What about closing threads? (+)

[RZA]

Once upon a time... When I've used to go to another forum (don't beat me! I'll never come back there :D), I noticed a very useful feature: any thread could be closed by either a mod or the thread's author. This happened when the author was satisfied with answers gained, or the information in the thread was no more applicable.

It's so REALLY handy, cause when I see a thread where the last respondent is itss own author, I doubt heavily: either he's satisfied, or maybe he has new questions (needs clarification, etc.)? I look into those threads 10 times, see that the'ye all ending up with "Thanks guys, it helped", and get kinda mad...

Please respond with your comments on this - I think it could help us all...

P.S. That forum was running Ultimate Bulletin Board by Infopop, not vBulletin. However, they're very similar, so it's quite possible that this technique can be ported...

[Ridenow]

Mods can lock a thread if it gets out of hand. Users can not lock. I don't think we would want that if we could. I could see that having problems, someone closing a thread if they got a partial answer, but not the full answer.

[RZA]

Originally posted by Ridenow
Mods can lock a thread if it gets out of hand.

Yeah, but I don't often see them do it.


Users can not lock. I don't think we would want that if we could. I could see that having problems, someone closing a thread if they got a partial answer, but not the full answer.

Well, people must be conscious enough to realize whether they want an answer or not. No kids here, right? Don't really think it's a problem.

Just my opinion, though...

[Ridenow]

Originally posted by RZA


Yeah, but I don't often see them do it.




Well, people must be conscious enough to realize whether they want an answer or not. No kids here, right? Don't really think it's a problem.

Just my opinion, though...

True, there are not many threads that get locked. The staff tries and usually succeds in keeping things nice so nothing would need to be locked.
Yes, we do have kids here.

[William]

We only lock threads that are out of hand. If a thread breaks the rules, it gets moved elsewhere. I am against letting it happen simply because there are always new ideas that people can add to problems, there are often several ways to solve a problem, or more than one suggestion for a heatsink. A post can prompt a question from another user. I see what you are getting at, but I like it the way it is :).

[CharlesHF]

Hey, I'm 16!! Does that qualify me as a "kid?"
I think that it's a good idea to leave threads that don't break the rules open and not deleted, because they can be a good reference. You can't imagine the amount of new people we get in here that could have all their questions answered by using our great search (http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/search.php?s=) engine and looking up old threads. But I still don't mind helping them in the least.;)

[RZA]

Originally posted by CharlesHF
Hey, I'm 16!! Does that qualify me as a "kid?"
I think that it's a good idea to leave threads that don't break the rules open and not deleted, because they can be a good reference. You can't imagine the amount of new people we get in here that could have all their questions answered by using our great search (http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/search.php?s=) engine and looking up old threads. But I still don't mind helping them in the least.;)

1) I meant "kid" not by age, but by mental abilities. Are you able to decide whether your question is answered or not?

2) CLOSED is not DELETED. A closed thread is just a regular thread you can't post to. It still can be searched and read...

William

OK, you're the god (or Skip is? ;)). No big deal, and I just gave it a try...

Close this thread, please :D

[Matthew1001]

RZA, I agree that some threads get useless toward the end with usually one line posts or something less than that and it doesn't really serve a purpose but giving people the ability to lock threads is something that doesn't need to happen. People might start locking stuff that it isn't necessary to lock like this one, RZA. :D

Also, the solution to useless posts at the end of threads is not locking them. It is better discipline and manner on the part of our members and maybe a little help from the mods. Everybody does it however so we all need to work on it.

[Crazy Jayhawk]

From what I've seen, a lot of threads get deleted instead of closed. This gives the person who posted the thread no clue at all what happened to it.

This happened to me, actually. I still don't know why one of my threads disappeared.

[RZA]

Well, I agree that it's not necessary to lock those threads; but maybe just make some "signal" that author doesn't need anymore help? Just for us to be able to prioritize 'burning' threads over those already useless...

Just a checkbox (available only for a thread's author) would be enough; then a sign in a thread list could indicate that the thread is 'worked out' for now...

[Silversinksam]

Also some threads contain very good info that gets asked repetitivly and if the thread is locked the info slips out of sight. By it being unlocked it can be brought back into the mainstream ;)

[Matthew1001]

Also, sometimes in a thread other people come in and ask related questions so the threads are not just for the author's help but also others.