Site Improvements & General FAQs

[Ed Mack]

That would be a good incentive, but someone could just keep posting on their own thread for Brickpoints.

Yes, it seems like we are having problems with "spam posters" here at BrickPicker with people trying to wrack up on BrickPoints. If anyone thinks I am spamming, please tell me through PM'ing or something, because that is not my intention.Don't worry about it.

[Darth_Raichu]

One more idea to add to your pile of plans. How about introducing a like button to the forum post. One "Like" per member per post. The writer of the post can get ONE Brickpoint per "like" The advantage: 1. Eliminate the "thank you" type of posts 2. Reward members with great post. For example Legodog and his post on cleaning old LEGO. I do not have anything to add to that thread but I would like to give him kudos on helpful topic 3. For topics with questions, this makes it easier to find the more useful answers. Most likely, the best answers will have high number of "like"s 4. When the time comes to create a list of useful topics, you can just tally up the number of "like"s. Chances are the topics with high number of "Like"s will have a lot of gems of information in them It can be a new way for Brickppoint harvesting, but at least the post will need to be spectacular to attract high number of "likes"

[Ed Mack]

One more idea to add to your pile of plans. How about introducing a like button to the forum post. One "Like" per member per post. The writer of the post can get ONE Brickpoint per "like"

The advantage:

1. Eliminate the "thank you" type of posts

2. Reward members with great post. For example Legodog and his post on cleaning old LEGO. I do not have anything to add to that thread but I would like to give him kudos on helpful topic

3. For topics with questions, this makes it easier to find the more useful answers. Most likely, the best answers will have high number of "like"s

4. When the time comes to create a list of useful topics, you can just tally up the number of "like"s. Chances are the topics with high number of "Like"s will have a lot of gems of information in them

It can be a new way for Brickppoint harvesting, but at least the post will need to be spectacular to attract high number of "likes"

There are certain limitations in the current forums. We are waiting for an update from the developers who created the template.

[kerrmando]

I think one thing that makes many members look like they are spamming is just an infrequency of logging onto the forums. I know that everytime I log into the forum and am not just messing around with my brickfolio that there are quite a few posts that I want to post on. Usually that means that I'll be posting several things in the matter of a few minutes and then maybe you won't see me for another 24 hours or a day or two (like when my car got stuck in the mud this entire past weekend >.<). When that happens it can totally look like spamming (sorry if people have thought that) but just like Ed and Jeff have real jobs and real lives (thanks for all the work you do on this site) a lot of other forum members have a lot going on. So we might only be able to log in once or twice a day or a week. And thats not a bad thing really! It just makes us look like we are spamming kind of. I'm super excited for the future updates to the site and a lot of us who have done design with websites before know how hard it is to make all this go smoothly. We all appreciate that this site is free and we all really enjoy using it. I think there do need to be some more constructive posts on some topics. I've been bad at posting only a few word responses sometimes! I do very much think that the "like" feature you mentioned before would save unneeded thanks posts though. I also don't fully understand how brickpoints work so I havn't really been optimizing how many of those I receive. (I don't think) Anyways sorry for the poor grammar and run ons.... In conclusion though a lot of us suggest ways we can make this site better, we do definitely understand that it isn't going to happen overnight, and that the site you are offering now (for FREE) is so awesome for us collectors and investors that we are not complaining whatsoever.. Thanks guys.

[Fcbarcelona101]

Seeing the hypothetical contest poll thread got me thinking. What about if in the future after the 1st, hypothetical, contest ends and we see how that actually goes you guys request monetary help from the members of the site? It does not have to be all the time, but say at some point you could open an special contest and base the prize on the amount of money members paid to enter the contest. I am sure some people around here would be more than willing to spend a couple bucks, 5 or so, to enter a contest and if in the end the total amount ends up being 60 for example you could give out a Rancor Pit to the winner, or something a little bit cheaper and keep some to help fund the site's expenses. Don't get me wrong, I don't want the site to turn into a pay per use kind of thing, but I feel that you guys are already spending a lot of time and money keeping it updated and adding more features, so it would be nice if you could at least get some help from the members to fund the prizes for contests. Again, this is your site and you are the ones to decide what fits and what doesn't, I just wanted to present that option.

