Can you change your username?

[Lightstalker]

Yes/no?

 

[Kwaliti]

http://www.hiveworkshop.com/forums/faq/rules/#faq_usernames

 

[thelifelessone]

Users registered who has been a member for more than 3 months may be renamed only for a donation of 20$.


Seriously?

 

[Pharaoh_]

Users registered who has been a member for more than 3 months may be renamed only for a donation of 20$.


Seriously?

This might be the dumbest thing I've heard on this site and I'm not speaking of TheLifelessOne's reaction.

 

[Anachron]

Oh yes, that is awkward.

 

[thelifelessone]

Why the hell do you charge? I mean seriously, it's not like you have to go over lines of SQL code to do so. All you have to do is go into the ACP, find the user, and change it.

Trust me. It's not hard to do. Really, I've used the vBulletin ACP before. Not too long ago too. Just about 3 months ago.

It isn't hard. There's no need to charge.

 

[Traxamillion]

Its free if your name gets shortened, I was Traxamillion last month for several years. Never paid a penny to the site.

 

[Kimbo]

I use to be Werewulf, but another user paid on my behalf.

You are lucky, name changes I think use to depend on how many posts you got, I think it was $10 per 1000 posts, $20 for start up if you are older than 3 months. imagine if the rule applied to me huh?

 

[Traxamillion]

Kim, the reason your name change required a cost, is because you went from Werewulf to Kimberly, according to hakeem and a few others its Free to shorten, If you went from Werewulf to wulf or something it would have been free like in my case.

 

[Kimbo]

Kim, the reason your name change required a cost, is because you went from Werewulf to Kimberly, according to hakeem and a few others its Free to shorten, If you went from Werewulf to wulf or something it would have been free like in my case.

umm.. im not complaining about having it cost money you know? im saying to the people in this thread they should be grateful about the costs because it use to cost more based on posts =_= jeez

 

[thelifelessone]

> im not complaining about having it cost money

I am.

> be grateful about the costs because it use to cost more based on posts

It shouldn't cost anything in the first place.

 

[Kimbo]

Having name changes causes complication and confusion you know? If everyone could change their name to whatever when they wanted to, thats ...just stupid right?

Even with limits on name changes for free, what do you expect Ralle to do? Do it for free because some people simply "changed their mind"? Becuase these people are desperate to make a name for themselves on hive yet dont support the cost/funds of the server? yeah..you know, Ralle loses money from this site, he doesn't gain it...

IF you want a privilege given by Ralle, and he sees that you pay money, then pay money. Dont like it, then stick with your name or dont go to his site he pays for so people can make a person of themselves here.

 

[thelifelessone]

> Having name changes causes complication and confusion you know

Not really. About 6 or so months ago, I changed my name on various forums to Lyerae. Never had problems. Even on the bigger boards.

> Do it for free because some people simply "changed their mind"

People change their minds. They always have, and always will. It's what makes us who we are.

> yet dont support the cost/funds of the server? yeah..you know, Ralle loses money from this site, he doesn't gain it...

Bullshit. Why should the users be expected to pay for the server?
If Ralle can't pay for the server on his own (including Advertisements, since members aren't really donating/paying), then he should shut THW down until he can.

> then stick with your name

I'm perfectly fine with my name. I just think it's ridiculous that he charges.

Let me ask you, Kimberly. Have you ever run a forums before?

 

[Kimbo]

> Having name changes causes complication and confusion you know

Not really. About 6 or so months ago, I changed my name on various forums to Lyerae. Never had problems. Even on the bigger boards.

> Do it for free because some people simply "changed their mind"

People change their minds. They always have, and always will. It's what makes us who we are.

> yet dont support the cost/funds of the server? yeah..you know, Ralle loses money from this site, he doesn't gain it...

Bullshit. Why should the users be expected to pay for the server?
If Ralle can't pay for the server on his own (including Advertisements, since members aren't really donating/paying), then he should shut THW down until he can.

> then stick with your name

I'm perfectly fine with my name. I just think it's ridiculous that he charges.

Let me ask you, Kimberly. Have you ever run a forums before?

No. but have you ran Hive? No. Hive isnt "yours". Im thinking for Ralle, his situation AND his best interests, not "you" or "yours".

EDIT, btw, nothing in life is for free, one thing will always require another. Get use to it.

 

[thelifelessone]

No. but have you ran Hive? No. Hive isnt "yours". Im thinking for Ralle, his situation AND his best interests, not "you" or "yours".

