points compare to few who don't. But There is still the same question again & again, somehow. Why?

For me, it's sounds like a question about do you like your credit card to give you cash rewards on purchases? Some people like it some don't for the fear of unneccessary purchase or whatever reason. Will you still use your credit card if there is no reward on it? Maybe yes, but only when the merchant doesn't accept my other credit cards with rewards plan.

I agree with Sue who said that articles like these make her think you are thinking of getting rid of the points.

Frankly I love the points for a few reasons. It gives me a good reason to be here, to spend time here. I am making money to help contribute to our family (which is a one income family as I stay at home with our son) It gives me an incentive to spend more time here and to make my content thoughtful and the best I can provide.

Without the points I would be here far less (there's not any incentive to stay here as often if I'm not making something to help with the house funds)... and I'd have to take the time I was here and seek out other means to make cash.

I would still be here without the points, but I would publish content that was not as high of a quality. Why? Well, due to the recent theft issues we are risking our work by sharing it here. I do share my work out of pride, but that point incentive keeps me sharing it in high-quality photos rather than lower quality photos that I might publish if there was no point incentive.

I don't publish things just for the points and then stare down my points until they rise according to my wishes, but I do what I would normally do daily and I let the points take care of themselves.

I DO think that the site gets a bit muddied by the points in that people post photos off anything just to earn - including light bulbs and garbage bags. (Yes, I have actually seen photos of these items here on Gather) However, by and far I think the points HELP Gather to attract good, thoughtful members that contribute high quality content.

If you remove that, you might as well strip the site of the better content providers. It's not something I think you or I want to see happen.

I would still be on gather a little bit, even without the points, but I wouldn't be on nearly as often. I would have to spend time on another site that pays. I really enjoy staying home with my toddler, and if I didn't bring in income from the things I do online, I would have to go back to work. I really limit the amount of time I spend on websites that don't pay for this very reason.

Points are a very important part of why a lot of people are here. Participation would drop off big time...

Do they inspire you to visit the site more often and make thoughtful contributions or do they degrade the experience by spreading white noise across our community?

I don't visit Gather for the points. I think they're a nice perk. Some people degrade the experience with their behavior for points. The points don't degrade the experience.

Is there a better way for Gather to compensate members?

I've been on sites where I had to pay them to post. So, this question seems silly to me.


If you could recreate the points system, what would you recommend?

I don't know, but I sure wish you guys would get rid of the rating system. It's abused. Those who refuse to turn it off, still complain.

Would you still come to Gather if there were no points? Why or why not?
Yes. I come here to read, debate, discuss, retaliate, aggitate, recreate, and just have a good time with friends.

How do points affect your experience on the site?
Points don't affect my experience on Gather. People do. Points are an added bonus for having an experience on Gather.

Yes the points do inspire me to visit the site more often and contribute to all types of articles,pictures, etc...

Honestly if the point systen were gone I would not be here anywhere near as much as I am. I have made some friendships and enjoy reading peoples content so I would still participate in the site but not as often.

I don't mind how the system is now myself, however it works; so whatever you guys think, ha ha. Yes, I have to admit I like the gift cards....

Tom might need a helmet that day though, ha.

Living on a fixed income the points allow me to have extras in my life that I would not normally be able to afford. I enjoy the points program but i wish we had a larger selection of companies to choose fromwhen we get our cards.

I won't be able to make the discussion, but I would spend less time on gather without the point system. I've never been able to figure out how they work, but it's nice to get a gift card. I feel like gather is sharing its rewards with members, which in turn make the business strong.

I would like to see some bonus points awarded...for example, you might give 15 points extra for somebody making the front page or throw in 100 points extra for someone hosting a chat with an author or singer. those chats do take a lot of time to promote and research.

As a 'foreigner' the points system is useless to me at this time. I hope this proves that I don't come to Gather for the points!

However, I do find it irritating that there is not a level playing field at Gather. This site claims to be global, awards points to everyone, but only Americans living in the US can claim rewards for the points! What on earth is the point of awarding us foreigners points if we cannot turn them into rewards?

I've been a member here for just over a year, and have seen lots and lots of new 'foreign' members. When will we stop being treated as second class members?

I hope someone reminds me!!

Already saw this article earlier but wanted to come back to say thank you to Luna for directing her connections to this article.

Personally I enjoy the compensation and am able to pay bills with the extra money I earn from Gather.

