A flag we need, missing in …
Admins, can you please add a DOWN Thumb.
Just a comment
TT
I did write several times, if it was there in the initial installation I would have removed it. I can not remember if it was there initially.
I think upvoting is nice, but downvoting is an aggression. If a user takes the time to write something in the forum, imo they can expect that someone else also takes the time to explain in more than 20 characters, why they do not like it. That’s fair.
If you do not like it and you do not want to respond to a post or thread – Ignore it.
So from my side the answer is: No. … I think it is unnecessarly aggressive … and way to easy to use, without articulating a reason.
We do have the 
face, which expresses your emotions. That needs to do.
Just my thoughts
Mario
5 Likes
Yes.
No. Totally wrong. Why?
- When an UPvote is made it is often not often after deep discussion, it is often just a quick impression
- DOWN votes are no different
Background: YouTube has Thumb Voting. On any video you only ever see numbers of "up". They hide "down" numbers (a plugin let's you see them).
That is completely distorting that forum.
The balance between Up & Down votes really matters.
Here too.
ONLY favouring positives is a distortion.
Balance matters.
Otherwise why do it at all?
Thumbs up and thumbs down is “your” judgment about “my” post. I appreciate, is you give me a “heart” symbol or thumbs up, because I definitely know what I got it for. The text that I wrote in my post.
I take it personally if you give me a thumbs down, without an explanation. How should I know, what to change based on your negative feelings, if you do not tell me, what’s wrong.
If you do tell me in a post what’s wrong, then the thumbs down symbol is not needed. The text does it.
There is a reason, why I never created an account at stackoverflow or many other discussion groups. For my taste they are overly aggressive.
I did like TW GoogleGroup and do like the this group, because new users can ask “the same questions” over and over again, without any response like: RTFM or "Search the group, this question has been answered already. (Without a link)
Thumbs down is in the same category for me personally.
I will not change my mind about that one. We can agree to disagree, but that’s it.
7 Likes
Sure. I (really) like you anyway.
And you do the work here. I don’t.
You, I think, are missing something.
It is just a system.
I doubt your care (I was struck by your bio. points!) addresses the O/P.
Nevermind.
TT.
Makes me wonder if we should have a definitions post about what each icon generally means, excuding one off unqiue usecases.
also, I sort of get both points of view here. and, kind of wish we had a +1 moreso than just a thumbs up, a lilttle like reddit, but thats my opinion. objectively, the thumbs up is more than enough.
1 Like
That is an interesting point.
It raises the issue of what the flags are for? here.
In a Binary Context, like The YouTube, there are only Thumbs Up or Down.
And “Downs” are currently hidden.
Here is more complex. But, essentially, the aggregate flag numbers may matter?
This are all the “fast” icons we can add at the moment.
The heart symbol is the only one, which counts towards trust-level requirements.
So the 
is the only valuable one for discourse internally. It can not be deleted.
Any other symbol only expresses your personal emotions.
Initially the number of possible “fast” icons has been much less. I think initially there where only the first 2 rows. IMO having too many of them makes the popup crowded, hard to use and less valuable.
Over time there has been some discussions about new icons. Especially, for birthdays or other important events, like publishing new plugins or showcasing new editons. So basically row 3 and 4 where added, to allow celebrations and awards.
I think most of the icons are self explanatory
- The heart and
can be seen as a “like”. Technically only counts
- Rocket
may be vague, but I’ve seen it used if something new starts, or if users like to test something - Eyes
… I personally use this one as a confirmation: I’ve seen it - Boom
… For me is either a “fire cracker” … or an expression for: “I am astonished” (In German we say: “Na boom”) … Much more astonished than “open mouth” 
-
… Was added to give someone 100 points, for something special. IMO it is similar to the 
- White Checkmark
can be used as: done or OK – As far as I can remember, I did add it to fill the 4th row in a meaningful way.
Hope that helps
-m
2 Likes
So it’s thumbs down for the thumbs down!
1 Like
That deserves a Thumbs Up!
(p.s. did I get a hidden thumbs down?)
I concur. We don’t want to create a toxic, unfriendly atmosphere.
4 Likes
That’s the problems with icons. I took it to mean, “I’m watching this for further developments.”
2 Likes
Something like that could / should be added to the intro to the forum.
Interesting. Many Anglo cultures would see those as Googly Eyes or “wide eyes” (=either of astonishment or nervous trepidation).
It’s a Rabbit Hole deep-diving such emojis et al.
I use when the provided solution is so perfect it could take us to the stars.
I thought meant the message “said it all”, and I would use it like 
(straight to the point) but with an added conclusive meaning (game over).
Looks like there’s a great cultural part in the interpretation of those icons, I hope I never misused them up to the point of hurting someone’s feelings here.
Fred
2 Likes
My understanding is that thumbs-up used to mean something profane in some cultures. I haven’t heard that in awhile, so maybe those cultures adjusted their interpretation to match the larger audience.
Yes. In actual posting I’d use it for a vigorous innovation.
The recent Resizer is science. (Rocket Science}
Yes. In parts of Southern Italy it would not be wise to gesture it unless you were intimate already.
What happened to the Flat Hand. Neither this nor that…
for @tw-FRed — which I use (and generally take) to mean “I agree with 100% of what you said.” For me, this has some overlap with , which is “This post deserves an award,” but to me, has a stronger implication of agreement.
I didn’t have any particular associations with prior to seeing it on Talk TW, but based on the way I see it used here, I’ve come to interpret it the way Fred does, possibly with an added shade of “You’re unstoppable!”
I see where you’re coming from, but personally (as an American predominantly familiar with the English-speaking internet) I’d say tends to mean “watching this keenly” — perhaps nervously or even judgmentally, but often just with interest or anticipation. And when I see it here, I (like @Mark_S) take it to mean “I’m watching this for further developments”. would be the “astonishment” emoji for me… and in my experience, most people wouldn’t use for astonishment when is readily available.
And to the original topic of the thread, I really appreciate @pmario’s stance on discouraging forum negativity. I won’t say that I’ve never seen a message that might have briefly tempted me to use 
if it were readily available (and yes, TT, your OP comes to mind!) but I like to think I wouldn’t have done it: it smacks of unconstructive criticism, and that would feel inappropriate and disrespectful to the community culture Talk TW has fostered. This is by far the most mature, respectful internet forum I’ve ever encountered, and I think it would be a shame to erode that.
On the other hand, the broader discussion of emoji usage is fascinating and seems to be illuminating for all, so thank you for facilitating that!
You mean the symbol used by police to indicate, “Halt! Stop moving!” ?
Maybe the beauty of icons is that none of use know what they actually mean, allowing us to talk past each other. I still don’t know if “clapping hands” is sincere or ironic.
1 Like