# Moderator/ post count query. **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [October 9, 2012, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155 "2012-10-09T00:49:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/1 "2012-10-09T00:49:26Z")
Just a random thought that occurred to me. If a moderator edits someone else’s post, e.g. to add spoiler tags, does it affect the moderator’s post count? No big deal, just mildly curious. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/2 "2012-10-09T01:38:04Z")
Just tested on a board I moderate that uses vBulletin - nope. No change in my post count which makes perfect sense, since the poster of record hasn’t changed. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/3 "2012-10-09T01:39:19Z")
I was just going to offer to test it, but **Peter Morris** beat me to it. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/4 "2012-10-09T01:39:58Z")
Nope, doesn’t change my post count. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/5 "2012-10-09T01:42:45Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Just tested on a board I moderate that uses vBulletin - nope. No change in my post count which makes perfect sense, since the poster of record hasn’t changed. But the post essentially has two authors. Why shouldn’t the mod get a credit for his work? > [@twickster](#): > > I was just going to offer to test it, but **Peter Morris** beat me to it. No, not I. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/6 "2012-10-09T11:36:42Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > But the post essentially has two authors. Why shouldn’t the mod get a credit for his work? Becuase the way the vBulletin software works each post has a single author. It may be possible to change that to another user (such as when you merge user accounts) but you can’t share a post. That seems pretty fundamental to the software. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/7 "2012-10-09T13:18:57Z")
If you edit your own post, your count doesn’t go up again. So I wouldn’t expect the mod’s count to go up for an edit either. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/8 "2012-10-09T13:40:14Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > But the post essentially has two authors. Why shouldn’t the mod get a credit for his work? No, the post has an author and and editor. The software tracks authors. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/9 "2012-10-09T13:59:50Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > I was just going to offer to test it, but **Peter Morris** beat me to it. > [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > No, not I. :smack: Boy, it’s tempting to avail myself of mod privileges and edit out that blooper … ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/10 "2012-10-09T14:56:39Z")
If you did that, would it increase your post count? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/11 "2012-10-09T15:33:28Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > Boy, it’s tempting to avail myself of mod privileges and edit out that blooper … No, don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine here, unacknowledged, alone and in the dark. What’s important is that you have fun. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/12 "2012-10-09T16:29:13Z")
Such is the life of editors and mods, who, though they may save the authors and their publications from lawsuits and worse, toil in anonymity and penury, halos glowing, until first the internet, then Rupert Murdoch, throw them under the bus. Then look what happens. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/13 "2012-10-09T23:40:41Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > No, don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine here, unacknowledged, alone and in the dark. What’s important is that you have fun. psst..wanna buy a flashlight? -D/a ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/14 "2012-10-10T20:14:16Z")
I have a slightly related question, which I thought about posting here but decided it wasn’t worth a thread. A while back someone resurrected a zombie thread and added a spam message. I reported it and added a post to say it was reported. By the next morning the spam and my post about reporting it were both gone. Did my post count go down when my message was deleted? I’d guess not, but I was curious. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/15 "2012-10-10T20:33:18Z")
I don’t think so. AIUI, your message still exists on the system, it’s just been shunted to a private place that only the elite can see. ---
**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:** [October 10, 2012, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/16 "2012-10-10T21:00:12Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I have a slightly related question, which I thought about posting here but decided it wasn’t worth a thread. A while back someone resurrected a zombie thread and added a spam message. I reported it and added a post to say it was reported. By the next morning the spam and my post about reporting it were both gone. Did my post count go down when my message was deleted? I’d guess not, but I was curious. That particular thread was moved but not deleted, so I believe your post still registers for your post count. (The spammer shows a post count of 1.) If a thread is actually deleted, which we sometimes do, then I think your post count would drop. Spammers whose threads have been deleted show a post count of “0.” (These threads are actually still present in the system and can be viewed, but posts in them seem not to be counted by the post count system.) ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moderator-post-count-query/637155/17 "2012-10-10T21:31:42Z")
Yes, if you post to a thread that is later deleted, as most spam is, then your post count will go down. If the thread is just removed from view, it’s still included in your total.