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While browsing the main site, I came upon some (very) old posts (questions and answers) that needed editing (formatting/capitalization/typos/etc.) but I was unsure whether to edit them or not according to their age.

Should I edit those posts even if they are over 4-5 years old?

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Hard to say but in general, the older the post and the lower it’s long-term value is, the more substantial the edit should be. Fixing typos in 5 year old posts about long-forgotten issues is IMHO a waste of time.

This remains valid even if your edits don’t go through a review any longer, the edited Q&A will still get bumped to the entry page. And nobody wants to see an old question about an issue only occurring in Lion there ;-)

PS: The obvious exception here is that posts which already got bumped by the community user can as well be edited.

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  • @thinkr As an example, this edit probably wouldn't have been worth it if the question wouldn't have gotten bumped anyway by the new answer.
    – nohillside Mod
    Commented Jun 18, 2023 at 7:27
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    I copyedit on the side and have mild OCD, but I like to edit badly written and typo-ridden posts no matter how old. Perhaps it's meaningless in the scheme of things, but I like things to look and read better, even if nobody else but me will see it. It drives my students crazy when their papers come back with more red ink than black toner.
    – IconDaemon
    Commented Jun 18, 2023 at 14:00
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    @IconDaemon I see no problem with an edit now and then, if and when you stumble across old posts. But that's different from actively browsing old questions/answers.
    – nohillside Mod
    Commented Jun 18, 2023 at 14:23

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