I can't think of any way to recreate the point system, but agree with others that a name should be required with ratings. I seriously dislike the rating system and feel that if people had to own up to the way they rate other people, there would be no more drive by low ratings.

Ishbel, I'd like to know more about any website outside the USA that is giving americans points for gift card or cash.

JP - I am not a member of any other point website other than Gather, so couldn't point you in any direction.

BUT, that was not the point I was TRYING to make: that was,that Gather insists its a GLOBAL site. Until they give all members the same benefits, it is a two-tier system.

Love those points! Don't want to be without them. I'm encouraged to participate more with them. The quality of what I post, including comments, would not change, with or without them, but my time spent here would probably have to lessen. I wish it were easier to qualify for cash, though, and/or there were a wider selection of useful (to me) companies to select gift cards from.

Would like to see our out-of-U.S. members get their rewards though; am wanting Gather to put immediate focus on this issue.

Hi Pam,

aha...points means gift cards and I love to see my points growing and growing fast.It's likesomething turned out beautiful in shape of cards...LOL...I AM SERIOUS for what we work or dedicate our time or display our writings.It's a kind of encouragement .

I feel whatever is already beautiful it should be not touched . It could be improved or more enhanced for making Gather more attractive place.Honestly there are many like me who are not earning but due to your points system , I get many gift cards of borders , Macy's , Home Depot . I don't remember that I have given cash to on any of these three stores from last 9 months..except Macy's is new...

I love to earn and so I give time. I don;t know how much I will be back to Gather without no points system but yeah somewhere with decreased entho.

Everything is ok with Gather except the technica aspect..Gather should keep adding more attraction with the more enhanched points system..

This was my way of feeling Gather...I am all satisfied with Gather...and yes overseas members should be benifited too.

I enjoy the points we get for spending time at Gather. If points were eliminated I would still drop by every now and then, because I have made some excellent friends here, but I'll admit that I would not be here as often. I get on here multiple times daily now. I love getting my gift cards and going and splurging on myself, something I don't get to do much with two children. My gift cards are spent on things I want, generally home-type things from Home Depot, although I do occasionally get a Borders card to get some books, music, or movies. Gather is fun and the gift cards only make it more so, I think. I say keep the points! Please don't get rid of them. And I don't really care to know how and why we get them - ie. what we have to do to get points. If people knew that then they would just do those things and nothing else. It would be like Boomertowne, and I hate that place. The points and gift cards are fun at Gather, but it's actually so much more than that.

I love getting these points and if Gather no longer gives them
out there goes the main reason I am here. Sure I enjoy writing
stories, poems other things of interest. The points are great as
I can use the gift certicates to buy stuff that I couldn't afford to
because of my fixed income. I for one hope that we don't lose
the point system, I'm not sure I would stay hear.

One global thing that's for sure is global warming. Gather probably better of as an american website rather than global site to avoid confusion. Just like American Idol, ppl know that it's american - even if it's still accepting ppl from other countries.

Additionally, I'd like Gather to allow the sharing of points.

I do wish the incentives were a bit higher, and that the quality of the content was a consideration but I don't know how you could do that. I get really tired of hearing about people's personal lives here, but that is because I don't really think of Gather as a social site. I use MySpace for that, but I think both MySpace and Gather have their perks. MySpace really gives a tremendous amount of exposure with freedom of expression in terms of graphics and the ability to really display one's photography (so that matters to me). Gather is better for me in terms of wanting to expand my writing and it is safer to use than MySpace. I think the points system is essential, but I feel as though it sometimes is unfair when some people are trying to contribute quality content to the site and others are contributing about their personal lives and yet we all get the same value in points. Despite that, the fact is, the more you are ON Gather, the more points are accrued, and the more you view and comment the more points you accrue, and the more you extend yourself in terms of your own work, the more exposed you are going to be. I have not left MySpace for good, but I have spent more time on Gather over the last year than ever before. I do regret that the international folks cannot earn points, I appreciate culture and the arts, and I think they have much to add to Gather but don't because they cannot earn the points. I also think earning points is sort of fun, sort of like pinching pennies at the grocery store! And my daughters LOVE the gift cards I give them to go to the book store!

Should be interesting. I like the points, but only because they give the illusion that someone's interested in what I write. They help me feel less guilty about the time I spend on gather.

