Home » Other » Suggestions & Feedback » A plea for some sanity
icon4.gif  A plea for some sanity [message #620885] Wed, 06 August 2014 15:00 Go to next message
EdStevens
Messages: 372
Registered: September 2013
Senior Member
Some years ago I was a regular participant in a usenet newsgroup dealing with my other (non-IT) career. When I first joined it was a good place for professionals and serious students of the subject. Then a new member showed up. He was convinced he was the greatest that ever lived at what we did, even though the outside evidence was quite the contrary. Every discussion he involved himself in quickly devolved into a spitting match with the other members on one side, and the troll and several of his sock puppets on the other. Within a few months the newsgroup had become worthless. I still check it a couple of times a year and see it has become almost totally populated by this one troll and his various alternate identities.

Those of us who hang out in the SQL and RDBMS Server forums are painfully aware of a member who is totally unteachable and seems to take great delight in his multiple personality disorder. I would hate to see this forum go the way of the aforementioned newsgroup. But every time he shows up with a new name, the thread has the predictable outcome.

I'd hate to see OraFAQ go the way of my old newsgroup. We all should know by now that it is pointless to try to help the aforementioned member with his supposed technical issues. At best he is shown to be totally unteachable. At worst he is a deliberate troll. We also know from experience that he actually seems to take delight in coming up with new identities and getting into arguments about it.

This person is showing more and more the attributes of a classic and deliberate troll. As such, the only effective way of dealing with him is to completely, totally, 100% ignore him. Do not engage him at all. Do not even acknowledge his presence.

As George Bernard Shaw is quoted, "I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it."

[Updated on: Wed, 06 August 2014 19:37] by Moderator

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Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620886 is a reply to message #620885] Wed, 06 August 2014 15:42 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Littlefoot
Messages: 19979
Registered: June 2005
Location: Croatia, Europe
Senior Member
Account Moderator
Fine with me.

I'd like to see how his threads are going to look like (if other members follow your suggestion as well).
icon4.gif  Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620889 is a reply to message #620886] Wed, 06 August 2014 19:37 Go to previous messageGo to next message
rleishman
Messages: 3701
Registered: October 2005
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Senior Member
Any reason why we're not naming this fiend? I don't hang around / read enough to know the identities you're talking about, but I'm all for ignoring trolls.

Idea, how about when a mod identifies a troll, they add a message icon to the top post, like I did with this one (I didn't edit Eds post, just used the icon on mine). It can be a not-so-secret sign: warning: trolls at work.
Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620890 is a reply to message #620889] Wed, 06 August 2014 19:38 Go to previous messageGo to next message
rleishman
Messages: 3701
Registered: October 2005
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Senior Member
I lied. I just added the icon to Eds post to see how it looked.
Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620892 is a reply to message #620885] Wed, 06 August 2014 20:55 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Lalit Kumar B
Messages: 2649
Registered: May 2013
Location: World Wide on the Web
Senior Member
I agree with you. Yesterday I raised exactly the same concern here http://www.orafaq.com/forum/t/193937/. I thought not to let such trolls use multiple handles, so merge the accounts as and when found. But your suggestion makes more sense, to ignore the trolls. Lately though, even I have learned that the best way to handle such cases is to completely ignore them.
Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620895 is a reply to message #620892] Wed, 06 August 2014 21:47 Go to previous messageGo to next message
BlackSwan
Messages: 23304
Registered: January 2009
Senior Member
"ignore all messages by this user" works well
Nobody here is forced to feed any troll

PDNFTT works when enough folks agree
Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620902 is a reply to message #620895] Thu, 07 August 2014 01:01 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Michel Cadot
Messages: 60366
Registered: March 2007
Location: Nanterre, France, http://...
Senior Member
Account Moderator

I'm used to see him in other forum, he sometimes tries to help, so he is not a simple troll, I think he is just dumb, really and deeply dumb.

Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620903 is a reply to message #620889] Thu, 07 August 2014 01:26 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Littlefoot
Messages: 19979
Registered: June 2005
Location: Croatia, Europe
Senior Member
Account Moderator
rleishman

Any reason why we're not naming this fiend?


Just one: he uses several accounts so it is kind of difficult to name them all. Michel is trying to keep track of it, Lalit wants them to be merged. Me? I'd be happy with some chocolate.
Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620905 is a reply to message #620903] Thu, 07 August 2014 01:39 Go to previous messageGo to next message
rleishman
Messages: 3701
Registered: October 2005
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Senior Member
Nice example. Feels like a troll to me who is just playing at being really dumb.
Re: A plea for some sanity [message #620918 is a reply to message #620905] Thu, 07 August 2014 03:32 Go to previous messageGo to next message
gazzag
Messages: 410
Registered: November 2010
Location: Bristol, UK
Senior Member
There are trolls on the internet? Shocked *nails crooked pieces of broken wood across windows and doors*

Same donkey, different saddle, as far as I am concerned. I'm with those who advocate ignoring them.

I have also seen a couple of threads that would have been better simply locked rather than further engagement by some who refuse to let it go.
Re: A plea for some sanity [message #622028 is a reply to message #620918] Wed, 20 August 2014 09:55 Go to previous message
Lalit Kumar B
Messages: 2649
Registered: May 2013
Location: World Wide on the Web
Senior Member
His nose has grown to an extent that now I feel the water has spilled over the brim. We all have shown utmost patience, until this http://www.orafaq.com/forum/t/194120/

I understand, it is not easy to ban him, as he comes up with multiple accounts, and I personally have no clue to find it unless Michel warns. I have seem a couple of trolls in various forums, but this guy seems to enjoy it. Schadenfreude? Isn't it?

Please, let's not give him further chance to take the forum for granted. And he keep going on disrespecting folks who help or have had helped. I don't care if his account is banned or merged. As of now, I just have one thought, lets not feed the troll at all.

If we all agree to it, it would be good.

Thanks
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