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Searching/trawling, not trolling. Still corrupt, as success is measured by "increased prosecution", not "decreased piracy", which means they have just incentiv
by Evbn 14y ago
Searching/trawling, not trolling.
Still corrupt, as success is measured by "increased prosecution", not "decreased piracy", which means they have just incentivized an entrapment+framing program. SL PD could make a fortune by pirating IP and arresting some of their customers.
- mikeash 14y agoThe meaning of "to fish by trailing a lure or baited hook from a moving boat" far predates the internet version of the word "troll". This is correct, metaphorical usage.
- nightpool 14y agoYou are definitely confusing the word troll, "A mythical, cave-dwelling being depicted in folklore as either a giant or a dwarf, typically having a very ugly appearance." (OED), with the word trawl: "1 an act of fishing with a trawl net or seine or 2. a thorough search". The parent comment actually mentioned trawling in his post, too, as a alternative Ars could've used.
- mikeash 14y agoI am definitely not confusing troll for trawl. Look it up, the definition I gave is a valid one for "troll".
- jspthrowaway 14y agoYou found troll(1) in the OED. Now find troll(2).
- Symmetry 14y agoWhen one is creating a headline and one can choose between two words, using the one that isn't confusingly ambiguous is usually the better choice.
- waterlesscloud 14y agoMy assumption, which dates back to the first time I encountered the word "troll" in its usenet sense, was that it derived from exactly that metaphor. Trolling for a reaction. Spreading out some chum, setting the line, seeing who bites.
- mikeash 14y agoYep indeed. From the Jargon File: > 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. http://catb.org/jargon/html/T/troll.html http://catb.org/jargon/html/T/troll.html
- nanodeath 14y ago"Trolling" actually is mostly valid here, by definition (can mean "to search for something"), but I agree this was really confusing at first.