Steemit Delete Proposal
An author can mark their own posts or comments as deleted. This will remove the post from the common user interface (like: Steemit, etc..) and remove the post from most API calls but the post will remain as part of the blockchain history.
Delete a Post or Comment
When logged in, a "Delete" link may be shown to the author of any post or comment along side of the the "Edit" link. This link may be missing if this operation is no longer possible (see below). Clicking on the delete link will show a confirmation dialog prior to making the actual delete.
After a Delete
The author's "Delete" will remove the post from all feeds (hot, created, trending, etc..) including the users own feeds (Blog, Posts, etc). The post will basically be removed completely from the standard web view.
A comment or post can be deleted only if it does not have any replies and it does not have a net positive vote (positive payout). If a post has a positive payout it is adding value to the platform and therefore should not be deleted.
You may track this feature at: https://github.com/steemit/steemit.com/issues/20
I don't think the ability to vote should be hidden. Someone should be able to tell whether they have upvoted or downvoted a post, and be able to change their vote or add a new vote (likely downvote). For example, if someone gets a lot of upvotes and then deletes their post. I would be inclined to either remove my vote if I already upvoted, or add a downvote to it. I don't see why they should be paid for something that isn't adding any value to the platform. Getting rid of the voting options means people are less likely to see deleted posts that are pending a large payout.
Fine, but if you later add pinning or starring posts/comments, I don't think those should be removed from the user's pinned list just because the author deleted their post/comment.
I only agree with this if the post had no votes (in which case the new blockchain-based delete feature can be used to actually remove the comment object from the database). Otherwise, if it has votes, I think it is important to see the comment with placeholder text for the same reasons I mentioned above.
Ok, lets start with the blockchain operation... I'll add a confirmation because that can't easily be undone.
I updated the post. I'm using only the blockchain operation.
This is interesting. I wonder what new complex set of behaviours will be unleashed :) Once submitted, does the blockchain remember all content and edits? I'm thinking for scientific papers and such should only be edited with accountability.
All operations like edits are copied in order to all full nodes. That is the ledger aspect of the blockchain. This is flexible because we are not trying to remove the data, we are just labeling it and figuring out what to display.
One interesting question is whether something like a wiki history has merit for the web site (for edits and/or deletes). Since the data still exists on the blockchain should web users be completely precluded from seeing earlier versions of it?
Ah very informative, thx