If you see an offtopic post in a forum topic like

i_like_trees wrote:

i like trees

Is it better to:
- Silently report it?
- Quote the post saying something like “Please do not spam” or “Please stay on topic” and nothing else?
- Quote the post saying one of the above and also adding to the discussion?

I can't find a post of the ST giving a stance on this, so I'll give my take.

I think it's more conditional. If it's obviously a troll, like back in the day, I'd report it silently. If it's just a random post, I like to give them a reminder if someone else hasn't already given them one.

um, i think it is best to silently report it. quoting could make it worse to anyone,
although, i suddenly do it for help

I feel like it might actually be better to tell them on their profile, as i dont believe they normally issue warnings for forum posts

this all really depends on if there would be a warning issued for it, as the whole “silent report” thing is to 1. Not cause drama, but also 2. There is no point in telling them twice (i think that was a reason)

Not silently reporting would just make everyone mad at you because they would think you are toxic.

Maybe report it silently, then let them know on their profile.

Best course of action is to silently report it. Quoting it just draws more attention to it and in the end creates another off-topic post. The Scratch Team will then deal with the situation and likely send the user an alert saying to avoid posting offtopic material. Odds are they won't even see your reply if you make one since many of them just make the post and forget about it, so the only people that would see your reply are participants in the original discussion, while they definitely will see a Scratch Team alert. The alert also is likely to be more impactful since the user will take an alert from the Scratch Team a lot more seriously than a message from another Scratcher.

Just give them a reminder, everyone deserves a second chance while if they waste their second chance then it's obvious they are trying to do this intentionally and you can report them, I personally like to follow a three-strike system
First strike: Give a reminder
Second strike: Comment on profile
Third strike: Silent report

FlameEater9000 wrote:

Just give them a reminder, everyone deserves a second chance while if they waste their second chance then it's obvious they are trying to do this intentionally and you can report them, I personally like to follow a three-strike system
First strike: Give a reminder
Second strike: Comment on profile
Third strike: Silent report

too much strikes

not to mention, if ST would give them a warning anyways, then that IS the second chance, with your 3 strike system, it becomes a 5th chance, kinda too much chances?

If what jvvg said was true (probably) and the ST does issue warnings for forum posts, there is absolutely no point in you warning them

its like standing next to a stop sign and shouting “STOP HERE BEFORE CROSSSING!” everyone would already see the stop sign anyways