Probably one of the things I hear people complain to me most about fotoblur is the voting system. So if you're one of them, you're not alone. As I can appreciate a healthy debate on just about anything I thought I should mention what my point of view is and why its that way.

I had written previously about the topic in the makeshift fotoblur blog, but I don't think from google analytics many people are reading these, probably because I haven't updated it very often: http://www.fotoblur.com/blog

Let me start by saying that the voting system is not going to change any time soon. Its like one of those things that you have to make the decision, stick to your guns, and live or die by that decision. Because in my heart its the right one.

Some have asked me to require a comment with a negative vote. As I can whole heartedly understand that perspective it violates one major principles I set out to establish for fotoblur. That principle is anonymity. I want people to make the vote they want anonymously for obvious reasons. Otherwise people wouldn't vote the way they really felt.

Others have wanted no votes to go below 0. Well, this becomes more of a technical challenge as if an image has -5 votes but shows 0, it will take 5 positive votes for it to come back to actual 0.

One of the biggest reasons for negative votes was to limit any one individual from taking over the system too much. I was a member of DA and remember certain individuals on the front page everyday with images I thought were less than amazing (infrequently, but enough to make me notice a trend)...and I didn't have a way to express that without trolling which I try to avoid at all costs (I wasn't Coxi).

So if you want to discuss it, I'll listen, but probably won't change the system any time soon.