spam
An inappropriate attempt to use a
mailing list, or
USENET or other networked communications facility as if it was a broadcast medium (which it is not) by sending the same message to a large number of people who didn’t ask for it. The term probably comes from a famous Monty Python skit which featured the word spam repeated over and over. The term may also have come from someone’s low opinion of the food product with the same name, which is generally perceived as a generic content-free waste of resources. (Spam is a registered trademark of Hormel Corporation, for its processed meat product.)
E.g. Mary spammed 50 USENET groups by posting the same message to each.
See Also: Maillist , USENET
Flooding message boards,newsgroups,mailing lists,or your mailbox with off-topic messages usually ads or promotions or deliberate disruptions.It is a major violation of netiquette,and it violates member agreements in most places and can lead to account cancellation.
Term used to describe the process of flooding the Internet with unsolicited eMail. Not considered good etiquette.
Originating from the name of Hormel's canned meat, spam is junk mail on the Internet. The most common form of spamming (yes, it can be used as a verb too) is through e-mail, like those dang forwards people you hardly know send you. Spam can also be annoying postings to a newsgroup or bulletin board. Spamming other people is definitely not cool and is one of the most notorious violations of Internet etiquette (or "netiquette"). So next time you just have to let everybody know about that hot new guaranteed way to make money on the Internet, think before you send it, is it really worth it?
