Hi Paul, in the case of my Matrix thread post that prompted this latest discussion, the post I quoted was multiple posts above mine, and as I recall I did not quote @timm’s entire post. It was a selective 15-word quote to set up an intended humorous graphic I created. With the quote gone, the orphaned graphic looked out of context.
Sorry to belabor this issue, but I think it is a serious one. If I had not gone back and checked my original post, I would not have known it had been edited. I was very deliberate in choosing which words to quote and I used them as a setup so that the follow-on graphic would be funny. To have that quote wiped out without warning or notice, and seemingly for no reason, was disturbing.
Bootzilla, please see my post above which specifically addresses this.
And, only as a point of accuracy, you did in fact quote the entirety of timm’s post which is here. Thus my conclusion that only a pointer was necessary by clicking on Reply, rather than quoting the post.
Unfortunately, as I explain, my edit inadvertently removed any reference to timm’s post which I agree is entirely unacceptable. I was unaware this could happen until now.
I can think of NO better time for a POLL! After all, this is a user forum and with as much input as we can get from our user base, the better the actions taken by Elk and PS Audio will represent the majority. Lets face it, whatever decision is made, it will not appease 100% of the stakeholders. But, majority should rule in a situation such as this as I really don’t see this topic as a problem at all. It is merely a difference of opinion.
For example, I use my iPhone to access the forum quite often. I would prefer to have quotes rather than having to click on the reply link for the referenced context. As a matter of fact, the quotes can be more efficient as it reduces the amount of on-screen text as opposed to using the upper-right reply link which could contain the entire post with 10 times the amount of content as a quote snippet. So, I don’t necessary agree with your mobile use comment.
@ELK, I completely respect you and your decision making process, but it is clear this really amounts to your personal preference/decision which may or may not be inline with the mass majority of forum users.
In furtherance of complete transparency and doing what should be done, even if it goes against what you consider a best practice, the users should have a stronger voice in this matter and a well advertised POLL seems the best mechanism.
Here is what I see when I look at my Matrix thread post that you edited. Note the padlock and the pencil graphic with the numeral “1” before the pencil. That is showing that there was one edit (which, in this case, was NOT performed by me). If I had edited my own post, I would see the numeral and the pencil, but not the padlock.
Why does it matter that he quoted the entire very short post? Getting rid of the context is a problem! NO other forum I have EVER used has a moderator going around deleting quoted text. It should not be done!!
While my decision, my approach reflects the many comments I have received over the years - some very heated on both sides. It is amazing what I am called in private messages, again by both sides of the various issues which arise. It is worth mentioning this is only one of many . . . ~sigh~
I agree what happened with bootzilla’s post is wholly unacceptable and should not have occurred. Without the pointer his post did appear to be a non sequitur. I need to avoid this.
Otherwise where would you draw the line, leaving aside the usability of various platforms for perusing the forum?
We have all been on forums where users post strings of pictures of their system which others quote whole cloth merely to add “Looks great!” followed by many doing the same. Certainly no one here wants this. Then there are the very long posts quoted and responded to with a reply which is relevant to only a peripheral comment in the original and frankly makes no sense unless you dig through the long original. Should we address this? People routinely quote the entirety of the last post prior to responding. Is it better to clean these up?
The idea of a poll is fun. I bet bootzilla is drafting one now.
But creating a poll which is meaningful and does not predetermine the outcome is exceedingly difficult. I doubt anyone here knows how, I certainly do not.
We can ask - "Should unnecessarily long posts ever be edited? Or, “Should quotes be edited where context becomes unclear?”
And we have the issue of participation. Despite the tremendous amount of user activity of this forum, very few participate on bootzilla’s polls. I doubt it would be any different in this case.
@Elk, the other elephant in the room needing attention is the automatic locking of the post subsequent to your quote removal edits. If this consequence is in fact irrepressible, then I would find that alone to be sufficient justification to refrain from deleting quoted text within a user’s post.
Call it a flaw in the software or a poor design choice, either way it creates a real problem that is hard to ignore.
Thanks for acknowledging this publicly. If your mea culpa was intended as an apology, I accept it. And even if it was not, I still accept it. I think something constructive will emerge out of this, and that is the most important thing.
That is a great point, Jeff. After Elk removed the pointer quote from my Matrix thread post, I wanted to delete the remainder, but I could not do so, as the post was locked.
Is there an ongoing desire to actually change what one has written, an edit that would have been performed in any event? Or is it to override the edit?
As I was writing this, bootzilla provided an example. Thanks!
