closing old threads

[gymgal]

@JBS - Is there a way to automatically close old threads? I thought CB used to have this feature but maybe I am confusing it with another site. When new members come aboard, they tend to resurrect all these old topics that are no longer relevant. Would be nice if the threads could automatically close for new replies after a certain number of months without activity.

 

[JBS]

Yes... I'll have to figure that out again. It used to be automatic... but then we had some issues with that add-on. Right now I just do it manually... which means I forget to do it.

I am actually in the process of creating a to-do list for the site for maintenance. I will add it to the list so it gets done on a regular basis.

 

[JBS]

Alrighty... I actually found a new add-on to automatically handle this for us. It will automatically close threads that have had no replies in 120 days.

Closing threads is very good for forums... so we may actually reduce that even more to 60 or 90 days. The traditional forum concept that "it has already been asked and answered" is terrible for interaction.

We want new members to join and freely ask questions and get answers here... especially if it has to do with something that is very personal... like their child.

Hopefully this will encourage even more new threads!

 

[Janneke]

Closing doesn't mean removing, does it? I agree that resurrecting things from pre-historic times is annoying, but there is often (but definitely not always) some valuable information in those threads that can be useful.

 

[gymgal]

Closing doesn't mean removing, does it? I agree that resurrecting things from pre-historic times is annoying, but there is often (but definitely not always) some valuable information in those threads that can be useful.

All posts stay in the forum and are browse and searchable. you just can't reply to them. It prevents a new person from answering a question from 6 months previous where the original poster already got the answers. What usually happens is then more people post on it thinking it is a new post.

 

[gymgal]

Alrighty... I actually found a new add-on to automatically handle this for us. It will automatically close threads that have had no replies in 120 days.

Closing threads is very good for forums... so we may actually reduce that even more to 60 or 90 days. The traditional forum concept that "it has already been asked and answered" is terrible for interaction.

We want new members to join and freely ask questions and get answers here... especially if it has to do with something that is very personal... like their child.

Hopefully this will encourage even more new threads!

I personally would go for 60 days with no comments. Usually by then whatever the topic was, it has been resolved or the current event has moved on. If there was a way for the original poster to continue reply, that might be helpful, as they could post an update that allows for context and could spark new discussion. Not sure if that's an option though.

 

[JBS]

I personally would go for 60 days with no comments. Usually by then whatever the topic was, it has been resolved or the current event has moved on.

I'm pretty sure we used to have it set at 90 days and we weren't having any issues... so let's go ahead and test it at 60 days. I'll set it now.

If there was a way for the original poster to continue reply, that might be helpful, as they could post an update that allows for context and could spark new discussion. Not sure if that's an option though.

This would be a good feature... but it is not possible at this time. I do have an idea though.