Troll

[Defeatist Elitist]

I just kind of had a bit of an epiphany at work today, so I figured I'd ask you guys what the connotation of troll is for you? Do you generally see it as a negative thing? If someone is labeled a troll do you consider that a mark against them or in their favor? Why?

I ask this because ever since I first learned what the word meant, troll has always had a positive connotation for me. When someone says "Oh he's a troll" I generally take that as something like "oh yeah, he's a pretty cool guy". However, I've kind of realized that I seem to be in the minority. So yeah, what do you guys think of when you see the word troll?

[BEST TRYNDAMERE PLAYER]

Here's the best way to put it and if it makes me sound conceited well... too bad.

Example of good troll: Me, Hika

Bad trolls:

People who spout 4chan/very common memes 90% of the time and think they're cool/funny for it.

People who think they're lulzy by making a forum account just to troll and usually the content from said troll is obvious.

People who think trolling 24/7 is funny when it reality it makes you look like a retard with very poor social skills.

Edited August 27, 2010 by Joey

[CrashGordon94]

It has a negative connotation for me because, well, trolling is bad.

There's no way to make it good, it's just plain bad.

[Defeatist Elitist]

It has a negative connotation for me because, well, trolling is bad.

There's no way to make it good, it's just plain bad.

But why?

[eclipse]

I think it's bad if you're only willing to do it on the condition that your real identity is not connected to it.

[Naglfar]

Trolls are like those girls at school who used to tease you back when you were 7, only more evil.

I've seen people whose every post on a forum contains some form of humour (usually sarcastic) labelled as trolls. Funny =/= troll. To be a troll, your "humour" has to stem from annoying people, being offensive, and just making other people's days worse. If it targets a specific person, it's what the uninitiated adults call "cyber-bullying".

If you think trolling is good, then either your definition is different to mine, or you should go stick your head in an oven.

But why?

Crash especially hates trolls because he's particularly easy to piss off. He's what we call "troll bait", and trolls take bait at any possible opportunity. Most of the forum tends to give him crap just because they can, which annoys me.

Edited August 27, 2010 by Naglfar

[Fenrir]

It all depends on the context, you could be an ahnoying troll who spams stuff on 4chan, then your a gaywad, but if you troll an actual forum and really make people upset cause they cant get the obvious sarcasm, then your awesome.

It has a negative connotation for me because, well, trolling is bad.

There's no way to make it good, it's just plain bad.

lolwut?

[Silvercrow]

Trolls are people who amuse themselves by eliciting a reaction from people. I think you guys are getting lame people and 12-year-olds mixed up with trolls, although they are not mutually exclusive.

Edited August 27, 2010 by Silvercrow

[CrashGordon94]

But why?

Pretty much what Naglflar said, pissing people off for your own amusement isn't good.

[Junkhead]

Depends what type of trolls. I like your type Revan. Also those like Hika, Joey and Interceptor. These are the "benevolent" trolls.

The "malevolent" type are those type of trolls that only find their own material enjoyable and are somewhat retarded in others' eyes. They actually suck at trolling.

[Ϲharlie]

To me the word "troll" has a negative connotation because most people who fancy themselves trolls are actually just stupid people who go "lol i trol u" when someone calls them on their stupidity. It doesn't help that people who aren't really trolls are labeled as though they were by oversensitive people who can't take a joke.

Trolls that are actually good at what they do can be amusing watch.

[Trueblade]

It's negative for me sometimes. If someone is a real troll, then they are very irritating and are just trying to get attention. I have friends who will fake troll some of my youtube videos, and we all know it's a joke, but trolls can be very hurtfull and offensive. I recently had a troll tell me to go drown in shit.

[Meteor]

A troll is someone who makes an intentionally wrong or ignorant remark for attention. Trolling is bad when that attention derails a serious topic. Beyond that, it's mostly a matter of opinion.

[BEST TRYNDAMERE PLAYER]

It has a negative connotation for me because, well, trolling is bad.

There's no way to make it good, it's just plain bad.

You have very negative experiences with trolling which results in biased answers like these. I understand it can be a bad thing but if you had any sense of humor you'd find some trolling funny. You need to chill out and learn how to take jokes.

but if you troll an actual forum and really make people upset cause they cant get the obvious sarcasm, then your awesome.

Reminds me of how that one person holds a really deep grudge against me without even saying a word to her, at all.

Trolls are people who amuse themselves by eliciting a reaction from people. I think you guys are getting lame people and 12-year-olds mixed up with trolls, although they are not mutually exclusive.

Nah, some aren't what you'd think.

Depends what type of trolls. I like your type Revan. Also those like Hika, Joey and Interceptor. These are the "benevolent" trolls.

Oh yeah, how did I forget Hika? Maybe I shouldn't make posts like these at 5AM anymore.

