Moderator Run Amok: Deletions

Hi all,

I'm more or less unilaterally cleaning up some of the threads by deleting selected posts, and I want to let people know what the reason for this is, and my criteria.

I don't think we should delete much but these threads can easily become filled with chatty conversation of short term value, between substantive posts. These short term chats (about files, URLs, etc.) are useful and there is no problem with them, but after several days, when the information is exchanged and people have seen what they need to see, it really seem like a better idea to remove them.

In some cases these are exchanges that one could argue could be taken off line, but on the other hand they contain information of immediate interest to those watching the thread. I would prefer to see a little chattiness on the thread and later deletion than missed opportunities.

I look forward to comments on this procedure as we experiment with developing policy that works for this specific format.

Cheers,

GTL