Every day or so, MTGSalvation gets a new member or two. More often than not, this new member has chosen a username that is, to be quite honest, very common and dull. Personality issues, or lack thereof, aside, most new members complain that they're overlooked; it's difficult to gain credibility.
The reason for this is that most usernames tend to blend in with each other. Cosmetically, what's the difference between Ryukin and Hyoken? Very little, despite their having no relation.
How many times have you seen several people in the same thread with an identical word in their respective names, such as Dark or Neo? It happens frequently enough to be noticeable.
I grow weary of seeing the same hackneyed username themes day in, day out, ad infinitum.
I know some people don't mind being known as SolidSnakeX37, but such names are apt to be forgotten as soon as the viewer is through glancing over the owner's post.
So here's a simple guide to the biggest Do's and Don'ts in creating an enjoyable username for yourself. Some of you down in front may wish to open a notebook and begin recording.
Rule 1: Avoid Numbers If Possible - This is a big one. The difference between BigJohnny and BigJohnny349 is that obviously the name without the numbers came first, as he didn't require a sequential ID to avoid confusion.
Having numbers at the end of your name demonstrates a lack of originality. There are millions of people online. Having numbers makes you a number, a meaningless drone in a crowd of many.
It is somewhat acceptable to use numbers if they have a strong significance, such as a number that has brought you great luck or your hockey jersey's number the year you won the title. Nobody will mind that, but don't expect to be instantly gratified for existing either.
Numbers to avoid at all costs: 666, 69, 1337, "#1".
Rule 2: 13375P34|< = BAD - This is a no-brainer to most, really, yet it must be stated so that nobody could say it was ignored.
Leetspeak was devised by a group of lonely, college geeks who had no life outside their pizza-box infested dormitory. Even if you too are a lonely college geek whittling the time away on EverQuest, by virtue of not being a co-inventor of 13375P34|<, you are cooler than that. Do not sink to this level! It is considered the lowest method of communication upon the internet, lower, even, than singles chatrooms on AOL.
Rule 3: You are NOT Vegita, Spike Spiegel or Cloud Strife! - There is something instantaneously phony about someone who arrives at a message board and calls himself Squall Lionheart. You want credibility? Don't rip off a popular series or video game. It reeks of fanboy-ism, which indicates an immature obsession or an inability to seperate reality from fiction. Imagination is priceless, but we left behind this level of pretend way back in the second grade.
Everybody knows that Trunks, Dante, Lara Croft and the rest are fictional. You're fooling only yourself.
DO NOT attempt to create a persona by combining several unrelated characters into one uber-fusion of ungodly might and breathtaking awe, such as Serious Link Highwind . PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!
And for God's sake, don't name yourself after an entire anime or video game series!! I cringe each time an inanimate concept such as Resident Evil, Macross or Twisted Metal Black somehow manifests itself into a real, moving, functioning being, then, invariably, heads straight to these forums to post inane opinions on unreleased software.
If you feel the need to be perceived as a particular icon, please make it one that isn't already idolized by hundreds of thousands of rabid fans. A good choice would be a lesser Marvel comics villain, such as Judas Traveller or High Evolutionary, for just two examples.
Rule 4: If Everybody Else Is Doing It, Then You Don't Need To As Well! - There are a great many words which appear in usernames frequently, so much so that distinguishing between those who have varying combinations of these internet buzzwords is downright frustrating.
Take the following sample names: DarkNinjaX and XDarkness - These are obviously different when placed side by side, yet in scrolling through an assortment of posts, their unique features tend to smear together in a disgusting blur of hackneyed jargon. Toss in some more overused lingo and it may as well be the same person posting repeatedly.
The problem with most of these words is that they all reflect some sort of angst. Within each, there's an implication of impending doom, as though the user were absolutely writhing with a desire to destroy either himself or humanity-at-large.
See, we don't care about your angst. You're not the only person who has problems with which to contend, so your suffering doesn't need to be made ours by having a name that demonstrates the kind of embittered, tortured, misunderstood soul that you really are. Yeah, you, the guy wearing the Blink182 shirt and shoving Hostess cupcakes into his mouth at 135 mph. You're so full of suffering, aren't you? Get real.
Instant buzzkills: Hyper, Dark, Fallen, Neo, X, Hell, Mega, Final, King, Lord, Shadow, Eternal, Soul, Night, Grim, amongst numerous others.
If you wanna be angsty or mysterious, make it good. Gloryblaze works just fine. Empty Heart is pure cheese.
