Well, as the first voter I win!  :)
 
I'm against changing anything.  I find it completely ridiculous to sign up under one set of rules and then find the rules changed after the contest. 
 
Me, if it comes to that, I would drop out.  I really don 't care if the team I'm on is in first place or last.
 
I signed up under one set of rules.  Change the rules that's fine but I won't be a participant.  (I will however, keep the prizes out there for those that are less stubborn than I.)

Completely understand Viper... So let me be clear...
 
This proposal in no way changes the main contest at all. This is only to be considered as an added bonus for those who want to. No prizes other than maybe a signature pin or something. 
 
The main contest runs as it is... Very nicely! 
 

voted
lets roll to one billion
 

I am not going to cast a vote. My only vote is for more folding and however that happens is fine with me.

I just wish we all could focus on the point of folding and not on competitions unless it helps put more WUs to bed without turning people off.

Viper97

I'll play devils advocate.  Changing the contest in any way, shape or form is still a change.  Incorporate it next year?  Sure, fantastic.  I know the pressure everyone is applying to change things, I've watched it unfold. 

It seems, this is the same pressure and complaining from last year.  (I was not a part of that thankfully.)

Moving a target or adding additional things to make folks happy defeats the purpose of setting rules in concrete.  Make the rules seem like they were more likely set in quicksand.  Why have rules, why have structure if the structure is subject to change?

We all knew there was one goal, (well two!) one team to rule them all and reach a billion doing it.  Maybe I'm misreading things or am extremely opinionated however; I am merely voicing how I see things and how I react when new carrots are added because someone complains or thinks there should be a consolation prize.

 
I certainly don't disagree with you Viper, and would advocate that there is nothing wrong with the contest as designed.  I might even advocate that it is best to leave things unchanged as well, but ultimately I believe the best guide when it comes to things like this is two-fold:

1. What gets people to maximize their folding output?  At the end of the day, that really is why we are all here and this is all about the science we accomplish.
2. What is the most fun and enjoyable for everyone?  Folding should be fun, after all.

Unfortunately, I have limited time to devote to these ventures and cannot foresee every potential circumstance.  I would argue that if we can make a significant improvement today its probably not a worthwhile venture waiting an entire year solely for the purpose of keeping the rules sacrosanct.  I'd like to do what is best for all, but inevitably we will not be able to please everyone.

I'm here for the free Beer !
 
Cheers !!!

i want free beer 

troy8d

audiomurphy

I'm here for the free Beer !

Cheers !!!

I have yet to find the free beer!  Where are you hiding it!!

 
It's just around the corner, over the next hill and just beyond the horizon.
 
Thats what i believe
 
Cheers !!!

Well I see it as we should do as much as we can, but with a cap limit why would you.
As I said before this is the one thing that was left out of this contest "getting people to fold as much or more than they can" In order for my team to get the max of my points I have to keep my point at or just a tad above those reported PPD.
I'm good with going with what I reported, but I could be doing a lot more. So staying within the limits of these rules is going to cost this contest more harm than good.
Rules are good and I will abide by them. I just say they weren't thought out very well if 1 Billion points is the object of this contest.

We all guesstimate to the best of our ability and as accurate as possible at the start as we sign up, but in the end it all comes down to the WU lucky dip really. Then in comes the enthusiasm to fold our hearts out, then that enthusiasm is always there it's just more dominant in a contest.
 

Well my mistake was I'm not a math expert "as I see many others weren't" So as you can see I was way under what I should have reported.
On top of that the new bigadv WU now takes just over 1 day to complete, where as it was taking over 2 days, so now my PPD has almost doubled. I hadn't seen the real PPD I would get since not all 4 of the 2p's were getting those.
 
If anything who ever came up with this formula should be looking closer at what people report and there actual PPD. If they see a low bid they should help that member and encourage them to up there PPD reported to get them more in the game and closer to the goal at hand maybe even adding 10% to that to encourage them to meet a new PPD goal for them and everyone.

troy8d
Additionally, I consider making a good guess "part of the game."  Essentially, the way it is designed is you want to be in line with everyone else.  The more everyone else overproduces, the higher the threshold at which partial credit kicks in.  If I were entering this contest, I would undershoot my points slightly to give myself a little wiggle room - but not too much.  That being said, however, it is nearly impossible to accurately predict folding points.  There are simply too many factors that come into play (including in the past WUs that have change a few days before the contest significantly altering the points landscape). 

This.
 
There are too many factors that come into play. I for one for the first time ever in a contest have a 2nd computer I'll be able to bring on to I've no idea of the points. And as I said WUs are like a lucky dip, stick our hand in the bag we may pull out gold or we might pull out dung, just don't know as they're random, subject to change when we least expect it. I'm having 4k days or up to 18k days depending on the WUs I've been getting.

Just a note of concern here... I am worried some folks are not reading all of the info provided or we are not explaining this correctly. 
  
The "Prize" is LIFE. How the heck is that being overlooked?  
  
This is not changing the dog gone contest. It is adding another way for those who would like to, participate/track in more ways than just one.  
  
Why would anyone want to do less for "Life"? 
  
It is like no matter how hard anyone tries to make a contest fun, exciting and for the ultimate cause we never make anyone happy. 
  
Stop and think about that. 
  
This is not changing the contest. It is a proposal to add to the way we are tracking it and or add another kind of winner. So those who like to do more, can compete against those who also like to compete. For the improvement of "Life"... 
  
Just like those who are happy with trying to be as accurate with their PPD estimates, or like the "Closest to the PPD mark wins"... 
  
This is only another way to keep track, create a different form of friendly competitiveness and give "Life"... 

This reminds me of a conversation I had a few months ago with a Parent that was complaining about how her Insurance cost went up after her son, while being DUI, crashed. And it took every bit of my person to not let her know how badly I would rather be in her shoes, than my own when I had to bury mine. I would gladly pay for the Insurance instead of a Coffin. 
 
Sometimes we need to wake up and see what we have while we have it. And be dang glad many others are here to help in this fight for life.
 
Fold on. I know I will.
 

TheWolf

I didn't exactly mean for you to help each and everyone that joins, but I'm sure there are others that understand the formula and I'm sure would volunteer to help this contest get better for everyone and closer to the goal.

Sorry I meant no harm in what I said, sometime the words don't come out as they should. You've done a great job with this and all those that have helped.

 
No worries my friend, no harm done.  As for myself, I'm far from perfect - but I do the best I can.  Many good ideas for the contest have come from other's suggestions and I am always open to improving it further.  I would certainly love for volunteers to help out, but it has often proven difficult to find those willing and able to help (understandably we all have limited time).

well i signed up i was around 125,000ppd and now i'm hitting around 169.000ppd at the moment every thing i have running is working (knocks on wood ) and i even got my 560 ti DS back up and running with two gigabyte fans rigged in it now looks like i should just pull that gpu out and. i'm so confused so i think i'm going to go find a potato gun and take pot shots at wolf's gpu's  sorry wolf but you did pass me