Netiquette Anthropology

(Net Ethology / A Troll's Confection)

 When a person's sanity is at balance,
 when human passion is raging,
 no etiquette must get in the way. 
     —Xah Lee, 2001.

The internet has changed society deeply. It has indirectly changed nations, catapulted sciences, deeply imbued the daily lives of men, and as well affected writings and have created a culture one of a kind, among which is FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions), Netiquette, and Trolling. Netiquette refers to Net Etiquette. It is the implicit rules in online communities, widely purveyed in the early days of internet (pre-1997) but faded quitely with the mainstreaming of internet. Troll roughly refers to someone who posts a message that solicit explicitly or indirectly a huge usually chaotic following. In these pages, are collected essays on these phenomena.

I as a troll is rather special because i tend to put a final say on things, in contrast with one-liner trolls i myself despise. (In a sense i'm an anti-troll, untroll, or an atrocious atroll.) At first i balked at being branded a troll. Now i revel it. I as a troll is rather recent, beginning and getting worse about in 1998. I have been using online forums since 1990. Perhaps one day i'll write “how i became a troll”. It is bound to be a tragedy. —Xah Lee, 2002.

I'll find a day to massacre them all, And raze their faction and their family... —William Shakespeare, in Titus Andronicus

Killfile Considered Harmful, Philosophies of Netiquette

definition on "troll", — Jargon File.

Tech Geekers vs Spammers, Cross-posting & Language Factions

Troll Song: Jingle Bells, by drmjohnston@webtv.net, 1997.

The Fetish for Plain Text

Art of Trolling, anonymous.

Old School Netiquette

The Once True History of Meow, by The 2-Belo.

a Troll's Anthology

To Catch a Troll, by Bill Palmer, 1999.

A Troll's Confection

Once Upon a Troll, by natelan@home.com, 2001.

On Ignoring Trolls

 i will be building a dam, when there is a pussy flood.
 for i am a collector of nature, and a lover of its treasure.
 i will use my savings, to quench those thirsty, and lubricate those angry,
 for i have suffered and suffered; the pain and anguish.
     —Xah Lee, 2002.

Page created: 2003-06.
© 1999-2003 by Xah Lee.