topic drift
<messaging> Term used on GEnie, Usenet and other electronic fora to
describe the tendency of a thread to drift away from the original subject of
discussion (and thus, from the Subject header of the originating message), or
the results of that tendency.
Often used in gentle reminders that the discussion has strayed off any useful
track. "I think we started with a question about Niven's last book, but we've
ended up discussing the sexual habits of the common marmoset. Now *that's* topic
drift!"
[Jargon File]
(1996-05-29)
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