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Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
<img src="http://www.cad-comic.com/comics/c0a129271278475206.jpg">
Hmm... this is messed up. Stripping people of their anonymity? Well, they'll still get a lot of comments, but a whole category of people called "cautious" aren't going to be heard.
Oh, and by the way, do you really think that a name alone isn't enough to find someone?
http://www.spokeo.com
Put your name in there. Think about how many people online you've casually mentioned the state you live in to, assured in the knowledge that THAT'S not enough information to find you. Now be terrified.
Yep, it's that easy. There's a reason I have never bothered with the social networking sites. Starcraft II may be a fun game, but I won't be using this "RealID" system. Well, I might, but I'll be making up a nickname to put in my "put your real name here" slot like I always do.
Anonymity is overrated... - Great Rumbler - 6th July 2010
Spokeo gets a lot of stuff wrong. Also this Blizzard thing is apparently optional.
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 6th July 2010
I put my name in there. 8 Ryan Ushers. None of them were me.
I know there's enough information out there for someone to find me. It's just that I don't live in paranoid fear that everyone on the internet wants to hunt me down, murder me, and assume my identity.
If someone wants badly enough to do something just like that, believe that they'll find a way to do it no matter how anonymous you are on the internet. Bearing this fact in mind, it's pointless to be batman on the internet. This isn't to say that I'll be displaying my phone number or mailing address, but, honestly, those pieces of information exist in countless corporate databases, and if someone gets that information, that's probably the means by which it will happen. I can do nothing about it.
Anonymity is overrated... - EdenMaster - 6th July 2010
I've seen that site touted by other paranoid interwebbers, and it's a joke. Go ahead and look me up. Brian Butoryak. I'm the only one.
For me it has:
Pretty much nothing. What it does have is me as still living in the house I moved out of four years ago, that I'm in a relationship with no children, I apparently make $48k annually (I'm an unemployed student at the moment, but at my most affluent I made about $30,000 a year), and that my 30 year old brother Matt (whom it spells as "Mett") is actually one of my parents, and in his 50's.
Well.
I'm on Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter. All of which combined have much more information than this pitiful excuse for an "online phonebook". And are public. I have nothing to hide. I've gone several years now with my information being "out there" without being raped and/or murdered.
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 6th July 2010
Great Rumbler Wrote:Spokeo gets a lot of stuff wrong. Also this Blizzard thing is apparently optional.
None of my email addresses show anything but my first name, and entering my phone number gives a result for someone who lives an hour and a half north of me.
I found my father on there. Apparently, his house is worth more than $1,000,000.
That's news to me and I'm sure he'd feel the same way. :|
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
It's still a worthwhile concern. Saying "someone with enough dedication and resources can do whatever they want so I won't even bother caring" is kinda like saying "if they had enough resources anyone can break into my house so I won't bother locking the door". There's no dichotomy here, there's plenty of breathing room in the middle between paranoid extreme identity fear and freely typing which night club you'll be going to tomorrow.
It's "opt-in" in the sense that people are free to NOT post on their forum, but it still seems like a mistake. Especially in light of certain laws congress and the FCC want to pass putting guarantees on internet privacy so companies can't give out this information. Blizzard is opening up a risk they don't need to.
Anonymity is overrated... - EdenMaster - 6th July 2010
Dark Jaguar Wrote:It's still a worthwhile concern.
No, it's really not.
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 6th July 2010
More accurately, it's like saying "if they had enough resources, anyone could break into my house so I won't build a 25 foot high security wall and place armed guards with trained attack dogs and two dozen security cameras around it."
If I post that I'm going to X Night Club tomorrow night, chances are many millions to one that this won't result in my being attacked by Herbert the Happy Psycho Killer.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
I wouldn't say that just NOT trying to share your name and address online is the digital equivalent of guard dogs. I'm not sure what the equivalent would be, but that's not really it. This is just like shredding documents and credit cards before throwing them away. By all likelyhood, no one's shifting around in your garbage, but it's just reasonable.
Anonymity is overrated... - EdenMaster - 6th July 2010
Dark Jaguar Wrote:I wouldn't say that just NOT trying to share your name and address online is the digital equivalent of guard dogs. I'm not sure what the equivalent would be, but that's not really it. This is just like shredding documents and credit cards before throwing them away. By all likelyhood, no one's shifting around in your garbage, but it's just reasonable.
