Joel Furr
Encyclopedia
Joel K. "Jay" Furr is a writer and software trainer notable as a Usenet
personality in the early and mid 1990s.
He is immortalized in the newsgroups alt.fan.joel-furr, alt.bonehead.joel-furr, and alt.joel-furr.die.die.die. He was a pretender to the throne of James "Kibo" Parry, and the bitter enemy of Serdar Argic
. He is also infamous for his Usenet response to the death of Roger Zelazny
: "Good". (A statement Furr has apologized for subsequently, attributing his cranky response to immaturity and thoughtlessness.)
One reason for Furr's fame on Usenet was his self-appointed leadership over the alt hierarchy, where any user could create a newsgroup without any official vote or sanction by the user community. Before 1992, internet administrators did not carry alt newsgroups that did not obtain some general community assent. However, in the time spanning roughly 1993 to 1995, commercial internet service providers were cropping up left and right, and few of them had time or inclination to manage which newsgroups their services carried, so they carried all groups that were created. Furr attempted to bring some order and rationale to this practice, but with minimal success.
According to Brad Templeton
, Furr is one of the earliest people to refer to unsolicited electronic messages as "spam
". The term "spam" had been widely used by Monty Python
fans to describe excessive torrents of verbiage on electronic chat systems and multi-user dungeons, analogous to the Vikings chanting "spam spam spam spam spam, WONDERFUL SPAM" in the legendary Python sketch. Furr used the term in the USENET
newsgroup news.admin.policy to describe an out-of-control automated robo-moderation system known as ARMM
. While he didn't coin the phrase, he appears to have been the first to use it to describe the phenomenon as it applied to USENET newsgroups.
Furr created a line of Usenet kook T-shirts, which included a "Serdar Argic
World Tour" shirt as well as one imprinted with the programming code for RSA encryption, boasting "This shirt is a munition", a reference to US export law.
He also created and sold t-shirts after the "Green Card" spamming incident carried out by Canter & Siegel
.
In recent years he has become somewhat well-known for his online proselytizing on behalf of Susan G. Komen for the Cure
and taking part in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure.
Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It developed from the general purpose UUCP architecture of the same name.Duke University graduate students Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979 and it was established in 1980...
personality in the early and mid 1990s.
He is immortalized in the newsgroups alt.fan.joel-furr, alt.bonehead.joel-furr, and alt.joel-furr.die.die.die. He was a pretender to the throne of James "Kibo" Parry, and the bitter enemy of Serdar Argic
Serdar Argic
Serdar Argic was the alias used in one of the first automated newsgroup spam incidents on Usenet, with the objective of refuting the Armenian Genocide.-Usenet posts:...
. He is also infamous for his Usenet response to the death of Roger Zelazny
Roger Zelazny
Roger Joseph Zelazny was an American writer of fantasy and science fiction short stories and novels, best known for his The Chronicles of Amber series...
: "Good". (A statement Furr has apologized for subsequently, attributing his cranky response to immaturity and thoughtlessness.)
One reason for Furr's fame on Usenet was his self-appointed leadership over the alt hierarchy, where any user could create a newsgroup without any official vote or sanction by the user community. Before 1992, internet administrators did not carry alt newsgroups that did not obtain some general community assent. However, in the time spanning roughly 1993 to 1995, commercial internet service providers were cropping up left and right, and few of them had time or inclination to manage which newsgroups their services carried, so they carried all groups that were created. Furr attempted to bring some order and rationale to this practice, but with minimal success.
According to Brad Templeton
Brad Templeton
Brad Templeton is a software architect, civil rights advocate and entrepreneur. He graduated from the University of Waterloo....
, Furr is one of the earliest people to refer to unsolicited electronic messages as "spam
Spam (electronic)
Spam is the use of electronic messaging systems to send unsolicited bulk messages indiscriminately...
". The term "spam" had been widely used by Monty Python
Monty Python
Monty Python was a British surreal comedy group who created their influential Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series...
fans to describe excessive torrents of verbiage on electronic chat systems and multi-user dungeons, analogous to the Vikings chanting "spam spam spam spam spam, WONDERFUL SPAM" in the legendary Python sketch. Furr used the term in the USENET
Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It developed from the general purpose UUCP architecture of the same name.Duke University graduate students Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979 and it was established in 1980...
newsgroup news.admin.policy to describe an out-of-control automated robo-moderation system known as ARMM
ARMM (Usenet)
Automated Retroactive Minimal Moderation was a program developed by Richard Depew in 1993 to aid in the control of Usenet abuse. Concerned by abusive posts emanating from certain anonymous-posting sites, Depew developed ARMM to allow news administrators to automatically issue cancel messages for...
. While he didn't coin the phrase, he appears to have been the first to use it to describe the phenomenon as it applied to USENET newsgroups.
Furr created a line of Usenet kook T-shirts, which included a "Serdar Argic
Serdar Argic
Serdar Argic was the alias used in one of the first automated newsgroup spam incidents on Usenet, with the objective of refuting the Armenian Genocide.-Usenet posts:...
World Tour" shirt as well as one imprinted with the programming code for RSA encryption, boasting "This shirt is a munition", a reference to US export law.
He also created and sold t-shirts after the "Green Card" spamming incident carried out by Canter & Siegel
Canter & Siegel
-External links:* Ben Delisle, - 1994 Usenet post giving background on Canter and Siegel]* Ray Everett-Church, , Wired magazine, April 13, 1999* Sharael Feist, , CNET News, March 26, 2002* John M. Moran, , Hartford Courant, June 30, 2002...
.
In recent years he has become somewhat well-known for his online proselytizing on behalf of Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Susan G. Komen for the Cure, formerly known as The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, often referred to as simply Komen, is the most widely known, largest and best-funded breast cancer organization in the US....
and taking part in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure.