Replies and comments spark excitement and lead to more engagement on content because they can transform a static piece of content into an interactive conversation with peers and other experts.. Threaded comments and replies help visualise the hierarchy of different conversations that can splinter off from the main topic.

Members can engage with published posts by giving Likes and commenting on them.

Let's take an example of commenting on a knowledge base article. Comments on blogs, events and ideas, and replies on forums follow the same process.

Here's an interactive tutorial

** Best experienced in Full Screen (click the icon in the top right corner before you begin) **

https://www.iorad.com/player/2051688/comment-on-articles-and-posts

You can view all the comments based on its recency and likes received.

You can also reply to comments in a threaded fashion and give Likes

Managing Comments

Community is a place where a lot of conversations pour in from different sources. It becomes necessary to keep the community clean, maintain relevance of topics being discussed, and have a healthy engagement.

There are several options with which you can manage comments or replies to forum discussions, Blogs posts, and KB articles. The availability of these options are based on member permissions.

Note:

• By default, members who comment or reply on a piece of content (Forum discussion, blog post, idea, or KB article) will automatically follow that piece of content.
• Members must have Manage comments on any post and Manage comments on own post permissions to edit and delete comments or replies to the post.

As an Admin or moderator you can use these options to:

 

• Edit comments: Members who posted the reply or with elevated permissions (Admins and Moderators) can edit the reply or comment.
• Move comments: Members with elevated permissions can move a reply or comment to the new location or start a new discussion from the reply or comment.
• Copy Link: Any member can copy the link of the reply. When you open the link in new tab, the page focuses on the respective reply of the post:

 

Click View Full Discussion to view all the replies to the post.

• Follow: Members can follow replies and comments to get notified of the updates. Learn more about following comment or reply.
• Delete: Members with elevated permissions (Admins and moderators) can delete a comment or reply to the post. When you delete a reply, all its threaded replies are deleted along with the main reply.
• Reject: Members with elevated permission can reject content. If you mark a post as spam and change your mind later, you can recover the message.
• Block or allow Replies and Comments: Authors of the post or members with elevated permissions (Admins and moderators) can block and unblock new replies or comments to the post.

As a member, apart form copying link and following content you can also Report an inappropriate content.

Notification Options for Message and Reply Actions

To comply with DSA requirements, we've added a feature that notifies members when their replies or comments are edited, moved, or deleted by members with appropriate permissions. Additionally, all members who have replied to the post will receive these notifications.

 

Below is an example of the confirmation message you receive when you try to delete a comment on an article. 

Conversation display format 

To tailor community conversation view to better suit your community’s needs, admins can opt to display replies and comments in either linear or threaded manner. 

To set this display format:

1. Open the Account Menu.
2. Go to Settings > Features > Content Features > Replies and Comments.
3. From the Display format drop-down menu select the preferred display option.

The Display format set by the admin order does not override a member's individual preferences.

For example, if a member has chosen to view replies and comments in Threaded order but the admin has set the default to Linear, the member sees them displayed according to their personal preference of Threaded. If members choose the Community Default option, the admin's settings apply across all boards for those members.

Replies and Comments sort order

Admins can customize the sort order for replies and comments at both the community and board levels, offering additional control over how discussions are organized and displayed to members. 

To set the sort order:

1. Open the Account Menu.
2. Go to Settings > Features > Content Features > Replies and Comments.
   
3. From the Default sort order drop-down menu, select your preferred sorting method to organize all replies and comments across your community.

The default sort order does not override a member's individual preferences.

For example, if a member has chosen to view replies and comments in Oldest to Newest order but the admin has set the default to Most Liked, the member sees them displayed according to their personal preference of oldest to newest. If members choose the Community Default option, the admin's settings apply across all boards for those members.

Also, members can change the order from the community post page containing comments or replies. Changes to the sort order on the post page are saved in member’s preferences.

Note: By default, the admin setting is set to order by Most Liked, and for members, it is set to Community Default.