Do you agree with the logic here, or even understand it?
Yahoo defines "Top Contributor" as follows: "A Top Contributor is someone who is knowledgeable in a particular category." I've had that status bestowed on me (for my contributions to the Languages section) and taken away a number of times now. My question, therefore, is this: Would you say that the number of "best answers" somebody receives in a given week is a good indicator as to how knowledgeable that person is or not in a given category, and that the Top Contributor badge should therefore be attributed and revoked ad infinitum? Shouldn't it only be revoked if somebody goes a really long time without being awarded any "best answers", or for that matter without contributing to the Answers forum at all? Am I the only person who feels this whole process lacks coherence and transparency?
Y!A has never said what the precise requirements are. It's commonly accepted that you need to answer a lot of questions (50?, 100?, who knows...) in a category and get Best Answers on a certain percent of them (probably 10-15%) each week.
You can have TC badges in up to 3 categories at a time. There is no TC badge for the Jokes & Riddles and Polls & Surveys categories.
Yes.. the process lacks coherency on purpose......which makes for "Great Mystery and Intrigue".
The rules are somewhat vague and dynamic which is: "Full of Force and Energy".
Yes, I would say that the number of Best Answers is a good indicator as to how knowledgeable you are in your selected category. The number of answers shows your participation in the desire to keep your orange badge.
The orange badge is an "Open Door Invitation" to keep active and to enjoy this free site.
To answer you other question...Yes, it should be and it is revoked after going a really long time without being active. That, at a guess.... would be 3 or 4 weeks without putting energy into your commitment of retaining you badge.
The TC Badge is awarded to those who knocks persistently by being active. They are the ones that keep their badge.
If we all knew the % Of BA's we need to accumulate and knew how many answers we need per week that would take the..... "Fun and Joy" away. I believe we all have a good guesstimate of what it takes.
Now, It's similar to trying to guess how many beans are in a big jar. Just keep on...Keeping on...
It does not depend at all on the number of Best Answers.
The TC badge depends solely on the sheer number of questions you answer within a category. That is all. So, if you drop back and don't answer as many questions one week, you may lose the badge.
Let me put it another way. I am the US Top answerer for Laptops & Notebooks. I could stop answering questions there for a month, and lose my TC badge for that category, and I will *STILL* be the top answerer for Laptops & Notebooks.