Character name can't be hidden.

[katz]

Warnings that don't come with photographic evidence or basically an admission of guilt from the party in question are generally laughed off the boards.

BG just informs its own when people do things worthy of a multi-server warning. It's not a craplist, or a hitlist. It's a compendium of really bad things people have done. It promotes accountability. See? There's that word again.

If you Quartermastered some linkshell's Ridill in 2005, and it got put up on BG, I'm going to know about it when you apply to a linkshell in 2011. And depending on the mood of the recruiter, you will have to explain yourself, or you will be told to get lost.

Urm really......Forums shouldnt be used as a witch hunting mechanism. Most people just play the game to have fun. Those who take it to this level really need to examine why they waste time in the game looking for how bad other people are and a few bad eggs dont break good shells. Its the drama caused by witch hunts that do.

It doesnt matter what we say in this topic if its been decided then thats what we will be getting. Link your chars or get out of the forum simple choice.

[Karbuncle]

Urm really......Forums shouldnt be used as a witch hunting mechanism. Most people just play the game to have fun. Those who take it to this level really need to examine why they waste time in the game looking for how bad other people are and a few bad eggs dont break good shells. Its the drama caused by witch hunts that do.

It doesnt matter what we say in this topic if its been decided then thats what we will be getting. Link your chars or get out of the forum simple choice.

Nobody "Witch hunts" these people and nobody goes out of their way to harass people who have done nothing wrong. The BG "Warning" Section is really little more than a place where people who have done shameful, shady, or cruel things repeatedly are shown to warn others of their misdeeds. Its not meant to be a halt to their progress, It simply stands as a warning to be cautious with said people as in the past they've done bad things.

Again, Its not to ruin their gaming experience, Its to educate other people so that they can be cautious. I don't think I'm wording this correctly, what i'm trying to say its intention is not to "Witchhunt" these people, Its to educate others of their bad deeds to limit it from happening again.

I also don't think you understand the meaning of the term "Witch Hunt". It stands for an act where, due to paranoia or miseducations, people will hunt large masses of people under false assumptions and remove/kill them for it. Its based off the Salem Witch Trials where even being accused of being a witch was more than likely deadly.

a Player Warning is very far from a "Witch-hunt". They don't seek people out to burn them at the stake. The information rarely leaves that small sub-section. Its nothing more than a tool that can educate people to be cautious of certain players. I hate to repeat myself, but again, Its not meant to be a "DONT PLAY WITH THEM BRO" its more of a "If you're going to play with them, be cautious of this and this"

[Karbuncle]

Definition of a witch hunt is
"The term "witch-hunt" since the 1930s has also been in use as a metaphor to refer to moral panics in general (frantic persecution of perceived enemies). "

Isn't that what i said x.x? I guess I didn't draw attention to the term "Metaphor", But I was trying to describe it based on its roots "Attacking/Accusing/etc People due to panic and misinformation/Ignorance".

Either way, I'm relatively positive no one on BG is panicking to the point of religiously seeking out gimp players and metaphorically "hanging" them for it. Its nothing even remotely close to a Witch hunt, still >_>

[Byrth]

I don't know what's wrong with knowing the history of the people who apply to your linkshell. Do you guys want to remain ignorant of the fact that your friends have quartermastered alliance drops, that your e-gf is a baritone named Barry, or that Joe the Aegis got his Aegis by stealing his LS bank and RMTing what he didn't need?

Maybe ignorance is bliss (especially in the second case), but I'd rather know what to expect before they repeat their offenses. In FFXI, your reputation is the most important form of currency. Threads and systems like BG's player warnings and background checks make sure that this stays true even with the server transfer system. Some people (not from BG, that I know) are so committed to this idea that they made a whole website devoted to tracking a bad player.

Also, if there's no proof of a misdeed or the community judges the offense to be minor, it reflects more poorly on the person who brought the claims than the person they're trying to smear.

Point is, freaking out about less specific information than I could get about you and your account through the Linkshell Community website is a waste of time. If I made a level 1 mule and ran around spamming check on people, I'd collect a heck of a lot more information. Etc.

[Daremo]

Dozens of people know my real name and address, so I should put both on a giant billboard above a main street, because anyone could find them out, right? No.

Having information accessible to those who might care to search for it and having it advertised for any passer-by to see are not the same thing.

[Byrth]

Dozens of people know my real name and address, so I should put both on a giant billboard above a main street, because anyone could find them out, right? No.

Having information accessible to those who might care to search for it and having it advertised for any passer-by to see are not the same thing.

So you remove yourself from the phonebook?

[Daremo]

Actually, I have. My phone number is unlisted.

[RAIST]

So you remove yourself from the phonebook?

But you can't remove yourself from the county tax databases....which are public record and easily obtainable--some even post it freely and openly on the web. In some cases you can not only find the address, but also get a picture of the property, a property card with a diagram for the basic layout of the home, how much it's currently appraised for, how much it last sold for...even manage to find out a person's last reported annual income. Just from using their name.

Not exactly the best example to use in this debate.

[Atomic_Skull]

So you remove yourself from the phonebook?

In fact I do.