Why we use fake names

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/dev/null
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by /dev/null »

This thread is both easily the most offtopic thread we have ever managed, and the most hilarious.

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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by [Censored] »

@Lucifer: I'm just gonna ignore the parts where you say you weren't talking about our conversation- I just realized you didn't read the original post, before Z-man edited the part where I quote your specific part of the dialouge.
Don't worry, if Z-man thought I was being too "crass", I'd have a PM from him. Or he'd have posted here.
That's funny, because it turns out he did think you were crass-- he edited my original post. In my first comment, after the "P.S" he removed my quoting of your comment in-game, about your attempt to <snip> And he also removed my response to it, hence the "unrequited" [That's as clean as I could write that, Z-man, let it ride]

Further:
We have our own language, he can post here and admonish me and you wouldn't even see it. Kind of awesome, when you think about it.
your PM'd "warning":
If you want to punish my crassness, remember who gives out the punishment. You joined the forums and created an account just to have a fight with me.

And you think I've got a complex?

Don't worry, this warning is quite visible to all moderators. Z-man will see it, so will Tank, and epsy, and whoever else (I've forgotten, it's been so long).
It really is pathetic... I explain that I find the attention you seek from these forums as sad, and then you just reinforce that viewpoint by talking about your "punishment" on an online message board?

1) I didn't say "punish" I said "unrequited" as in, you left the server before I responded to your crass comment, in-game.

2) I didn't create an account to "fight" you, that implies typing requires any effort. No, I made the account because I saw this topic you made, and knew exactly which conversation you were talking about. You made yourself out to the the faux-victim in your fictional tale, when just from posts in this topic it can easily be seen that you're no victim.

and 3) Yes, I *definitely* think you have a complex.
You are, however, incorrect that no-one was asking me (or the devs) why we haven't "updated the game". In fact, I believe there's a comment from /dev/null on exactly that subject in this thread
... Actually, I'm not, because I didn't say that. I said no one was asking you that in the server we were in, or throughout any conversation in the server, because like I said before, in that server (dbd Dive) it was just me, you, and random mute player. Why would I say that no one has ever asked you, or the devs, to update the game, I've seen it myself. There will always be a faction asking for more. And also, the fact that someone with null's viewpoint commented on the thing you made an entire topic to complain about, doesn't help your point. It should've been expected when you opened that door.
Maybe I haven't had a good internet fight in awhile
"fight" =/= calling you on your fiction, you keyboard warrior

@Ratchet:
dBd|Sumo is one of the worst US servers there is. ...dBd|Sumo has a very consistent "lag-out" every other round or so. It's very odd.
truth

@sinewav:
Guess what? It's not the server, it is your connection.
Normally I'd agree, but if you played in the dbd sumo dive, the screen consistently "freezes" for seconds, and then the cycles start being shown as moving again. When it "unfreezes" the cycles are ahead of where they were last shown, but the game continues as nothing happened.

In a sumobar, when have 8 players died at the same time (ie, no zone points, just 8 core dumps in a row), and all 8 say lag, are you saying that all 8 of us lagged individually at the same time? Occam's Razor says that it would make more sense if it was the server, as it's the simpler answer, and as I (or we) have no reason to lie.

Also, about this:
You can't get much more trollish than registering a [FAKE NAME] to post in a thread about aliases.
I can't prove I'm not a troll, true. (But also, you can't prove that I am one) However, based on the snarky PM'd "warning" I got, I'd say registering a name was appropriate
Last edited by Z-Man on Tue Dec 23, 2014 9:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Forums and servers have different rules. Game chat is usually transient, forum posts stick around. Also, for clarification, we mods have nothing to do with this user's name, its self chosen.
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Ratchet
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Ratchet »

Guess what? I play in several different locations over a 500 mile radius. Side effect of college. The results are pretty indifferent
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Durf »

/dev/null wrote:This thread is both easily the most offtopic thread we have ever managed, and the most hilarious.

DOUBLE KILL
^ That being said, you'd think this would be on-topic by now.

It is my unprofessional opinion that people use "fake names" to avoid the reputation associated with another name they have used in the past. (most prominent reason)

As such, anyone who feels the need to play under alias for this reason is experiencing consequences they induced upon themselves. (If you had a good rep, you would be able to "just play" as you want, without any drama.)

