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I have a gold badge on some tag, which apparently lets me decide all by myself that a question is a duplicate of another.

However - I don't always want to do that. In fact, I usually want to, at first, mark it as “maybe-a-dupe” and see what others think. Can I do this?

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  • 4
    Easiest way is to create a comment manually that looks like the standard dupe vote: possible duplicate: <link>.
    – Dan Bron
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:15
  • 2
    What about just posting a comment Possible dupe of [whatever] without going through flag/close buttons?
    – Jenayah
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:16
  • Not suggesting you do this, but I've seen others use an alternate account to cast a recommend closure flag.
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:45
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    @Jenayah OP wants to put into the CV queue for review.
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:46
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    @SonictheAnonymousHedgehog is that how you read "what others think"? I didn't think that necessarily implied review queue; comment upvotes and replies seemed a simple way to get feedback
    – Jenayah
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:49
  • @Jenayah Yeah, I made an assumption there, but it is indeed another way to see how others think. The gist of the question is answered in the other question though, and here on Meta we close questions as duplicates if the answer to that one also answers this one.
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:51
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    @SonictheAnonymousHedgehog: I don't want to opt out of ever using the privilege. So not quite a dupe. The answer there is relevant, but I think the first two comments here are my answer.
    – ein supports Moderator Strike
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:53
  • @einpoklum Yeah, that's one thing I was referring to when I said that we close questions as dupes based on the answer being relevant (even though the questions aren't quite the same).
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 25, 2018 at 21:54
  • Once again, another question which has been wrongly closed as a duplicate. The four-year-old question is specifically asking how to “opt out of this privilege” and the second question says “I think moderators should have the ability to cast a normal, non binding close and open vote like they were a normal user” How do the answers on either question answer this query? Do users who vote to close Qs as duplicates actually read the posts or do they just stop at the titles?
    – Mari-Lou A Слава Україні
    Oct 26, 2018 at 5:58
  • @Mari-LouA I think the second target is irrelevant. I voted for the first one. While the question isn't the same, the answer clearly outlines why this is by design, which is because the system trusts you more in deciding if something's a duplicate. Also, note that here, we close questions as duplicates if the answer to that question also answers this question, even though the questions aren't quite the same. See this section of our FAQ on how MSE works and the last section of the dupe FAQ.
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 26, 2018 at 6:21
  • @SonictheAnonymousHedgehog I know how it works, I have a dupe hammer myself and I use it on EL&U. A question can very often be related (connected) but it doesn't mean they are replicates of each other. The answers on the 4-year-old question do NOT apply to this situation. The OP does not want to know "why" or "how" to opt out, he wants to know if he can SUGGEST a question be closed w/o using the dupehammer. P.S. I've read the MSE section.
    – Mari-Lou A Слава Україні
    Oct 26, 2018 at 6:28
  • @Mari-LouA Using an alternate account to flag for closure is already mentioned in the answer to that post. Also, in the last section in the second link, it says that Meta "allows for closures where main sites do not" in some cases.
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 26, 2018 at 6:33
  • @Sonic And if the user doesn't have a second account? And if the user's second account lacks the necessary rep? And if they want to say "I think" instead of "I know"? Unfortunately, as the OP already said, the first two comments were the ones that helped them the most. There are no answers on the two older questions that suggest this route. And why this post is being downvoted is beyond me. Yeah, I get it, on meta it's different, users disagree with posts/proposals, complaints, etc. but the OP is not asking for their opinion, they're asking for advice.
    – Mari-Lou A Слава Україні
    Oct 26, 2018 at 6:37
  • @Mari-LouA You only need 15 rep to flag, and such a flag is indeed saying "I think" because it's not casting a vote, but just putting it into the CV queue. Also, I didn't downvote, but sometimes users cast opinionated downvotes here. The fact that this is a duplicate might also make users downvote because they thought the OP didn't do enough research to find the target post.
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 26, 2018 at 8:54
  • @Mari-LouA The other irrelevant target was removed from this, replaced with one that's an exact duplicate.
    – Sonic the Anonymous Hedgehog
    Oct 27, 2018 at 13:14

1 Answer 1

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In fact, I usually want to, at first, mark it as maybe-a-dupe and see what others think. Can I do this?

What you can do is, in cases where your vote is binding (Gold Tag Badges, Mods), save your vote for when only one/few are missing. The same could apply to Reopen votes (which, if you are Mod or have badge, are also binding).

I've seen several Mods and Gold Badge holders use and some encourage this technique.

This will give the Community time to handle the post organically and also give time for the OP to clarify and improve the post (perhaps to a point where the closing is no longer needed).

Doing this also lets you reduce the number of times you have to "Hammer" a post, and let you save those for when they are really needed (cases where the closing or reopening is obvious or timely needed).

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    I'm a mod, and that's what I usually do when unsure. ;)
    – Journeyman Geek Mod
    Oct 27, 2018 at 8:32

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