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May I suggest a way to flag zombie threads.

  • 15-09-2025 06:36PM
    #1
    The Continental Op
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,860 ✭✭✭


    I've fallen for posting in a good few zombie threads in the past. Probably after some bot has found the thread and posted.

    Why not change the background colour of the page according to how old the last two posts were? If the either of the last two posts was more than say 3 months old the background colour could be changed to the pink used in boards notices.

    Wake me up when it's all over.



Comments

  • #2
    Flinty997
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 15,453 ✭✭✭✭Flinty997


    They should just close them automatically if they didn't want people posting in them.



  • #3
    CelticRambler
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,363 ✭✭✭CelticRambler


    Three months is a bit drastic to use as a "zombie" marker. I've followed threads where some on-going problem or project would have an interval of longer than that, but the update is a valuable progress report. It's the threads with a ten-year gap being brought back to life by bots and other "new reg" posters that should be closed.

    Mind you, chances are every thread will be closed within three months so hardly worth asking Vanilla to banjax the site on us again for the sake of this one new feature.



  • #4
    The Continental Op
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,860 ✭✭✭The Continental Op


    I wonder if it could be added to someone's enhancement package?

    Wake me up when it's all over.



  • #5
    elperello
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 17,976 ✭✭✭✭elperello


    I agree that 3 months is a bit short but the idea itself is good.

    ATM unless someone reports a zombie thread being reopened the mods can't act.

    If some marker could be applied automatically people wouldn't get sucked in and reporting would happen more often.



  • #6
    Dial Hard
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 15,171 ✭✭✭✭Dial Hard


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123819759#Comment_123819759

    Even reporting them makes no difference in many cases. A lot of forums either don't have an active mod to respond to reports, or are so dead themselves that the mods are happy to see any posts at all, even ones on threads that are 15+ years old.



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  • #7
    elperello
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 17,976 ✭✭✭✭elperello


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123819854#Comment_123819854

    Yes it probably wouldn't help to trigger action in the case of unmodded forums.

    At the same time some sort of flagging be it a different colour or something else would at least alert posters.



  • #8
    Flinty997
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 15,453 ✭✭✭✭Flinty997


    We asked for all this years ago, post migration. Never happened..

    Utterly pointless now.



  • #9
    con747
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 10,305 ✭✭✭✭con747


    How would that work in dark mode? Probably not? Something needs doing though if the site survives. I hate going into a thread with a new post to find it's from 2005 or similar.

    Don't expect anything from life, just be grateful to be alive.

    Help Keep Boards.ie Alive sign up here

    https://subscriptions.boards.ie/ Keep Boards Subscribed To.



  • #10
    CelticRambler
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,363 ✭✭✭CelticRambler


    Proper forum software almost always includes a simple setting to automatically close/archive threads when the last post dates from [user-defined-interval].

    But apparently we're never going to get proper forum software, so it'll need a custom mod.



  • #11
    The Continental Op
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,860 ✭✭✭The Continental Op


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123820135#Comment_123820135

    I hate being an idiot for replying to a post from 2005 or similar.

    Wake me up when it's all over.



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