Baron Can you please set some guidlines for moderators as to what kinds of posts can be deleted. It would be nice to have some standards that we could look at to determine if a particular post should have been deleted or not. Right now it seems that it is up to the moderators and there seems to be a wide diversity of opinion there. I realize that keeping dedicated moderators is probably tough but I dont see how having some specific guidelines could hurt. Spam, malicious, completely offtopic, etc.
We do have guidelines for moderators. Moderators are supposed to delete posts that display spam, rudeness and heated disputes. Complaints are a large help in keeping the site moderated. You as a member can contribute to the cleanliness of the site by pressing the complaint button; it's a 10 second process that helps in the discovery of inappropriate posts, and provides a safer reading environment for all.
The standards are already laid out in the "Conduct Rules" link, which is at the bottom lefthand corner of any page.
Thank you for the clarification. After reading the rules I am even more perplexed why my posts were deleted as I did not break any of the rules. The moderator thought I was off topic but I and some others do not think I was. Is being off topic grounds for deletion?
you are referring to the problem with IB volume - it's more of a temporary technical problem from the IB side. The problem will go away eventually. My thinking is that after the problem gets fixed the posts will be rendered irrelevant to the thread purpose. As the thread is already as long as it is, a single post that directs people to somewhere else will have to suffice.
you can always post your question here. http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=97684 ;-)
I'll see if I can un-perplex things. The Conduct Rules don't specify the exclusion of "off topic" posts, but an online community with a variety of forums/threads/posts cannot survive without that requirement. The majority here have no trouble abiding by that simple standard, and if they forget a straightforward reminder usually does the trick. If I remember correctly a few years ago the Conduct Rules were going to be modified to include that obvious requirement and more pressing matters came up at the time so it got put on a back-burner. But everyone at ET is aware of that condition for posting. The thread in question is "Spydertrader's Jack Hershey Futures Trading Journal" which currently sits just under 800 pages long. Remaining on topic is even more critical for something that large, and members regularly complain that reading thru a thread of that size is an overwhelming task. The problem is when a post, in Bearbelly's case referring to software, is permitted (as it was earlier in the thread) then it opens the floodgates and invites others to engage in nonstop conversations about this or that or the other software, setting software preferences, changing options, software data feeds, modifying chart displays, announcing software upgrades, bugging the software designers, etc. etc. ad nauseam. After a series of complaints about 3 weeks ago I called a halt to it, removed the most egregious portions of the neverending software discussion, and made this post... And, very graciously, later on that same day Tums started this thread in the Software Forum where it belongs. It is thriving there with over 6,000 views, more than just about any other software thread, and it normally sits near the top of the queue... Software Used to Trade Jack Hershey Methods I understand some people get annoyed that anything and everything can't be discussed in Spydertrader's thread to get more eyes on it (in the same way that some people get annoyed that every single thread can't be dumped in the Trading Forum so that it's more likely to be seen), but the Software Forum is the place to have ongoing discussions about software, and given the title that Tums used Jack Hershey traders shouldn't have any trouble finding it.