| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | 2009 virtual conference: User names - pseudonyms or real names? Thread poster: British Diana
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| User names - pseudonyms or real names?" | Oct 5, 2009 |
British Diana wrote:
I am a bit confused as I am not much of an expert on these things, but I was surprised to be addressed on the conference with my full real name (albeit only the surname). Why wasn't my profile name or whatever it's called (DiM) used?
On forums I usually sign with my first name and I don't really want my surname to be used at all.
Diana
I recommend you to use your real name. I used myself a combination with the initial of my name and my surname for some years. But, the nick only caused conflicts and misunderstandings, going so far as to receive invoices with my nick instead of my real name...
AT ProZ the trend is to change the nick for the real name. Unless one is not a reliable professional or has something to conceal. Resuming: To use a nick or pseudonym is NOT professional and it does not even gives a good imag of oneself.
[Editado a las 2009-10-05 22:30 GMT]
| | | | lauradiel 
Australia
Local time: 07:41
Member (2009)
German to Italian
+ ...
| I don't agree... | Oct 6, 2009 |
You're not necessarily concealing something if you don't put your real name and/or picture on proz. It's just a question of privacy and as many of us may have experienced, internet is far from a safe place. It's not like having your address and name published on the yellow pages or publishing an ad on your local newspaper.
| | | | British Diana
Germany
Local time: 23:41
German to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Professional attitude or amateur dabbling? | Oct 6, 2009 |
Dear Kevin,
Thanks for your reaction. It got me musing on how one defines a professional (apart from the monetary aspect)- perhaps there should be a new thread to discuss this?
In any case, the translating projects I have actually got paid for (except in kind with Bocksbeutels of local wine or stays at a luxury hotel) over the last 30 years can be counted on the fingers of two hands, so there is no acute danger of my spoiling the prices for those whose livelihood it i... See more Dear Kevin,
Thanks for your reaction. It got me musing on how one defines a professional (apart from the monetary aspect)- perhaps there should be a new thread to discuss this?
In any case, the translating projects I have actually got paid for (except in kind with Bocksbeutels of local wine or stays at a luxury hotel) over the last 30 years can be counted on the fingers of two hands, so there is no acute danger of my spoiling the prices for those whose livelihood it is.
Lucky me to be able to dabble in an amateurish way!
Diana ▲ Collapse
| | | | Lejla Cehic
United States
Local time: 17:41
Bosnian to English
+ ...
I've been reading the comments regarding the topic and must say there's nothing wrong with using a nick or a pseudonym, but also in order to present yourself in the best possible way you should use your real name.
For those being so afraid of identity thefts and similar issues, the name itself doesn't reveal that much, you need much more of the info in order to harm someone.
It sounds a bit paranoid to me, to be honest on this.
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| Best ways are different | Oct 6, 2009 |
Lejla Hamzic wrote:
I've been reading the comments regarding the topic and must say there's nothing wrong with using a nick or a pseudonym, but also in order to present yourself in the best possible way you should use your real name.
Are you sure? Maybe the best way for you but surely not for everyone.
German and Dutch new customers don't have any problems with my name when contacting me via my Proz-profile. On the contrary some like my "pseudonym". I rather see my name as some kind of brand name.
For those being so afraid of identity thefts and similar issues, the name itself doesn't reveal that much,
Do you really think so?
I write a lot in the forums and this does reveal a lot about me.
It sounds a bit paranoid to me, to be honest on this.
Mmh, do you have any fantasy? If a person is followed by a stalker for example. Luckily I'm not but I can think of some more good reasons.
| | | | | I do not agree either... | Oct 6, 2009 |
Pablo Bouvier wrote:
AT ProZ the trend is to change the nick for the real name. Unless one is not a reliable professional or has something to conceal. Resuming: To use a nick or pseudonym is NOT professional and it does not even gives a good imag of oneself.
Read my post above. I went from using my real name in Proz to using a pseudonym. I am a professional, and the only thing I have to conceal is my privacy...Mexicans have a saying... la burra no era arisca, los golpes la hicieron (literally, even though there must be a better rendition: the donkey was not skittish; beatings made her so)...
[Edited at 2009-10-06 16:36 GMT]
| | | | | Yes, it takes more than the name... | Oct 6, 2009 |
Lejla Hamzic wrote:
For those being so afraid of identity thefts and similar issues, the name itself doesn't reveal that much, you need much more of the info in order to harm someone.
It sounds a bit paranoid to me, to be honest on this.
Yes, it is probably a bit of paranoia but, again, as the saying goes, that you are paranoid does not mean the world is not out to get you...
The problem is that, when you reveal your name in a site, and then participate actively in its forum discussions, you reveal more parts of you than your name (i.e.: where you live, your civil status, if you have children or not and possibly their names, where you worked or have worked, etc.), and then it only takes someone without ethical principles or someone with lots of time to waste to start threading about you and your life, and post either facts you did not want disclosed our actual lies based on what you had already disclosed. Whether what is posted is real or not is not relevant; the problem is that little or lots of harm can be done, so I prefer to be on the safe side in sites where one can participate with a pseudonym. Yes, I am probably a bit paranoid, but we all have our quirks...
I also used to think that to reflect a professional image people had to go by their real name, until things started happening to me... then I realized otherwise...
| | | | | User names - pseudonyms or real names?" | Oct 6, 2009 |
Aguas de Marco wrote: Lejla Hamzic wrote:
For those being so afraid of identity thefts and similar issues, the name itself doesn't reveal that much, you need much more of the info in order to harm someone.
It sounds a bit paranoid to me, to be honest on this. Yes, it is probably a bit of paranoia but, again, as the saying goes, that you are paranoid does not mean the world is not out to get you... The problem is that, when you reveal your name in a site, and then participate actively in its forum discussions, you reveal more parts of you than your name (i.e.: where you live, your civil status, if you have children or not and possibly their names, where you worked or have worked, etc.), and then it only takes someone without ethical principles or someone with lots of time to waste to start threading about you and your life, and post either facts you did not want disclosed our actual lies based on what you had already disclosed. Whether what is posted is real or not is not relevant; the problem is that little or lots of harm can be done, so I prefer to be on the safe side in sites where one can participate with a pseudonym. Yes, I am probably a bit paranoid, but we all have our quirks... I also used to think that to reflect a professional image people had to go by their real name, until things started happening to me... then I realized otherwise...
Privacy is really a problem at Internet. But, as each advanced TI egineer knows, all the Internet traffic (and I said "ALL"...) is controlled by only 13 or 14 basic domain name servers.
And you are worried about privacy in Intenet?
Think a little: Has your ISP your e-mail adress? Is it possible that your ISP backups your e-mails daily? Has the bank your "top secret" credit card number? Has your gouvernement your "personal and intransferable" identify numberr? All thes organizations, your ISP, your gouvernment, your bank are managed by persons. And they know about you. Privacy does not exist, nor in the world, neither at Internet. It is a veil created by the powerful ones, that is the simple truth.
[Editado a las 2009-10-06 16:05 GMT]
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Laurent KRAULAND (X)
France
Local time: 23:41
French to German
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| And as a side issue... | Oct 6, 2009 |
Aguas de Marco wrote:
I also used to think that to reflect a professional image people had to go by their real name, until things started happening to me... then I realized otherwise...
your pseudonym looks fine to me - reminds me of a beautiful song by Antonio Carlos Jobim .
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Yes, privacy concerns exist and stalking on the internet is unfortunately more common than most would think. But if you say that "You end up revealing too much information on discussion forums" and thus are afraid of others digging this information up, what prevents these people from digging the same information by searching for your pseudonym? You would need to change your pseudonym every few months and never be able to establish a name for yours... See more Yes, privacy concerns exist and stalking on the internet is unfortunately more common than most would think. But if you say that "You end up revealing too much information on discussion forums" and thus are afraid of others digging this information up, what prevents these people from digging the same information by searching for your pseudonym? You would need to change your pseudonym every few months and never be able to establish a name for yourself. What you say will always be on the record, it doesn't matter which nickname you were using when you posted.
One thing is for sure: when the big boss is sitting on his budget looking for potential translators to handle the new 100k words project, guess who is he going to pick: "Jonathan Davis" or "sparkthewords"? Sure, sparkthewords may be very well qualified, but so is Jonathan Davis. And he uses his real name.
EDIT - One of the most severe internet harassment stories that happened to me was when 3 complete strangers showed up at my door at 10:30PM wanting to beat me up (?). It was a few years ago when I still did not use the Internet for business purposes, and so pretty much 100% of my internet activity happened under an old nickname. It didn't stop these people from finding out my real name, my phone number, my address, where I went to college, etc etc etc... Fortunately for me it was all a big misunderstanding, but I had to go to the police once I found out that there was a community with 200+ members in a social networking website where people gathered to hate me and plan my death (all because the 200 geniuses had confused me with someone else). Would I ever let this intimidate me and interfere with my business? Hell no.
[Edited at 2009-10-06 16:19 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | To each the solution they find the best | Oct 6, 2009 |
Andreas Nieckele wrote:
Yes, privacy concerns exist and stalking on the internet is unfortunately more common than most would think. But if you say that "You end up revealing too much information on discussion forums" and thus are afraid of others digging this information up, what prevents these people from digging the same information by searching for your pseudonym? You would need to change your pseudonym every few months and never be able to establish a name for yourself. What you say will always be on the record, it doesn't matter which nickname you were using when you posted.
I have learned my lesson. I reveal much less about my private self now under my pseudonym than I used to do before under my name. But also, if you do a search with my pseudonym, the only thing you will find is my posts here (or the song by Tom Jobim, of course), whereas before, with my real name, people were able to find where I had studied, where I had worked, conferences, associations and other forums in which I participated, and so on. So my pseudonym does limit the scope of searches in my real private life.
Andreas Nieckele wrote:
One thing is for sure: when the big boss is sitting on his budget looking for potential translators to handle the new 100k words project, guess who is he going to pick: "Jonathan Davis" or "sparkthewords"? Sure, sparkthewords may be very well qualified, but so is Jonathan Davis. And he uses his real name.