Now before some of you jump out at me and say "hey that's why not why I use fake names!", I first suggest you really think about why you're using a fake name (i.e. not representing yourself as people know you) to be sure.
If you are absolutely sure your past reputation under the previous name has nothing to do with it, then yes, some people use a random name almost every time they play. It has little to do with privacy or anonymity; more to do with the lack of commitment and social interaction.
However, that also can't be justified by using fake names when you already have a name for yourself.
(if you simply wanted to play and not get too involved, make that known for yourself)

The only other reason to use a fake name is because you WANT to go around trolling and causing trouble without anyone recognizing you for your misdeeds (recognizing = either ruining a previously good rep, or revealing a previously bad rep)....really, show me another reason that makes sense.

. . . . .

Frankly I'm surprised at all this drama.

The fact that this censored guy even had to make a (presumably) new account just to be able to express his ideas and have them heard (sorta) is evidence that the community itself is too bum-hurt about everything that ever happened to it to be able to give this guy a chance at redeeming his name....the original name.

No fights necessary. A discussion can take place (like civilized people) with open minds and the understanding that we're all here enjoying the same game.
Let's not be a poison to each other.

Get rid of bigotry, and look past the words themselves to see the ideas that the person is trying to express.
I believe that many tronners haven't (and often times can't) articulated their exact thoughts into words, and ended up settling for simpler, but more vulgar (or rude), words.
So really, it would just take a slight more amount of effort (listening) to understand what the underlying ideas they are trying to express are.

. . . . .

Rants aside, my overall opinion is that people use fake names to avoid everything that they created for themselves under their old name (an old name can do anything a new name can, no excuses). Everyone can redeem themselves if they wanted to.
However, it is perfectly understandable why no one has made an attempt at redemption (that I know of) since even I can see the level of bigotry and self-righteousness in this community (I am not claiming that I myself am not; I'm just stating in general).

What ever happened to "no hard feelings", "It's just a game", and "I don't know you IRL"?
Anyway, now I'm getting off topic from "why" and onto "how to fix" so I'll just leave it at that.
Thanks to those who actually take the time to read my verbose posts.
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ConVicT
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by ConVicT »

In all honesty, I use fake names simply because sometimes I can't be bothered talking to people and I don't want to make people see me as an ignorant bastard 8)
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/dev/null
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by /dev/null »

[Censored] wrote:@Lucifer: I'm just gonna ignore the parts where you say you weren't talking about our conversation- I just realized you didn't read the original post, before Z-man edited the part where I quote your specific part of the dialouge.
Don't worry, if Z-man thought I was being too "crass", I'd have a PM from him. Or he'd have posted here.
That's funny, because it turns out he did think you were crass-- he edited my original post. In my first comment, after the "P.S" he removed my quoting of your comment in-game, about your attempt to get your wife to secrete during coitus. And he also removed my response to it, hence the "unrequited" [That's as clean as I could write that, Z-man, let it ride]

Further:
We have our own language, he can post here and admonish me and you wouldn't even see it. Kind of awesome, when you think about it.
your PM'd "warning":
If you want to punish my crassness, remember who gives out the punishment. You joined the forums and created an account just to have a fight with me.

And you think I've got a complex?

Don't worry, this warning is quite visible to all moderators. Z-man will see it, so will Tank, and epsy, and whoever else (I've forgotten, it's been so long).
It really is pathetic... I explain that I find the attention you seek from these forums as sad, and then you just reinforce that viewpoint by talking about your "punishment" on an online message board?

1) I didn't say "punish" I said "unrequited" as in, you left the server before I responded to your crass comment, in-game.