Interesting. Hopefully I'll be free for that chat...

At least a higher point count for posts, groups, and articles, along with photo's, video's and pings. Working full time and trying to keep up with 3000 a month is impossible most of the time. It leaves me with no time to live, I work and post and I'm just getting too tired to post.

If we didn't get points, I don't think I would come back, I have made friends that I stay in touch with in personal emails but it seems better to connect here and I would miss that if points were gone.

Rating photo's and articles should be a great thing, but when someone posts a #1 and doesn't respond, I think there should be a system that if you post just a #1 rating that it puts your user ID in a comment window with no comment so the person who has spent the time to post the article, or take that photo and download it to share should know who is disrespecting their work and time. Then with that, you get a button where you can block that person from viewing your items.

This should be interesting, but I'm sure I will miss it as I do have to work. Hope these questions or thoughts get to someone with ears.

Thanks and keep the points rolling.

I've nearly always liked the point system in gather. At first I thought I'd never get any points so I'd never be able to get any gift cards and mercenary me was sad about that. Then when I basically tossed aside the idea of points and just did my thing such as posting pictures, a few articles and really reading and joining in with other people's content, then I began to enjoy gather more and saw my points go up too. It was great to get that first gift card, like a major celebration and boy did we need it! I mean my family. I gather because I enjoy it but it is a strong incentive for the points because it helps out my family. We don't have money, we are always broke and gather points earn me gift cards that help take care of family needs and necessities. Once in a while, even family fun and foolishness!

So, if there were no gather points, I could not spend as much time in gather simply because I would be looking on the internet for other websites that would get me some way to help support my family and pay the bills. Right now I don't think of gather as a job, I think of it as a pleasurable past time that just happens to have excellent side benefits. I hope that continues and that gather keeps the point system (forever hopefully!).

I love Gather and lot of the people here. I like having my articles read and reading other peoples work. Iike the images. But I can tell you if you take away points for submissions or however they work. There will be a great exodus to other sites like Mylot, Yuwie, Xomba and other places to write. If I had a good income I would probably not spend as much time here. I am working toward more home depot cards. We cannot afford the material on our income and those cards are going to make a huge difference in getting much needed building done we otherwise could not afford. So If the points go I will be deleting my articles and groups and go to other sites with more rewards and points I can actually use. I may or may not make the chat. Depends on family

I came back to read the comments. I started to write the article today and then got sidetracked at work so I left it open and forgot all about it when I closed all the browsers in one fell swoop. I hadn't saved it as a draft. Oh, well, it wasn't that good anyway. I'll have to rewrite it.

Jonathan, thank you. Now I'm the one who's blushing. That's one of the reasons Gather is different. On a site like MySpace or FaceBook, I don't think we would ever have met, and I greatly value the honor of getting to know you.

I like the point system. I enjoy Gather, so the points are not the top priority for me.

I like the points. I enjoy getting my gardening treats at Home Depot with the money I "earned" from my Gathering.

I will not be able to make the chat but I have posted my opinions below:


I am on the cash option, but I think it is based on the same activities that we do on gather.

Gather Points; do you love 'em or hate 'em? I love them. They have helped to purchase Christmas gifts, pay bills and other things. I feel like I am contributing to the household income and not just wasting time on the Internet.

Do they inspire you to visit the site more often and make thoughtful contributions or do they degrade the experience by spreading white noise across our community? They inspire me to visit & contribute every day. I would still visit but not as much and may even gradually quit all together.

Is there a better way for Gather to compensate members? I agree with Shannon, It would nice to have a point breakdown like some other sites do.
If you could recreate the points system, what would you recommend? I too think that when an article is rated, the persons name and namespace should be posted automatically. It would put a stop to all the bickering over low ratings and give people back their self esteem. I have seen gather members who have been hurt so bad by low ratings that they removed all their family photos.

Would you still come to Gather if there were no points? I would still come on a much less active basis. I have seen a difference in the way people react already. Just from hearing that comments do not count. So many people have quit commenting and I enjoy the interaction with other members. Even if we disagree about something. I value their opinions.


How do points affect your experience on the site? I think that it may give me the incentive that I need to write QUALITY articles instead of Quantity of articles.

Should be an interesting chat. I haven't had much time for Gather lately, but I would still visit the site even if there were no points, but it HAS been nice getting those gift cards!

