# Ambiguous error text when inviting a user already invited

**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/ambiguous-error-text-when-inviting-a-user-already-invited/40106
**Category:** UX
**Created:** [February 24, 2016, 6:46pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/ambiguous-error-text-when-inviting-a-user-already-invited/40106 "2016-02-24T18:46:44Z")
**Posts on this page:** 4
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![downey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/downey/32/166878_2.png) [@downey](https://meta.discourse.org/u/downey)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2016, 6:46pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/ambiguous-error-text-when-inviting-a-user-already-invited/40106/1 "2016-02-24T18:46:44Z")

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Anyone agree that this error message is ambiguous? (e.g., When inviting a user ID who that had already been invited to the topic.)

> Validation failed: Topic has already been taken

Perhaps something like this?

> Sorry, that user has already been invited. You may only invite a user to a topic once.

(A different question is whether or not it’s a good idea to limit 1 invitation per user… in my use case, I needed them to come back to the topic to participate again.)

* * *

 ![](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/meta/original/3X/5/8/58f3bf82ebfc710ac1f2b8ef1f9dacf9415a2d36.png)

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### Author: ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/codinghorror/32/110067_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://meta.discourse.org/u/codinghorror)
#### Post date: [February 25, 2016, 12:16am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/ambiguous-error-text-when-inviting-a-user-already-invited/40106/2 "2016-02-25T00:16:10Z")

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Sure this is a good change, @techapj can you add it to your list?

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### Author: ![techAPJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/techapj/32/342990_2.png) [@techAPJ](https://meta.discourse.org/u/techAPJ)
#### Post date: [March 1, 2016, 7:02pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/ambiguous-error-text-when-inviting-a-user-already-invited/40106/3 "2016-03-01T19:02:30Z")

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Okay, we now have better error message for this, via:

[https://github.com/discourse/discourse/commit/41a0f9b7fd7f7523c98611642112ba41bf6597b4](https://github.com/discourse/discourse/commit/41a0f9b7fd7f7523c98611642112ba41bf6597b4)

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<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![codinghorror](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/codinghorror/32/110067_2.png) [@codinghorror](https://meta.discourse.org/u/codinghorror)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2016, 8:03pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/ambiguous-error-text-when-inviting-a-user-already-invited/40106/4 "2016-03-02T20:03:59Z")

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