Vanishing threads

[surroundx]

Over the past few months some of the forum members have posted new threads on this forum because the old threads on those species have disappeared. How is this possible? It is very worrying because much information is lost like photos and scanned text that was in those threads. Or quotes from website links that are no longer available.

I do not want to accuse people, and I am not very knowledgeable about computers like some other people. But it seems to me like somebody is deleting the threads. How else could they disappear like this otherwise?

[Melanie]

We have this problem for several years. Maybe there is an error with the Proboards software but I can assure that me or other moderators don't delete threads (otherwise they are spam or are an infringement against the forum rules.)

[surroundx]

Jul 28, 2012 12:45:46 GMT Melanie said:

We have this problem for several years. Maybe there is an error with the Proboards software but I can assure that me or other moderators don't delete threads (otherwise they are spam or are an infringement against the forum rules.)

Sorry, I should have been more clear! I wasn't accusing any of the moderators. We all contribute whenever we come across new stories and scientific papers. It would be ridiculous to sabotage our own efforts.

No, I meant that maybe somebody like a hacker or something was deleting threads. There are so many threads that we would not notice one or two being deleted every now and then, especially if they were species which were not very well known.

It seems to me that this problem is best explained as somebody deleting the threads because it is never a well known species whose thread is deleted. Never the thylacine or the Caspian tiger or Dodo or Baiji or Passenger Pigeon etc. I hope people understand what I mean?

[surroundx]

Jul 28, 2012 12:50:58 GMT surroundx said:

It seems to me that this problem is best explained as somebody deleting the threads because it is never a well known species whose thread is deleted. Never the thylacine or the Caspian tiger or Dodo or Baiji or Passenger Pigeon etc.

But then again there are only a few famous recently extinct species compared with the many non-famous. So if 10 threads were deleted at random they would probably all be of non-famous species.

[Deleted]

I too guess it is a proboards problem, all of the vanished threads are some years old, maybe the forum software delets all old threads after some time?

[Peter]

I can ask it again on the Proboards support board. Maybe they can help.

[surroundx]

Aug 1, 2012 14:52:03 GMT Peter said:

I can ask it again on the Proboards support board. Maybe they can help.

Yes please Peter. It is hard seeing other people's contributions to this forum just being deleted, let alone my own. And then of course some of the info on those deleted threads we cannot get back.

[Peter]

Meanwhile I've searched the old thread on the Proboards support boards, and the one with the same problem could not be given a solution. Proboards could not find a problem. Another one with this problem appeared to have had copyrighted images in its forum. Proboards deleted the thread because it violated copyright.

I think it would be good to archive/save the posts we have made in a word-file or something (which is hard with so many posts) and keep an close eye on the security log and if we are still losing posts.

[Peter]

One more thing, please send me the name/topic of the thread(s) that has been lost. Or post them here.

That way it is more specific and possibly more easy to resolve.

[Melanie]

Yesterday I've counted 486 threads in the mammals section. Today I've counted 484 threads. Does it mean that we have lost two threads?

[Peter]

That is my work. I probably should have mentioned this in the moderator's board. Currently I'm checking all mammal threads to get my database complete (hopefully I can publish the mammal-database this week).

I've merged:
Macrocapromys acevedoi and Capromys acevedoi (synonyms))
Mesocapromys gracilis and Capromys gracilis (synonyms)

And I just merged two threads on the Isabela Giant Rat (Megaoryzomys sp. nov.). And more to come, I guess (at least that section needs a cleanup...)

So not lost, just merged!

[Melanie]

Oh, thank you.

[another specialist]

Peter which other thread on Isabela Giant Rat (Megaoryzomys sp. nov.)?

I created a thread on the Isabela Large Rat Nesoryzomys sp. nov and also the Isabela small Rat Nesoryzomys sp. nov but unable to find them?

Have they disappeared?

Or been merged?

[Peter]

Only the ones on the genus Megaoryzomys, see extinctanimals.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=rodentia&action=display&thread=7009.

The threads on Nesoryzomys sp. nov are still here, page 4 in the recently 'Extinct Rodent, Rabbits and Pikas' board, dating from 2007, see:
Small Isabela Rice Rat - Nesoryzmys sp.
and
Large Isabela Rice Rat - Nesoryzmys sp.

[another specialist]

Thanks Peter