Not sure if i can make it at that time but I will try.

I will try to be here. I do have some thoughts I'd like to express.

I don't think I can make it. A little thing called work. I am not motivated by the points. I am motivated by content. All I see are jokes and games. I truly like the people who post them, but I would like to see a better security system over points. That's what is important to me. Yes, I have cashed in the points when I needed something at Home Depot and couldn't afford it, but I have let mine sit for months without cashing them in.

I hope I am available for this chat. It should be interesting.

I like the points and think they are a good incentive to make me want to contribute at Gather. I'm not sure how I would restructure them since good content is subjective to the viewer. What some people view as quality or decent may not be what others deem worthy.

Obviously there are reposted news articles and one sentence things that most wouldn't think are quality, but beyond that, how could that type of thing be policed? I personally like the journal type articles many of my connections publish, but other "real writers" don't think this type of content is quality. Plus, there are trolls out there that simply downgrade content because 1. they can and 2. they don't like the person posting. So the rating system is worthless for determining a quality piece as well.

I know I definitely don't like seeing all the royalty free photography getting the same points as original photos, but don't see an easy way to differentiate between the two.

One other thing, Gather has been marketed to different segments of people to create a diverse membership. It's a place for "real writers," people who listen to NPR, people who like to debate politics, people who have a niche and want to share, and a whole lot more.

If the points were taken away, I would contribute far less and come here less often. The points make me want to spend my time here and read other people's content. Without them, I would reduce my connections to about 45 people and only check in with them, spending far less time at Gather.

The point system is great. It's a wonderful incentive to visit the site and read the articles. I hope Gather keeps the points.

I personally do not come here for the points as in the 10 months I have been here I have never even traded them in for a gift card. I do feel that the points system does need to be revamped in that I do not think it fair for "chats" and "games" to be given the same points as someone who has contributed by writing an article of any sort. If the points were taken away, I would still come to Gather as I feel that those who have something to say or write about will stay and write regardless of points.

Thanks for all the thoughtful comments and feedback everyone... this has already proven to be a fascinating and important conversation.

I want to make one thing very clear... this conversation and Tom's upcoming chat is not about Gather eliminating points. We're simply trying to collect your thoughts and ideas on points, what they mean to you, and how they impact your experience on Gather.

Sorry to interrupt... by all means... keep talking!

before we get to far along here, let me publicly say thank you to Tom, and the Gather team.

No matter what the issues are/have been... Gather's compensation system allowed me justify continuing to having high speed access last year while Mom was

going down and kept me in touch with not only the outside world but a community of friends here on Gather that literally saved the days, many days.

So if anybody is really whiny, let 'em come talk to me about what Gather means to some of us.

Thank you Pam ~ I'll be there.

Blessings ~
Rene

Sounds good, I'll try to be there.

I've never even looked to see how many points I have. I come for the company. I do think if the points were taken away some of my favorites would either leave or not be around as much.

The Points are fine it is the flip flopping of the management of the site that keeps us aggravated...


One thing though... if this "discusion" is used as an excuse for Gather to remove the rewards system, while I might not be surprised, I would not be pleased.

As to my first Point, I am thankful to Susan for the Guides Idea and I miss her... to bad other were not as appreciative or supportive of her idea. or should I say letting it be know it was her creation in concept, borrowed and destroyed by the implementors.

sadness is a place that Gather seems to be striving to become.

What I would like is a clear guide for how points are awarded. As far as I can tell, it's all willy-nilly without rhyme nor reason.

Thanks Pam. They can take the points away but they can never take the friendships I have made here on Gather. I would still be here without them. When I started as a BzzAgent I didn't even realize it offered points.
I hope I can make the chat.

Why 1pm? when those of us who work are actually out enhancing the economy. I like to write and share my photography too. That's why I'm here. Any points I earn are simply a welcomed by-product.

But the points system encourages viewership and thus an audience for us writers and photographers.

If the points/borders gift cards go away, I'll hardly be here. I enjoy looking at people's photos and having mine looked at, but I wouldn't spend as much time doing that if there was nothing to be gained.

The borders cards have allowed me to try books I would never spend "real money" on, finish a couple of series of books that I've been reading.

I came to Gather thanks to an essay contest and was quickly hooked. It has been nice seeing the points increase and then sending off for gift cards. Much of my Christmas shopping was done thanks to the gift cards.

