Introduction
This is a big change so I wanted to explain the thought process a bit. As with most jobs in the league that are elected, the job of
Points Czar consists of much subjectivity and judgement calls. OR it's some massive blanket: YOU GET 5 POINTS! YOU GET 5 POINTS! The short analysis article of a trade gets the same points as the extensive, researched, and long article about every team in the league. I've always thought that was a problem. I want people to get points worth the time and work they've put in. I want those GMs who take hours upon hours writing articles and doing research to feel it's worth it. And I also want GMs to know that if they only have time to throw together something small, that they'll still get points. So with that being said we will be getting away from the "team-focused" or "league-focused" judgement calls and point systems.
What is really the only way to judge the work put into an article? Well on it's surface, word counts are a great barometer. So after doing much research and going back and looking at tons of articles over the seasons, I've put together a points guideline based on the word counts of your article. To spread the points further I had to extend the points range. You can now achieve anywhere from 2-10 points per article now. I've always felt that some articles receive too many points(5 on 5s) and some articles don't receive nearly enough(many of Kucoachs extensive research projects). I feel this will solve most of that.
Keep this in mind. This is NOT an exact science. But this IS what I will be using as a basis for the points I dole out. I plan on being as fair as I possibly can here. As always though with point giving there is subjectivity. I expect that nearly every article contains some type of research. So most articles will be judged using the word count guideline. BUT if there are graphs, and tables, and pie charts...there is a very good chance you will receive additional point(s) for that extra work on top of what the guideline suggests. This will be interactive, I will contact the authors and find out exactly what was done so I can be as accurate as possible. Always keep in mind, on a scale of 2-10, 10 being the bestest, baddest ass, most intricate article ever, that I will be judging everything based on that scale and the word count guidelines. If you ever have serious issues about your points, you can always PM me and we can discuss. I think that most will be satisfied with this system. Honestly, my hope is that many people hit the max points and we can vote on raising the media pint limit another 10 points in the off-season. If it causes more points, that means more great articles and more activity which is always the ultimate goal. But there are always people who aren't ever happy so to those people I say...maybe don't write any articles
Word Count Guidelines
Word Count: 250----->Points: 2
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7096
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6828
Word Count: 500----->Points: 3
Word Count: 750----->Points: 4
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7012
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7111
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5770
Word Count: 1000----->Points: 5
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7112
Word Count: 1500----->Points: 6
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6504
Word Count: 2000----->Points: 7
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6532
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7073
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7048
Word Count: 2500----->Points: 8
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5582
Word Count: 2750----->Points: 9
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5953
Word Count: 3000----->Points: 10
Examples: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5866
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5691
The examples are simply that, examples of what certain articles of the past would get with this system. I used many of these and more to nail this down to where I wanted it. Also don't shy away from doing something like a "Strength of Schedule" table based on lots of work, even if there isn't any words at all besides the table. I'll deal with media like that on a case by case basis. Podcasts will get points as follows:
Podcasts of 30 minutes - 1 hour will receive 4 points.
Podcasts of 1 hour - 2 hours will receive 5 points.
Podcasts of over 2 hours will receive 6 points.
Most "contributing" guests will receive 3 points.
5 on 5 Articles will be rewarded to each individual GM for their input based on word count. The GM that answers each question with 1 sentence will probably end up getting significantly less than the GM who gives full thoughtful answers. At the end of the day we still want interesting, thoughtful, and entertaining articles. Any LEGITIMATE questions can be posted below. Any BS will be deleted.
HAPPY WRITING!!!