LOL ! If posters who have been around only a year or so are already tired of repeat topics or discussions, imagine how the ones who have been around a lot longer may feel. And what is annoying are the posts where someone (not saying you did this @DeepBlue86) starts attacking a persons post count as a reason to discount their post.
And the flip side to that is the thought that the number of posts someone has makes their post more credible or weighty.
And the flip side is the newbie poster who blasts onto the scene posting with abandon with painfully bad advice…
Everyone has history that they bring with them when posting . While not all advice may be applicable , its the responsibility of the OP to weigh through the advice given to determine the best advice for them . Old, outdated advice may be just as inaccurate or inappropriate .
Which is why its very helpful when posters clearly say if their experience is current or decades old. Then there are the posters who havent even entered college yet and have no firsthand experience, yet have “done research” so fancy themselves an expert on some topics or dole out advice that is clearly off the mark as noted by those who have BTDT.
Back in the earlier days of cc, posts in the cafe didn’t count towards post counts Then when the new forum hit, suddenly posters who chatted in the cafes suddenly had thousands of posts, because suddenly they counted. It was amusing, but no one knew that would happen. There were also the old glitches and some posters had something like 4 million posts listed. Sometimes history here can be helpful to an overall understanding of the community. Sometimes too some posters comment on a total # of post counts without looking at how many years that may span. Often the average # of posts per day (which used to show up on the old forum but not this iteration) is no different for old and newer posters.
I agree it would be helpful to know someone’s experience regarding their advice, but I have yet to see a thread with disclaimers like " still in HS" " never stepped foot on campus" or " haven’t navigated a college search in over a decade". It would be helpful though.
I would love it if they replaced “Registered User” under a persons name with something more descriptive like parent, counselor, or student class of 20xx. That would be very helpful. What does registered user mean anyway? Are there unregistered users?
They used to have the option to provide additional descriptors (cant recall exactly but possibly sex, location,etc) @me29034 but they went away with this newer iteration. IIRC some of the college admissions counselors are identified as such.
Often tied to a poster who asks for chances to HYPMS. I always feel like answering, “You want to goto HYPMS, yet you haven’t yet figured out how to do an internet search?” 
Threads with click bait titles.
^ Similarly, the poster wants to apply ED or EA and wants to know if the ACT/SAT I or II that he or she will be taking in October or November will be considered by admissions. Look it up, folks. In the rare case that the last acceptable testing date is not indicated on the website, contact the school directly. Are you really going to rely on the advice of random strangers for a matter this important?
Variation on the same theme: “Do I really have to send all scores to schools that require all test scores to be sent?” Um … yes, that’s the rule. “Can I delete the lowest of my six ACT scores from my record?” Sigh.
Yup, where posters declare something to be true because back when they applied- 20, 30, even 40 years ago- it was. Similar: using G Bush 2 as proof legacy guarantees.
Ya know, a kid who has to ask those simple questions about HYPabc isn’t in real range, thinking-wise. My old scratcher was, what’s Harvard’s phone number.
Oh and this refrain: my kid didn’t have any ECs (or not much) and got into his/her choices. Scuse me, what were those choices? Is the thread about tippy tops? Or they minimize some good ECs and call it “nothing.”
Spot on, @lookingforward. CC is a great community of knowledgeable people, but posters should not be expected to do an applicant’s research for them. When working with students, even when they read something on the common app I still recommend they double check it on the college’s website. Even common app has had mistakes. Case in point some weird stuff VA tech has between their application/prompts/ word count on their website vs their own application, as they plan to use the coalition next year. They are trying to update their application. So students need to be in top of their applications and not just expect others to do it for them. Good research skills will serve them well in college.
Threads where a family earning $350,000/year is struggling to make ends meet.
Are there really high schools where “the normal math track” is AP Calc AB senior year?
@mjrube94 Yes, until Common Core, the normal math path in California was Algebra 1 in 8th grade for those who were ready (about 50% ended up taking this track though not all passed; about 7-10% statewide took Alg 1 in 7th grade). The kids in 11th and 12th now were under this curriculum track.
This is no longer the “normal track” in California with Common Core, which has Alg 1 or Math I in 9th.
I get very annoyed when someone starts a thread asking for essay help, then suddenly 15 ** brand new members ** pop in offering help. So bad.
Ones where posters other than the OP
or mods attempt to be gatekeepers for the thread .