Poll: Why do people idolize users with large post counts?

[BloodyThoughts]

HELL! FUCKING! NO!
Someone with a high post count shows veterinary, or it just shows they have nothing to do but post
*COUGH* people who have 11,555 posts and they joined 5 months ago*COUGH*
But that doesn't mean that something good like a PBJ sandwitch is better than normal PB sandwitch. the J in the end of PBJ is just an add on.

for those that don't under stand it means that a post count means nothing, you can be very well known with a 1 post count.

 

[Z of the Na'vi]

I treat everybody the same. I don't "idolize" anybody.

Did you change your name?

Because you joined before Avatar came out.
I'm just curious.

Yes, I used to be known as "Rocketpocket" but I loved the movie so much I changed my username and got a kickass "avatar" to boot. : )

 

[Daniel Cygnus]

Yep. It's a rule of the tubes.

 

[TheHitcher]

I'm pretty sure the post count reason isn't why. My guess is that people with large post counts have probably established themselves here as not only active posters but also interesting individuals with tones to say. Thus, they have a lot of friends who want to hear what they have to say.

If I'm wrong and people really do just love them for a number that appears under their name, which can be reset at any time, then that's pretty sad. :\

 

[Lexodus]

I think it's fear... and a little bit that, if they've been around for this long/had this many posts, they must have something interesting to say. Unless, of course, you're Furburt, who we all laugh at behind his back...

[sub]I'm joking, please don't kill me and steal my liver[/sub]

 

[Samurai Goomba]

People mistakenly equate posting a lot to having some kind of Internet seniority. Therefore, they assume the "veteran" posters are less stupid than the others.

This is absolutely not true, as evidenced by the massive purge that happened in between January and June of last year, where a bunch of old hands and folks with massive post counts got their permabans.

 

[thestickman91]

I've been noticing lately that users with large post counts have a large amount of friends
Also, I want you to tell me why you think people idolize these users.

1) It's probably because they've got more to do with exposure and less with idolization
2) Because I'm envious that i don't have as much spare time as them

 

[Kufaz]

people with a small number of posts are often more selective about what threads they reply to, and therefore more relevant.

 

[Steppin Razor]

I've been noticing lately that users with large post counts have a large amount of friends and people that idolize them, and I was wondering if you people think that users with larger post counts deserve to be treated differantly to other users?

Also, I want you to tell me why you think people idolize these users.

Post Envy. It's a serious disorder where people desire a large post count and the power it represents. They typically see the solution as obtaining the larger post count of another user. In order to do this they begin to identify with them so that they can learn to mimic them, and thus replace them.

Of course it could just be Small Post Syndrome at play. Some posters may feel inadequate with the post count they have and wish that there's was just a bit larger.

In all seriousness though, I have no idea why people idolise others with large post counts. I can understand trusting their opinion more though. I'm more likely to believe someone with 10 million posts and a normal screenname than some random with 3 posts that goes by the name of "Sonysuxz0rz".

 

[EMFCRACKSHOT]

Well, a lot of the people with larger post counts are very amusing/interesting.
But i don't idolise them. They are just people with whom you can have a laugh/intelligent discussion.
And i was going to say something else, something very profound i'm sure but Kingdom of Heaven is distracting me.

Edit: Hmm, it appears i passed 2000. Never even noticed until now XD

 

[irishdelinquent]

As I often say in real life: it's not the mileage, it's the journey. I have been on here for a couple of years now, and yet there are many users with a higher post count who have been on the Escapist a few scant months. Do I feel somehow diminished by this fact? Only slightlyNot at all! I've had a blast on the Escapist, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon. Do I fret that relative newcomers like Furburt have a post count total ten times as large as my own? Nope. I only post if the topic is of interest, if I feel I can contribute somehow, or if I feel the need to defend my views. I am not going to go out of my way to post in every thread just to earn a high inconsequential number of posts, because that's not who I am.

As for idolizing users with large post counts, it's mostly because they are so wide-spread across the community that their names have become commonplace.

Now I'm off to cry about my miniscule post count

 

[Julianking93]

I don't try to idolize them, but I end up wishing I had a post count as high as theirs because I know most people see a high post count and associate it with some sort of greater knowledge. Like Furburt for example.

Plus, we take people with higher posts more seriously than someone with a lower post count.

Not to say we are better, its just that I suppose we've earned the trust and respect around here

 

[Random Argument Man]

Me? I've been here since May 2008 and only a few people knows me. However, back in the day, You were popular depending if you had only epic posts.

You're one of my favourites man.
You have the epic posts.

Do I really have epic posts?

 

[Kollega]

Because losers with no life outside the internet idolize bigger losers with less of a life?

Exactly. Many of the so-called "senior/veteran posters" can go die in a fire for all i care. I value people for welcoming additude, not for having 15000+ troll posts before finally getting a ban they deserve.

 

[Beastialman]

It shows experience and what not.

I don't really care.

 

[Naeo]

People with large posts are basically always established forumgoers who are well-known because they have so many post counts and they've usually been around for a while and thus are usually looked upon as seniors and people respect seniors when they're not douches etc etc blah blah blah.

And people assume "BIG NUMBER, IMPORTANT AND POPULAR PERSON!"

 

[Fingerprint]

Actually I tend to prefere it when someone has been here a while and has a low post count because the way I see it is that if you've been here for a short period of time and have some extrodinary post count then it's unlikely that each post you've added to the thread is worthwhile.

And as far as "idolizing" users here goes I wouldn't say that I do "idolize" anyone. There are some whose opinion I value more than others, for instance if they have proven to me that (even if I don't reply to it, which, for me, is more common that quoting) they can not only type out a post which is more than half a dozen words (let alone lines) but also put a valid argument about what they feel, then even if I don't agree with it I will tend to stop skimming through the thread and actually take the time to read it. Now the thing is that often it takes time to be noticed enough in what you post, so in actuality more often that not, those whose opinions I value are gonzos but at the same time there are a few users who have low post counts and can still put forward a good point.

So as for your poll, no, a higher post count doesn't make them more important, it does get them noticed, but even if they are noticed by newer (and older) members it doesn't mean they should be "idolized" but I guess some still are. Personally I feel that the site shouldn't be reduced to one big popularity contest.

 

[blue heartless]

There's a post counter? And below:

Someone with a large number of posts...is well known because of all the comments he/she has made. While yes, people can be idolized...it's because people are just more well known because they post so often, so naturally people will remember the name or avatar.