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Forum usenames; Why?

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Pondrew
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by Pondrew » Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:20 pm

Why do we have forum 'usernames', not our real names? Is it a way to be anonymous, so we keep our private lives separate?
Seems a little bit 'dubious' to me. It seems like we have something to hide IMHO.
I am wondering if it a throwback to the old days when the interweb started so as to protect people from whatever evils were out there. With all other social media; facebook, twitter, etc, you have your own name, so why do forums still persist with the username?

Just me thinking out loud, of course.
I just find it funny to interact with a person called '1678Z4bullet', or 'ivormassiveZ'.

I do it too. My name is not Pondrew (obviously). My name is Andrew.
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by sp3ctre » Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:27 pm

I guess there are lots of reasons... here are a few:

- Don't wan't the boss (at work) to know what you are into, or how much time you spend on a forum in work time
- Don't wan't the boss (at home) to know what you are into
- Don't want to be stalked
- Don't want anyone knowing you are an active member of the <whatever> fetish forum
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by Mr Tidy » Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:31 pm

Back in the late 80s a mate of mine started racing Saloon Stock cars on the Spedeworth ovals and a mate of his gave everyone a nickname and that's when I got the Mr Tidy one. Everyone connected to my mate knows me that way, more than know I'm actually Iain.

I'm not actually that tidy, but compared to most of the stock car crowd I was!

Perhaps slightly unkindly my racing mate became Mr Spinney. :lol:
Last edited by Mr Tidy on Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by Pondrew » Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:35 pm

sp3ctre wrote: Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:27 pm I guess there are lots of reasons... here are a few:

- Don't wan't the boss (at work) to know what you are into, or how much time you spend on a forum in work time
- Don't wan't the boss (at home) to know what you are into
- Don't want to be stalked
- Don't want anyone knowing you are an active member of the <whatever> fetish forum
I guess that would have made sense 20 years ago, but with the explosion of an 'online presence', it seems a little outdated. everybody on mainstream social media gives their full name.
All good things come to those who wait. I'm really impatient which explains a lot.

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E89 20i Now fully dried
Z3 'free litre'. Project and a half. Complicated!
Mazda3 sold
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by Pondrew » Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:42 pm

Mr Tidy wrote: Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:31 pm Back in the late 80s a mate of mine started racing Saloon Stock cars on the Spedeworth ovals and a mate of his gave everyone a nickname and that's when I got the Mr Tidy one. Everyone connected to my mate knows me that way, more than know I'm actually Iain.
I get that and my 'username' is from a similar theme. But nowadays it seems a little outdated to be known by a (frankly silly) name which means nothing to anyone else except you and your close friends, or just made up nonsense like 'Z4forever'
All good things come to those who wait. I'm really impatient which explains a lot.

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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by sp3ctre » Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:42 pm

Pondrew wrote: Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:35 pm
sp3ctre wrote: Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:27 pm I guess there are lots of reasons... here are a few:

- Don't wan't the boss (at work) to know what you are into, or how much time you spend on a forum in work time
- Don't wan't the boss (at home) to know what you are into
- Don't want to be stalked
- Don't want anyone knowing you are an active member of the <whatever> fetish forum
I guess that would have made sense 20 years ago, but with the explosion of an 'online presence', it seems a little outdated. everybody on mainstream social media gives their full name.
Not sure I agree… would you be happy if pornhub showed your name rather than your username? ;)
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by MikeyH » Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:54 pm

Yes I found it clumsy replying to someone called B21 when replying to his heart breaking story about his family in Ukraine so I called him Peter because others did. But then I felt I had broken forum protocol and felt uncomfortable about that as I had never met him. Very difficult but as my name is Mike and my ‘username’ is MikeyH it is only my surname that is hidden and if I get called Mike or Mikey that’s fine. But yes these long meaningless numbers do seem strange to me also.
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by Pondrew » Mon Mar 14, 2022 12:43 am

sp3ctre wrote: Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:42 pm would you be happy if pornhub showed your name rather than your username?
No idea what that is TBH. Please enlighten me? :D

Just to confirm I am not having a pop, just find it odd that grown ups are still using silly usernames when addressing other grown ups in a 'community'. It isn't here specifically, it's something that has been the norm on forums for years.
All good things come to those who wait. I'm really impatient which explains a lot.

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E89 20i Now fully dried
Z3 'free litre'. Project and a half. Complicated!
Mazda3 sold
Tatty old R56 Mini Cooper. Money pit!

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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by sp3ctre » Mon Mar 14, 2022 12:51 am

Pondrew wrote: Mon Mar 14, 2022 12:43 am
sp3ctre wrote: Sun Mar 13, 2022 11:42 pm would you be happy if pornhub showed your name rather than your username?
No idea what that is TBH. Please enlighten me? :D

Just to confirm I am not having a pop, just find it odd that grown ups are still using silly usernames when addressing other grown ups in a 'community'. It isn't here specifically, it's something that has been the norm on forums for years.
Yeah, I was just making a point though that there are hundreds of different types of forums… fetish… medical issues… etc etc, where people would prefer anonymity. I’ll bet if I put a profile field for “real name” and made it optional, that very few people would actually fill it in.
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by sw4nny » Mon Mar 14, 2022 1:24 am

Hi Andrew ,my alias is Geoff.
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by dr_john » Mon Mar 14, 2022 1:40 am

I’m happy using a ‘nom de plume’ on forums, I want feel relaxed chatting informally as if in my local pub, where few people know my full name.

Also I pick my forum names to suit the forum, for example I’m on an electric guitar forum where my username reflects rock music.
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by Bear » Mon Mar 14, 2022 1:48 am

It's because you've all got s**t names in real life.

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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by buzyg » Mon Mar 14, 2022 2:24 am

When you first join a forum you don't know if it will be a safe place for you and your views. So an Alias provides anonymity. I'm all for that. People that get to know regular forum members soon find out their real names.

I seldom use my given name on the internet. I use BuzyG pretty much every where I am able to. Facebook even through me out because I would not provide sufficient detail. Their loss. :D If people who know me come across BuzyG. They can hazard a guess that could be me. In exactly the same way as if they came across my given names on the internet. I don't use any other Aliases, so I guess it is more a nick name anyway. It hides nothing once a person knows me. :wink:
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by BTZ461 » Mon Mar 14, 2022 2:43 am

Forum user names can or may be perhaps an alter ego or doppelganger identity of the poster. Allowing this persona to express him / herself in a way that the "real" poster may not be comfortable doing in real life. After all our social interactions on the internet are quite abstract. Really :?
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Forum usenames; Why?

Post by engine killer » Mon Mar 14, 2022 3:26 am

buzyg wrote: Mon Mar 14, 2022 2:24 am When you first join a forum you don't know if it will be a safe place for you and your views. So an Alias provides anonymity. I'm all for that. People that get to know regular forum members soon find out their real names.
quite true.
i use "engine killer" because i really did blown my peugeot's engine a few times :lol:

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