Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Fake lives and multiple personalities

Collapse
This topic is closed.
X
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Fake lives and multiple personalities

    In every forum, blog and chatroom I have ever been on there have always been a few people who are not who they say they are. They change their gender, age, nationality, country of residence and create non-existant jobs, workmates, friends, relatives, pets and partners to support the stories they have woven around themselves. Some go to the trouble of creating whole groups of families and friends that post on the same site and have lengthy dialogues between these fictional characters in an effort to support and prove their stories.

    There are many reasons to create these alternate lives. Some do it because they feel that their real lives are too humdrum or boring and use these created lives to escape into an unreal reality. Some do it as a means of protecting their own privacy. Some do it for a laugh. Some, however, do it nastily, hoping to use this life to impose their views and ideas on others. Some are fairly crude and can be spotted pretty quickly by those other posters they interact with, others are more subtle and cleverly done and are much harder to spot.

    I personally don't have a huge problem with people playing let's pretend with their lives, as long as the fakers don't adversely affect the posters they interact with.

    How do others feel about the topic? If somebody you have been talking to on a forum turns out to be not who they say they are how do you feel about it? If you have been talking about a topic with half a dozen people and they turn out to be the same person what is your reaction?

    Some forums I have been on out their sock puppets and fake lifers, others, such as here on GW, do not. When somebody is found out what should be done? Should posters with multiple personalities or fake existences be "outed" or not?
    Last edited by SeaBee; 17 October 2010, 12:14 PM.
    sigpic

    #2
    I tend to keep the conversation focused on Stargate and avoid threads that go into personal stuff. (Other then the chocolate thread, of course !) As for me, I think what little stuff I did tell about me has sunk away in the quicksand of the archive. Thank heavens. And my profile is pretty much a blank.

    Edit: Just wanted to say that I picked the name Janus for a reason. And if you want to know the guy behind the mask a little better...Well, you just have to follow the link and go Toaster Shopping with me.
    Last edited by Janus; 17 October 2010, 12:24 PM. Reason: The curse wreck lives !
    sigpic

    SGU Continued....

    Comment


      #3
      Well, that's the good/bad thing about 'web anonymity'.
      IMHO, it's just best to treat whatever anyone says, esp. about their personal lives, w/ a grain of salt/at least some measure of skepticism. (I mean, sure, the person may not be trying to convince you that he's an African bank president or some such, on the other hand it only takes one mistake to cost you something, yes? You can only be betrayed by those you trust, after all )

      I agree w/ Janus on his stance: try to stick to the topic/general theme of the forum you're in and avoid particulars, esp. in terms of personal info.

      As for whether or not 'fakers' should be 'outed': IMHO, only if there's a real cause for alarm/imminent threat (threat against life/property, I guess) *shrugs*
      perhaps better, too, if it's dealt w/ by the mods discreetly (e.g., PMing the parties involved, instead of immediately informing the whole community; only issuing a community-wide statement/alarm if the 'offender' really is potentially harmful...something like that. I've never been a mod, so...*shrugs* )
      sigpic

      Comment


        #4
        Nothing u can do about it you just need to be careful who u talk too.

        And for the record I am batman
        https://twitter.com/#!/Solar_wind84

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Pharaoh Atem View Post
          Nothing u can do about it you just need to be careful who u talk too.

          And for the record I am batman
          No your not.......Boy wonder.
          Originally posted by aretood2
          Jelgate is right

          Comment


            #6
            In all seriousness gw only outs member who have cheated in the fun games folder but it's never been policy to embarrass members publicly
            https://twitter.com/#!/Solar_wind84

            Comment


              #7
              Welcome to the internet. If you just accept that you can't really believe anything people tell you about themselves, you'll be fine. For some they just want to be protected, but others are trolls and will say or do anything for laughs.

              http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/jessi-slaughter

              This is why you should really shut up online and not get personal with people, because there is no such thing as anonymity on the internet unless you really know what you are doing.

              sigpic

              Comment


                #8
                I fully endorse that people need to protect themselves when on the net, especially younger users, who can easily give away too much information about themselves.

                But...
                A few years ago I got into an online conversation with another member of a forum. She seemed a genuine person and I was genuinely sorry about her health problems when she told me about them. I thought we were becoming friends. Then her husband, an occasional visitor to the forum, posted that his wife had taken a turn for the worse and was in hospital. He posted on and off over the next week or so, then informed her friends that she had sadly passed away. There was a huge outpouring of grief from the womans many friends, as well as many messages of sympathy to the husband.

