Real Names and Real Photos are Fun!

[Ron Resnick]

Inspired today by Bob Vin who wrote to me that displaying real photos of ourselves with our real names (or even abbreviated real names or maybe a first name and a last name initial) makes it easier to keep track of who is whom (rather than having to remember two names for every member) and makes it so much nicer and easier to find each other in person.

I think this is a great idea! Maybe Bob is initiating the beginning of a get-to-know-the-real-member trend?

 

[Bobvin]

The internet is a wonderful thing and sometimes an evil thing. It can bring people together, or drive them apart. When I first started visiting audio blogs, the whole 'avatar' thing kind of threw me... on one other site the avatar was frequently a scantily clad super model. My wife thought that was very weird.

I've used a few avatars too, but after seeing a new member introduction devolve around the topic of the chosen avatar, I decided I'd try to set a new example. Yep, my avatar is ME. Thats right, no longer the demon cat, but a picture of yours truly. And my profile pic is one of myself and my sweet wife in Vienna. I've always found it a little odd we chose to hide behind these avatars in a place where we're really striving to create a bit of community.

 

[DaveC]

Hmmm, considering people hate me for the business I'm in and I've had to make legal threats to prevent harassment across various forums some degree of anonymity seems appealing.

It is true I can be found easily if someone really wants to, but in that case I have a handgun designed for competitive rapid-fire events.

 

[853guy]

Hi Ron and Bob,

In a world of increasing social media ubiquity, I am perhaps an anomaly in that despite being in my early forties and working in advertising, I am not on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Twitter or any other platform for that matter (1), and neither is anyone else in our family.

There are a bunch of reasons why (time being one), but the overwhelming factor is the protection of our privacy online. We are the parents of three young children, who are growing up in a culture obsessed with self-image vis-à-vis the Other (i.e. "I am who I am perceived to be") and the proliferation and leveraging of their ‘status’ via virtual means manifest in "likes" and "views". Look, I get it - as I believe I’ve said only recently, it’s the artist not the brush. It’s stupid to get upset because someone might misuse a tool, of course. But to me, it seems equally stupid to ignore the socio-cultural oceanic morass that has formed around its usage, and the insistent power of the current that drags many into cruel exchanges belittling our ability to communicate and interact with one another with some semblance of humanity, leading many to create identities for themselves that actively undermines any notion of authenticity of self.

In an effort to lead by example to our pre-teen children, we feel it’s better to sacrifice whatever upside there might be to having a presence online (in which our real identities are commodified for profit) in order to safe-guard their intellect and emotions against the many downsides as they head toward a future which will likely only become more commodified and more virtual. Though I appreciate many here will feel differently, our take is that a degree of anonymity can be a wonderful thing, given that even the news stories I click on in order to stay informed about the world I live in can be used to create data that collates my personal information for the purposes of targeted marketing to fuel an agenda of unbridled invasive capitalism, in which I the consumer no longer choose the products - the products choose me.

For those that feel differently, I pass no judgement on their willingness to use their real names and identities here. And should more wish to do so, then I can only commend them for their transparency. It’s just not for me, and despite the gratitude I feel to be part of this “community” I’ll continue to participate anonymously.

Best,

853guy*

*Not my real name.



(1) I am a member of two forums however, this and an F1 site, reduced down from many previous ones for the sake of my sanity.

 

[Bobvin]

853guy, I understand and completely respect your view, and you've clearly given it a lot of thought. My online footprint grows smaller and smaller, but I figured within those communities where I am a frequent visitor, I'd let myself be known. Hell, I'm sure anyone who chooses could build up a profile on me pretty quickly, I've been 'online' to some extent since the late 80's. There is no hiding now.

(Note to profilers who might wish harm or scullduggery on me, my family, or my property—I am strong supporter of the 2nd amendment. Move along.)

 

[BruceD]

Hmmm, considering people hate me for the business I'm in and I've had to make legal threats to prevent harassment across various forums some degree of anonymity seems appealing.

It is true I can be found easily if someone really wants to, but in that case I have a handgun designed for competitive rapid-fire events.

Sadly I have to agree with DaveC--I used to give honest observations of my experiences with certain products--good and not so. on some forums using my full name.

But after receiving veiled threat Emails from Audio Importers/Agents--I unfortunately chose to revert to my "school nickname" now.

A rather sad reflection on our industry--life goes on!

BruceD

 

[microstrip]

My avatar is a large painting hanging close to my speakers, facing the system. IMHO it shares my opinions and represents me perfectly in this forum. Beside it looks much nicer than me.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

obviously I use my 'real name' and most here know where I live; if anyone cares it's easy to find my picture. so I'm not anonymous or even care about that (I don't want to see my own pic every time I post, that's for sure). but I respect that many do value their privacy and would never want that threatened.

OTOH personally I think we should leave this issue alone, and while I, to a small degree, did not like Dr. K's avatar (agreed with David just to a much lesser degree), I would want to be a in a forum where it's ok to have that. if some prefer to use their own pic as their avatar I'm fine with that. maybe if Dr. K had been in the forum for awhile and was known already, then that avatar might have been just so much noise and not an issue.

we have other members who have, from time to time, had a somewhat provocative avatar, but since we already know them we just live with it.

only in extreme cases should the mods deal with the subject of a chosen avatar.

just my 2 cents.

 

[DaveC]

Using GIFs for avatars is really annoying imo. Luckily the practice seems to be on the decline.

