Our thread has disappeared

[languagelounger]

Help! The Language Lounge thread seems to have disappeared - can't find it - it was in the What's On Section. It has all our information on it. Surely I can't have somehow wiped it off by mistake? Please advise. Thanks!

[SeanMacGabhann]

do you mean this one?

[languagelounger]

No that's just something in the other bit -somebody had been asking for Russian lessons and I couldn't find them either! We always put our stuff in the What's On bit, the thread is quite long now, 6 pages. We offer several languages and there are quite a few people involved now. Where is thread? Help! Have I done something daft with it?

[Administrator]

Nope, it was me, the forum's database was so big (2Gb+) that I deleted threads that were more than 6 months old from the What's on, For Sale and Wanted section. In doing so I seem to have deleted some threads like yours and some book club ones, so apologies for that.

[languagelounger]

Oh no! Deleted, as in deleted, lost, gone?? is there any chance of retrieving so I can copy some bits of info? Is there any chance that would be a quick operation you could kindly manage?

Forum is huge boon of course, v much appreciated and v wonderful service but was just noticing, the giant ancient footie thread is still there. And our lovely language thread for our lovely language groups that just happen to be 99% girlie attended, gone. Ha! I bet the book clubs are largely if not entirely non-bloke as well. I say no more. Ha! Blokes and their football. Ha!

[Administrator]

Deleted as in gone forever I'm afraid. The football thread is in the Lounge so that was untouched.

[SeanMacGabhann]

If it was deleted that long ago and you've only just noticed... one COULD argue... etc etc

[languagelounger]

It wasn't deleted that long ago. It was started last year but updated with new info (and new messages) every week.

Latest update was last Thurs.

It makes more sense to keep one thread going than to keep starting new ones. If you start a new one every week when people search they likely get directed to an old one, revive it with a new message...you end up with half a dozen going at once and it gets very messy. Don't really understand why just the What's On section has been purged of the most popular threads. Thread got at least 100 views a week.

[Administrator]

It was simply a case of me pressing the 'delete threads that were started more then six months ago' button to clean up the database, unfortunately there is not a 'leave the most popular threads' option.

[Huguenot]

Don't panic languagelounger - this isn't an example of a rampaiging patriarchy, simply a technical solution to a pressing problem.

Please please do remember that this site isn't free, it's just free to its users. Admin pays for it and his budget is no bigger than your own would be :)

Sometimes he has to do the simple thing, because he doesn't have a committee of technicians and a billion dollar budget to do the perfect thing.

[Franki]

Hi Administrator

I can't find my ED Book Club thread either to remind myself when our next meeting is - was that one of the ones you deleted too?

Thanks,

Franki

[mazza7103]

have you deleted the book club that are due to met tomorrow at the clockhouse at 7.30pm. i wanted to look at the thread to check the details?

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

mazza, we didn't realise it was a Bank Holiday, so it has been postponed - no date agreed yet.

[mazza7103]

oh ok. no probs thanks for letting me know. there's so many book clubs and they are all called ED book club,

[Administrator]

Hi

Like I said, threads that were started more than six months ago in the What's on, For Sale and Wanted section were deleted. Sorry for any inconvenience.

[Administrator]

In future I will not delete threads in the What's on section without a warning.

[Narnia]

Would it not have been possible Admin to just delete inactive threads after a certain period of time?

[Administrator]

no, unfortunately there is not a 'delete inactive threads after a certain period of time' option however it would be nice.

[Administrator]

Actually I have just found (and installed) a facility in the delete messages process that says "select messages whose last message was before (date)" so I can excluded threads that have recent posts. Thanks Narnia.

[Chener Books]

I hope you will not delete the local history threads.

John K

[Administrator]

I don't think they are in the What's on, For sale or Wanted Section so they should be fine.

[charliecharlie]

I feel sort of bereft... there are the records (of all the brilliant regular meetings, book clubs, backgammon, all sorts... no knowing now what is lost... all the social meetings and events that the forum does such a brilliant jobs of supporting and facilitating), deleted at the press of a button...

feels very harsh!!!! surely you could find some way to retrieve the regular meetings thread/posts of events that are ongoing and live.

I do understand that there is a need to keep the size and quantity of info on the forum to a manageable size, but to just delete thread that are still full of life because they have existed for more that 6 months seems a very strange kind of cull...

http://www.weatherheads.co.uk/WHW/images/pictures/nn_1893-Bereft.jpg

Bereft by William Harris Weatherhead, Dated 1893

[Administrator]

It is not a case of "that post is full of life and more than 6 months old, I'm going to delete it" it's a case of...

Q: Computer, tell me how many threads in the Wanted, For Sale and What's on section were started more than 6 months ago?

A: 89,450

Jeez, I guess no one can be selling, wanting or advertising events that are more than 6 months old can they?* Please delete them.

It has nothing to do with harshness and it was not an act whose sole aim was to deliberately remove your thread.

*I was wrong

[charliecharlie]

but mine was in the What's On section!!! and i still seem to have lost it!!!

[Administrator]

Q: Computer, tell me how many threads in the Wanted, For Sale and What's on section were started more than 6 months ago?

A: 89,450

Jeez, I guess no one can be selling, wanting or advertising events that are more than 6 months old can they?