Closing topics

Agree irrelevant posts to old threads are bad. But I'm not sure I like the idea of closing threads e.g.: Someone asks about trips over Mt Jumbo. We all fail to provide useful answers to the specific question asked. Several months later they get round to the trip, and find out what it was really like. If the thread is closed, how can the provide feedback so that in future anyone searching can see? Or maybe a couple of years later someone else walks the same route based on the info provided, and finds conditions have changed completely. How to they add updated feedback and ensure that no-one else makes the same mistake? Ok. They can create a new thread and anyone searching would just have to check the dates. But better to add the verified answers in the thread where the original questions and discussion took place.

Same here. I'm not convinced about closing old threads. It could help prevent threads from going off-topic, but could also fragment useful discussion lines, as @Madpom's said. This morning I responded to a thread last used in 2009, and I think it was totally topical. It also pushed the thread back to the top, so the older posts in that topic won't be wasted. I'm not sure exactly what other forums do to encourage staying on-topic, but I think the Start New Thread or New Topic button on this site has usually been obscured where it's often unseen. How about shifting it so that it's right along the top of the forum screen, instead of down the side?

Thanks for the feedback. I agree. Best to leave as is. I will follow up on the new topic button. By the way, I shifted the jargon from "thread" to "topic" in order to minimise unnecessary jargon.