Frustrated About Incorrect, Out Of Date Posts

[ChemistMama]

I"ve come back to post on the DH board a few times, but when I go onto other areas, people have been replying to threads that are 5 or 6 years old. I am afraid that newbies will see this and get very confused about what is correct and what is not. Stumbled upon a hot dog discussion where it was plainly listed that Nathan's are not gluten-free, but as of recently they now are gluten-free. I would really like the mods to add a post to the top of old threads stating that the info is old and may be out of date, or else (which I know won't happen) to clean house and get rid of old, out of date information. I"m begging you, please consider this! You have the a great resource but you're making it more confusing than it needs to be.

[conniebky]

I"ve come back to post on the DH board a few times, but when I go onto other areas, people have been replying to threads that are 5 or 6 years old. I am afraid that newbies will see this and get very confused about what is correct and what is not. Stumbled upon a hot dog discussion where it was plainly listed that Nathan's are not gluten-free, but as of recently they now are gluten-free. I would really like the mods to add a post to the top of old threads stating that the info is old and may be out of date, or else (which I know won't happen) to clean house and get rid of old, out of date information. I"m begging you, please consider this! You have the a great resource but you're making it more confusing than it needs to be.

Well, maybe that's a good idea, I don't know...I'm a newbie and have never gotten lost here or led astray.

[psawyer]

It is the policy of this board to remove posts only if they are in violation of the board rules. Posts which contain outdated information, but which were in compliance with the rules when they were made, are still in compliance.

When an old topic is revived we often post a notice that the information is old and may no longer be correct. Posts are displayed in chronological sequence with the oldest first. There is no way we can put something at the top of the topic--we can only post at the end of the thread.

To the hot dog topic, a recent post asked which brand, that used to be the only one with gluten, was now gluten-free. I posted there with the brand name.

Food status changes all the time. There are well over half a million posts on this board. We simply can't go back and reread every one each time a product has a new ingredient list.

[Ahorsesoul]

I'd be upset if the old posts disappeared. I use this site as my storage folder. Recipes, what others have done, doctors they have seen. Would hate to see all that info gone. That is the reason this site is so popular. And that you can get varied opinions about your question so you can make your own choice in what you want to do. Learning from others in the same situation is great.

Thanks to the mods for keeping the site as it is and in line!

[conniebky]

I'd be upset if the old posts disappeared. I use this site as my storage folder. Recipes, what others have done, doctors they have seen. Would hate to see all that info gone. That is the reason this site is so popular. And that you can get varied opinions about your question so you can make your own choice in what you want to do. Learning from others in the same situation is great.

Thanks to the mods for keeping the site as it is and in line!

i AGREE.

[jerseyangel]

Pinning all appropriate posts creates an amazing archive--there's nothing quite like it anywhere--it's a veritable treasure trove of compiled first-hand experiences with Celiac and the Gluten Free Diet.

The mods do a very good job of keeping the information up to date whenever possible, and of course the post date is clearly displayed.

[kareng]

I know when I first went on, I didn't see the dates at first. Was wondering how there were so many posts. I'm not the most forum savvy. I have put a note after someone comments that a post was older than dirt. So please, people..... Look at how old the last post is before getting po'ed that everyone says Chex are not gluten-free.

Legal disclaimer: at this time chex cereals that are gluten-free are clearly labeled as such.

[GlutenFreeManna]

I know when I first went on, I didn't see the dates at first. Was wondering how there were so many posts. I'm not the most forum savvy. I have put a note after someone comments that a post was older than dirt. So please, people..... Look at how old the last post is before getting po'ed that everyone says Chex are not gluten-free.

Legal disclaimer: at this time chex cereals that are gluten-free are clearly labeled as such.

I think kareng hit the nail on the head. If you look at the date when a post was made you will not be confused or lead astray by outdated info. If anyone were just randomly searching for info on anything on the internet and came across an article dated 1996, hopefully they would continue searching to see if the info had changed since then. This board has a great wealth of posts. If you see a very old post about a brand and you want to know if the info is still correct, you can do one of three things: 1. look for another source that is more recent (hopefully from this year) 2. "bump" the thread up by making a reply to the thread asking if anyone knows if the info has changed, or 3. contact the company in question. The last of course is the safest if you want to be 110% sure.

[Scott Adams]

I understand your point, however, it is pretty much impossible to eliminate inaccurate information on boards this size. I believe that it is generally understood, and we do advise this in our sign up agreement, that information found here could be inaccurate or outdated. I have found that good boards are self-correcting, which means that whenever anyone sees incorrect info they should try to post in the thread where it appears and correct it. I also believe that this actually does happen most of the time, just not all of the time. So whenever you see anything inaccurate please try to post the correct, accurate information, that way future visitors will find it.

