Travel Writing group posting on GLOBOsapiens

Rating Reports

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bear495 Joined: May 03 Points: 8634 Posts: 177 Posted: 2004-11-19 15:06:00    Oh, yes, to answer your two questions: 1. Yes. the rating system is valid, as long as we are free to add or delete one star for the previously-mentioned reasons. 2. Yes, an "excellent" report should include relevant pictures. That does not mean that effective reports cannot be written without them, just that they would not be considered as "excellent." Russ --- "Own only what you can carry with you; know language, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag." Alexander Solzhenitsyn Reply    Reply with quote    Contact bear495   rangutan Premium account Joined: Aug 04 Points: 34752 Posts: 1044 Posted: 2005-02-23 14:41:00    I agree so much with davids comment (which I only saw after rating the report myself) in the report www.globosapiens.net/travel-information/Funchal-1578.html Report writing is extreamly difficult, I like a report when it is written from the heart. If this short/brief report were on London or New York with their hundreds of attractions I would agree with ** but for this small island the report length should not be an issue. Also, I see also that there are only 10 uploaded pictures in the gallery and appreciate this little bit of information on a place I dream to visit. Compare the report too with: www.globosapiens.net/travel-information/Funchal-1011.html www.globosapiens.net/travel-information/Funchal-294.html When rating (also pictures) I use the basic guidlines laid down by GLOBO, also consider the uniqueness and quality of the matter by the following "USEFULLNESS" criteria: ***** good also for publishing in a brochure **** good for press purposes too *** good as additional web information ** partially informative * archive material Rudi --- Rudolf "Rangutan" Graspointner Reply    Reply with quote    Contact rangutan   davidx Premium account Joined: Dec 04 Points: 34719 Posts: 440 Posted: 2005-05-25 15:22:00    This discussion took place before I joined. However I feel strongly enough about it to put in my bit. I was writing reports with photos early on and members were kind enough to rate them 4 or 5 star. I asked some opinions about doing some without photos as I knew that I had lost my photos on numerous places. I was encouraged to go ahead and I did so, with no expectation of getting 5s for them. I don't write for grades but I'm not interesting in writing unless there is some prospect of a report being used. How many people bother to read a report rated as 2* unless it's the only one on a place they are definitely going? I should feel most discouraged from continuing to submit reports without photos if they were graded at this level. I feel that a report without photos that's informative is far better than none and that we should not discourage people from trying. Cheers, David --- Grieve not for that which you cannot do but rejoice in that which you can. Reply    Reply with quote    Contact davidx   ravinderkumarsi Premium account Joined: Aug 04 Points: 14003 Posts: 451 Posted: 2005-05-25 16:04:00    hii dav,i do agree with you that reports even without pic can be of high rating,but in general the pictures gives more realistic look to a report and without pic it seems like a long story. --- at bangalore /back 2 globo after a long Reply    Reply with quote    Contact ravinderkumarsi   lukasdj Premium account Joined: Jun 03 Points: 1117 Posts: 23 Posted: 2005-05-25 16:44:00    Hi there, When I want to write a report for a particular destination, first I read reports already published. I publish mine, only if I have something new, or with a different point of view, to tell. Sometimes I haven't photos about it as good as thouse already published on Globo, so I preferer do not add photos. Maybe someone else has beautiful photos on the same destination but doesn't want or have time to write a report so he publishes only his photos. What is valuable in Globo, according to my opinion, is the combination of these two aspects: report section and picture section. Some members write good stories, other members publish beautiful photo. If I want a complete overview for a destination, first I search for impressive photos and then for reports that describe thouse images, or first I read a fascinating story and then I search for photos (not the only one in the report, but tens or hundreds in the picture section). I agree with Rudi "USEFULLNESS" criteria where borders between levels aren't explicit but what each level means is clear. The other critera described in this discussion, based on number of pictures and number of details can be used for an automatic rating system. All this in order to say that an "excellent" report should include relevant pictures, as Russ says. It means that the member is a great writer and a great photographer. But a 4-star report could not have any picture. Luca :) Reply    Reply with quote    Contact lukasdj   bootlegga Premium account Joined: Jul 04 Points: 15194 Posts: 124 Posted: 2005-05-25 18:52:00    In defence of my rating system, it is only a guideline. Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words, but there are exceptions. I have given reports without pics 4 stars. Let's be honest, David's reports are an exception. He fills in all the categories with a small essay. He crams as much into one report as some others put in two or three reports. Like I said his reports tend to be exceptions to the rule, but if you are going to tell me about a gorgeous beach or beautiful waterfall, I would like to also see it. I feel pictures make a report more complete than those without. Likewise, a report with a lot of pictures but lousy descriptions or information is going to get a poor rating from me. It isn't just about pictures in a report, it's about the report describing to me as much as possible about that destination. I've given 2 or 3 stars to reports with five pictures but little to no information. Just writing the name of the bar you got drunk at (or the restaurant you had lunch at, the hotel you slept in, etc) isn't good enough. I want the a description, maybe its general location (by the beach, downtown, etc), the clientele (young/old, expensive/budget), and so on. Basically, my rating 'system' is about how complete the report is and how much it would help someone plan a trip. Compare these two reports and ask yourself which deserves a better score? http://www.globosapiens.net/travel-information/Margao-1672.html http://www.globosapiens.net/travel-information/Plymouth-1584.html?page=6.html IMO, I think David's deserves a better score because his took more effort and was much more informative. Deepak's had pictures but had almost nothing in the way of description or information. Trying to base a vacation on his report would be hopeless, even though I liked Deepak's pictures. Therfore, I gave one 4 stars and the other 2 stars. As to the spelling and grammar issue, I have noticed that members have changed the spelling on destination guides I have written. Now it doesn't bother me that much, but those that have changed them tend to be Americans, who have a different set of spelling rules than us Canucks (or Brits, Aussies, etc). Who's to say which spelling is correct or not? But I digress...I also agree with stricter guidelines for native English members than for ESL members. [ This Message was edited by: bootlegga on 2005-05-25 18:52 ] --- "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." – Mark Twain Reply    Reply with quote    Contact bootlegga   davidx Premium account Joined: Dec 04 Points: 34719 Posts: 440 Posted: 2005-05-25 19:37:00    It's good to see so much agreement. Of course I agree completely that a report gains from good pictures. My point was simply to encourage those who can submit informative reports but who have no pictures to do so just the same. Imust say that I sometimes feel really sad to be unable to include photos and I felt it particularly with my home city, Plymouth. David --- Grieve not for that which you cannot do but rejoice in that which you can. Reply    Reply with quote    Contact davidx   bear495 Joined: May 03 Points: 8634 Posts: 177 Posted: 2005-05-25 20:34:00    I want to agree with James that the rating system that has been suggested is only a guideline. However, I believe that to rate at the very highest a report should have some photos. The two examples that were mentioned show a very interesting difference. Davids is much more thorough, and deserves a much higher rating. The other report tells us almost nothing. As much as I enjoy some of your reports, David, those with pictures seem to be much more complete. If there is any way possible to have even one photo, it adds to the overall feeling for the location. In a conscious manner, I cannot give a rating of 5* to any report without photos, and rarely even 4*. That is just that important to my concept of a complete travel report. We have these reports here for the benefit of others, not for self-aggrandizement. We want to give a thorough, and concise, overview. Because Andy is constantly seeking funding to keep the website going, we need to present a professional image so that those investing funds into this can be certain that they are receiving proper benefit. At least, that is my opinion on the matter. James, I don't know who has changed any of the spellings on your destination reports, so I am uncertain as to the spellings that you mention. I do not concern myself over differences in cultural spellings when I make changes. For example, when someone uses colour (instead of color), I know that is a difference in the spelling based on a cultural concept. However, the most common errors that I see arethe following: 1. There/their/they're - in the English language, each of these has its own separate meaning. Many of the younger generations use these terms interchangably (and in error). This is seen on about 1 of 3 destination reports. 2. The word "the" is often placed as "hte". I see this on at least 1 of every 5 destination reports. 3. Numerical agreement errors tend to come in third place - singular versus plural. Anyway, even these errors tend to detract from a travel report rating, in my opinion. As always, we each are individuals and rate according to our own judging standards. I believe that the purpose of these fora is to engender a consensus on ratings and as a guide to help us all write more professional-sounding reports. Russ --- "Own only what you can carry with you; know language, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag." Alexander Solzhenitsyn Reply    Reply with quote    Contact bear495   davidx Premium account Joined: Dec 04 Points: 34719 Posts: 440 Posted: 2005-05-26 13:09:00    Hi Russ I agree almost entirely about photos and would always feel that even 1 was better than 0. I thought the writing in one of hieronyma's reports was outstanding and I gave it 5 without photos but that was the exception so far and I would always start one grade lower in my htinking on a report without photos. On my own reports without photos I'm always delighted if I get a 4, though I should be disappointed to get less than a 3. I think I must have said everything in my mind about this topic now. Thanks to those who have been prepared to look at it again. Cheers, David --- Grieve not for that which you cannot do but rejoice in that which you can. Reply    Reply with quote    Contact davidx   bootlegga Premium account Joined: Jul 04 Points: 15194 Posts: 124 Posted: 2005-05-26 22:35:00    Russ, I was just taking the piss about the spelling changes, but sometimes sarcasm doesn't come through on message boards and emails. LOL --- "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." – Mark Twain Reply    Reply with quote    Contact bootlegga   Page: 1 2 3