When Spambots Break, We Fisk It

Published 11 years, 5 months past

A while back, a spambot stopped by my 2006 post “Unitless line-heights”, dumped what appears to be its complete response configuration file into my comment form, and submitted it.  Being something of a Dadaist at heart, I went ahead and published it — and yet, somehow, that wasn’t enough.  I believe the whole world should have the opportunity to savor its multifaceted and sometimes contradictory opinions, so I present it here in its entirety (and its character encoding errors) with a few bits of commentary by yours truly.

I was extremely pleased to find this web site. I need to to thank you for ones time due to this wonderful read!! I definitely really liked every little bit of it and I have you bookmarked to look at new information on your website.

Can I simply just say what a relief to uncover a person that genuinely knows what they are talking about on the net. You definitely realize how to bring an issue to light and make it important. More people should read this and understand this side of your story. I can’t believe you’re not more popular since you most certainly possess the gift.

Excellent write-up. I absolutely love this site. Stick with it!

It�s hard to come by well-informed people on this subject, but you seem like you know what you�re talking about! Thanks

You ought to take part in a contest for one of the most useful blogs online. I am going to highly recommend this blog!

A fascinating discussion is worth comment. I do believe that you need to publish more about this subject, it may not be a taboo subject but typically folks don’t discuss these subjects. To the next! Many thanks!!

In fact, line-height values have long been the topic that dare not speak its name.  I hope it is not too immodest of me to say that writing about these subjects took no small measure of personal courage.

Hi there! I simply would like to give you a big thumbs up for your great information you’ve got right here on this post. I’ll be returning to your website for more soon.

When I initially commented I appear to have clicked on the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get four emails with the same comment. Perhaps there is an easy method you can remove me from that service? Kudos!

I assume there’s some perceived value in drawing even more attention to the email address and web site associated with this comment, but I can’t figure out what.

The next time I read a blog, I hope that it doesn’t fail me as much as this one. After all, I know it was my choice to read, nonetheless I actually thought you would probably have something helpful to talk about. All I hear is a bunch of whining about something that you could fix if you weren’t too busy seeking attention.

OHHHH SICK BURN.  Actually, I’m very slightly impressed by the attempted use of reverse psychology, even though I suspect the vast majority of people would just delete a comment like that without ever realizing it was a spambot.

Spot on with this write-up, I seriously believe that this web site needs much more attention. I�ll probably be returning to read more, thanks for the info!

You’re so awesome! I do not believe I’ve read through a single thing like this before. So good to find somebody with some unique thoughts on this subject matter. Really.. thanks for starting this up. This site is one thing that is required on the web, someone with a little originality!

I love looking through an article that can make men and women think. Also, thanks for allowing for me to comment!

Oh, no… thank you.

This is the perfect blog for everyone who wants to understand this topic. You understand a whole lot its almost hard to argue with you (not that I actually will need to�HaHa). You definitely put a fresh spin on a subject that’s been discussed for years. Wonderful stuff, just excellent!

Aw, this was an exceptionally nice post. Finding the time and actual effort to make a really good article� but what can I say� I procrastinate a whole lot and don’t manage to get nearly anything done.

I�m amazed, I must say. Rarely do I come across a blog that�s equally educative and amusing, and without a doubt, you have hit the nail on the head. The issue is something that too few folks are speaking intelligently about. I am very happy I found this during my search for something concerning this.

Oh my goodness! Awesome article dude! Thank you, However I am having troubles with your RSS. I don�t understand why I am unable to subscribe to it. Is there anybody having the same RSS issues? Anyone who knows the solution can you kindly respond? Thanx!!

An outstanding share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a coworker who had been conducting a little homework on this. And he actually ordered me breakfast simply because I found it for him… lol. So allow me to reword this…. Thanks for the meal!! But yeah, thanks for spending time to talk about this topic here on your internet site.

After looking at a number of the articles on your website, I really appreciate your way of blogging. I saved as a favorite it to my bookmark webpage list and will be checking back in the near future. Please check out my web site as well and let me know what you think.

This site definitely has all of the information and facts I needed concerning this subject and didn�t know who to ask.

There is definately a great deal to know about this subject. I love all the points you’ve made.

I only wish that comment had somehow ended up on a post about the importance of spellchecking.

You made some good points there. I looked on the web for additional information about the issue and found most people will go along with your views on this site.

Nice post. I learn something new and challenging on websites I stumbleupon everyday. It’s always interesting to read through content from other authors and practice something from their web sites.

I blog quite often and I seriously thank you for your information. Your article has truly peaked my interest. I am going to book mark your website and keep checking for new information about once per week. I opted in for your Feed too.

