How to lower a member's post count?

Give them a warning from the members panel in forum admin. If that doesn't work, ban them for  a while.

IIRC anytime a post is deleted the post count drops as well. If people are posting things that add nothing simply inform everyone that superfluous posts will be removed.

Mattb4, I was lead to believe that deleted posts did not lower a persons posting count. If it does, I wouldn't be able to delete really old posts, without screwing up the count and rankings. Is that correct?

I forgot about the recent change wherein a post is hid and not really deleted. Thus the post count will not be revised.

Sorry about that.

Now, I am really confused! I thought a hidden post was one that got thumbs down and a deleted post was just gone, after being deleted?

The best way to handle somebody who is abusing the post count is to send them a message (and maybe a warning) to let them know what they're doing and why it's wrong in your community.  

Because you're running a community, every member needs to understand the rules and respect them.  A single email can do that in most of the cases.  If the person continues to abuse, I would warn them.  It's best to be polite at first, because the person may honestly not be aware of the rules in your forum, so try to avoid saying things like 'i will ban you', before you reach out to the person in a polite manner.

Now, I am really confused! I thought a hidden post was one that got thumbs down and a deleted post was just gone, after being deleted?

-breezey

The recent change to allow restoration of a deleted post is similar to the Thumbs down hide (Might even make use of it somehow). If a Moderator deletes a post you will see the post simply hidden to where a Staff person can undelete it. It is really a great feature and allows review of Staff deletions and possible restoration. Not to mention sometimes it is best to hide a post while the Forum Staff has time to review it for later approval.  (BTW On the Forum I founded, we do not display the Thumb Moderation.)  (see example of a deleted post below)

It is hard to keep up with the changes that Lefora is making and how they impact other things. Advice based on experience is quickly superseded by the latest and greatest. Not that I do not applaud Lefora for improvements. Especially ones that I had put out as Feature requests.

Thank you Mattb4. I understand now.
As for thumbs feature... I had that taken care of a while back. Opinions and honest answers shouldn't be shown disrespect with a thumbs down.

I like reading these posts. Being 1 week into my forum i have found a mountain full of info. So this brings me to 2 questions.
1) how do I get rid of the thumbs up or thumbs down?
2) I have deleted a few posts but do not see the area that you are talking aboout that they are still not gone could you tell me where i could find these in case 1 actually does get deleted and i want to recover it?
Thanks again for the helpfull members here

I can hopefully help with your first question. Go to Adim panel, choose appearance and CSS. Once CSS box is open, paste this code in and go to save at the bottom of the box. Then,  see if it works.  
.post_score, .post_vote_control {display:none;}
Let me know if this works for you.

wow breezy that worked perfect. thanks
Anyone know why i might not be able to see deleted posts or where i might find them?

You're welcome. I will see if I can find out about deleted posts.

Okay... I guess only replies can be deleted and gotten back, not a whole post. So..if you deleted the original post and all replies, you can't get it back. The original question, topic, etc.. will be gone for good, if you delete it.

This is what Chief posted about deleted posts. His very last reply on page two is the answer you needed.

http://support.lefora.com/2009/06/02/upcoming-changes-to-how-deleting-posts-works-on-yo/page1/

ok that is what happened thanks again for the reply breezy big help

you might want to email Chief and see if he can help you with that. Go to his profile and send a message. He has helped others get back some things, when possible.