I am afraid that some people on the forums may not understand why I lock threads and tell people to search when I probably know the answer myself. I\'ve decided to explain myself and open this up to discussion. I will also add a poll so that you can vote on how many threads I should lock. However, please do not vote in the poll unless you post here as well, as I\'d like to know why you vote the way you do. Now, on to the reasons.
My Reasons for Locking Threads1.
Clutter. The first and simplest reason is that many repetitive threads clutter up the forums. If people learn to search instead of just asking (i.e. being lazy), there are less of these repetitive threads. Locking the threads without an answer (except a pointer to the search button, of course) encourages them to search and also ensures that other forum users don\'t have to read through the same stuff over and over again.
2.
Independence. What would happen if all the old experienced forum users went on vacation for a week? Anyone with any questions would be stuck waiting. A quick search could turn up the results much faster. Even when we\'re all here, a search is probably a lot faster than posting and waiting for a response.
3.
Community. A member who knows how to search well and is willing to do so is a much greater asset to the community than a lazy one that can only ask. He/she will be able to support him/herself and help others with new problems. This also discourages laziness on the part of the forum user, ensuring that all those who come here contribute, or at the least, do not detract.
Do not misunderstand me: posting new threads on issues that have not been discussed before or issues that you can add to is not detracting. This is in fact contributing.
Detracting is posting duplicate threads that have been discussed to death already. I lock threads that detract in the hopes that any further threads posted by the user will contribute.
Not my Reasons for Locking Threads1.
Meanness. I\'m not a mean guy (well, I try not to be
). I don\'t lock threads just because I can. I don\'t do it to make people miserable. That\'s not what being a moderator is about. That\'s not what being a human being is about.
2.
Laziness. I\'m not lazy when it comes to forum moderation or Planeshift in general. I wouldn\'t have spent the time to make an updater if I were lazy. I wouldn\'t even be here if I were lazy. Believe me, writing the answer is probably faster than explaining why I\'m locking a thread (a lot of them can be one word answers, even). Forum moderators don\'t get to be moderators because they\'re lazy.
Alright, I\'ve posted my reasons, now I leave the rest to you. Vote in the poll, discuss in this thread, and I\'ll try to suit my style to your wishes. However, in general, my goal is to create a neat independent community, so don\'t expect radical changes. Please also post reasons along with any requests you make of me. I\'d like to understand why you\'d like me to do a certain thing, instead of just what you want me to do. Thank you for taking the time out to read this and post!
