Which - to me - is a good thing.

Do not know what downvotes are.

// image title: a lemmy post which shows a multiple of comments in regards to its upvotes/downvotes

  • Andrew@piefed.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    88
    ·
    26 days ago

    Yeah, it’s the strange thing about engaging post titles - people seem to be so busy answering them, they ‘forget’ to also upvote them. In contrast, a meme that’s funny but about which there’s not much to say, is more likely to get an upvote as some kind of compensation for the lack of discussion.

    • cron@feddit.org
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      39
      ·
      26 days ago

      If a post is interesting enough to write a comment, it also deserves an upvote.

    • Oisteink@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      7
      ·
      26 days ago

      Its a silly system that only worked on reddit for a short while. If you are old enough you’d know that already from slaahdot karma development/history

      • mad_asshatter@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        8
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        26 days ago

        /. 's moderation is the closest any moderation will get to ‘adequate at best’, but vastly imperfect.

        Natalie Portman’s grits approve this message.

    • pooberbee (any)@lemmy.ml
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      4
      ·
      26 days ago

      My expectation is that a post’s score is upvotes minus downvotes, but I think it should be more like upvotes plus comments with downvotes excluded (or maybe let users filter based on upvote/downvote ratio or something). Maybe count commenters instead of comments.

  • alcoholicorn@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    38
    arrow-down
    4
    ·
    edit-2
    26 days ago

    Downvotes without any response: This is unpopular with this community, but probably correct.

    Downvotes with responses: This was either contentious or wrong.

    1 upvote, 0 downvotes, 10+ responses: You posted something really dumb, and Hexbear found out.

      • halvar@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        edit-2
        25 days ago

        For me it was having the audacity to state Holodomor was real, while denying it is actually a crime in my county. Looking it up it actually isn’t, but it’s widely accepted to have happened and is taught in history lessons.

      • Vilian@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        7
        arrow-down
        7
        ·
        edit-2
        25 days ago

        You posted something really dumb criticizing china.

  • solrize@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    21
    ·
    26 days ago

    I turned off vote display and rarely miss seeing the votes. See also Facebook Demetricator.

    • GroundedGator@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      ·
      24 days ago

      100% agree.

      I configure my editor to use 3 space characters per tab. I’ve worked with people who prefer tabs represented as 2 or 8 or just about any number. But I can look at the same code as them worth my preferred look.

      Also works best for line length restrictions. A tab is a single character and always is.

  • halvar@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    15
    ·
    25 days ago

    For me it’s categorizing radical ideologies correctly. I just hate people throwing around buzzwords, calling anyone a communist/fascist they disagree with. Those words have meanings. You can actually be worse then the fascists and still not be one, it’s not impossible. You can still be hated for that, but you didn’t automatically become one, because you are right-wing and coincidentally an asshole. But the moment someome calls you a fascist, while you’re just an asshole, their opinon automatically becomes invalid and wrong.

  • Hal-5700X@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    4
    arrow-down
    16
    ·
    25 days ago

    Why not just deactivate all votes. Seeing having voting makes Lemmy more like Reddit. Also deactivate all votes will help to have more discussions. Due to users can’t just downvote you and call it a day. They have to tell you why and how you’re wrong.

  • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    7
    arrow-down
    50
    ·
    26 days ago

    Semi-tangential. Every time I get downvoted, I move an inch closer to the exit door of this community.

    I’m talking about comments rather than posts, of course. And it should go without saying that the comments in question do not contain factual errors or even rudeness. Just pure opinion, expressed civilly.

    Downvoting is, almost always, poisonous behavior in an online community. It is just as poisonous as saying “Shut up” to someone in a real-life social situation.

    IMO the corporate social networks get this fact better than the literalist geeky types and other well-meaning idealists to be found in this forum.

    • FrostyTrichs@walledgarden.xyz
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      15
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      25 days ago

      There’s always the option to join an instance with downvoting disabled or to turn off the vote tallies yourself in your account settings.

      • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        4
        ·
        25 days ago

        the option to join an instance with downvoting disabled

        Having trouble wrapping my mind around this. The post is on Site A. My comment is on Site B. The evil downvoter sees it on Site C. Um - what happens next?

        turn off the vote tallies yourself in your account settings

        Already did that, the exact number is a waste of screen space.

