Locked Threads

[danimakesitrain]

Getting out of hand, or no?

I understand locking threads when they have served a purpose, or there is reason to. But lately I've been seeing threads being locked for what seems like no particular reason. And I've even shown it to others just to make sure I didnt miss anything, and they didn't see a reason either. There's one mod in particular that goes around locking forums when the conversation isn't done yet, and frankly it's starting to get on my [and others] nerves. I've even saw someone lock Travis' thread, only to get yelled at by Travis for doing it, so obviously it's not just me.

This is a message board, it's a place for discussion. But when the discussion keeps getting locked, why even have a message board? Not everyone is going to agree with everyone else, and as long as the thread doesn't turn into flaming, I don't see why the threads should have to be locked. Disagreements is what makes a discussion INTERESTING. So why lock the threads? If it turns into flaming, absolutely. But I'm sick of going into topics to post in a legitimate discussion only to see it become locked right away. There is no need to lock a thread simply because a disagreement has been made. It's what the message board is FOR. It's what people came here for. They didn't come to agree with others 100% of the time, they came to chat. And you can't chat when people keep locking the threads. And yes, debating is what the debate subforum is for, but it should be allowed in other threads, otherwise it would get boring. Who would read that, or want to respond to a bunch of people agreeing with each other?

I am respectful to others, and respectful to mods, and I think the 4PP fans and users of the message board deserve to have the opinions heard, whether a mod disagrees with it or not. 4PP has even stated themselves that mods can't ban a user in chat simply because they disagree with them, so I think the same should apply to the forums; you can't penalize a user and lock an active thread just because you don't agree, or because you want to. It's wrong. And it's not just disagreements getting locked, I see topics getting locked when it's not breaking any rules. Meanwhile, there's a spammer on this board who keeps spamming and making topic after topic, and do those get locked? Of course not. Not only that, I've seen a mod flame another user as they shut down a thread. How is that even remotely fair? Is a mod allowed to insult people, which this was? The mod belittled someone and then locked the thread so they couldn't reply back. Nice.

I'm just tired of coming to 4PP's forums to chat and then not being able to because of a trigger happy mod. Can we tone it down on the locking if they're arent breaking any rules, or aren't flaming or spam? I would like to be able to reply in a topic without having to worry about it getting locked if I [or others] say something that a mod doesn't like. And since 4PP says it shouldn't happen, then I think the mods should atleast listen to the people who created the forum and 4PP movement in the first place.

I would also like to mention that most of the mods dont do this, it's mainly 1 person, and sometimes another. The reason I don't want to name names is because I don't want to be accused of flaming, or being accused of trying to start something, and as a result, get this thread locked too. Which would be irony.

I would just like a chance to talk. Anyone else feel the same way?

[Travis]

I hate it when im at other forums... and they lock shit down. I hate locking threads, i think its useless. who cares if its over a week old? i still want to fucking talk about it.
All i can say is... i don't lock threads unless its obvious spam.

[IkusaGTx]

Hey I'll let some old threads go by if I feel they still have conversation left. But if you bump an old (ie like a thread MONTHS old)thread that doesn't really have a purpose in I'm locking it.

[evilplans]

Mar 3, 2009 16:47:17 GMT -5 IkusaGTx said:

Hey I'll let some old threads go by if I feel they still have conversation left. But if you bump an old (ie like a thread MONTHS old)thread that doesn't really have a purpose in I'm locking it.

but the only reason to bump threads is to bring more conversation into it. so it would have a purpose. so there would be no reason to lock. remember, you aren't everyone. if you view something has nothing left, that's you. others think differently.

[GPink]

Mar 3, 2009 17:09:20 GMT -5 @evilplans said:

but the only reason to bump threads is to bring more conversation into it. so it would have a purpose. so there would be no reason to lock. remember, you aren't everyone. if you view something has nothing left, that's you. others think differently.

But what about if that bump is a useless post, only designed to bring up that thread to post a smiley, or an "lol"? It's an old post, and all it's doing then is sitting there taking up space. If a thread in that case has sunk, that means the conversation is probably over, and bringing it up with useless posts is not needed, and deserving of a lock.

Or course, if a meaningful aspect of the conversation comes to light, like new news related to the topic, then a bump is obviously better than making a new thread about the topic, and in that aspect, I wholeheartedly agree with you. If the topic is locked without due cause, and you believe that the topic has not been discussed fully, perhaps it is a good idea to make a new thread with that pertinent info, and include a background to the old topic, linking to it.

That said, it's fully up to the mods to determine whether a post's contents contain a healthy discussion, or a flame war. It's up to them, much like judges, to utilize their decision-making skills to determine whether or not to lock a thread. I think whenever a thread is locked, an effort should be made by the moderator who locked it to make the last post, explaining why he/she felt it was a proper course of action to lock that specific thread. If you feel a thread was unfairly locked, then you can easily send that mod a Private Message, and tell them why you think the thread should not have been locked. If the reasons are good enough, as determined by the mod, the thread should be unlocked.