i got my first star. i dont know what this means.

Everyone gets a star when they reach 100 posts. Along the way to that, some people have voted plus or minus on your posts, and when your star comes, you are rated on those votes. If you annoy a lot of people your rating will drop, if you impress them, it will rise. It doesn't really mean a lot: in some topics, there are people of very different belief systems, and some of them will vote minus simply because you don't agree with them. Lash