tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post8339698752937087123..comments2024-03-18T06:12:16.922-05:00Comments on Stomping on Yeti: A New Rating SystemUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post-43664777576282117152012-03-21T20:34:32.096-05:002012-03-21T20:34:32.096-05:00I think this change is a great idea. I've thou...I think this change is a great idea. I've thought much the same for quite a while and debated on a rating system like adding some descriptive to my rating like "epic fantasy" or "urban fantasy," etc. But I think yours is better. And I love Hell's Kitchen. Just saying.Bryce L.https://www.blogger.com/profile/13951278240008332023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post-78955207250000030792012-03-21T05:53:17.440-05:002012-03-21T05:53:17.440-05:00Yup, I like that idea - often people end up effect...Yup, I like that idea - often people end up effectively panning a novel because it's simply not for them. This way if it's not starred it's not (necessarily) you saying it's rubbish, just that it didn't go to the top of the pile for you. Think it'd be a good idea to mention any stars at the top, but if you don't give it one, just don't put anything and let people draw their own conclusions from the review itself or move on as they wish.Tom Lloydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08624959298168468476noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post-68341676780328894682012-03-21T05:39:05.360-05:002012-03-21T05:39:05.360-05:00@Joshua: I actually appreciate it when a reviewer ...@Joshua: I actually appreciate it when a reviewer places the star-rating (or whatever system she uses, I really don't care) at the top of the review, because I can decide whether or not to read the whole review right then and there. Some reviewers have tastes so similar to mine that, if they didn't like a book and award it something like 2 out of 5 stars, I can make my mind on whether I should read the book or not immediately. I know the website owner put effort into writing a complete review, and I enjoy it when people read my own reviews. However, I don't read reviews for the sake of reading reviews, I read reviews in order to find out about good books, and for readers such as myself the star rating is useful, especially if I'm already familiar with the reviewer's tastes.Victor Stanciuhttp://walkintomordor.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post-76526624196323443322012-03-21T03:51:07.594-05:002012-03-21T03:51:07.594-05:00To me, the review rating, whether five ten or howe...To me, the review rating, whether five ten or however many stars, is more of an afterthought. I could easily read a review without a rating and still be satisfied with the reviewers input. In a sense, the rating system provides a closing summary that, although true, is incomplete without the writers opinion.Joshuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15950771305417475237noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post-6079828778868286402012-03-21T01:32:29.151-05:002012-03-21T01:32:29.151-05:00You've switched from one flawed system to one ...You've switched from one flawed system to one with even less granularity to differentiate between books (and I'm talking about books from the same genre). The point of a scale, be it numeric or otherwise, is to give the readers a sense of difference between books. Lets say you've rated two books with one star. Ok, so both of them are "a great example of their subgenre", but which one is better? If I haven't read any of the two, I don't know with which to start. Keep in mind that I'm not saying that the 5-star, 10-star and whatever-star systems don't have the same problem, it's just that it's a lot easier to differentiate books when your scale has a higher granularity.<br /><br />The fact is, you are going to get range compression with any system you choose, simply because it's impossible to represent, through a single numeric value, the plethora of differences between books. It could probably work when comparing two books from the same genre (as you've observed too), but it's impossible to apply on an entire library.<br /><br />I've been interested in this subject for a very long time. There is an excellent discussion over at Quora that I recommend you read: http://www.quora.com/Is-there-a-better-alternative-to-the-5-star-rating-system, and I've also found this article on the subject interesting too: http://blog.steepster.com/post/226679106/better-rating-system.<br /><br />There are alternatives to the 5-star system. Better systems, that even out the distribution of values over time. Unfortunately, the 5-star system is so common, even if you implement a better one, you will still have to explain it to your readers, thereby losing all the advantages of the "visual review".Victor Stanciuhttp://walkintomordor.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post-48247398005628517372012-03-20T21:48:54.397-05:002012-03-20T21:48:54.397-05:00@Justin - I think I'm still ahead of you in qu...@Justin - I think I'm still ahead of you in quality reviews though ;PPatrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05546050685623369173noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2478941067348817827.post-62815280043835968902012-03-20T21:38:28.276-05:002012-03-20T21:38:28.276-05:00This is where I tease you about how many reviews y...This is where I tease you about how many reviews you've written this year ;) I like the system, very elegant.Justinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18030992882575439420noreply@blogger.com