This is why something like this has no value.
3 Likes
The idea for why this should exist has value. Perhaps not in the current iteration as many don’t see this as a good implementation but the logic for why this can be a good idea still stands.
Of course, different people think differently.
2 Likes
Maybe but thats for a future date. All we have is the current iteration. Which nobody seems to be defending.
1 Like
This is a beyond useless feature that should not exist.
15 Likes
I completely disagree that it is useless considering that other platforms cough am I even trying to get a Guinness record for mentioning the game multiple times in a single day? Probably, anyways have done it right
I completely agree in its current form it is useless and why I personally think my suggestion even if inspired by existing system should be taken seriously
Hopefully, these experts, if they are around, participate more often, as otherwise, in their absence, we’ll end up assuming LARPers are experts.
As for Investigative Journalists, I’m not as optimistic, as some times they tend to gun for sensationalism. And I don’t buy justification from content creator types (who also look to emulate the said sensationalism) that Journalists have it all sorted.
Also:
3 Likes
How else are you going to know that a given user thinks that they’re a gigachad advanced user and not some newbie? /s
1 Like
I thought the forum was hacked and it was the start of an elaborate phishing scheme when I saw it tbh. I thus labelled myself advanced to strike fear into the heart of my potential adversary.
1 Like
That is the only possible outcome from this. That people who are deeply misinformed go around labelling themselves as advanced, while the only somewhat knowledgeable people will label themselves as anything but.
4 Likes
Very much so.
1 Like
This is the hardest I’ve laughed all week
Who says privacy can’t be fun??
2 Likes
Seeing @xe3 typing, I can only hope for the most balanced of a comment they always have.
1 Like
Let them cook as the Gen Z, A and stuff like that say
1 Like
They’ve been cooking for 30 minutes now (still typing as I write this) so you know it’ll be a banger.
1 Like
I’m not opposed to the concept in theory, I can see the value in the idea, but as currently implemented (only 3 ‘levels’ and self-volunteered/self-proclaimed) I think it won’t really provide much useful accurate information.
I foresee very few people apart from total beginners wanting to self-identify as ‘beginner’ which will inflate the ‘intermediate’ category, which will push people who really don’t come close to qualifying as ‘advanced’ (IMO) choosing that label to differentiate themselves from the masses. IMO, probably only a small handful of people on this forum realistically qualify as ‘advanced’ and I would certainly not include myself in that category.
In my experience with the Linux community and other technical communities, some of the people most confident in their opinions and most likely to over-estimate their competence and knowledge are typically people who have just graduated from the beginner/newbie phase and have some real knowledge but not yet enough knowledge to be aware of how little we still know, and how much there still is to learn.
I’m already seeing people that (I personally) would consider to be between ‘beginner’ or ‘intermediate’ self-identifying as ‘advanced’. Maybe my interpretation of these labels is just skewed and wrong, but that vagueness and subjectiveness seems like a problem in and of itself.
I think for this metric to have significance, it’d need some sort of external (not solely self-volunteered) mechanism or be measured relative to some criteria. Or at least move away from language that implies voice of authority when it’s just a self-selected label. The one place that I think it will have value is with the people who do choose to self identify as beginners (except @ignoramous 
). In those cases the designation would be a helpful hint to respond in a more beginner-oriented way.
I didn’t follow the conversation that led to this feature, so it’s entirely possible I’m missing the intent and meaning of these labels or making some wrong assumptions about their significance.
@anon39279085 briefly, what would you say the goal of this system is, what are the experience levels meant to signify?
@everyone how would you subjectively characterize the ‘intermediate’ and ‘advanced’ categories
14 Likes
I personally find it hard to even characterize this subjectively. Even if i am confident in my experience level on one topic, it would be hard to evaluate that for all topics discussed on the fourm and then distill it down to one of three labels.
6 Likes
They’ve been cooking for 30 minutes now
My cooking mostly involves, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th guessing myself, obsessing over word choice and tone, deleting half of what I wrote and still ending up with a wall of text 
I probably shouldn’t be allowed in the kitchen 
7 Likes
I got caught off by this too. I see no merit in this kind of self-disclosure of experience level nor in a reputation system. On one topic, an “expert” may provide really good input, on another topic, the “expert” may have no idea what they are talking about. I think it is better that people evaluate and respond in appropriate ways based from the topic at hand and the contents of people’s posts, not from any self-disclosed experience levels or earned medals.
Visible experience levels may breed a social hierarchy, and reputation systems may cause participants to aim to climb the “reputation ladder” (game the system) instead of contributing organically, both which are counterproductive and unhealthy.
Affiliations with relevant projects/companies (or with this forum) is the one exception I see has merit.
5 Likes
TBH I think it is kind of overlapped with trust level, also some badges like Privacy Wizard, Privacy Genius, Solution Institution.
Certainly there will be many cases where a “beginner” level users solved 150 beginner level questions, or an “advanced” level user that never “solved” a question, it is still a more transparent and objective measure to “categorize” users.
3 Likes
Sounds like the Moodle courses could be useful for at least the more basic and intermediate knowledge areas (as long as people don’t cheat).
@jonah Is it possible to lock “experience levels” behind completed courses?
Those are rookie numbers, you gotta pump those up!
1 Like