I admit to coming on Gather more often if I have a goal. My writing pays off.

What I would like the most is to know clearly how the points are earned. Yes, some people may abuse it but at least the site would have the opportunity to monitor those who abuse the system and ask them to leave if that is the case.

If you could recreate the points system, what would you recommend?

I'll answer this with the same response I gave Kevin (sitewizard), when he asked a similar question in one of his articles. That is, I'm not really not sure "how" to do it, but I wish there was a way to reward "time and energy". In other words, I don't think it's fair that a request to chat, or a game with two lines of explanation to "name an item in your bedroom starting with the letter B", earns the same reward as a brilliant poem, an indepth, or clever article, or a heartfelt story that someone spent weeks writing and editing.

Same with pictures and videos. Why should someone's copy of something they saw on the web get the same points as Jessie's beautiful, carefully shot photography, or George C.'s well-crafted cartoons. Look, I'm not saying I don't like the lighter stuff, because there are times I don't want to read anything too long or heavy. But I also think those types of things should be assessed differently.

I recently published a brief posting with a link to something really touching I saw on U-Tube, and I actually felt kind of guilty for doing so, so I opted not to receive ratings. Afterall, it was not my creation, just something of interest that I saw and wanted to share.

But not everyone will do that. I see articles that are just a cut and paste of a funny joke they got on email, or a game with one line of instruction -- so why do they request ratings? And doesn't that really defeat the whole purpose of ratings? My guess is either that:

a.) They think they'll get more points for an article that's rated
b.) They don't realize you can request to not have ratings, or don't know how to do it ... or
c.) They like seeing "10's", it makes them feel more accomplished

I know there is no way to place a so-called "value" on a piece. But it would be nice if we COULD reward hard work , creativity and ingenuity! Perhaps even a rating system for well crafted comments as well.

Maybe I'm off base here, but it would be interesting to know... DOES the current reward system know and assess differently a posting like a "chat request", versus something which is also short but much more difficult to write, like a haiku poem, or a 50 word story?

Ok - one last suggestion, as I don't like to be a complainer without offering at least one idea, so here goes ...

Since Kevin's article with this question, I have thought that maybe the Gather community could submit nominations privately on a weekly or monthly basis, (i.e. via email for example) for things like "Best Short Story", "Best Haiku", "Best Prose Poem", "Best Entry for a Contest", "Best Recipe", "Best Informative Article", etc. Then the staff could award top selections in each category with "bonus points" ranging from say 100 to 1000 pts.

I say "private" nominations, because I think part of the problem with the current rating system is that there is status and prejudice associated with it because it is immediately public. That's why people get so offended by "drive-by 1's". I think most people realize they will get points for their submission whether rated a 1 or a 10, but who wants to see 1's glaring at them? Which is also why I, as well as many people I know on this site only rate things a 10, or don't rate it all.

Of course there will always be great things overlooked, and popularity contests, but I think it could be a fair way to reward things that make an impact.

Anyway, just an idea ( ;

... Oh, and if you like the suggestion above then please add a category for "Best Suggestion to Improve Gather" and nominate me, LOL!

if there were no points here I would not come anymore. As it is the points hardly move so I've been coming here less and less. I would update the rewards here every few month but keep the borders and macys home depot... Add gap, and H&M ... People should get points for publishing and for for viewing an article not always do people leave comments so that can be annoying .. more contests and people should be a ware of them

your points and the rewards you get with them can mean the difference between eating and not for some of the folks on here. thank you omaha steaks for that.

I love the points! They are a great incentive for me. I love the $50.00 Home Depot cards, Borders cards aren't half bad either! :-).

I won't be here for the chat with Tom.... I'll be at work. Darn!!!!

I agree so much with Bridget I have to quote her
" I hope I'll be here for this, it will be an interesting discussion! I think the points and cash are a huge benefit of Gather members and if they are taken away there will be so many unhappy people and people will leave becasue of it!

Gather is fun but the extra incentive of points is what many members need! So many people use that cash and gift cards to help with things around the house! "

ANd it does scare me too as Sue B said . I probably would still be here but not as often I would focus my energies else where. I have taken to cashing out weekly because one never knows when this incentive will dry up.

