Since Google has thrown their hat into the social networking ring the dilemma of pseudo names or handles as they are often referred to has renewed interest. Social networking is all about connecting people and how someone identifies themselves is a key part of who they are. A recent post by WordPress Developer Mitch Cantor of StudioNashVegas reveals some truths about handles ” …More people knew me by my twitter handle than my real name.”
Many people know that Facebook’s terms of service limit one account per person. However, many people have multiple accounts (myself included). I have various Facebook accounts to be able to see how much my ‘friends’ and ‘non-friends’ are able to see of my profiles. Some of this profile visibility can be done within your Facebook account but I do not trust Facebook when it comes to their privacy settings. There are also very valid reasons for not forcing some to use their real name. Domesticate violence is one example. Having one account per person also makes it difficult for a business because a business account must be linked to a personal one. This creates security issues when trying to grant multiple employees access to their business page on Facebook.
Defining the terms of service to include “use the name your friends, family or co-workers usually call you. “ is asking for trouble. I have been in workplaces where what coworkers call each other would not be appropriate for their online identities. Furthermore, how one is refer to by their mother is often different than friends.
I find it difficult to beleive that Google can not allow both pseudo names and real names on the same account. There are numerous people that use psedunames or handles on Twitter or posting in forums. In most cases a little searching will identify a persons true identity. According to Google+ Vice President, Bradley Horowitz ”put your other social names and aliases under nicknames which are searchable according to your Google+ privacy settings.” Why not let Google plus users determine their ‘default’ identity and then decide what other identities are searchable.
I am left to wonder how much of Google’s plans to stall business pages in Google Plus has contributed to this debate. Many of those that complained after being booting from Google Plus for violating the terms of service are professional bloggers. Most of the early entrants to Google Plus are ‘tech people’ and these people can quickly share the experience and failure of Google to build the Social Network 2.0.
