New members likely don't even care who the knowledgeable posters are. They're not looking for those people. They're looking for answers. Whoever chooses to reply to them are fine with them.
I differ with this view. I'm not a good giver of advice, but I'm a very experienced consumer of advice. Not being trained in IT, I care very much about whether or not I get a correct answer. In other forums, I've been given a pack of baloney from time to time. Fortunately, I can usually "smell" it. However, it is very useful to know who the knowledgeable people are. Right now, any baloney posted on this forum will be pounced upon and set straight right away. However, as the word spreads, the demand for advice from the experts will
greatly increase. They may tend to be spread thin. If so, the chances for error to be perpetuated will increase. At that time, the names and Avatars of those who give trustworthy answers will become "brand names" and I will wait to act until I've heard from one of them. On the other hand, a newbie arriving for the first time will not have my experience with the brand names and may be exposed to less reliable answers with no way to evaluate them. In the past, I've used the number of posts as a presumptive indicator of competence, but have still been careful to determine whether the person is a doer or a talker before following his or her advice. I give a cautious endorsement to the number of posts. Exclude the Lounge if you want, but right now some very important substantive stuff is going on there. That may decrease when we collectively get on our operational feet.
