What's the best way to handle a thread hijack? I don't have one I'm concerned about, but many interesting and informative threads go off the rails quickly. Not many threads can stay focused for more than a couple pages.

It starts innocently with a general unrelated comment and the thread takes a drastic turn thereafter. I've been guilty myself. Should the OP try to re-vector the discussion gently or bluntly?

I thought about posting this in Off Topic, but the irony was too great for me.

 

I'd probably report the post to a moderator and ask that they clean up the thread...

 

Best bet may be to ask a mod to get things back on track, but it's not easy since so many of these threads just seem to become conversations.
Also, I have noticed that some Rennlisters do not take well to authority.

If you are the OP of the thread than just ask to get things back to your topic.

 

I totally agree. You ask about a mod and you get more responses like "why would you want to change that" than you get feedback. The answer is obvious. Because you think the OEM way sucks. I think the OP should just steer it back on track and gently ask the poster to start a new thread with their topic. I'm new to this (one or two months) but I can't believe all the useless responses (like any time you want to do something practical with a Porsche you'll get remarks like, "get a mini van for that"). I think posters are just trying to be friendly but if not sunstantive then they could save it.

 

They get hijacked because someone just can't resist the opportunity to talk, even when they have absolutely nothing constructive to say about the topic at hand.

Which reminds me,

Who prefers Pepsi over Coke?

 

I wondered who would be first

 

By the way guys my car is for sale, check it out here:

https://rennlist.com/forums/for-sale...7-000-obo.html

 

Maybe we should start a thread titled "How to Smoothly and Subtly Hijack a Thread"

OK, back on topic!

 

Not sure about the software here but I'm a member of an autoracing group, actually several, mainly a cornerworkers club and we have a button that can 'split' off the topics into another new thread. During the great CART/CHAMP Car vers the IRL wars that went on between the two groups of fans - we were forever going off on tangents at least every hour or so. We also created a thread 'dump' where our mod would place the rest of the thread that had dirifted and where/when people started getting weird. After a while it would die out when only two people were posting and the problem would then go away.

 

What was the topic ?

Right, I remember, cars for sale


I think - wait, that's a lie - ok, when I have athread that I start I always reply to what's said. In doing so you take ownership (control if you will) of the dirrection. If you look at my threads I am almost always the last reply - fact is many people post off topic things on threads but if the OP steers it correctly, the OT comments fade away. There are many great threads that have stayed on topic for very long peiods. (Those are involved also and not simple "check the fuse, oh its fixed issues)

For example - cooler thermostat, engine rebuilt in garage, and others have stayed the course because they have real info and real problems. The threads tend to go OT when they are just average or opinion threads, quick fixes or dead end, or I get on them

If you prefer more on topic things with technical talk, keep a watch on Renntech. That should cure you

Love you,
E

 

I think this is a common issue here, and even moreso in the Cayenne forum.

Overall, I don't mind it too much, the secondary discussions are often very good. I don't think getting a moderator involved is the answer. If people want to get the thread back on topic, then they should post something related to the original topic, or ask the OP to move it back in that direction as previously suggested. I don't think thread hijacking is typically malicious, it's just the way people talk. People are trying to be helpful most of the time.

 

The highjacking is probably because of the OCD condition that we have. As near as I can tell OCD is a prerequisite of Pcar ownership.

Also, I like pie.

 

owe, my son likes pie too


I know what I was going to say.....

How many times in your life have you been in a conversation on the shop floor, the garage, the board of directors, dinner, the dentist or anywhere where the topic didnt shift a bit off topic and of drifting around...

unless you are a woman - who seem to stay on topic FOREVER !!!

the job of getting back on topic is the job of the leader.....

 

Ed,

I might add that, in your case, shiny things tend to get you off topic quite easily!


OK, back on topic

 

If bright = shiny, don't forget that one too.

Who started this thread anyhow