I know it was you John!  

You still hanging around down at The Computer Place? 

Lol.. nice to see someone.. got it.

ANY User ranking/level is not exempt.

Remember...

The INTENT of User ratings is to assist in the General Population's/visitors' capacity to have skins graded for professional/expert/experienced comparison.

To be guided by other users' CONSIDERED opinion/s regarding the QUALITY of the skins/works.

In other words...if a person visiting Wincustomize sees a skin with 5 stars he/she can be reasonably confident that it is a GOOD skin via the consensus of our experienced opinions.

Same applies to a one star -rated skin - that it really could be 'better' than it is.

If it were up to me [and it just might be] I would see the resulting 'demotions' graded...ie.  the bigger you are the harder you fall...and that would mean....no matter what level you had attained...a drive-by would see you reduced to 'citizen'.

I assume, if you'd consider that action, that you can tell, without reasonable doubt, when a drive by is being done? For sure, no mistakes?

I hope I'm not showing my ignorance by asking that....lol.    

And, having said that, what about those who rate high because they are friends, not really based on the work done? I mean, you know it happens.

To me, it's the same thing as the topic here, only reversed. 

THAT'S a Faguzi.

I think it's a lot easier to spot the drive-by's, especially multiples by one person on one particular person. After that, whattaya gonna do...accuse someone of supporting a skinner?...accuse 'em of being 'freinds'?

Then we're not skinners anymore. Then it's like,  "This is a friend of mine." That means you're a 'skinner'. Now if I said instead, this is a friend of ours that would mean you a made guy or a Master skinner. A Capiche?

I had once complained about it to Sir WOM a couple of years ago ... coz it was frequently happening with my uploads and the matter was resolved ... and recently noticed it with one of my dream uploads again ... though I really thank the mods ... they've taken care of it

Yes, I can tell.  Been doing this since 2001.....13 years to practise ...

I agree an exaggerated rating in either direction is doing no good for any skinner or user, not just the low side of rating.

That said, I know I have gotten the friend rating before and probably will again, just what friends do, as is what a non friend does with low. , deliberate ratings.  I cry foul on me, I am guilty of both, so sorry, don,t demote me, I just went up!

I will be nicer.

-This thread will hopefully make all of us better community members trying to rate fair in the future or choose not to rate at all if we feel the skinner is "too close to home" to give a "bad" rating, etc.

Not a question of friendship or not.

A REAL friend will tell you what he/she sees both good and bad. Also, will help you hide the body.

Watch me someone hide my body, if you do not want to end up like me! (Be Right)

Oh no, you aren't gonna turn me in are you Andy?

With that said, I agree with you ID, We are a community of adults (well some of us) who share a common bond-skinning, it is with that bond that we can/should be fair in critiquing ones work, and from the critiguing ( be it star ratings, downloads, or comments)we can grow from than to be a better skinner, and person, except Andy ... just kidding Andy, you've been a real help in getting me back into skinning WBs, I'd been away from it for a long time, and frankly lost confidence, but you pulled me through, and now I'm enjoying it again, and that's what I mean by the community helping one another instead of trying to hurt another by doing drive by ratings, so ID my hat off to you!

Bleumart's hat's off to everyone!  His head too....lol..     

if a single one-star rating has such an effect, the overall number of ratings on such a submission must be VERY low, what makes the the whole system worthless. maybe ratings should only show after a significant amount of ratings has been given.

i'd probably give the majority of the Deskscapes section a one-star rating as well, the of original content there is marginal. but don't worry, i neither care enough, nor do i even know if Wincustomize actually works with my browser in this regard.

don5318

reply 35

except Andy

-You got the startmenu fix in the mail 

I suspected as much when I saw the lovely 'Electric Blue' at 1 1/2 stars the day after upload... ridiculous... even after fiving to combat it, it only came up to 2 1/2 so I reckon the 'downrater' is doing it soon after they are uploaded as the first rating seems to set the pace until there are quite a number of added ratings to equalise it...

someone needs to get a life if they have that much time to devote to downing others...