On the 13th of this month it'll be official: I'll have spent 6 years of my life on the forum. Yeah, I know that's peanuts compared to the people who joined in 2000. I'm still a newbie to them. But still, that's thousands of hours I've spent. It's safe to say that I've invested a great deal of time into this community, and it's the only online community that I'm so intimately linked with.

It dawned on me today, like jamais vu: Who is this Raithen guy? He certainly isn't me. You think I talk like this out in the real world, with big words and everything? Not a chance. I'm a lot funnier out there too, which is probably why no one laughs at my jokes here. For all intents and purposes, I've created this completely different human being who does not exist outside of the internet. He isn't me, I'm not him. The things I say out loud translate into something different through the keyboard. For six years I've been experiencing situations which don't apply directly to me, the real Ray Thien. I've spent six years accidently developing a personality that isn't mine. It just kind of hit me like a ton of bricks today that I've got this big disconnect between myself and who I am on the internet.

This is the craziest thing that's ever happened to me.

So let's talk alter egos and internet identities. Is your forum persona really 'you', or a watered down version? Did you strive to be someone cooler, better looking and smarter than you are in real life? Will I regret posting this tomorrow morning?

I don't want to discourage newer members from answering, but I'd imagine unless you've spent several years on the forum you may not have had the chance yet to develop an alternate internet personality.

It is me, just, a little, more, annoying.

I have a confession to make, I'm not really a monkey assassin in real life. Sorry to disappoint.

B-but... you have the avatar!

More like a [censored] cat.
Or a spider :shrug:

I have a non caring attitude, which is sort of fun when you see people blowup over a sentence that shows I don't care.

All the people I know in the outer world are either family or 50+

OHEMGEEWTFBBQ1!!@!$!

My hopes and dreams of some day having my own pet ninja monkey assassin were just shattered,you owe me a piece of pie or something.

As for the question,I act as I would normally on the forums,though on the internet in general I tend to make a lot more lame jokes then I usually would.

I think this is pretty much me. I guess I probably start conversations more casually in real life, but that's pretty much how a forum works.

I'm exactly the same in real life, actually funnier and more sociable because I have more than words to go by. Same with most people I've met off the forums, only one who posts here regularly now is Melvar though.

Eh, I guess I don't act this nerdy in my real life. But that's because I don't know any really nerdy people except myself.
I've always connected with the uhm... "cool kids" (in lack of better words... I know it's a stupid title). And I'm a lot like my friends, but also a lot nerdier. And I know they don't really like video games and generall nerdy-ness. But I don't lie to them about it, I just don't bring it up.
In the same way I generally don't bring up my drinking stories here, since I figure no one is interested.
But I do express my own opinions and I never lie about what I do or make up stories to make my life seem more interesting.
I'd say I'm 85% myself here.

And it's not me in the Avy either, I'm not that cool. I've gotten quite a few PMs asking me if that's really me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwGhTgHlPp8


OT:Yea I am basically the same as in real life as I am on the bored.I just don't talk nearly as much.

I'm not really a reptile in a dress, or a partially blind urban legend. Well I am partially blind.



Hmm, let's see.. nobody confuses my gender in real life (the main reason my avatar theme changed)

People find me funnier in real life, but not at actual jokes I make. At school I once made two dead serious points about blondes in France and dwarf actors, and on both occasions the entire room burst into laughter.


My sixuality is a lot less ambiguous offline as well. By which I mean "apparently non-existent". Smutty humour is not as well recieved in the real world, so I avoid the topic altogether. I am as vague, eccentric (probably more so) prone to extremes of emotion and obsessed with the minutiae of politics, electronics, sci fi and gaming as I am online as well, I just don't tend to talk about them to real people.


I imagine that after nearly three years here, I'd answer to the name Turns-The-Page in real life without even thinking, so probably I am quite integrated into the persona.

I guess my personality is pretty much as it is on the forum, http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b285/rogerhughtaylor/Mod%20Forum/RoBear.jpg

I'm exactly what my avatar looks like. No lie. Well, some lie.

I don't see any reason to supplement my regular characteristics other than speaking (typing?) in a more understandable manner. Also, I swear a lot (LOT) less. My "personality" is pretty much the same, though.

I pretty much act the same on the internet as I do in real life had it not been for the fact that my socal skills is pretty bad, though I would gladly talk to many of the forumers here in real life.

Well of course.

Looks like the mange hit the rest of your body.

I love you,Rohugh.

In a manly way though.... <_<

There are so many forumers I want to meet :sadvaultboy:

Honestly, I think the forum rules play a big role in how we act (And how we make our "other" selves). If we were allowed to say anything, many of us would talk to each other much differently. I know I would.

OK roger Taylor that made me
Oh my forum personality well it's complicated , off these forums I'm many things , very girlish with my boyfriend , silent and cold by certain people , easily angered , happy and spontaneous . Lazy and aloof and so on , my personalty isn't just one way. I'm a very diverse person and not many people see every side of it. I act in this forum as how I would act in real life 99.9% of the time. So no this profile doesn't have a life of it's own.
the fishy wanderer= Natalie Fish

I'm sorry, did you say something? :stare:

Agreed. But you can simply choose to ignore those people. (I'm guessing you mean that people would be a lot more aggressive towards each other.)
And I tend to do that in life as well, I never personally bother to be aggressive or angry towards anyone, I just ignore them.

That's a nice sweater.

Totally forgot about the "secret identity". My bad...

I would say I'm the same in real life. But like Sub Tonic said, things would be much different without the rules.
The rules are everything.

I'd probably be calling you all a bunch of pinko commies without them.