I like spending time reading the posts on this board. I like replying with my own opinions. I have never told someone their opinion is wrong. I have never told someone they are stupid. I have never done anything rude on this board. There is something really bothering me. Someone resurrects an old thread, and it shows up in the top page of the forum section. I only read the first page of posts, expecting them to be new-ish. I don't like to go any further in the pages, because they are probably dead topics. Is there a way for the mods to flag a post as being created a long time ago? or something like that? so that we can easily tell when we are about to read a conversation that happened a long time ago?
but this begs another question: why can't i read a topic from a long time ago? what if it's a discussion I wish i had been there for but have only been using the forum for a couple months? does it mean that if we just saw a topic from a few months ago we cant join the discussion because technically its a "necropost"? Can we just turn off a topic after it sits dead a certain amount of time so that people who are good and loyal posters dont get flagged as a necroposter? I like to think that when I do make a post its not stupid. And i NEVER purposefully resurrect an old post. How could i if I dont go past the first page of them? Please help me feel like I'm not being alienated cause I havent been on this post since I was born. It feels like that sometimes. Is there anything we can do?

I've renamed this topic to something more apropriate.

The date on which a post or topic was made is written at the top of each post, as a general rule of thumb "necroposting" is when someone resurrects a very old thread but contributes nothing new to the discussion that warrants bringing it back up.

For example, posting "yes, i agree!" in a topic that became inactive several years ago and which was discussed by members who are no longer here would be considered necroposting. It's not forbidden as such, but it is quite annoying and is considered bad 'netiquette', like typing in all caps or bumping topics.


Old topics are still beneficial because they contain discussions and information that people may be looking for and may still enjoy reading. Nobody gets 'flagged' as a necroposter, so don't worry about that.

I'm glad this was brought up, lately necroposting has become like a plague!!! I keep hitting reply wanting to give people a bit of a hard time because it does bother me, but then I hit back and don't say anything. We end up reading a half page of posts, realize we've read it eons ago, scroll down and read a few sentences at most of nothing important! (rawr)

I'm pretty sure I've seen topics closed here due to necroposting. Should we report them? Tease the necroposter? Do nothing?

What the OP said is one thing, I don't mind a post that's a few months old... But when a certain (unnamed) poster came in a few weeks ago and started posting two words in threads from 2002 it was beyond ridiculous.

I was member of a forum once with multiple posts like this one. After a certain period of time, say two years, the old posts would be deleted, and the significant important posts would be saved in an archive.

As you say if a thread is a few months old then it's ok to leave it, but if it's a few years old, and the poster has contributed nothing of use to the discussion, then reporting it helps let us know who is doing it.

Some people actually do this on purpose out of mischief or as an easy way to inflate their post count.

There's only a problem with necroposting if the post is something pointless. As long as there's still room for discussion it's fine, although people always seem to forget that. They take a look at the dates and scream "OMG NECROPOST" whether the post is useful or not; that's what needs to change.

I only give necroposters a hard time when they do as Saruman said and contribute nothing but an 'OMG' or an 'I agree' to an age old dead thread on more than one occasion. I try and explain why I'm doing it though because it seems some people don't understand the term necroposting at all.

Personally, I don't mind anyone necroposting any topic even one that has found it's way into the dpeths of the UM archives, this would save many members having to repeat what they said in the original discussion and stop many other members trying boost their post counts. Just as long as the necroposter add some content, or something to kick start the original discussion.

I don't agree with being rude to those that necropost, some new members are not that familiar with how things work here and at the end of the day, there is the Report function, it won't take long for the Sanitation department to close it.

I do believe I have necroposted after trolling through a gazillion posts..........sorry. Feel free to bonk me if I do it again. At least I usually have an opinion and leave out the OMG!

*whistles innocently*

The odd one or two is ok, but when you have the entire first page of threads necroposted with "yea I agree" or "wow" then it gets a bit much as what was happening lately, esp if it's pushing currents threads off the first page

At times it is annoying because many of the people in the topic don't come to UM anymore.

Delt with a snarky necropost lastnight. The guy had absolutely nothing to contribute but a snarky comment.. and when asked to clearify his opinion, since he obviously felt the need to raise the thread for some reason, he didn't.

*twitches* That.. is one of the most annoying part to necroposting. Make snarky pointless comment. Then throw a fit when called out on it.. then when given a chance to make pointless comment into something usefull.. doesn't. >.<

It is because I havent been active that much in the disscussion forums to stop all of that madness.
lololol


I keed
Abecrombie