Why do people hide behind a screen name

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Posted By: James Gallo

This is something I have been wondering since I started reading this board.

a good amount of people have a random screen name and don't sign there posts.

What is the point of this.

I use my full name and always sign my post in the same manner as I would a letter I would hand write to someone.

I find it a bit odd and sometimes annoying that people hide behind a screen name. There have been a few cases where I wanted to contact someone but there email wasn't listed.

I also think that by using your real name as your log in or at least signing your posts that it makes the place more friendly and seems truly like collectors having a conversation.

I was part of a "movement" where people started using there real name more often and found that people became more friendly and accessible.

Just a random thought that has been on my mind for a slow Monday night.


James Gallo

Looking for 1915 Cracker Jacks and 1909-11 American Caramel E90-1.

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Posted By: Cobby33

Kinda like how Kramer posted all residents' pictures/names in the lobby of Jerry's building?

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Posted By: Gilbert Maines

Alter egos are cool.

It was good for Superman.

Plus there is the avatar!

And the groupies!!

Actually it doesn't bother me at all. And with some of the collections board participants have, I can understand trying to maintain a low profile. Ohh - did I forget to mention the cape?

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Posted By: jay behrens

Some people don't want it known that they have significant vintage collections. The rule here has always been that you can be anonymous but you cannot make opinionated posts. If you want to have an opinion, you have to sign your name.

I don't have a problem with the set up.

Jay

Growing old is not optional, growing up is.

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Posted By: scott brockelman

Scott

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Posted By: davidcycleback

Maybe people have funny first names like Lelsie and Marion.

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Posted By: barrysloate

We've had this discussion before and I'm all for people using their names, at least so I know who I am talking to, but I guess some won't do it. Maybe we should all be more like Elaine, who named names and got her boyfriend blacklisted from Hop Sing's.

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Posted By: leon

I have always thought folks should put their name but I do know of a few legitimate circumstances where they don't want their name in cyberspace. I actually had a lurker introduce himself to me at the National. We shook hands. He said his name was Brad, or something.....I said I was "Leon Luckey"....I asked for his last name and he said "I'll pass"......I didn't know we were playing poker..That was friggin' crazy . He laughed...good thing, so I could be laughing with him instead of "at" him....

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Posted By: Cobby33

Did it get Kramer a Pirate back?

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Posted By: anthony

we're just staying low-key...i think my last name is included with my emails and i have no problem telling anyone thats asks...as a matter of fact, if you run it on ebay search you will get 31 items.

since my "girlfriend's" last name (married name, not maiden) is the same as yours, i wont tell you her first name....hahaha

anthony

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Posted By: Dan Koteles

are closet QUEENS !!!....come on out, we aint gonna
hurt ya !

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Posted By: T206Collector

I actually have the same question in reverse -- why do you want to use your real name and let people know who you really are in an internet chat site that is searchable by Google? It is a privacy issue for me, but let me take it one step farther...

I am very happy to have built relationships with certain board members in terms of buying/selling/trading vintage cards. It leads to increased trust and better collections. I am sure that in-person relationships might assist in that venture. Maybe you met your best friend in the whole wide world on this board -- the kind of friend that you can puke in his lap and he'll just pat you on the back and tell you to get it all out. But the idea of getting together in the real world with a big group of you is, well, unquestionably creepy to me. Yet, you guys have pool parties and set up dinners at baseball card shows to meet each other in person and show off your collections to someone who actually cares about them, in ways that your wives, girlfriends, children may not -- theoretically, I get that, too. But, yikes, that sound awfully weird to me. I'm not into baseball cards to make friends or enemies. And, when you take issue with someone on-line, and you use real names, it gets very personal very quickly. If you keep screen names, then it is just that, a screen personality. An alter ego. It is much harder to get insulted or, frankly, to be insulting.

Finally, what does using my name as opposed to T206Collector consistently tell you about me that you don't already know? What additional information is gained by using my real name? There is nothing good that comes from it, at least nothing I want out of it.

You guys all seem nice, and I read your posts all the time with much enjoyment. I have added to my collection and found good sales and trades on the BST thread, many many times. That is 100% satisfaction for me. I really don't want to have you over to see my collection, I don't want to meet you in person over a bite to eat.

No offense meant.

T206Collector

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Posted By: David Vargha

Much like the bands that chose the names of "Lynyrd Skynyrd" or "Jethro Tull", I too have chosen the anonymous alter-ego of "David Vargha". As many people are well aware of, David Vargha was a one-armed, dyslexic, midget, gay, black man who was a member of the Nation of Islam. He lived a short, tumultuous life and was despised by most of the people who knew him. He serves as a sort of inspiration to me.

