I don't agree with a ban for a first offence, though unfortunately you're probably right in the long run, but I think you've hit the nail on the head.

1 members found this post helpful.

When members address a post that is less than profession they are inviting more poor behavior. DON'T reply to posts if you are angry or upset or want to provoke the poster.

I think michaelk is correct when he deleted posts that were less than helpful.


Posts to technical threads need to address the technical issue and not any personal grievance or opinion.

If a user's only post is such a nasty one, and they really want a second chance, they're probably better off making a fresh account anyway...

After reviewing this thread, I am nagged by a question: how does one separate the trollish from the stupid? (I make an exception for those one-time posts that are clearly shilling--er, advertising--for something stupid and worthless.) To twist Occam's razor a bit, I am inclined to believe that, if a misstep can be explained by stupid, stupid is the most likely explanation.

My initial reaction is that one post in isolation does not normally provide sufficient evidence to make the distinction between troll and troglodyte. I vote for giving posters, especially new posters, the benefit of the doubt. If they are not worthy of that benefit, they will betray themselves by their actions and then can be dealt with accordingly.

As an aside, I've seen very few hate-full posts here at LQ. (Heck, I'm a political blogger. I know hate-full when I see it.) That's one reason I like this place.

Just my two cents.

4 members found this post helpful.

That's Hanlon's razor.

Personally, I would not assume innocence. I would assume it's someone using a new account to settle an old score.

To be clear, our policy is that deletion is never a first step unless it's obvious mass spam, an egregious violation, or something similar. Posts that are in violation of the rules may be edited, but if that happens it's automatically indicated in the post to make this clear.

--jeremy

1 members found this post helpful.

Remember my friend pompus ninja? I haven't seen him around for quite a while here or the FreeBSD forums where we're also friends.

I'm sure everybody is familiar with his threads here and in other forums. Nobody liked him and most thought he was a bot. I knew he wasn't and playing a game called Bait the Trap. Not malevolent, just irritating people for the fun of it. Doing a bang-up job of it, too.

I called him on it, told him he was really a pretty smart guy IMO and wasting his time and talent on this. All true. I do like him and can relate to him. He has potential. A kind word and a little friendly guidance was what he needed, and once he got it seems to have moved on to more productive endeavors.


Which isn't applicable in every situation by any means.

pompous_ninja (and that is not its only account here) was massive trolling campaign that hit every Linux forum and eventually spread to Reddit. I suspect that there were multiple individuals behind it. I'm surprised it was allowed to go on for so long.

He's ninja_root at the FreeBSD forums. It was he and he alone working that campaign under different monikers on all the boards. And yes he worked several.

I could tell he wasn't a bot and that it was the same person by his responses. I've had chat bots of my own for close to 20 years and still have a couple online at personalityforge.com. I doubt he even knew the name of the game he was playing, but I spotted it right away and could tell he wasn't stupid like people thought. He was manipulating people and having a time of it.


I spoke with him on a few occasions here and the FreeBSD forums. He mentioned going to IT school or something when we spoke there last and hasn't been seen since as far as I know.

1 members found this post helpful.

iirc i also posted to that thread, demanding removal of the post, and i fully agree with tb0ne on this one: the post (...) could not be read in ANY way that would make it inoffensive.

(and i think michaelk also removed our subsequent replies?)

this discussion is difficult because the post in question is not visible anymore, and the other examples don't come close.
let me describe:

• a kali linux newbie thread attracts the usual criticism by some power posters
• it peters out because op doesn't reply anymore
• 2 years later, someone who clearly has no other intention than to seek out threads where kali linux users have been "treated unjustly", replies to it with no additional information whatsoever, just spitting bile at everyone and tb0ne in particular.

my reasoning:
even if this user is banned forever, if the post is not deleted, they have achieved their goal.

somewhat in accordance with michaelk i would agree that post removal is a very drastic measure that should be applied only in very extreme cases.

edit:
i would say that the thread topic has become moot since the post in question was deleted after tb0ne opened this thread?

Leaving such posts does, as you say, help the troller achieve their goal. There have been several mod edits that have a clear [mod edit] or something there. Leaving such things present doesn't do anything for the original post, nor anyone who comes across it later. And to have someone necro-troll a post is even worse. The posters have to see that junk, while the troll pats themselves on the back for another job well done. Just not a good thing, but it's not my decision to make.
Yet there are plenty more out there...I'm not the only one, as the johnisajerk post (which was deleted because the moderator didn't like 'whining') indicates. Have seen it happen to plenty of others.

Any idea which time zone he was in?

Please note the following posts, which is what would be good, IMO:
https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...7/#post5645075
https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...4/#post5625170

And the funny part is that one of those hung around for a LONG time, despite being reported a few times, and was JUST deleted. And this one:
https://www.linuxquestions.org/quest...4/#post5625166

...yet remains.

Putting [removed by moderators] and perhaps a reason wouldn't be bad. That way, serial trolls like the one mentioned, have a 'paper trail'...other forum users can Google their names and see a list of junk that got trashed.

Agreed. There are still three homophobic and two anti-Semitic references in that thread. All such language should be deleted.