This is from another forum, where Jello means everything
:
What is user Reputation?
Your "Reputation" is a number that reflects a combination of the number of posts you've made, how long you've been a member, and what other forum members think of your posts. It's represented by a sequence of green (positive) or red (negative) blocks on the right side of the headers to all your posts (next to your actual post count). (If you do not want your Reputation displayed, use your control panel to hide it.) You started with 10 Reputation points when you registered, which goes up as you post and as the days go by.
By clicking on the scales icon in the top-right corner of any post, you can add to (or subtract from) that member's Reputation by approving or disapproving of their post.
There are safeguards in place to prevent Reputation abuse, however: you may only make so many Reputation votes in the same day, and you must rate posts for other posters before rating the same user again. And the forum won't allow anyone to add to or subtract from your Reputation over and over again.
The higher your Reputation, the more influence your Reputation ratings have on others!
What does a gray Reputation vote mean?
A Reputation vote with a gray block indicates that another user attempted to cast a positive or negative "vote" for one of your posts, but has not yet reached a level where his or her votes are counted. Gray votes are neutral, and do not affect your Reputation one way or the other.
New users must be members of the forum for a predetermined length of time and reach a certain post count before their Reputation votes begin to count. Once a new member reaches that level, any previous votes remain gray.
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Here is an example of lots of rep:
You can fill up on those little green jellos quick!
There is no reason for veteran posters with thousands of posts to not have tons of reputation points! When these people offer their expert advice, I would say we owe them thanks and a few rep points for their help.