Forum Guidelines Expanded: 9. Duplicate Content
This post is a part of our series on expanded forum guidelines to help all users better understand the purpose of each guideline and for forum moderators to understand appropriate behavior and review examples of this rule in action.
My post was edited/deleted for duplicate content. What does that mean?
8. Duplicate posts and threads, including posting the same thread in multiple categories, are not allowed. Please reach out to a forum mentor if you accidentally post multiple times or if you are unsure if your thread already exists somewhere else.
Purpose of rule: to maintain cleanliness and usability in the forums. The purpose of this rule is to keep the forums organized and accessible for users.
Examples: Copying and pasting the same exact post in multiple threads, copying and pasting the same exact thread in multiple categories, copying and pasting the same exact post multiple times in one thread, creating the same thread as someone else
Explanation: Duplicate content in excess comes across as robotic and spammy (covered more in depth in rule 9), as well as makes it more difficult for users to seek out and find relevant content.
Appropriate Action: The forum moderator should delete all duplicates, retaining one version either in the most relevant location or the one with the most comments or upvotes. Forum moderators can also reach out to the author to see if they have a preference on which is retained. Any edits should include the forum moderator's name and the reason for editing (e.g. duplicate content). In the event that the post cannot be retained, the forum moderator will delete the whole post. If you believe a forum moderator has edited or deleted your post in error, you can email forum@7cups.com and we will investigate.
Clarifications:
Quoting another forum post
Sometimes you may find that quoting a portion of another forum thread is useful to the point you are trying to make or the support you are trying to give. This is generally okay, given the quoted portion is not in excess of 5 lines. For quotations that are 5 lines or more, linking to the original thread or summarizing and giving credit to encourage others to read from the source is an acceptable alternative.
Accidentally posting duplicates
Sometimes a post will post multiple times on accident. This is most often due to a poor internet connection or the browser resending information. Be not afraid! You can reach out to a forum mentor / member leader / teen star, email forum@7cups.com, or flag the duplicate posts and a forum moderator will delete the duplicates.
Posting a thread on a similar topic
We all have different perspectives, which means we may have a different approach or thought process on a problem. If you see a thread already exists on a topic you are interested in, but it does not quite address what you need or want it to or you have a different spin on it, it is perfectly acceptable to create a new but similar thread.
Do you have questions about what is or is not okay or need further clarification on examples? Post below and we will problem solve together!
Removed special character "�" by DayDreamWithYou 9/3/2021
Hi forum moderators! The forum ambassadors have started this series to provide clarification on the forum guidelines. We will be posting one of these (and tagging you) over the next 3 weeks (one a week) until we've gotten through all 10! Please feel free to ask questions and get clarification ^^
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@MonBon
Welcome post with info & clarifications .
@MonBon
@MonBon , thank you for the update!
@MonBon Thank you for providing such helpful information.
I do have an issue regarding posting a thread twice but in different places. and I'd like to retract that. but it seems to me I can't "delete" the thread nor the duplicate.
Can you help me with the situation,Please ?
Thank You.
Hey @YassineElmarzoqi , I understand sometimes we post multiple times accidentally ! No worries at all, as the thread above mentioned too, we can always reach out to a community mentor ( previously known as forum mentor / moderator) or any admin / ambassador and request them to delete our duplicate threads !
The option to delete/ edit threads is available to users with certain role and badges, a community mentor being one of them !
You can find them Here(clickable) and Mentor leaders !
If you're needing to edit / delete something currently, you can also message me personally or tag me in the forum thread you wish to delete , stating the same . 😊 (as a community mentor, I can help you with it as well )
