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How to reply to old YouTube comments using the new Google+ comment system

One significant limitation of the new Google+ commenting system on YouTube is that comments posted under the old system have been effectively orphaned. Conversations have been abruptly terminated and pending questions are going unanswered, because there is no easy way to directly reply to those old comments.

Andrew Bossom suggests a work-around that lets you respond to at least some of those old comments, and hopefully will let you get the discussion going again on your channel. If the channel that posted the original comment is linked to Google+, you can post a new comment that + mentions the commenter. They will receive a notification of that new comment that mentions them.

 

Of course that only works with channels that are connected to a Google+ Page or Profile. If the channel is not connected to Google+, and it's important to reply to them, the only other option I can think of is sending them a private message. At least then they won't think you've forgotten them.

(last update: March 2019)

Comments

  1. Speaking of private messages, the old inbox has vanished and ever since the new messaging system went in place, I cannot delete the messages I sent. That only seems to be possible if the recipient responds and I click on the date, which takes me to Google+, where I can delete my sent message and all of its replies. Every message I send should at least include a link to a private Google+ page, where I can delete it if I want to do so.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, that's the case. The problem is that deleting your sent message also delete's the recipients copy (it's really just a privately shared Google+ post), so someone just trying to keep their outbox "clean" could inadvertently delete messages they want the recipient to see.

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