Opting Out of TheGreatHatsby

I just found this page explaining how to opt out of the “online communication experiment” called TheGreatHatsby which randomly attempts to connect two strangers through AOL instant messenger (AIM) bots.

Here are the instructions on how to opt out of this social experiment:

You can recognize the Bot by having names that are <adjective>Trout, <adjective>Salmon or <adjective>Coho.

You can stop the messages by typing:

$optout

Then it will respond with:

OPERATOR: Are you sure you want to opt-out? If you do, you will *never* be contacted again on the account “<screenname>”. There is *no way* to opt back in and undo this.
If you are sure, type “$optout DADD”. Remember, this is permanent and irreversible!

Type what it asks:

$optout DADD

And you will recieve one final (hopefully) message:

OPERATOR: You have opted out. The account “<screnname>” will *never* be contacted again. Good bye!

I just went through this process myself. I will let readers know if any more Coho bots show up.