Thread for coordinating the order and timing of ILM ballot polls

cover songs!

like, every cover song ever? that seems maybe TOO broad

80% of all recorded music...go!

impossibly broad category -- trying to figure out the best cover of 'Take the A Train' alone would break the internet

best version I should say

Hey, someone should do a Duke Ellington tracks poll!
(kidding...an albums poll alone would be beyond daunting)

I woke in the night screaming "A Fall Ballot??? That's gonna be IMPOSSIBLE!!!"

Can someone start work on a spotify list for the Timbaland poll please? I'm going to need help for that one.

This may sound stupid...but how do voters know when these polls go up? Is there any way of knowing beyond just keeping an eye out for it appearing?

Can someone start work on a spotify list for the Timbaland poll please? I'm going to need help for that one.

― Ismael Klata, Saturday, August 20, 2011 9:43 AM (11 hours ago) Bookmark

when i start the poll thread i'm gonna strongly encourage people campaigning for more obscure tracks and posting youtubes, i don't know anything about spotify but if people want to do something w/ that that'd be great

spotify playlists would be nice! i'd check out a timbaland one

This may sound stupid...but how do voters know when these polls go up? Is there any way of knowing beyond just keeping an eye out for it appearing?

― Naive Teen Idol, Saturday, August 20, 2011 8:19 PM (1 hour ago)

That's been about the size of it so far. I don't know about the other pollrunners, but I don't want a really regimented schedule for these things -- nothing would suck the fun out of it quicker imo. I think they've been running about 10 days each? Timbaland is going to take a little longer, the Producers poll is probably going to take a little longer (especially if there's a nominations thread for that one). It's just a matter of keeping an eye on ILM New Answers or Site New Answers.

I have a feeling I'm going to have to constantly promote the GBV poll just to get those inclined to vote in it to actually do so.

oh I thought the practice was a week each. while there doesn't have to be strict limits, there should be an upper limit so someone doesn't hold up the queue.

I mean even w/ a week each anyone signing up now is gonna be doing theirs...nearly half a year from now?

I guess we're kind of figuring this all out as we go. I definitely held off starting the LZ voting because I'm up to my gizzard in a work project (chained to my desk today from 9 a.m. this morning until 15 minutes ago) and couldn't start start rolling out results until Tuesday. I assume everybody's going to tweak the schedule to fit Real Life rather than the other way around.

i don't think there's anything wrong with a little traffic jam, i mean at a certain point we ARE going to run out of artists that are really worth doing these kinds of polls for, probably sooner than you think. what's the rush?

sez the guy doing his now and the guy scheduled next

I think it's true that we'll run out of artists one day but I just know that some people get lazy w/ stuff and it's not unrealistic that someone might end up dragging theirs out 3+ weeks

::shrugs:: i'm speaking more from the perspective of someone who hates going "man i would've actually voted in that if the window had been a little bigger" than someone who's really dying to run a poll now now now...i mean there are a couple others i might try to do later and i don't care if i get on a waiting list for a year to do it. (xpost)

and I'd be annoyed if I were the one waiting half a year and someone was sitting on his hands. (but I'm not, so,)

3 weeks of voting would be better than 4 days and then a results thread where something wins with 10 votes and a bunch of people are going "man i wish i'd gotten around to voting" if you ask me

ime which may not be universal, got a ton of ballots the first few days from hardcore fans -> lazy lag period -> then all the last minute votes.

ton of ballots the first few days from hardcore fans -> lazy lag period -> then all the last minute votes

All email polls I've ever conducted on here have followed this path of activity pretty much.

That's been about the size of it so far. I don't know about the other pollrunners, but I don't want a really regimented schedule for these things -- nothing would suck the fun out of it quicker imo. I think they've been running about 10 days each? Timbaland is going to take a little longer, the Producers poll is probably going to take a little longer (especially if there's a nominations thread for that one). It's just a matter of keeping an eye on ILM New Answers or Site New Answers.

I hear that -- but I worry I may miss it anyway just bc of silly life things taking over (and sometimes because we outsmart ourselves with poll titles, myself included). Can we use this thread (or another) to announce that the polls have started? That way we can bookmark something and get a reminder that it's up.

I think it's true that we'll run out of artists one day

This just will not happen. Jefferson Airplane, America, Cameo, the Cowsills, Nurse with Wound, Glass Tiger, Chad & Jeremy, Morbid Angel--there's just so many bands that should be polled.

I'm on the edge of my seat for the Glass Tiger poll!

i would do a byrds one but i feel like that would have less interest than the beach boys and tbh i thought the bb one could've used at least 10 more ballots. when you start the countdown off with songs that only got 3-4 votes, i feel that there isn't enough interest to justify in a way.

The answer to that is to start higher up the countdown, but for understandable reasons this rarely happens - there's always something just outside the top 30/40/50 that you think will set things off or just want to give a bit of attention to. As long as things don't drag as a result it's not a problem - the metal 300s were a bit much in that regard.

ton of ballots the first few days from hardcore fans -> lazy lag period -> then all the last minute votes

All email polls I've ever conducted on here have followed this path of activity pretty much.

― Johnny Fever, Sunday, 21 August 2011 03:22 (4 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

The Beatles one was pretty much standard distribution curve..

i.e. a few at first, raising to ten a day, then down again to three on the last day.

i would do a byrds one but i feel like that would have less interest than the beach boys and tbh i thought the bb one could've used at least 10 more ballots. when you start the countdown off with songs that only got 3-4 votes, i feel that there isn't enough interest to justify in a way.

I'd definitely vote in a Byrds poll, but am not sure what to do with the likes of Joni Mitchell or Stevie Wonder, being familiar with about 100 songs from each but that means I still don't know half their discography, much less obscurities not on the main albums or compilations. I'm not intimately familiar with their music the way I am with the Beatles or Led Zep or the Beach Boys, the first two where I know the entirety of their official output, the latter where know nearly all the significant tracks and many worthy obscurities.

i would do a byrds one but i feel like that would have less interest than the beach boys and tbh i thought the bb one could've used at least 10 more ballots. when you start the countdown off with songs that only got 3-4 votes, i feel that there isn't enough interest to justify in a way.

― buzza, Sunday, August 21, 2011 2:17 AM (7 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

part of the reason this happened is that the bb votes were distributed in a manner that's likely to be different from your average poll. the top 9 songs each had at least 50% of people voting for them (#1 had 75% of people) and that trend only got stronger as more ballots came in. at the same time, there were about 170 total songs that received votes - tons of vote splitting at the bottom half.

when I included 3 more ballots in the numbers, not much changed - even with 10 more, I'm pretty sure the countdown would be starting off with things that got 3-4 votes.

that's to say, overall almost half of 'the average ballot' made the top ten - which left relatively few votes/points for the rest of the poll. that didn't happen to the same extent w/ U2 cause there isn't as much agreement about the very best songs. I'm not sure that would happen with the byrds. (would vote btw)

last few days for you all to send your ballot in for VOTING AND CAMPAIGNING THREAD FOR ILM POST 1945 BEST JAZZ ALBUMS POLL (Voting closes August 27)

small or huge ballots (upto 100) all welcome. Ranked ,unranked or split (ie top 10 or top 20 etc and the rest unranked)

All ballots received will greatly help make a good list.

Dammit, go on and put me down for Hüsker Dü already.

when I included 3 more ballots in the numbers, not much changed - even with 10 more, I'm pretty sure the countdown would be starting off with things that got 3-4 votes.

yeah this was kind of inevitable for a band with TWENTY-THREE studio albums that people were pulling tracks from

I reiterate that it would be awesome if people posted here when the ballots are going out -- that way you won't miss a poll bc you were on vacation and didn't read through three days of stuff or whatever...

That list should have the winning tracks appended as they finish (so anyone who disagrees can put their name down for a rerun)

I'm not convinced I want to do the Chemical Brothers after all. It's not a prospect that's exciting me at the moment. But I'm not pulling out just yet, there's still time for me to either find some enthusiasm or ditch it.

When the time comes you can just switch to Manilow instead

ps time 4 timba voting

Johnny Fever, if you stick in side projects with GBV poll then you should also stick in John Shough

I found that a week to vote, the weekend to compile and then a week reveal worked pretty well for Prince and giving it 2 weeks spreads the separate polls out a bit more

Can someone put me down for Bruce Springsteen at No. 30? That would be grrrrrreat

I reiterate that it would be awesome if people posted here when the ballots are going out -- that way you won't miss a poll bc you were on vacation and didn't read through three days of stuff or whatever...

This is a good idea, I'll try to remember to bump this when things happen.

yeah he has problems remembering to do his jazz ballot ;)

shaddap kid

>> i would do a byrds one but i feel like that would have less interest than the beach boys and tbh i thought the bb one could've used at least 10 more ballots. when you start the countdown off with songs that only got 3-4 votes, i feel that there isn't enough interest to justify in a way.

― buzza, Sunday, August 21, 2011 2:17 AM (7 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

> part of the reason this happened is that the bb votes were distributed in a manner that's likely to be different from your average poll. the top 9 songs each had at least 50% of people voting for them (#1 had 75% of people) and that trend only got stronger as more ballots came in. at the same time, there were about 170 total songs that received votes - tons of vote splitting at the bottom half.

when I included 3 more ballots in the numbers, not much changed - even with 10 more, I'm pretty sure the countdown would be starting off with things that got 3-4 votes.

― iatee, Sunday, August 21, 2011 11:26 AM (3 days ago)

Yeah there's not much mileage in being a Zep obscurist - a ballot filled with the chaff from Presence and Coda is not going to impress anyone or be fun to listen to.

it's interesting how the vote breakdown sometimes tells you more about the band than the placing