Address is one thing. Name is another. Sensitive documents and credit cards have actual risk involved if found, minute though it might be. Simply having your name out there is no different than wearing a "Hi, My Name Is" sticker to a crowded party.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
EdenMaster Wrote:No, it's really not.
You don't think worrying about people online knowing who you are is a worthwhile concern? Really? A lot of people, including security experts, would disagree.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
EdenMaster Wrote:Address is one thing. Name is another. Sensitive documents and credit cards have actual risk involved if found, minute though it might be. Simply having your name out there is no different than wearing a "Hi, My Name Is" sticker to a crowded party.
I've never been to a party with stickers like that, probably because I only go to parties with friends and family, not total strangers I have no interest in interacting with.
However, you would certainly not wear that tag in public now would ya? Some total stranger on the street asks you your name, you second guess their motives I'm sure. You want to know THEIR name. Why? Names are power. This is a big concern for a lot of people, and you're just sort of blowing it off.
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 6th July 2010
Yeah, I'll shred things that contain really sensitive information like bank statements. But, I also wouldn't ever post that information on Facebook, either. Certainly, I'm not going to shred every piece of paper that has my name/address/phone number on it. That's just paranoid. If you're close enough to sift through my trash, you're close enough to steal my mail anyway.
I drive a car. Attached to this car are two visible license plates. I am legally required to make these plates visible at all times. If I drive across town in daylight and park in a parking lot for thirty minutes, this information is readily-accessible to hundreds of total strangers. These plates can be used as a starting point to access oodles of personal information through the DMV, my car insurance company, and any other database in which the information visible on my plates exist. There is literally nothing I can do about this except refuse to own and operate a motor vehicle.
There's this little thing called "acceptable risk". I will continue to own and operate a motor vehicle.
Anonymity is overrated... - EdenMaster - 6th July 2010
Dark Jaguar Wrote:You don't think worrying about people online knowing who you are is a worthwhile concern? Really?
Nope. I'm not gonna give out my credit card or Social security numbers, of course, but people can know who I am. They can know I live in Erie, PA. They can know I live in an apartment on 12th street. They can know I've worked in a fast food restaurant, a telemarketing center, a hospital, and a laboratory.
Anonymity is overrated... - etoven - 6th July 2010
Couldn't find me...
I love you PIX firewall...
Anonymity is overrated... - EdenMaster - 6th July 2010
Oh, also, I'm part of another gaming community, mostly centered around online FPS games. Most of them know my name and city. I'd say about 10 people there have my address (and I theirs. We exchanged Christmas Cards this December). I've met a couple of them in person and have established a relationship with a woman I met through this community, which stemmed from a visit she made while in the area.
Once again. Yet to be murdered. My life has, in fact, been enriched by my willingness to share with people.
Having someone's name is not equal to owning their soul. If someone walked up to me on the street with a smile, extended a handshake, and asked my name, they can have it. You're just paranoid.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
Weltall Wrote:Yeah, I'll shred things that contain really sensitive information like bank statements. But, I also wouldn't ever post that information on Facebook, either. Certainly, I'm not going to shred every piece of paper that has my name/address/phone number on it. That's just paranoid. If you're close enough to sift through my trash, you're close enough to steal my mail anyway.
I drive a car. Attached to this car are two visible license plates. I am legally required to make these plates visible at all times. If I drive across town in daylight and park in a parking lot for thirty minutes, this information is readily-accessible to hundreds of total strangers. These plates can be used as a starting point to access oodles of personal information through the DMV. There is literally nothing I can do about this except refuse to own and operate a motor vehicle.
There's this little thing called "acceptable risk".
I agree, though your exposure driving around town is far smaller. The license plate is there as a requirement for the reason of protecting other rights, namely the rights of other drivers to not have dangerous drivers on the road endangering their lives. I'll agree that this is a reasonable situation.
The same can't be said online. This is why certain bills are under consideration where identity demands of companies are going to be limited to the bare minimum needed to complete a transaction, and publishing the details will not be allowed.
The fact is, I don't so much mind that someone decides to willingly share their data. Companies coming along and violating privacy is another matter. The complete disregard for personal privacy is a big concern.
All of you may not be too concerned about posting your history, because the odds of psychopaths targeting you is pretty small. Not everyone can say that. People who are taking some time to have some fun who, let's say, have psycho ex's stalking them, or have been speaking out against the Chinese government and don't want their identities found out? There's good reason for them to be concerned.
Then there's people like me, who just don't want their real world life to become entangled in their online life. Heck I don't even make the effort to keep my various online identities all that separate.
