Re: Fans
Sort of like following someone on Twitter, insofar as the number of followers someone has on Twitter is a good way to see how influential someone is.
In the first, simple incarnation of the Fans concept, however, I am NOT suggesting any sort of Twitter-style activity stream of the people you become a Fan of but that could be a more advanced feature at a later stage.
Right now, however, all I am suggesting is a way to indicate that you appreciate someone’s contribution to the community, like a sort of vote or thank you.