Bonnie, I think the more activities Gather has, the more revenue they will get. And they are kind to share some of the revenue to us the users. Now, for me it's not fair that the most active people won't get any but the 'more proffesional' person get them all. For example, I'm not very good in making poem nor in making romatic novel nor in creating horror story. Based on your theory, I should earn nothing and only the winner will get big prizes. No wonder I strongly feel that kind of celebrities mentality as an unfair practice to the all users. For several occasion, it's OK, but not for everytime. You know, sometimes I just feel the need to be relax, playing with my internet friends or just watching them interact with each other. And it's one of Gather's greatness that gives me the freedom to do many kind of things here. If people can respect 'small talk' in their real daily lives, why not respecting 'small articles' too in this virtual community?

I'm so bummed that I'll be out during this chat. :( It seems like it'll be a great one. 1 PM ET is a lousy time to hold a chat, IMO. But that's beside the point.

It's mind-boggling to me to think that some members think that content should be policed by Gather to determine overall quality. Can you imagine how much that would cost? They'd have to hire an entire team to do that, so in the end, members would wind up getting a smaller piece of the pie. My solution? Convince members, once and for all, that posting things received in emails, or those free-for-use photos found all over the internet, etc. is just lame. But I don't think that's going to happen. So for me, I guess the status quo is ok.

But oh... I'd still like for members on the cash option to be able to see dollars AND cents.

And while I'm still here, I'd like there to be SOME controls on the number of 'Point Check'/'Help me get points' articles out there. Those things drive me nuts, and I was under the impression that the latter was against the TOS.

Aha. Might the chat be at 1 because the Red Sox are playing at 3:35 ET? Tsk tsk... there's always the DVR, Tom....

we up yet Pam????

One suggestion I would make re points is give them for articles not comments. To gove out points for games like how many words begin with "A" is rediculous Also I see to many "Thanks for posting to " Fill in the group" I really think that this tpe of posting subverts the system

We all must remember that this whole world is not same everywhere. All people are not same , they dont have the same kind of minds, their tastes and likings are not same....etc... In this world both positive and negative co exists together. If there is only positive in this world then this world will become a "HEAVEN". If there is only negative in this world then this world will become a "HELL". Here we people are in a different kind of world where there are both positive and negative and this world is known as "Earth". This Earth is a place from where positives and negatives are seperated and after separations positives are sent to "Heaven" and negatives to "Hell". In this Earth a lot of chemical reactions take place and due to this many positive turn negative and negatives turn positives and some remain as what they are.
No one can convert this Earth into a Hell or a Heaven but they can try their best to live here with both positives and negatives and turn positive (or remain positive).

Now one thing we have forgetten here is that we all are not perfect, we all have both negative and positive in us. We always tell positives about ourselves and never talk negative about ourselves. When something goes wrong many will blame other people although the mistakes are ours. We are here in this Earth to learn and to learn there must be positive and negative. If there is only one then a person can never learn anything. I will give you an example to prove my point.... if you want to learn and understand what "Love" is then there must be "Hate". If you have never felt or understand what "Hate" is you can never understand the meaning of "Love". Thus to learn "Love" you will also learn "Hate". See both positive and negative is necessary to be present in this Earth in order to help us to understand , learn, and grow.

In this gather many write a lot of different kind of articles & some play games. Some love writing articles and some like playing games. Many do a lot of things here. Some people who loves articles only hate the games the people play here and some who loves games hate some articles the people write here. This happens here in gather and i have seen many complaining this. But those people who are complaining against the games have ever thought about themselves that they also play games or not ? When they think about themselves they will remember their childhood as how much they used to love the games, they use to play a lot of games and till now irrespective of their age everyone loves playing a game. But the main problem is that they find themselves hard to co exists with other types of peoples. They have forgetten that they can never convert this Earth into a Heaven or a Hell. So my advice to these kinds of people is that they can never clean this Earth. The best action they can take is to adapt themselves to their environment in the same way as we have adapated in this Earth with both negative and positive. myspace has a lot of craps in it and no one complains but here in gather which is extremely clean, for a small thing a lots of complains are there. If you stop complaining about silly things then you will feel good and not bad and your energies will not be wasted in complaining. I even think that you can do wonders and change the negative into positive but i am sure that you can never, never , never convert ALL (100%) the negatives into positives. If you can do "just do it" !