I think that privacy is valuable as a thing in itself.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
EdenMaster Wrote:Oh, also, I'm part of another gaming community, mostly centered around online FPS games. Most of them know my name and city. I'd say about 10 people there have my address (and I theirs. We exchanged Christmas Cards this December). I've met a couple of them in person and have established a relationship with a woman I met through this community, which stemmed from a visit she made while in the area.
Once again. Yet to be murdered. My life has, in fact, been enriched by my willingness to share with people.
Having someone's name is not equal to owning their soul. If someone walked up to me on the street with a smile, extended a handshake, and asked my name, they can have it. You're just paranoid.
Read my post above. Some people aren't actually being paranoid and there is real risk to them, and others just value their privacy for privacy's sake. It's not some company's place to say whether or not people should value it, it's up to each person.
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 6th July 2010
If evading a psychotic individual or vindictive government were a real going concern in my life, obviously I would be far more cautious about my personal privacy. But, of course, none of those things are going concerns or are likely to become going concerns. I am not the kind of person who operates on the idea that every possible threat should be treated as probable.
Also, in spite of me being open about certain things, my private and public lives have always been easy to segregate. There are thousands of Silent Hill fans who know who Ryan M. Usher is, because I published my Silent Hill 2 novelization on the internet under my real name, and it achieved a fair amount of fame within that particular fanbase. James Sunderland's voice actor even knows who I am. Or, did at one point, anyway. I'm sure it didn't stick. Still. :D It's never once resulted in any untoward intrusions of my privacy.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 6th July 2010
Again this is mostly about a company making a bad move in requiring users to reveal private details to use their service.
Prediction: Mom loses job when employer discovers diatribe posted in her name by son who subscribes to WOW with her credit card.
This is the sort of scenario that could take place if they did this. I'll say again that you or me don't really need to fear being stalked (heck while most of my family is on that spokeo site, I'm not, I'm doing things right). The issue is that when companies do this, it puts those that ARE at risk at even greater risk. It's overstepping their bounds. It's not as bad as google's BUZZ which simply forced upon it's users without their consent. However, it's certainly a steep requirement. Countless people are already complaining here.
For me, the issue of privacy isn't really about personal danger. I'm not as paranoid as all that. (Though it IS an added benefit.) It's more about me just valuing my privacy as an end in itself. There are many just like that, clearly. Again, I'm not part of the facebook generation, which apparently includes both people much younger and people much older than me.
Anonymity is overrated... - EdenMaster - 6th July 2010
Dark Jaguar Wrote:For me, the issue of privacy isn't really about personal danger. I'm not as paranoid as all that. (Though it IS an added benefit.) It's more about me just valuing my privacy as an end in itself. There are many just like that, clearly. Again, I'm not part of the facebook generation, which apparently includes both people much younger and people much older than me.
Dark Jaguar Wrote:You don't think worrying about people online knowing who you are is a worthwhile concern? Really? A lot of people, including security experts, would disagree.
So does it worry you, or doesn't it?
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 7th July 2010
What I'm saying is it's a worthwhile concern, just not mine, as I've got other reasons to have some anonymity.
Meanwhile...
http://borderhouseblog.com/?p=2614
Apparently what Blizzard is doing violates their own terms of service.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Lord Neo - 7th July 2010
I ran for a seat in a provincial legislature once.
My address and phone number are on financial return forms available on an election authority's website.
I haven't been hunted down yet.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 7th July 2010
That's not really my position. The basic idea is that outing people already legitimately concerned about their safety puts them at risk. Dark Lord, imagine that instead of running for some political platform, you were instead saying something controversial enough that people started sending you death threats. I'm sure that you'd rather your address not be in their hands, right? This sort of thing isn't just in the movies, it actually happens and is a real concern.
Wow has millions of subscribers, chances are a number of them have good reason to be a little less than forthcoming about their names.
Sure, it's easy to be safe if your name is John Smith. If your name is Goliath S. Winklebottom though, maybe you're a little easier to find in local listings? Perhaps? These are people that use fake identities BECAUSE others online may have been stalking them in the past.
More to the point, I'm right and you're wrong. One of the people spearheading this, as a gesture of good will, posted his name on the board to show his confidence that nothing's going bad. In an hour, his home address, phone number, and parent's names were posted, and he's already getting pestered because of it. He's a high profile person of course, so it's to be expected most of the focus will be aimed there. HOWEVER, it doesn't take much to get on someone's radar. You guys all seem sane, but I've gotten in a number of arguments that end with "if I knew where you lived we'd see how brave you really are". Maybe I don't want them TO know that? My name is, actually, pretty common. That alone isn't enough to hunt me down. Again, I don't think I'm particularly at risk for just exposing my name. For me it's more about just controlling my own information.
