# We can edit? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [January 19, 2007, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609 "2007-01-19T19:44:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/1 "2007-01-19T19:44:53Z")
CP is NOT a big fat dummy. This bodes ill, I can tell… ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/2 "2007-01-19T19:46:36Z")
Yep, looks like it ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/3 "2007-01-19T19:46:40Z")
So how can we know that I first said something about Cecil’s mother and then changed it to “CP”? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/4 "2007-01-19T19:47:56Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] So how can we know that I first said something about Cecil’s mother and then changed it to “CP”? [/QUOTE] No doubt we’re on the honor system here. I also have no doubt it will be yanked right out again if it’s abused. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/5 "2007-01-19T19:50:21Z")
…I are a doodyhead ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/6 "2007-01-19T19:50:29Z")
What goes around comes around. See, we’re _all_ saying things about you and then editing them out. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/7 "2007-01-19T20:01:20Z")
Testing…test completed! (you do not need a reason for editing) Huh, interesting, it does not even show the time that I edited… Maybe that’s only because no one else has read the thread yet… Now what happens if I provide a reason… What happens if I edit again? … without a reason? Ah. So, if you edit your post before anyone else reads the thread, the “Edited by” doesn’t show up, unless you provide a reason - but if you edit it again and remove the reason before anyone reads it, the edited by goes away again. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/8 "2007-01-19T20:03:05Z")
It is only for 5 minutes. If you say something truly offensive, you still have to watch out for someone quoting it before you change it. [QUOTE=carnivorousplant] So how can we know that I first said something about Cecil’s mother and then changed it to “CP”? [/QUOTE] If you had edited it, we would see the last edited message. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/9 "2007-01-19T20:08:28Z")
[QUOTE=What Exit?] If you had edited it, we would see the last edited message. [/QUOTE] Only if there had been new views since the the original post. If you edit before the thread is opened by someone else (which is what the view count actually represents), there’s no “edited by” message. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/10 "2007-01-19T20:09:10Z")
I think that will become the new SOP in GD, the Pit, and flameouts. Quote the OP in its entirety, just to guarantee it doesn’t disappear. But the 5 minute limit should contain most abuses. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/11 "2007-01-19T20:22:51Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] Only if there had been new views since the the original post. If you edit before the thread is opened by someone else (which is what the view count actually represents), there’s no “edited by” message. [/QUOTE] So if no one viewed it, then it does not matter. Sounds about right to me. That is a nice feature within the feature. Thank you for the clarification, I did not pick up on that in the test. [QUOTE=silenus] I think that will become the new SOP in GD, the Pit, and flameouts. Quote the OP in its entirety, just to guarantee it doesn’t disappear. But the 5 minute limit should contain most abuses. [/QUOTE] I think we are pretty safe with the 5 minute window and it should reduce the obvious coding problems by a good amount. I know users like me, will still let spelling and grammar errors slip through, but hopefully the bad coding will largely diminish. Jim ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/12 "2007-01-19T20:27:16Z")
OK, An Arky is a not a doo-doo head. So what does edit this look like? ---
**Author:** ![Trillionaire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@Trillionaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trillionaire)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/13 "2007-01-19T20:28:39Z")
test, test ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/14 "2007-01-19T20:34:11Z")
[QUOTE=Trillionaire] test, test [/QUOTE] The heck kind of reason is that? ---
**Author:** ![sinjin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@sinjin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sinjin)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/15 "2007-01-19T20:37:39Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] The heck kind of reason is that? [/QUOTE] A fundamental reason. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/16 "2007-01-19T20:38:12Z")
No shit, we can edit? I’ll try chopping a word out of the following sentence: The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. I’ll be a monkey’s uncle! ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/17 "2007-01-19T20:39:28Z")
I, for one, refuse to use the new edit feature. I’ll just use my spill chick. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/18 "2007-01-19T20:58:21Z")
Can we edit? Let’s find out. Yes we can! How about a second edit? Now, there’s a five minute limit, right? But here’s a third edit. I could keep up the edit chain I think ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/19 "2007-01-19T21:00:44Z")
I must have missed the function that pops in that last little italicized line. Time to see about that. Editing post pops in this last line. I’m not seeing the “reason for editing” data in preview, unless I’m blind. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2007, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609/20 "2007-01-19T21:01:29Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] I’ll just use my spill chick. [/QUOTE] Does she have a sister? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-can-edit/388609.md?page=2)