How much reputation can I gain for a significant helpful contribution by editing a post?

Question

Suppose that an answer was up-voted or accepted after my editing.

1. Do I always get only a maximum of +2 to my reputation on each approved edits?
2. Is there a mechanism that provides more improved reputation after significant helpful changes in a post?

Perhaps we should implement voting for edits - this would be a significant incentive to improve posts. Probably this is a subject of discussion.

Answer 1

I wouldn't mind something that gave folks the ability to say not only did I approve of this edit, but it was also a Herculean effort, and the merits of the effort in this case deserve special recognition. Editing is by far the best way to influence the experience that someone with a question in need of editing will have on Stack Overflow.

At +2 per post the extrinsic motivation isn't really that high, you're doing it because you can and it's nice to notice that peers reviewed something that you did and approved of it. But what you're really doing, if a few people pushed the theoretical button that I proposed, is taking ownership in what you edit.

Ideas on the table currently surround two ideas:

1. Badges - if you edit something, and that something goes on to do very well, your effort should be recognized.
2. (In line with the first) Just surfacing stuff you've edited that went on to a brighter future after your edit, because damn that feels good, especially when it's prominently displayed in your profile - especially since you went way beyond what +2 rep asks for.

I don't know what direction we're going to go, but as we continue to gather data coming out of the new helper and triage queues, we'll decide on one. I don't think giving rep here is the answer, if you've gotten the max that you can 2 rep at a time, it's time for more long-term goals if that's how you want to participate.

Expanding the idea to the suggested edit queue and making more use of signal that folks there could send us doesn't sound like a horrible idea.

But, think badges, not rep, I'm not going to give you access to moderation tools until you show me that you know how to code at least somewhat as well as you know how to edit. In order to use those tools, you really do need some programming chops.

Answer 2

1. You will always get +2 (no less, no more) rep for every approved suggested edit until you have 2000 rep yourself or have earned 1000 rep for suggested edits.
2. No, there isn't a mechanism to give you more reputation for a significant helpful change. I don't think there should be a mechanism of this sort because:
   • people will probably abuse the feature
   • people will start making more minor edits
   • people will misuse the feature to, for example, give more rep to someone they know or like

There are probably more disadvantages (and advantages), but I think the above is enough reason not to have this 'feature'.