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It's just irritating. Discussion on a topic dies for a reason. To come back over a decade later and try to revive discussion on that topic is more likely to make someone roll their eyes than actually engage.

A post that revives an extremely old thread usually doesn't add any value to the conversation. If it's significant enough to jump start the conversation again (ie with new information), it probably deserves a new thread.

Yes, it doesn't do any harm, but it's more about common forum/board courtesy than anything else.

This post has been edited by Kiroshino on Dec 10 2015, 08:58 AM

This. The team isn't warning harmful content as much as teaching table manners when it comes to this guideline. Forget which one is the salad fork enough times and one of the green meanies gets to slap your hand.

What about if the forums are so dead the only threads you find interesting and can reply to with relevant information are over 30 days old? Or maybe you have an update to your collection that you posted years ago? or maybe an update to a car build?

Well, I had to do that recently for one of my fanfic threads. It hasn't been updated in like 500 days or something. I'm actually kinda surprised to see that I haven't been banned yet.

There are exceptions to every rule, and something like thread necro is and always has been case-by-case. Can't say I ever remember someone being warned, verbal or on-the-books, for bring legitimately useful and non-repetitive information or discussion to an old thread.

Most of the time someone tries to bring honest discussion to an old post in say, the ID section where that kind of thing always seems to happen regularly with new members, it's either to state the obvious, regurgitate something that's been said already in a different wording, or just say something that's blatantly incorrect. Usually it just results in a verbal.

Fanfic thread necros have literally never been a warn-worthy offense, and for good reason. Hell, they don't even get warned when someone other than the author is doing the necroing (the only exception being when someone is necroing threads left and right to bump up their post count).

Oh yeah, about that exception, that actually happened on at least two previous occasions, and that's the only reason the guidelines on thread necroing were updated. Thread revivals that aren't for the sake of post-count bumping and actually contribute to the thread in a meaningful way are still valid. You have exactly zero reason to be worried about getting warned here.

In the gaming chat section, it states in the important rules at the top of the page to not create a duplicate thread and post in an already existing one.
This basically gives me a choice between breaking this rule and necroing.
The relevant thread exists, but hasn't been used in several years.
If I would get a warning for creating a duplicate thread or get a warning for necroing a dead one, what should I do?

This post has been edited by dcr_raptor on Jul 2 2016, 03:58 AM

To date, I've only seen people get warned for necros if they're necroing threads left and right or contributing nothing of any worth or relevance to the topic they resurrected. You would most likely be safe in necroing that dead thread.

To date, I've also never really seen people get warned for duplicate threads since the threads in this case tend to be years apart. The duplicate threads do eventually get merged if someone notices there's a duplicate, but the creator of the duplicate thread never gets a warning for it. You'd probably be safe in creating a duplicate thread too.

So go do either of those. If you have your doubts, send a mod a PM. They won't bite.



Maybe the mod team needs to clarify the rules even more. It seems only long time members like me know not to be too worried about running afoul of this rule.

I think I'll leave this here:

I have dutifully backed up my digital life since around 2003, which was when I was still in high school. In the 15 or so years since, my life has definitely changed. However, every once in a while, like right now, I like going back through my old stuff. When I do that, sometimes I'll get curious, and start visiting all the old websites I used to visit back in the day. I think I first started coming here back in 2001. During these times, I'd like to also visit old threads, that I remember reading. Sort of like writing something like "so and so was here" on the wall of a cave, I might leave a reply if I can contribute to the ongoing discussion, despite knowing that it's unlikely that whoever needed that information still needs it or will stumble upon that thread again. Maybe I need to go outside more.

At any rate, I think that people aren't necro posting out of malice. It usually is just harmless fun, as long as it's not spam or marketing junk.

In general, I have found that online forums have been sources of esoteric information I otherwise would never find. It's nice that there's the occasional traveler who will leave some useful information.

I hope I don't get warned for this...

You won't. We're not that petty around here.

Anyway, as I've already explained more than once in this very thread, there are cases where necroing is considered valid. And we're generally lenient on the non-valid necroposts too - the poster in question gets no warn for it and the thread itself gets locked at worst. This leniency was even granted to a member who was reviving a whole bunch of threads in a row. The posts had some form of substance to them and weren't just a transparent means of bumping up one's post count, so he was just politely told to not necropost too much.
In order to get warned for necroposting, you have to obnoxiously spam old threads left and right with completely worthless posts that make it obvious you're not trying to have a discussion and are just trying to inflate your post count. Judging from the fact that all your posts so far have had actual content and an adequate use of vocabulary to them, you're not exactly at risk of getting warned anytime soon.

