View source for Category:Account

An '''account''' is a record of resources that were contributed to an [[:Category:Issue|issue]], or [[:Category:Pledge|pledged]] to an issue within the [[Wiki:Resource accounting framework|resource accounting framework]] (the RAC).  The issue itself is formalized within a [[Property:Poll|poll]], and a single poll/issue may depend upon multiple accounts that are distinguished by [[Property:User|associated user]], resource type, purpose and/or [[:Category:Counting method|counting method]].

===Superaccounts===
A superaccount is a collection of accounts that share the same poll/issue, counting method and [[Property:Account name|account name]].  Account names are typically chosen with a view to inclusion in a particular superaccount.  From a pledger's perspective, superaccounts are a convenience for maintaining pledge stability in the face of future vote shifts.  Pledge accounting is generally tied to vote accounting.  The details depend upon the voting method and design of vote-server.  The description that follows is based upon a method of transitive voting, as for instance with Votorola.

<table style='margin:1em 0 2em 2em'><tr><td><pre>
                     ( )  ( )  ( )
                       \   | 1 /
                        \  |  / 1        ( )   ( )
               ( )  ( )  \ | /            | 1  /
      ( )        \ 1 |    \|/             |   / 1
        \ 1       \  | 1  (2) *A*         |  /
         \         \ |     |              | /  ( )  ( )
          \         \|     | 1            |/    |   /
       1   \        (2)    |         *C* (2)    |  /
   ( )-----(2)        \    |              |     | /
             \ 1       \   |              |     |/
              \         \  |              |    ( )-----( )
               \         \ |        ( )   |    /
            1   \         \|          \   |   /
( )-----( )-----(4)       (5)          \  |  /
                  \       /             \ | /
                   \     / 1             \|/
                    \   /                ( )
                     \ /
                     (10) *B*
</pre></td></tr><caption style='caption-side:bottom; font-weight:normal; text-align:left'><strong>Superaccounting in a transitive voting structure</strong>.  Three accounts are shown (A, B, C).  The counting method is a hypothetical "unit summation" method in which a voter may pledge 1 or nothing.  Each number in brackets shows the total quantity of pledges received by a candidate and destined to flow to one of the terminal accounts (B or C) where they are removed from the flow and "held".<ref>A pledge may also be held in cyclic vote flow, which is not shown in the figure.  See http://reluk.ca/project/votorola/d/theory.xht#cycle.</ref></caption></table>

Note that the two topmost pledges/votes flow first to account A, thence to account B.  Should candidate A stop voting for candidate B, those pledges would still accrue to her account (but not to B's).  Furthermore, should either of the pledgers shift his vote to another branch of votespace in which an account of the same name is defined (such as C), then his pledge would automatically be redirected to that account.  So the superaccount operates effectively as a single account, but with a definition that is freely distributed (in multiple account pages) among any number of users.

===See also===
* [[Wiki:Resource accounting framework|Resource accounting framework]] (the RAC)

===Note===
<references/>