Post New Thread Or Bump Old One?

[Blackjaw x]

Okay, this is an issue I've had with nearly every forum I have ever been a part of, and never really understood it or gotten an answer.

I'm going to make up a little story to explain this.

Little Billy wants to talk about Billiards.
He does a search of the forums and finds an old thread from seven months ago.
He happily posts everything he knows about Billiards but gets in trouble for bringing up an old thread and it gets locked so he can't talk about it anymore.
"Understandable..." he thinks, and goes to make his own thread.
With seven months inbetween, there must be some new members interested in billiards or old members with new information on the topic.
Surely there can't be any harm in making a new thread and getting some fresh discussion going!
A couple of people post but along comes another lock; this time he is told to search before he posts something that has come up before.

Clearly, this is a paradox.
If you can't post in an old thread but also can't make a new thread because the old thread exists, I ask one question.

Which of the two would you rather little Billy do?
1. Bump an old thread with some great information already in it, which keeps a precise database with everything on the subject.
2. Make a new thread, a fresh start for recent discussion on the topic.

However, if I am told to do one or the other and I do that one but still get in trouble, we return to the paradox.

[Otisbum]

In my opinion, the age of the previous thread is the defining factor.
<2 months old, post in that one, but be darn sure that you're contributing something new to the discussion. Bumping up an older thread just to say "I agree" is pointless.

>3 months old, make a new thread and state why you're making a new one as opposed to using the old one. Again, make sure you've got something to contribute, because if all you're doing is stating the same things/opinions that were in the old thread, there's really no need to be making the post at all then.

There's a gray period in between 2 and 3 months where it'd all depend on other things.

[Minty]

If someone has something valid to make in a post, there isn't a reason to not bump the thread.

However, most people bump to say "thanks", "lolol" or "yeah i agree" which isn't worthy of a bump.

[Jdm7399]

In my opinion, I don't mind if Old Threads are being "bumped". As long as something relevant and useful is being posted. Posting, "Hey! Thanks a lot!" is considered Spam. Why? Because if you Searched and a certain thread pops up and helps answer your question, then there's no need to post, "Thanks!" and bump that old thread even though you would like to show your appreciation. Use the old threads as a Reference because there truly is no need to post in it anymore.

Edit: Minty beat me because he only posted 2 lines and I posted a paragraph.:p

[Blackjaw x]

Fair enough Otis, Minty and JDM, those replies make perfect sense.

Just try to remember to remind people exactly why their thread got locked (even though there is a good reason, it's sometimes not explained).

Note: nothing recent or specific has triggered my thread, I just reminded myself of this 'issue' when I visited an old site that had a tendency to go out of control with this.