# General question about hidden threads (no specific complaint) **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 16, 2024, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790 "2024-08-16T14:20:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/1 "2024-08-16T14:20:07Z")
This morning, I’ve run across a thread that is (a) not visible in its displayed subforum even though (b) it has very recent posts and in fact seems to be hosting an ongoing discussion. I’ve seen mods lock threads many times. The question is: **Can mod also make a thread invisible in a subforum listing, while at the same time keeping the thread active in some kind of shadow realm?** For those wondering how I stumbled upon this: It’s a thread in which I participated in the recent past. I can still see and read the post via the Activity section of my SDMB profile. I cannot access the thread via its subforum (and I have triple-checked that the thread has not been moved to a different subforum). ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/2 "2024-08-16T15:52:38Z")
I would need more to work with to investigate this. Do you have the subforum and/or thread title? ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/3 "2024-08-16T16:01:16Z")
Discourse calls it “unlisting” a thread, and yes, any mod can unlist a thread. However, this is not something that we normally do. It is possible that a moderator accidentally clicked on “unlist” while attempting to do something else. Do you remember what thread it was? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/4 "2024-08-16T16:08:09Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > Do you remember what thread it was? Yes, I have left the thread open in a tab all morning. I will report the thread … that notification should reach both of you, correct? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/5 "2024-08-16T16:08:55Z")
Yes, thank you ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/6 "2024-08-16T16:11:29Z")
Strange, so far everything looks normal. Did you perhaps Mute either the #trump or #kamala-harris tag? > [@How can Donald Trump win at this point?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-donald-trump-win-at-this-point/1005351): > > I’m not going to make any predictions! But right now, it seems as though the Democrats are doing everything right, and the Republicans are doing everything wrong. Further, while the polls are still close, Kamala Harris has taken the lead. I’m going to delineate what I see as the positives for the Democrats and the negatives for the Republicans. I think the only strength the Republicans have is the rabid and cultish Trump base. If you think I’m missing something, let me know. Democrats: smart mo… Actually, I can check that. And you’re not. I wonder if you accidently muted the thread, I can’t check that, but I have a tool for you to check muted threads. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/7 "2024-08-16T16:13:41Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Did you perhaps Mute either the #trump or #kamala-harris tag? Or mute the thread itself? Check the bottom of the thread to see if it is set to Normal, Watching, Tracking, or Muted. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/8 "2024-08-16T16:14:06Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Strange, so far everything looks normal. Did you perhaps Mute either the #trump or #kamala-harris tag? Not knowingly. However, I can tell you that when I click on the #trump button, the thread in question does not appear listed. However, you’ve given me the idea to go check on my personal notifications for this thread – make sure I haven’t Muted it or something similar. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/9 "2024-08-16T16:15:07Z")
## Here is a way to view all of your muted threads: [https://boards.straightdope.com/latest?state=muted](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest?state=muted) Give it a try. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/10 "2024-08-16T16:16:40Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > Or mute the thread itself? Check the bottom of the thread to see if it is set to Normal, Watching, Tracking, or Muted. Aha – I inadvertently Muted the thread 😐 Thanks for the help in figuring out this Mystery For The Ages. EDIT: I blame the cat. It’s always the cat. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/11 "2024-08-16T16:17:14Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > It is possible that a moderator accidentally clicked on “unlist” while attempting to do something else. So far I haven’t done that one, but could easily do it when I am trying to set a timer to reopen a thread. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/12 "2024-08-16T16:17:24Z")
Huh. I just checked and discovered I have two muted threads. One is a thread about the book “The Secret”, which , yeah, I can see me muting. The other is a “jam making advice” thread, which must have been accidental. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/13 "2024-08-16T16:17:48Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > I blame the cat. It’s always the cat. Quoted for truth. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/14 "2024-08-16T16:20:32Z")
“If cats looked like frogs we’d realize what nasty, cruel little bastards they are. Style. That’s what people remember.” ― Terry Pratchett, [Lords and Ladies](https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/1185086) ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/15 "2024-08-16T16:23:23Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Huh. I just checked and discovered I have two muted threads. One is a thread about the book “The Secret”, which , yeah, I can see me muting. The other is a “jam making advice” thread, which must have been accidental. I frequently manually set threads from Watching to Normal to reduce the number of notifications I receive. It’s easy to accidentally click one notch down, though, and inadvertently Mute a thread. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/16 "2024-08-16T16:24:24Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > “If cats looked like frogs … Yikes – they jump on crap enough as it is 😯 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/17 "2024-08-16T16:32:41Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > It’s easy to accidentally click one notch down, though, and inadvertently Mute a thread. Yep, that must be what happened. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/18 "2024-08-16T16:57:01Z")
I just checked and I too have one such [mute]d thread from a couple years ago. I don’t use [mute] on purpose; [normal] works fine for me to allow stuff I’m no longer interested in to sink back into the ooze of history. Anyhow, it’s now reset back to [normal] & thanks to all for this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/19 "2024-08-16T17:02:00Z")
Now that’s a walk down memory lane! I use the mute option a lot; reviewing the threads I’ve muted has reminded me why I put some posters on mute as well. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-question-about-hidden-threads-no-specific-complaint/1005790/20 "2024-08-16T19:30:18Z")
I’ve muted a number of threads with mildly spicy titles under the “I don’t want this on my screen if I’m SDMBing at work” thought model, which made clicking the “see all your muted threads” link while at work a very interesting choice on my part.