i was reading this thread in the "parts for sale" forum......

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...-listings.html

i'm an admin. on another site. i don't know if this forum offers this feature, but we have our buy/sell/trade section setup with an auto-prunning system. after 90 days of a threads inactivity, it's automatically deleted from the forum. we could set it for less, but 90 days seems alright.

 

I'll check on that and see. Thanks for the help.

 

I agree that it's a good way to cut down volume on a server, but it also deletes the option for contacting someone at a later date while browsing the history files. IMO deleting should only be done when practicable and necessary. There are tons of threads with great information that often go by the wayside of the time warp. I would suggest instead having the option of letting the poster use a check box that offers the option to "Close thread after 90 days of inactivity". A one time check box option. It then becomes the posters responsibility to let it die or Bump it as needed. A locked thread would not allow posts. But this also leaves the posters name and contact info available for pm or general inquiries at later dates from members. Anyway, that's my thoughts.

I plead guilty to sometimes not checking the last post date on some of the threads and end up kicking my own A@@ when I realize what I've done. Then again, it's interesting to see how much activity it generates by other members who have an interest in the thread. and and and at the same time.

Dan, is this a possibility?

 

you have to remember, it's a classifieds section, not a tech forum. sure, some for sale threads always take on a life of there own, someone asks a question about the item, and there is a back and forth technical conversation about it 2 pages long. but how often does that actually happen?

i'm not suggesting doing this to every forum, just the classifieds. and i only brought it up because there's absolutely no reason to have for sale ads that are 2 years old. it's the original poster's responsibiliy to keep their thread active until the item gets sold. if they let it go, apparently they don't really want to sell it, or already have.

 

Yes, what you say makes sense. It would also eliminate a lot of hijacking that routinely creates controversy about what the thread was about in the first place. Point taken.

 

I spoke with Paul and we will probably find a way to close them after a period of time instead of deleting them. That way the information is still there and if someone wishes to contact the op they can either PM them or e-mail them if the address is published.

 

great idea!

 

 

My two-cent: Another way to cut server load and hassles would be to allow thte Thread's owner delete privileges.