Welcome to the forums, by the way.

Perry started these forums exactly in 2001 as a friends side project between him & Indy and/or Insidious in the lovely small NorCal town near the SF bay area Davisu desu! (if legend serves me correct)

If you are from waaay back when before even Original Gang times ... then u must be either Indy, Insid, Kiwi BB, and/or Perry's Mom or Dad...!!?

Welcome back to the boards, are u still into SMAPxSMAP variety style TV shows? ♥


Or should I say ..... Mister Andy Lau ~ dun dun dun !!! ☆

Completely irrelevant. It's not malice that earns slaps on the wrist and/or warnings for necromancing threads from a decade prior.

Thanks, Meteor for the welcome! I'm a little late to the party, but better late than never, right?

Xiao, sorry to get your hopes up, but by "coming here", I meant frequenting the main website (back when it was initialdworld.com or something). I chuckle to myself now about how excited I was back in the day when I first found the website, and began voraciously downloading everything on the site, and printing out the logos of all the teams. In fact, little known secret was that the main site was what "initially" (haha!) inspired me on creating my own website, which ended up shaping my career into what it is now, 15 years later.

As for the forums, I think I may have stumbled upon it in 2007, but never really registered until recently (I'm a little shocked that 2015 is more than a year ago). Sometimes, when I read some of these threads, I kind of wished I was more outgoing and left my lurking ways years ago. Unfortunately, I am not an old timer from these parts, and never really contributed or got to know anyone here.

Now, time to get philosophical:

Visiting here, I'm sometimes reminded of my younger days, when I had passion but lacked money. Now, I have enough money to fulfill the Takeshi Nakazato GT-R R32 driving dream I've always had, but I lack the passion to carry it out. Fate can be cruel. So cruel...

Maybe I will import a R32 sometime in the future, to spite fate.

This post has been edited by umustwait101 on Jan 30 2017, 08:26 PM

We had a member here who made some very real sacrifices to make his dream come true, and that was several years ago before it was relatively simple to import R32 GT-Rs. Rekindle your passion, focus on the goal, make sacrifices, and bring your dream to life!

This.

You missed your boat. You could've been family.
Not to worry though, we're an open family. From the sound of it, if you live in the US or Canada, there's people in the forum who might love to hang out with you.

Now keep on posting.

Passion may get repressed, but it never really dies. A great example is my father. I know very little of his automotive history, but I get the feeling it's the same reason I know little about his youth; I suspect that he was a lot more wild than he likes to let on, and never wanted to be a bad influence with his stories. As I myself age, I find I have more and more in common with him in our less mature sides. There is a caged child in both of us. At the age of 51, he bought the first fun car I've known of (but likely not his FIRST fun car for the reasons above), a 2006 Mazda MX-5. His purchase was very much planned and researched, but the actual act thereof was very impulsive. We were supposed to be leaving for a college visit trip for me in the middle of January, but he just HAD to get dropped off at the dealer first to buy the car, which he brought home just to put into storage for the remainder of the winter. Fast forward to 2011, when I owned my first Evo, the SUV he was daily driving was bought back under a recall. He needed a new vehicle, so being a Subaru guy, he starts looking at WRXs and STis. A few weeks later, he purchased his '08 STi. Fast forward to now, that car is his baby (more so than the Miata, which has a paltry 7830-some miles on it). It's a simple car, stock save for a panel filter and air pump delete, 2-pc rotors and upgraded pads, and a rock-solid pro tune, and he can't get enough of it. He's had it on track a few times and just overall has a passion for it, a boyracer car he purchased at the age of 56.

So if you have the money and the time, I say go for it. You can always find the passion.

Thanks for the encouragement. I do live in the US (Dallas is the closest major metropolitan area most people would know). I'm open to hanging out in real life.

Thanks for the inspiring story. I feel like I may be like your dad - putting off the passion to get the responsibilities in life done with first. Once I'm retired, or at least free of things that require me to be around all the time, I'll do whatever I want. Importing that R32 tho, I will do within 5 years. There's no reason not to, as it doesn't require that much sacrifice anymore. It's just not a good deal; but to fulfill my childhood dream, it's worth it.

What does any of this have to do with the topic?

Basically, that.

Umm... passion is something that should never die, just like old threads?

Please don't cut my virtual life short. I'm too young to die here!