[TheOrcKing]

I understand perfectly what you are saying, kermando.

For me, the real time that people start spamming is when they post something like 10 replies under the one thread, were done within 5-10 seconds altogether, and barely form a half decent sentence. Posting in a decent amount of time overall under a number of threads is alright. Just try and bring something to the table and have fun with it, that's all anyone can ask for.

[comicblast]

The real time that people start spamming is when they post something like 10 replies under the one thread, were done within 5-10 seconds altogether, and barely form a half decent sentence. Posting in a decent amount of time overall under a number of threads is alright. Just try and bring something to the table and have fun with it, that's all anyone can ask for.

If we ever get a tutorial, this should be in it! I don't recall posts of more than around 4 being done within a couple seconds of each other, and that was kind of bad. Also, some of the time, we get double posts so it appears more than once in a couple seconds. After that, I usually feel like I have to explain, so I do another reply about "Sorry for the double post" or something. Sorry if I was ticking anyone off by doing this...

[Pretzel]

I would think having the upc bar code would be useful.. This is my favorite site but i have to go to another site for this information, which is fine but if it is easy to add then why not. Also i have a post out about case quantity that comes from lego.com... I can not find this information anywhere on the internet... very useful for someone who wants to buy very large amounts at one time.

[Ed Mack]

I would think having the upc bar code would be useful.. This is my favorite site but i have to go to another site for this information, which is fine but if it is easy to add then why not. Also i have a post out about case quantity that comes from lego.com... I can not find this information anywhere on the internet... very useful for someone who wants to buy very large amounts at one time.

A bar code reader is something that will be addressed with our mobile app, which we are looking into. As for case quantities, that is something only LEGO distributors have.

[kerrmando]

Some case quantities I think we can get our hands on? I know I have a lot of sets still sealed in their cases... I know it would be a pain but it might possibly be doable? I don't know how needed it is though. I think other functions could be more viable for the site compared to that one.

[StarPod]

is there any way to see how many members there are on the site? as well as where in the world they are located?

[Blackjack]

is there any way to see how many members there are on the site? as well as where in the world they are located?

We've already tried to get the info out of them. No good.

[Blackjack]

How many people are reading and updating the reviews section?

[TheOrcKing]

How many people are reading and updating the reviews section?

I know I've been reading member reviews here & there. As for updating and/or uploading them, that's Jeff's and Ed's field.

If we ever get a tutorial, this should be in it! I don't recall posts of more than around 4 being done within a couple seconds of each other, and that was kind of bad. Also, some of the time, we get double posts so it appears more than once in a couple seconds. After that, I usually feel like I have to explain, so I do another reply about "Sorry for the double post" or something. Sorry if I was ticking anyone off by doing this...

Well at least it hasn't quite been that bad but awfully close. As for the double post, no one can control how the web reacts. I've had the 'sent message error' or whatever every now and then. If it happens, you can always edit the repeated post and put in a "Delete me" there besides the "I'm sorry" bit.

[Blackjack]

I didn't know if the moderators could read/accept reviews. Thanks.

[comicblast]

How many people are reading and updating the reviews section?

To be honest, I don't read very many reviews. I only read them if I am in dire need of assistance. Not sure how many other members read the reviews, but once we get a substantial number of reviews (around 1,000?), people might read and use the reviews feature a little more.

[stephen_rockefeller]

To be completely honest I stopped reading reviews when people started reviewing sets they do not own. I don't think you can review a set effectively if you don't own it or have not built it. Not a big deal really just my thoughts.

[Jeff Mack]

To be completely honest I stopped reading reviews when people started reviewing sets they do not own. I don't think you can review a set effectively if you don't own it or have not built it. Not a big deal really just my thoughts.

Well you have to look at it this way.

#1 There is no way we can confirm that anyone owns any set and they actually built it

#2 I don't build 90% of my sets I own, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't be able to write an intelligent review about it.

#3 Brickset has 40,000 reviews, there is no guarantee that those are all owned and built by the reviewers, that doesn't make it any less of a resource to get peoples opinions

I do agree that people that own them and build them will know little details about the set that others won't which can make those reviews stand out and that is something we can look to in the future as an idea.

