List behavior

In article <200905121955.n4CJt34o043417 at keith.ezwind.net>, "Bob Bradlee" <caveguy at sbcglobal.net> writes: What is a "real name" anyway? Unless you're going to require certification of identities through a trusted third party who will issue a cryptographic key with which all posters must sign their messages, your hopes for a "real name" are pointless. At one point I psoted with my full name. Then some crank who didn't like me disagreeing with him on a politics list decided to leave a message on my home answering machine threatening me with bodily harm. After that I took all indicators of my name off my messages for a while. At one point another net.crank insisted he didn't have to take my position seriously because I wouldn't post with my "real name", as you assert in your message about js at cimmeri.com. To satisfy such troglodytes, I put my "real name" as Phil McRevis (say it out loud to get the joke). Having been satisfied that he "knew" my "real name", he then began to discuss the points of discussion with "Phil". At some later date I reverted to my real (ha!) first name and left Phil McRevis behind, but the point was made that insisting on someone's "real name" is a pointless exercise on the net. -- "The Direct3D Graphics Pipeline" -- DirectX 9 draft available for download <http://www.xmission.com/~legalize/book/download/index.html> Legalize Adulthood! <http://blogs.xmission.com/legalize/>