Rule 5: Excessive Punctuation Is Not a Substitute for Creativity - This is to say that your name is not rendered qualitative by bracketing it in obscure punctuation symbols. Worse yet, using nothing but hard to find accents, octothorps and foreign currency marks as your username is downright annoying, especially for those who would wish to address you by said name.
Imagine typing out the following name several times a day: xX$quelch~Xx - Your mind would go numb after locating the various shift coordinates for each mention of this cretin's name.
Should you find the desire to include punctuation, please note that it rarely ever makes your name appear more attractive. Perhaps "~~@" symbolizes a rose in IRC, but it doesn't do much for your actual name except overcomplicate it with needless ideography.
Rule 6: There Are Thousands of Asian Names and They All Tend to Look the Same, Especially to Non-Asians - As pointed out earlier in this tutorial, the frequency of names inspired by the Asian culture is ever-growing. Granted, many of us think the various cultures of Japan, Indonesia and China are fascinating, yet when filtering through hundreds of people in one Forum, it is increasingly complex to tell the Asian names apart.
This is not meant as a slander to those of authentic Asian descent; you are quite justified in your wishes to use an Asian name, for you hail from the land of Overpriced Big Macs. This is your native tongue.
For everyone else, give it a rest. Back in 1996, when the internet was still primarily used by fat, pimply, engineering majors who had good reason to disguise their true natures, acting as though you were of another culture was permissable, albeit dishonest.
Now, the internet is used by geeks, soccer moms, inner-city folk, jet-setters, the elderly, etc. There's no real reason to hide yourself, because nobody truly cares anymore. Nearly everyone uses the net, therefore there's no reason to not be true to yourself. If you're still the kind of person who consistently asks "a/s/l?", then these forums is not for you in the first place.
This having been said, the glut of names based upon Asian culture simply because it's the cool culture to be, at the moment, is ridiculous. There are so many names in this style that very few can honestly keep them organized in their minds.
In other words, A Hikari is a Shoujin is an Umezawa is a Yi Xing.
If you use this kind of username, don't become offended whenever someone innocently confuses you with another member whose Asian name contains similar letters. He's out there somewhere.
Rule 7: Be Kind to Our Eyes - This is a short one, but this rule is nonetheless broken periodically by insensitive, possibly mentally deficient, people who think the "Caps Lock" key is there to keep their hat firmly on their head while they play their Megadeth albums at 170 decibels, as they type.
Simply put, using names in all capital letters is very harsh when the name is displayed in bright, white lettering in your userbox.
Here, let's see how this looks: PARTY ANIMAL - Pretty bold, huh?
Aesthetics aside, captial letters is the internet way of raising your voice. Anything written in consistent capitalizations is the writer's way of screaming at you. HE WANTS TO BE NOTICED!
To waltz into a new message board and register a name in capitalized entirity is rather grandiose and quite presumptuous. You're effectively shouting your presence at everyone, which looks poor upon you. Most people, by now, have established a knee-jerk reaction to completely ignore people who do this, as a way of compensating for the raucous noise they constantly make whenever they enter a thread.
Wanna make matters worse? Then bewilder us with alternating capital and lowercase letters. It'S a PaIn In ThE bUtToCkS tO dEcIpHeR, i AsSuRe YoU. It's even more vexing to type out. 99% of all users will completely diregard your flair for the shift key by typing your name as it would have been chosen by a more sane, less ego-driven person. Hence, SeAtTlEsLeW would be made into SeattleSlew and the only person wasting their time will be you each time you log in.
One other note, don't purposely misspell words to the point of mangling them completely. RaccoonLover is a fine name, but when given the idiot treatment, it becomes RakoonLuvvr. That looks amazingly...dense. It's as though you're telling us that you either cannot spell basic words or that you're too lazy to bother with acceptable communication skills. Either way, you'll be hated, shunned and driven from the boards.
Those are basically the big rules of ettiquette. Obey them and, although your name may not be overly creative, you will be accepted just fine.
"So, how do I go about creating a better username while avoiding the most common mistakes presented above?"
I'm glad you mentally asked that as you read this, just now, exactly when I prompted you. Have a cookie.
There's no one, true method of obtaining a name that is seen as creative, unique or interesting. It's a process of trial and error. Possessing a strong imagination helps, as does a solid grasp of the English language. (I say English because this is the tongue most commonly used here on MTGSalvation Forums. For other boards, German may be the status quo. I don't visit everywhere.)
Some tricks to creating a good name are as follows.