[Ed Mack]

To be completely honest I stopped reading reviews when people started reviewing sets they do not own. I don't think you can review a set effectively if you don't own it or have not built it. Not a big deal really just my thoughts.

For our purposes on this site, an intelligent and experienced LEGO investor can review a set without building it. Remember, the reviews should include an investment angle as a major feature. That is our main goal. I really dont care too much about the build of a set unless it could affect the value of the set in some way. I will clarify exactly what i expect from a review in a future post.

That being said, I will begin to expect more reviews from an investment standpoint. I never built the 10188 Death Star, but i wrote 4 pages on it. Reviews will start to play a more important role on the site and my expectations will increase. Believe me, people will want to produce quality reviews in a week, but let me suggest that any reviews being produced have a section dedicated to the set as an investment option.

[stephen_rockefeller]

Sometimes I let my personal feelings get it in the way. You are correct that some people can write a good review without owning the set. I have seen it done here.

[Grolim]

For our purposes on this site, an intelligent and experienced LEGO investor can review a set without building it. Remember, the reviews should include an investment angle as a major feature. That is our main goal. I really dont care too much about the build of a set unless it could affect the value of the set in some way. I will clarify exactly what i expect from a review in a future post.

That being said, I will begin to expect more reviews from an investment standpoint. I never built the 10188 Death Star, but i wrote 4 pages on it. Reviews will start to play a more important role on the site and my expectations will increase. Believe me, people will want to produce quality reviews in a week, but let me suggest that any reviews being produced have a section dedicated to the set as an investment option.

Sounds good Ed. I too am a little dubious of reviews when the reviewer obviously doesn't own the set let alone not having the experience of building it. For those that don't have either of those experiences there really should be that investment viewpoint coming through strongly. There are some good examples of this in the reviews at present and also some not so good examples where the review seems to just be a description of the set (pieces, price, theme, etc) and abruptly ends at the 1000 character mark. Heck, some sets deserve 2,000-3,000 at least to get across the major points.

I know with my reviews I try to touch on each of the main points that have contributed to giving each section of the scores, with an overall conclusion leading to the investment potential of the set. And I only review sets I have built so far. Not trying to say my reviews are great or superior or anything like that (some reviews that others have written are way better than I could do), but I do think putting in some time and effort into hitting crucial points on the set that other BrickPicker members (i.e.investors) would want to read is very worthwhile.

[Ed Mack]

For our purposes on this site, an intelligent and experienced LEGO investor can review a set without building it. Remember, the reviews should include an investment angle as a major feature. That is our main goal. I really dont care too much about the build of a set unless it could affect the value of the set in some way. I will clarify exactly what i expect from a review in a future post.

That being said, I will begin to expect more reviews from an investment standpoint. I never built the 10188 Death Star, but i wrote 4 pages on it. Reviews will start to play a more important role on the site and my expectations will increase. Believe me, people will want to produce quality reviews in a week, but let me suggest that any reviews being produced have a section dedicated to the set as an investment option.

Sounds good Ed. I too am a little dubious of reviews when the reviewer obviously doesn't own the set let alone not having the experience of building it. For those that don't have either of those experiences there really should be that investment viewpoint coming through strongly. There are some good examples of this in the reviews at present and also some not so good examples where the review seems to just be a description of the set (pieces, price, theme, etc) and abruptly ends at the 1000 character mark. Heck, some sets deserve 2,000-3,000 at least to get across the major points.

I know with my reviews I try to touch on each of the main points that have contributed to giving each section of the scores, with an overall conclusion leading to the investment potential of the set. And I only review sets I have built so far. Not trying to say my reviews are great or superior or anything like that (some reviews that others have written are way better than I could do), but I do think putting in some time and effort into hitting crucial points on the set that other BrickPicker members (i.e.investors) would want to read is very worthwhile.

I've been lenient with reviews, but the bar will be raised here shortly.

[Blackjack]

Snap. Time to get serious.

[justgod]

I am wondering if there is a way to add Amazon.UK to the "Current Offers" page. I have found myself doing a lot more shopping via this website and would love to be able to give BP credit for it!

[Pretzel]

i Would like to see two other stores added to the sales: that would be Shopko and Kmart... It realliy seems I find my best clearance deals thru Shopko.