Are Pro Badges on profile images optional?
(Sorry if I've usurped the First Post with something that is not of concern to anybody else.)
The only reason that I haven't whipped out my PayPal account and "turned pro" yet is that I'd feel unconfortable with the "Pro" badge on my profile image (or avatar, or whatever one calls it).
Please note that I don't feel that this applies to anyone but me, but having the "pro" badge on my image would make me feel as if I were sort of lording it over all the non-pro members, kind of an "I put my money where my 1's & 0's are, and you didn't, so nyah-nyah-na-nyah-nyah..." thing.
Again, this is not how I feel about others who already have "Pro" badges on their images (in fact, I think Kiteman's badge makes him look extra-cute :), just how I - me, myself, Gorfram - would feel about having it on my - mine, my own, Gorfram's - image. And I fully expect that I am the only person anywhere who feels this way.
But would it maybe be possible to become a sort of "stealth Pro" and not have the badge on my image?
Thanks.
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I think a Pro badge demonstrates our commitment to the instructables community and shows that we lead by example.
What I'd like to see is an 'ADMIN' badge that tells me who the real players are...
What I'd like to see is an 'ADMIN' badge that tells me who the real players are...
Aug 25, 2009. 9:37 PMJamesRPatrick
says:
"having the "pro" badge on my image would make me feel as if I were sort of lording it over all the non-pro members, kind of an "I put my money where my 1's & 0's are, and you didn't, so nyah-nyah-na-nyah-nyah..." thing. Again, this is not how I feel about others who already have "Pro" badges on their images" -That's how I feel about so called "PRO" users.
All of them? Based on what? Kinda tarring a lot of people with the same brush, aren't you?
Aug 25, 2009. 10:43 PMJamesRPatrick
says:
Generally. Not every single PRO user, but definitely the majority.
Do you know how many pros there actually are, and how many people you are blindly insulting just because you want to keep on getting something for nothing?
Aug 26, 2009. 5:29 PMJamesRPatrick
says:
Of course I do. But it's not about free features anymore. It's about making other people feel inferior.
Gee and I thought it was about keeping the instructables site up and running.
I think there might just be a wee bit of projection going on...
I think there might just be a wee bit of projection going on...
So, you are quite happy to assume the core personality traits of hundreds, possibly thousands of people, simply because you don't like the tone of a couple of comments by a couple of people?
Tell me, have you ever used the phrase "I don't like {insert group here}, they're all..."?
Tell me, have you ever used the phrase "I don't like {insert group here}, they're all..."?
Aug 27, 2009. 10:20 AMJamesRPatrick
says:
You're right. I don't like {PRO users}, they all make me feel bad.
James doesn't like me because of an objectively neutral attribute of mine that he ascribes negative connotations to. :( Well, I'm off to go sob into pillow until I fall asleep...
Feb 1, 2010. 12:26 PMDoctor What
says:
I'll be here to comfort you.
*cuddles till she goes to bed*
*cuddles till she goes to bed*
Feb 2, 2010. 7:36 AMDoctor What
says:
*cries after he realized that he read a 6 month old conversation and commented on it before he realized how old it was*
Feb 2, 2010. 10:14 PMDoctor What
says:
*starts tickling you to prevent you from crying, but is still crying*
Feb 2, 2010. 10:16 PMDoctor What
says:
Read the posts above, specifically, the one directly above the one you replied to.
Reeding is phun.
Reeding is phun.
Argghh!!! All my PRO-badge-displaying insecurity and angst come home to roost!
(Note to the Admins: I told you so!)
Gorfram, who (despite Instructables not being legally definable as a charity) really wishes that your left hand were not so broadly informed as to what my right hand is doing.
(Note to the Admins: I told you so!)
Gorfram, who (despite Instructables not being legally definable as a charity) really wishes that your left hand were not so broadly informed as to what my right hand is doing.
I really do agree with Ms Gorfram, being a South African - suffering somewhat from white guilt, I am slightly skittish around segregation issues.
How about the little banner saying "Site Supporter" nothing more.
I will be getting the subscription, but I am concerned about some steps not being open to the public. When I stumbled upon Instructables while looking for more info on wind chargers to supplement my own one, I would have left straight away if content had to be paid for. While $2.95 is only slightly more than 1 Big Mac (bM) it is almost double when being paid for in Rands. I've seen questions posted by people from otherendoftheworldSTAN and they certainly will not be able to pay for it.