        I don’t deny that voting is helpful when it’s used to rate the quality of the contribution - i.e. whether or not it adds values, makes you think. But to vote based on how much you subjectively agree or disagree is completely useless, it’s all about the person voting and nothing about the comment. It adds literally nothing and when it’s a downvote it stifles and poisons the atmosphere too. Anyway, I’ve made my point.

        • FrostyTrichs@walledgarden.xyz
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          6
          ·
          25 days ago

          Having trouble wrapping my mind around this. The post is on Site A. My comment is on Site B. The evil downvoter sees it on Site C. Um - what happens next?

          You don’t ever know that evildoer downvoted, because vote totals never drop below 1 (technically 0 but assume OP doesn’t undo the default vote or you downvote). Other instances can still see the vote totals. You can still easily tell popular things from unpopular things but without the downvoters affecting the way YOU see the content.

          It does a lot of things but one example would be if someone were to downvote something out of spite with all their alt accounts. Depending on sorting and whatnot you or someone else may not see that content on an instance with downvoting enabled because it usually gets pushed down or collapsed. Without downvoting that content will instead show as something with few upvotes and more or less be blended normally with the rest of the comments.

          • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            3
            ·
            25 days ago

            Without downvoting that content will instead show as something with few upvotes and more or less be blended normally with the rest of the comments.

            To confirm: an unpopular comment posted on downvoting-enabled Site A will show higher when viewed on downvoting-disabled Site B? Or only if it was actually posted on Site B?

            • FrostyTrichs@walledgarden.xyz
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              4
              ·
              edit-2
              25 days ago

              an unpopular comment posted on downvoting-enabled Site A will show higher when viewed on downvoting-disabled Site B

              More or less yes, depending on how you have your sorting set and if the comment/post has any positive interactions. At worst it just shows as something with a single upvote and is sorted based on time or however it fits inline with other content with similar vote numbers. Since it’s removing the outliers you see a better overall picture of what’s being said IMO. It’s up to you to decide if that’s positive, negative, or even something you care about.

              Or only if it was actually posted on Site B?

              It affects how people on instances with downvotes disabled see it no matter where it was posted from. Basically the downvotes simply do not exist to instances that have them disabled.

    • mark@programming.dev
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      12
      ·
      26 days ago

      Every time I get downvoted, I move an inch closer to the exit door of this community.

      By community, do you mean just this particular Lemmy community or the community on Lemmy collectively? If the latter, there are other alternative Lemmy communities on other instances that may be better suited for you.

      Just would hate to see someone leave Lemmy over toxic energy in one place. There’s a big world here in fediverse!

    • desktop_user@lemmy.blahaj.zone
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      10
      ·
      26 days ago

      It is still important to be able to disagree publicly with people who’s opinions are just wrong, such as those saying something is trash because it is old, or not answering the asked question but instead answering some useless hypothetical about “safety”.

      • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        4
        arrow-down
        5
        ·
        26 days ago

        By community, do you mean just this particular Lemmy community or the community on Lemmy collectively? If the latter, there are other alternative Lemmy communities on other instances that may be better suited for you.

        You mean “the former”. But this is a counter-argument that dares not speak its name. My proposition is that all online communities suffer when opinions are downvoted (which is how the downvote button is overwhelmingly used), not just this community. Just as all dinner parties suffer when someone points their finger at someone else and says, “Shut up, you’re wrong”.

          • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            5
            ·
            26 days ago

            This is to explicitly invalidate other people’s opinions. We are talking about points of view expressing civilly, not about irrelevancy.

        • intensely_human@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          25 days ago

          Would a dinner party suffer if it had 10,000 people at the table and instead of saying “shut up” people could just turn the volume knob down on someone else a little, but nobody’s voice would get silenced unless more people turned the knob down on them than up?

          What if the dinner party were open invitation?

          Downvotes fold comments and sort them last. It’s signal inhibition.

          • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            25 days ago

            but nobody’s voice would get silenced unless more people turned the knob down on them than up?

            So, a popularity contest of opinions where unpopular views do get silenced.

            The signal can be inhibited in exactly the same way by just not upvoting what you don’t want to see. Yes, it’s not as powerful as downvoting but then at least you’re not telling someone to sit down and shut up.

