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After reading the Why and how are some answers deleted? article I suspect one of my answers submitted on the WebApplication site was deleted by a moderator here because it was not in accordance with this clause:

  • exact duplicates of other answers

My answer was the exact duplicate I posted on the Stack Overflow site, not the StackExchange WebApplication site.

The clause above seems to have been interpreted by the moderator as meaning more than it literally states, mainly:

  • exact duplicates of other answers on the StackExchange site and/or any other site

Could the Why and how are some answers deleted? article be updated to reflect the exact meaning the moderator attributed to the clause in point if that is indeed its implied meaning?

Also, could it be clarified what the level of exactness in duplicated answers should not be to make the similar answer from another site acceptable on the StackExchange site? I plan on modifiying my previous answer and reposting it on the StackExchange site and would be thankful for an article delineating the minimal changes required for acceptable submission.

The idea is not to duplicate the answer aimlessly, but instead to make finding a workable answer easier, taking into account the experienced fact that some long research through many questions is oftentime the result of scattered or multiple similar questions with unsatisfactory answers, fact which duplicate working answers on different sites could help remedy, even at the expense of redundancy if it lessens the reseach time effort as tradeoff benefit.

The answer's link reference:

Answer link

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Your answer was flagged by the community as suspected SPAM which is why it was deleted. It has been undeleted as a result of the flag you raised.

Your duplicated answer has been poorly received by the communities of both Web Apps and Super User. There are a lot of unrelated external links and the answer is not written in relation to the question. None of the OP’s content and data are included or discussed.

Example: Your data format in columns A-C, Category > Sub-Category > Item does not reflect the question data.

I really appreciate your thoughtful approach and balanced responses since your post was first deleted. Your site post doesn’t reflect site standards and the discussion points raised in galacticninja's answer are important in addition to What makes something spam and when should I flag it? Your answer needs to be improved to avoid being deleted by the community in the future.

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    It seems that the OP's answer still has spam links.
    – galacticninja
    Commented Jul 24, 2023 at 9:48
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    @Blind Spots thanks for the detailed answer and guidance for my future answers. Ah yes, I did supply the answer to my use case instead of taking the OP's example as primary source example. I assumed it would be enough but I see now that it can very well not be especially for new users and it's always more efficient to answer at least first the given example.
    – Lod
    Commented Jul 26, 2023 at 10:14
  • After rereading the question, I'm not sure how to reformulate it with my answer. I thought the OP wanted to be able to add some multi-values data validation cells with for example | separated combined values like volunteer|family. But the OP's input data is not shown. The Query formula with matches would only work on an input data range including at least one column of "memberships types" structured as raw data as shown in Column E in the OP's screenshot (similar to my case in range B3:B9 from the A3:C9 input range). But now I'm not sure of the way the OP needs the output to be.
    – Lod
    Commented Jul 26, 2023 at 10:15
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    I'll be happy to correct my answer if the OP can give more details on the expected output, if the method of my answer still applies. Thanks again. Be well!
    – Lod
    Commented Jul 26, 2023 at 10:18
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    @Lod Again, I really appreciate your thoughtful responses. The points you have made underscore 2 things. Firstly, the question lacked the detail needed to be properly answered. Secondly, and as a direct result, there was no way to answer it except by making assumptions about the OP's intent. Your effort to make an extremely complete answer amplified that fact. The goal of this site is to have high quality questions and answers. You might want to create a question that is connected to your answer and self answer You might wait to accept it in case you get answers you like better.
    – Blindspots Mod
    Commented Jul 26, 2023 at 13:24
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    Ok, great advice thanks, yes that would be best. I'll post the question I had originally with the answer asap. Thanks again for the great help!
    – Lod
    Commented Jul 26, 2023 at 14:23
  • No problem. If you create a Q/A and want to post on Meta about it for feedback, I'm sure the community will provide constructive feedback, which can only make it better. We'd like you to be a part of our community and eventually be a mentor to others.
    – Blindspots Mod
    Commented Jul 26, 2023 at 18:38
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According to an answer by Blind Spots ♦, the community flagged your answer as spam. As per the Help Center on why and how are some answers deleted:

Additionally, any post that accumulates enough rude or abusive or spam flags will be automatically deleted

As per the Help Center on how to not be a spammer:

Don't include links except to support what you've written. Links are not a substitute for including information in your answer itself, and the links you include should always be directly relevant to a part of your answer. See also this FAQ on Meta Stack Exchange: Your answer is in another castle: when is an answer not an answer?

Your answer has several links that don’t seem related to the question or your answer. For example, you have two links for "Mp4 to Gif Free No Watermark High Quality", but the question doesn’t ask about that. You also have many sources and "Script Alternatives" links. It would be better to only include links that are relevant to the question and your answer and remove the ones that are not. That way, your answer will be more clear and helpful. I don’t think you need 10 links for your answer.

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    Thanks for your contributive explanation. I don't see the remarks you mention stated literaly in the article stating the legit reasons for deletion. Do you have other sources substantiating those remarks? If moderators or users do not like added references they are always able to manifest their disaproval by the down vote and express their view in the comments or share recommendations for improvement of the posts. The deletion of answers is limited by the extent of the criteria stated literaly in the article delineating that extent. The clarity of the article needs updating otherwise.
    – Lod
    Commented Jul 24, 2023 at 8:55
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    @Lod I've edited my answer to include quotes from Help Center articles about spamming. Simply put, your answer has irrelevant, spam links. Could you explain why there are two "Mp4 to Gif Free No Watermark High Quality" links in your answer?
    – galacticninja
    Commented Jul 24, 2023 at 9:47
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    thanks for the reference. I think I finally understand what must have motivated the moderator deletion decision in light of the 1st quote you shared. My post might have accumulated enough spam flags from users. Possibly for the very reason you mention it containing Mp4 to Gifs links. In light of the promotion link you shared I can see now why it might have been so. To answer your question, I shared those links not as self promotion means or to be irrelevant but to spare having to refer to it later in case people would ask about the gifs production. — end comment in the next:
    – Lod
    Commented Jul 24, 2023 at 10:39
  • But the problem remains that those spam motives are still absent from the deleted answer article literal clauses. Therefore are not deletion motives, but at best disapproval motives. That's why the moderator must have reverted their deletion decision because those are not covered by the deletion clauses in the said article. It would be more appropriate to include those spamming motives clauses directly in the deleted answers article if moderators are to utilize them for deletion and not just disapproval purposes. Users would then know it to be deletion clauses and not disapproval clauses.
    – Lod
    Commented Jul 24, 2023 at 10:45

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