On the eve of 1888 thanks, I wanted to resurrect this thread.
I really believe in the "Thanks" system here and on other forums (known as Reputation, Karma, etc).
I really do think it fosters contribution and community by thanking posters for humor, insight, information and even just mentioning their name (qwerchete!!!).
I do like to thank new members often because they bring a different viewpoint to the forum and I want to encourage them to continue posting.
Not everyone uses the Thanks the same but here are my guidelines:
1. Helpful: If someone posts a review of a vendor, information about contractors, dining reviews, model home tours, open house tours... stuff that I'm interested in, I will usually Thank them.
2. Funny: Yeah, I'm a sucker for humor. If something makes me laugh, even if it's a good insult of me, I'll Thank that.
3. Discussion: I will Thank people who provide more evidence to back posts I make, but I will even Thank people who are on the other side and provide a good basis for their point of view especially if I'm proved wrong (which has happened many times). As long as it doesn't devolve into irrational behavior, I like a good discussion. And yes, I have been known to be snarky and Thank snarky comments, so there should be some thick skin warnings abound.
4. Random: This should probably be called the Qwerchete Thanks. These are usually inside jokes or something that is just so off the wall, it needs a Thank. While superfluous in value, it's just one of those "Hehe... I see what you did there" kind of acknowledgements.
Anyways, feel free to use Thanks often and always when you see something funny, helpful, insightful or even random... that's what I do.
