# Is this new? (stupid replies to zombie threads)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [May 8, 2011, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132 "2011-05-08T04:34:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 12\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/1 "2011-05-08T04:34:39Z")

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I’ve noticed just within the last week several instances of a zombie thread getting a useless, inane, or asinine reply made by someone who just signed up that day and who has made only that one post. Two examples are [here (post #16)](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=379684) and [here (#20)](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=27029). Is this some new thing that halfwits have latched onto? I don’t remember seeing much of this until recently.

New or not, any insight into why these fools do this?

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**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/2 "2011-05-08T04:38:55Z")

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The boards have been Google-able for a while but it does seem like it’s very recent that the situation you describe has become more common.

ETA: few of them notice that the threads are old and other boards actually discourage/prohibit opening a new thread when there is an old thread on that topic.

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**Author:** ![Implicit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Implicit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Implicit)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/3 "2011-05-08T04:49:32Z")

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New users find the board via a search and post in the thread they found, google doesn’t care how old it is and neither do the moderators [in most cases](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7697100&postcount=4). How long has it been ok to welcome new users by calling them “halfwits” and “fools”?

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**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/4 "2011-05-08T04:56:53Z")

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> [@runner pat](#):
>
> ETA: few of them notice that the threads are old and other boards actually discourage/prohibit opening a new thread when there is an old thread on that topic.

There’s another board I post to which puts this statement right next to the submit button

> [@](#):
>
> OLD THREAD WARNING!!!  
> This Thread is more than 1037 days old. It is very likely that it does not need any further discussion and thus bumping it serves no purpose.
> 
> If you still feel it is necessary to make a new reply, you can still do so though by checking the box to verify the intent to post to an old thread.  
> \<— I am aware this is an old thread. YOU MUST CHECK THIS BOX FOR YOUR POST TO BE MADE.

There’s a check box, the warning is in bold red and black lettering, there’s a bright yellow exclamation point thing. Then, IIRC, even after all of that, if you click the check box and click submit, it takes you to another screen where you have to click OK again.  
The 1037 in the example I used above was just cut and pasted from a random thread. It’s different for each thread.  
If we wanted a way to discourage zombie threads it seems like that would be it. Maybe not something quite that drastic, but a check box to let people know that it’s a really old thread. I know on that board, it’s stopped me once or twice.  
Personally, I have no problem with zombie threads, but even with the some what recent relaxing of the rules, it seems like they’re still frowned upon by the mods.

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**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/5 "2011-05-08T05:04:15Z")

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Zombies have pretty much ALWAYS been revived by brand new posters who have stumbled onto old threads because they happened to do a search on an interesting (to them) topic. If there seem to be more of them, lately, I would guess that **runner pat** is correct that we see it more often as Google provides a gateway to the board.

As to “useless, inane, or asinine” replies, not everyone takes the time to read a whole thread before the desire to provide an answer overwhelms them (and replies that can be so characterized are hardly limited to newbies). The reply to the murder thread was accurate, if a bit late.

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**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/6 "2011-05-08T16:48:25Z")

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I liked the revival of the Danny Boy thread very much. Even the braaaaains joke was slipped in very nicely. I’m happy that new members are reviving the occasional interesting thread.

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**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/7 "2011-05-08T17:00:19Z")

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> [@Implicit](#):
>
> … How long has it been ok to welcome new users by calling them “halfwits” and “fools”?

Don’t know about ‘ok’ but it’s always been a feature of this message board.

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/8 "2011-05-08T17:22:32Z")

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> [@Gary\_T](#):
>
> Is this some new thing that halfwits have latched onto? I don’t remember seeing much of this until recently.

New member registrations have gone up dramatically since about last November. Many of these seem to be these “one-shot” newbies who post a single time to revive zombie threads, as well as content spammers who do the same thing. (The latter get disappeared rapidly so you won’t see them very much, especially since once the new post is removed the thread sinks back into the abyss.) This is almost certainly due to the site now being searchable by Google.

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**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/9 "2011-05-08T18:14:42Z")

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> [@Joey\_P](#):
>
> There’s another board I post to which puts this statement right next to the submit button
> 
> There’s a check box, the warning is in bold red and black lettering, there’s a bright yellow exclamation point thing. Then, IIRC, even after all of that, if you click the check box and click submit, it takes you to another screen where you have to click OK again.  
> The 1037 in the example I used above was just cut and pasted from a random thread. It’s different for each thread.  
> If we wanted a way to discourage zombie threads it seems like that would be it. Maybe not something quite that drastic, but a check box to let people know that it’s a really old thread. I know on that board, it’s stopped me once or twice.  
> Personally, I have no problem with zombie threads, but even with the some what recent relaxing of the rules, it seems like they’re still frowned upon by the mods.

I rather like this idea, if it’s possible with a simple vBulletin hack. Techy type Admins. and **Arnold** \*, is it?

Another possibility, which would make incrementally more work for the Moderators but which I know is quite functional, is to have coding set so that a thread whose last post was more than N (six months?) previous goes into “moderated” status, where a submitted post is visible only to staff, with an automatic e-mail generated to them, and a single click approves it (or not) for public view. This also makes spam cleanup a bit easier/faster, since typically it’s old threads that spambots reactivate. This is something staff would need to decide if the extra work is worth it – but since they get zombie reports anyway, it makes sense to me.

And of course, there’s nothing terribly wrong with leaving things as they are.

- Former Admin. who knows vBB coding.

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**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/10 "2011-05-08T18:46:10Z")

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I thought the OP was going to be about the stupid, idiotic, worthless, unfunny responses that long-term members make whenever an old thread is revived. Those are 10,000 times as annoying as what the joiners post.

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**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2011, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/11 "2011-05-08T18:50:59Z")

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> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#):
>
> stupid, idiotic, worthless, unfunny responses .

You forgot “braaaaaiiinless”

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**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\
**Post date:** [May 9, 2011, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-new-stupid-replies-to-zombie-threads/581132/12 "2011-05-09T15:48:28Z")

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> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#):
>
> You forgot “braaaaaiiinless”

Things I meant to say but didn’t think of until way too late, part 3938373. :o