[Archive]

Posted By: Joann

We seem to talk about OT posts and thread hijacking interchangeably, but they are different.

OT post that starts a thread? Should be rare, and the more OT the more rare. Honestly, it seems like it went a long time with the informal rule of leeway to regulars working very well in the background. Then it started getting abused lately, and Leon had to put out some guidelines including the "one per month" rule of thumb. Now I have this mental image of a few people anxiously watching the calendar to see when their next OT opportunity will arrive. lol. C'mon - it's the spirit of the thing - minimize OT threads. Don't act like one per month is your due and right.

Thread hijacking is different, and at least to me less disruptive than completely OT threads. Sometimes hijacks are off the topic of the thread but still on topic for the board. It seems like the grading issues are the final destination for all threads sometimes. Sometimes hijacks are into completely OT areas, and I think this friendly banter is harmless and even enjoyable.

The key to me on the hijacks is whether the original topic of the thread has been exhausted, or can reasonably be believed to be exhausted. That's a judgment call, and I think Gilbert's use of courtesy as a guideline is a good one. But if a thread isn't going anywhere, or has already gotten there, then I don't see the harm in the occasional reference to Moops. hee.

Joann