Script to delete posts on TexAgs?

11,427 Views | 147 Replies | Last: 4 yr ago by Kampfers
lb3
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AG
Didn't tag Fly with my response.
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lb3
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AG
You give me too much credit. I'm not a programmer and had to Google EVERY command in that VBA script. If I had a better idea what I wanted from this code when I started, it would be very different.

The posts will gradually disappear on Google as their worms reindex the world.

This script's days may be numbered. One user reporting he is now getting captcha messages, even on his phone.
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lb3
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The archive still works. But the editing is bringing up a captcha page for some users.
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lb3
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I'll email you a copy this weekend. You can remove your email.
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Maacus
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JJMt said:

NM
NM
lb3
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I sent a PM to Stewade late on Friday. I'm not sure if he will respond on Monday given that lots of people will be taking the holiday week off. Hopefully we can find a way to do these edits efficiently with minimal impact on TexAgs.
lb3
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AG
Oh, is the Captcha on site wide edits or just tied to specific users?

I haven't run the mass edits on more than about 100 posts at a time since August so I don't know why I would have been flagged. Honestly, there are a hundred ways to break the script without the ham fisted use of captcha. Sounds like the developers got lazy.

I'm disappointed they didn't reach out to me about ways to better implement the editing script. Perhaps restrict the operation to off peak hours, or reduce the speed to a few posts per minute. I'm not really worried about speed. 9 hours or 9 weeks is fine by me.
lb3
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AG
The Captcha on my edits is now gone. Weird.
goodAg80
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lb3 said:

The Captcha on my edits is now gone. Weird.
It could be Azure protecting against denial of service attacks.
lb3
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AG
I was thinking about that. Some users have 50K+ posts and with multiple people running the script, we may have been trying to make close to a million edits. I'm happy to slow down the script. I just need some guidance on how slow is slow enough.
Fly Army 97
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So, scrape first...then mass edit. I put NM in Edit Text and Go for Edit Text.

When I clicked Mass Edit, I got a runtime error and something about a protected worksheet 'the cell or chart you are trying to change is on a protected sheet. You might be requested to enter a password.'

Options are end, debug, and help.
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Ted Lasso
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AG
Is it TexAgs opinion that posts are not allowed to be removed in bulk? Doesnt seem like good business
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Fly Army 97
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Must have done something wrong...it cut off near the end and all verifications were failed.
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htxag09
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AG
I'm kind of confused how this thread escalated so quickly. Seems it went from a good idea to a bash staff fix problems or else thread at the drop of a hat. Unless I missed something
lb3
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AG
The moderators and IT staff are not the same people.

Let's try working with TexAgs before you start making ultimatums. We have to accept that, anything we post on TexAgs is the property of TexAgs. Many Internet forums only allow a 30 minute window for edits. And I've seen some sites that allow you to view previous versions of a post. TexAgs is much less restrictive and more user privacy friendly in that sense.

I don't know how much revenue TexAgs generates from page views on really old threads so there is an argument that deleting posts could be harming their long term revenue. I don't know that it would be significant enough to drive any of their policies but we need to be sensitive to their interests. I would personally hate to ever see the travel scrabble thread deleted.

I didn't want to accidentally delete my CLEAR Alert thread which is the sole reason I added the archive and restore features to the tool. Hopefully others will use those features to protect higher profile threads and posts.
lb3
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htxag09 said:

I'm kind of confused how this thread escalated so quickly. Seems it went from a good idea to a bash staff fix problems or else thread at the drop of a hat. Unless I missed something
I think we triggered Azure's denial of service protections (temporarily adding captcha to all edits). Probably just some bots and not an actual change in site policy or singling out specific users.

But seeing cancel culture targets moving closer to main stream conservatism has some people on edge.
GT_Aggie2015
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AG
How can i access the script to run on my account?
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lb3
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I removed the link when the captcha showed up.

I've promised a couple copies to folks this weekend. I'm going to strip the editing buttons before I send out the link.
GT_Aggie2015
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AG
Makes sense.
Fly Army 97
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lb3,

I assume that is why I keep getting a failed message. I put the edit me in column J.

I offered to pay Texags to do this, but I got the message back politely saying no. Not looking for an argument here, but I wouldn't mind doing this if it can work. I've got personal stuff like email addresses in old posts. Just figured a nuke button would solve all this.
lb3
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AG
I'll send you the file tonight. But it will be very late (2am perhaps).
Fly Army 97
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Fly Army 97
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