Changes

In its original meaning '''SPAM''' (all uppercase) is the proprietary name for a type of processed, canned pink luncheon meat from Hormel, primarily made from pork. The name is a contraction of "SPiced hAM". It was very popular in [[England]] during [[World War II]], when fresh [[meat]] was in short supply.<ref>[http://www.spam.com Official SPAM Website]</ref>  Most Americans intuitively, viscerally associate "SPAM" with "no nutritive or aesthetic value," though it is still relatively popular (especially in Hawaii) and can be found in almost any grocery store. SPAM has its own newsgroup, alt.spam.

In its original meaning '''SPAM''' (all uppercase) is the proprietary name for a type of processed, canned pink luncheon meat from Hormel, primarily made from pork. The name is a contraction of "SPiced hAM". It was very popular in [[England]] during [[World War II]], when fresh [[meat]] was in short supply.<ref>[http://www.spam.com Official SPAM Website]</ref>  Most Americans intuitively, viscerally associate "SPAM" with "no nutritive or aesthetic value," though it is still relatively popular (especially in Hawaii) and can be found in almost any grocery store. SPAM has its own newsgroup, alt.spam.

However, '''spam''' has now acquired a completely different meaning, as electronic junk mail or junk newsgroup postings. There is some debate about the source of the term, but the generally accepted version is that in the days of internet bulletin boards, unscrupulous users would create post after post of "SPAM SPAM" etc. in order to push other people's topics off the bottom of the board before posting their own unsolicited advertising message. The term "SPAM" was used due to the popularity of a particular episode of [[Monty Python|Monty Python's Flying Circus]], set in a caf&#233;, which served dishes such as "Egg, spam, chips, spam, beans and spam", and which ended with a song which went: "Spam spam spam spam, spam spam spam spam, lovely spam, wonderful spam…"  Like the song, spam is an endless repetition of worthless text.  

However, '''spam''' has now acquired a completely different meaning, as electronic junk mail or junk newsgroup postings. There is some debate about the source of the term, but the generally accepted version is that in the days of internet bulletin boards, unscrupulous users would create post after post of "SPAM SPAM" etc. in order to push other people's topics off the bottom of the board before posting their own unsolicited advertising message. The term "SPAM" was used due to the popularity of a particular episode of [[Monty Python|Monty Python's Flying Circus]], set in a caf&#233;, which served dishes such as "Egg, spam, chips, spam, beans and spam", and which ended with a song which went: "Spam spam spam spam, spam spam spam spam, lovely spam, wonderful spam…"  Like the song, spam is an endless repetition of worthless text.