Examine Yourself - No odd lumps? Good. Now search your personality and think about what makes you tick. Do you enjoy sports or are you a good chess player? Do you tend to be a worker, a doer or are you shiftless and apathetic? Are you peaceful or violent? Knowing yourself can help create a good username, based upon your personality. Choose a feature that is a reasonable representation of yourself and work with it.
Remember! Avoid angsty names! They make you look whiny!
Find a Nifty Word - This is how some people do it. They scour a dictionary or thesaurus and look for an odd, yet pleasing word, then make an alteration or two, or perhaps none at all. What's left is an interesting concept that catches people's attention as they read your name. The name Ziggurat is far more interesting than HockeyFan. It evokes a certain air of mystery, whereas hockey fans are as common as seagulls at a McDonalds parking lot.
Demonstrate Some Wit - This is something of an accelerated skill, not to be attempted by the depressed or the weak of conviction. But if you can pull it off, then more power to you!
If you can create a play on words, something that flows or makes a small joke, then you're well on your way to a good username. Words (or phrases) that end and seamlessly flow into another word by way of identical spelling are excellent as usernames. Consider something as follows: Utopium, Alphanumerican, Retrogradio and Precious Gemini are all quite viably usernames of quality.
But it can work for any pun or phrase. Here's some right off the top of my head. JohnnyComeLately, Lola Palooza, OREOSpeedwagon and President Evil. They're not fantastic, but very few people would give you an iota of grief over names like this.
Go for the Bizarre - Seriously, this works. Some of the most interesting names I've ever seen were combinations of items or ideas that I would have never otherwise placed next to wach other in my mind.
The more odd the reference, the better. One of my favorites from the past was PsychicSandwich. That had class, albeit a very warped sense of class.
If you cannot identify one representative trait or cannot find a phrase that flows, make something strange up. The more random, the more likely it is to work! It shows that you're zany, which is a quirk people seem to flock to, for some reason.
You can do this with a dictionary and a blindfold, by searching through your garage for odd baubles or simply by brainstorming about things that make you laugh, such as tube socks or weevils.
Many times, an adjective followed by a noun heightens the hilarity. Things are always funnier when juxtaposed with unrelated, typically inapplicable traits.
Bonus points for rhymes and alliteration!
Let's try it together! Disgruntled Chainsaw, Neon Lemonade, PorchWeasel, ZootFruit
See? Instant weird! Few people wish to risk exposure to such mental instability, so the result is that you'll usually be given a smooth ride into eventual acceptance.
Don't be scary-weird though. Something along the lines of Cornpooper is going to raise quite a few eyebrows, not necessarily in a good way.
The rest is pretty much up to you. The methods are vast, the possibilities endless. It only takes a few minutes of your time to design an acceptably good username. It doesn't have to be cybergold, but avoiding the most common and frustrating mistakes most newbies make will help your cause greatly.
(Apologies to any upstanding member of MTGSalvation Forums whose presence is enjoyed despite your having violated one or more of these basic procedures. Next time, you'll learn.:p)
Heh. Most of that makes quite a bit of sense. I have to admit, though, that my username was originally derived from professional wrestling and, thus, was a quite popular one while this wrestler and the fed he was in were still alive and kicking. I was, however, the very first person to register it with MSN/Hotmail, so I guess that's not too bad. I've just stuck with it over the years since I've had it on my email address for going on 7 years now.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"...because without beer, things do not seem to go as well."
The Butte Blues was a hockey team I played for, and I had #18... :D... It kind of stuck, and that's been my e-mail and all that stuff since then. :smile01:
cool,... Im trying to decide if that would of been a cool onsite topic for article. well a lot of people have seen Qwerty, not as many people as you would think ''click'' its the top 6 alpha keys from left to right on most english based keyboards. Its also a bit leetish but hey like it matters.
Qwerty
:bmage:
I'm waiting for the day your German counterpart, QWERZ, shows up.
99% of all users will completely diregard your flair for the shift key by typing your name as it would have been chosen by a more sane, less ego-driven person. Hence, SeAtTlEsLeW would be made into SeattleSlew and the only person wasting their time will be you each time you log in.
Log-in isn't case sensitive.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
By kingcobweb and Goblinboy.
Official Elitist of [thread=40859][RBS][/thread]
Quote from kingcobweb »
I don't understand the purpose of gimmick accounts.
i break rule 2 on a daily basis but i have a good reason to mu folks ar prinoid cristins theve got at least 5 different filters in tis box i can't even say G4m3 properly becaus it gets blocked out. which is kinda sad
Hahaa! I never violate the rules. Most people have no idea where my name comes from, even though I've been using the same one in cyberspace for over a decade.
I am gulty of having an unoriginal avatar. I'll change all that when I hit 1000.
