Data Reterntion Period for Forum

I was wondering if it would be possible to say delete all posts or inactive threads over 5 years old?

This forum is huge and only getting bigger and I dislike the fact that they last forever and should be a set data retention period.

I’m not sure how long SZ.com will use the current provider, but I’m sure it would keep their running costs down too?

@anon9798425 @Ninjastar @Moonbeam

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Very good question. The database is getting larger as we speak. Actually, because we speak :smile:
5 years sounds like a reasonable time frame, there should be a cron job (scheduled task) on the server, to delete everything older than 5 years… say… once every week or so.

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The problem with deleting old posts is that many of them are full of helpful information that people can find on google searches. The forum is supposed to be a valuable resource for such information.

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But things like benefits, treatment and medications etc change every few years anyway.

I would have thought the main site would contain some sort of static information that was updated (I know people would volunteer to help with this) with this information where as the forum would have some sort of privacy/information overload protection.

That’s why I said 5 years and not 2.

We could delete the old lounge and unusual beliefs threads… keep the rest… just a thought. 90% of lounge and 100% of unusual beliefs are disposable, imo.

As it stands, the database will continue to grow and so will do hosting costs, or am I missing something?
At least, has anybody done a projection, how much time can this forum keep running at the current pace with costs within a given budget?

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I’m doing a module on Data management and analysis next academic year, so probably by this time next year could show some interesting analytics.

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Or just archive them.

Uh, they’re also full of posts from pansdisease.

Helpful?

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And Full Frontal Nudity, although I think they were put in Mod’s private stash :wink: :stuck_out_tongue:

Anyway I don’t think indefinite retention is the way forward, unless you wanted to use them for a academic study, but you’d need permission for that…

Perhaps have lounge an unusual beliefs 2 years? and everything except news as 5?

It’s just a idea at this phase, but it certainly has merits.

More like 2 minutes for that last one. Most useless and even harmful area on this site.

We can haggle 6 months :stuck_out_tongue:

How about 6 hours, 6 minutes, and 6 seconds?

Not only appropriate, but the resulting head explosions would be EPIC.

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ROTFLAMO

But data retention needs to be addressed, we don’t need constipation or want diarrhoea!.

Yes. I do think we should have a forum that the really good threads get moved to that has the longest retention.

I just wish FB would have options to do the same, every time I meet a new person on there I worry that they look through my last 7 years of posts.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.

Or given a special approved flag?

Best Selection of Posts of the Year?

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If monitored properly I don’t see the problem with ‘unusual beliefs’ . It should of course be about offering support to counter such thoughts and not, for example, person A saying " Martians poisoned my coffee" only for person B to reply " Those Venusians are devious fiends as well".

People need to acknowledge they experience delusions/ unusual beliefs as part of the healing process . Encouraging people to go further down a delusional rabbit hole is something that should be promptly stamped out though.

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You’ve never had to moderate it. Horrible job.

???

He is already homeless, will you kick him from unusual beliefs too? :slight_smile: