# Understanding that a thread has been disappeared **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [April 5, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119 "2008-04-05T21:06:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/1 "2008-04-05T21:06:11Z")
Just an observation related to the locked thread where **Shodan** remarks on a thread that he can’t get at and the mods observation that he should know about disappeared threads. I know what the odd message > [@vBulletin](#): > > Canadjun, you do not have permission to access this page. This could be due to one of several reasons: > > 1. Your user account may not have sufficient privileges to access this page. Are you trying to edit someone else’s post, access administrative features or some other privileged system? > 2. If you are trying to post, the administrator may have disabled your account, or it may be awaiting activation. implies when I am trying to read a message, and I would assume most people that have been around for a while would also know or could make an easy guess. However, to someone who has never run into it, it does not obviously relate to the FAQ item about disappeared messages and threads. Maybe the FAQ needs a new entry? ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/2 "2008-04-05T21:59:32Z")
There’s a post about disappearing threads and posters over [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=9034110#post9034110) in the **FAQ - Guidelines and Etiquette on the SDMB** sticky. ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/3 "2008-04-05T23:56:42Z")
And, of course, my last post didn’t quite answer your question. It probably wouldn’t be a bad idea to include that description in the FAQ; we’ll shoot this around and get back with you. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2008, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/4 "2008-04-06T00:09:19Z")
I have edited the FAQ to cover this. Thanks, **Canadjun** , good thought and appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2008, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/5 "2008-04-06T02:37:28Z")
Can that error message be edited to list it as number 3: “This post/thread has been disappeared because the poster was undesirable. Email a mod/admin for more info” or something? I mean, for one thing, it’s a list of only two things… don’t we have a rule against that? 🙂 And secondly, it would save those of you working in ATMB from answering the same question every week and a half! ---
**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:** [April 6, 2008, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/6 "2008-04-06T03:25:04Z")
[QUOTE=mnemosyne] And secondly, it would save those of you working in ATMB from answering the same question every week and a half! [/QUOTE] Seemingly, nothing will keep people from asking about disappeared threads and posters every week and a half. I mean, we had a sticky about it just recently. And while that error message could be clearer, it isn’t that hard to figure out what happened. ---
**Author:** ![jacquilynne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/67e7ee/32.png) [@jacquilynne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacquilynne)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2008, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/7 "2008-04-06T05:13:42Z")
Nothing in that error message gives even a hint of what actually happened. Instead, it suggests two other possibilities, neither of which has any relationship to the reality of the situation. It’s only not hard to figure out if you know that threads that disappear do so without actually being deleted and even then, well, it’s still pretty hard to figure out. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2008, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/8 "2008-04-06T15:28:51Z")
booboo - ignore this message ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2008, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/9 "2008-04-06T20:25:40Z")
[QUOTE=Colibri] Seemingly, nothing will keep people from asking about disappeared threads and posters every week and a half. I mean, we had a sticky about it just recently. And while that error message could be clearer, it isn’t that hard to figure out what happened. [/QUOTE] I think most people assume that you don’t ever remove threads until they actually see it happen. It’s not like other message boards routinely hide away innocuous threads just because they were posted by a sock. So yes, not that hard to figure out if you already know about the practice. People who ask “I know you disappear threads started by socks… is that what just happened here?” are being kind of dumb. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/10 "2008-04-07T16:00:52Z")
The reason I started the other thread was that I didn’t realize the thread had been deleted. It said that it had been moved, and I wondered if something else was going on. So in my own defense, the thread did not disappear - it was listed as 'moved". > [@](#): > > I would assume most people that have been around for a while would also know or could make an easy guess. Well, I have been around a while. But it did not occur to me that “You do not have permission to access this page” meant “This thread was deleted”. So excuse the pants off of me for asking a question. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/11 "2008-04-07T16:09:35Z")
[QUOTE=Shodan] The reason I started the other thread was that I didn’t realize the thread had been deleted. It said that it had been moved, and I wondered if something else was going on. So in my own defense, the thread did not disappear - it was listed as 'moved". [/QUOTE] Well yes, moderators don’t actually delete threads, they move them to the Spam Bin, a forum that we lowly members can’t access. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/12 "2008-04-07T18:45:48Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > So in my own defense, the thread did not disappear - it was listed as 'moved". I think it usually means the thread has been moved to some moderators’ holding forum or something. If the thread had actually been deleted the vB notification says “No thread specified”. At least, that’s what happens when I try to load really old pages that were culled from the archives for performance reasons. Example: [First Pit thread ever](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=1458) eta: I see Hypnagogic Jerk beat me to it but I gave an example! ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/13 "2008-04-07T20:13:26Z")
But neither “moved” nor “not specified” actually makes it clear that the thread has been deleted (or otherwise dealt with) by a mod. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/14 "2008-04-07T20:36:09Z")
[QUOTE=twickster] But neither “moved” nor “not specified” actually makes it clear that the thread has been deleted (or otherwise dealt with) by a mod. [/QUOTE] I don’t think Admins have much control have over those automatic error notices, though. “No thread specified” would probably be better as “Thread not found in database” for most instances around here, but that might be a little nit for the vB guys to pick at. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2008, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/15 "2008-04-08T00:30:31Z")
Yeah, I understand that it’s a boilerplate announcement – I’m just saying that someone – even someone who’s been around for years and understands the “no-socks/no trolls” rules – who gets such a message isn’t going to automatically translate it to “disappearning a sock/troll,” and that to say “you’ve been around long enough” isn’t a terribly helpful response from TPTB. ---
**Author:** ![essell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/34f0e0/32.png) [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2008, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/understanding-that-a-thread-has-been-disappeared/444119/16 "2008-04-08T10:02:34Z")
[QUOTE=twickster] Yeah, I understand that it’s a boilerplate announcement – I’m just saying that someone – even someone who’s been around for years and understands the “no-socks/no trolls” rules – who gets such a message isn’t going to automatically translate it to “disappearning a sock/troll,” and that to say “you’ve been around long enough” isn’t a terribly helpful response from TPTB. [/QUOTE] Hopefully this thread will enlighten a few then. Or maybe the upcoming upgrades will include improved error messages.