When 900 years old you reach, look as good you will not! Hmph!
After the coming of LOTR:FOTR into the theatres, I have been dragged into the Tolkien world, that I managed to evade for years, and I have quickly become obsessed by it. I have read all his Middle-Earth related books, and I simply love the Silmarillion. Caranthir the Dark, fourth son of Fëanor, did not have a significant role in the overall story, but the sound of the name always sends a chill down my spine. Therefore, when registering at MTGNews, I have chosen this name. I do not know if I am not breaking rule 3, but I think that just this name is not widely known even among the standard LOTR fans, thus less among others.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
100% Vorthos Spike and Storyline Expert
Former Fact Prospector of the Greek Alliance.
Let this great clan rest in peace (2001-2011)
That still doesn't change the fact that such names as "SeAtTlEsLeW" and the like are horrid.
Quote from Grimclaw »
Damn, I violated rule 4 and most probably rule 3:p
Ah well, ever since I first saw Grimclaw Bats I have used this name in every possible game/forum/site/whatever-on-internet. And I still love the card, so I still like the name:D
Quote from godslefthand »
If you feel the need to be perceived as a particular icon, please make it one that isn't already idolized by hundreds of thousands of rabid fans. A good choice would be a lesser Marvel comics villain, such as Judas Traveller or High Evolutionary, for just two examples.
I'ld say you have little to worry about here in terms of what you choose your screen name on. What matters is content, but things such as style and presentation, are precontexts for things such as how well people will listen to you, and wether or not they will dismiss and your points outright.
Quote from Galvatron »
i break rule 2 on a daily basis but i have a good reason to mu folks ar prinoid cristins theve got at least 5 different filters in tis box i can't even say G4m3 properly becaus it gets blocked out. which is kinda sad
You could spend your time learning about computers and how they work so you could shut filters such as that off you know. Ignorance is not an excuse for apathy or laziness. I empathize though, I really do. If you need help more on this matter, PM me.
Quote from Caranthir »
Therefore, when registering at MTGNews, I have chosen this name. I do not know if I am not breaking rule 3, but I think that just this name is not widely known even among the standard LOTR fans, thus less among others.
Grimclaw and yourself have actually been a good examples of the types of imitation that is quite acceptable.
Rule 3: You are NOT Vegita, Spike Spiegel or Cloud Strife! - There is something instantaneously phony about someone who arrives at a message board and calls himself Squall Lionheart. You want credibility? Don't rip off a popular series or video game. It reeks of fanboy-ism, which indicates an immature obsession or an inability to seperate reality from fiction. Imagination is priceless, but we left behind this level of pretend way back in the second grade.
For the sake of breaking our rule against one-word posts... Hey!
Besides, through this username I have proudly adopted the nickname, Wolfy!
I'm glady I gald I never broken any of those rules and I used those tricks when I came up with the Name, BaaPuff. Except I didn't look for Lumps. I'm have to compelety agree with this guideline. And Please no, WoRdInG LiKe ThIs, It confuses me and it's annoying.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Creator of The Crazy Cycle Contest [CCC]
:bunny:Ex Co-Keeper of Tribal, Multiplayer and Peasant Make a Deck
Ex-Clan Representative and The Woolliest Pirate Of The [Forum Pirates]
Ex-Super-Friend of The Random Bull**** Society
Ex-Woolliest Friend of [Hyrule]
Besides, through this username I have proudly adopted the nickname, Wolfy!
Or been proudly dubbed "Wolfcock" by others...
I don't remember how I got my name, or even why I use it. Is it original? I don't see many others using it. Is it extravagent? No... But how 'bout a nice cup of "Who gives a ****?" and we'll call it even?
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
My weakness is I care too much.
"For every heart that finds a love, there is a heart that cries.
For every dream that is re-born there is a dream that dies.
For every day in sunlight, there is a day of rain.
For every hour filled with joy there is an hour of pain.
For every smile upon a face there is a tear to cry.
For every fond hello we say there is a sad goodbye."
I agree to everything you said except for the Asian names... this problem could happen if we start using Western names, too. For instance, let's say five new members register, and they're named John, Jon, Jan, Johnny, and JohnnyBoy. Being more exposed to Western names than Asian names, I would find this bunch of names common and more confusing than, let's say, Ryu and Ryo.
I suggest that you make up something else like, "Avoid using common first names".
Good work godslefthand, its about time someone did something like this because if you can be bothered to scroll through the members list you can see just how many people got it wrong.
As for my name, its unique as far as i know, i invented it specifically for magic forums and other fantasy/sci-fi related things. Its basically Mach- from machivellian and -ius as a standard fantasy style name ending.
I think my user name is pretty good. It was taken from a game, but it is not one of the characters. Can anyone guess the game, its old school!
Is it from Snake, Rattle, N' Roll? (Was on the NES) Because I think those spherical guys were Pibbs, or something like that...
I used to play Savage, (but I like FPS games now) and I used a weapon called Surge. (If any of you have played Savage, you should probably know what Surge was) If you don't know, Surge is an entropic weapon (entropic means earth) that fires a steady bolt of neon green energy at your opponent. I really liked the surge weapon, and I would sometimes wreck people with it, causing chaos and pandemonium. And so surge and chaos stuck, and I became Surging_Chaos.
My name though, is contradictory to what I play in Magic. (Nothing beats blue in my world.)
I broke the cardinal rule... although I suppose my name falls under the "strong significance" category. It was originally meant to represent cubing (i.e. Nex3), but most logins can't take that, so I just use "Nex3." In fact, that's what I use for all my electronic names; it's very handy in that I can put in "NEX" for the three-letter highscores on some games.
Agreed, agreed, and agreed. I hate unoriginal names. I enjoy my username because it means something to me and it is very unique. believe me, even if you think nameing yourself after some character is cool now, after using the same name for several years, you'll grow out of it fast.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Loonook > Jesus
Loonook = Nothing
Nothing > Jesus
Well, seems like spoiler chains(And with them my old sig) have been broken by The Man.
The Man is a Jackass and apparently he is also a Communist.
GET OUT OF MY HEAD YOU MODS! MY SIG IS NOT FOR EDITING!:mad:
Currently accepting disciples. Inquire within. ORDER THE CAKE DAMNIT!
Ya, thats the game, i have been found out. The game rox tho. The final boss wasnt THAT hard.
The ice feet were INSANELY hard to kill. You had to constantly attack them over and over to make them die, and if you screw up, you have to start all over again. Not to mention that if they stomp you, you automatically die.
extremeicon: Yeah, I had a feeling it was something like that. Just has been forever since I played the game.
Man, all this talk wants me to grab my old NES and play my huge treasure trove of old-school games. (Metroid was my favorite, but I got wiped out when it came to the Mother Brain...)
The reason for this is that most usernames tend to blend in with each other. Cosmetically, what's the difference between Ryukin and Hyoken? Very little, despite their having no relation.
How many times have you seen several people in the same thread with an identical word in their respective names, such as Dark or Neo? It happens frequently enough to be noticeable.
I grow weary of seeing the same hackneyed username themes day in, day out, ad infinitum.
I know some people don't mind being known as SolidSnakeX37, but such names are apt to be forgotten as soon as the viewer is through glancing over the owner's post.
So here's a simple guide to the biggest Do's and Don'ts in creating an enjoyable username for yourself. Some of you down in front may wish to open a notebook and begin recording.
Rule 1: Avoid Numbers If Possible - This is a big one. The difference between BigJohnny and BigJohnny349 is that obviously the name without the numbers came first, as he didn't require a sequential ID to avoid confusion.
Having numbers at the end of your name demonstrates a lack of originality. There are millions of people online. Having numbers makes you a number, a meaningless drone in a crowd of many.
It is somewhat acceptable to use numbers if they have a strong significance, such as a number that has brought you great luck or your hockey jersey's number the year you won the title. Nobody will mind that, but don't expect to be instantly gratified for existing either.
Numbers to avoid at all costs: 666, 69, 1337, "#1".
Rule 2: 13375P34|< = BAD - This is a no-brainer to most, really, yet it must be stated so that nobody could say it was ignored.
Leetspeak was devised by a group of lonely, college geeks who had no life outside their pizza-box infested dormitory. Even if you too are a lonely college geek whittling the time away on EverQuest, by virtue of not being a co-inventor of 13375P34|<, you are cooler than that. Do not sink to this level! It is considered the lowest method of communication upon the internet, lower, even, than singles chatrooms on AOL.
Rule 3: You are NOT Vegita, Spike Spiegel or Cloud Strife! - There is something instantaneously phony about someone who arrives at a message board and calls himself Squall Lionheart. You want credibility? Don't rip off a popular series or video game. It reeks of fanboy-ism, which indicates an immature obsession or an inability to seperate reality from fiction. Imagination is priceless, but we left behind this level of pretend way back in the second grade.
Everybody knows that Trunks, Dante, Lara Croft and the rest are fictional. You're fooling only yourself.