EDIT, btw, nothing in life is for free, one thing will always require another. Get use to it.

I'm not talking about THW. I'm talking about running a forums in general. A community.
I only have a few active members on my board, and I'm already about to rip my hair out. It's not easy.

I know nothing in life is free. Everything has a cost. You must work to fulfill this cost. That's the way things are, have been, and always will be.

 

[The Reborn Devil]

I know nothing in life is free. Everything has a cost. You must work to fulfill this cost. That's the way things are, have been, and always will be.

And that's why it will continue to cost money to change your name.

 

[Fussiler1]

Users registered who has been a member for more than 3 months may be renamed only for a donation of 20$.


Seriously?

I know nothing in life is free. Everything has a cost. You must work to fulfill this cost. That's the way things are, have been, and always will be.

Voila. Here you go.

 

[Zombie]

Running the site isn't free either, you know.

 

[Pharaoh_]

I'm sorry, but if it has to do with the site's financial issues, then don't use the sign of "donation", just use "fee". That would be fair and everyone should understand. Plus, Kimberly, those rules about the 1000+ posts and stuff like that are not even displayed on the rules, so, this is why TheLifelessOne and any of us can be quite doubtful.
Anyway, if a limitation of username change would about to be realised, that wouldn't be money, but a limitation of 1 username change per month for example. People don't constantly change their username, because that's the name they bear in a community, through which they are known.

 

[MGCǂSpectre]

I use to be Werewulf, but another user paid on my behalf.

Oh so you're Werewulf, I remembered. Didn't know you're still here.

 

[Lightstalker]

A donation... So I don't actually HAVE to pay anything. I can CHOOSE to donate money right? Donation is optional, fee is mandatory?

$20 for a username change is a bit unreasonable. What's gonna stop anyone from just re-creating another account? You should get like 3 free username changes, and after that, no more changes.

The only reason I wanted my username changed is to match my battle.net username.

 

[Zombie]

The reason why the Hive needs such sources of income is because it is FUCKING expensive to rent a domain, as well as keeping it up to date. Since there's an insufficient amount of donations incoming obviously, the Hive needs to rent places for ads, fine name changes and encourage people to contribute financially.

Want username changes to be free? Then keep a steady amount of donations for the site so the need of money would cease and there would be no need for ads, more options would be free, etc.

Otherwise, stop Q.Qing about it and put up with how the site works.

 

[Lightstalker]

The reason why the Hive needs such sources of income is because it is FUCKING expensive to rent a domain, as well as keeping it up to date. Since there's an insufficient amount of donations incoming obviously, the Hive needs to rent places for ads, fine name changes and encourage people to contribute financially.

Want username changes to be free? Then keep a steady amount of donations for the site so the need of money would cease and there would be no need for ads, more options would be free, etc.

Otherwise, stop Q.Qing about it and put up with how the site works.

I'm not crying about it I'm just saying $20 is a bit ridiculous...

And I know how a site works: I have my own. Buying a domain is cheap. I paid less than $8 for a 1 year registration. Anyone even earning minimum wage could afford $8/year. And unless the Hive is hosted on its own servers, web hosting is quite cheap as well these days. With hosting24, you can get unlimited everything for $8/month or $5/month with a 3 year contract. Plus the money from the ads...

Anyway, $5 would be far more reasonable.

 

[Hakeem]

I totally can.





Aaaaanyway... The policies regarding name changing have been in a state of flux. The FAQ may or may not be entirely accurate. The protocol for applying for a name revision is generally to use Admin Contact.

 

[thelifelessone]

Running the site isn't free either, you know.

I own and operate my own site. I know that better than you, I'd say.

The reason why the Hive needs such sources of income is because it is FUCKING expensive to rent a domain, as well as keeping it up to date. Since there's an insufficient amount of donations incoming obviously, the Hive needs to rent places for ads, fine name changes and encourage people to contribute financially.

Want username changes to be free? Then keep a steady amount of donations for the site so the need of money would cease and there would be no need for ads, more options would be free, etc.

Otherwise, stop Q.Qing about it and put up with how the site works.

I'm not "QQ"ing. I'm simply stating that charging is unneeded.
And domains aren't that expensive. You can get one for about $10.

I'm not crying about it I'm just saying $20 is a bit ridiculous...

