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msh210 mentioned in a comment on https://judaism.stackexchange.com/a/48805/5151

@Scimonster, although there's a SE-network-wide quasi-policy against thank-you answer comments from the asker, I think we've been rather looser about that here, I guess in the spirit of d'racheha darche noam. (I personally think it's valuable, too, for reasons I'll be glad to discuss with you elsewhere, but that's besides the point.) Perhaps bring the issue up on Mi Yodeya Meta?

So, let's have a . :)

I've posted my thoughts in an answer, feel free to provide your own or comment (others too).

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    Thanks for posting this question! It led to some great sharing of different perspectives on this important issue of culture and site mechanics. – Isaac Moses Feb 6 '15 at 17:54
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More often than I'd like, I answer and am left to wonder whether my answer addressed the asker's concern. The asker's thank-you comment on the answer accomplishes that. I agree that, once the answerer sees the comment, it can be deleted, but I'll reiterate here for posterity (and because I wholly agree with it) what Monica Cellio ♦ posted in a comment on Scimonster's answer here:

I tend to leave them initially and delete them when I notice they've been there a while (so, consistent with this answer). One thing to note, though: comment flags are anonymous. When I see an "obsolete" or "too chatty" flag I have no idea if it's coming from the person it was intended for (so the flag means "I've seen it; feel free to delete now") or from a third party. If you want to flag one of these soon after it was left, it's probably better to explain (and identify yourself) in a custom flag.

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If the comment is purely a "thank you," then it's probably not necessary....but no reason to flag as "too chatty," in my opinion, because (as you quoted from animuson), it is certainly nice to reinforce the idea that the people who help you (and whom you help) are human, which is something that I've noticed that some people forget or lose sight of on occasion. [ Once I saw a user's profile (don't remember which) that simply wrote "I am a human being, not a human resource" ]
All the same, you might want to refrain from making these kinds of comments, all the same, just because if everyone did it, there would be no room for regular comments that critique posts and request more information.

However, even if you would flag a simple "Thanks! [15 char]" comment as "too chatty," there is another type of thank you comment. When the comment contains a nice compliment, like "Thanks for this well-researched and well-written answer," or "Thanks for the speedy answer," then I think that it should definitely be left alone, as it is something that really says something nice about the answerer (and the complimenter), and could be of lasting value.
Those comments, if you feel like making them, certainly should be made, as a show of appreciation for an outstanding (quick, well-written, well-researched etc) post. I, for one, really appreciate when someone goes out of their way to say something nice about my posts, and hope that others appreciate it when I compliment their posts.

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From the help center:

Please do not add a comment on your question or on an answer to say "Thank you". Comments are meant for requesting clarification, leaving constructive criticism, or adding relevant but minor additional information – not for socializing. If you want to say "thank you," vote on or accept that person's answer, or simply pay it forward by providing a great answer to someone else's question.

I think that this policy works well for SE.

There's also an MSE FAQ that says something similar.


Personally, i agree with animuson's statement there:

Most people would prefer the upvotes and the check mark, but I enjoy a thank you as well. It gives me that extra kick that I really helped someone who is human.

So, yes, the human factor is nice.

But once the OP has acknowledged that 'thank you' comment, the check-mark should be a symbol to everyone else that this answer helped them, and the comment becomes noise.

So, i think that 'thank you' comments are acceptable within reason, but after being seen by the OP, can be flagged as 'too chatty' and removed.

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    I tend to leave them initially and delete them when I notice they've been there a while (so, consistent with this answer). One thing to note, though: comment flags are anonymous. When I see an "obsolete" or "too chatty" flag I have no idea if it's coming from the person it was intended for (so the flag means "I've seen it; feel free to delete now") or from a third party. If you want to flag one of these soon after it was left, it's probably better to explain (and identify yourself) in a custom flag. – Monica Cellio Nov 29 '14 at 23:06
  • Oh, i didn't know that comment flags were anonymous. – Scimonster Nov 30 '14 at 9:10
  • @Scimonster Their owners can be identified with some difficulty so don't go claiming to be someone else. – Double AA Nov 30 '14 at 15:19
  • @Scimonster I don't think I did before becoming a moderator, either. In retrospect I probably left some pretty confusing flags before that. :-) But as DoubleAA said, we can find out if we do some extra work; it's just not readily-available information like for flags on posts, and the work is enough trouble that we're not going to routinely do it. – Monica Cellio Nov 30 '14 at 16:13

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