Posting a Killed Topic

When a thread gets 404'd with ZERO explanation and it isn't immediately apparent which TOS rules were violated, how do other members know if it is okay to post a thread on that topic again?

For example, if a thread on space strawberries was deleted without explanation, how would a member know if they will be penalized for creating another thread on space strawberries?

a reply to: Abysha
Message a mod/staff/admin is my suggestion.
Remember their house their rules. Lots of people banned lately, they all pushed it without referring to mods and/or ignoring t's and c's.
It ain't rocket science.

a reply to: Abysha

The OP could PM the mod who removed it or check if their OP had more than a one-liner. They could also check to see if they had a PM from a mod informing them why it was removed.

Threads get removed when the OP doesn't care enough to write a few lines. Same for minimal text followed by YT vid or website quote and a 'Thoughts?'

Plagiarism is big too. We've lost a couple of very successful members who plagiarised a bunch of threads and couldn't admit it.

If it's a video, often we trash those that feature uploads from established hoax channels.

Contact staff if in doubt

originally posted by: grainofsand
a reply to: Abysha
Message a mod/staff/admin is my suggestion.
Remember their house their rules. Lots of people banned lately, they all pushed it without referring to mods and/or ignoring t's and c's.
It ain't rocket science.

I know it's not rocket science. That is why when some things get deleted for no reason a member can discern, members don't know if there was a violation in the thread or if the topic itself is not allowed. No matter how well versed a person is on the TOS, there's no way to know in that situation.

It's important to know if a topic is taboo when the reason isn't obvious.

Yep.

Sometimes a little bit of effort can go a long way:

IMPORTANT: New (old) Standards Are Being Enforced (again) For New Threads

a reply to: Abysha

Simple fix... if you are unsure if a topic is unwelcome on ATS. Simply PM a staffer and ask. The truth is that there are only a handful of subjects that the owners do not welcome here. A very short list.

originally posted by: Kandinsky
a reply to: Abysha

The OP could PM the mod who removed it or check if their OP had more than a one-liner. They could also check to see if they had a PM from a mod informing them why it was removed.

Threads get removed when the OP doesn't care enough to write a few lines. Same for minimal text followed by YT vid or website quote and a 'Thoughts?'

Plagiarism is big too. We've lost a couple of very successful members who plagiarised a bunch of threads and couldn't admit it.

If it's a video, often we trash those that feature uploads from established hoax channels.

Contact staff if in doubt

But the problem is that only the original author is told the reason. If a member was just reading it and it gets canned, how do we know if it was because of the topic itself? Since we get penalized for it, it sort of makes it tricky to decide if we should try another thread on that subject.

Mods won't give other members the reason for a deletion if it wasn't their thread, right? That's why I was asking.

originally posted by: Hefficide
a reply to: Abysha

Simple fix... if you are unsure if a topic is unwelcome on ATS. Simply PM a staffer and ask. The truth is that there are only a handful of subjects that the owners do not welcome here. A very short list.

I didn't think of just directly asking about the topic. Duh. Thanks, that pretty much answers my stupid question, hah!

Sending you a message now...

a reply to: Abysha

It's is the very firm policy of ATS that any action by staff is ONLY discussed with those who had the action taken.

Period.

If you are worried whether or not something is allowed, either PM a staff member, or use the Complain button to ask.

a reply to: Abysha
Again I say just ask a mod before you post, I've done it myself, you will get a straight answer if your intended topic is taboo usually.
Saying that though I recently had a thread moved bizarrely to the 'people' forum from social issues, I was censored in the sense that the topic would of course die there lol.
I didn't bitch though as I said their house their rules.

a reply to: Hefficide

Simply PM a staffer and ask

Which staffer should we PM?

-dex

a reply to: DexterRiley

Any. All site related communications are discussed by the staff, regardless of who you message.

a reply to: DexterRiley

You can PM any staffer, but I would suggest looking at the FORUMS page and you can see which mods are logged in at that moment.



~Tenth

a reply to: tothetenthpower

You can PM any staffer, but I would suggest looking at the FORUMS page and you can see which mods are logged in at that moment.

Thanks. That was my main question. I assumed it would be better to PM a staffer that was online in order to get the quickest response.

However, when I went to the forums page, it wasn't obvious how I determine which of the moderators is online. I guess I could go to the membership list and search for a specific moderator's name. But that's a good bit of work. Is there an easier way?

Also, I assume that each moderator is assigned to a specific forum. Is that the case? And, if so, how can we determine who that moderator is?

Thanks,

-dex

a reply to: DexterRiley

On the topics page everyone online is listed:



Staff members are in a bold font.

a reply to: DexterRiley

Any staff member will do. Yes certain mods handle certain forums, but a Super like myself handle everything that comes our way.

Feel free to reach out to anybody who is online, if they are unable to resolve the issue, they will bump it up to the rest of staff so that we can take the appropriate action.

~Tenth

a reply to: Hefficide

Thanks. I guess if I had scrolled down the page a littler further I wouldn't have had to ask such a dumb question.


-dex

a reply to: DexterRiley

You can also use the Complain button.

It generates an alert that any staff member can see.

a reply to: Abysha

Posting a Killed Topics - I've had posts deleted because of xyz T&C reason but I still had no idea what it was I did wrong because I could not remember what it was I said. The message would just quote some T&C rule. I was never any the wiser.

stuff happens I spose.

a reply to: Azureblue

Did you send a message to the staffer who removed the thread asking for clarification?