How do I change my name/nick?

reply to post by FredT


How bout mine??? huh huh huh?
Can I have an I instead of a O huh huh huh?

Pwetty puhlease??????

Originally posted by WraothAscendant
Can I have an I instead of a O?

LMAO! So was your name supposed to be Wraith Ascendant? I always wondered what on earth your alias meant. Figured you meant to type Wrath. So it was a typo all along, eh?

reply to post by AshleyD


Yes dear lady.
Unfortunately even I am infinitely fallable.
Yes it's true.
*strikes a campy dramatic pose*
I hit o instead of i and failed to check for typos.
hEh


Oh and Wraith is a nickname I have had since back in the day, for various personality attributes I have in real life.


[edit on 22-2-2008 by WraothAscendant]

From what I understand you can't change your user name because it would cause corruption in the database. It would be horrible for the system to try and do especially for those of us that have many many posts.

I wanted to switch mine to it's proper What U KNO look but I am stuck being whatukno.

I would love to change mine as well. Created it when I had a slightly different view of the world. So be it but I am sure the name itself results in people automatically dismissing much of what I say, although in sum that is probbaly not that much to begin with.

Anyone can change their user name...........

Drop the account you have now, ignore it forever.
Clear your cookies and any saved passwords from your browser .
Dump your cache.

If you or your ISP has never been banned from ATS, sign up for a totally new account.

The T&C says you can't have multiple accounts and "talk to yourself".

Any points you gained from the first account will be lost, but you move ahead with a new user name and a fresh account.

reply to post by anxietydisorder


Well, that sounds like one way to do it. But what about the households with one computer and multiple members (ex. man & wife)?

Also, I recently came across a thread here where a person admitted he was using his alternate account; he also had a primary account. It surprised me, since I thought that was a no-no.

reply to post by jsobecky


Section 2, Paragraph C of the T&C spells it out exactly.

Multiple Accounts: You will not create multiple user accounts and "talk to yourself".

www.abovetopsecret.com...

I questioned this in a thread called "The Sock Puppet & The Straw Man......"
www.abovetopsecret.com...


I have two accounts.

"anxietydisorder" is the one I use almost all the time, but if I use another computer that's not my own I log in as "My Sock Puppet".
I don't use it to "talk to myself", I use it to be able to log in and not leave any trace of anxietydisorder on a computer I'm working on for someone else.
I think a lot of members have sock puppets, I just happen to have the most obvious one. If you look at my alternate account you'll see that I use it for mostly browsing the site. Hell, I can't even get into "Chat" with that user name.
My Sock Puppet

We also have an additional account that gets used on our home computer because my husband logs in sometimes, but I think he's just checking up on me.
I don't think he posts very often. :shk:

This is my alternate account.

I've never tried to hide it, and it doesn't violate the T&C.

reply to post by jsobecky


I interpret the T&C the same way AD does.

If someone does sign up with a new username and stops using the old account, they can always let the mods know what's up so there isn't any confusion down the line.

From what I understand, changing a username would be a nightmare for the database. I'm not really technical, so I'm taking SO's word for it.

I wish there was a way to chang it too. Mine's not too bad, but I would like to have a captial "J".

Mine was picked on a whim as well, but had multiple meanings when I etched it stone. I would have put more thought in though, had I known. I wasn't even a lurker. I signed up as soon as I found ATS.

One thing I would say though is this. Even if we could change our name, the old name should be prominently displayed in the member profile for everyone to see, just to avoid dodgeyness. (Is that even a word?)

I guess the next-best thing would be to put a really good title under your name.

Dingeleberry, that's tough.

EDIT to add: Hey, anyone know what the green bar is under your points display?





[edit on 2/23/0808 by jackinthebox]

Originally posted by jackinthebox
Hey, anyone know what the green bar is under your points display?

It's still a bit of a mystery, but this post seems to be the closest anyone's gotten to figuring it out.

reply to post by Beachcoma


Wow, that's complicated. Multiple bars, different shades. There were people with purple bars in that thread!

Thanks though!

reply to post by anxietydisorder


There was a period of time where ATS was experiencing some problems with user email accounts, resulting in some people not being able to login (me included).

So I created a brand new account while the problem was being worked. Never once did I attempt to "talk to myself".

Yet, I was told to immediately choose between the two usernames, right now. Choose one and drop the other. I got the impression that if I didn't comply, I'd be penalized or banned.

So, maybe it has to do with...who knows?

As far as the coding, can't a simple alias scheme be used?

Originally posted by Incarnated
Are you new to the internet and making up user accounts?

Actually, it's a valid question these days Incarnated. Large online communities such as mySpace allow you to do just that. In short, the internet is changing all the time and becoming richer in user options.

InfraRedman Out!

Thanks everyone for the most hilarious thread I've read today

dingleberry77 & WraothAscendant you two take the cake.

Wraith - Just do it otherwise it will haunt you forever.

I agree with the mods & others who say changing the screen name is problematic and is best left static not just for users & staff, but it could create potential load issues on the hardware, software & become greater risk of data corruption. Unnecessary headaches. Besides - they have a contract with the spooks to allow them to better keep track of you that way. Echelon factors & whatnot, you know.

Well I hope I don't get banned for being honest, but I did change my name by creating a new account. There were several factors - the biggest being I was away for well over a year & got frustrated trying to get back in. New emails & forgotten passwords - you know the drill. Since I'd grown since then, I thought it was a good time for a rebirth fresh & clean - rather than a resurrection. Though I miss my points - that being one caveat, or as some have suggested part of the payment. Kinda like a Pardon with a New identity - you know. Not, that I broke any rules - with the possible exception of being self renewed.

[edit on 29-2-2008 by verylowfrequency]

and you say YOU have it rough, try filling my diaper every time you log on...

as has been said - thier is a TINY risk that changing a username will corrupt the data base , every time the operation is preformed

and to be blunt - SO has better things to do than sit monitoring the system every time someone requests a name change

i guess choose carefully - and spellcheck it before hitting the final submit

one sensible idea would be to creat a " retired " atatus - so that an account could be locked with honour intact - rather than the banned wich people who violate the T&C get

thus - people would know that a retired acccout left of thier own free will - and is most likley back under a new nick

there would be no possibility of sock puppetry - and the IP of a retired account holder would be free to re register

cos i went through a patch when i wanted to ditch ` ignorant ape ` - mainly due to spam and other attacks on another forum and mail lists

but here my new account choice was " denied " - as it was i droped off the net for over a year - and when the dust settled the trols had given up spamming my accouts so - i just resumed with ignorant ape
"

[edit on 7-3-2008 by ignorant_ape]

The suggestion to simply stop using your current user account and create a new one is probably the best. I did exactly that with a moderator's blessing.

If the old account has content that you would still like others to see and access, maybe a link in your signature could point others at the old profile.

Yeah, you'll start fresh with minimal points and others may see you as a "n00b"....but really, it's the content that's important.

For the reasons listed here (it would be torture on the huge db) we don't allow name changes.

BUT...

You certainly can notify one of the Moderators that you would like a new account, create the new account and we close the old one without it appearing to be banned.

Please do not create a new account until you've been notified by the staff member that your request has been granted, the new account will likely be banned if you create it before we know you are doing it for a legitimate reason.

Realize that if you decide to create a new account you lose all the points and "special features" (custom colors, access to RATS, etc...) of your present account.

I would suggest patience if you make a request like this because it's low priority and this is a very busy site with an all volunteer staff.

Springer...