Rank: ? (4545)
Member #: 51

Just to clarify the points system to anyone who might get confused:

a) each day you gain points from any posts or comments you have made to free2code
b) each day you lose the points you gained 31 days ago, since community rating points from posts or comments only last for 30 days

If you don't post for a couple of days but you had been posting quite a bit a month ago, then you will see your points sliding. Mine have been sliding as I've settled into a more moderate posting pattern.

You might notice that Jester stays firm on about 1300 points, despite posting fairly infrequently. That's because most of his points come from tutorials which have permanent points that never go away. Jester's PHP tutorials are the backbone of free2code and a main reason why visitors come to this site, so it makes sense that Jester is permanently high up on the board.

New members see only the increase in points since they haven't been around long enough to start losing points after the 30 days are elapsed. That's why we've seen a series of new members climbing up the board and then later settling down. There was roddefig and Patriot and Attila and now we have misterhaan doing the honours!

The members we value most in the end are the solid stayers, of course. Some highly valued members are not even on the board. One example is lyrker who has little time to spare with a baby and young child to attend to. However, when she does find time, she contributes quality stuff.

The board is nice and does give people an incentive to post, I guess. But you should also take it with a good grain of salt, as they say.