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  1. - Top - End - #1
    Ogre in the Playground
    Join Date
    Dec 2017

    Default Can you add the date a thread started next to the name of the starter?

    In the thread listing, the latest poster is listed with the date of the latest post. I was wondering if the date a thread was started could be added next to the name of the thread starter?

    The purpose would be to reduce the propagation of necro'ed threads. Sometimes folks post to an old thread by accident but it then continues since unless someone reads each post and checks the date it isn't immediately obvious how old the thread is. By adding the date a thread was started on the forum page that lists the threads it becomes much easier to see how old the thread is and whether you should continue to post in that thread or, if the topic is of interest, start a new one.

    P.S. I did try searching using the forum search tool to see if this had been suggested previously but nothing relevant came up ...

  2. - Top - End - #2
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Iruka's Avatar

    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Germany

    Default Re: Can you add the date a thread started next to the name of the starter?

    I do not think this would help with necros, especially since the start date of a thread is not relevant for necromancy, only the last post

    The most necros do in my experience also happen from spam to random threads or people directly replying to some post they found via a search. Neither of which would be deterred by a date on the forum overview.


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  3. - Top - End - #3
    Sheriff in the Playground Administrator
     
    Roland St. Jude's Avatar

    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Can you add the date a thread started next to the name of the starter?

    Sheriff: Regarding the initial necro of a thread, the date the thread was started is irrelevant to thread necromancy. This issue is whether the latest post is within the last 45 days.
    If a thread hasn't been posted in within the last 45 days, don't reply to it.
    That information is readily available, as you note, in the thread listing. It's also on the last post itself. People should be able to spot an old thread before posting in it. And for the most part they do. Most thread necro-ing is by very new posters, who don't know there's a rule, or spammers, who've grabbed a thread at random.

    Now, what you're talking about is for people who come after that initial necro-poster and, spotting that new post, don't realize the thread was recently raised from the dead. So they post without realizing it's a necro-thread and so does the person after that, and so forth. That does happen, but it's not much of an issue. For the most part, posters here are really good at spotting a necro'ed thread and reporting it. Based on the reports we get, lots of posters scan the last page of posts for dates before posting. And this is one spot where posters also usually do a good job politely referencing the rule.

    True, once a thread gets three or four new posts deep, the necromancy is a little harder to spot, but these instances are relatively rare. It's probably not worth the technical effort to the customize the forum, though Rawhide can opine on that better than I.

    You raise a valid problem and propose a idea that would help address it, but it's a very tiny problem with very minimal consequences, and the technical effort wouldn't be justified.
    Last edited by Roland St. Jude; 2019-01-16 at 04:52 PM.
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