It's already blowing up. Here's some more examples: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/apr/06/gender.blogging
Then there's this: http://taint.rtgc.org/ Do you think maybe they might have something to fear about being "outed"?
When you say there's "nothing at all to fear" you are speaking from a position of privilege you aren't even aware of. Not everyone is in that position.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 8th July 2010
Come to think of it, how would this even accomplish their goal? How do they handle multiple people with the same name?
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 8th July 2010
Dark Lord Neo Wrote:I ran for a seat in a provincial legislature once.
My address and phone number are on financial return forms available on an election authority's website.
I haven't been hunted down yet.
Holy shit.
It's Neo!
Welcome back!
Anonymity is overrated... - A Black Falcon - 9th July 2010
Another thread that should be in Tendo...
That site found a bunch of people with my first and last name, but none in this state, so they aren't me...
ANyway, Blizzard's Facebook-integrated ID system is incredibly horrible and intrusive, and I badly hope that they have to give up on it, because it's an incredible invasion of privacy. If one thing kills Starcraft 2, it will be the horrible internet play system which is being nearly ruined by limitations and real-id integration.
For instance, last I heard, you can't change your server anymore. Want to play against someone in Europe or Korea? Sorry, you can't. You're stuck to your server only. And there are many more things like that... unless something changes, SC2's BNet is going to be something of a broken, ID-theft-able debacle. And that's really too bad, for a game that should have been one of the best games ever made.
Anonymity is overrated... - Great Rumbler - 9th July 2010
Real ID is dead. Blizzard killed it today.
Anonymity is overrated... - A Black Falcon - 9th July 2010
Awesome. Great news! Now have they killed the region limitation, "licensing" system for user maps (as it was you had to register new maps to use them online, had to save them to Blizzard's server, and each person could only have 5 maps and a very small size limit total too each), and more, too?
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 9th July 2010
Blizzard killed the requirement in the forums, which is a good step, but "RealID" is still alive.
They really have a simple solution: Just don't use user's real names, make them pick a one-time nickname that's used across games. Rename it "BlizzardID", and bam, it's all the benefits minus the privacy issues.
As to the other issues, uploading maps to a public server is actually a nice thing. Sure it's limited in it's current form, but it's a lot better than the previous system, where user maps only got transferred when you played against someone that already had it. It can stand improvement for sure though. Yes, allowing free play on whatever server you like would be nice, though to be honest, I only really care about European servers, as I don't speak Korean. RAAAAIIIN! Sorry don't know where that came from. The biggest issue is the total lack of basic LAN support. I've got a friend with a really slow internet connection, but a perfectly good router. If my friends all go there, are we really expected to all sign in and use a really slow connection rather than just a direct LAN to each other? That sounds pretty dumb.
All in all, I'm really starting to see the effects that Activision is having on Blizzard, in spite of previous assurances. It doesn't help that Activision CEO is not a gamer, doesn't "get" games, and doesn't play them. If you are basically a company's boss, lacking ANY interest in the main product that company makes will inevitably lead to terrible decisions. I think it's a basic job requirement for any boss to actually care about what the company does.
Yes, this Facebook integration is idiotic. Blizzard doesn't see the writing on the wall. Countless users on Facebook are getting fed up with poor privacy policies (which get changed all the time to "opt out" without their user's knowledge), and when whatever Google's solution is called gets rolled out, it's going to kill Facebook anyway. Why bother linking up to such a specific little internet fad at all? I don't get it.
Anonymity is overrated... - A Black Falcon - 9th July 2010
Quote:Yes, allowing free play on whatever server you like would be nice, though to be honest, I only really care about European servers, as I don't speak Korean. RAAAAIIIN! Sorry don't know where that came from. The biggest issue is the total lack of basic LAN support. I've got a friend with a really slow internet connection, but a perfectly good router. If my friends all go there, are we really expected to all sign in and use a really slow connection rather than just a direct LAN to each other? That sounds pretty dumb.
Whether or not you are going to use the other servers, can't you see why not allowing that is such a hugely important deal? I mean, other than going between USEast and USWest (there better be only one US server in SC2 if this block holds up!), the reasons why such a restriction is so awful are very obvious -- how do people play against friends in other parts of the world? How do good players play on the server with the best players, if it isn't in their region? Blizzard wants those things to be impossible, and that's despicable.
