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View Full Version : New hack idea...



AtmaWeapon
05-22-2003, 12:48 PM
From time to time, in some of the more inactive forums (like the programming one), I make a post that seems to conclude the topic, only to later find that I have another question. I edit in my question, but the citizens of the forum have already seen my closing post and don't look in the topic anymore.

I think it would be useful to have a hack that lets an edit bump a topic. Say there'd be a check box, default unchecked, and if your post was the last post in the topic, and the box was checked, you would bump the topic with your edit as if you had posted.

Like or dislike? I know it'd be tough to implement, probably.

J.J. Maxx
05-22-2003, 01:07 PM
The problem with that is that everybody would edit their posts just to bump their topics instead of vice versa. :shrug:

Darunia
05-22-2003, 01:10 PM
Like in Ezboards, except chooseable?

Sounds good....

bigjoe
05-22-2003, 01:27 PM
Originally posted by J.J. Maxx
The problem with that is that everybody would edit their posts just to bump their topics instead of vice versa. :shrug:

Just have a bump limiter. One can only bump his topic once per day , and a total of 3 times forever...

Thunderbird
05-22-2003, 02:02 PM
I don't think it'd be tough to implement. Voting in polls already bumps topics, and I'm assuming it's done by changing the "last reply" date on the thread (but not the last post). You'd just have to make an edit do the same thing.

I don't see an issue with it. Though there might need to be some rules added to prevent people from (purposely) bumping their topics by editing in some meaningless stuff. The date/time of the last edit is displayed in the edited post, and there is an edit history last I checked ;). Also, there should probably be one part of such a hack to disable editing on posts older than 30 days, since there's no point to doing that then.

ShadowTiger
05-22-2003, 02:16 PM
Just have a bump limiter. One can only bump his topic once per day , and a total of 3 times forever... And what about those of us who frequently edit our posts for correction purposes? This would probably warrant us to have to wait 30 days for the topic to be closed before we can edit it to bump it.

So confusing.

Beldaran
05-22-2003, 02:53 PM
Originally posted by J.J. Maxx
The problem with that is that everybody would edit their posts just to bump their topics instead of vice versa. :shrug:

So what? If we get the sense that some one is abusing the feature, just issue a warning/temp ban. Isn't that why we have moderators?

Using your logic I could aruge that none of us should be allowed to post because otherwise some people might spam or flame.:laughing:

fatcatfan
05-22-2003, 03:10 PM
Well, if bumping is an issue, which I think it is, instead of actually bumping it to the top, the thread's indicator could be changed to indicate that there a "new" posts that a person hasn't read. This should, of course, only apply to editing the last post of a thread.

AtmaWeapon
05-22-2003, 04:46 PM
Originally posted by Britannianhero4
And what about those of us who frequently edit our posts for correction purposes? This would probably warrant us to have to wait 30 days for the topic to be closed before we can edit it to bump it.

So confusing.


That's why I suggested a check box, default unchecked, that would indicate whether you wanted to bump the topic or not. For normal editing, you wouldn't check the box. You would have to take an action to bump the topic.

I also agree with fatcatfan's idea about updating the message's icon.

TheGeepster
05-22-2003, 06:38 PM
I have wanted this idea implemented actually, but I can understand the worry of people abusing this in order to keep their own topic at top.

Blonde799
05-22-2003, 07:20 PM
It's not like the same thing hasn't been happening with polled topics. Maybe a 30 day limit would suffice.:)

SomUnknown
05-22-2003, 07:57 PM
I've seen a hack like this. It's enforced the same way as anything else. Warning the first offence then banning if the problem persists, just like double posting.

vegeta1215
05-22-2003, 10:49 PM
Originally posted by fatcatfan
Well, if bumping is an issue, which I think it is, instead of actually bumping it to the top, the thread's indicator could be changed to indicate that there a "new" posts that a person hasn't read. This should, of course, only apply to editing the last post of a thread.

I like what fatcatfan suggested. I'm all for it.

Drunken Tiger
05-23-2003, 03:24 AM
I like fatcats idea... But can SB install such a hack??

Axel
05-23-2003, 08:29 AM
what can't Shadowblazer do?

Shadowblazer
05-23-2003, 08:34 AM
SB can install anything :sb:

Of course, the two things (new topic indicator and order in the forumdisplay list) both work off of the last reply time in a thread, so I'd have to code some exceptions to make it work. Really, it'd be much easier to just have an edit qualify as a bump than to make it update the thread's icon but not its position in the thread list.

I can think of a few ways to make it harder to abuse though. As Atma suggested, use a checkbox to see if the user wants their post to bump the thread or not. The checkbox would obviously default to unchecked.
Require that the post be at least 24 hours old before editing it bumps the thread.
Never bump threads older than 30 days.
Indicate, via the edited by line, how many times the thread has been bumped (just to make abusers as conspicuous as possible)Not that tough at all. I'll see what I can do when I get the time. Unfortunately I'm currently working somewhere on the order of 50 hours a week, so I've had little to no time to work on the boards. In another week though, I begin my month-long mandatory vacation so I should have plenty of time to take care of all the things I've been neglecting on the boards, including (hopefully) the upgrade to 2.3.0, as well as the hack that I've been promising fatcatfan I'd look in to for like four months now ;)

Axel
05-23-2003, 08:37 AM
and the Hosted Forum I've been asking you about for over half a year?
can't say I'm not persistent.