Dealing with Off Topic posts or not

[Mr Lucky]

Just wondering what people do when a thread gets (too many?) off topic posts.

I find there are generally two important perspectives: from admin POV and from thread starter POV. There’s is of course also the general member experience as well.

Some thread starters consider themselves thread owner, however I always consider the admin is because we are responsible for overall forum quality including both user experience and SEO. Both are necessary to survive and flourish.

I usually ignore the occasional one-off post that is often just (an attempt at) interjecting humour, I’m more interested in what happens when a OT post triggers a whole new discussion that goes off at a tangent.

If the tangent is totally different, I would often just move those posts to their own thread (but never quite sure whether the participants get notifications or do they have to specifically watch the new thread???)

But sometimes it's more complicated, so for example here is a current decision I need to make.

There is a discussion among residents about a proposed traffic scheme that would close off a high street to motor traffic and supposedly be better for cyclists, pedestrians, e-scooter etc. This huge implications because even though the idea is appealing for environmental reasons, people are concerned about where the through traffic will go and whether it means more on the residential streets...

All good so far, lot's of opinions, but then someone posts about the City's proven for cyclists in general and so the tangent discussion has gone away from the specific scheme into a whole big discussion about where is good or bad in the City to cycle.

So in one way it's irrelevant, in another it isn't.

NB: I don't mean to start a discussion about that., just using it as an example of something that I'm sure many of us get from time to time.

What's your opinions and how to deal with it?

 

[Old Nick]

Hello,
Perhaps detect as soon as possible when a discussion takes a different tangent and publish a warning message of the type: please stay in the initial topic X, topic Y can be treated in a new thread. And if really topic Y is interesting create the discussion and put the link to it in thread X.

 

[Mr Lucky]

Hello,
Perhaps detect as soon as possible when a discussion takes a different tangent and publish a warning message of the type: please stay in the initial topic X, topic Y can be treated in a new thread. And if really topic Y is interesting create the discussion and put the link to it in thread X.

Yes this is what I tend to do at the moment. I do get a few members who get the hump as they think going off topic is fun. The tricky think is when it is all vaguely related but still a bit off the main discussion.

 

[ForumFan]

I think it depends. I'm generally one who believes in letting the conversation go naturally wherever it goes.

However, if the thread bifurcates into two simultaneous conversations, and the tangential topic becomes a distraction... I think you could mark those posts for moderation and then put them in a new thread, right? That would divert the folks engaging in the tangential topic to the new thread.

 

[MapleOne]

I undermoderate instead of overmoderate

You cannot control conversation, you will just alienate users with overmoderation.

I might comment underneath and redirect the topic by posting relative information to the original post stating...

and back on topic

 

[Wildcat Media]

Just wondering what people do when a thread gets (too many?) off topic posts.

If it's a few nudges towards off-topic, we attempt to redirect the thread back on topic, and it often works.

Otherwise, we split the off-topic posts to their own thread. And I will often copy posts to a new thread if, for example, a few posts are on both topics and the new thread makes no sense without the context. It probably depends on each forum's membership, but we've only very rarely had a complaint about splitting up a thread.

If the topics are closely related, however, conversations are so intertwined that it's better when we leave them in one thread.

 

[Suzanne O]

Make a new section and move the thread to it. But lock it. Make a new rule that new topics need their own thread.

 

[ForumFan]

Make a new section and move the thread to it. But lock it.

Why would you lock it? "You guys should talk about this over here... But you can't talk about it anymore, even here."

Make a new rule that new topics need their own thread.

I think it's a HUGE mistake to be that strict about threads. Threads are conversations. And conversations in "real life" meander across changing topics. A successful forum is a community of friends. If you strictly limit conversations to ONE subject, members (people) will simply go away. They may come back on rare occasion to discuss something specific to your strictly-held topic. But that's it.

A forum that is centered on a common interest but allows off-topic conversations will see a LOT more traffic and participation.

That said, if a thread has a persistent or large "tangent," I'll move those posts to their own thread in the appropriate section of the forum. It's better and more efficient archiving of topics and likely better for SEO. But I don't lock the new thread! LOL! I'm not there to PUNISH active forum members.

 

[Suzanne O]

Why would you lock it? "You guys should talk about this over here... But you can't talk about it anymore, even here."


I think it's a HUGE mistake to be that strict about threads. Threads are conversations. And conversations in "real life" meander across changing topics. A successful forum is a community of friends. If you strictly limit conversations to ONE subject, members (people) will simply go away. They may come back on rare occasion to discuss something specific to your strictly-held topic. But that's it.

A forum that is centered on a common interest but allows off-topic conversations will see a LOT more traffic and participation.

That said, if a thread has a persistent or large "tangent," I'll move those posts to their own thread in the appropriate section of the forum. It's better and more efficient archiving of topics and likely better for SEO. But I don't lock the new thread! LOL! I'm not there to PUNISH active forum members.

I don't bother with SEO because in the end you're the one who will have bandwidth issues by keeping derailed threads open.

 

[Ricsca]

It's already a miracle to have some active users who write in your forum, so put aside your desire to command and limit yourself to moderating only when users swear or make mistakes in the section...

 

[Suzanne O]

It's already a miracle to have some active users who write in your forum, so put aside your desire to command and limit yourself to moderating only when users swear or make mistakes in the section...

I limit long threads to 20 pages.
I delete the small ones that seem to be from disgruntled users.
As for swearing, i allow it but make sure that they don't go too far with it.
F bombs and c bombs are allowed but they are kept for when stuff ups are made.

 

[MapleOne]

I think it's a HUGE mistake to be that strict about threads. Threads are conversations. And conversations in "real life" meander across changing topics. A successful forum is a community of friends. If you strictly limit conversations to ONE subject, members (people) will simply go away. They may come back on rare occasion to discuss something specific to your strictly-held topic. But that's it.

A forum that is centered on a common interest but allows off-topic conversations will see a LOT more traffic and participation.

That said, if a thread has a persistent or large "tangent," I'll move those posts to their own thread in the appropriate section of the forum. It's better and more efficient archiving of topics and likely better for SEO. But I don't lock the new thread! LOL! I'm not there to PUNISH active forum members.

I wish I could give you more than 1 like

 

[Digital Doctor]

I’m more interested in what happens when a OT post triggers a whole new discussion that goes off at a tangent.

Maybe there could be a way to manually branch it off ?

Or people just posting a quick joke can just reply to a certain post (comment) and it doesn’t count as a thread reply.

 

[zappaDPJ]

I believe off-topic posts posted in an off-topic area should be left alone for the most part. Off-topic posts made in (for example) a technical forum are far less desirable. Even so, chastising a member in public is never really a good look in my view, I would simply ask via a post that the thread stay on topic. For a persistent off-topic posting member I'd deal with that via a private message.

 

[Paul B]

Maybe there could be a way to manually branch it off ?

There is.

 

[Digital Doctor]

There is.

View attachment 310989

I’m thinking “new branch” of the existing thread, where replies and quotes to the off topic post don’t junk up the thread. We can call it threading of replies.

 

[Forsaken]

I’m thinking “new branch” of the existing thread, where replies and quotes to the off topic post don’t junk up the thread. We can call it threading of replies.

...That is literally what Brogan showed; you can select multiple posts, and then move them to a new thread.

This has been a feature for a long time.

 

[Digital Doctor]

...That is literally what Brogan showed; you can select multiple posts, and then move them to a new thread.

This has been a feature for a long time.

This doesn’t end up with 2 threads.

I’m talking a portion of the original thread becomes a thread with nested (threaded) replies.

 

[Forsaken]

This doesn’t end up with 2 threads.

I’m talking a portion of the original thread becomes a thread with nested (threaded) replies.

You had a whole other conversation in your head than what you posted then, because you made no mention of threaded replies in either of your other posts.

It is also a feature that does not exist, and the developers have shown no inclination to add threaded replies .

Based off your other posts, you can already do exactly what those posts said you wanted to do. For this new theorycrafted feature, you'd likely need an add-on or wishful thinking and fairy dust.

 

[Digital Doctor]

no mention of threaded replies

threading of replies.