DavidVargha@hotmail.com

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Posted By: edacra

I have to agree with Mr. T206.
I have a pretty distinctive name, and some horror stories from being stalked via the internet. People regularly search my name on google for work, and they don't need to know what I'm up to in my private life. I like to chose who I give up my privacy to, and this forum is readable to the public. It's still the internet! Maybe I'd feel different if card collecting was a larger part of my life these days.

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Posted By: Vincent La Guardia Gambini

Sometimes it is easier this way.

Vincent La Guardia Gambini (a.k.a Jerry Gallo/Jerry Callo/Vinny 'Bag of Doughnuts')

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Posted By: Mark

Not everyone wants to be Googled and spend half a job interview talking about how he or she collects bubblegum cards. And those that don't mind probably don't get those jobs.

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Posted By: ralph

I 3rd that statement by MrT206
I dont want him to ever meet you people,or never ever see him eating with you people,nor should he ever show you his partially completed T206 set which includes the reprint Wagner
and everybody is cool with this..very strange..very strange

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Posted By: Al C.risafulli

I tried sticking a period in the middle of my last name to keep it from coming up on Google searches. I just did it recently, though, after a similar thread on this board.

I guess it probably would be better if I changed my username, though, since it also happens to be the name of the company I work for.

-Al

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Posted By: anthony

"dont ever want to meet you people" ? i've met a handfull of people from here and each one that i have met is more than welcome to come out to my place and drink some beer...let's see, just yesterday i met with cmoking, greg spent a couple of hours touring my work, met leon at the nationals on saturday, met with quan a couple of times, the last time with my boys (who were not afraid of him at all)...jeez, some of you guys need to watch less t.v. no one's asking for you to "swap spit" with eachother...or are you ??

by the way "david viagra" does david vargha inspire you because you are a one-arm, gay midget, who can't get into the nation of islam ??

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Posted By: Frank Wakefield

I agree with T206. I use both. But I can see that it isn't hiding.

Originally, I set up the login name because the format kinda asks for it. I think most of us found eBay before this, so many of us already had a "name".

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Posted By: Alan

T206 -

Why don't you want to meet with another collector(s) for a bite to eat at a restaurant ? What harm would that do ? I can't figure out WHY that would be a such a "giving up a privacy issue" ?

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Posted By: James Gallo

Man my name is all over the net and even if you google me you will only get a couple of hits.

I can understand not wanting your name out there if you have a massive collection, and also that some people like to just sit back and not get involved.

However to me part of the fun is getting involved and sharing stories about how you got a great deal on this or that card and what you collect.

I like learning about new sets and I like a some one personal level.

It really annoys me if I bounce a few emails with someone and they don't even sign there name. I once bounced about 10 emails with someone in a 1000 transaction before I got there first name.

That is just nuts IMO, especially when involved in a deal.

Regardless this isn't a witch hunt by any means as I understand people are entitled to privacy, but beyond that what else could it be?

Also I think privacy is negated if you sign your posts with your first name. As I mentioned above it just gives a more personal feel to the board.

I am really bummed that the philly show was canceled b/c I wanted to meet the local group.

James Gallo

PS and feel free to google me and find all my dirty secrets....

Looking for 1915 Cracker Jacks and 1909-11 American Caramel E90-1.

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Posted By: Mark

James, what was the "Redhook Bar Incident" and did you end up awaiting trial or fleeing?

http://www.ipsn.org/court_cases/us_v_james_gallo.htm

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Posted By: bigfish

Mark,
you will not find any rare baseball cards in the Lexus-Nexus files.

Bigfish

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Posted By: Max Weder

Sometimes, you have to pick carefully with whom you have dinner ....

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Posted By: Dan Koteles

showin a lil leg dare my friend ?...thanx for coming out !

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Posted By: quan

that's a WAYYY creepy smile leon got there....

vr,

tom lee jones ching chong

edited to add: max at least leon's paying checking out that fat wallet he got!

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Posted By: Dan Koteles

I see sparks flying there !

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Posted By: anthony

from the looks of that picture, either leon doesnt drink much beer or he actually exercises...lol


anthony

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Posted By: Max Weder

Quan and Dan

Sparks, or perhaps fireworks...



(view from the beautiful [sic] Anaheim Hilton)

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Posted By: James Gallo

Mark I was bone in 1977 so that isn't me

Try again.

So that is what Leon looks like, not what I expected.

James Gallo

Looking for 1915 Cracker Jacks and 1909-11 American Caramel E90-1.