And, of course, the restrictions on mapmaking are so crippling to a major part of any Blizzard RTS. Custom maps are such a huge part of Blizzard RTS online play, crippling them so badly really is shocking... that must change.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 9th July 2010
Despicable? Really? That's the word you'd use? Yes I'd like the freedom to pick the server I want (and there's probably some .ini variable one can adjust), but I tend to save that word for... worse things.
What do you mean by crippled? Can you not still make and use whatever maps you want in a custom match?
Anonymity is overrated... - A Black Falcon - 9th July 2010
Not really. You haven't seen this, have you... have I really not posted this? I thought I did at some point in the last few weeks... hmm.
http://www.the-ghetto.org/content/battle-net-2-0-the-antithesis-of-consumer-confidence?df
Now I'm not sure which of these things Blizzard has changed, but the thing they just changed now is just the forum real name integration, not anything in the actual game as far as I know. Blizzard (or should I say Activision?) has more than earned that "despicable" by the stuff they've done ingame; the forum real name thing is minor in comparison to everything in the actual game. I mean, I haven't posted on Blizz's forums in many years, but I've played the games a lot...
Honestly, "despicable" is probably an understatement. Oh, and remember -- Starcraft and Warcraft III are my two favorite games of all time, and, along with Guild Wars, certainly my three most played games of all time. That's why this matters so much to me, and many other people. I'm sure the single player game will be fantastic, if limited to one race only (one more very stupid thing about the game)... but the online play? If it ships the way it is described in that article, I don't know how worth it playing the game online will really be...
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 9th July 2010
You used the word not at "Activision" in general but aimed just at the map thing. Honestly I preserve the word for, say, gutting kittens on live television, but that's just me. The movie "Despicable Me" probably wouldn't be as effectively titled if people thought something like not using a coaster justified using the word. Never mind, it's just one of those personal language pet peeves I guess.
Yeah it seems they've been making one bad decision after another with this. I've kinda been outside the "Blizzard" loop for a while, what with WC3 being the latest in my collection from them (and some Wow I tried way back when). I do read up on it every now and then. The writing's on the wall when Blizzard goes back on their word they'd never do micro transactions, and then I read they're selling in-game mounts (which admittedly look awesome) on their online store. So either you do a lot of work in the game to attain one, or you have a lot of disposable cash and just reach that same level using that. How exploitative...
While the article is rather "doom and gloom", there's some interesting points. Didn't read that you can't customize your maps however you like though. Did they specifically say you can't still trade maps the old fashioned way, via a custom game? I do like the cloud uploading option, so long as it's an option. Didn't like that their terms were the same as Sony's ill begotten terms with Mod Racers and LittleBigPlanet (Mod Racers is awesome by the way).
There's something to be said for this being the age of the internet where removing user's freedoms will be labelled as "adding value".
Anonymity is overrated... - A Black Falcon - 9th July 2010
Quote:There's something to be said for this being the age of the internet where removing user's freedoms will be labelled as "adding value".
Doublethink at its finest!
Quote:While the article is rather "doom and gloom", there's some interesting points. Didn't read that you can't customize your maps however you like though. Did they specifically say you can't still trade maps the old fashioned way, via a custom game? I do like the cloud uploading option, so long as it's an option. Didn't like that their terms were the same as Sony's ill begotten terms with Mod Racers and LittleBigPlanet (Mod Racers is awesome by the way).
If there is actually a normal custom game option, there won't be a problem. The issue is that it doesn't sound like there will be any such thing.
Quote:You used the word not at "Activision" in general but aimed just at the map thing. Honestly I preserve the word for, say, gutting kittens on live television, but that's just me. The movie "Despicable Me" probably wouldn't be as effectively titled if people thought something like not using a coaster justified using the word. Never mind, it's just one of those personal language pet peeves I guess.
