Necro threads

thebackupplan
thebackupplan Posts: 8 Arc User
edited December 2012 in Suggestion Box
Closing threads you deam dead AFTER people have started posting in them again seems counter productive. If people are posting in them again they arent dead anymore. Perhaps there should be a system to have threads auto close themselves when no one posts in them for "x" amount of days, to prevent this from happening. Seems like a simpler fix to me than having to constantly close threads people have started posting in again. Or trying to enforce people reading a whole thread about rules to posting ideas, and having them search all over the place and look at posting dates before they can have an idea.

On a side not I don't see the issue with posting in older threads rather than having new ones on the same topic. It would keep the number of threads down thus reducing thread clutter, and the need for links all over the place to old threads.
Post edited by thebackupplan on

Comments

  • Xx_BeLLa_xX - Harshlands
    Xx_BeLLa_xX - Harshlands Posts: 7,231 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    I do agree that threads should be close after X time so that would avoid the necro.
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  • Nowitsawn - Heavens Tear
    Nowitsawn - Heavens Tear Posts: 4,864 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    Would agree on the auto-close, suggested this before. What I believe to be the problem, though, is that they would need an unofficial vBulletin plugin to achieve this, and I don't think PWE is very eager to use that.

    But do note that most necros are unrelated to the thread, like in a thread from 2008 discussing the boutique, and someone necroes it with ''whats the best class?!?!? plzplplzplz''.

    Thread clutter is hardly an issue here, even General Discussion doesn't move a page on some days. It's better to have new threads anyway, keeps things fresh.

    For now, though, there would be a simpler action: a moderator just deletes the necro post (and ones after that) and locks it, this also removes the thread bump and puts the thread back where it belongs.
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  • ovenusarmanio
    ovenusarmanio Posts: 6,695 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    Would agree on the auto-close, suggested this before. What I believe to be the problem, though, is that they would need an unofficial vBulletin plugin to achieve this, and I don't think PWE is very eager to use that.

    But do note that most necros are unrelated to the thread, like in a thread from 2008 discussing the boutique, and someone necroes it with ''whats the best class?!?!? plzplplzplz''.

    Thread clutter is hardly an issue here, even General Discussion doesn't move a page on some days. It's better to have new threads anyway, keeps things fresh.

    For now, though, there would be a simpler action: a moderator just deletes the necro post (and ones after that) and locks it, this also removes the thread bump and puts the thread back where it belongs.

    This. Although the main reason the majority of necros are not handled that way is because then people wonder why the thread was closed and don't know who to ask. Most aren't doing it purely to annoy everyone.

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  • thebackupplan
    thebackupplan Posts: 8 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    Would agree on the auto-close, suggested this before. What I believe to be the problem, though, is that they would need an unofficial vBulletin plugin to achieve this, and I don't think PWE is very eager to use that.

    But do note that most necros are unrelated to the thread, like in a thread from 2008 discussing the boutique, and someone necroes it with ''whats the best class?!?!? plzplplzplz''.

    Thread clutter is hardly an issue here, even General Discussion doesn't move a page on some days. It's better to have new threads anyway, keeps things fresh.

    For now, though, there would be a simpler action: a moderator just deletes the necro post (and ones after that) and locks it, this also removes the thread bump and puts the thread back where it belongs.

    ^pisses people off when they have something relevant to say, or an idea, and then it dissapears or the thread gets locked right when a disscusion is starting.

    And thread clutter is not an issue? there's 500 pages of threads in the suggestion box alone.
  • krisnda
    krisnda Posts: 4,655 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    ^pisses people off when they have something relevant to say, or an idea, and then it dissapears or the thread gets locked right when a disscusion is starting.

    While I do understand this statement, it would be more productive to create a separate thread where it's more focused on them and their question, not muddled with other irrelevant info.
  • Xx_BeLLa_xX - Harshlands
    Xx_BeLLa_xX - Harshlands Posts: 7,231 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    ^pisses people off when they have something relevant to say, or an idea, and then it dissapears or the thread gets locked right when a disscusion is starting.

    And thread clutter is not an issue? there's 500 pages of threads in the suggestion box alone.

    Generally the mod will just suggest to start a new thread. In worse case the person can copy/past his text in a new thread.

    People suggest to use the search option cause there's many people starting new threads on something there's already many thread existing, example: threads asking how merch, but if the person see the thread is old of 2 years than they should make a new thread.

