Actually, I haven't seen a topic like this ever (I joined in April, I think).
You can't blame the newbies for repeating old topics.
I can only think of one way to stop this.
*goes into Eibu-style ultra-descriptive mode*
Whenever a new topic is created and the 'Add Topic' button is pushed the topic should be 'spam tested'.
To test the topic for spam it should be compared to the other topics in the room for similarity (only test the topic, none of the replies), if topics are found which are classed as similar then the topics should appear in a list in the same place as the preview appears (i.e. above the message edit things).
When a topic is clicked the first post should appear above the list which is above the message edit area, if the poster finds the topic to match what they were going to post they can click a link and be taken to the topic!
|