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Example

An answer-1, answer-2 which has short description (3 to 4 lines) and not formatted. It has got maximum up-votes.

Question

  1. Maximum up-voted answer on IPS means high quality answer?
  2. Well formatted answer?
  3. Satisfy the requirements of Original Poster of question?
  4. Got maximum up-votes because members who up-voted it agree with the answer?

Note - Maximum up-voted answers generate ideal direction for new comers about how to give good answers

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  • This looks like you stumbled across a specific post... it would be helpful it you could link to it :)
    – Tinkeringbell Mod
    Oct 5, 2018 at 17:13
  • @Tinkeringbell I think DDD is talking about this one: interpersonal.stackexchange.com/a/19036/21067
    – Ael
    Oct 5, 2018 at 17:14
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    @Tinkeringbell, updated the question again. (added link)
    – user21996
    Oct 5, 2018 at 17:31
  • It was quite exhausting coming back to the site to find my answer (interpersonal.stackexchange.com/a/19036/21067) deleted without really understanding what was wrong with it; compared with other answers which are deemed to lack fullness but aren't deleted. I understand why some people give up on this site for such reaction to their otherwise well received answers. Oct 11, 2018 at 12:45
  • @MatthewECornish, I had seen one message there under your answer for many days. That message was instructing you to explain your answer properly. Your answer was good but you had not explained it properly. The answer was written within 2 to 3 lines. I have not deleted it. Please refer - How to write good answer?
    – user21996
    Oct 11, 2018 at 13:34
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    Hi @MatthewECornish! We appreciate the edit, and have undeleted your answer. In response to 'why it needs examples' > If people knew how to apologize, they wouldn't ask on IPS ;-). Sadly, votes here don't often reflect answer quality so much as agreement, especially on Hot Network Questions posts like Bryan explains here. We could always use help in catching more answers that don't meet guidelines, you're free to join us in chat to ask for help on specific ones!
    – Tinkeringbell Mod
    Oct 11, 2018 at 17:26

2 Answers 2

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I want to know that, maximum up-voted answer on IPS means high quality answer? well formatted answer? satisfy the requirements of Original Poster of question?

Ideally, yes, these would be the requirements for becoming the highest scoring answer on a post. Upvotes are for 'useful' answers, which is also the guidance that appears once you hover over the upvote button.

An answer should be of good quality, meeting preferably all, but at least most of the points in How do I write a good answer?. Formatting doesn't matter that much, but if an answer is badly formatted, preferably someone steps in to help out a little.

An answer should always strive to meet the requirements of the OP. There's a reason that is included into the 'how to write a good answer' faq-proposal.

Or, got maximum up-votes because members who up-voted it agree with the answer?

That may or may not have happened, I can't see into the heads of the people voting. But it's easy to assume that at least part of the voting in such cases may be done by people unfamiliar with IPS answer standards, and is done out of 'agreement'. After all, if you 'agree' with an answer, it's easy to assume it's 'useful' too.

Note - Maximum up-voted answers generate ideal direction for new comers about how to give good answers

Yes, people do look at the most upvoted posts on a question, and use it as a guideline to format/write their own answers. That's why it's important that the community moderates such answers, regardless of votes. For the example answer you posted, this was done, there were flags and comments, but the comments were deleted for some reason. I'll make sure to find out why, in the meanwhile I've reinstated the comments pointing out what needs to be improved with the post.

That answer is also currently available for community review, in the Low Quality Posts queue. We are keeping an eye on it, hoping that it will be edited, but if it won't, it's likely to be deleted as it doesn't meet current guidelines.

I'd strongly recommend you try to base your answers on what's suggested in How do I write a good answer?, more than on the amount of votes it has. Other good indications of really great answers are the ones that had a bounty for being a great answer, such as this really long answer someone wrote to one of my posts. It's written from experience, takes into account the circumstances of the question and provides me with a way of reaching towards my goal of at least being able to be present at the same party as Alice, and perhaps even making up with her.

Be careful though, sometimes answers aren't awarded a bounty for being great, but for being the 'best' answer posted after a bounty was offered on a question, and then it may not prove much towards 'quality' that it actually has a bounty.

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I think this question may have been on the Hot Network Questions (HNQ) based on the # of views.

There is a lot of discussion about the impact of HNQ in meta that you can find in various Stacks and the main meta as well; most recently I talked about it in response to a question on the Academia.SE meta here: https://academia.meta.stackexchange.com/questions/4328/what-are-the-criteria-that-determine-which-questions-will-receive-so-many-attent

That question asked about the unusual attention their question got. I'd give a similar answer with respect to this answer: once a question is on HNQ, the population of people participating is different from the regulars on a stack. I'm guessing the particular answer you are referring to got upvoted by people who do not know the standards of IPS, but saw the question, and up-voted the answer that fit what they would answer (which was also probably listed first, they may not have even read the other answers).

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