Zombie Threads - Sometimes unnecessarily locked?

**Timbuk2**

OK, sorry for my silly question here.

Often on forums (not any forum in particular, but some are worse than others), 'Zombie Threads' get locked if they are dragged up.

OK, I can appreciate that on some forums (e.g. Banking) it makes sense as the information in a Zombie Thread is probably outdated. However, there are some Zombie Threads that are still as relevant today as they were when they were written, but as soon as somebody replies to them, the mod instantly closes them.

Why is this? I'm not saying that it's a stupid system, it makes sense in some circumstances (e.g. the banking example), but I think that mods can just close a thread as it 'mentions Zombie Threads in the charter', but without any real justification, because the information can still be relevant, and even helpful.

Thanks for reading (sorry for the stupid question).

Dudess

I used to leave them open all right if they were concerned with something topical.

billy the squid

Problem with zombie threads is that the information contained in the first posts, or the post previous to the one which a new poster is replying to, might be out of date.

star-pants

I know in the case of Animal/Pets, usually it's a question being asked about a specific thing, so if someone answers it months/years later, it's fairly irrelevant, and then you have posters not looking at the dates of the initial posts & posting away expecting replies from the OP. Those I tend to lock. Or if a thread is dragged up for an 'I agree' type post then I'll delete the post & that sends the thread back to where it came from.
Tends to cause confusion more often than not.

Spiritoftheseventies

I dont buy the argument that a thread should be locked just because its old. Yes the situation may have changed slightly re OP but closing zombie threads across the board doesn't make sense.

The Recliner

Spiritoftheseventies wrote: »

I dont buy the argument that a thread should be locked just because its old. Yes the situation may have changed slightly re OP but closing zombie threads across the board doesn't make sense.

it depends on the forum to be honest

In PI if someone drags up advice we lock it as the original poster may no longer be around (espcially true for Unreg posters) or the issue may have been resolved or the OP might nit want the thread dragged up

If someone posts in an old thread looking for advice then we generally move the post to a new thread so that they can get advice specific to them and leave the old thread as it will disappear back to where it came from

Spiritoftheseventies

The Recliner wrote: »

it depends on the forum to be honest

In PI if someone drags up advice we lock it as the original poster may no longer be around (espcially true for Unreg posters) or the issue may have been resolved or the OP might nit want the thread dragged up

If someone posts in an old thread looking for advice then we generally move the post to a new thread so that they can get advice specific to them and leave the old thread as it will disappear back to where it came from

Yeah but lets say you come across thread that is old but still relevant to the point you want to make.
Are we saying all threads have a use by date?

The Recliner

Spiritoftheseventies wrote: »

Yeah but lets say you come across thread that is old but still relevant to the point you want to make.
Are we saying all threads have a use by date?

it is a judgement call really, depends on the thread and the contents and the reason for dragging it up

it is why rules need to be fluid rather than rigid in some respects

Daemos

**Timbuk2** wrote: »

OK, I can appreciate that on some forums (e.g. Banking) it makes sense as the information in a Zombie Thread is probably outdated. However, there are some Zombie Threads that are still as relevant today as they were when they were written, but as soon as somebody replies to them, the mod instantly closes them.

You could always PM the mod that locked it, asking them to re-open it and explaining why. The worst they can do is say no.

**Timbuk2**

Thanks for the replies everybody!

DaPoolRulz wrote: »

You could always PM the mod that locked it, asking them to re-open it and explaining why. The worst they can do is say no.

I know I can, but it isn't really a problem in a specific forum, but rather a boards-wide tendency. I'm not suggesting that the mods are doing anything wrong by locking it, as it often says so in the charters, but I just think that it can sometimes be unnecessary and that mods can be a bit fast to lock it, just because 'Number x' in the charter, if you know what I mean.

I am going to pose this very question again in 2 years time but I'm going to post it in this thread to make a point.

jill_valentine

It happens occasionally in some of the music and movie forums, for instance, and I find that a bit weird. Switching the conversation over to a brand new thread for a particular band or movie doesn't make a whole lot of sense, the information bit of the conversation doesn't really go out of date and it can be worthwhile to see how opinions change over time and such.

Spiritoftheseventies

jill_valentine wrote: »

It happens occasionally in some of the music and movie forums, for instance, and I find that a bit weird. Switching the conversation over to a brand new thread for a particular band or movie doesn't make a whole lot of sense, the information bit of the conversation doesn't really go out of date and it can be worthwhile to see how opinions change over time and such.

Exactly. Threads dont need to updated like Windows or X Box. Some mods simply close threads on the premise they are old.
That said a zombie thread reporting thread like the Sigpo once would be a good one. In the meantime if threads are open there is absolutely nothing wrong with re opening them.