Just curious to see what everyone thinks about the newly added forums and blogs.

I see that there is a Beta image on the footer of every page. Are there features that are yet to come or is this a way of letting us know that there are a few kinks yet to be worked out?

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What's up my nerds!!!

So I've been perusing the posts and noticed these little pictures under the people's names with a number 1 in them.  Can anyone tell me what that's all about?  Are these like awards or something?  If they are, what did I win and when can I expect my prize? 

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You're so wise, like a miniature Buddha covered in hair.

The numbers in the pictures refer to a user's proficiency level in a particular forum topic.  The more you participate in the community, the more points you rack up.

For more information please refer to these links:

About Member Points - http://www.dealmaven.com/community/languages/en-US/docs/faq.aspx#60

What the Points Mean - http://www.dealmaven.com/community/languages/en-US/docs/faq.aspx#61

How the Points are Awarded - http://www.dealmaven.com/community/languages/en-US/docs/faq.aspx#62

One thing that I wonder about is inflating your score by rating every single post there is....is there any sort of limit or correction for community members who rate every post to raise their score?

Well, there isn't really any sort of limit; however, rating each post only gives you one point/rating.  Therefore, to really do anything substantial by rating others would take a good amount of time, and would probably be better served by just being active in the forum.

On the other hand, if a user abuses the forum by making continual random postings, etc, we are able to deduct points as necessary and/or lock the account.  I'd like to believe that most everyone on the forum is here because they have genuine questions/input, so I don't foresee this being an issue.