Raising the Dead (Forum Posts)

Some classic forum threads have been lost, usually because the originator left the site and closed his account.

It would be interesting to be able to request reinstatement of missing threads, many of which contain valuable contributions from quite a few posters.

e.g. http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/a-tally-of-database-users--non-users

See also: last-chance-to-see

"Unfortunately, no, there isn't a way to do that. This is one of the reasons that members can no longer delete entire threads anymore though." - chess.com staff

The interim policy - if the OP deletes his/her post, ownership of the thread transfers to the next poster - was a great improvement. Though it did lead to some odd moments: "I don't remember starting that topic".

The latest policy - the text of a deleted posting is replaced by [COMMENT DELETED] and individuals can't delete entire threads - is even better.