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Okay, I am relatively new here and don`t really spend time on message boards as a rule but I do like CD. Lots of different subjects, viewpoints, and a lot of people here with life experiences and good common sense. To me it is evident here that there is quite a bit of animosity against "Trolls".
Now I have read the 'What Is A Troll' thread and the most coherent point, pertinent to message boards, that I could find was that trolls started controversial threads to start arguments. And having read a few subjects here on CD, it appears a troll can pop up from nowhere and attempt to incite ripples in an ongoing discussion. Neither of which to me warrant the term troll, much less an attempt to bar him or her from the discussion.
Sometimes in a thread it seems when the participants do not want to address the writers point or question they claim he/she is trolling. To me it hardly ever seems the 'troller' (I know my terminology is getting a little ridiculous), is causing even the least harm. After all, we aren`t all in the same room. Isn`t the point of a 'forum' to encourage debate and discussion?
Personally I do like many I have seen here and just hop over the type of post I feel adds nothing constructive to the debate but I do read them. The discussion I think should include everything.
This just doesn`t happen here either. What prompted my question actually was an article I read recently about how different sites which allow comments on stories or have discussion forums, are now beginning to limit what one might post to the thread if the authorities at that site consider the missive to be "trolling". One comment in the article was that the internet is 'maturing' hence that is the reason trolls must go. If 'maturing' is what one might call the present mood of striking from the conversation those whose motives we disagree with then yes, I supposed the internet is 'maturing'. Maturing to be just another sterile, thought wasteland, devoid of dissent, humor, and wit. This would be sad. Opinions?
You missed the key point... trolls don't care about the debate, don't care about civil discourse, may not even care about the subject, they just want to get an emotional reaction from others. They feed off the upset they cause, hence the term "trolls," after the ugly fairy-tale creatures who would hide under bridges and attack passers by.
The reason for banning trolls is that they are destructive to normal communications. They simply want to disrupt. They're internet vandals. They contribute nothing.
The term troll gets applied too often and quickly, no doubt. But trolls do exist. I define them as someone who only posts to be combative. Their posts often contribute nothing, are off topic, and pointlessly disruptive.
Trolls can also make for an unpleasant situation for other specific posters. For instance, I have a troll(s) in another forum who makes incorrect (often outright lying) comments on my posts and my personal life, that they nothing about. At best they junk up the forum with their nonsense, to the distraction and detriment of everyone else. At worst, they undermine my credibility, rendering any info or advice that I may present on the forum topic to be suspect. The forum has lost much of its activity due to trolls and is not a useful source as it once was.
I think trolls are people who can't garner any attention or respect IRL, much like a bully or one of those "quiet" kids. So they come to a forum, and get their jollies from being disruptive.
Okay, I see both your perspectives and agree there is no need for incessant teasing or character assassination but it kind of bothers me that normal ribbing and smart-aleck remarks might be or might become considered troll stuff. Several years ago I never really noticed the word troll on discussion boards and now it is used to denote comments and behavior plainly not as you have described. I guess I think one day we will have, incrementally of course, restricted debate and discussion of a subject to so narrow a proceeding that the internet will become like TV, just a lot of white noise.
Thanks for you input. I hope you guys have a happy and prosperous New Year.
And to Open's point, I am aware of at least one member here, in a different subforum, that does just that. Not sure, why mods still tolerate the person.
I have a troll(s) in another forum who makes incorrect (often outright lying) comments on my posts and my personal life, that they nothing about. At best they junk up the forum with their nonsense, to the distraction and detriment of everyone else. At worst, they undermine my credibility, rendering any info or advice that I may present on the forum topic to be suspect.
And to Open's point, I am aware of at least one member here, in a different subforum, that does just that. Not sure, why mods still tolerate the person.
Are you reporting them? That's what the yellow triangle icon in the upper right corner of the screen is for. Don't assume the moderator has seen the post. They're busy, they are volunteers, and few of them have time to read all the posts... see the discussion in the About The Forum forum on this very topic.
Seriously. If you are not reporting the trolls for breaking the rules, you're complicit in their bad behaviors.
Quote:
I have a troll(s) in another forum who makes incorrect (often outright lying) comments on my posts and my personal life, that they nothing about[/b]. At best they junk up the forum with their nonsense, to the distraction and detriment of everyone else. At worst, they undermine my credibility, rendering any info or advice that I may present on the forum topic to be suspect.
Now you know why moderators are so important on an anonymous internet forum.
Okay, I am relatively new here and don`t really spend time on message boards as a rule but I do like CD. Lots of different subjects, viewpoints, and a lot of people here with life experiences and good common sense. To me it is evident here that there is quite a bit of animosity against "Trolls".
Now I have read the 'What Is A Troll' thread and the most coherent point, pertinent to message boards, that I could find was that trolls started controversial threads to start arguments. And having read a few subjects here on CD, it appears a troll can pop up from nowhere and attempt to incite ripples in an ongoing discussion. Neither of which to me warrant the term troll, much less an attempt to bar him or her from the discussion.
Sometimes in a thread it seems when the participants do not want to address the writers point or question they claim he/she is trolling. To me it hardly ever seems the 'troller' (I know my terminology is getting a little ridiculous), is causing even the least harm. After all, we aren`t all in the same room. Isn`t the point of a 'forum' to encourage debate and discussion?
Personally I do like many I have seen here and just hop over the type of post I feel adds nothing constructive to the debate but I do read them. The discussion I think should include everything.
This just doesn`t happen here either. What prompted my question actually was an article I read recently about how different sites which allow comments on stories or have discussion forums, are now beginning to limit what one might post to the thread if the authorities at that site consider the missive to be "trolling". One comment in the article was that the internet is 'maturing' hence that is the reason trolls must go. If 'maturing' is what one might call the present mood of striking from the conversation those whose motives we disagree with then yes, I supposed the internet is 'maturing'. Maturing to be just another sterile, thought wasteland, devoid of dissent, humor, and wit. This would be sad. Opinions?
The dark side is that site authorities across the Internet are now using the term "troll" to crack down on opinions that oppose their agendas. It's a part of trend against free speech that has been going on for a few decades in industrialized nations. Many people have been raised to not value what used to be considered a basic right.
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