    I just think many people post on forum without read the rules.
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  • thebackupplan
    thebackupplan Posts: 8 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=619111

    ^ a thread I posted in after searching for the topic to see if it has been done before, as per your forum rules, which come to think of it is pointless if we cant post in old threads, and it's better just to make a new one.


    http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=690942&highlight=helmet+display

    ^
    another person such as myself who decided to post about this topic but wait this person searched first and made a new one and was verbally abused for his trouble.
  • krisnda
    krisnda Posts: 4,655 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=619111

    ^ a thread I posted in after searching for the topic to see if it has been done before, as per your forum rules, which come to think of it is pointless if we cant post in old threads, and it's better just to make a new one.


    http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=690942&highlight=helmet+display

    ^
    another person such as myself who decided to post about this topic but wait this person searched first and made a new one and was verbally abused for his trouble.

    What searching alows you to do is to see if there is something answering your question already, and if there isn't then a new thread should be made.

    What your posting here is different because it's a suggestion. The necroed threads we're mostly talking about involve something else, like what class is best/can't login/threads.

    However, there is another stickied thread: http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=1167321

    Which outlines some of the most frequent suggestions made, in an effort to decrease those types of threads because they have been "beaten to death already."
  • ovenusarmanio
    ovenusarmanio Posts: 6,695 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=619111

    ^ a thread I posted in after searching for the topic to see if it has been done before, as per your forum rules, which come to think of it is pointless if we cant post in old threads, and it's better just to make a new one.


    http://pwi-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=690942&highlight=helmet+display

    ^
    another person such as myself who decided to post about this topic but wait this person searched first and made a new one and was verbally abused for his trouble.

    A lot of topics have been discussed a lot, and they die because the majority of the playerbase do not want or have come to accept that the odds they are going to happen are almost astronomical. We can't force people to agree with other posts, nor would we want to. Both criticism (as long as people are not name-calling, flaming, and in general breaking ToS) and praise are both welcome in any suggestion. If something has been suggested numerous times and the answer is always "no," then the person learned that by searching and risks annoying others by posting it anyway. That's true of any given topic anyone posts about. The necro rule is to maintain order and to ensure the most prominent information in the forums is only the information that is actually still relevant. Some suggestions do get overly criticized but usually those are ones that have been suggested overly often when the answer is no, and has been no for a long time. I understand the frustration when you want to say more about a topic, but that is what a new thread is for and you will not get into trouble for making a new thread about a dead topic. With the exception of the topics in a sticky. Who knows maybe in that time-span people's opinions on the issue will have changed.

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  • thebackupplan
    thebackupplan Posts: 8 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    And my post wasn't in that list, and the old reasons for it not bein an option i dont belive are valid anymore since head fashion, but thats off topic.

    The suggestion box asked me if I thought you were "noobin it up" and closing threads people are posting in is a pretty noobish thing to do. So I think it would be really a great idea to close any thread that hasnt been posted in in "X" amount of days, or if people are posting relavant things in it again perhaps leave it be.
  • krisnda
    krisnda Posts: 4,655 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    So I think it would be really a great idea to close any thread that hasnt been posted in in "X" amount of days, or if people are posting relavant things in it again perhaps leave it be.

    We do take that into account. The problem is that most don't.
  • thebackupplan
    thebackupplan Posts: 8 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    Thank you for listening and replying so promptly :)

    Sincerely your friendly neighborhood BackupPlan
  • ovenusarmanio
    ovenusarmanio Posts: 6,695 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    And my post wasn't in that list, and the old reasons for it not bein an option i dont belive are valid anymore since head fashion, but thats off topic.

    The suggestion box asked me if I thought you were "noobin it up" and closing threads people are posting in is a pretty noobish thing to do. So I think it would be really a great idea to close any thread that hasnt been posted in in "X" amount of days, or if people are posting relavant things in it again perhaps leave it be.

    And that's why a new thread would be better.


    The threads are closed because they are violating forum policy. And most necros end up with a sea of "+1s" if we don't close them. Discussion is just plain problematic in a necro-ed thread and there is literally nothing that cannot be accomplished in a new thread that links back an old thread rather than the necroed one itself. Please just try to follow the forum rules to avoid thread closure in the future. BTW, as Krisnda has pointed out there are rare exceptions that we do take into account. For example, most guides are not closed regardless of whether or not they have been stickied.

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  • Nowitsawn - Heavens Tear
    Nowitsawn - Heavens Tear Posts: 4,864 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    This. Although the main reason the majority of necros are not handled that way is because then people wonder why the thread was closed and don't know who to ask. Most aren't doing it purely to annoy everyone.

    That would lead me to suggest another feature; automated PM's when a post gets moderated

    Could just edit the last post of the thread with what you'd normally post. Perhaps even PM it to them (copy-pasteable, ''your post has been removed for necro bumping, don't to this again etc etc'').
    ^pisses people off when they have something relevant to say, or an idea, and then it dissapears or the thread gets locked right when a disscusion is starting.

