Bonum Certa Men Certa

How to Resolve the Troll Problem

Man in mirror



Summary: Our experiences dealing with abusive behaviour and how it was most effectively dealt with it

Every once in a while someone who is tied to Microsoft, someone whom Techrights criticized, or just someone who strongly disagrees with some view will choose to provoke in some platform like Twitter, for Techrights requires commenters to subscribe, which already weeds out a lot of unnecessary provocation. Disagreement is fine, but sometimes a person can get carried away and flood the comments sections, or even set up a whole Web site whose sole purpose is to oppose Techrights, usually in an ad hominem type of way. This happened a number of times over the years and we always abstained from giving such sites any attention. If the criticism is polite and well founded, it makes sense to respond. But when it is obsession- and grudge-driven it is better to ignore. No time should be wasted dealing with those for whom this waste of time or distraction is an implicit goal.



"Let it be stressed that since the site started in 2006 we have never deleted any comments."IRC is a bit different because it is a real-time medium where trolls can deliberately disrupt communication which is legitimate. Vandalism, obscenities and other nasties that violate the most basic rules are not a thing of the past, but now that we have many operators in the channels it has gotten harder to derail them.

The Internet is not void of spam or trolls and it never will be. The question is, how does one position oneself against them? The wiki used to be a productivity sink due to a lot of spam, so anonymous edits and new accounts are barred for now (if allowed, they immediately invite spam every hour or so, which takes hours to undo by reverting, as was the case several times before while editors were away).

Let it be stressed that since the site started in 2006 we have never deleted any comments. Suppression of free speech, even if it is speech by an anonymous corporate agent, is not something we do. We still have in tact comments that were left by Novell and Microsoft agents before their affiliation was unmasked and they fled. Yes, these are a nuisance, but preserving the full picture helps one understand and internalize the real phenomenon which is AstroTurfing.

Recent Techrights' Posts

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there will be more mass layoffs
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The media seldom speaks of the dangers of "proprietary software"
Proprietary Windows Versus "Linux" News (Trying to Keep People on Windows, Never Exploring GNU/Linux)
Good editors know better how to recognise threats and not give them lip service
Ensuring That Every Computer User Anywhere in the World Can Take Control of All His or Her Computers
We must fight the people who attack general-purpose computing, in particular those who push this agenda very aggressively inside Linux
Gemini Links 28/04/2025: Autism and Structural Navigation
Links for the day
What Happened to the Open Source Initiative (OSI) Elections: The Purge, the Cover-up, and the Witch-hunts
OSI has gone "full Microsoft"
 
China is Already Culling GAFAM (Not Just Microsoft Windows)
OS monoculture or "OS hegemony" may be coming to an end
The "Telephone Operating System in the Vatican" is 95 Years Old, Vatican Moved to GNU/Linux
Maybe Microsoft is down to zero already
If Tesla Shares (and Alleged Value) Fell 55% (From $489 to $222) in a Few Months Maybe It's Not Worth Anything At All (It's Just Gambling)
Tesla swasticars have turned from a "status symbol" into a "public embarrassment" and cause for casual humiliation
Chromebooks' Adoption in Sweden No Longer Depends on Schools
School breaks are when classrooms are shut
No, IBM is Not Investing $150 Billion in the US and It Doesn't Even Have That Kind of Money
Here we go again... media as a vehicle of lobbying and misinformation
Leak: The EPO's General Consultative Committee (GCC) Does Not Consult Staff on Crucial Matters and Bypasses the Administrative Council (AC) to Do Illegal Things
violations against the EPO's very staff
New Leaks Coming Soon, We Maintain 100% Record of Successful Resistance to Censorship
We won't be told what we can and cannot say (especially when it's true)
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99.8% to go!
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the FUD machine never rests
Gemini Links 28/04/2025: A Simple Task Tracking and Auto-Prioritization Tool and Other Programs
Links for the day
Links 28/04/2025: Canada's Election, Pakistan-India Conflict
Links for the day
Glue Inside Your Pizza (or Why People Will Get Fed Up With Slop)
People are given "answers" from non-intelligence word dumpsters
Links 28/04/2025: Cyberattacks Happening, Chatbots Disappointing, and "Free Speech Under Fire"
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Phone Adoption Very Low in Vatican, Windows Usage Fell Nonetheless
Even in places where people still use desktops/laptops most of the time (and have access to these) Windows is gradually losing ground
GNU/Linux 9% in Cuba, Vista 11 Waning, Android Dominant
Microsoft has pretty much lost Cuba
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, April 27, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, April 27, 2025
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They ought to move to GNU/Linux
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Links 27/04/2025: Serenity Dialectics, Hockey Jersey Ethics, and More
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Links 27/04/2025: Death of Nest Thermostats, Death of Metaverse
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Links 27/04/2025: Projects Workflow and Discovering Technology
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, April 26, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, April 26, 2025
Microsoft Isn't on the Map in USSR
To them, it's either Google or Yandex
In Central America Windows Became a Small Force
These are countries where Windows used to have well over 95% of the "market"
What's Very Vexing to GAFAM, EPO and Others Is That It's Incredibly Hard to Censor Us (and Nobody Ever Successfully Did That Before)
resist, do not capitulate
Site May be Even Faster Now
It basically takes less than a tenth of a second to serve the page
Receiving SLAPPs and Collecting Them Like Trophies (the SLAPPs Always Fail)
People who file lawsuits bring even more attention to themselves (or to embarrassing statements about them)
Year of GNU/Linux on the Laptop?
It's not happening only in Lenovo
What People Must Understand About the Open Source Initiative (OSI)
some facts about the Open Source Initiative (OSI)
Many of the Scandals Are Interconnected (Overlapping People and Corporations)
We're only getting started
More Copyright Lawsuits Against LLM Slop Providers and Suppliers of LLM Slopfarms Would Benefit Society
It's not just bad for the Web and for society; it's also legally dangerous
Links 26/04/2025: General Assassinated in the Town of Balashikha, US Promoting Seafloor Mining
Links for the day
Links 26/04/2025: Facebook Layoffs Again, Remembering What's Real, and Say No to Mass Surveillance
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Links 26/04/2025: NOAA Budget Cuts and "Dog Days Ahead"
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In defence of JD Vance, death of Pope Francis
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Three Years in Prison for Disney Employee’s ‘Menu Hacking’: The Economic Fallout of Digital Menus
Reprinted with permission from Ryan Farmer
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, April 25, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, April 25, 2025