good thoughts both, dickie and black walnut - we are a self governing crew here, at the Mudcat, and while we do try to excercise some level of discipline over our thread based doscussions (stick to the original subject, and create a new thread when the old one gets long in the tooth, and yet shows signs of continuing) - we meet with varied success.

You will note, however that posts to a thread that are too far from the original subject will often attract comments on "thread creep"! You will also note that many threads do instigate new threads, and those new threads usually note the originating thread within it.

In short, we agree with your comments. We make some attempt to adhere to those sort of guidelines. We are not always adherant to those guidleines, and we are greatful for the occasional reminder.