Timeline for Closing old question as duplicate of a new one
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
10 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Aug 28, 2014 at 19:07 | comment | added | xnor | I posted something along this line of discussion: meta.codegolf.stackexchange.com/a/2108/20260 | |
| Aug 4, 2014 at 21:27 | comment | added | Martin Ender | But this entire discussion seems to be off-topic for the question I actually asked. If you want to argue whether we should close-vote as duplicate at all, you should make a new post. My point was really mostly to find out whether we close old questions in favour of new ones or only the other way round. | |
| Aug 4, 2014 at 21:26 | comment | added | Martin Ender | @Ryan The entire point of closing as a duplicate is that those new users are directed to the old question to put their answers there. If a new question is closed as a duplicate of an old one, the old one basically gets exactly the exposure which you say it's lacking for new users. Furthermore, as soon as the first user answers it, the old question is bumped to the front page just like the new question would be. I really can't see a reason not to answer the old question if the new one doesn't provide any additional value over the old one. | |
| Aug 4, 2014 at 21:19 | comment | added | rdans | @MartinBüttner "I think if you get bored with the active questions, you are expected to go looking for old ones (or deal with it)" Answering an old/inactive question is not the same as answering a new/active question where there will typically be multiple users interested in answering the question and competing in the challenge. It's unlikely that those users would happen to stumble upon the old question again at the same time (creating the same conditions as with a new question). | |
| Aug 4, 2014 at 21:19 | comment | added | rdans | @MartinBüttner "The worst that can happen is that new answers get beaten by answers copied from the old post" I can see how this might be annoying for the other users wanting to answer the question properly, but I think people are capable of deciding for themselves whether this matters to them or not. But rather than saying, "this question has a duplicate, so be aware there is a risk of answers being copied", instead the approach is "this question has a duplicate, so for your own good, we aren't going to let you answer it" | |
| Aug 4, 2014 at 21:18 | comment | added | rdans | @MartinBüttner "on PPCG asking a question again really adds no value" there is no value to the users that already answered the question or to users that saw the question and decided that they would never want to answer it. To all other users of the site there is potential value to the duplicate question. In this example the question has only 7 answers. There's a high chance that there are users other than the original 7 that would be prepared to submit an answer. | |
| Aug 4, 2014 at 21:18 | comment | added | rdans | @MartinBüttner "they help accumulating all answers to a question in a single post" to what end? On SO, users arrive at the site to find answers/solutions to specific questions/problems. A problem that a user is having today could affect another user in another week/month/year, so old answers are potentially still useful and there is a benefit to the user for having all of the answers in one place. This same reasoning cannot be applied to PPCG where users come to answer programming challenges and not to find answers. | |
| Aug 4, 2014 at 9:15 | comment | added | Martin Ender | The benefit of duplicates is that they help accumulating all answers to a question in a single post, while linking to it from several places. That applies here as well as on SO or any other SE site. Furthermore, here on PPCG asking a question again really adds no value. The worst that can happen is that new answers get beaten by answers copied from the old post. And also yes, I think if you get bored with the active questions, you are expected to go looking for old ones (or deal with it). So I think there are good reasons for closing, but it should be the old one that's closed in this case. | |
| Jul 31, 2014 at 15:40 | comment | added | Nathan Merrill | I agree with all but your 4th point. SO also avoids duplicates because the answers don't want to answer the same question over and over. The same is applicable here. | |
| Jul 30, 2014 at 17:08 | history | answered | rdans | CC BY-SA 3.0 |