I only follow the conversations on hitRECord:

http://www.hitrecord.org/forum/recent

I find that by going through the conversations I get a better idea of what is being offered on hitRECord. Also, all I need to do is look through the conversations for the time that I have not been logged into hitReCord and I get to see all the RECords that have received attention during that time.

A heart is not as strong a recommendation as a written comment. If a person takes the time to write out how they feel about a RECord, then it means they spent some time thinking about it.

The thank yous there allow me to see RECords from artists I might have missed.

The only bad part about using the conversations page to see the RECords which have been thought about while I've been away is that some hitRECorders are conversations hogs. They will take up two whole pages in a row sometimes - either with their own thank yous, or with their recommendations. I've learned to ignore most of what these conversations hogs comment on, although it does take clicking on the "more" link more when they do hog the conversatons page. Still - even then - it is not a major deal to skip over their hoggishness to get back into the normal flow of comments - but it DOES take hitting that more button a few times.

The best part about not following other hitRECorders for me is that I do not allow myself to have my opinions influenced by a small group of people who tend to only recommend other artists within their same circle; it gives me a broader view of hitRECord.

I highly recommend people make up their own minds about things and not follow other people - the conversations page allows you to do this.