TROLLS

In Internet slang, a troll is someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room, or blog, with the primary intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion. The noun troll may refer to the provocative message itself, as in: “That was an excellent troll you posted”.

While the word troll and its associated verb trolling are associated with Internet discourse, media attention in recent years has made such labels subjective, with trolling describing intentionally provocative actions outside of an online context. For example, mass media uses troll to describe “a person who defaces Internet tribute sites with the aim of causing grief to families.

THERE NOUT TO BE PROUD OF FOR BEING A TROLL

How can troll posts be recognised?

* No Imagination – Most are frighteningly obvious; sexist comments on nurses’ groups, blasphemy on religious groups .. I kid you not.
* Pedantic in the Extreme – Many trolls’ preparation is so thorough, that while they waste time, they appear so ludicrous from the start that they elicit sympathetic mail – the danger is that once the group takes sides, the damage is done.
* False Identity – Because they are cowards, trolls virtually never write over their own name, and often reveal their trolliness (and lack of imagination) in the chosen ID. As so many folk these days use false ID, this is not a strong indicator on its own!
* Crossposting – Any post that is crossposted to several groups should be viewed as suspicious, particularly if unrelated or of opposing perspective. Why would someone do that?
* Off-topic posting – Often genuine errors, but, if from an ‘outsider’ they deserve matter-of-fact response; if genuine, a brief apposite response is simply netiquette; if it’s a troll post, you have denied it its reward.
* Repetition of a question or statement is either a troll – or a pedant; either way, treatment as a troll is effective.
* Missing The Point – Trolls rarely answer a direct question – they cannot, if asked to justify their twaddle – so they develop a fine line in missing the point.
* Thick or Sad – Trolls are usually sad, lonely folk, with few social skills; they rarely make what most people would consider intelligent conversation. However, they frequently have an obsession with their IQ and feel the need to tell everyone.

@thin ice wrote:

lucy you say the nicest things

:roll: yesterday you called me a cùnt!!!!

oh and thats the internets view on a troll, i dont care, if ever bothered and to date i haven’t i’d just log off.

well suppose i’ll give you that one since i likened you to Gollum lol

I thought that a troll was nordic type of leprechaun who lived in a cave!

My older brother bought me a troll when I was a little girl. He went to see the Harlem Globetrotters in 1966 and I can remember him going, even though I was a teeny tot and he bought me back a little brown troll with green hair. I still have it! It does’nt have much hair left and I used to suck it so it’s a bit the worse for wear!!