definition of a troll

[Yuri Prime]

Greetings, as some of you probably know, I'm a mod on a site that has a massive trolling problem (oddly enough, the problem is being generated by just one fundie right now). I'd appreciate it if you guys could give me a definitive definition of what a troll is so that I can improve my methods of dealing with this assclown without making the rest of the board think that I'm being mean.

[DPDarkPrimus]

From a useful site I just found, The Jargon Dictionary.

troll v.,n. 1. [From the Usenet group alt.folklore.urban] To utter a posting on Usenet designed to attract predictable responses or flames; or, the post itself. Derives from the phrase "trolling for newbies" which in turn comes from mainstream "trolling", a style of fishing in which one trails bait through a likely spot hoping for a bite. The well-constructed troll is a post that induces lots of newbies and flamers to make themselves look even more clueless than they already do, while subtly conveying to the more savvy and experienced that it is in fact a deliberate troll. If you don't fall for the joke, you get to be in on it. See also YHBT. 2. An individual who chronically trolls in sense 1; regularly posts specious arguments, flames or personal attacks to a newsgroup, discussion list, or in email for no other purpose than to annoy someone or disrupt a discussion. Trolls are recognizable by the fact that the have no real interest in learning about the topic at hand - they simply want to utter flame bait. Like the ugly creatures they are named after, they exhibit no redeeming characteristics, and as such, they are recognized as a lower form of life on the net, as in, "Oh, ignore him, he's just a troll." 3. [Berkeley] Computer lab monitor. A popular campus job for CS students. Duties include helping newbies and ensuring that lab policies are followed. Probably so-called because it involves lurking in dark cavelike corners.

Some people claim that the troll (sense 1) is properly a narrower category than flame bait, that a troll is categorized by containing some assertion that is wrong but not overtly controversial. See also Troll-O-Meter.

The use of `troll' in either sense is a live metaphor that readily produces elaborations and combining forms. For example, one not infrequently sees the warning "Do not feed the troll" as part of a followup to troll postings.

[Darth Wong]

People often confuse trolls for idiots. An idiot sincerely believes what he's posting, while a troll's primary intent is to stir up shit.

That's actually why we have a "Village Idiot" and "Worthless Trolling Palm-Fucker" title category; a village idiot is characterized by a wall of ignorance but is not necessarily a troll. He may actually be stupid enough to believe his own bullshit.

[Dalton]

From a useful site I just found, The Jargon Dictionary.

That seems to be a mirror of the main Jargon File at http://www.catb.org/~esr/jargon/index.html

[Yuri Prime]

Thank you. This helps.