Forum Etiquette: Reviving and old Thread - Necro

[Rawny]

Q. What is the 'etiquette' on reviving or necro an old post?

I don't read or follow any other forums as I find most forum'able subject typically uninteresting. I want to know something I'll google it. There isn't anything mentioned in rules yet there are many "don't necro" comments so I'm not sure what to do. When I create a post I make certain to use keywords in the body and especially in the post title in case anybody ever does a search, the subject would be clear and easy to find.

Logic, at least mine, dictates that necro'ing should be good and even encouraged in order to keep all the same info in one location, assuming people don't stray from the original post idea. I've necro'd a couple times, staying on subject, without warnings. Logic can also dictate that a thread that is too old, though the subject be the same or similar, could be out of date and lead readers into error, possibly believing the information is recent.

A couple comments/suggestions then let the thread die, to be found by futures who have the same Q.

Ty
EDIT: and I can't event write the thread title without AN error. /facepalm

[Graphite]

A "necro" that continues with meaningful information should be fine. A "lol" or "me too" necro on the other hand... those need to be dealt with harshly. I'm reasonably sure that same standard gets applied here on the forums as well.

[Itamarcu]

As much as I know, the rules are:
-Do not reply just to respond to somebody
-Do not reply if your post does not contribute (e.g. "Yeah, I agree." or "This add-on is fun!").
-Do reply if you have new information, or if you have something contributing to say
-If you are unsure, you can always create a new thread about the subject and link to the old one (for reference, or to add info).

[AngelWithDirtyHands]

Thanks for this, I've never quite known where to stand on what counts as necro'ing. That last suggestion, in particular is very helpful :3

[Katalliaan]

I usually go by two main questions:
1. Is it still valid? (for example, a thread discussing making steel out of iron and nethercoal)
2. Would my addition be useful if the conversation continued?

If either gets a "no", then I either create a new thread or don't post anything.

[Eriottosan]

It's worth bearing in mind (and it's been mentioned several times by a vast cast) that even a post 2 hours after the last one can be a necro if the discussion on the thread has come to a logical close, whereas reviving a thread a month old or so may not be a necro if it adds sufficient contribution to the discussion. It's not all about time, it's about contribution.

[FlowerChild]

Yeah, Rawny, if I've never warned you about it, it's because you're not doing it :)

I think the etiquette comes down to "Is what I'm saying worth the conversation in this thread being reactivated, and worth others coming back here to revisit the topic?"

A lot of times, the people that I wind up warning (or even banning depending on severity, or repeat offenses) are either making the "me too" posts mentioned above, saying something that's already been done to death in the thread, or otherwise just not contributing anything meaningful to a conversation which was basically over. In most cases, they also seem oblivious to the date of the posts they are responding to, in a manner that indicates to me that they didn't even bother looking. Usually, this gets particularly aggravating when the thread being reactivated like that causes others to also chime in, and likely start treading the same ground that was previously covered.

Most threads generally have a life-cycle where the really interesting bits get said at the start, then it slowly devolves into less and less relevant comments (which can get rather annoying), then it eventually dies out. I think the most annoying part of a necro, is that all it tends to do is restart the latter part of that process, resulting in a bunch more comments of lesser relevance before the thing gives up the ghost again.

One other thing to keep in mind is that if you go back and post to a VERY old thread, what you may be asking people to do is to reread the entire (out of date) thing in order to get up to speed on the conversation. In those case, I'd say that creating a new topic is probably wise.

I think all net-ettiquette basically just comes down to thinking about the impact that an action will have on the people viewing it. In posting, you're basically putting up a little flag that says "hey! read this and respond!". If you're making a self-contained point in your post, that's rather easy to just look over quickly and as a reader decide whether you're interested or not. If your point is attached to a huge thread on the other hand, there's a lot more expected of the reader in terms of determining the context, and if that's only just to say "me too", that gets really fucking annoying :)

[Extreme Boyheat]

I don't think it's a huge deal.
It's only the people who post "LOL NECRO'D THREAD" that are the biggest nuisance to me.

[FlowerChild]

I don't think it's a huge deal.

Well...it is on these forums new guy.

[Extreme Boyheat]

I guess it's because I have very few forums I'd actively post on.
Think BTW brings it up to 4.

[jorgebonafe]

Wow.... You must really enjoy making graphs...

[Pentagram]

For those who may not see... THIS is a necro...
(May 25th > August 2nd!) - And first post in Suggestions forum
http://sargunster.com/btwforum/viewtopi ... 7&start=80

Fuck me. For those wishing for an example from the discussion about such things earlier today: here's one of an insta-ban necro.