Bumping old threads - would this help? (xenforo add-on)

[triciayoung]

I have noticed this happening a lot lately and can see both sides of it. In a lot of cases you can tell a new member is bumping an old thread by giving advice to someone who hasnt been on BYC in ten years and in that case it kind of clutters up the New Posts section. The discussion isn’t active if the OP is no longer online. On the other hand, some old threads are useful discussions that show up in searches and have topics that are still relevant whether the OP is still active or not. I think new members would probably appreciate knowing they were commenting on a decade-old question before they click Post Reply because I think it is a genuine mistake.

I don't agree. I don't think it is a mistake at all. I respond to old posts a lot. Let me give you an example. We all know that if we are looking for information on something on BYC, it is actually faster to google it and then choose the BYC link, then it is to search in BYC. Many times, I will find information that is years old, sometimes decades old. I actually post and add any other information I have to that post because when the next person is looking for help, they will get what I posted as well.

 

[GodLovesU]

Maybe the pop-up could say something specifically targeting to people asking questions. Adding information is great if they want to do that, but if they want a question answered it might be best to start a new thread.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

But what's easier, or better or faster? To wade through the hundreds of new threads asking the same questions at different times? - or reading fewer but longer threads with richer and more current information? Or ... letting AI summarize an answer from all the info on BYC?

 

[Altairsky]

I think there should be a pop-up warning about old threads. I myself almost replied to necroed threads a decade old without realizing. It enrages me because maybe I wasted 30 minutes of my life to answer an op that disappeared from the forums a dozen years ago! If there was a pop-up warning me, I would never waste my time again.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I am not a computer person but I imagine there is a way to make the date show up a certain color at the top of the post so maybe a five-year old thread could have a bold, yellow date and a ten year or older one could have a bold red date—just something to draw the eye to the date at the top of the thread so we can all use our own judgement on whether or not to read or participate in the thread. I realize this would make some ongoing threads show up red but when there are fifty pages of something you probably know what you’re in for