# Quoted text disappearing

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quoted-text-disappearing/922572>\
**Category:** Site Feedback\
**Created:** [October 9, 2020, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quoted-text-disappearing/922572 "2020-10-09T15:58:14Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\
**Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quoted-text-disappearing/922572/1 "2020-10-09T15:58:14Z")

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What is happening when I create a post with quoted text, and it shows up in preview, but when I post it disappears?

It doesn’t happen every time, but a lot.

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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:** [October 9, 2020, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quoted-text-disappearing/922572/2 "2020-10-09T16:02:37Z")

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> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#):
>
> What is happening when I create a post with quoted text, and it shows up in preview, but when I post it disappears?
> 
> It doesn’t happen every time, but a lot. -

If the post you’re replying to is immediately before yours, Discourse takes it upon itself to not clutter the thread with “unnecessary” quoting.  
I always add a dash, look at your (quoted) post to see what I mean.  
Editing the quoted post will preserve it.

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**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:** [October 9, 2020, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quoted-text-disappearing/922572/3 "2020-10-09T16:03:37Z")

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If you quote the entirety of a previous post without any changes, this happens.

I add a period or delete a period to the quoted text, or change it in some way and it works.

ETA: yeah, what running coach so eloquently stated mere seconds before me. 😉

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**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\
**Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quoted-text-disappearing/922572/4 "2020-10-09T16:31:52Z")

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Thank you all.

So the system knows what is best for me. 🙂 Just like Windows.

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**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\
**Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quoted-text-disappearing/922572/5 "2020-10-09T18:29:41Z")

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More accurately, just like a lot of other _soi-disant_ features of Discourse. It follows the arbitrary preferences of its developers (like most software) but it’s also amazingly rigid about imposing those biases. In a sane world, this particular pathological behavior could be configured off by admins, but I don’t believe it can be on this platform (judging by the ubiquity of this behavior on other Discourses I’ve used).