My final question - which I think I'll post under questions as well is, will the community allow me to go Pro if my screen name is "state in pain" ?
How about the little banner saying "Site Supporter" nothing more.
I will be getting the subscription, but I am concerned about some steps not being open to the public. When I stumbled upon Instructables while looking for more info on wind chargers to supplement my own one, I would have left straight away if content had to be paid for. While $2.95 is only slightly more than 1 Big Mac (bM) it is almost double when being paid for in Rands. I've seen questions posted by people from otherendoftheworldSTAN and they certainly will not be able to pay for it.
My final question - which I think I'll post under questions as well is, will the community allow me to go Pro if my screen name is "state in pain" ?
Thanks for agreeing with my point of view: you are obviously very intelligent. ;) I understand that the Admins are now looking into allowing erstwhile "Pro" members to chose from a small selection of terms and/or badges. "Site Supporter" itself may not be one of them, as "athletic supporter" is one of the euphemisms commonly used in the US for a men's athletic protector (I think the euphemism most widely used in current & former Commonwealth countries is "box" or "Cricket box") (darned funny sort of place to keep a cricket, if you ask me). Anyway, you can see the potential problem... As for the screen name, you can probably have anything you want as long as it isn't patently offensive or rankly obscene. "State In Pain" might not serve your purpose, though, as it doesn't bring to my mind a troubled nation so much as a rebelliously nihilistic punk/goth type of teenager. I might suggest something more uniquely connected with South Africa, along the lines of (but probably much better than) "Cry The Recovered Country," "Johannesburg Reeling" or "Autumnbok."
Sep 13, 2009. 4:19 AMAmmoniaBinge
says:
I'm new here but,my left hand does know what my right hand is doing and he's not sure he likes it...hehehe no really how do I change my screen name to something else?
Aaah... the supporter thing passed me by, you are clearly much sharper than me ;) because you are quite correct in that a cricket box was a matter of life and death and I think I spent many lonely seconds hiding behind, one on the wrong side of the wickets.
But no I was being facetious - the 'state in Pain' was actually a dig at the 'PRO' and not the country. The 'Cry the recovered country' is good though. Just to show that great minds think alike, yes I have applied for a name change to 'Karroo Oakey' but no feed back yet. The star rigel is sort of above my house.
PKM says:
The placement of the pro badge did make me think of a few puns in that vein, but that one escaped me. It's an even better thing no American law enforcement officers registered under "state trooper" :)
But no I was being facetious - the 'state in Pain' was actually a dig at the 'PRO' and not the country. The 'Cry the recovered country' is good though. Just to show that great minds think alike, yes I have applied for a name change to 'Karroo Oakey' but no feed back yet. The star rigel is sort of above my house.
PKM says:
The placement of the pro badge did make me think of a few puns in that vein, but that one escaped me. It's an even better thing no American law enforcement officers registered under "state trooper" :)
Oh, like, total stark raving DUH! I missed that completely. :( (Thus proving that my superior saliency, as well as my tendency towards prompt replies, is intermittent at best.) Makes me wonder if Creativeman has gone PRO yet... The star Rigel is sort of above my house, too: I hadn't realized that Seattle was so close to South Africa.
They won't care about the username. But I think all things are under review... L
Thanks Lemonie for all the times that you have answered questions etc. much appreciated. Forgive the poor joke - I don't actually want to be the but of the PRO joke ...... Ahhh there I go again, can't help it - I just watched "Achmed the Dead Terrorist" on YouTube.
I like the PRO label myself. I can't see the difference in whether if it is a gold star, it says Pro, or if it say anything else. It is just a representation of the fact that you like the site enough and all that goes with it and you don't want it to go away so you paid some coin to keep it going.
I think it becomes a liability where as suggested before that a better term than "PRO" should have been used. I freely dispense ~~advice~~ ideas without the fear of it being cast as professional or fully knowledgeable, I know enough to be dangerous. New members seeking ideas would expect a level or quality of answer on a professional level where that may not be the case and being the first encounter may actually tarnish the reputation of such established makers. I am on the fence hoping not to be labelled. A gold star or something abstract would suffice.
Jun 12, 2009. 3:49 PMn8man
says:
I wouldn't go with gold stars, on many sites that makes people think modship, think a little more abstract.
Jun 12, 2009. 9:53 PMn8man
says:
It needs to be orange, maybe an orange, a play on the phrase "a good apple"
Or a peach. I could enjoy being "a real peach." :)
. I hadn't thought about that. Having "PRO" next to one's name/avatar could very easily be mistaken for an accreditation that doesn't really exist.
If you have a persistent cough and a fever develops, please get it checked out. H1N1 floating about, you know. The new button for "send this person a patch" shows up on everyone's profile-orangeboard. It is not activated unless you are a "PRO" member. You create a graphic or choose from a default list of icons and can "send" this digital patch to another member which will display on their orangeboard, the YOU page. Previously, you got a digital patch or badge when you won a contest. Here "PRO" members can start up their own contest and award the patch or just give it out like a buddy icon.
Well I don't have a cough but I haven't been to school in two days because of a cold and slight disorientation. Thank you for the detailed description, when mum gets home I'm going to see if I can go "pro". Oh and thank you for the concern on the cough.
We're working on some different icons for you to choose from. I don't have a time frame for deployment, though.
The rough plan is to give you a couple of different icons as options, including the current "pro" icon. What is this site about if not confusion over what various icons and buttons mean?!
Hi, Eric. Bumping your third-level comment after seven months :-) Has the idea of either optional or variable "pro" labels been shelved?
The "PRO" bit embedded on top of some user's avatars were done by them personally, and have nothing to do with the actual new Pro Accounts which you can purchase to help support the site. Those users have decided to protest against the new revenue stream by falsely labelling themselves as apparently (but not actually) supporting I'bles. If you actually pay for a Pro Account, the "badge" appears next to your username in postings. Your avatar and other images are not affected.
Er, Kelsey, one of us is mistaken: either you about the places and method by which Pro badges appear, or me about most of what I thought I knew about Kiteman.
I didn't know about that. Until this morning, I had only seen the "pro" tag attached to forum comments.
By the way, the tag is also overlaid on the icon picture for instructables created by Pro Account holders.
By the way, the tag is also overlaid on the icon picture for instructables created by Pro Account holders.
I noticed that on the instructables. I very much dislike that.
The pro badge appears on our You page images, but not on our avatars as they appear next to posts.
You are both, therefore, both correct and incorrect, depending on the context.
There's a certain poetry to that.
You are both, therefore, both correct and incorrect, depending on the context.
There's a certain poetry to that.
While not participating in it myself, I don't think it's entirely fair to describe the fake pro badge movement in that way. Some of the users have told me it's a protest against the term "pro" itself - that they consider all makers to be "pro" in a sense, and that money doesn't make you a pro.
I think it's a kind of advertising movement in a way, just by seeing people with a little tiny badge, I just want to sign up right now. Another question about the latest updates though, what is it to "send someone a patch"?
When you sign up for "pro", you are given the ability to send patches to people, like the patches you win in contests, but for whatever reason you like. You can send them for fun, out of respect, or as prizes in unofficial contests. Have a look at my profile (click on my name), and you will see that I have been sent one by Eric.
The badge is on your name, rather than your avatar. Some sort of a bullet-point or some-such.
It's on one's name in comments, but it's on one's avatar on your profile page and in the "Author" box on the right side of one's Instructables (that's how I can see it making you look extra-cute :).
And Caitlinsdad and NachoMahma! (Wow - is this big enough to be a Movement yet? :) I like the idea of a gold star or something similarly subtle. In fact, I'd love the little red flower that Robot is holding in one of the available t-shirt designs - sweet, simple, and symbolic of thanks. :) That would seem to contradict the reasoning I stated earlier, but it think a lot of my problem with the present "Pro" badge is that it strikes me as, well, really kind of brash. "Pro" also has mercenary implications that tend to stick in my craw. Stars are nice, and flowers are pretty. it may be a bit much to ask for, in addition to all the glory and expense of the Instructables site itself, for less than 6-1/2 cents per day; but I'd like to ask for it anyway.
Thanks, Lemonie & Bumpus. I feel a lot less strange & lonely now. :)
. I like the idea very much! I was going to wait about a week for everything to calm down before bringing it up, but, now that you have, I'll chime in and say I'd prefer not to have the Pro badge also. And, as I've mentioned before, I don't like the term Pro, either. . I don't mind supporting the site, but I realize that there are many who can't afford to. I'm no better than they are just because I had a few extra bucks in my pocket. I'd be happy with a small Supporting Member "award" on my profile page (or nothing at all).
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