How does a question get closed after three responses? Who decides when to close a thread - the OP, the mod, both?

It’s almost always a mod decision, and why we do it depends on the question. There was one today posted by a (banned) returning troll that we pulled (and closed) after three responses. Sometimes, it’s spam. Sometimes, it’s due to typos, and the asker chooses to abandon it rather than editing it.

We very rarely completely remove questions at the request of the asker, unless they have a pretty compelling reason for wanting it closed. The reason for that is that it not only removes the asker’s question, but all of the contributions made by those that answered it.

Thanks!

Anytime. :)

Okay – how do you decide when someone is a troll – or just a dunce? is it when someone was banned and returned under a different name – or based on their behaviour? I don’t know how much you can go into detail about what’s behind the scenes – but Kardamom and I were discussing it and we’re curious as to the process.

Deciding if someone’s a troll can be a bit tricky. Sometimes, it’s really obvious (hate-speech, say, or somebody just going off the deep end all of a sudden – attacking people all over the place), and others use much subtler methods to troll. Maybe they routinely post controversial questions just for the sake of being controversial, with no real interest in a discussion. Maybe they ask ‘questions’ just so they can argue with everyone who answers. Maybe they use nonsensical language to mess with people. Maybe they ask a series of questions that creates some kind of story that alarms people, just for their own amusement. Whatever method they use, it’s usually pervasive, and seen across multiple threads. Generally, the subtler it is, the longer it takes us to be sure.

In the case of a returning troll, that’s someone we’ve previously banned for trolling coming back under a new name. They get banned the very minute we’re aware they’re back.

You guys are so cool. Just sayin’.