For instance, a topic from April 2011 on “ontologies and semantic web” just re-materialized in the off-topic discussion section, even though it never received any response to its single posting “way back then.” I can therefore see no technical justification at all for it popping-up now.
Also, I categorically recommend that topics beyond a certain (fairly short …) age should be automatically locked. Blender changes very rapidly, so old topics are often no longer relevant, and it is very confusing when such a topic re-materializes. One might not immediately realize that a previous comment or the first one was from a previous decade. If someone wants to “add to the discussion,” let them create a new topic which (perhaps) contains a hyperlink to the old one.
… nine years ago, a bloke lost his job. The thread just got a reply.
This is yet another argument for what would be a very simple and easily-implemented solution: automatic time-locking of threads. Once a thread’s original post is more than a few weeks or months old, the thread becomes automatically locked and cannot be replied-to, by a “bot” nor anyone else.
(If you want to “say something,” you must start a new thread, in which you can include a URL to the old one.)
Also – I remain unconvinced that “bots” are actually the cause of this recurring problem. The URLs that lead to a particular post are not simple, sequential numbers that could easily be faked. (For example, the URL of this thread includes the thread title.) I think that there is some defect in the software itself.
URL complexity has no baring on a bots ability to post on old threads. Bots can traverse the entirety of the internet. That’s how search engines are catalogued. Some bots can even defeat registration CAPTCHA with image recognition and by emulating humanistic cursor movements.
At any rate, I agree on an automatic lock for old threads. If a thread REALLY needs to be opened back up for some reason, the mods can always be PMed.
No thread locking needed. It’s often because of the “Suggested Topics” section at the bottom of threads and people that do not look at the date. It often suggests topics many years old and/or irrelevant ones. People see them, then go reply, while also not looking at the dates.
Display a warning on the screen when people are replying to something really old:
“You are replying to a thread that has been inactive for 9 years. Necromancy is generally frowned upon.”
Alternatively, limit the suggested topics to a couple months old at most or better yet just get rid of it.