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Wikipedia:Requests for comment/User names

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Cascadia (talk | contribs) at 18:13, 4 June 2007 (→‎tjstrf). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

This page is for bringing attention to usernames which may be in violation of Wikipedia's username policy. Before listing a username here, consider if it should be more appropriately reported elsewhere, or if it needs to be reported at all:

Do NOT post here if:

  • the user in question has made no recent edits.
  • you wish to have the block of a user reviewed. Instead, discuss the block with the blocking administrator (see also Wikipedia:Blocking policy § Unblocking).

Before adding a name here you MUST ensure that the user in question:

  • has been warned about their username (with e.g. {{subst:uw-username}}) and has been allowed time to address the concern on their user talk page.
  • has disagreed with the concern, refused to change their username and/or continued to edit without replying to the warning.
  • is not already blocked.

If, after having followed all the steps above, you still believe the username violates Wikipedia's username policy, you may list it here with an explanation of which part of the username policy you think has been violated. After posting, please alert the user of the discussion (with e.g. {{subst:UsernameDiscussion}}). You may also invite others who have expressed concern about the username to comment on the discussion by use of this template.

Add new requests below, using the syntax {{subst:rfcn1|username|2=reason ~~~~}}.

Tools: Special:ListUsers, Special:BlockList


Reports

Lord Bingham of Cornhill

Lord Bingham of Cornhill (talk · contribs)

I suspect that this contributor, while interested in the articles on English judges, is not Thomas Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill. -- ALoan (Talk) 21:04, 3 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]


'Lord Bingham of Cornhill' is unambiguously one person - there can not be two of them. So, unless this user can prove that they are Lord Bingham of Cornhill they should change their name as per policy. Dan Beale 22:36, 3 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]


tjstrf

tjstrf (talk · contribs)

This may be a slightly unusual move, but I am actually submitting myself here. This is because during the course of my RfA it came up that my name may be in violation of the rule against random usernames, and a couple people requested that I change it. For reference, I've never heard any complaints about it before this, and its meaning is explained on my userpage. After 10,000 edits, I don't want to change my name without a good reason, so I thought that an RFCN might be a good way of gathering feedback.
If I receive a reasonable number of complaints here that it is too difficult to remember/type, I'll request a voluntary username change even if there is no clear consensus to disallow. --tjstrf talk 02:51, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]


  • I find it distinctive enough. Yes, it's random, but it's only six letters long -- shorter than a phone number. (I find reading it as "tj's turf" makes it easier to remember.) The only consideration is that it might be easier for someone, let's hypothetically say a vandal, to spoof your name. tjstrf and tjtsrf look similar at first glance. Flyguy649talkcontribs 03:19, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • Funny you should mention the tjtsrf thing, since that exact prank's actually been done to me before. Easily fixed by preemptively registering the name though. --tjstrf talk 09:58, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • No issues with me either. TJ'S TuRF is a good mnemonic (thanks to Flyguy). NikoSilver 09:14, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • It's fine. If anyone complained about it (really?), then they are a foppish and doltish dandy. You can tell them I said that. Neil  10:08, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • Well, I don't think that violates the username policy in any way. Random usernames tend to be more than 8 characters long and since the user pointed out what it means, then it would be good idea to remove the name from here and close it. It is to be allowed :)..Cheers..--Cometstyles 10:53, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • Wait a minute... this is the foppish and doltish dandy speaking (hi Neil!). Yes, the username is a borderline case and may be somewhat recognisable (although I'd say that the fact that people are now proposing mnemonics is a good indication that it's not). The problem ist that WP:U forbids quasi-random names regardless of length, and admins are supposed to set an example. As an admin, Tj... will have to block usernames like "sdasg35" and "aaaaa!!", and with his present name, he'll have trouble justifying that to the blocked users. Sandstein 13:20, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
    I would very much hope a user named sdasg35 would not be blocked (or even aaaaa!! - how is that random?!). Five letters and a number is not random. User:Sdlohgjgrewgmrewph would be blocked; User:Sdlohg would not. Neil  16:26, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • I agree with Sandstein, as you might have a hard time justifying the name. Also, people might have a hard time remembering it. I wouldn't say that you'd have to change it per policy so much, but mostly that it might help you, as people will be able to easier find you. hmwithtalk 14:06, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • Obviously not a violation, I would say leave it, although I do confess that I am generous when it comes to random names. GDonato (talk) 15:32, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • No violation. And besides, long-time editors have an exception to the username rule. (At least so I've heard). --Ali'i 15:48, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • There was a recent name that was a string of numbers. People said that was random, but I found that to be less random than your name. Your name is, to me, random. Having a lower case 'J' in there doesn't help. It'd be hard for me to tell the difference between 'tjstrf' and, say 'tisrtf'. I'd strongly ask you to consider a nice clear sig, but I wouldn't force a name change. Was the "no random names" in the policy when you signed up? Dan Beale 15:53, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • "Apparently random" names were not disallowed when tjstrf made the account. I believe there's a precedent for allowing such names. The issue of opposing his RfA for such an issue is unrelated; the name is not a violation as it was allowed at the time of account creation. Leebo T/C 16:31, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I can only suggest that the people who asked you to change it have way too much time on their hands. Perhaps they should find more useful hobbies, like building a full-sized replica of the Eiffel Tower out of paper clips. TortureIsWrong 17:43, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Whether or not you are attempting to be humorous, as you indicated is often your intent, belittling the actions of other editors who are actively participating in the discussion is uncivil. I don't think I have to link to the policy by now. Leebo T/C 17:54, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • I do find it to be distinctive enought that I'll never get you confused with anyone else on Wikipedia, which is the major issue. However, the other issue is: if someone came along and used a similar username just to go trolling, would it be easily recognizable? (e.g., User:Netspine is recognizable). I would say not a big deal, but would gently hint that you could change your name to something a bit more distinctive (e.g., I don't know, Tajstoraf). The Evil Spartan 17:47, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • Two points. 1) It's not random enough to prevent anyone from remembering "TJS TRF". 2) If the policy was not in place when the username was created (as evidenced by Ali'i's link), then this discussion is invalid and moot, as the name is grandfathered in. CASCADIAHowl/Trail 18:13, 4 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]