    And thread clutter is not an issue? there's 500 pages of threads in the suggestion box alone.

    Well, about pissing people off... you can't please everyone. Devoting your idea to a discussion that died months ago seems counter-productive as well, if you ask me.

    And okay, 500 pages. In 4 years. That's 1 page every ~3 days (probably longer since things seem to have slowed down over the years). Not that hard to keep up with, now is it?


    I don't think there is a perfect solution to this, but what we have now seems to work.
    Krisnda wrote: »
    We do take that into account. The problem is that most don't.

    And I'd like to add that there is no clear line between what's relevant and what is not, so you can't really make an official statement about it.
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  • thebackupplan
    thebackupplan Posts: 8 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    And that makes perfect sense to me. however You've probably noticed there's a large portion of people who dont read the rules first, and by closing the threads when they die you would eliminate the entire necro issue.
  • krisnda
    krisnda Posts: 4,655 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    And I'd like to add that there is no clear line between what's relevant and what is not, so you can't really make an official statement about it.

    I'm not making it official, just saying that we do look at relevancy, which I disagree, you can see the difference in:

    Thread: Virus in pack.dll

    Necro post (relevant): A good way to get around the problem is to disable antivirus...etc (note that it still would be closed)

    Irrevlent: How do you download the game!!! it's not working.

    But I agree, no it's not a "clear line," but we try our best :3.
  • ovenusarmanio
    ovenusarmanio Posts: 6,695 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    And that makes perfect sense to me. however You've probably noticed there's a large portion of people who dont read the rules first, and by closing the threads when they die you would eliminate the entire necro issue.

    Moderators are simply players like yourself. We have to moderate the forums on top of our jobs rather than it being our job. I would love to be able to prevent any necros from happening by going through all these posts and clsoing the threads, but just isn't really feasible. So we just have to use this system in the meantime.

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  • Nowitsawn - Heavens Tear
    Nowitsawn - Heavens Tear Posts: 4,864 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    Krisnda wrote: »
    I'm not making it official, just saying that we do look at relevancy, which I disagree, you can see the difference in:

    Well, that's not quite what I meant. I mean that if there were an official statement on the matter, it would be nearly impossible to clearly explain what would make a necro bump acceptable and what would not.

    And even then you'd still have people just doing whatever they want because ''It's not against the rules!!''.
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  • krisnda
    krisnda Posts: 4,655 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    Well, that's not quite what I meant. I mean that if there were an official statement on the matter, it would be nearly impossible to clearly explain what would make a necro bump acceptable and what would not.

    And even then you'd still have people just doing whatever they want because ''It's not against the rules!!''.

    True enough. :3
  • thebackupplan
    thebackupplan Posts: 8 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    Moderators are simply players like yourself. We have to moderate the forums on top of our jobs rather than it being our job. I would love to be able to prevent any necros from happening by going through all these posts and clsoing the threads, but just isn't really feasible. So we just have to use this system in the meantime.

    I was more suggesting an update to the forum itself where it will automatically close a thread that hasn't been posted in in X amount of days. Obviously an option to turn this feature off or on for certain topics or threads would be needed. Making your lives as mods easier.

    I just figured if PWI can create a whole virtual world and modify it on a bi-weekly basis, adding options/features to a forum should be child's play.
  • krisnda
    krisnda Posts: 4,655 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    I was more suggesting an update to the forum itself where it will automatically close a thread that hasn't been posted in in X amount of days. Obviously an option to turn this feature off or on for certain topics or threads would be needed. Making your lives as mods easier.

    I just figured if PWI can create a whole virtual world and modify it on a bi-weekly basis, adding options/features to a forum should be child's play.

    b:chuckle. I like this post.
  • ovenusarmanio
    ovenusarmanio Posts: 6,695 Community Moderator
    edited December 2012
    I was more suggesting an update to the forum itself where it will automatically close a thread that hasn't been posted in in X amount of days. Obviously an option to turn this feature off or on for certain topics or threads would be needed. Making your lives as mods easier.

    I agree, it would be a nice tool to have.

    Would agree on the auto-close, suggested this before. What I believe to be the problem, though, is that they would need an unofficial vBulletin plugin to achieve this, and I don't think PWE is very eager to use that.

    This maybe the reason (don't know at all, just speculating same as everyone else) it hasn't been implemented yet though. Ah well, maybe someday. b:surrender.

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  • truekossy
    truekossy Posts: 7,021 Arc User
    edited December 2012
    As much as I want this, there's one major drawback.

    How am I supposed to spam +1s in necro'd threads when necros become more difficult to create?! D: