Reputation points could be considered props or a thanks, when you receive them it is a good thing!
i think rep and post count os one of the reasons i didnt tranition over to ASL from IM as others did. I had a lot of rep and post counts ever there and nothing trasfered over here i was pissed lol. And as stated above when you are respped its basically either becuase you made someone laugh posted soething to help someone and so on. its a thank you pretty much
This.Rep = Reputation. These are points given by other members when they feel you've posted or done something worthy of some commendation. You give rep points by clicking the start at the bottom of the users postbit (that's the section under the user name in their posts). They're not used for anything like purchase or gifts or anything. Just to show you've been helpful and deserve some credit that others can see.