threads going off topic..again

WhiteWashMan

actaully, im not sure why that was closed.

to be honest, i have to admit that i feel that there is a lot of closing and pruning of threads if the topic goes slightly awry.

why is it nessecary for a topic to be kept entirely between two posts, and any post that wanders or deviates slightly from this ends up being edited.
its something ive noticed a lot on the more 'serious' forums, however, isnt that just the place where youd like a discussion, an argument, or a conversation to wander, meander, and generally go through a life cycle. PI being the worst by the way.

after all, the next time your in a pub i'd like you to talk about the advantage of a tsb credit card, and not deviate from that topic.
whats the bets you will start to talk about other bank's cards, and then maybe, just maybe the merits of these other banks. and then you might talk about mortagaes, and before you know it you are talking about houses and kitchens and back gardens, and thats a long way from your credit card.

so, threads meander. threads are not much different from conversations. so why treat them like scripts, to be kept strictly on track?

and why was the original thread closed?

Typedef

Originally posted by WhiteWashMan

why is it nessecary for a topic to be kept entirely between two posts, and any post that wanders or deviates slightly from this ends up being edited.
its something ive noticed a lot on the more 'serious' forums

Strange you should mention that, as for me anyway, I'll only really intercede in a discussion that has decended into flamery and/or abuse, but then again, most of my fora, don't get large amounts of traffic... so I still have a comparitive amount of patience vis-a-vis giving people the benefit of the doubt when it comes to potential muppetry.

*Kill em all, let bubbles sort em out.

Bard

I'm actually totally in agreement with WWMan... all this locking of threads for going half an inch off topic is a wee bit over the top alright.

amp

Me? I like windsurfing. Not that I do it much or at all but hey, I like to think that if I did, I'd be pretty leet at it. Low centre of gravity and all.....

COS THIS IS MY UNITED STATES OF WHATEVER!!!!

WhiteWashMan

where are my dvd's you bum?

WhiteWashMan

the above two are good examples of posts that should be deleted.
there is no connection to the topic or the way the thread is going.

but this isnt what im talking about

amp

E-mail me your address baby. Oh and I have this rash, on my elbow. Does anyone have a cure? Also there's this girl in my class that I really like, but I'm too shy to talk to her. Any advice?

But seriously though, I'm a fascist when it come to off-topicness in most of the boards that I mod because otherwise we'd have 200 slightly different flavours Afterhours. And while I love After Hours dearly I think one is enough for now.

WhiteWashMan

i love you

Hobbes

I think we need a new lock icon as I'm bored looking at them.

try using the split thread option if it gets too much.

swiss

Well, I suppose it could be said that I moderate a quasi-serious forum , and given the nature of Politics, many of the threads presented meander occasionally from the title.

For example, in the current crop of threads we have The Republicans have full control which originally began with a discussion about the overall majority Republicans enjoy in both houses of Senate in the US. However, it has moved to discussions of the implications of this in US foreign policy, to the threat of terrorism and the response of the US to real and perceived threats, to war in Iraq to..... you get the idea.

The politics board is essentially about discussion about systems of governance, and issues that effect these systems, a very broad range of discussion. Hence threads cannot be restricted to too narrow a scope, otherwise it may be difficult to understand all the intricacies and nuances of a particular situation.

Personally, when I first started moderating the politics board, I routinely closed threads that were off topic. Now I find that ideas that were supposedly "off topic" can sometimes shed new light on the topic in question, or at least give a different perspective. If a thread meanders hopelessly OT, I might fire up a warning, or close the thread (more than likely another mod would do this before me though ).

Of course, if someone starts discussing their grandmothers rose garden in the middle of a discussion of the future of a political party or power, then that will be summarily deleted - before I post it .

Gordon

Originally posted by WhiteWashMan
PI being the worst by the way.

I haven't had or heard of any complaints, have you got any examples?

WhiteWashMan

Originally posted by Gordon
I haven't had or heard of any complaints, have you got any examples?

well, im not going to dig up any, but you wont be able to see them as they have been deleted

i havent been on much in the past month so i cant say if its been happening recently.

stop being so defensive anyway. smiles is the main culprit anyway, but you did go though a tasty phase of being on a moral strong box. i'll let you know if you do anything else i deem wrong though

Runfree

ummmm..... United States of Whatever

Nice 1 amp.