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Posted By: Cobby33

That's quite a wad you got in your wallet! I guess the show was very, very good to you!

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Posted By: Cat

Edited since drinking jokes may be off limits.

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Posted By: T206Collector

"Why don't you want to meet with another collector(s) for a bite to eat at a restaurant ? What harm would that do ? I can't figure out WHY that would be a such a "giving up a privacy issue" ?"

My post was trying to describe two forms of privacy -- (1) privacy from mass-mailing, search-aholic, Google-ispired lunatics; and (2) privacy in my personal life and, more specifically, within my own hobby. The latter one is a bit tougher to explain.

Friendship is a lot more to me than a shared interest, especially a shared interest in baseball cards. I do not think that someone who has a great baseball card collection is more or less likely to be a good friend. I think it ranks you at about even on the karma scale of future potential friend. Maybe even a little worse, since I happen to think most of us are missing a few rungs on the "cool guy" ladder -- take a survey at the next baseball card show you go to: count the upper middle class, middle aged, overweight, scruffy, unshowered, stained t-shirt, messy eating, foul-mouthed, smelly, white bread, men in the room -- an aside, how many times do I have to put up with a lack of deoderant when I just want to peruse a pile of T206 cards at a show? Now count the college kids/twenty-somethings in nice jeans, clean sneakers (or even shoes), and a nice t-shirt or button down, with cute girlfriends in tow. There is a reason that the Comic Book Guy on the Simpsons is so funny -- it's because we all resemble that stereotype. There is no impetus for me to seek out a bite to eat with Comic Book Guy. Any incentive I have to talk about baseball cards with complete strangers is satisfied by this forum -- plus, this way, I don't have to pay attention to you, I don't have to watch you put food in your mouth, I don't have to see what you look or smell like; I have to make no effort at all, other than a few keystrokes.

When a thread is posted that has photos of people on this forum, I am embarassed for them. It may all be a good chuckle amongst those of you that know each other on a level beyond this forum. But to those of us that prefer a less personal forum to discuss baseball cards, those photos are like still images from hell -- very very unflattering: "Hey guys, look how unattractive I am -- come take a closer look!"

Thanks, but I'll pass.

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Posted By: steve f

That's one uptight aristocrat. Finally found my old bootcamp company commander.

Steve F

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Posted By: Josh K.

While this may make a few posts below make less sense, Im editing my original comments as my opinion has changed by T206's later posts and upon reflection, were a bit harsh.

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Posted By: joe brennan

google away.

People said it was a million dollar wound. But the government must keep that money, cause I ain't seen one red sent of it.

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Posted By: Bob Pomilla

Oh dear, T206! Collecting images of baseball players of a century ago? I mean weren't they a bit indelicate in their behavior for a vaporous soul such as yourself? I mean what with all the drinking, tobacco chewing and crotch pulling? And oh the profanity! Makes me shudder to think.

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Posted By: Greg Ecklund

Josh on T206 Collector: Obviously he is someone with much too high an opinion of himself.

Josh on Josh: Im willing to bet I would top you in any category that you listed - better life, better smelling, cuter wife/girlfriend, tidier eater - you name it.

Wow...you may have prefaced your post by saying it was going to be childish, but I wasn't expecting it to sprint past "high school", leap past "grade school", and land squarely in "playpen".

The need to respond to what you called T206's "arrogant" post by spewing more arrogance is a sign that you likely harbor the same insecurities you accuse T206 of carrying around.

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Posted By: Bill K

I have no problem with the people on the board knowing my name, but I do choose to keep my name off of google searches if possible. My boss is a bit of a control freak and I don't need him to see that I'm posting messages all the time during work hours, or know my spending habits.

I have always had nothing but perfect dealing with T206 in the past but man, way to paint yourself into a corner. It's your opinion and your entitled to it. I choose not to respect it even a little bit though. I second what Josh had to say. Believe it or not we don't all look the same! WOW!! There it is, in black and white.

I'm off to play a round of 18, then run a marathon, followed up with "relations" with my supermodel wife.

Bill

My personal collection - http://s47.photobucket.com/albums/f176/fkm_bky/

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Posted By: Josh K.

Actually Greg you are incorrect in your assesment. Perhaps the sarcasm intended by my second paragraph didnt come through as intended. Regardless, I dont hide behind a another name and I am friends with several people on this board - at least as much as is possible given the distance that separates most of us. More importantly, I am not judgmental of other board members and their personal and/or physical traits - good or bad.

