Fastolfe, I agree that total rep can be misleading with lots of replies with a minimal rep each. However, here's my thinking - if a thread can generate a much larger number of replies then average, and they are good enough to get at least a few votes apiece, then the thread as a whole is probably rather interesting.
A "Max" rep works well, but right now it's the equivilent of "Best Nodes" and just reading the whole thread.
I am not so fond of average, since I think a good thread and the same thread with one extra neutral reply shouldn't slip significantly. And a good thread with one extra bad reply could kill it.
Now, if I was a statistician, perhaps an average of reputations that only counts nodes that are within a standard deviation of the average reputation of the thread. That would mean that one single reply doesn't make a mediochre thread great (and that single node could hit the best list anyway if it's good enough). It also means that a good thread with a few off-topic or wrong posts doesn't get obliterated.
But that sounds computationally expensive with possibly not enough return. Hmmm.
=Blue
...you might be eaten by a grue... |