...if the thing that you have done here was useful to me, I could have rewarded you with some merits.
I am amazed that you think the OP does not deserve your highly treasured merit. Not even a recommendation from you? Wow! Such a well thought out topic and research like this should get well-meaning merits - at all time. Of the 29 merits the OP received, yours isn't even there.
This is one of the major problems of the Merit system. Most people giving this merit have their favorite posters and buddies. Whether they post constructively or not, the Merit givers find a way to merit the post. Now, think of how many merits the OP would've got were the poster a username like Theymos, etc. I am not saying the mentioned users aren't great posters but they seem to be famous here. That's my observation and I stand to be corrected.
2) People think that giving merit will decrease their merit count.
This is very ludicrous. But then there are certainly people who have this mindset, no doubt.