I've considered this question in some detail.

Actually I've seen many "spammers" who advertise their site and then get banned after one warning.

I've also seen unbearable trolls being given a long rope. Some of these trolls reach unbelievable heights of "trollsmanship" by the nonsense they spout regularly without contributing an iota to the community they belong to.

Yet these trolls are not banned because they don't break the "written rules".

What are your thoughts on this? How would you handle a regularly annoying troll as compared to an occasional member who "spams" or "advertises" their site on your forum?

Personally I prefer a "spammer" any day to a troll.

Trolls are pains because they're hard as heck to get rid of. So I, too, would prefer the spammer to the troll. If someone's blatantly trolling but not violating any written rules, it's time to update the site rules. Every forum's site rules should include a no trolling clause

Tolls are wose. SPAMers spam a little bit when tolls try to wreck the forum.

I definitely prefer the one post wonders, they are easier to ignore. You don't have to even delete those, they will bury themselves in the new threads. It's the ppl that can't stay away, keep coming back and turn good conversation into sling fests, those are the type that make some members leave and others not wanting to join.

Very true

Definitely the trolls are worse.

One-time spammers are rare (for me) but trolls just keep on going (not necessarily on my own forum)

You know what I find most amazing? That on most sites, the spammers get banned after a single offence (or after a warning) while the trolls keep getting away with almost anything. Except a few forums, I've seen trolls cause reckless havoc before being ejected. The damage is done far earlier than when the moderators step in and douse the flames. And yes. I think trolls do affect a community because I myself stop posting on that forum (or post less often) and I think that most normal community members will feel put off by them.

I think under-moderated communities stand to lose a lot more in the long run than over-moderated communities. I used to believe that too much moderation is not good, but of late I believe that you can never have enough moderation especially in a large community which attracts a wide variety of people.

I think that there needs to be a clear definition and policy which moderates trolls and not just the occasional technical rule-breaker.

Thank you for your feedback. It was a good read.

No problem. I recently had such an experience on another forum and I based this on my experience.

Regards. :cheesy: