[SpamCop-List] Re: Er... purpose of .spam

[Mike Easter]

KronaTech wrote:
> I was wondering if (on the couple of occasions which I've posted
> in there) it is of benefit to anyone when I just reveal spam which is
> particularly disgusting or offensive.

> Are those kinds of posts useful to anyone or just a waste of bits?

IMO it is a waste of bits.  I'm generally against 'reading' spam.  I
think a spam item should be non-manually steered to a junk pile by
having it be recognized as spam without laying eyes on its subject.
This applies to people who aren't reporting any spam to anywhere -
whereupon it should be deleted.

People who have their spam segregated in that way who also want to
report spam 'quickly' should not be reading *any* of their spam - but
simply feeding it to spamcop, unopened and unread and unpreviewed.

People who want to spend more time on their spam should be notifying
'differently' than spamcop but upgrading the notification process to be
'better' addies than spamcop uses.  This also does not require opening
or previewing or reading spam.

People who want to spend more time than /that/ on each individual spam
item should be notifying various 3rd parties such as those suggested at
Marjolein's site or the now defunct spamlinks.  This might require
'inspecting' of the interior or 'reading' a spamitem - but not curiously
or receptively.  IMO, too many so-called spamfighters are also
spamreaders, in which I consider spamreading to not be fighting spam but
to be exhibiting the same curiosity as 'normal' spambait - which is a
weakness.

Also people who are spending more time can be using some kind of
browser-like GET function to see if the website is redirected to aid
them in the various notifies which are not performed by SC - upstreams,
redirects, etc.

As a general rule, spamreading is a negative and a sign that the
'spamfighter' is spending too much time doing the wrong kind of 'work'.

So, posting spam which you've read is a negative in my opinion.

.spam is useful for a number of puposes that have to do with things
which shouldn't be posted in a ng which people read.  Posting spam which
you've read and expecting other people to read your spam is 'crazy' IMO.


-- 
Mike Easter
kibitzer, not SC admin