The rating system
I'm not sure what the point of your post is. The point of the rating system is to inform you that people didn't appreciate your post. The reaction we are hoping for is not to attempt to justify your post, but instead to reflect on why they might dislike it and to draw on that learning when you make your next post. Let's say the thread was started now, what might your reply be like (if any)?
It doesn't really matter if everyone misinterpreted your attempt to help, what matters is that you can try and be clearer the next time you wish to post.
I should probably note, GDNet+ can view negative ratings and who rated them down.
We should probably remove the ability for GDNet+ users to see who downvoted their own posts, to discourage this behaviour.
I have given a few "revenge" ratings because I felt their reason for rating me down was not good.
That is abuse of the system. Do not do this again.
Whether the GDNet+ feature of seeing who rates you down stays or goes, I won't abuse this anymore.
But there's really no answer to the question.
My reply would still probably be the same, though I might expand a little.
Yeah if you're trying to say that there's no answer, then I'd include that statement in the hypothetical re-do.
However, there is another kind of answer -- the OP was looking for more information about their two choices. In one situation XML will be easier, and in another situation, GUI will be easier.
e.g. from another post in the thread -- "it gives me a visual since of how my levels should look like" -- that's a pro for the GUI.
You could also say that if you needed to write your own tools to manipulate the objects, then XML might be easier in that case -- a pro for XML...
Even just expanding on your absolute assertion with a follow-up question would make it softer and less absolute, e.g. "There isn't a best option for all situations. Just go with whichever is easier for you. Can you tell us more about how your situation, or what your XML and map-editor workflows would be?"
^ That version of your post explains why you're giving your advice about going with what's easiest (so it's no longer just blunt advice), and then leaves the door open for the OP to come back and continue the discussion by giving out some personal metrics for what "easiest" means to them (so it's not just absolute advice in a vacuum).
Personally I think the reason I got rated down was because I am a person of low [rep points] making assertions.
Maybe it's because I rated another guy down once.
Regardless of whether that's true or not, I don't think that's a useful explanation.
It's much more useful to consider how you could make a better post next time, regardless of the actual reasons.
Personally, I've learned to try and avoid absolute statements like that; I often go back and change words like "will" to "may" before posting to soften my assertions 
I also often type out a response and then close the tab without posting, because I decide it's not actually useful or moving the thread forwards 
As for the truth, I'd guess that Poigahn has paid attention to your post because of a grudge, decided it's not great and down-voted it, which has then acted like a beacon and highlighted the post for the next readers as being potentially questionable. 3 more readers have then read it to see if it really is down-worthy, instead of just skimming the thread, and have also decided that it wasn't helpful. And then you've mentioned the rating system, which is like kicking the hornets nest!
It seems to me that What Goes Around, Comes Around !! My personal Feeling is that a Down vote on anyone should be followed by a reason why, so that the receipient of the down vote understands why.
So.... why didn't you explain to Shane C why you downvoted him in that thread? Isn't that inviting what's going around here to come back around on you again?
He's explained himself. Don't lower yourself to the level you're accusing him of being on.
As for the truth, I'd guess that Poigahn has paid attention to your post because of a grudge, decided it's not great and down-voted it, which has then acted like a beacon and highlighted the post for the next readers as being potentially questionable. 3 more readers have then read it to see if it really is down-worthy, instead of just skimming the thread, and have also decided that it wasn't helpful. And then you've mentioned the rating system, which is like kicking the hornets nest!
While I cannot say anything about Poigahn's motivations, I'd like to offer a different perspective here. It sometimes happens that you stumble over several posts by the same person which you consider slightly irksome. Not really enough to say "this post by itself simply deserves a downvote" but after a few such posts, the accumulated irk can easily cross the threshold.
With that said, a couple of staff members have stepped in to rate up my posts that got rated down. I appreciate this, I really do, but I can't ask you to follow me and rate my down posts up forever, if the community doesn't like me, I guess my rating will just have to be 0.
The For Beginners forum has had fairly strict rules ever since I started lurking on the site back in 2003 or so.
In other areas it is generally okay to have very short answers, to be a little bit rough, or to debate marginally correct or incorrect answers. But when it comes to beginners there is a lot of extra attention to ensure that answers are polite, useful, and correct because the potential for harm is so much greater. While normally we have debate and tempered, reasoned argument in most of the site, in the For Beginners forum it could (at least in theory) cause a potentially rising superstar to turn away from the industry thereby harming everyone.
I have made it a habit to verify if a post is in For Beginners before writing a reply. Questions in one of the more technical forums can sometimes handle a harsher or nuanced reply. Questions in the For Beginners forum tends to get hand-holding.
Thanks. It sounds like I'm going to the wrong board. My attitude and approach might be better in the more technical boards, but there are people there that have so much knowledge, they will crush me. Speaking of "t" words, such as technology, and boards, what ever happened to that Hardware board Gamedev had for awhile?The For Beginners forum has had fairly strict rules ever since I started lurking on the site back in 2003 or so.
In other areas it is generally okay to have very short answers, to be a little bit rough, or to debate marginally correct or incorrect answers. But when it comes to beginners there is a lot of extra attention to ensure that answers are polite, useful, and correct because the potential for harm is so much greater. While normally we have debate and tempered, reasoned argument in most of the site, in the For Beginners forum it could (at least in theory) cause a potentially rising superstar to turn away from the industry thereby harming everyone.
I have made it a habit to verify if a post is in For Beginners before writing a reply. Questions in one of the more technical forums can sometimes handle a harsher or nuanced reply. Questions in the For Beginners forum tends to get hand-holding.
And hey, I once lost over 500 rep from a post (before making one of these threads, which made it worse)
That beats my record of losing over 400 from a single post. That was with the old system, where everyone started at 1000, and 2000 was considered unreachable.
Thanks. It sounds like I'm going to the wrong board. My attitude and approach might be better in the more technical boards, but there are people there that have so much knowledge, they will crush me. Speaking of "t" words, such as technology, and boards, what ever happened to that Hardware board Gamedev had for awhile?
It's not the wrong board, but why not add something constructive to the discussion rather than chiming in just for the sake of it. I think "short VS long" answers is misleading. Short concise, but constructive answers are prefered to long winded, but pointless drivel.
For the two of your posts described in this thread, the first wasn't helpful, the second was antagonistic. I don't personally rate people down, but I can understand the point of it, and it created this discussion which helps explain how you can improve your responses to these types of threads in the future.