2) I didn't create an account to "fight" you, that implies typing requires any effort. No, I made the account because I saw this topic you made, and knew exactly which conversation you were talking about. You made yourself out to the the faux-victim in your fictional tale, when just from posts in this topic it can easily be seen that you're no victim.

and 3) Yes, I *definitely* think you have a complex.
You are, however, incorrect that no-one was asking me (or the devs) why we haven't "updated the game". In fact, I believe there's a comment from /dev/null on exactly that subject in this thread
... Actually, I'm not, because I didn't say that. I said no one was asking you that in the server we were in, or throughout any conversation in the server, because like I said before, in that server (dbd Dive) it was just me, you, and random mute player. Why would I say that no one has ever asked you, or the devs, to update the game, I've seen it myself. There will always be a faction asking for more. And also, the fact that someone with null's viewpoint commented on the thing you made an entire topic to complain about, doesn't help your point. It should've been expected when you opened that door.
Maybe I haven't had a good internet fight in awhile
"fight" =/= calling you on your fiction, you keyboard warrior

@Ratchet:
dBd|Sumo is one of the worst US servers there is. ...dBd|Sumo has a very consistent "lag-out" every other round or so. It's very odd.
truth

@sinewav:
Guess what? It's not the server, it is your connection.
Normally I'd agree, but if you played in the dbd sumo dive, the screen consistently "freezes" for seconds, and then the cycles start being shown as moving again. When it "unfreezes" the cycles are ahead of where they were last shown, but the game continues as nothing happened.

In a sumobar, when have 8 players died at the same time (ie, no zone points, just 8 core dumps in a row), and all 8 say lag, are you saying that all 8 of us lagged individually at the same time? Occam's Razor says that it would make more sense if it was the server, as it's the simpler answer, and as I (or we) have no reason to lie.

Also, about this:
You can't get much more trollish than registering a [FAKE NAME] to post in a thread about aliases.
I can't prove I'm not a troll, true. (But also, you can't prove that I am one) However, based on the snarky PM'd "warning" I got, I'd say registering a name was appropriate
Just a heads up, the random mute player is always me. One of the many reasons I use fake names. Pretending to not be me lets me see how people act without their God judging them.

If you managed to get a post cleaned up for you, bravo. Ive said ridiculous shit on this forum for well over a decade without pulling that off. Im guess it was just you imagining things. I seriously dought you have the testicular fortitude to pull off my level of both terrifying and insulting.
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Phytotron
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Phytotron »

Durf wrote:It is my unprofessional opinion that people use "fake names" to avoid the reputation associated with another name they have used in the past. (most prominent reason)

etc.
Huh? What world is this where what name someone uses in a video game means anything at all?
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Ratchet »

Phytotron wrote:
Durf wrote:It is my unprofessional opinion that people use "fake names" to avoid the reputation associated with another name they have used in the past. (most prominent reason)

etc.
Huh? What world is this where what name someone uses in a video game means anything at all?
I recall several CTF (and CTFS) players who were rather good at the game modes that played more on alias than their "regular" names that everyone knew them as.

The primary reason for this (as I interpreted it) was that they wanted to play without everyone wanting to talk to them because they were "famous" of sorts for being good.

Kindof like the "celebrities" that don't like it when people see them in public and make a huge deal out of it.

The nerdgasms are real. Just rename yourself as Punish or FroZen and join a sumo server. You'll understand.
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/dev/null
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by /dev/null »

The issue I often encounter, and why I change my name almost every time I play, is that people once they have a fair of how badly they are going to die, go full xdude mode. The difference in clear times (Winning the match or round, its about the same difference) for me between a known name and a new name can be measured in minutes.
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Durf »

Phytotron wrote:
Durf wrote:It is my unprofessional opinion that people use "fake names" to avoid the reputation associated with another name they have used in the past. (most prominent reason)

etc.
Huh? What world is this where what name someone uses in a video game means anything at all?
Ratchet wrote:Kindof like the "celebrities" that don't like it when people see them in public and make a huge deal out of it.

The nerdgasms are real. Just rename yourself as Punish or FroZen and join a sumo server. You'll understand.
Indeed.
Rachet gave a very different (still valid) example of why someone would want to change their name because their name has meaning; while most of my examples were focused on trolls and bad reputation.
But just because names don't mean anything to you, or so you think, doesn't mean that your name won't mean anything to others.
Whether or not you like it, you have a reputation. It can be associated with your name, global ID, IP address, instant chats and the way you speak, behavioral patterns, and/or playing style. There is little anyone can do to hide who they are; as such, a player will develop a rapport with other players.

In short, Phytotron, being antisocial in game is the same as being antisocial in real life.