Ok threads get closed too fast alright. I just asked some-one one question that went off topic and i even mentioned it and said it was the only thing i was asking and the thread was closed.

thats just stupid if you ask me as I did say it was off topic and was going to return to the topic straight after

Gordon

Originally posted by WhiteWashMan
stop being so defensive anyway. smiles is the main culprit anyway, but you did go though a tasty phase of being on a moral strong box. i'll let you know if you do anything else i deem wrong though

Great, can't wait etc etc.

ozpass

The 'All Things Retro' board, being nostalgia driven such as it is has threads that frequently go 'off topic' in the biblical sense. I even take them 'off topic' myself on occasion. I've never locked a thread for doing so, however, and there's probably a fair argument in favour of leaving OT threads alone on a board entitled 'All Things Retro'.

I think WWMan's comparison with a pub discussion is particularly relevant to myself......nostalgic rambling + pint =

Having said which, 'All Things Retro' isn't straining under hundreds of posts a day (thank god) so fair play to moderators that do lock OT threads. They're just taking care of business their particular way....

That in itself is what I like about boards.ie - a range of different mods adds to the 'flavour' of the various discussion forums.

[edit] I started out trying to say something and ended up saying nothing. D'Oh! [/edit]

Mercury_Tilt

This post has been deleted.

spooky donkey

yeah of topic should not be the death only when people start talking crap warn them then close the thread if they persist.

Caesar_Bojangle

so did anyone see the liverpool - man city match?

RicardoSmith

Closing threads if its full of stupid posts, flames and trolls is fair enough. But I have seem some being closed after only 4 posts! My own previous thread is a case in point. It was closed after 7 posts whereas this one which has more spam posts is still open. Giving a warning is great except it doesn't happen like that, the thread is usually just closed.

GoneShootin

so did anyone see the liverpool - man city match?

bold

spooky donkey

No! what was the score!

Lets see how long this therad lasts now!
Who has the balls to close it!

Come on lads go for it!
And i thoght the admin board was serious, seems more like a place for taking the p1ss, but hey who cares! Take the p1ss i say.

Mercury_Tilt

This post has been deleted.

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

GoneShootin

id close it, but my balls are locked in the car

Runfree

tbh thought you guys are not going off topic as you are still talking about Mods closing posts cause they are going off topic and asking who is going to close it this time. Also you are puttin examples up to why it should be closed therefore staying on topic even though not mentioning any of the topic so there is no reason to close this post(YET)

Beruthiel

Originally posted by Mercury_Tilt
Spooky.... I have this bus organised...... Your in the fourth seat.
Make yourself comfortable.

who's in seats 1,2 & 3??

GoneShootin

You, Me, and the Bus Driver

sounds like the title to a great SONG/FILM

WhiteWashMan

Originally posted by Beruthiel
who's in seats 1,2 & 3??

how many admins on this forum.....?

spooky eh?

Mercury_Tilt

This post has been deleted.

Runfree

Can I go???

Victor

Yeah, I think part of the problem is some of us (me and most mods included) are taking liberties and the particular mods involved are getting upset. See the example of me and DeVore here (Amp got 'upset'): http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?postid=692609#post692609

Originally posted by WhiteWashMan
actaully, im not sure why that was closed.

Irony?

RicardoSmith

Blithering Idiocy more like it

WhiteWashMan

Originally posted by RicardoSmith
Blithering Idiocy more like it

i would certainly hope that isnt directed at me?

WhiteWashMan

Originally posted by Victor
Yeah, I think part of the problem is some of us (me and most mods included) are taking liberties and the particular mods involved are getting upset. See the example of me and DeVore here (Amp got 'upset'): http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?postid=692609#post692609
Irony?

by the way, was that an admin going of on a tangent and having a laugh and taking a thread off topic?

so it seems that all of us dont like to sit on the path to devotional all the time.

so why not cut some slack.

maybe it should be on the mod board?
after all, these re the people that make the cuts?

Typedef

Originally posted by WhiteWashMan
the mod board?

a). There is no such board
b). the (board that doesn't exist), has to be one of the most trolled.
c). I blame others for that..... mostly the bus drivers.... but sometimes the admins too.

Typedef

Much as I hate to post on topic*, a thread going off topic is pretty much grand, at worst split the thread so divergent topics can proceed.

If the dicussion 'evolves' like a wee darwinian beastie then fine, if there are two different topics... split the thread.

No biggie.

*no really.

RicardoSmith

Originally posted by WhiteWashMan
i would certainly hope that isnt directed at me?

nope I just needed to use the word "Blithering"...

Caesar_Bojangle

the (board that doesn't exist), has to be one of the most trolled.

Dont listen to him people, i've seen it with my very eyes it does exist. For imparting that piece of information i fear i will have angered the freemasons

WhiteWashMan

Originally posted by Caesar_Bojangle
the freemasons

who?