Question Like vs Thank

[Wake]

What is the difference between the 'like' option and the 'thank' option for a post? If my uninformed opinion is correct then why not get rid of one of them because they appear to serve the same purpose?

I did a quick search of this topic, and I didn't find any threads informing me or asking a similar question. Sorry if this question has been asked before or I didn't look hard enough for the information.

 

[Pat]

I don't know what the plugin developers had in mind but to the best of my knowledge, you like a post which has opinions that you agree with or new ideas that you find interesting, and you thank a post that helps you in some way such as answering your question or solving a problem. They can be used interchangeably though, there're forum softwares which only use "like", in that sense "thank" can be considered redundant but disabling it may likely cause issues regarding thanked posts to date, so I guess there's no harm in leaving them both.

 

[M3J]

I see liking as just that, liking it whether you disagree or agree because you thought it was a good, well thought-out post. Someone puts up a great argument against what you wrote, and it titillated you? You click on like.

Thanks is even simpler, you thank the post because you are grateful, whether it answers your question, backs you up, or corrects you. For example, you'd thank Miyagi's post for explaining or trying to explain.

Both serve different functions and can say a lot about what someone thinks of a post.