EggXpert

How about Eggxams to verify tech level?

I like it that reviews on Newegg confirm that the user purchased the product so I know it is less likely to be a competitor's or supplier's review.

So how about a way to know if the tech level of the user is for real also?

Because if there was a single exam, then shortly after, answers would be posted on the web, making it easy to cheat.

The only real way to test people would be a dedicated testing center.

Everyone would want to have an uber tech level as part of their 'newegg account', so they would be automatically listed as having a super high understanding every time they write a review.

I mean, what would you rather have when writing a review, average level or high level?

If I did not have the high tech skills that I did, I'd actually want a good mix of reviews from both people with high levels of tech experience, and people at my own level.  If I could only pick one I'd rather have the experienced reviewers but its nice to have a perspective of someone at your level.

Heh, not a bad idea, except for the rampant cheating that would occur. I mean, you could probably google every answer you need, so it would be kinda pointless.

...

Now that I'm thinking about it, maybe you could use the review rating and create a score/points system for users. If you give a good rating, you get good feedback, your score/points will get higher. But that wouldn't be completely reliable either, because of those who DON'T know anything, they would give uneducated ratings on reviews too.

Ultimately, in the end, if you know what you're talking about, reviewers will know it and it will get a good feedback rating. If you don't know what you're talking about, you'll get bad feedback ratings and people will laugh at you. Trying to implement some level of verification just makes things messy IMO.

Yeah, I agree with the cheating issue.  What if it were something similar to how okcupid does their matching tests?  Where there are literally thousands of questions that individuals are randomly given.

 Maybe lots of random questions with time limits would make it a little bit harder - like any security system, just reduce the likelihood of a breach.

Or what if there were some sort of community based tech level evaluation?  For example, I could see what the community thinks of reviews from each reviewer based on tech level.

In addition to that, you'd need to have the exam for multiple categories. Someone with high knowledge in televisions might have bad knowledge in computers, and so on.

Maybe even further than that - wired networking, wireless networking, etc, for nearly each category that Newegg has for products.

Maybe a community based tech rating system would be better.  Plus it wouldn't cost as much to implement nor require as much time.

I'm happy with the way everything is for the most part. What I would like to see though is the least helpful reviews on newegg to be eliminated. If newegg is so protective that you can't say Best Buy, UPS, and other things in your reviews, because they might not get posted. Stupidity should be another....when you have something like the following....it should be obvious..

 

davidbcohen001Tech Level: high Ownership: less than 1 day	3/30/2008 6:36:24 PM SHAME ON YOU INTEL Pros: dual socket 8-core 3.2G Cons: ddr2 800, pci express x16 1.1 Other Thoughts: don't waste your money. this board was obsolete the moment it was conceived. SHAME ON YOU INTEL 19 out of 88 people found this review helpful. Did you? Thanks for the valuable feedback you provided!
it's all about theTech Level: high Ownership: less than 1 day	3/30/2008 2:19:15 PM six benjamins for a mobo Pros: Virtual people on internet overclocking forums will be jealous of you. Cons: See other thoughts. Other Thoughts: yeah, six hundred bucks for a motherboard just so you can use a $1.6k processor. Yeah. 4 out of 52 people found this review helpful. Did you?

 

I was one of the 4 people who found that review helpful!

j/k

It would really be cool if Egg gave discounts for people with actual certifications, or something.  lol

Too bad I don't hold any anymore.  After 20 years of experience, I don't need a piece of paper to tell me I know something about computers.  *snicker

 

There are different kinds of "Tech Levels".  Some people are "high" in some areas, and completely ignorant of others.

JonnyFaster:

There are different kinds of "Tech Levels".  Some people are "high" in some areas, and completely ignorant of others.

 

Exactly, and even if someone tested good in a particular area, 6 months later they may not have a clue about the next new tech that's hit the market.

 

There really isn't any need at all to verify tech level, look at what was written instead because someone with technical expertise in an area will typicall mention things that match that ability to assess the product instead of just saying it's great and works, easy, cheap, etc.

 

Lastly, I don't want to have to take a !@#$% exam just to post product comments, and yet I've been highly technical in a number of areas in computing for many years.  If some brown-noser 14 year old comes along and takes lots of tests because he has too much free time, is he really an expert or just someone who took a test versus someone who didn't?  There really isn't anything an unsupervised test could hope to prove except that the participant clicked on the correct button, or if forced to take tests just to post a review, instead clicked on the first/same button every time just to get past the test and on with the review in as little time wasted as possible.

Not necessarily.  Testing software has evolved to the point where they can have a "pool" of hundreds of questions, and ask those questions in a randomized manner such that no person gets the same test twice.  I think the idea is a good one; in fact if someone (or a group of someones) were to set-up such a testing system, the rating/results could be used by many forums.  In fact, if the testing is considered legitimate enough, it could be used internationally as a "snap-shot" idea of a person's qualifications.

My thinking is, the feasiblity of the idea doesn't hinge so much on the test itself, but rather the constantly changing technology.  Keeping the test current with that would be the challenge, and the primary time-consumber, imo.  It is not useful to test people for their competance with technology that is obsolete.

JonnyFaster:

Not necessarily.  Testing software has evolved to the point where they can have a "pool" of hundreds of questions, and ask those questions in a randomized manner such that no person gets the same test twice.  I think the idea is a good one; in fact if someone (or a group of someones) were to set-up such a testing system, the rating/results could be used by many forums.  In fact, if the testing is considered legitimate enough, it could be used internationally as a "snap-shot" idea of a person's qualifications.

My thinking is, the feasiblity of the idea doesn't hinge so much on the test itself, but rather the constantly changing technology.  Keeping the test current with that would be the challenge, and the primary time-consumber, imo.  It is not useful to test people for their competance with technology that is obsolete.

The problem with having an online retailer test their reviewers is simple and obvious. You're on the internet. CTRL+T opens a new tab in some internet browsers, type www.google.com, search for your answer and there you go, you've got your "very high" understanding right there. Even if you use randomized questions, with different wording, it isn't hard to google search for an answer when you've got the basic question in some way. You just can't do an online test without some sort of cheating happening.

Now if they were to do something where you're XYZ certified on Microsoft products, that could be something verifiable, and a note could be added to your profile after it's been verified. But that's an unrealistic expectation, for customer reviews on a public and well-known online retailer. 

I never pay attention to 'tech level'.

When reading a 'technical' review, a high-tech reader will know after a few lines if the author knows his stuff or not.   And a low-tech reader will likely not understand why author liked/disliked the prioduct anyway. 

And in a non-tech review, author's level shouldn't matter anyway.

I think review system is fine the way it is.