Lock old threads

rtpzwms · August 11, 2010, 08:59 AM

Instead of locking old threads after they have been raised from the dead why not lock all threads after x age? I won't tell the staff what x is thats up to you. But this would be proactive not reactive.... Just a thought.

**Mike Irwin** · August 11, 2010, 09:02 AM

No.

Some old threads, when they come back to life, are viable even after months or years.

It actually wouldn't be proactive, or reactive.

It would be overkill.

Evan Thomas · August 11, 2010, 12:35 PM

Almost invariably, old threads are reopened by new members.

I just did a quick scout, and these were the first four reopened "necrothreads" I found. In two, the reopening was the person's first post; in one, the reopener had a post count of 2; the fourth was reopened by someone whose post count is given as 15, although he's been a member for a while...

started January 30, 2007
http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...9&postcount=32

started September 27, 2008
http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...1&postcount=10

started May 1, 2001
http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...2&postcount=27

started November 26, 2005
http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...1&postcount=22

I'm only semi-serious here, but what if the forum software could be tweaked so that members would only have "necrothread reopening privileges" after some minimum post count?

Sort of like the "For Sale/Wanted" forums?

Instead of seeing the message that says "Are you sure you want to reopen this thread?" they'd see one that says "No can do, Grasshopper... go, and post some more..."

I bet this would eliminate at least 95% of this.

Oh, and... I do like the new thread-dating arrangement.

**Mike Irwin** · August 11, 2010, 12:51 PM

Personally, I don't think anyone should be able to post unless they have more than 23,000 posts.

Is your life destroyed by encountering a necrothread?

Is the horror so complete that your brain crumbles under the weight of it?

Do you wake up in the middle of the night, shrieking as you dream about your encounter with a necrothread?

Yes?

You do?

Oh well, get over it.

As I said, we're more than content to handle the occasional necrothread on a case by case basis.

Don't particularly want to deal with the necrothreads? Let me tell you how...

A few weeks ago we tweeked the software so that on the forum message list older threads now have a statement like this under them "(poster who started this thread), started January 8, 2009"

Looking for that will tell you just necro a thread really is.

**Mal H** · August 11, 2010, 12:57 PM

"... go, and post some more..."

Know what they would do if we told them that? They would go and post some more! The posts generated by that may not be quite as substantial as we would like, either.

Trust me, we understand the problem, and agree to a point. However, as Mike pointed out, some resurrection of old threads can be desirable. So who is going to make the call on which threads should be closed and which can remain open for future clarification or input?

Perhaps if we can get the older members to stop admonishing any new members (and some old members) to "do a search before posting that tired old question", then maybe the problem would be lessened just a little bit.

Now, admittedly that third example was a doozy! I can't fathom what makes anyone, new member or old, want to reopen a 9 year old thread just to add a throwaway one-liner like that. It doesn't make sense, but it is also rare enough that it doesn't make us want to start locking old threads.

**Mike Irwin** · August 11, 2010, 01:00 PM

Uh, pardon me, Mal?

You don't have 23,000 posts.

Stop posting, please.

highvel · August 11, 2010, 01:44 PM

I never thought it did much harm to me. Sometimes I get enjoyment out of re-reading the diverse comments and the new questions that are asked.
But, it may cost me a couple of clicks, that maybe a problem, are we on a click-o-meter???

Old Grump · August 11, 2010, 01:52 PM

Quote:

No.

Some old threads, when they come back to life, are viable even after months or years.

It actually wouldn't be proactive, or reactive.

It would be overkill.

Agreed 100%, especially if something fresh comes out of it or it can answer a new posters question/problem. Beats the heck out of 27 Bear threads in a 3 week period. Okay maybe not 27 but when you are on 4 gun sites and you see the same thread on 3 of them and each site has half a dozen bear threads in a month or HD loads for the shotgun it gets kind of exciting. Says I with tongue firmly in cheek as I know I'm going to get sucked into them. I have seen old threads going back 4, 5 or more years with a new twist added to them and unless 20 posters were around then and heavily involved in that thread it usually doesn't bother most people that much.

nate45 · August 11, 2010, 01:59 PM

No, don't change anything. Old threads are fun. My favorite part is when people start answering the OP's question. Even though the thread is nine years old and the OP hasn't posted in eight and a half.

Evan Thomas · August 11, 2010, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mal H

Know what they would do if we told them that? They would go and post some more! The posts generated by that may not be quite as substantial as we would like, either.

Actually, I'm not sure there'd be the same incentive for "insubstantial" posts as there is for people who want to be able to use the buy-and-sell forums.

