FTN Gets Rid of Ratios.

[V For Vendetta]

in My opinion its not a good step

[Brandon]

Are Corey and myself the only sensible ones here?

Ratios are a GOOD thing.

All those old torrents, great packs, etc. that FTN is known for are going to disappear. With no need to seed and no ratio to keep up, why would users keep old torrents alive by seeding them for long periods? Simple, they won't.

Must not be very sensible if you still don't understand YOU cannot see your ratio. I can. Staff can. Users who aren't using the site, or who are totally abusing it, etc.. Will be removed. Removing the ratio simply removes the fear and gives the atmosphere a more calming sensation. For example, say Bob has a .4 ratio.. We don't expect everyone to have an amazing ratio. But bob is obviously going to be fearful of losing his account and stop using the site. Just because you have no ratio does not mean that you can abuse the site. Upload amounts are still visible and plenty of incentive to seed as well as user classes. This has just been announced what.. a few hours ago? I can assure you, there will be benefits of being a good overall user. It's just like a new product coming out, for example the new ipods. There are always a few bugs in the beginning that people are too impatient to wait out for and bitch about before the product can be fully rolled out.

Let me clarify that one more time. Ratio's hurt a site with a small amount of users because of the low leecher counts as well as overseeders. Ratio on a small site is extremely hard to maintain causing the site to cripple.

Torrents are not meant to be archives. FTN IS A 0DAY SITE. Read that carefully. We're not trying to destroy the torrent competition by being an all in one solution because any sane person would know that isn't possible nor logical. Our goal is to get things up and out as fast as possible and make it as easy and pain free for users to get their goodies. If you want retention, get newsgroups/usenet. Simple as that. If you're itching to grab the new Gilmore Girls episode that just came out (Chalisto) a few seconds ago and want to be able to get it without crying about your ratio, then omg FTN is perfect for you

The answer to that is posted on ftn.

Where?

There is a thread in the general forum regarding this change. Read my posts and 90% of your questions should be answered.

[fibonachi]

well done FTN...greatly appreciated.

[Skiz]

Must not be very sensible if you still don't understand YOU cannot see your ratio. I can. Staff can. Users who aren't using the site, or who are totally abusing it, etc.. Will be removed. Removing the ratio simply removes the fear and gives the atmosphere a more calming sensation. For example, say Bob has a .4 ratio.. We don't expect everyone to have an amazing ratio. But bob is obviously going to be fearful of losing his account and stop using the site. Just because you have no ratio does not mean that you can abuse the site. Upload amounts are still visible and plenty of incentive to seed as well as user classes.

Nothing to do with being sensible. The total amount downloaded does matter, and ratios are still present, they simply cannot be viewed by the user or the public. Got it.

Presenting that information as, "we don't sell ratios, we see no use for it and removed it from the site. This means every torrent is a freebie: total download amount is not important anymore." is inaccurate. In fact, it's downright false.

As for longer retention and utilizing Usenet, thanks, I do. 90% of everything I download is via Usenet/Giganews. Take a looksy at my FTN account and you'll notice only about 5GB of data has ever been downloaded. I only use torrents when I want something I can't find via newsgroups.

Usenet, FTW!

[Brandon]

Must not be very sensible if you still don't understand YOU cannot see your ratio. I can. Staff can. Users who aren't using the site, or who are totally abusing it, etc.. Will be removed. Removing the ratio simply removes the fear and gives the atmosphere a more calming sensation. For example, say Bob has a .4 ratio.. We don't expect everyone to have an amazing ratio. But bob is obviously going to be fearful of losing his account and stop using the site. Just because you have no ratio does not mean that you can abuse the site. Upload amounts are still visible and plenty of incentive to seed as well as user classes.

Nothing to do with being sensible. The total amount downloaded does matter, and ratios are still present, they simply cannot be viewed by the user or the public. Got it.

Presenting that information as, "we don't sell ratios, we see no use for it and removed it from the site. This means every torrent is a freebie: total download amount is not important anymore." is inaccurate. In fact, it's downright false.

As for longer retention and utilizing Usenet, thanks, I do. 90% of everything I download is via Usenet/Giganews. Take a looksy at my FTN account and you'll notice only about 5GB of data has ever been downloaded. I only use torrents when I want something I can't find via newsgroups.

Usenet, FTW!

How is it false? Look for yourself.. We did remove the ratio. I'm a coder, I can see every chunk of data you send to the tracker so of course I could see your ratio if I really wanted to.. You're totally missing the big picture and main point of all of this. You have no experience with my job so I can't expect you to understand how everything works. Although, looking at my post and looking at your reply.. I don't understand how you didn't fill in the blanks.

[Skiz]

Well then why not actually explain it?

You make it sound as if you have merely un-ticked a box and disabled users' ability to see their ratios for the sake of "a more calming sensation." That's a fair assumption given the statement, "YOU cannot see your ratio. I can. Staff can."

I can't fill in the blanks when you're being obtuse.

FTN is a large community, which in and of itself creates difficulties in the administration of something like ratios, and yet, thanks to your efforts, enjoys good reputation and is regarded favorably by most (if not all) who participate.

Keeping it that way is important. A better explanation is all that's needed.

On reflection, a statement such as "This means every torrent is a freebie: total download amount is not important anymore." is just dangerous without a proper explanation. That simple posting could go largely misinterpreted, but at the same time, some method might be employed to fertilize the idea of "community" a little more firmly in those who frequent the site.

[rvt]

Usenet FTW!





We have never been even the slightest bit strict about ratios on revolt, but we still allow users to see them. What we have always expected is that people make an effort to seed back. Plenty of our power users have a 0.1 or less ratio.

Dropping any importance given to ratios and placing more importance on seed times are not mutually exclusive.
If you drop the importance of ratios and don't look at things such as seed times, you may as well issue $15/mo subscriptions and run your site as a "leech only" service such as usenet.

"total download amount is not important anymore" is not misleading. How much you download is no longer important, as long as you don't hit and run. It's just as possible to hit and run on a 10MB file as it is on a 5GB file.

[fstrulz]

I bet Skizo is drunk.

[Skiz]

As opposed to....

[r77]

Usenet, FTW!

i bet Skizo is right