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Posted By: T206Collector

...perhaps, which is why I wrote "we" as in "we all resemble that stereotype." I am not in college or even twenty-something. I am in my mid-thirties -- and I though I do have the most beautiful wife in the world, that was not the point of my post. I was fortunate to get her while I still had a head of hair -- I am now losing hair on top and gaining hair in my ears and nose. Not a pretty picture...

I am not taking on anyone in particular. I am sharing with you a common stereotype. And, given that stereotype, it can hardly be shocking that not everybody wants to hang out with you. Do you not see the Comic Book Guy in all of us -- again, me included?

Obviously, I am writing on a Board where the most regular contributors use their names, have dinner together and post photos of themselves. Obviously, there may be legions of you protecting your decisions to do those things in this thread. But, I think you should be aware of why not everybody shares your interest in hanging out and getting personally involved with us.

Edited to add that I just reread my initial post, and it came across as a lot meaner and nastier than I intended. I would edit it, but then the responses won't make any sense. So, I'll take my lumps...

Edited once more to that I do not have a particularly high opinion of myself. I mean, I think I'm good enough for most things, but as someone pointed out, I have numerous insecurities -- the exact opposite of a high opinion of myself. I also do not think that I am "better" than anybody on this board -- I am not into competing over anything but the quality of your T206 card collection on the SGC set registry.

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Posted By: Chad

Errr, I mean for privacy issues, it's nice to have such a common name. It gives me plausible deniability. Also, dince the arrival of a Chad Johnson in the NFL, googling my name is a hopeless endeavor unless you're in the market for a Chad Johnson Topps Chrome rookie game used mouth guard.

--Chad

And, come on, we all know it's you E, T, N and W type collectors that are old, fat and uncool. We Negro League collecting guys are a good looking, fit bunch.

(Just to make sure, I AM KIDDING!)

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Posted By: leon

Don't ya' hate it when you get an unflattering pic like that. Just when I was making the move on Jennifer Weder too .... Actually those shorts are rather long but sitting at the table I guess they hiked up a bit. I could delete the pic but who friggin' cares? I don't. I am the classic overweight, balding, stereotypical collector. (I don't think I smell bad though)..but again, I don't really care. I have had more fun with hobby friends in the last 10 yrs than many years before that. Personally I think it's great fun to get together and hoot and holler. BTW, my wallet had about 50 one dollar bills in it... I pitched in an even amount like the rest of us that evening, for dinner. I was going on about 12 hours sleep total, over the last 3 nights...so after that dinner I went to bed. It was about 9pm..... It was a very pleasant dinner with Max and Jennifer, Adam W, and Robert S. I would invite anyone I know in the hobby to my house too..It's ok to be private if that's what you want....won't get an argument here. regards all

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Posted By: T206Collector

My post was not intended to draw from your picture Leon -- since I am a relative outsider, I really do not have any idea what any one of you look like individually. But, for whatever this is worth, you've got more hair on your head in that photo than I do. Why anyone would want to see my photo -- or any other personal photo -- on here is still beyond me.

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Posted By: Max Weder

As you say Leon, everyone can choose how they want to interact with others on the board.

In defence of meeting card collectors, I'd just like to say that in my other life, I interact with tax lawyers and accountants--which in large part are card collectors dressed up in grey and blue suits--they do to seem to clean up nicely, if in a somewhat unexciting fashion.

It was very enjoyable to meet you, Scott B, Adam, David, Robert S and the others.

Max Ettinger

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Posted By: steve f

Unflattering? Nawww... In fact, I've got a hankering for some broiled chicken.

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Posted By: Greg Ecklund

Josh,
My post should not be construed as defending T206's post - I just thought it was a post that somewhat spoke for itself, but I did think you response was a little over the top also. I'm just not seeing how saying "I know this is childish, but" and then acting childish is really sarcasm...to me it misses the definition.

Regardless, from what I have read of his posts T206 is a pretty good guy - we all make posts at times that we'd like to have back. I do respect the fact that he didn't go back to use the edit feature and erase it to pretend like it never happened.

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Posted By: Chris Bland

50 one dollar bills in your wallet Leon? Were you planning to go out and tuck a few bucks later that night?

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Posted By: T206Collector

I appreciate your candor. And I recognize the recklessness of my posts.

The more I think about it, the more I realize I am probably just a loner, that prefers to hang out at home than mix in social settings with casual friends. I guess I always have been. Trying to quantify why I am that way is pretty hard for me to do. At the end of the day, I don't think it has anything to do with the people on the board, or baseball card collectors in general, as it does with me.

And it was not particularly nice for me to blame my own social inadequacies on others, even if I did so as a group. That lacked a certain class.

All in all, a rough morning on the Board. I'll try to keep my postings to the subject of baseball cards from here on out.