Take care,

Scott

[kareng]

I understand your point, however, it is pretty much impossible to eliminate inaccurate information on boards this size. I believe that it is generally understood, and we do advise this in our sign up agreement, that information found here could be inaccurate or outdated. I have found that good boards are self-correcting, which means that whenever anyone sees incorrect info they should try to post in the thread where it appears and correct it. I also believe that this actually does happen most of the time, just not all of the time. So whenever you see anything inaccurate please try to post the correct, accurate information, that way future visitors will find it.

Take care,

Scott

Scott,

I have noticed that few people on this form are shy if they think info is wrong (myself included) . Want to say thanks for this forum as I would probably still be damaging my guts and miserable without it. My doc is nice but he said yesterday " you seem to know what you are doing. let me know if you want something from me.". Most of the info or links to info about celiac disease I have found here. Thank you.

[Juliebove]

The first time I came here, I didn't realize how old some of the posts could be. Now whenever I see something that doesn't look right, I check the date. And if replying, I will add that it is an old post.

[luvthelake21]

Just also wanted to thank you Scott for this site. When my daughter was diagnosed at 10 (3 years ago) I had never heard of Gluten Free or Celiac Diease. Her Doctor told me about this forum and I have learned soooo much here.

[ChemistMama]

Don't get me wrong: I'm not implying that Scott and his team are doing anything wrong, or that you should go back and read everything! I appreciate all the hard work they do, and I, too, use the boards (cautiously) for information. However, I do know a lot of 'newbies', not only to celiac but to dealing with bulletin boards in general. It's too bad that you can't put a warning on top of the thread, or in the first post. I am also all for a search function that could list posts in chronological order, like they do on Chowhound.

I still stand by my frustration. If I do see an old post replied to, I try to reply and state that the thread is really old.

[cap6]

I am a celiac newbie and a forum newbie so this was a little confusing as far as old posts and such. After spending some time here I have pretty much figured out how the site works ~ it takes time just like learning about the celiac diet. It's all a learning process. I enjoy the old posts & now know to check dates etc on food recommends. I refer to this site all of the time and it has been a life saver as I don't have any "celiac buddies" to go to. Thank you for this site!!

[missceliac2010]

Pinning all appropriate posts creates an amazing archive--there's nothing quite like it anywhere--it's a veritable treasure trove of compiled first-hand experiences with Celiac and the Gluten Free Diet.

The mods do a very good job of keeping the information up to date whenever possible, and of course the post date is clearly displayed.

Well said Patti! I totally agree. And the date of the original post is clearly written at the beginning of the post, so it is up to the "consumer" of information to be aware of the timeliness of said information. You wouldn't pick up a 2 year old magazine at a doctor's office claiming something that is clearly incorrect and blame the doc's office for not removing the magazine. You have to be a smart consumer.

Just my two cents. Stay alert people. If Celiac disease has taught me anything....it's to question everything!!

[Skylark]

A couple times mods have pointed out that a thread is old. It's really helpful! I know where the dates are but sometimes I forget to look.

[txplowgirl]

I always make sure about the date info was posted before I follow up on whether or not to keep the info.

[psawyer]

A couple times mods have pointed out that a thread is old. It's really helpful! I know where the dates are but sometimes I forget to look.

We try to comment when an old topic rises from the ashes, but we don't get every one. We do watch for it, since a new post in an old thread is a red flag for possible spam.

[Tidings]

We try to comment when an old topic rises from the ashes, but we don't get every one. We do watch for it, since a new post in an old thread is a red flag for possible spam.

Hi,

I personally hope that the old posts remain because many of them contain valuable info. One such older post was several years old and I didn't realize it when I replied to it, but the content was still valid and interesting. Hopefully, such older posts will not be designated as "closed" or "inactive" which would bar us from interacting with the content... even if considered a little aged! Participants seem very "on their toes" here and will probably catch anything that is inaccurate or misleading before any problems might arise.

[psawyer]

Hopefully, such older posts will not be designated as "closed" or "inactive" which would bar us from interacting with the content... even if considered a little aged!

On this board, locking a topic is very rarely done. Only when the topic is completely out of control (by becoming a flame war or deviating repeatedly from the subject) is it considered. Age alone would never cause us to lock a topic.

[bincongo]

I am a celiac newbie and a forum newbie so this was a little confusing as far as old posts and such. After spending some time here I have pretty much figured out how the site works ~ it takes time just like learning about the celiac diet. It's all a learning process. I enjoy the old posts & now know to check dates etc on food recommends. I refer to this site all of the time and it has been a life saver as I don't have any "celiac buddies" to go to. Thank you for this site!!

I too am new and it took me a long time to figure out that there was a date at the top. It is in small faint letters but I am new to forums in general. I was desperate to get information and my doctor recommended this site. It has been extremely helpful. I just apologize to all the really old posts I responded too. The only thing that would improve it would be spell check.

[kareng]

Does anyone see the irony that we are responding to an old post from June?

(Took me a bit to figure out the date, too)