Pretty! This has been a really wonderful article. Thanks for supplying these details.

Greetings! Very useful advice in this particular article! It is the little changes that will make the biggest changes. Many thanks for sharing!

Hello there! This blog post could not be written much better! Going through this article reminds me of my previous roommate! He constantly kept talking about this. I will send this information to him. Fairly certain he will have a very good read. I appreciate you for sharing!

Your previous roommate, eh?

Hi, I think your site might be having web browser compatibility issues. Whenever I look at your blog in Safari, it looks fine however, when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping issues. I just wanted to provide you with a quick heads up! Besides that, wonderful site!

…Well played, spambot.  Well played.

Having read this I believed it was rather enlightening. I appreciate you finding the time and effort to put this information together. I once again find myself personally spending a significant amount of time both reading and commenting. But so what, it was still worth it!

Good day! I could have sworn I�ve been to this web site before but after looking at a few of the posts I realized it�s new to me. Regardless, I�m certainly happy I discovered it and I�ll be book-marking it and checking back frequently!

I wanted to thank you for this fantastic read!! I absolutely enjoyed every bit of it. I’ve got you book marked to check out new stuff you post�

Hi, I do believe this is an excellent web site. I stumbledupon it ;) I will come back yet again since I book-marked it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to help others.

Your style is very unique compared to other people I’ve read stuff from. Thanks for posting when you’ve got the opportunity, Guess I’ll just book mark this site.

Apparently spambots think that “book-marking” is a thing that humans still do.  Ha ha, suckers!

I used to be able to find good information from your blog posts.

There you go again, trying to make me think that only a real live human could be that condescending.  Well, I remember Twiki and you, sir, are no Twiki.

Excellent article! We are linking to this great content on our site. Keep up the great writing.

This is a very good tip particularly to those fresh to the blogosphere. Short but very accurate info� Appreciate your sharing this one. A must read article!

I could not refrain from commenting. Exceptionally well written!

bookmarked!!, I really like your web site!

Good post. I’m dealing with many of these issues as well..

Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate you penning this post and the rest of the website is really good.

Great web site you have got here.. It�s difficult to find high-quality writing like yours nowadays. I truly appreciate people like you! Take care!!

This is a topic that’s near to my heart… Take care! Where are your contact details though?

I seriously love your site.. Pleasant colors & theme. Did you create this web site yourself? Please reply back as I�m trying to create my own personal site and want to find out where you got this from or exactly what the theme is named. Cheers!

After spambot stupidity, the most reasonable explanation for someone coming to my site and praising it for the pleasant colors is, to quote John Gruber: “I am high as a kite.”

Everyone loves it when individuals come together and share ideas. Great site, continue the good work!

Very good info. Lucky me I ran across your website by accident (stumbleupon). I have book marked it for later!

This site was… how do I say it? Relevant!! Finally I have found something that helped me. Cheers!

Everything is very open with a really clear explanation of the issues. It was definitely informative. Your site is very useful. Many thanks for sharing!

I would like to thank you for the efforts you have put in writing this website. I am hoping to see the same high-grade content from you later on as well. In truth, your creative writing abilities has inspired me to get my own website now ;)

If you want the original, un-fisked version for use in your own anti-spambot defenses, you can find it here.


Comments (7)

  1. Her previous roommate was very excited about vertical rhythm, apparently.

  2. Thanks for this exciting and interesting comment! Well done! I have bookmarked this site and will return again.

  3. More seriously, I see comments like this all the time, and it is obvious that they are spam. They are not in any way related to the content of the post.
    Eventually we’ll have AI good enough to filter out comments that don’t actually discuss the post, and the spambots will have to actually post a relevant comment. And that’ll be a good thing. (And I think I saw an XKCD comic on the topic, but I can’t just find it.)

  4. @Michael. XKCD 810

  5. I was hoping the first few comments on my blog were real. What a shame. I’ve deleted one from Shanghai escorts, but debating whether to delete the rest. Are some comments better than none?

  6. I still bookmark : ( haha

    the “Your style is really unique in comparison to other people I’ve read stuff from.” Almost got me

  7. After spambot stupidity, one of the most affordable explanation for an individual coming over to my website and praising it for your pleasant shades is, to price John Gruber: “I am high like a kite.”

Add Your Thoughts

Meyerweb dot com reserves the right to edit or remove any comment, especially when abusive or irrelevant to the topic at hand.

HTML allowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strong> <pre class=""> <kbd>


if you’re satisfied with it.

Comment Preview