/dev/null, I'm not sure I understood your post....maybe I just don't see the point of changing names.
Maybe it's just a personal choice for you guys, but to me, I can't, logically, think of a purpose for me to want to change names; more specifically, for me to pretend I'm not myself.
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Vogue »

Durf wrote:In short, Phytotron, being antisocial in game is the same as being antisocial in real life.
What a hypocrite you are.
Durf wrote:Also I don't go out to talk to people. Sucks to be you for assuming I was "normal"s.
ALSO, it's a ******* name within a video game. Nobody owes it to anyone to use a steady alias. Your autism is showing.
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Durf »

Yes, yes it is. Don't tell me you're discriminating against me because of it..

What you don't realize is that I'm the same IRL as I am on the internet.
(Sorry if that's so hard for you to believe)
Also, you're taking what I said out of context.
(I didn't say that if you are social IRL you must be social in game)

Being antisocial isn't quite the same as requiring to go out looking for a reason to be social.
That's just not something I do, I don't see the purpose in it.
However this doesn't mean that I'm not a social person (school, now work mostly).
To be specific, I don't go out of my way to be social... it just happens when it happens.


To put it another way, I'm certainly not changing my name IRL (or using fake IDs).
Self-respect (or a lack thereof) is basically the reason why anyone wouldn't want to be who they are.


It's less about the effect on others, and more about how one lives their own life.
It has little to do with morals, and more to do with personal preference / philosophy.
Your basis for calling me a hypocrite is not only unfounded, but you made the assumption that I act differently IRL than I do in game (or on the internet).
(I'm just as much of a condescending asshole IRL)
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Lucifer »

Durf wrote:To put it another way, I'm certainly not changing my name IRL (or using fake IDs).
Self-respect (or a lack thereof) is basically the reason why anyone wouldn't want to be who they are.
Just because I've brought it up in other threads, I'll do it here, again.

As I've previously said, I know quite a few transgender people. Most of them go by names that aren't on their birth certificates, and they do this IRL. Hell, even the name I use, while still matching the gender I present in public, isn't on my birth certificate.
It's less about the effect on others, and more about how one lives their own life.
It has little to do with morals, and more to do with personal preference / philosophy.
Yes, this one is actually true, and because of that, it completely undermines EVERYTHING ELSE you have said on this topic.

As I stated in my original post that created this thread, sometimes we just want to play the game, and coming in with a name that people recognize as a bug tracker/feature request tracker often interferes with that. So, the need for a fake name.

And no, just telling people I don't like to have those conversations in-game NEVER WORKS. NEVER. Hell, you could have played against Z-man this week and not know it. Except he's probably every bit as rusty as I am. ;)
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Durf »

... and because of that, it completely undermines EVERYTHING ELSE you have said on this topic.
On the contrary,
It's less about the effect on others, and more about how one lives their own life.
It has little to do with morals, and more to do with personal preference / philosophy.
^ this only validates what I said... about the association that comes with the name.

What I'm saying is that it's a lifestyle choice to embrace the name, or avoid it (for WHATEVER reason that may be) at any point in time (even momentarily)

The bottom line is that there is something people attribute to their own names that makes them not want to use it. (like each person has a threshold for them to decide to use a fake name, and that certain associations with a name can affect where that threshold is)

IMO, I believe it's better to deal with the name you've got since fixing any issues with the name itself would be better in the long run (not running into the same problems with second and third names; raising the threshold).

Thus my reasoning for not understanding a purpose for using "fake names".

sometimes we just want to play the game, and coming in with a name that people recognize as a bug tracker/feature request tracker often interferes with that. So, the need for a fake name.

And no, just telling people I don't like to have those conversations in-game NEVER WORKS. NEVER.
This is a personal issue ^
I've had some success in that same effort before, so I don't see how it's so hard.
Maybe people don't care what you think/want? (speculation as to why you have a hard time; "never works").

...Have you tried asking nicely? Using the magic word?
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Phytotron
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Re: Why we use fake names

Post by Phytotron »

Ratchet wrote:snip
Durf wrote:In short, Phytotron, being antisocial in game is the same as being antisocial in real life.
Ugh, both of you completely misinterpreted what I said.

You're all using fake names. I'm questioning the concept of maintaining a single or even primary internet/gaming pseudonym at all.
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