WikiLeaks: Saudis often warned U.S. about oil speculators

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Playtime Trolls

Playtime trolls are relatively easy to spot, but they may not be apparent to the naive user. There isn't a single set of characteristics that applies to playtime trolls, but you can look for some or all of the following signs:

• a lack of buy-in to the list philosophy or values
• generally low level of activity, with sudden spurts of interaction - or perhaps a new persona that has strong opinions on controversial subjects
• a mixture of friendly posts with a confrontational style of interaction
• the use of provocative language and sweeping generalisations about certain topics or categories of people
• a lack of in-depth understanding of the topic
• a lack of personal information
• a lack of a genuinely unique perspective on the topic
• a lack of humour
• restarting topics that have already been done
• use of language that encourages the dialogue to enter topics that are controversial and likely to upset some team members
• the use of an attention-seeking gimmick (e.g.: "I was once exploited by an XYZ")
• they follow up their own articles if the group doesn't respond to their posts
• inconsistencies in the style and nature of the post and any proclaimed information (e.g.: claiming to be a child but writing with an adult style; claiming to be adult, but writing with a childish grammatical construction).

All of those qualities could also apply to someone of high intelligence who posesses a life away from the keyboard.