How about, "Go start yer own freakin' thread, n00b!"

No, I suppose not. Never mind.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nate45

My favorite part is when people start answering the OP's question. Even though the thread is nine years old and the OP hasn't posted in eight and a half.

Yes! They can be very funny, as well as occasionally informative.

(And my spell-checker thinks "n00b" is a word. Huh.)

sserdlihc · August 11, 2010, 02:25 PM

You can police something to death and kill the spirit of the forum in the process.

Oops...I don't have 23,000 posts.

Jimmy10mm · August 11, 2010, 02:37 PM

I never could understand people's objections to 'zombie threads'. If it was posted before July of 2010 it will be a new thread to me. I use due diligence in search before I bring something up as a new question but if someone else reopens a long gone thread every once in awhile I get something out of it.

DiscoRacing · August 11, 2010, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Oops...I don't have 23,000 posts

Close Tho

**Mal H** · August 11, 2010, 03:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Irwin

Uh, pardon me, Mal?

You don't have 23,000 posts.

Stop posting, please.

Really? Where did you learn to count? Check again, wiseguy!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vanya

(And my spell-checker thinks "n00b" is a word. Huh.)

It is a word. It's derived from the Yiddish word for pest, seriously.

Evan Thomas · August 11, 2010, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mal H

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vanya

(And my spell-checker thinks "n00b" is a word. Huh.)

It is a word. It's derived from the Yiddish word for pest, seriously.

Eh, not so sure about that.. I thought that was nudnik or nudzh? Good try, though.

But anyway -- spelled with two zeros??? My spell-checker thinks that's just fine... (and it doesn't care for "yer," which is a word, goldarnit.

)

And that post count... somebody does know how to tweak the software...

**Mal H** · August 11, 2010, 04:18 PM

We're getting pretty far afield here, so we'll end this shortly. Although with my post count, I should be able to post anything I want, right?

Quote:

Eh, not so sure about that.. I thought that was nudnik or nudzh? Good try, though.

It wasn't a try - it's the truth. You're on the right track. Noob (with o's not zeros) is a shortened form of noodge or nudzh. Why the 'd' changed to a 'b' is anyone's guess, but there are many examples of letter changes over the years in almost any language you care to examine.

Evan Thomas · August 11, 2010, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mal H

Noob (with o's not zeros) is a shortened form of noodge or nudzh. Why the 'd' changed to a 'b' is anyone's guess, but there are many examples of letter changes over the years in almost any language you care to examine.

OK. Pest, eh...?

So I wasn't so far off, in the "How to spot a newbie" thread, when I suggested that "n00b" was a word for the larval form of a mall ninja...

Hardly far afield at all, I'd say.

sserdlihc · August 11, 2010, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Really? Where did you learn to count? Check again, wiseguy!

Talk about executing executive privilege!

**Mike Irwin** · August 11, 2010, 04:59 PM

Good one, Mal. I'd forgotten that you, as semi-high lordish muckety muck, could do that.

**Mal H** · August 11, 2010, 05:04 PM

Do what?

**Mike Irwin** · August 11, 2010, 05:13 PM

Back to your mediocrity....

Al Norris · August 11, 2010, 06:47 PM

Quote:

I'd forgotten that you, as semi-high lordish muckety muck, could do that.

Mike? Do you seriously think Mal is the only semi-high lordish muckety muck?

nate45 · August 11, 2010, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Mike Irwin
N00b

Join Date: April 13, 2000
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 2

I can barely type, from the laughter.

Evan Thomas · August 11, 2010, 07:12 PM

<snort>

Al Norris · August 11, 2010, 07:44 PM

... and POOF!

All is as it should be.... [snicker]

August 11, 2010, 08:59 AM	#1
rtpzwms Senior Member Join Date: July 6, 2010 Location: OTS Posts: 1,035	Lock old threads Instead of locking old threads after they have been raised from the dead why not lock all threads after x age? I won't tell the staff what x is thats up to you. But this would be proactive not reactive.... Just a thought.