About gather points - I am sure that it is here to stay and the points system will improve a lot here. Gather will become global and international members will also be compensated like their USA friends. Why gather awards points ? It just share its revenue with their members who has helped gather grow and its the member's effort that is keeping gather running. So gather belives that their members must be compensated for their efforts. Just imagine that all the members stop using gather then ultimatily the Advertisers will stop supporting gather and this will lead to the closure of gather. What gather is doing is just same as what Warren Buffet has done. Warren Buffet has so much money .... he has billions but that billions has come from the society and He believes that society has enabled him to earn this money
and so he believes that the money should go back to society eventually and theryby he is giving a lot for the society. Warren Buffet knows very properly that he does not need this kind of money to live just a few billions is enough for him. The same always applies to Bill Gates. and now its gather's turn.

After them its gather's turn and gather is doing exactly the same as what they did.
Lets us compare gather with myspace. The owner of myspace earns billions and he earn this kind of money with the help of the society but never share or gives back to them nor share a part of it with them. Do you think that to live in this Earth he need that kind of money -Billions & billions of dollars ? Now if all the members stop using myspace the revenue will stop comming and ultimately myspace will close. But gather is much better ...not better but the best. Its point system is the best. Gather doesnt get billions in revenue, it get a very small amount a few millions which is like a drop of water in an ocean (compared to myspace). Still being so small it do great things for the society. The society helps gather to flourish and gather in turn is helping the society to flourish. As the society is global so all the global members should also be compensated.
Gather still has a long way to go. It is going to stay here with its point system until this universe comes to an end.

Three cheers to Gather !!!

But for the friends on Gather whose comments I appreciate regarding my work, I'm more inclined to post good content to my blog so that I get real money, in euros automatically wired into my French bank account by Google.

If Google can keep track of the attention my work draws, so could Gather and pay accordingly!

well...that was a long and frustrating read.... where did anyone from Gather say they were getting rid of points?

I must have missed that part....

which really annoys me... we WANT them to ask for our input ...and when they do, a fair percentage of us get out knickers in a knot.

I love the points, I love getting the cards for Omaha Steaks
I agree with Brian above, other cards like Walmart, or visa gift cards, just my opinion, thanks for asking.

I get a lot more than points out of Gather but there are many other sites that offer points. I think gather should be considering giving more points rather than reducing them.
Points are just an added extra but I like them. Besides that, no one will be left here if they are taken away.

I agree Flit, there was infact a more clear statement that they are NOT trying to get rid of points. They are asking for our input, not springing up on us in attack.

I like the points and I am looking forward to getting the cash option.

Any of those people who don't like the games with one word answers, (which I suppose are to get points) have they read a newspaper? Th comics rate as highly as the front page. I don't like the games myself and don't play them or publish them. But it's all right with me if they have them. In fact, if I don't like something I don't have to look at it. And that is fine by me.

I don't care if people rate my stuff low. I think, rightly or wrongly, that it doesn't matter what they rate it at, as long as they come to my page.

I don't want to know the algorithym. It's fine like it is. I wouldn't want to change it at all.

Gather isn't in any way like MySpace or any other site. For gather to off to pay me for my content and I can network with other writers, that is special. I really don't want you to change the direction gather is going.

Although, I would like to see foreigners to get the same as we do, if that is at all possible. Maybe as Gather gets bigger it will be able to do that.

I will try to get here for the chat too, but I didn't want to miss the chance to express my opinion.

Oh yes. If the points disappeared would I still come here. Probably not as much. But then again, I really love it here, so maybe I would. Who knows. ;o)

I was invited to Gather thru BzzAgent. It was promoted as a site to meet people, write and earn points/cash. I didn't fully embrace it for a few months - then I was hooked. I love this site, also love the rewards. I pretty much use what I get here and apply it toward my traveling..then coming back here and writing about it!

I hope that the reward system is not going to be removed, I love this site...but I am not sure If I would devote as much time on here. I have a feeling alot of the people I am connected to would also not be on as much.

I do spend more time here because of the points. Since i work full time I can not be here as much as I would like and it is very hard to get enough points for the cash option. I think you should be able to switch to the cash option whenever you reach 3000 posts, whether it takes you one month or 6 months to get there.

I do not have time to read long stories or long articles, so mostly just post and comment on images and sometimes short articles. I think it is great that there are so many different things here for different people. As others have said...if there is something I am not interested in reading or don't have time to read, I can just skip over it and pick out have I do want to see.

I might still come here if we didn't have points, but definitely not as often.