First off a little poll: who ever clicked the ‘summarize topic’ button found under the first post in a topic?
(Bonus: If anyone does on a regular basis: how effective is it?)
I’m asking because I’ve been pondering about ways to get around the age old problem with long threads: it’s inevitable that after a certain thread length people stop reading the whole thing and start repeating similar things over and over, diluting the relevance of the thread, and making it increasingly improbable that other people will read it through. A vicious circle.
There is the summarize button but my guess is practically no one is using that, and I have my doubts about the accuracy of the automated function.
So here’s something I’ve been thinking about: make individual forum members responsible for the executive summary of a given thread. The OP is a likely candidate for this but it doesn’t have to be. Many threads are orphaned by their OP but other members will still have interest in it. The executive summary would be added to the first post after a certain thread length is reached (length limit to be decided on). The thread patron gets to compile it and the intention is that the most relevant thread elements are clearly listed there (perhaps linking to specific posts) so that anyone coming to it can first check that before posting the same question or opinion in it for the 30th time. When someone still does they can be referred to the executive summary instead of getting the same answer for the 30th time.
Example: the AR mk2 freeze bug thread
This is a long lasting thread with 400+ posts in it. For a long time it collected freeze reports and people venting their frustration with it. Last year a repeatable freeze scenario was found, Elektron was informed and OS 1.50A fixed it. Since we ve seen a bunch of new posts about AR issues but not the one that thread is about. The executive scenario would be useful in clearly stating what the discussed bug is (and what it is not: cold boot and power cycle issues, missing: cal pads) and that it is fixed since OS1.50A. Then it’s instantly clear to anyone checking in that only new reports concerning this specific issue make sense in this thread.
This system would rely on the voluntary participation of members. I estimate mods don’t need this extra duty on their shoulders. I think it can be a community decision which threads and when need this. Alternative could be that each thread passing the length limit gets it.
What do you think?
I’d volunteer for the AR freeze thread. I will not volunteer for the Behringer thread 