 

[853guy]

853guy, I understand and completely respect your view, and you've clearly given it a lot of thought. My online footprint grows smaller and smaller, but I figured within those communities where I am a frequent visitor, I'd let myself be known. Hell, I'm sure anyone who chooses could build up a profile on me pretty quickly, I've been 'online' to some extent since the late 80's. There is no hiding now.

(Note to profilers who might wish harm or scullduggery on me, my family, or my property—I am strong supporter of the 2nd amendment. Move along.)

Hello Bob,

Having children has changed my perspective on many things (especially my own fallibility), and continues to do so. Prior to their arrival I was a much more frequent user of forums and online content in general, but since then, I've reevaluated how I spend my time online and the size of my footprint, and in both cases they've reduced significantly though it's a work-in-progress even as I type. That I appreciate I trade a degree of my personal privacy for access to a nearly-unlimited trove of the very best and, conversely, very worst humanity has to offer via the internet (and beyond if we include the dark web) makes me no less uncomfortable in knowing I’m being profiled and my data sold.

I know I probably sound like some tinfoil hat-wearing Snowden fanatic, but again, the future my children inherit, and especially, the values that form the foundation of who they become are just too valuable to me to trade for a life lived in ignorance. Eventually and inevitably, they will find out in time just how deep the rabbit hole goes, and how many lives are effected by the contents lying only a mouse click away. In the interim however, we hope our caution in attempting to protect our identities in some modest and simple ways might be a small part of giving them the best chance of making decisions as teenagers and adults of how to navigate a virtual world in which lack of consumer protection, futile attempts at age restriction, invasive and targeted marketing, cyberbullying, spambots, malware, surveillance, pirating and fraud, child and revenge pornography, sexual predation, human trafficking, drugs, weapons and extremism is to some degree continually enabled via a globalised platform that has no moral compass of its own, and as such, is only ever a reflection of the preferences and predilections of its users.

Take care,

853guy

 

[jazdoc]

I have a face made for radio...

 

[cjfrbw]

That's because you are such a handsome fellow, Ron, and I am just a parrot.

 

[WLVCA]

Nice to see that two fellow members are openly threatening to shoot and kill people.

Sounds like a very good reason to continue to remain anonymous.

 

[beaur]

Steve's been doing it for years! Glad it's catching on.

Inspired today by Bob Vin who wrote to me that displaying real photos of ourselves with our real names (or even abbreviated real names or maybe a first name and a last name initial) makes it easier to keep track of who is whom (rather than having to remember two names for every member) and makes it so much nicer and easier to find each other in person.

I think this is a great idea! Maybe Bob is initiating the beginning of a get-to-know-the-real-member trend?

 

[Ronm1]

Mine is obviously a short version of my real name. I've never been threatened by anyone on any forum but back in my CPU days I was abused on occasion by s/w in my h/w stints and of course later h/w types when coding. C'est la vie or that's how the bits crumble.

 

[NorthStar]

To me a username and an avatar represent our choice of words' and pictures' selections.
When I was born I did not have that choice; they called me Robert (in French) and with the face and body I live with for the most part of my life. I was good lookin' just last year, still. :b
It's fun to select a picture; a music band, a car, a home, a painting, a musical instrument, a star, a movie, a flower, a garden, a tree, a piece of audio gear, a tube, a record, Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, John Coltrane, Billie Holiday, Elvis, Lucinda Williams, Cassandra Wilson, Holly Cole, ...
It's fun to pick a username too; Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, Lone Ranger, Batman, Star Wars, ...

This is not Facebook, this is not Linkedin, this is What'sBestForum, the best of what's life has for everyone...the entire family.

That's just my opinion. I am not offended by any avatar or username, never ever. Curious sometimes, yes. My background is the arts, so it's quite normal.
A nice sportscar I like, a nice model I like, a nice speaker I like, a nice album I like, a nice boat/plane I like, a nice painting, wine bottle, Cuban cigar, martini, cognac, ...
I like tattoos, I like canoes, I like oceans, lakes, rivers, mountains, birds, skies, moons, sunsets, ...I like all and all.
It's cool to not be restricted to post our real name and real face. And it's cool too to be allowed.

A trump face we don't need, he's all over already. ...Same for the pope. ...Same for Elizabeth Taylor in a sexy scene.

Lol, what a funny bunch we all make.

And there is our signature too; I don't sign my real name because of hackers and signatures' thieves. :b
I sign whatever is civilized and that I like. ...My stereo, my audio, my music, my favorite poet/artist, my source of inspiration, my foundation, my soul.

 

[NorthStar]

Steve's been doing it for years! Glad it's catching on.

Steve is the real Doctor Evil?


_____

We had a thread years ago, about what we look like in real life. I remember many faces

Name's James, James Bond...Robert C. (Bob's good) and I love homemade pizza. And don't tell anyone else. Keep it private.

_____

 

[Rodney Gold]

I use my real name on all forums I belong to and an avatar that suits the forums , like my system here and on other audio forums , my car on car forums , an orangutan eating a banana on non specific forums and so on.
I don't photograph well....

 

[Lagonda]

I come from a small place, and have a rare name. I would like to keep my system, and do NOT like shooting people if it can be avoided. The personal pictures as avatars are great, but why do some people get younger and younger for each new one ?
California must have great plastic surgeons!

 

[Fiddle Faddle]

Trust a handsome chap like Ron to bring this up, but as a stuffed animal, only a mother could love me. And even then I have to work at it.