You may recall I had a previous user account not linked to my real name: eggman. I started using one with my real name since I intend to post to Less Wrong and the effective altruism forum more frequently in the future, and it works better to have both accounts linked to my name if people want to contact me. Since I already happen to have access to two accounts, I was thinking of using ‘eggman’ for the same purposes. Now, obviously, I’ve just stated I was, or am, eggman, or whatever. So, it isn’t anonymous anymore. However, it’s more anonymous, as it doesn’t use the same name that’s on my government-issued I.D.
More than using it because I don’t want other users on Less Wrong to know it’s me, I might not want it searchable, or linked to me public identity, for others off of Less Wrong.
So, I consider this acceptable.
If you want to make it more acceptable...
Consider stating with the profile, or at the beginning of each comment, that you’re a regular user of Less Wrong who is using an anonymous sockpuppet account not because you want to troll, but because you don’t want your name linked to discussiong more controversial topics. I believe the genuine merit of how you discuss such topics would quickly dismiss speculation that you are just a troll.
If you don’t do the above, and never express that the anonymous account you’re using is used by a regular user of Less Wrong going under their real name, none of us would actually tell. We wouldn’t know you had two accounts. I’d be surprised if someone is such an inquisitor that they snoop profiles to ensure someone made a credible introduction of themselves in a welcome thread, and reports them to a moderator if they don’t.
If the topics you’d be discussing on Less Wrong are controversial among the Less Wrong community itself, that might be another matter. That might be playing with fire, and in that case I’d just caution you be more careful, lest you cause harm to Less Wrong as a discussion board.
I noticed your post and wondered about your opinion on this. Thanks for sharing it.
I think it is a good idea to state the intention clearly—possibly on each post. But I wonder whether that colors the respones it gets. Though maybe the effect is positive even.
My reason I use my real name is comparable to yours: I want to see my real name attached to my postings.
You may recall I had a previous user account not linked to my real name: eggman. I started using one with my real name since I intend to post to Less Wrong and the effective altruism forum more frequently in the future, and it works better to have both accounts linked to my name if people want to contact me. Since I already happen to have access to two accounts, I was thinking of using ‘eggman’ for the same purposes. Now, obviously, I’ve just stated I was, or am, eggman, or whatever. So, it isn’t anonymous anymore. However, it’s more anonymous, as it doesn’t use the same name that’s on my government-issued I.D.
More than using it because I don’t want other users on Less Wrong to know it’s me, I might not want it searchable, or linked to me public identity, for others off of Less Wrong.
So, I consider this acceptable.
If you want to make it more acceptable...
Consider stating with the profile, or at the beginning of each comment, that you’re a regular user of Less Wrong who is using an anonymous sockpuppet account not because you want to troll, but because you don’t want your name linked to discussiong more controversial topics. I believe the genuine merit of how you discuss such topics would quickly dismiss speculation that you are just a troll.
If you don’t do the above, and never express that the anonymous account you’re using is used by a regular user of Less Wrong going under their real name, none of us would actually tell. We wouldn’t know you had two accounts. I’d be surprised if someone is such an inquisitor that they snoop profiles to ensure someone made a credible introduction of themselves in a welcome thread, and reports them to a moderator if they don’t.
If the topics you’d be discussing on Less Wrong are controversial among the Less Wrong community itself, that might be another matter. That might be playing with fire, and in that case I’d just caution you be more careful, lest you cause harm to Less Wrong as a discussion board.
I noticed your post and wondered about your opinion on this. Thanks for sharing it.
I think it is a good idea to state the intention clearly—possibly on each post. But I wonder whether that colors the respones it gets. Though maybe the effect is positive even.
My reason I use my real name is comparable to yours: I want to see my real name attached to my postings.