* Hal Fulton <hal9000 / hypermetrics.com> [0901 18:01]:
> Erik Hatcher wrote:
> >I was alerted about me being mentioned on ruby-talk, as I was not 
> >subscribed.  I'm now here!
> 
> This interests me, because I've suspected there must be a tool
> like this in existence. Too many times I have noticed someone
> pop out of nowhere to respond to a reference to his name being
> mentioned. (Three I can think of are A****r M****r, P*****k
> L***n, and most recently B****e S********p.  :)

I only saw the last one,
and assumed that was someone channelling him...

> Rather like accidentally mentioning a demon's name and thereby
> summoning him. But most supernatural entities have to have
> their names mentioned thrice in succession, whereas on Usenet,
> once is enough.

Are we going to have to start referring to The Other Scripting Language
That Must Not Be Named, then?
 
> What's the scoop on how this alert works, anyway?

I assumed it was Google Groups? I prefer the summoning theory however.
Kilfiles versus pentagrams and binding rituals, hmm....

-- 
Everything journalists write is true, except when they write about
something you know.
		-- Dag-Erling Smorgrav, June 99, FreeBSD-Stable
Rasputin :: Jack of All Trades - Master of Nuns