DO NOT attempt to create a persona by combining several unrelated characters into one uber-fusion of ungodly might and breathtaking awe, such as Serious Link Highwind . PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!
And for God's sake, don't name yourself after an entire anime or video game series!! I cringe each time an inanimate concept such as Resident Evil, Macross or Twisted Metal Black somehow manifests itself into a real, moving, functioning being, then, invariably, heads straight to these forums to post inane opinions on unreleased software.
If you feel the need to be perceived as a particular icon, please make it one that isn't already idolized by hundreds of thousands of rabid fans. A good choice would be a lesser Marvel comics villain, such as Judas Traveller or High Evolutionary, for just two examples.
Rule 4: If Everybody Else Is Doing It, Then You Don't Need To As Well! - There are a great many words which appear in usernames frequently, so much so that distinguishing between those who have varying combinations of these internet buzzwords is downright frustrating.
Take the following sample names: DarkNinjaX and XDarkness - These are obviously different when placed side by side, yet in scrolling through an assortment of posts, their unique features tend to smear together in a disgusting blur of hackneyed jargon. Toss in some more overused lingo and it may as well be the same person posting repeatedly.
The problem with most of these words is that they all reflect some sort of angst. Within each, there's an implication of impending doom, as though the user were absolutely writhing with a desire to destroy either himself or humanity-at-large.
See, we don't care about your angst. You're not the only person who has problems with which to contend, so your suffering doesn't need to be made ours by having a name that demonstrates the kind of embittered, tortured, misunderstood soul that you really are. Yeah, you, the guy wearing the Blink182 shirt and shoving Hostess cupcakes into his mouth at 135 mph. You're so full of suffering, aren't you? Get real.
Instant buzzkills: Hyper, Dark, Fallen, Neo, X, Hell, Mega, Final, King, Lord, Shadow, Eternal, Soul, Night, Grim, amongst numerous others.
If you wanna be angsty or mysterious, make it good. Gloryblaze works just fine. Empty Heart is pure cheese.
Rule 5: Excessive Punctuation Is Not a Substitute for Creativity - This is to say that your name is not rendered qualitative by bracketing it in obscure punctuation symbols. Worse yet, using nothing but hard to find accents, octothorps and foreign currency marks as your username is downright annoying, especially for those who would wish to address you by said name.
Imagine typing out the following name several times a day: xX$quelch~Xx - Your mind would go numb after locating the various shift coordinates for each mention of this cretin's name.
Should you find the desire to include punctuation, please note that it rarely ever makes your name appear more attractive. Perhaps "~~@" symbolizes a rose in IRC, but it doesn't do much for your actual name except overcomplicate it with needless ideography.
Rule 6: There Are Thousands of Asian Names and They All Tend to Look the Same, Especially to Non-Asians - As pointed out earlier in this tutorial, the frequency of names inspired by the Asian culture is ever-growing. Granted, many of us think the various cultures of Japan, Indonesia and China are fascinating, yet when filtering through hundreds of people in one Forum, it is increasingly complex to tell the Asian names apart.
This is not meant as a slander to those of authentic Asian descent; you are quite justified in your wishes to use an Asian name, for you hail from the land of Overpriced Big Macs. This is your native tongue.
For everyone else, give it a rest. Back in 1996, when the internet was still primarily used by fat, pimply, engineering majors who had good reason to disguise their true natures, acting as though you were of another culture was permissable, albeit dishonest.
Now, the internet is used by geeks, soccer moms, inner-city folk, jet-setters, the elderly, etc. There's no real reason to hide yourself, because nobody truly cares anymore. Nearly everyone uses the net, therefore there's no reason to not be true to yourself. If you're still the kind of person who consistently asks "a/s/l?", then these forums is not for you in the first place.
This having been said, the glut of names based upon Asian culture simply because it's the cool culture to be, at the moment, is ridiculous. There are so many names in this style that very few can honestly keep them organized in their minds.
In other words, A Hikari is a Shoujin is an Umezawa is a Yi Xing.
If you use this kind of username, don't become offended whenever someone innocently confuses you with another member whose Asian name contains similar letters. He's out there somewhere.
Rule 7: Be Kind to Our Eyes - This is a short one, but this rule is nonetheless broken periodically by insensitive, possibly mentally deficient, people who think the "Caps Lock" key is there to keep their hat firmly on their head while they play their Megadeth albums at 170 decibels, as they type.
Simply put, using names in all capital letters is very harsh when the name is displayed in bright, white lettering in your userbox.
Here, let's see how this looks: PARTY ANIMAL - Pretty bold, huh?
Aesthetics aside, captial letters is the internet way of raising your voice. Anything written in consistent capitalizations is the writer's way of screaming at you. HE WANTS TO BE NOTICED!
To waltz into a new message board and register a name in capitalized entirity is rather grandiose and quite presumptuous. You're effectively shouting your presence at everyone, which looks poor upon you. Most people, by now, have established a knee-jerk reaction to completely ignore people who do this, as a way of compensating for the raucous noise they constantly make whenever they enter a thread.
Wanna make matters worse? Then bewilder us with alternating capital and lowercase letters. It'S a PaIn In ThE bUtToCkS tO dEcIpHeR, i AsSuRe YoU. It's even more vexing to type out. 99% of all users will completely diregard your flair for the shift key by typing your name as it would have been chosen by a more sane, less ego-driven person. Hence, SeAtTlEsLeW would be made into SeattleSlew and the only person wasting their time will be you each time you log in.
One other note, don't purposely misspell words to the point of mangling them completely. RaccoonLover is a fine name, but when given the idiot treatment, it becomes RakoonLuvvr. That looks amazingly...dense. It's as though you're telling us that you either cannot spell basic words or that you're too lazy to bother with acceptable communication skills. Either way, you'll be hated, shunned and driven from the boards.
Those are basically the big rules of ettiquette. Obey them and, although your name may not be overly creative, you will be accepted just fine.
"So, how do I go about creating a better username while avoiding the most common mistakes presented above?"
I'm glad you mentally asked that as you read this, just now, exactly when I prompted you. Have a cookie.
There's no one, true method of obtaining a name that is seen as creative, unique or interesting. It's a process of trial and error. Possessing a strong imagination helps, as does a solid grasp of the English language. (I say English because this is the tongue most commonly used here on MTGSalvation Forums. For other boards, German may be the status quo. I don't visit everywhere.)
Some tricks to creating a good name are as follows.
Examine Yourself - No odd lumps? Good. Now search your personality and think about what makes you tick. Do you enjoy sports or are you a good chess player? Do you tend to be a worker, a doer or are you shiftless and apathetic? Are you peaceful or violent? Knowing yourself can help create a good username, based upon your personality. Choose a feature that is a reasonable representation of yourself and work with it.
Remember! Avoid angsty names! They make you look whiny!
Find a Nifty Word - This is how some people do it. They scour a dictionary or thesaurus and look for an odd, yet pleasing word, then make an alteration or two, or perhaps none at all. What's left is an interesting concept that catches people's attention as they read your name. The name Ziggurat is far more interesting than HockeyFan. It evokes a certain air of mystery, whereas hockey fans are as common as seagulls at a McDonalds parking lot.
Demonstrate Some Wit - This is something of an accelerated skill, not to be attempted by the depressed or the weak of conviction. But if you can pull it off, then more power to you!
If you can create a play on words, something that flows or makes a small joke, then you're well on your way to a good username. Words (or phrases) that end and seamlessly flow into another word by way of identical spelling are excellent as usernames. Consider something as follows: Utopium, Alphanumerican, Retrogradio and Precious Gemini are all quite viably usernames of quality.
But it can work for any pun or phrase. Here's some right off the top of my head. JohnnyComeLately, Lola Palooza, OREOSpeedwagon and President Evil. They're not fantastic, but very few people would give you an iota of grief over names like this.
Go for the Bizarre - Seriously, this works. Some of the most interesting names I've ever seen were combinations of items or ideas that I would have never otherwise placed next to wach other in my mind.
The more odd the reference, the better. One of my favorites from the past was PsychicSandwich. That had class, albeit a very warped sense of class.
If you cannot identify one representative trait or cannot find a phrase that flows, make something strange up. The more random, the more likely it is to work! It shows that you're zany, which is a quirk people seem to flock to, for some reason.
You can do this with a dictionary and a blindfold, by searching through your garage for odd baubles or simply by brainstorming about things that make you laugh, such as tube socks or weevils.
Many times, an adjective followed by a noun heightens the hilarity. Things are always funnier when juxtaposed with unrelated, typically inapplicable traits.
Bonus points for rhymes and alliteration!
Let's try it together! Disgruntled Chainsaw, Neon Lemonade, PorchWeasel, ZootFruit
See? Instant weird! Few people wish to risk exposure to such mental instability, so the result is that you'll usually be given a smooth ride into eventual acceptance.
Don't be scary-weird though. Something along the lines of Cornpooper is going to raise quite a few eyebrows, not necessarily in a good way.
