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    In the particular instance you cite, the question itself wasn't a good question I'm sorry I didn't make it clearer . The flag I was referring to was on May 31 '12 at 20:57. This question isn't a shopping question. It has an alternative answer that came later that wasn't just link to documentation on an object Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 16:21
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    Ah... Yes, I was looking at the wrong flag then. In that case, a better answer exists, the author of the answer was advised (by the responding moderator) to improve it, and declined to do so. I've added the link to the other answer, and deleted the link-only answer. Nothing of value has been lost. Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 16:30
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    Nice balancing act there. The distinction between moderator actions and user actions is much appreciated. Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 16:35
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    Post contained live bobcat, would not read again Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 16:40
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    turning something that could be improved... into a disposable "Post-It note" that can't ever be fixed... how's that? Anyone can add a new answer extending the link provided in comments - if that's not a fix then I don't know what is Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 16:56
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    @gnat: that's not really "fixing" the comment, that's using it as a reference when posting an answer. You can't fix a broken link. You can't even see the link if someone flags the comment and it's deleted. There's no revision history on comments. The message here for years now has been, don't use comments for information you want to stick around. Converting answers into comments when they aren't actual commentary violates this - and also sends the wrong message to the author / other readers: that comments are a place for short answers. Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 17:00
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    @Shog9 I see; your reasoning makes pretty good sense for short answers. However, I doubt that link-only answers qualify as such - first of all because these openly violate How to Answer instructions requiring: "...Always quote the most relevant part of an important link..." (section Provide context for links) Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 17:41
  • @gnat: then the question becomes, are you converting answers into comments because they should be comments, or are you doing it to "punish" the author somehow? Note that the system automatically converts very short answers to comments as a form of immediate feedback to the author... Does this "teaching" conversion still work if it happens a day later? How about a year? I'm skeptical. For new answers, the bar is much higher already - you can't post it at all unless you have at least 50 non-link characters. Making this higher, providing immediate feedback, is probably far more productive. Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 17:48
  • @Shog9 immediate feedback hm interesting. What if answerer simply ignores my downvote and comment? Low quality content would then stay, making whole effort kind of futile wouldn't it. As for "punishment", it seems impossible-by-design since author has an option to edit and undelete their answer, right? Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 19:51
  • @gnat: no, authors cannot undelete their own posts if a moderator has deleted them (self-deleted and community-deleted posts can be undeleted). And unless a comment is left, they may not even realize the deletion/conversion has occurred. It's not entirely uncommon for users to end up answer-banned before they realize what they're doing wrong. Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 19:55
  • @Shog9 I know about mod-deleted restriction; here, I meant undeletion by flagging improved answer for moderator attention. In case if they don't even notice deletion/conversion, my point about no-punishment stays, too - simply because it's not a punishment when "target person" is not even aware of it Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 19:59
  • If they aren't aware of it, @gnat, and the answer isn't a comment - then it accomplishes nothing. Apart from confusing the appropriate uses of answers and comments, and turning an editable answer into a static, disposable comment. Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 20:12
  • @Shog9 hm at least, this would bump the question, giving it more eyeballs and a new chance to get better answers, including (but not limited to) answers built on link that has been converted to comment. But OK let's pretend this is nothing - what else would you suggest for link-only answers? Downvote with comment would be great if answerer pays attention but what if they simply ignore this? Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 22:39
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    @gnat: I list five suggestions in this answer, starting with Edit and ending with Custom Flag. At some point, someone has to make a call as to whether an unimproved answer is so worthless that the question is better off without it - if you can't make that call (or can't write a good rationale for it to sway a moderator), then leave it for someone who can. I'm not against deleting these - I'm against blindly deleting them. We could easily write a script to destroy all link-only answers on the site - assuming there's value in having humans make that call, it's in their nuanced judgement. Commented Jun 14, 2012 at 22:41