I'm going to break down what's wrong with the section, what I'm suggesting, why what I'm suggesting could be beneficial, and then maybe why other things that have been suggested aren't a better alternative, then I'm editing back into my original post.
Things wrong with the "Finished Tracks" and "WIPs" sections:- More people posting tracks for feedback than people posting feedback
- Therefore, many posts with very little if any responses
- People posting tracks for review without contributing anywhere else in the forum (post count <10)
- Some feedback that people leave isn't exactly relevant to the needs of the person posting (e.g. getting feedback for mixing when you're really looking for advice on your sound design or composition)
- Some feedback isn't of very good quality (e.g. "sick track! I love that snare at 0:30!"), often because other people don't know exactly what to listen for or what to leave feedback on
What I'm suggesting- People post feedback to at least 2 tracks before posting their own
- People link to said feedback on their own tracks
- On their post, people specify what they would like to receive feedback on
- The stickies on the "Finished Tracks" and "WIPs" sections be updated with these rules.
- No one leave feedback to those who don't follow the rules, and maybe report them to the mods so their posts get deleted
Why this could work:- Would greatly reduce spam
- Would increase amount of feedback
- Could potentially increase quality of feedback
We've already established that there are more people posting music than feedback. We've also established that some people leave crappy feedback. If there are two feedback posts for every song post, then we'd have double the amount feedback than tracks in the section. That's a good thing.
Also, if people are required to leave feedback before asking for feedback, then we'd get way less one-timers who come to the forum to post their track and then leave. They don't contribute anything, and I think it's fair they don't receive feedback.
Now, a person posting a track could just leave shitty feedback on two tracks or not all and just claim they did, but the fact that they're required to link back to this feedback in a way prevents this. I think it makes sense to think that if you're going to ask for reviews and show the reviews you've left, you'd want to be linking to the kind of reviews you'd want to be getting. Kinda like how presenting your resume for getting a good job doesn't require you showing just that you
have done something, but that you did that something and you did it
well. It's not something I can say for certain, but I think it's a fair assumption.
Another issue is not knowing what to leave feedback on. There are so many qualities of a track to comment on, leaving feedback might be discouraging because of this. Having the person posting a track specify what they want to receive feedback on makes it a lot easier to leave good feedback. If a person wants feedback on their sound design and says so, then you know what to look out for. This doesn't necessarily mean that you could only leave feedback on their sound design, any feedback helps. It's just a whole lot easier to leave good feedback when you know what to look for.
Some other things that have come up:
Point SystemsI maintain that point systems are a bad idea. If something is automated it can be easily abused. For example, if we need 3 points to post a track of our own and get a point for every feedback post we make on that section, then we could easily rack up as many points as we want by leaving a bunch of "sick drop bro" types of feedback, that don't really contribute anything. Like I said before, having to link back to the feedback you left may encourage better feedback.
Also, I think that if we want to encourage the idea of community and mutual helpfulness that this forum was based on, then we should rely more on the community to uphold its values rather some fancy coding, no? That's why I'm trying my best to base to this suggestion around everyone helping each other and not a cold, automated system that can be easily abused.
But I don't know a whole lot about music or its technicalities, how can I leave good feedback?I mentioned before that you don't have to stick to what the person is asking for when leaving feedback (though it helps). I've also said that:
In the last track I posted I asked the forum to get feedback on my sound design and arrangement, as well as how the track made them feel. If you don't have whole lot of experience with music, then at the very least you're a human with emotions. Emotional feedback is probably just as important as any technical feedback. As long as you're sincere and openly show that you're trying to give quality feedback, I don't think there should be a problem.
Hopefully I've explained myself thoroughly enough. I acknowledge that this system isn't perfect,
but so far it's the best I've seen. I encourage criticism, but if you're going to say that something's bad, don't just leave it at that. Provide an alternative and explain why it's better. You're not contributing by just saying "oh that wouldn't work" and leaving it at that.
Here's an example of what an ideal post would look like.Thanks
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