in reply to Book Reputations

I vote on book reviews here based on the review, not on the book. There are book reviews here which declare the books to be terrible, but have high ratings because they are well written.

Your idea is a good idea, but I don't know about having a formal numeric system for rating books.

Computer magazines rate games out of ten or 100, film critics give two thumbs up or five stars. But we all know that the only reason to pay attention to these numbers is if we know that our tastes are similar to the reviewers. In a community voting system, all it would tell you is how close your opinions are to the general community - a moving target that can change a couple of times per hour.

So, pretty much regardless of the system used, you will still have to read the review to find out whether or not the book suites you. Since you are going to read the review anyway, why put the effort the effort into implementing a new ratings system?

A good review will tell you most of what you would want to know before buying the book. That's practically the definition of a good review. And even if the reviewer is 'wrong', books have the benefit of being try-before-you-buy.

While I am a bear of little brain who likes things simple, I dislike wrong things more. And I tend to think that a simple rating system gives the wrong idea more often than it helps.

____________________
Jeremy
I didn't believe in evil until I dated it.

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Re: Re: Book Reputations
by jlongino (Parson) on Jan 01, 2002 at 00:37 UTC
    While I can agree with most of what you say, I believe that a system based on what shockme suggests would provide useful information, especially when coupled with PM reviews.
    But we all know that the only reason to pay attention to these numbers is if we know that our tastes are similar to the reviewers.
    Well, that's the point. I would sooner get see a rating by members of the PM community than those listed at a Bookstore or website.

    I like to use all available resources when choosing a book, but sometimes I might not be particularly well versed on a given subject. Seeing several ratings may give provide the impetus to question why one book has a better approval rating than another. Answers to that question may or may not convince me to buy it. I certainly wouldn't stop reading reviews or asking other people (whose opinions I respect) what they think of a book. Anyone silly enough to buy a book based purely on a numeric rating is likely to make a poor decision anyway.

    Of course the system won't be perfect, but then I wouldn't really say that PM is perfect either, although it provides a wonderful resource.

    --Jim

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