WikiQueer:Whacking with a Wet Trout

Whack!

The above is a WikiTrout (Oncorhynchus macrowikipediensis). It is used to make subtle adjustments to the clue levels of experienced WikiQueerians. To whack a user with a wet trout, simply place {{trout}} on his or her talk page.

• For newcomers (or for a less spammy version), use a {{minnow}} or {{diet trout}}.
• For not-so-subtle adjustments, try a {{whale}}.
• Any WikiQueerian who wants to advertise an openness to being trout-slapped can add {{trout me}} to the top of his or her user page.

History

The following is not intended to be reliable encyclopedic information, although it is as accurate an explanation as we could find.

Trout slapping originated around 1990 with internet relay chat (IRC). While in an IRC chat room, most IRC software would allow users to enter the command:

• /slap Sam

which would trigger the chat room to announce something along the lines of:

• Steve slaps Sam around a bit with a large trout

The choice of a trout as the standard weapon-of-choice for slapping users in IRC software (not to mention, the seemingly-extraneous declaration that it was "large") can probably be attributed to the surreal humor that computer programmers are known to appreciate.

This phenomenon proved to be inordinately popular, and so the "trout-slap" became a kind of Internet meme of the generation, although at that point in time only cyber-geeks were aware of such things. Trout-slaps have persisted in the hearts and minds of those individuals to the present day, and since those were the people who formed WikiQueer's early fan base, the trout made its way into regular use here.

Today, the trout-slap can be compared to when your mom said she was "hitting you over the head with a wet noodle", and it makes about as much sense. When someone does something inadvisable that they had the experience and intelligence to avoid, you may likely see the suggestion that they be "trouted" -- or "trouts all around", as it has recently become more stylish to blame all parties in a dispute instead of one.

Versions

• {{trout}} - the original trout
• {{minnow}} - a smaller trout, though still centered and nicely intrusive
• {{trout small}} - a replacement reasonably-sized, left-aligned trout, suitable for trout victims to replace a regular trout after getting the message
• {{whale}} - for larger jobs
• {{troutalt}} - a barnstar-style trout-in-a-banner

See also

• Category:WikiQueer administrators open to trout slapping
• Category:WikiQueerians open to trout slapping
• WikiQueer:Village stocks