Flagging bot posts

Perhaps the time has come to create additional category for flagging. Technically, these posts become spam when links are added, but a specific category would be simpler 

I just asked this in Mtn project news updates thread:

Can you all there in computer expert world suggest the best way to deal with the spam/bot accounts?

I have been using various approaches:

1. flag the post and report it as spam/bot.

2. comment in the thread that so-and-so is a bot.

3. Quote the bot post, and comment that it is a bot.

4. Quote the bot post but delete all the nonsense content, and mention it is a bot.

Are any of these approaches preferable in terms of thwarting the bots goal, which is not comprehensible to me?

Lots of people being accused of being bots because their posts are nooby, I don’t think there are as many bot posts as feared.

Hey all, I build forum software for a living.

Best bet is to simply gate all new posts behind approval. Your spam is pretty bespoke, someone's taking user generated content from other sites and posting it here, so it needs manual review.

Nevertheless, gating newbies behind approval is worth it despite the inconvenience for legitimate newbies.

Is a bot any worse than a troll? Is a troll any worse than a bot?

So far, I say live and let live.