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I've been trying for various badges recently, and a lot of them are very good (like encouraging you to try chat, encouraging you to vote). I recently tried unsuccessfully for the 'tumbleweed' badge (at https://math.stackexchange.com/q/411641/51970), which I realize now is a bad idea.

After that experience I realized that some badges cause serious annoyance. Specifically, the archaeologist badge. 100 posts is a lot, and it seems that people don't like old questions popping up on the front page for trivial reasons. Is there any way to try for the archaeologist badge in a constructive way, or is it one that should be left alone? Are there any other badges better left unsought?

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    $\begingroup$ "Is there any way to try for the archaeologist badge in a constructive way." - certainly; edit old posts as you encounter them, if need be. This is not a badge you're supposed to acquire on short notice. $\endgroup$ – J. M. isn't a mathematician Jun 6 '13 at 17:49
  • $\begingroup$ A relevant query on Data.SE. $\endgroup$ – Lord_Farin Jun 6 '13 at 18:31
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    $\begingroup$ I have to confess that I only started posting on meta in the first place for badges... But it's been very helpful! $\endgroup$ – Brian Rushton Jun 6 '13 at 23:23
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    $\begingroup$ @Lord_Farin That query returns number higher than 100 for several users that do not have the archaeologist badge. Examples:8297, 9849, 30938. Several queries are mentioned in this meta.SO post. $\endgroup$ – Martin Sleziak Jun 8 '13 at 8:40
  • $\begingroup$ @Martin You are right; on closer inspection, that probably occurred because if you edit tags, title, and body, the edit gets registered three times. The keyword DISTINCT should solve this. My query (listing all relevant edits with links) is here. $\endgroup$ – Lord_Farin Jun 8 '13 at 10:13
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I think you can offset the potential annoying effect of edits by removing something even more annoying. For example, nondescriptive titles*

(*) when necessary, fixing tags and body of the question at the same time.

I, for one, promise not to get upset by any number of edits of this kind.

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    $\begingroup$ But as with any mass editing, be sure not to overdo it. Edit just a couple at a time, and keep a few hours (or even a day) between each sequential edits. $\endgroup$ – Asaf Karagila♦ Jun 11 '13 at 9:22
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    $\begingroup$ @AsafKaragila I guess my attitude toward edits may be more laissez-faire than most because I never look at the front page... Feel free to edit your amendment in. $\endgroup$ – ˈjuː.zɚ79365 Jun 11 '13 at 14:39

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