# OK, Who was total poster # 500,000? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [July 13, 2000, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474 "2000-07-13T19:58:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![hflathead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecb155/32.png) [@hflathead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hflathead)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/1 "2000-07-13T19:58:35Z")
just curious, did the bells and whistles go off? New car?? Uncle Cecil give you a congrats? later, Tom ---
**Author:** ![manhattan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manhattan/32/7_2.png) [@manhattan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manhattan)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/2 "2000-07-13T21:36:25Z")
I’ll bet someone can figure out an answer to your question in About This Message Board. I’ll move the question over there for you. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/3 "2000-07-13T23:20:23Z")
Actually, some posts have been deleted, so post 500,000 happened a while ago. You can try going directly to a post # by putting in your desire post number in the following URL [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=500000#post500000](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=500000#post500000) ---
**Author:** ![ren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@ren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ren)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/4 "2000-07-13T23:35:13Z")
I thought somebody explained somewhere that there were extra posts in the vB database due to aborted conversion efforts, so that the original #500000 wasn’t really #500000, and that the excess posts had been cleaned out during the recent upgrade. Very confusing. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![ren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@ren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ren)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/5 "2000-07-13T23:55:20Z")
now that I think about it, wouldn’t deleted troll posts also mess up the count? ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecccb3/32.png) [@Lord\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/6 "2000-07-14T00:03:42Z")
Here’s my calculations. I watched the main forum page and kept refreshing it until the total post count went from 500676 to 500677. I then looked to see who had just posted. Turned out to be Tracer in GD. I looked at the source for that page to fine the post # and it was 575134, giving an offset of 75457 (the post number - the post count). I substituted 575457 for 500000 in **Arnold’s** link above ( [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=574457#post574457](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=574457#post574457) ) and came up with **denbo’s** post at 7/13/00 2:45PM in MPSIMS in the [biking and nads](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=30680) thread. The boards kinda busy so I don’t know if the counts on the main page are current, but that’s what I came up with. Jim p.s. It’s 102 outside and I don’t feel like watching the sprinkler go around. ---
**Author:** ![ren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@ren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ren)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/7 "2000-07-14T00:34:00Z")
Wow, nice detective work **JimB**. I was trying to figure that out myself but it didn’t occur to me to view source! Tried your experiment and matched your offset number (74457, not 75457, which looks like a typo in your post 'cause the link is right). Matches the time I observed when 500000 showed. Guess that settles it. Does **denbo** get a free toaster? ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecccb3/32.png) [@Lord\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/8 "2000-07-14T00:44:39Z")
Sounds like he/she should get at least a toaster, maybe even _A NEW CAR_. Come on down, **denbo!!** Jim ---
**Author:** ![AM\_PM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/db5fbb/32.png) [@AM\_PM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AM_PM)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/9 "2000-07-14T03:31:10Z")
He did some real planning and waiting, and got an actual round number on his link. ---
**Author:** ![ren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@ren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ren)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/10 "2000-07-14T03:40:40Z")
You have a point, **AM/PM** , but **dpr** was expecting it, and so we’ve lost the element of surprise. On the other hand, if we show up at **denbo** ’s door with a big fake check and lots of television cameras, we might catch him in his underwear! ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/11 "2000-07-14T05:34:36Z")
I asked this before, but is there any easier way to determine the post number of a particular post? It’d be nice if you could easily link directly to a particular post, rather than just to the whole thread. ---
**Author:** ![Oncle\_Biere\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Oncle\_Biere\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oncle_Biere_1)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/12 "2000-07-14T07:26:46Z")
I think this is what they are saying: On the browser pulldowns, select View / Source search for, say, “Chronos”. Then put the number thereabouts into the link listed above. For your post above you get [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=575744#post575744](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=575744#post575744) ---
**Author:** ![hflathead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecb155/32.png) [@hflathead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hflathead)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/13 "2000-07-14T12:50:00Z")
I saw this happen at the end of my day and had no more time to be online… great detective work and vow a usefull tool. Hey denbo, when’s the party? Wonder if he even knows? Guess I could look him up. later, Tom. ---
**Author:** ![tshirts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@tshirts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tshirts)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/14 "2000-07-14T14:27:04Z")
One more simplification: \*\*right click on the blue link “logged” to find the number to plug into Arnold Winkelried’s url. ---
**Author:** ![tshirts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@tshirts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tshirts)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/15 "2000-07-14T14:28:15Z")
\*\*And select “Properties”. ---
**Author:** ![winky99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/71c47a/32.png) [@winky99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/winky99)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/16 "2000-07-14T14:39:57Z")
Even better, tshirts, hover over the link and just read your status bar. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/17 "2000-07-14T16:28:57Z")
Interesting. That would give me more than 1% of the posts. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/18 "2000-07-14T17:01:27Z")
And of course, the “quote button” below your post also shows you the post id. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/19 "2000-07-14T21:36:16Z")
Thank you, tshirts (and Arnold)! I knew about “view source”, but Netscape’s view souce screen is totally non-interactive (no “search”, and it’s a pain in the neck. This way is a lot easier. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![dpr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8797f3/32.png) [@dpr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dpr)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2000, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474/20 "2000-07-20T01:34:38Z")
Wow. Jim you should have been a detective. I’m impressed. And I’m kinda glad we can nominate someone else as the 500,000th poster for I did feel a bit guilty afterwards (that I’d cheated the system by removing luck/chance from the equation). I say give denbo the Straight Dope Home Game. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-who-was-total-poster-500-000/25474.md?page=2)