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I think it could be a useful feature. From an experienced usage of the site, I have the impression as if they didn't see that, but I am not sure.

I know about Moderators should be able to undelete comments: it asks for the visibility of the deleted comments. This is about the visibility of the previous versions of the edited comments.

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3 Answers 3

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As of October 2016, moderators can see comment revision history by clicking on the "edited" pencil icon next to the comment in question.

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    Shouldn't this question have status-completed, then?
    – user307833
    Commented Jul 2, 2017 at 3:00
  • @Mego no, since this is not a bug report or feature request. Commented Jul 10, 2019 at 12:37
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Up until October 2016 moderators couldn't see the version history of comments, though the revision history is kept in the database.

All we could see was an indicator that the comment had been edited.

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    However, while there is no user/moderator UI for it, we do keep comment history and can look it up if needed.
    – Adam Lear StaffMod
    Commented Oct 10, 2014 at 12:27
  • wonder if that was ever needed though? Commented Oct 12, 2014 at 7:39
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    @ShadowWizard Yes. It didn't exist until about two years ago, and was built out of necessity. (Can't speak about the specifics, but basically, to investigate allegations of mod privileges abuse.)
    – Adam Lear StaffMod
    Commented Oct 13, 2014 at 14:38
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No; comment revision history is stored in the database but never accessed directly (only manually by a SE employee).

Comments are "second-class citizens," and they can only be edited within a five-minute window anyway. They're meant to be temporary "sticky notes," and storing revision history for them would be pointless.

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    Another minor correction: moderators can edit comments (their own and others') at any time.
    – Adam Lear StaffMod
    Commented Oct 10, 2014 at 12:41
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    And because moderators can edit at any time, I (as a moderator) am relieved that employees can access the history if needed. If there is a dispute about such an edit, I want the data to be available. Commented Oct 10, 2014 at 22:19
  • "Comment revision history is stored" ... "Storing revision history would be pointless". So..... you're doing something pointless? lol. For what it's worth, there have been a few times when I saw an edited comment and thought "I wonder what they commented previously?" so it wouldn't be totally worthless.
    – Jez
    Commented Aug 19, 2019 at 11:54

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