spam
spam: vt.,vi.,n. [from "Monty Python's Flying Circus"] 1. To
crash a program by overrunning a fixed-size buffer with excessively
large input data. See also buffer overflow, overrun screw,
smash the stack. 2. To cause a newsgroup to be flooded with
irrelevant or inappropriate messages. You can spam a newsgroup with
as little as one well- (or ill-) planned message (e.g. asking "What
do you think of abortion?" on soc.women). This is often done with
cross-posting (e.g. any message which is crossposted to
alt.rush-limbaugh and alt.politics.homosexuality will almost
inevitably spam both groups). This overlaps with troll behavior;
the latter more specific term has become more common. 3. To send many
identical or nearly-identical messages separately to a large number
of Usenet newsgroups. This is more specifically called `ECP',
Excessive Cross-Posting. This is one sure way to infuriate nearly
everyone on the Net. See also velveeta and jello. 4. To bombard
a newsgroup with multiple copies of a message. This is more
specifically called `EMP', Excessive Multi-Posting. 5. To
mass-mail unrequested identical or nearly-identical email messages,
particularly those containing advertising. Especially used when the
mail addresses have been culled from network traffic or databases
without the consent of the recipients. Synonyms include UCE,
UBE. 6. Any large, annoying, quantity of output. For instance,
someone on IRC who walks away from their screen and comes back to
find 200 lines of text might say "Oh no, spam".
The later definitions have become much more prevalent as the
Internet has opened up to non-techies, and to most people senses 3 4
and 5 are now primary. All three behaviors are considered abuse of
the net, and are almost universally grounds for termination of the
originator's email account or network connection. In these senses
the term `spam' has gone mainstream, though without its original
sense or folkloric freight - there is apparently a widespread myth
among lusers that "spamming" is what happens when you dump cans of
Spam into a revolving fan.
![[prev]](../gif/left.gif){kind=small}
![[up]](../gif/up.gif){kind=small}
![[next]](../gif/right.gif){kind=small}