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Reference Someone else posted a question I answered, and got 2 up-votes for. Because my answer was lacking one important detail, they put that question up for bounty. I approximately doubled my answer to supply the missing detail, and they accepted my answer, thinking that the bounty would be automatically awarded to my answer.

However, since my initial answer was posted before the bounty period, it did not get the automatic award. Even despite the fact that the extensive edit, and accepting the answer both happened during the bounty period. What will happen to it now?

I did not think deleting my previous answer to post "the" answer during the bounty period was a good idea, due to the fact that it had 2 upvotes on it already, as well as comments from the author indicating what was missing. What would have been my best choice to make, at the time the bounty was given?

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    $\begingroup$ The bounty period ends in two days (and 11 hours). After that, there's a 24 hour grace period during which the bounty can still be (manually) awarded. After the grace period ends, the system will automatically award the bounty, if there is an eligible answer. Since your answer was posted before the bounty was placed, it is not eligible for an automatic award according to the faq, but there's still a lot of time for a manual award. $\endgroup$
    – Daniel Fischer
    Jan 6, 2016 at 22:31
  • $\begingroup$ Well, the two days won't help if the poster doesn't realize his bounty didn't auto-award. And, he already accepted my answer, after I clarified the one thing he was missing from my initial answer. In other words, you're saying that my heavy editing and the asker accepting it, both after the bounty started, still does not qualify it for the auto-award, right? $\endgroup$
    – Alex
    Jan 7, 2016 at 0:12
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    $\begingroup$ Yes, this is what Daniel is saying. Edits are not considered by the algorithm at all. Answers posted prior to the beginning of bounty are not eligible for automatic award. You can leave a comment for the user to point out what will happen if they don't award the bounty. $\endgroup$
    – user147263
    Jan 7, 2016 at 5:50
  • $\begingroup$ @DanielFischer So, what should have I done in such a situation, if I wanted my updated answer to be eligible for the bounty? $\endgroup$
    – Alex
    Jan 7, 2016 at 14:42
  • $\begingroup$ @Normal So, what should have I done in such a situation, if I wanted my updated answer to be eligible for the bounty? $\endgroup$
    – Alex
    Jan 7, 2016 at 14:42
  • $\begingroup$ @Alex It is not, and cannot be made, eligible for an automatic award. What one can do is what you have done, leave a comment reminding the OP that if they don't manually award the bounty, it will not be awarded at all [unless the other answer becomes eligible by getting a score of +2 or more]. $\endgroup$
    – Daniel Fischer
    Jan 7, 2016 at 14:48
  • $\begingroup$ @DanielFischer The other answer was also posted before the bounty period. $\endgroup$
    – Alex
    Jan 7, 2016 at 19:53
  • $\begingroup$ Per the time stamps, it was posted 15 minutes after the bounty was started. $\endgroup$
    – Daniel Fischer
    Jan 7, 2016 at 19:55
  • $\begingroup$ I disagree with the downvotes on this question. It is a reasonable effort to understand how the bounty system works. I suspect the downvoters are feeling that the question gives too much weight to reputation, but if we pay in that currency we should be clear on what it takes to gain it. $\endgroup$
    – Ross Millikan
    Sep 19, 2017 at 3:00

1 Answer 1

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As Daniel Fischer said:

The bounty period ends in two days (and 11 hours). After that, there's a 24 hour grace period during which the bounty can still be (manually) awarded. After the grace period ends, the system will automatically award the bounty, if there is an eligible answer. Since your answer was posted before the bounty was placed, it is not eligible for an automatic award according to the faq, but there's still a lot of time for a manual award.

So, edits do not have an effect on automatic awards. Your answer can only get a manual award. You can leave a comment for the user to point out that they ought to award the bounty lest it gets lost.

Regarding your follow-up question

So, what should have I done in such a situation, if I wanted my updated answer to be eligible for the bounty?

I can offer a relevant Shog9 quote:

Growing up, a good portion of my summer (and spring, and fall...) was spent helping out in my family's rather large garden.

Most of this involved rather tedious, repetitive labor. So to stave off boredom, we made up games to go along with it. "Fastest to finish hoeing a row of corn", "Most peas shelled in a minute", etc.

It helped. We got a lot more done, faster, and with less complaining because of it.

But... The games weren't really the goal, and no one ever thought otherwise: the point was the creation and preparation of food for the next year. If you "won" by chopping down all the corn or throwing out the unshelled peas, no one would think highly of you for doing so.

[...] so stop obsessing over your score in the game, and try to remember why it is being played at all.

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