[flattone]

I feel moved to strictly only use fake names online. Like..

I recently moaned and whined to my friend about how when i was growing up a person/entity (to my recollection) would feel.. like they received a magical gift just to send a message online.. having a web page was like.. winning the nerd superbowl.. Now it's like.. we are supposed to take a knee to any company that gets sufficient presence and significance (linkedin, etc trying to find a job).

What actions had you taken toward trying to remedy this ?

[drdeadringer]

> I feel moved to strictly only use fake names online.

Isn't this how usernames started?

[necovek]

Usernames probably come from the multiuser nature of early computers, and some of the early limitations of software implementations (eg no spaces so your homedir could match your username on a fs that supports no spaces).

Aliases or nicknames are a common human choice, which allows one to be represented by a word/name of one's own choosing that portraits you in a light you want, without tying to your real identity which might have other implications (sometimes negative, of course).

[flattone]

I'm not sure how they started. Was it because of people feeling their 'honest' self info was being used to identify then control them via highjacking their personal accounts in honor of some ex employer?