Comment by tablespoon | Hacker News Reader

Comment by tablespoon | Hacker News Reader

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> Imagine a user chooses "Sort by rating", and they subsequently observe an item with an average 4.5 ranking above a score of 5.0 because it has a higher Wilson score. Some portion of users will think "Ah, yes, this makes sense because the 4.5 rating is based on many more reviews, therefore its Wilson score is higher." and the vast, vast majority of users will think "What the heck? This site is rigging the system! How come this one is ranked higher than that one?" and erode confidence in the rankings.

It also erodes confidence in ratings when something with one fake 5 star review sorts above something else with 1000 reviews averaging 4.9.

I think you're mainly focusing on the very start of a learning curve, but eventually people get the hang of the new system. Especially if it's named correctly (e.g. "sort by review-count weighted score").

I'd opt for a simpler and less precise name like "Sort by Rating", but then offer the more precise definition via a tooltip or something, to minimize complexity for the typical user but ensure that accurate information is available for those who are interested.

Do you think the average user wants to see the thousands of movies on IMDB with one 10-star rating to be shown above The Godfather?

This is already done to a degree on most sites. The author is just describing a better possible way to do it.

No, did I suggest that approach?

Better in my opinion to give an item a rating until it has some number of reviews. You can still show the reviews, but treat it as unrated.

I prefer to call it "Sort by Popularity."

I don’t like that measure because popularity doesn’t translate into “good”.

What’s the most popular office pen? Papermate, Bic? I may be looking for more quality.

What’s the most popular hotel in some city? Maybe I’m looking for location or other aspects other than popularity among college kids.

When you use the OP article's formula, you're sorting by popularity. You may choose not to sort by popularity, but when you use it, you should call it sorting by "popularity."

Popularity could also mean number of purchases/downloads/clicks. With no regard for review scores. Or at least it is unclear to me.

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