Are there many things more annoying that the forum troll? Everywhere I have been there have been the trolls. It is difficult to understand the thought process of someone that wants to be hated in an online community.
I could sit around all day and espouse on what I think makes these folks tick and it would not really accomplish a thing.
Paul Graham shared my most common excuse for these people,
The third cause of trolling is incompetence. If you disagree with somoething, it's easier to say "you suck" than to figure out and explain exactly what you disagree with. You're also safe that way from refutation. In this respect trolling is a lot like graffiti. Graffiti happens at the intersection of ambition and incompetence: people want to make their mark on the world, but have no other way to do it than literally making a mark on the world.
The keys to beating the troll are persistence and using your tools effectively. Many forum and comment tools have the ability to ban a user. This is the easiest way to first stop the troll. But, many times it is easy to just get a new account and start trolling all over again. Check your toolbox and see if you can ban IP addresses as well. Remember that the tech savvy troll will know how to change his IP address though. This is where persisence comes in. You have to stay vigilant and look for posts that fit the troll's begaviors. If you can kill off a troll's new account early they will get frustrated quickly.
One last tip. When you remove a troll's account. It can help to go back and remove all of their posts. If a troll sees that the moderators are serious, they will often find another place for their antics.
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