            For me, that is the real issue. Why are so many people so keen to hide opinions that they don’t like? Again: we are talking about viewpoints expressed in a thoughtful manner. Not irrelevancy, not insults, not incoherent rambling. They’re all fair game.

            Personally I find it disturbing that so many people are happy to invalidate and silence others. I don’t agree with you but you made your point well and it would never cross my mind to downvote you for making it.

    • corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      4
      ·
      25 days ago

      I heard downvotes expressed a consensus that a comment or post does not hold value in the context of that community. It’s not “shut up” but more “well that’s not relevant”.

      • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        edit-2
        25 days ago

        Unsure if you’re even being serious here. The relevancy of the subject matter is not in question. The issue at hand is that people are downvoting opinions. Forgive my directness but if an opinion does not hold value in the context of the community, that seems to me just a waffly way of saying that the opinion is not welcome in the community without actually saying it.

      • lemmyingly@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        24 days ago

        Unfortunately people don’t see voting systems as a method to highlight the relavency of a contribution. They see it as a like/dislike system, and so I see as shut up signal used by most because downvoting a contribution buries it to the bottom where few people will see it.

        If it was used for relevancy and quaility then communities would be self regulating by the users. I believe Reddit’s guidelines state(s/d) it’s voting system was meant to be for relevancy, even though most people use it as a like/dislike system.

    • Fleur__@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      5
      arrow-down
      8
      ·
      26 days ago

      Yeah I’m always confused by the people who are like the downvote button is for off topic discussions. Like no that’s reporting and functionally the downvote button is the “I had a negative reaction to this button” and the up vote is the “I had a positive reaction to this button”

      Personally I don’t downvote anyone because it just feels petty and pointless. Some of my favorite comments have loads of downvotes and to me it just makes whatever dumb shit I said funnier

      • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        26 days ago

        functionally the downvote button is the “I had a negative reaction to this button” and the up vote is the “I had a positive reaction to this button”

        Exactly this.

        Some of my favorite comments have loads of downvotes and to me it just makes whatever dumb shit I said funnier

        If you’re talking about your comments, and you laugh at others who downvote them, then well done. But I submit that most humans are not so thick-skinned.

        There’s also the question of visibility: downvoting a comment is not just saying “You’re wrong”, it’s making the comment less visible to others. A form of censorship, basically. I personally find it extremely annoying and unfair when it happens.

        Perhaps it also has to do with how much time and thought you put into the offending comment.

        • Fleur__@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          25 days ago

          Man you can’t be spending more than 30 seconds on a comment. If its taking longer to write out just delete it and move on. If you’ve really got something to say in longer than 30 seconds make a post about it

    • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      arrow-down
      14
      ·
      26 days ago

      Obviously my argument is being confirmed by the response to this comment. Seriously guys - I would bet that you’re all guys - you’ll regret it when you’re left with nobody to talk to but other cynics and nihilists and mindless jokers.

      • Makeshift@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        14
        ·
        25 days ago

        I gave you some from a girl to help balance things out!

        But I can promise you, from many years net positive on reddit and a not disimilar result here, that you’re not reading your own tone.

        Be mindful of the tone, only come off as combative against a near universally disliked topic, and know when you don’t care to curate yourself and are ready for the downvotes.

        Your wording here makes you out to be combative, and people are combative in response. Read your own comments as if they’re directed AT you. And look specifically at what’s likely to make you want to argue back. You may even be surprised at what can get net positive response with the right wording.

        • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          25 days ago

          This is an excellent point, very perceptive and well expressed, and the first time somebody has actually said it. I know it already and I do try to do as you suggest. The problem is that I have a bit of a combative personality so it’s a real struggle, especially when I feel I’m choosing my words very intentionally so that nothing is literally insulting or wrong or falsifiable. A combative lawyer basically, what could possibly go wrong? I often wish I could be more emollient and compromising in my attitude to others, I really do admire it when I see it in others. But alas personality is something very hard to change. So yeah, thanks for the insightful and constructive feedback. And take an upvote to add to your overflowing and deserved collection.

      • Harvey656@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        25 days ago

        The irony of yout cynical attitude and your totally blind to it is interesting, to say the least.

      • intensely_human@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        25 days ago

        And people like me who don’t go away just because they get downvoted.

        You can go find your community of all positive interactions, and well keep our positive/negative mix.