This is not a problem for me because I do not rely on my proz profile to obtain clients. I do not use a pseudonym in the professional organizations I belong to.
Andreas Nieckele wrote:
EDIT - One of the most severe internet harassment stories that happened to me was when 3 complete strangers showed up at my door at 10:30PM wanting to beat me up (?). It was a few years ago when I still did not use the Internet for business purposes, and so pretty much 100% of my internet activity happened under an old nickname. It didn't stop these people from finding out my real name, my phone number, my address, where I went to college, etc etc etc... Fortunately for me it was all a big misunderstanding, but I had to go to the police once I found out that there was a community with 200+ members in a social networking website where people gathered to hate me and plan my death (all because the 200 geniuses had confused me with someone else). Would I ever let this intimidate me and interfere with my business? Hell no.
This is a very scary story. I hope it never happens to me or anyone else here. That is why I also steer clear of places like Facebook, LinkedIn, Hi5, Tweeter, and the like. I find they have more inconvenicences than advantages, at least for someone with my lifestyle.
| | | | | Amateur yes, but amateurish? | Oct 6, 2009 |
British Diana wrote:
Dear Kevin,
Thanks for your reaction. It got me musing on how one defines a professional (apart from the monetary aspect)- perhaps there should be a new thread to discuss this?
In any case, the translating projects I have actually got paid for (except in kind with Bocksbeutels of local wine or stays at a luxury hotel) over the last 30 years can be counted on the fingers of two hands, so there is no acute danger of my spoiling the prices for those whose livelihood it is.
Lucky me to be able to dabble in an amateurish way!
I presume your use of the term amateur is in an older sense and that the result you would deliver (or attempt to deliver) would not be influenced by the payment or lack thereof. A real professional puts in the same effort for pro bono work as for the highest paid job.
I would simply dump the comments about "eternal student" and "amateur" or whatever on your profile and simply state who you are, what interests you and what you have to offer. Anything else merely comes across as a distracting lack of confidence that will probably annoy many readers. And for someone who is in fact not dim, that is a shame.
"Professional" or "amateur", anyone who takes pride in the work and delivers the best they can deserves respect, and rates have nothing to do with that. Rates have to do with paying the bills or perhaps ensuring that others can pay theirs (though I'm not a big believer in the "ruining the market" theory - underpriced people who are in fact good will be booked out quickly, leaving the rest of the line to pay what others ask).
And I do like the new pseudonym, really
**********
Edited to correct my usual verbal carelessness
[Edited at 2009-10-06 19:01 GMT]
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British Diana
Germany
Local time: 23:41
German to English
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TOPIC STARTER | tongue-in-cheek | Oct 12, 2009 |
Thanks, Kevin, for taking such an interest.
As you will see, I followed your advice and have now altered my profile to make it less self-depreciatory, a characteristic which is indeed not always appreciated - particularly in your and my "Wahlheimat".
As I think this is going to be the final posting on this thread anyway, perhaps I will get away with an off-the-point (perhaps it should be off-the-record, too) remark:
Do you agree with me that it is difficul... See more Thanks, Kevin, for taking such an interest.
As you will see, I followed your advice and have now altered my profile to make it less self-depreciatory, a characteristic which is indeed not always appreciated - particularly in your and my "Wahlheimat".
As I think this is going to be the final posting on this thread anyway, perhaps I will get away with an off-the-point (perhaps it should be off-the-record, too) remark:
Do you agree with me that it is difficult for a genuine Brit to open his or her mouth to say something without leaving their tongue in their cheek? I'm thinking of what Kate Fox says in "Watching the English, the hidden rules of English behaviour" on our continual use of irony.
In diesem Sinne
Diana ▲ Collapse
| | | | Lejla Cehic
United States
Local time: 17:41
Bosnian to English
+ ...
Tuliparola wrote:
Do you really think so?
I write a lot in the forums and this does reveal a lot about me.
So this is the catch, you are not supposed to write that much about your life and privacy here, not even to say that much but not at all. This site was not created for that purpose, we are all linguists here, so stick to linguistics and a variety of topics related to this area and your translations.
I never write about myself, this is my job not my private life.
| | | | Lejla Cehic
United States
Local time: 17:41
Bosnian to English
+ ...
| privacy and illusions | Oct 15, 2009 |
Pablo Bouvier wrote:
Privacy is really a problem at Internet. But, as each advanced TI egineer knows, all the Internet traffic (and I said "ALL"...) is controlled by only 13 or 14 basic domain name servers.
And you are worried about privacy in Intenet?
Think a little: Has your ISP your e-mail adress? Is it possible that your ISP backups your e-mails daily? Has the bank your "top secret" credit card number? Has your gouvernement your "personal and intransferable" identify numberr? All thes organizations, your ISP, your gouvernment, your bank are managed by persons. And they know about you. Privacy does not exist, nor in the world, neither at Internet. It is a veil created by the powerful ones, that is the simple truth.
[Editado a las 2009-10-06 16:05 GMT]
Thanks Pablo for making this clear, this is exactly what I'm trying to say.
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