                It was some time later, when I joined yet another forum, that I found the "dead" woman posting the same story under a similar name, with the same email address as before. I then did a little digging and found that not only had she faked her own death on the previous board, but her "husband" didn't exist and was her too.

                Maybe I was gullable in being taken in, but I felt stupid for not having seen her for the faker she was, and angry that I had wasted time sympathising for the loss of a friend who was no friend at all.
                sigpic

                Comment


                  #9
                  I must say that I never heard about sock puppets till I joined GW, and it took a long time to find that out here. OK call me stupid, naive , whatever, but I was shocked that it existed.
                  So, saying that, I suppose there are a lot of multiple people out there laughing their heads off because I don't have the slightest idea they are all one person. But that's their problem not mine. It used to bother me, but now I figure I'm being honest and sincere with them and talking with them as if they are all real, since I have no idea who is who.
                  Perhaps one day when they grow up they will feel ashamed that they led the rest of us on the way they did.
                  no means no, and so does pepper spray
                  Sig by The Carpenter
                  sigpic

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by Girlbot View Post
                    I must say that I never heard about sock puppets till I joined GW, and it took a long time to find that out here. OK call me stupid, naive , whatever, but I was shocked that it existed.
                    So, saying that, I suppose there are a lot of multiple people out there laughing their heads off because I don't have the slightest idea they are all one person. But that's their problem not mine. It used to bother me, but now I figure I'm being honest and sincere with them and talking with them as if they are all real, since I have no idea who is who.
                    Perhaps one day when they grow up they will feel ashamed that they led the rest of us on the way they did.
                    Okay my turn to be stupid and naive - What are 'sock puppets'? (I assume they're not the same as the one's my daughter makes?)
                    sigpic
                    Thank you ladygris for my lovely sig and avi

                    Comment


                      #11
                      i've encounted the fakes/made up personalities. i don't know what it says about a person that feels the need to deceive like that, but i wish there was a way of gateworld permanently banning them.
                      sally

                      sigpic

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by Madness reigns View Post
                        Okay my turn to be stupid and naive - What are 'sock puppets'? (I assume they're not the same as the one's my daughter makes?)
                        People open more than one account here at GW and use different usernames and post under those different names. And don't feel bad it was never a part of my experience before either.
                        no means no, and so does pepper spray
                        Sig by The Carpenter
                        sigpic

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by Madness reigns View Post
                          Okay my turn to be stupid and naive - What are 'sock puppets'? (I assume they're not the same as the one's my daughter makes?)
                          There are two kinds of sock puppets:

                          a) the kind that your daughter makes, kinda like these two...

                          Spoiler:




                          b) the kind that is one person with mutliple accounts to cheat in games, or to have someone that will always agree with their statement.

                          Sock puppets are also used by the roleplay gamers who create a new account for that purpose alone, in which case it's not considered a negative thing.
                          Heightmeyer's Lemming -- still the coolest Lemming of the forum

                          Proper Stargate Rewatch -- season 10 of SG-1

                          Comment


                            #14
                            I have to say that my experience with the undead friend has made me far more wary about my contacts with others on the net, and I often find myself wondering about the validity of other pronouncements, which is kind of sad.

                            I used to play an online game a couple of years ago, and became friendly with a number of other regular players. I was surprised to learn that a 19 year old girl was actually a 25ish year old male as in the conversations we had they came across very feminine.
                            sigpic

                            Comment


                              #15
                              I've witnessed the 'dramatic death' online.

                              a few years ago there was a fanfic awards, and one author was caught cheating. as in MASSIVELY cheating. she was privately contacted adn told that her fic were being disqualified...within a week her husband posted that she'd tragically died. thing is, she hadn't, cause she resurfaced, just under a different name.

                              That is why, with all due respect to those that really suffer tragedies, many online deaths are greeted with skepticism. Especially if the identity in question has recently suffered some sort of embarrassment.

                              There have also been individuals that wouldn't die, but would suddenly develop an illness if chastised in any way. The old 'feel sorry for me' ploy, to avoid responsibility for their actions. That's the mentality that often leads to one 'dying'.

                              there can be the benign 'fake life', where one keeps one's personal details vague, but there is the more malicious fake life that seems to be meant to cause trouble, or for one to serve as a puppet master, as s/he manipulates others.

                              there are others that simply abandon one identity and take up another one, often to escape their online past. they're not 'bad' as much as just wanting to get away from a reputation that is dogging them.

                              we've seen many variations over the years.
                              Where in the World is George Hammond?


                              sigpic

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X