http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=562226


in reply to Re^2: Well, *Is* Perl Dying?
in thread Well, *Is* Perl Dying?

To a certain extent, that's a valid concern: there are certain things you Simply Don't Say at PerlMonks (if you value your XP much). One is that Perl is dying. Another is that guns aren't evil incarnate. Yet another is that the XP system is sometimes self-defeating, in terms of its supposed goals. I've experienced first-hand the bizarre, spiteful, underhanded negative rep stalking that can occur here from time to time — in fact, I've experienced it twice. It doesn't stop me from proudly sticking my name on any controversial opinion I share here, but it does give comments such as yours (dismissing rep abuse as though it were the subject of nothing more than a paranoid fantasy) some interesting perspective.

Victim complex? Hardly. Whether or not that anonymonk cares too much about XP is certainly a little more worth examining, though.

print substr("Just another Perl hacker", 0, -2);
- apotheon
CopyWrite Chad Perrin

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Re^4: Well, *Is* Perl Dying?
by spiritway (Vicar) on Jul 19, 2006 at 13:48 UTC

    You make some good points about XP abuse. Ignoring my own nodes (all of which are perfectly reasonable and enlightening, of course), I've seen some folks get bashed severely for saying things that really didn't deserve it. Certain topics are simply tabu. You mention them at your peril. This is why I keep saying that a node's reputation is based on its popularity, which isn't necessarily the same as whether it's informative, on-topic, well-written, well-reasoned, presented respectfully, and so on.

    To the credit of the Monks, however, I see a whole lot more fairness and reasonableness here, than I see in what I laughingly refer to as "real life". I guess I get downvoted more often in "real life" than I do here...

      From what I've seen, it seems that PerlMonks tends to be more extreme in its tendency (in the aggregate) to punish heresy, but there are fewer positions considered heretical, than Real Life. In other words, the average Monk is less likely to get excoriated for an opinion than the average Human in Real Life, but when it does happen it tends to be far harsher and far less tolerant. I actually started getting private messages from people who have, by making the mistake of supporting a particular PerlMonks-taboo position, been driven to simply shut the hell up and no longer contribute to discussion here — and, of course, I got those messages while I was in the process of getting raked over the coals for supporting that very same position in a recent discussion.

      I have pretty thick skin, though, so I'm unlikely to shut up any time soon.

      print substr("Just another Perl hacker", 0, -2);
      - apotheon
      CopyWrite Chad Perrin

        I have never understood the fascination with XP systems. When I moded a gaming company site, people would go beserk over it if they thought there was a secret room. Post for post count sake.

        Why are people concerned about XP? I doubt the chicks would find me hotter if I told them I am almost ready to be promoted to vicar! :)

        There are taboos. No argument there. Randall can post just about anything and he will get many votes. But hey. Why take offense to it? It means nothing in the scheme of things. What was that saying? "Opinions are like assholes; everybody has one!"

Re^4: Well, *Is* Perl Dying?
by ptum (Priest) on Jul 20, 2006 at 04:57 UTC

    Lumping the heretical topics you mention all together: "My XP was self-defeated by a kindly (but dying) Perl gun."

    I must admit to some morbid curiosity as to whether this shotgun reputation test will make it to Worst Nodes. More likely this node will pass unnoticed, since I'm joining this discussion so late in the game.

    Yes, I'm one of those people who just cannot resist pushing big red buttons with "Do not push" signs hanging above them. One of my favorite movie scenes is when Tom Hanks opens the 'main valve' in his office in Joe versus the Volcano.

    It's a gift ... and a curse.


    No good deed goes unpunished. -- (attributed to) Oscar Wilde

      You'd probably have more "luck" getting negative votes for saying something like this:

      "The XP system is obviously broken, and should be altered to discourage XP abuse. For instance, I've received a lot of negative votes for nothing more deserving of negative rep than pointing out the blatant fallacies in someone's argument in favor of gun control, and in another case for defending a statement by the guy who says Perl is dying."

      It's sort of a crap-shoot whether I'll get any negative rep for this one, though, especially since the existence of this post is specifically for the purpose of discussing the likelihood of getting negative XP (it's kind of a wildcard situation). The fact that the above-quoted two sentences are entirely true and accurate (with the exception that my opinion of the XP system isn't quite that harsh) might help, though.

      print substr("Just another Perl hacker", 0, -2);
      - apotheon
      CopyWrite Chad Perrin