Top Contributor Status?

To be a TC you must have answered a lot of question in a particular category and obtained 10% best answers. To keep the TC badge you have to continue contributing a lot of answers in that category, if you stop then the TC badge goes away. Obviously you started answering questions again and the TC badge came back and then well it disappeared again when you stopped.

The badge usually appears on a Monday and can disappear again on a Monday, so watch out next week it may be back!

You are right it does not really mean anything on here, you can get the TC badge at any level, and it just means you have contributed a lot and your answers have been good enough for all the best answers.

No-one decides on who or who doesn't become a top contributor.

It is a Yahoo Algorithm that works out number of questions answered, number of best answers, and period of time. (I think that number of questions asked in category may also be included), (supposition because no-one but Yahoo knows exactly what the criteria really is.)

Anyway, answer enough questions and get enough best answers and you get a TC badge.

Answer less questions and get less best answers and you lose the TC badge.

This used to happen to me all the time when I was at 5th level before my beloved account got wiped off the planet.

It seemed like daily it would be back and forth,badge on badge off type of thing and my answers for this question were that you have to answer so many questions in whatever category you are top contributor in( per day or week) whatever it is to keep your status.

Ridiculous isn't it? lol

For top contributor you would need 40 to 50 question answered in a category in a month and more then ten percent best answers