Epistemic status: Moderately confident that this is mildly valuable
Itâs totally fine to use a pseudonym on the Forum.
However, if you chose a pseudonym for a reason other than âI actively want to not be identifiableâ (e.g. âI copied over my Reddit username without giving it too much thoughtâ), I recommend using your real name on the Forum.
If you want to change your name, just PM or email me (aaron.gertler@centreforeffectivealtruism.org) with your current username and the one youâd like to use.
Reasons to do this:
Real names make easier for someone to track your writing/âideas across multiple platforms (âwhere have I seen this name before? Oh, yeah! I had a good Facebook exchange with them last year.â)
Thereâs a higher chance that people will recognize you at meetups, conferences, etc. This leads to more good conversations!
Aesthetically, I think itâs nice if the Forum feels like an extension of the real world where people discuss ways to improve that world. Real names help with that.
âJoe, Sarah, and Vijay are discussing how to run a good conferenceâ has a different feel than âfluttershy_forever, UtilityMonster, and AnonymousEA64 are discussing how to run a good conferenceâ.
Some of these reasons wonât apply if you have a well-known pseudonym youâve used for a while, but I still think using a real name is worth considering.
Another brief note on usernames:
Epistemic status: Moderately confident that this is mildly valuable
Itâs totally fine to use a pseudonym on the Forum.
However, if you chose a pseudonym for a reason other than âI actively want to not be identifiableâ (e.g. âI copied over my Reddit username without giving it too much thoughtâ), I recommend using your real name on the Forum.
If you want to change your name, just PM or email me (aaron.gertler@centreforeffectivealtruism.org) with your current username and the one youâd like to use.
Reasons to do this:
Real names make easier for someone to track your writing/âideas across multiple platforms (âwhere have I seen this name before? Oh, yeah! I had a good Facebook exchange with them last year.â)
Thereâs a higher chance that people will recognize you at meetups, conferences, etc. This leads to more good conversations!
Aesthetically, I think itâs nice if the Forum feels like an extension of the real world where people discuss ways to improve that world. Real names help with that.
âJoe, Sarah, and Vijay are discussing how to run a good conferenceâ has a different feel than âfluttershy_forever, UtilityMonster, and AnonymousEA64 are discussing how to run a good conferenceâ.
Some of these reasons wonât apply if you have a well-known pseudonym youâve used for a while, but I still think using a real name is worth considering.