pinglist

A pinglist is a common term used in online communities, particularly forums and social media, to refer to a list of users who are notified or "pinged" when a specific action occurs. This action could be the creation of a new post in a particular thread, an update to a document, or a new comment being added. The purpose of a pinglist is to keep interested users informed of developments without requiring them to constantly check for updates themselves.

Users are typically added to a pinglist by expressing their interest, often by replying to a specific post with a designated phrase like "ping me" or by directly requesting to be added. Administrators or moderators of a community may also maintain pinglists for important announcements or site-wide events. When an event triggers the pinglist, the system or a designated user will then notify each member on the list, usually through direct messages, forum alerts, or email notifications. This mechanism facilitates engagement and ensures that a community remains active and connected. The term "ping" itself originates from the network utility that sends a signal to a remote host to check its responsiveness, and the online usage extends this concept to notifying individuals.