August 11, 2010, 09:02 AM	#2
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 13, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,427	No. Some old threads, when they come back to life, are viable even after months or years. It actually wouldn't be proactive, or reactive. It would be overkill. __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

August 11, 2010, 12:51 PM	#4
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 13, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,427	Personally, I don't think anyone should be able to post unless they have more than 23,000 posts. Is your life destroyed by encountering a necrothread? Is the horror so complete that your brain crumbles under the weight of it? Do you wake up in the middle of the night, shrieking as you dream about your encounter with a necrothread? Yes? You do? Oh well, get over it. As I said, we're more than content to handle the occasional necrothread on a case by case basis. Don't particularly want to deal with the necrothreads? Let me tell you how... A few weeks ago we tweeked the software so that on the forum message list older threads now have a statement like this under them "(poster who started this thread), started January 8, 2009" Looking for that will tell you just necro a thread really is. __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

August 11, 2010, 01:00 PM	#6
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 13, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,427	Uh, pardon me, Mal? You don't have 23,000 posts. Stop posting, please. __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

August 11, 2010, 04:59 PM	#19
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 13, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,427	Good one, Mal. I'd forgotten that you, as semi-high lordish muckety muck, could do that. __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

August 11, 2010, 12:35 PM	#3
Evan Thomas Senior Member Join Date: July 7, 2008 Location: Upper midwest Posts: 5,631	Almost invariably, old threads are reopened by new members. I just did a quick scout, and these were the first four reopened "necrothreads" I found. In two, the reopening was the person's first post; in one, the reopener had a post count of 2; the fourth was reopened by someone whose post count is given as 15, although he's been a member for a while... started January 30, 2007 http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...9&postcount=32 started September 27, 2008 http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...1&postcount=10 started May 1, 2001 http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...2&postcount=27 started November 26, 2005 http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...1&postcount=22 I'm only semi-serious here, but what if the forum software could be tweaked so that members would only have "necrothread reopening privileges" after some minimum post count? Sort of like the "For Sale/Wanted" forums? Instead of seeing the message that says "Are you sure you want to reopen this thread?" they'd see one that says "No can do, Grasshopper... go, and post some more..." I bet this would eliminate at least 95% of this. Oh, and... I do like the new thread-dating arrangement.

August 11, 2010, 12:57 PM	#5
Mal H Staff Join Date: March 20, 1999 Location: Somewhere in the woods of Northern Virginia Posts: 16,971	"... go, and post some more..." Know what they would do if we told them that? They would go and post some more! The posts generated by that may not be quite as substantial as we would like, either. Trust me, we understand the problem, and agree to a point. However, as Mike pointed out, some resurrection of old threads can be desirable. So who is going to make the call on which threads should be closed and which can remain open for future clarification or input? Perhaps if we can get the older members to stop admonishing any new members (and some old members) to "do a search before posting that tired old question", then maybe the problem would be lessened just a little bit. Now, admittedly that third example was a doozy! I can't fathom what makes anyone, new member or old, want to reopen a 9 year old thread just to add a throwaway one-liner like that. It doesn't make sense, but it is also rare enough that it doesn't make us want to start locking old threads.

August 11, 2010, 01:44 PM	#7
highvel Senior Member Join Date: January 21, 2010 Location: Powhatan VA Posts: 633	I never thought it did much harm to me. Sometimes I get enjoyment out of re-reading the diverse comments and the new questions that are asked. But, it may cost me a couple of clicks, that maybe a problem, are we on a click-o-meter???

August 11, 2010, 01:59 PM	#9
nate45 Senior Member Join Date: July 15, 2007 Location: Illinois Posts: 3,746	No, don't change anything. Old threads are fun. My favorite part is when people start answering the OP's question. Even though the thread is nine years old and the OP hasn't posted in eight and a half.

August 11, 2010, 02:25 PM	#11
sserdlihc Senior Member Join Date: December 10, 2008 Location: S.C. Posts: 1,454	You can police something to death and kill the spirit of the forum in the process. Oops...I don't have 23,000 posts.

August 11, 2010, 02:37 PM	#12
Jimmy10mm Senior Member Join Date: June 16, 2010 Location: Greenacres, FL Posts: 933	I never could understand people's objections to 'zombie threads'. If it was posted before July of 2010 it will be a new thread to me. I use due diligence in search before I bring something up as a new question but if someone else reopens a long gone thread every once in awhile I get something out of it.

August 11, 2010, 05:04 PM	#20
Mal H Staff Join Date: March 20, 1999 Location: Somewhere in the woods of Northern Virginia Posts: 16,971	Do what?

August 11, 2010, 05:13 PM	#21
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 13, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,427	Back to your mediocrity.... __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

August 11, 2010, 07:12 PM	#24
Evan Thomas Senior Member Join Date: July 7, 2008 Location: Upper midwest Posts: 5,631	<snort>

August 11, 2010, 07:44 PM	#25
Al Norris Moderator Emeritus Join Date: June 29, 2000 Location: Rupert, Idaho Posts: 9,660	... and POOF! All is as it should be.... [snicker]