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

 

[DuckLady]

I agree with @thecatumbrella. Sometimes old threads are not finished, but then someone comes along a few years later and adds their experience, and it is really needed, and then others can respond.

Exactly. An old thread is not an irrelevant thread. Experience counts and is valuable. Chickens have been getting sick for millennia. It ain't new.

I agree. I see too many new members being scolded in front of everyone for replying to an old post

This is my point. No one was hatched knowing the nuances of every little thing. There is a way to help and a way to be rude to a new (or old) member.
Much better to say “You may not get a response from the OP, as they haven’t been here in a while, but I have found that blah blah blah works well in that situation.” instead of making the new member feel foolish and unwelcome.
Most times they are looking for help and are stressed because their pet is sick and don't know what to do. Be kind or step aside silently and let someone else with empathy assist.

That additional experience might help YOU someday.

 

[CarpCharacin]

I'm definitely not a fan of how some forums automatically lock old threads, like if they haven't received a reply in several months. And I've been on forums where people are chided for not reading X, Y, or Z or searching old posts for solutions before resorting to posting a question, and that left a pretty bad taste in my mouth. Perhaps a message saying something like "you might be better served by starting a new thread" wouldn't be bad, but I'm also a proponent of minimizing the number of add-ons used since it makes things easier in the long term.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I wish there could be a notice pop up at the Search level, because that’s where a lot of this arises. Also a “search by most recent” option at the basic level, but I realize that could prioritize a lot of irrelevant stuff. * sigh *

And yes, there is valuable info in many old posts, but there’s a lot of junk too, often a previous one-off necro-bump, with incorrect info, which certainly isn’t helpful.

 

[SnackMeat]

I think having old threads pop up brings a nice change of pace to the normal 10-20 threads that regularly update several times a day.

If implementing this change cuts down on new posts, that's kind of a shame considering those old threads offer new reading and there's not *such* a ton of new threads daily that a few more are a hardship. But a few less (as disappointing as it may be that they are not current and any OPs are typically long since gone) would definitely be noticeable.

Since many online forums are experiencing (or have experienced) a slow death, I go with anything that makes the appearance of that slow death less obvious. (Yes I hope BYC had many happy years/decades to come, but I am guessing the forum was way busier 5-10-15 years ago.)