I meant it for the whole of the new BNet, with all of the stuff mentioned in that article and with what they just backed down on. I absolutely think it's well deserved... the only question is, as I suggested, whether it was Blizzard or Activision that implemented this stuff. (Activision's probably the #1 most hated studio right now, and for some good reasons too, so it sure would be easy to blame them for it... :))
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 9th July 2010
Tying accounts to the serial number isn't too bad really, though to think about it even the console online services let you make as many extra accounts as you want (well, Wii doesn't, but then again Wii's online service sucks). As long as "guest logins" are allowed, it shouldn't be a big problem. I will miss the various chat rooms. Those were a nice social feature, that is, a REAL social feature, not "Facebook integration", whatever that means. Does my grandma really need to know my progress in Starcraft 2? The only people that will care are other Starcraft 2 players, and that can all be done IN Starcraft 2, or the Battle.net service in general. Of course it's all moot since I don't have a Facebook account anyway and will never get one with the privacy failings all over the news they're dealing with lately. If it tied into my google account? That might actually be interesting, but mainly because I could use GOOGLE'S cloud services to store all my custom maps, replays, and videos. Yeah, there's a lot of online service tie-in potential I do like, but a lot of what they're doing just... makes no sense at all.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 12th July 2010
You've got to be kidding me...
http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/12/esrb-accidentally-releases-email-addresses-of-real-id-complainan/
Say hello to spam.
Really though, with bandwidth as "wide" as it is today, why even HAVE a feature like "reply all" when "Blind Carbon Copy" does the same job PLUS privacy. At the very least, that should be the default behavior of modern e-mails applications when someone decides to "reply all".
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 12th July 2010
Honestly, I had no idea what BCC was. Writing an actual e-mail is an exceedingly rare occurrence for me. I've done it perhaps two dozen times in the last six or seven years.
Anonymity is overrated... - A Black Falcon - 12th July 2010
"Accidentally"? Hmm...
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 12th July 2010
Weltall Wrote:Honestly, I had no idea what BCC was. Writing an actual e-mail is an exceedingly rare occurrence for me. I've done it perhaps two dozen times in the last six or seven years.
How do you stay in touch with people then? Do you tend to call them instead or use forums online or just online chat?
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 12th July 2010
A Black Falcon Wrote:"Accidentally"? Hmm...
There ya go thinking the worst without due cause again. I know of more than enough instances of this sort of thing that it being an accident is very probable. It's the natural result of "reply all" doing a "CC" by default instead of "BCC". Some ignorant spokeperson not knowing the difference doesn't seem far off. I mean, how often do people mass-email the ESRB anyway?
I'm sure you can say there's some sort of motive, and you could even make the motive convincing. The problem is, while hindsight is 20/20, it doesn't benefit anyone in the past. Motive alone isn't solid evidence, whatever benefit you may imagine for them.
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 13th July 2010
Dark Jaguar Wrote:How do you stay in touch with people then? Do you tend to call them instead or use forums online or just online chat?
Facebook.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 13th July 2010
Seriously? Really? I wouldn't say that's nearly as ubiquitous as e-mail, or as powerful or easy to use (or as easy to notify someone else that they've received a message). ... I mean... really?
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 13th July 2010
....really?
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 13th July 2010
Almost everyone I know, friends and family alike, whom I wish to communicate with in a personal manner, has Facebook. Communication with people outside of this circle is done through the other media you listed.
I have email accounts primarily because you need one to sign up for things on the internet. As an actual tool of interpersonal communication, it is nothing more than a last-ditch redundancy for me.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 13th July 2010
Still you can hardly say it's that quick a means of communication. E-mail programs can be set to run in the background and alert you constantly as new mail arrives, and they can even be set up on modern phones and such. The protocol is "open" so pretty much anything can link into it. Facebook's just some web page. If someone wants to see if someone sent a guest book message, they gotta log into that page and then find out. The whole thing seems clunky to me as a solitary means of communicating with people. More to the point, how else do you contact the rest of the internet? E-mail is how you contact the ESRB. It's not like they're going to waste their time with a facebook page, and even if they did, that's NOT how you want to communicate something like this.
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 13th July 2010
If I want to contact someone quickly, I have a cell phone and so does practically everyone else in the developed world.
Why would I want to contact the ESRB?
Anonymity is overrated... - EdenMaster - 13th July 2010
Weltall Wrote:If I want to contact someone quickly, I have a cell phone and so does practically everyone else in the developed world.
Why would I want to contact the ESRB?
So you can complain, and then they release your and everyone else's emails to the public :D
Anonymity is overrated... - Weltall - 13th July 2010
I suppose. But, I have not spent even five minutes of my life playing any game developed by Blizzard, so I don't have any complaints to register.
Anonymity is overrated... - Dark Jaguar - 13th July 2010
Weltall Wrote:If I want to contact someone quickly, I have a cell phone and so does practically everyone else in the developed world.
Why would I want to contact the ESRB?
I doubt you would, but that's kinda what we were originally talking about and the thing that originally brought up the topic of e-mail, was it not?