Edited August 27, 2010 by Joey

[Ike-Mike]

But why?

"Hey guys, I can piss lots of people on a message board off by posting hateful replies and derailing threads, am I cool yet?"

[Nightmare]

Trolling can be funny/hilarious every once in a while, but I still don't like it very much, despite laughing at it. It's mean. : (

You're probably thinking "But you troll a lot of members with ban threats!" but that's kind of different since I'm not especially aiming to irritate/intimidate people for my own amusement and more doing it in a light-hearted manner, so you could call it more of a "mean joke" or something.

By the way, Hika wasn't exclusively a troll. He did it sometimes, but I'm pretty sure 99% of the time, he was just posting his honest thoughts.

[Strawman]

When I hear troll, I think of Billy Goat Gruff. You know that troll under the bridge...yeah. But really I am indifferent to them.

[Esau of Isaac]

I think of it about the same way I think of the pejorative term "dick". "Hey, quit trolling," is about the same as "Hey, quit being a dick".

Of course, sometimes being a dick is amusing.

[Chuy]

troll:

1.) One who purposely and deliberately (that purpose usually being self-amusement) starts an argument in a manner which attacks others on a forum without in any way listening to the arguments proposed by his or her peers. He will spark of such an argument via the use of ad hominem attacks (i.e. 'you're nothing but a fanboy' is a popular phrase) with no substance or relevence to back them up as well as straw man arguments, which he uses to simply avoid addressing the essence of the issue. (courtesy urban dictionary)

2.) what butt-hurt pussies call people who don't s**t butterflies, rainbows, and glitter and tell them how awesome they are every time they post something on the internet

They can be amusing at times but some are just plain stupid and just have no social life or something. Depends on who is trollin I guess.

[Loki Laufeyson]

While trolling can be all in good fun, most of the time its not and its just irritating. Troll means, to me, a little kid who has nothing better to do than get a rise out of people. 4chan style trolling is rather insufferable. Trolling where people are all "yer mum" is all just silliness and shouldnt be taken seriously. Some trolls (and i know one) are particularly nasty and relentless. Its like "get a life already, you git!"

[Malexis]

I tend to respect a good troll (a real good troll, I mean, not someone who says they're good but does nothing to prove it... say, targets unworthy people). A lot. A REALLY good troll has an admirable level of psychological knowledge, and can make other people say, do, or think what he wants them to do. Most just stick with the pathetic (but often entertaining) making other people attack them verbally. They are boring as hell.

(Also Joey, Hika isn't really a troll... Just sayin'.)

[BEST TRYNDAMERE PLAYER]

I tend to respect a good troll (a real good troll, I mean, not someone who says they're good but does nothing to prove it... say, targets unworthy people). A lot. A REALLY good troll has an admirable level of psychological knowledge, and can make other people say, do, or think what he wants them to do. Most just stick with the pathetic (but often entertaining) making other people attack them verbally. They are boring as hell.

(Also Joey, Hika isn't really a troll... Just sayin'.)

I made 3 people ragequit and pretty much caused the downfall of an entire guild in this one MMORPG through one post back when I was 16 years old. Do I win?

Also, he did piss a fair amount of people off which lead to a ban eventually and his posts weren't too bad.

Edited August 29, 2010 by Joey

[Malexis]

I made 3 people ragequit and pretty much caused the downfall of an entire guild in this one MMORPG through one post back when I was 16 years old. Do I win?

Also, he did piss a fair amount of people off which lead to a ban eventually and his posts weren't too bad.

1. That is so badass. Completely ignoring what I said the other day, yes, that is pretty win.

2. I know, he managed to piss a lot of guys off but I really don't think it was his intention so much as that he just didn't care whether he did or not. But I did like his posts.

[BEST TRYNDAMERE PLAYER]

1. That is so badass. Completely ignoring what I said the other day, yes, that is pretty win.

Yeah, I totally ignored that post. It's as if it was non-existent! Going to have to try harder than that.

2. I know, he managed to piss a lot of guys off but I really don't think it was his intention so much as that he just didn't care whether he did or not. But I did like his posts.

Unintentional trolling is still trolling.

Edited August 29, 2010 by Joey

[Phoenix Wright]

I agree with Hika. Trolling is a special talent; something all of us can "do," but that doesn't mean we do it right. People like Hika do it right, and for that, I thank you.

Good trolls: A good troll needs good jokes, be in a relatively funny discussion, doesn't troll 24/7, and they need a funny reaction out of the one being trolled.

Bad trolls: Don't do anything a good troll does and trolls on sites like Youtube, etc. There can be good trolls on Youtube, but I never see them.

As for the connotation, I think of it as a good thing (sorta). If someone says "You're a terrible troll," then obviously it is a bad thing.

Edited August 29, 2010 by Phoenix Wright