[elric]

It's important to remember that FOSS contributions are on a voluntary basis. When I have to sign paperwork, things start to feel like unpaid work.

Signing legal documents requires disclosure of personal information. Most CLAs require full legal names and often the names of employers. While Elric is my legal name, I prefer not to disclose my last name for a variety of reasons. Being able to commit to FOSS on a pseudonymous basis is impossible when CLAs are involved, which I think is a real shame.

I understand that orgs want to protect themselves, but CLAs only protect orgs, and can potentially harm contributors. Now, I happen to trust the ASF, and I hope my personal information is safe with them.

[anticensor]

> Being able to commit to FOSS on a pseudonymous basis is impossible when CLAs are involved, which I think is a real shame.

There is a solution to that in many jurisdictions: register your pseudonym as an "alternate name".

[elric]

There are, roughly speaking, two types of countries when it comes to names. One kind (like the UK) where you decide on your name and the government has to comply with it (after minimal paperwork and minimal expense). And the other kind (where I live) where your name is more or less set in stone after your birth, where it is subject to the whims of the approving official, where it is difficult and expensive to change at best, and sometimes impossible to change.

I'll refrain from going off on a naming tangent, but that stuff is wild.

[klardotsh]

Which defeats the purpose, because then your pseudonym is legally tied to your IRL identity in a way that may, depending on jurisdiction, be public or semi-public record.