Rather than deleting...

[Madscientist267]

This one's targeted at the various editors -

When a user posts 'irrelevant' content, rather than deleting the original post, why not just lock it (provided the content is not explicit or otherwise offensive)?

People come up with some wacko ideas, and the threads sometimes carry, but then the original post is missing, and it leaves one wondering what kind of wierdom came up with the post. It would be nice sometimes to be able to go all the way back.

Sometimes, these have an entertainment value even though they have no technical value. I'm not against closing the thread as soon as an editor spots it, but deleting it is more irritating to some of us, since this leaves partial threads with someone's replies (before the parent was deleted), and then be unable to see what provoked it.

Just a thought.

The thread that made me finally ask this was http://www.fieldlines.com/comments/2009/7/31/75249/0834/2#2

Click parent to work back up through the thread until it no longer shows up and you'll see what I'm getting at.

Steve

[TomW]

You might consider getting your FACTS straight before tossing about "advice" on how to better do something.

No stories or Diaries get deleted. Period.

Tom

[gotwind2]

Agreed Steve,

Maybe have a 'junk' section, similar to the newbies section, where it only appears if one decides to click on it.

Some innovative ideas can come from a seemingly nonsense notion, with the additional benefit of not totally alienating the original poster. It can be very annoying if someone has spent maybe 30 minutes trying to express themselves with words and diagrams/images just to be 'shot down'.

I agree, blast all the obvious explicit or offensive crap.

Nice idea.

[Madscientist267]

Tom -

It wasn't an attack... I wasn't insinuating or otherwise accusing anything, I just know that the policy (at least on the official level) is delete.

Its right in the "How to use the board" section -

"Your posting will appear immediately in its section. If it disappears from there, it has been deleted by our moderators for being off-topic or for other violations of our posting guidelines."

I was merely suggesting close instead of delete for anything that is not offensive.

If the particular post I mentioned earlier wasn't intentionally deleted, then it was hit by the 'posting bug' that I see mentioned from time to time, but what was I to think? To me, the topic of the post appeared to indicate something overunity in nature, which common consensus values as "off-topic" as mentioned in the "How to use the board" section.

So, I had all my "facts" as straight as I could have them with the information provided. And since the original post is missing, I have no way of knowing what category it was in.

Steve

[Madscientist267]

Thank you.

And the thing here is, it wasn't even my post, but the response to my suggestion was as if I had attacked directly (like it was my post)... shrug

I realize there's a bug on here that gets us from time to time, but I didn't honestly think this was the case this time (and still might not be) because of the topic involved.

And Tom, I'm sorry if I irritated you. Tomorrow is another day... ?

Steve

[ghurd]

I think it should have been deleted.

It just lets the crook sell more crap to the uninformed masses.

If it worked, you would have seen it on the news with blurred out sections,

Or on YouTube in its full glory,

Or at least have had some kind of "Something".

Letting it stay propagates the myth.

The original post was nothing more than "what'cha think?" as far as I could tell.

I can't figure out what he was asking in the solar post.  I figured it was about trackers, probably because that's what I have been thinking about.

G-

[kurt]

what tom was saying is the post was not permanently deleted from the board just hidden from public view for all intents and purposes the same thing as far as users can see and i was the one that hid that particular diary perhaps i should have disabled all the comments to it as well instead of making them read only?? would that have been better?? it was a overunity post so therefor there was no way it could stay visible on the board that is just not allowed that is a directive from as high up as it goes around here no compromises on that. so blame me if you must......  

[Bruce S]

Gents;

I agree with Kurt and TomW on this one.

I looked into the post the tracker stuff and all.

It must be a Friday nice outside thing, 'cause I found it hard to believe it lasted long enough for me to back klick on it.

Steve, Gotwind;

  A junk folder will fill an already over taxed system.

I'm luck enough to know how hard servers out there get hit by 'bots and how hard it is to just stay afloat.

Before posting try send a question to Admin to ask, ALL emails I've EVER sent were answered , even ONE I asked to have deleted for the words I put up.

Be kind, Steve I know you didn't mean to come off sounding like a slam, but send the ADMIN an email first.

They will truly understand and explain in a much longer email.

Cheers ALL;

Bruce S

[taylorp035]

I had one of my posts deleted yesterday and I thought it was really good and relevant and not off topic or had been discussed a million times.