When does a thread become 'Off Topic'

[GPS_fan]

Would a mod or team member please explain in words of no more than one syllable the definition of "Off Topic"

IMHO this thread was doing no more than clearly explaining why the PGPSW database should be the one of choice in response to the original question, which was

[Border_Collie]

At this point it went

[MaFt]

basically when a discussion has nothing to do with the original topic / question.

as lost property mentions above talk of days gone by and log tables has nothing to do with why someone should choose the pgpsw database over other providers.

MaFt

[GPS_fan]

[GPS_fan]

What you obviously mean then is that EVERY single word within a post has to be strictly on topic - no humour, no banter, nothing, not even references to other posts which may contain off topic material
_________________
Andy
PocketGPSWorld.com supports Help for Heroes - Read here

[GPS_fan]

Also, this being the case, why were subsequent posts in this thread not treated accordingly, since they were clearly totally and utterly off topic as opposed to subtely/partially off topic?
_________________
Andy
PocketGPSWorld.com supports Help for Heroes - Read here

[MaFt]

common sense needs to be applied - in no way did log tables add anything to the discussion and that part of the post was indeed off topic.

yes, humour can be used but common sense also MUST be used.

to be honest i think this thread is a bit over the top. if a mod or admin asks people nicely to keep on topic (ie go back to the topic of the initial post) then can that really cause such a grievance?! clearly it has...

if it is so far off topic then we may split it to another thread (a real pain to do, to be honest) but in general it's easier and friendlier just to give a gentle 'stay on topic' reminder.

MaFt

[MaFt]

[GPS_fan]

[bmuskett]

Perhaps GPS_fan meant this thread in his later post? Easy mistake to make since they were proceeding alongside each other in the same forum, but one was pulled up fairly sharply for a few humorous posts, the other getting well off-topic without any intervention.

[GJF]

Sometimes without going back to the original question, it is difficult to see where the topic is going, as it has branched off in a different direction so many times, but this often made a borring topic more interesting.

I have noticed that the 'mods' are often just as guilty as the rest of us, some 'mods' have a sense of humour others don't, often having a different view point on the same subject.

GPS_fan wrote:

[GPS_fan]

[Darren]

This is all getting very silly and if common sense needs to be applied it needs to be shared equally amongst all of us.

The thread in question was perhaps not a great example to choose as our line in the sand but an example it was nevertheless. Way too many posts drift quickly off topic and we're all guilty but it has to be brought under control.

There is no black and white definition but if a post is not primarily on topic then its clearly not right. In most cases the odd post can be overlooked but it can be insidious and one post leads to a reply OT and then another and before you know it the subject under discussion has been lost.

Some of the replies here are foolish in the extreme, we cannot watch every thread and every reply 24hrs a day so inevitably some threads may be allowed to wander OT for longer than others, some we won't recognise have lost their way as quickly as others.

I have asked ALL our Moderators to assist in keeping things on an even keel, we have never been overly zealous in the past and everything has run nicely but lately this has not happened and some members cannot be trusted to act responsibly.

I will be announcing later that any member found to be persistently posting OT in the general forums or making derogatory posts about or to other members will be liable to a 7 day suspension from the forums and if having been suspended they continue will be banned.

We're all adults here and capable of taking a common sense view on matters so lets try.
_________________
Darren Griffin

[Border_Collie]

From my point if view, GPS_fan, it didn't appear you were being 'got at', the request to get back on topic was further down, so covered more than one person. A similar thing happened to me some weeks back. I added my input to a post and when looking again, after receiving an e-mail, I noticed one of the mods saying to keep on topic and not to add childish comments, something along those lines. You can imagine I wasn't too happy as there was nothing wrong with my post. It was only after looking again I realised the posts had the same timestamp and mine happened to show above the Mods. which made it look like I was at fault.

Most of the time, when a post goes off topic, it's a gradual process. Someone adds something to the post, another reads it, maybe without having started at the beginning, and adds to what appears to be the topic. Further on someone may add something else, slightly off the 'newer' topic but maybe well removed from the original post. It's easily done and may not be picked up for a day or so.
_________________
Formerly known as Lost_Property
And NO that's NOT me in the Avatar.

[Darren]

Absolutely, I posted a warning recently in a thread and had much the sme result although it was not aimed at the previous poster.

If I believe a single person needs to be spoken to I will normally PM them but when a thread wanders way off topic it is rarely the fault of any one individual and so all that is open to us is a polite email to everyone reminding them to bring it back on track.

The consensus of complaints is why we can't be unwelcoming more balanced. We do try and indeed I am acutely aware that we as team and or mods ought not to post OT ever but we all slip on occasion and I am just as guilty here as anyone.

What does irk though is when a group of users have their own little game of tit for tat posts. Harmless and inoffensive as it may well be, it clogs up the forum, hides the real topic and puts off new posters as it has the air of a clique.

It is perhaps an indication of how few issues we have that with 400,000 posts we rarely have to take any overt action and so are perhaps less polished in our performance in this area than we ought to be!

Now if we can all have a group hug and move on I can concentrate on the Satmap review I am trying desperately to finish!
_________________
Darren Griffin

We see you’re using an ad-blocker. We’re fine with that and won’t stop you visiting the site.
Have you considered making a donation towards website running costs?.
Or you could disable your ad-blocker for this site. We think you’ll find our adverts are not overbearing!