The rest is pretty much up to you. The methods are vast, the possibilities endless. It only takes a few minutes of your time to design an acceptably good username. It doesn't have to be cybergold, but avoiding the most common and frustrating mistakes most newbies make will help your cause greatly.
(Apologies to any upstanding member of MTGSalvation Forums whose presence is enjoyed despite your having violated one or more of these basic procedures. Next time, you'll learn.:p)
#2. Dungeon Keeper Ami; Proving that sometimes the best Villians are the ones who used to be Heros.
#3. Ow, My Sanity: There are things man was not meant to love.
The Butte Blues was a hockey team I played for, and I had #18... :D... It kind of stuck, and that's been my e-mail and all that stuff since then. :smile01:
[KalmWave] [Last.FM]
Ubuntu Linux
I'm waiting for the day your German counterpart, QWERZ, shows up.
Log-in isn't case sensitive.
By kingcobweb and Goblinboy.
Official Elitist of [thread=40859][RBS][/thread]
need web design and other services check us out.
http://www.webstudio914.com/
I am gulty of having an unoriginal avatar. I'll change all that when I hit 1000.
When 900 years old you reach, look as good you will not! Hmph!
Let this great clan rest in peace (2001-2011)
That still doesn't change the fact that such names as "SeAtTlEsLeW" and the like are horrid.
I'ld say you have little to worry about here in terms of what you choose your screen name on. What matters is content, but things such as style and presentation, are precontexts for things such as how well people will listen to you, and wether or not they will dismiss and your points outright.
You could spend your time learning about computers and how they work so you could shut filters such as that off you know. Ignorance is not an excuse for apathy or laziness. I empathize though, I really do. If you need help more on this matter, PM me.
Grimclaw and yourself have actually been a good examples of the types of imitation that is quite acceptable.
#2. Dungeon Keeper Ami; Proving that sometimes the best Villians are the ones who used to be Heros.
#3. Ow, My Sanity: There are things man was not meant to love.
For the sake of breaking our rule against one-word posts... Hey!
Besides, through this username I have proudly adopted the nickname, Wolfy!
Wolfwood Sama on MTGO (Westane for PureMTGO community events)
UR - Burning Vengeance
BG - The Rock
RUG - RUG Control
BBB - Zombies
/me worships god'slefthand
It's about time someone went out and made something like this. I'm sick of crappy unoriginal user names :slant:
Creator of The Crazy Cycle Contest [CCC]
:bunny:Ex Co-Keeper of Tribal, Multiplayer and Peasant Make a Deck
Ex-Clan Representative and The Woolliest Pirate Of The [Forum Pirates]
Ex-Super-Friend of The Random Bull**** Society
Ex-Woolliest Friend of [Hyrule]
Or been proudly dubbed "Wolfcock" by others...
I don't remember how I got my name, or even why I use it. Is it original? I don't see many others using it. Is it extravagent? No... But how 'bout a nice cup of "Who gives a ****?" and we'll call it even?
"For every heart that finds a love, there is a heart that cries.
I suggest that you make up something else like, "Avoid using common first names".
As for my name, its unique as far as i know, i invented it specifically for magic forums and other fantasy/sci-fi related things. Its basically Mach- from machivellian and -ius as a standard fantasy style name ending.
Machius proudly supports R_E's right to Rumour!
so does primus inter pares
Is it from Snake, Rattle, N' Roll? (Was on the NES) Because I think those spherical guys were Pibbs, or something like that...
I used to play Savage, (but I like FPS games now) and I used a weapon called Surge. (If any of you have played Savage, you should probably know what Surge was) If you don't know, Surge is an entropic weapon (entropic means earth) that fires a steady bolt of neon green energy at your opponent. I really liked the surge weapon, and I would sometimes wreck people with it, causing chaos and pandemonium. And so surge and chaos stuck, and I became Surging_Chaos.
My name though, is contradictory to what I play in Magic. (Nothing beats blue in my world.)
Ooh, you mean the nibbly pibblies. That was a great game but the final boss was way too hard. Is that the game, Pibbly?
Loonook = Nothing
Nothing > Jesus
Currently accepting disciples. Inquire within.
ORDER THE CAKE DAMNIT!
The ice feet were INSANELY hard to kill. You had to constantly attack them over and over to make them die, and if you screw up, you have to start all over again. Not to mention that if they stomp you, you automatically die.
extremeicon: Yeah, I had a feeling it was something like that. Just has been forever since I played the game.
Man, all this talk wants me to grab my old NES and play my huge treasure trove of old-school games. (Metroid was my favorite, but I got wiped out when it came to the Mother Brain...)