And I know how a site works: I have my own. Buying a domain is cheap. I paid less than $8 for a 1 year registration. Anyone even earning minimum wage could afford $8/year. And unless the Hive is hosted on its own servers, web hosting is quite cheap as well these days. With hosting24, you can get unlimited everything for $8/month or $5/month with a 3 year contract. Plus the money from the ads...

Anyway, $5 would be far more reasonable.

I agree. If you can't make it free, $5 is much more reasonable.
Hell, I'd say that you may get more donations for changing names, if it was free. I'm guessing about 90% of the THW community is under the age of 18, and about 70% or so don't have jobs. $5 is much more affordable.

And I hope THW isn't on shared hosted. I really, really do.

 

[Hakeem]

It's not.

 

[Zombie]

I own and operate my own site. I know that better than you, I'd say.

Really, how did you come to the conclusion that I don't have a site?

And domains aren't that expensive. You can get one for about $10.

You can get one for free, even. But that won't change the fact that the Hive is NOT running on a free or a cheap domain, I would also like to note the VBulletin setup, which is not oh-so-damn-cheap either. But seriously, take your time and ask Ralle how much he has to pay per month.

NOTE:

This thread will not change something that's been in effect for years, so it would be rather pointless even to reply.

 

[Hakeem]

That is correct.

These policies have not been in effect for years, however.

Getting money is secondary to the policy. The main reason is that Ralle doesn't like name changes.


Perhaps I should prefix, "When," to the title.

 

[Pyritie]

I think the main reason that rule's there is just to discourage people from changing their name unless they've given it some good thought.

A user suddenly changing their name can be pretty confusing.

 

[Miss_Foxy]

How about make a currency which involves the post count too, so that players might have some benefits like changing their name, just don't make the benefits as many and good as when people actually pay...

PS: Example - 1000 Posts to change your name with the same amount of characters as your old name.
- 2000 Posts to change your name with one extra letter from your old name.
- 3000 Posts to have a 1-time free pass to bump your thread earlier.
PPS: Or we could use Reputation - 500 Reputation to change your name.

 

[Kimbo]

How about make a currency which involves the post count too, so that players might have some benefits like changing their name, just don't make the benefits as many and good as when people actually pay...

PS: Example - 1000 Posts to change your name with the same amount of characters as your old name.
- 2000 Posts to change your name with one extra letter from your old name.
- 3000 Posts to have a 1-time free pass to bump your thread earlier.
PPS: Or we could use Reputation - 500 Reputation to change your name.

No. The newer you are, thats when you best change your name. having a name and reputation (not rep) and changing your name after all that time will just cause confusion.

 

[Zombie]

I think the main reason that rule's there is just to discourage people from changing their name unless they've given it some good thought.

Actually, registering with a username requires less throught than changing it afterwards. Take my case as an example, I made up zombie2279 in a mere second, only later did it occour to me that there were better alternatives.

 

[Joe-black-5]

If I could change my name now, I would choose Jawad (my real name)
but 20$? fuck this, I prefer being Joe-black-5 any day

 

[Pyritie]

Actually, registering with a username requires less throught than changing it afterwards. Take my case as an example, I made up zombie2279 in a mere second, only later did it occour to me that there were better alternatives.

Okay fair enough. I kinda meant "discourage people from changing their name" after they've been active for a while. Then again your name wasn't much of a change so there wasn't much confusion.

 

[Kimbo]

Okay fair enough. I kinda meant "discourage people from changing their name" after they've been active for a while. Then again your name wasn't much of a change so there wasn't much confusion.

Yeah. But i think most of us are coming from complete/new name changes, not shortened names.

 

[Hakeem]

Some people still haven't caught up with Kimberly's name change. xD

 

[Deolrin]

What if I want to make a letter capital? I personally don't mind about the fee(because I think that names don't matter that much), but it WILL be ridiculous to charge someone for a single letter capitalization, even if it's to support the Hive. Unless using the same amount of characters is like shortening your name?

In any case, I'd prefer remaining neutral, and thus I will not argue or respond to any arguments regarding my comment.

 

[Hakeem]

Changing the case of the letters does not change the name.

 

[Deleted member 157129]

Meh, I reckon users could change their name themselves way back when I originally signed up, 'twas called wc3sear.ch back then, and it was run by Darky28 and not Ralle.
You simply changed it at will in the UCP.

 

[Kwaliti]

So in short, recapitalization and name shortening is free, while full name changes are paid?

 

[Zombie]

So in short, recapitalization and name shortening is free, while full name changes are paid?

Yes.

 

[Lightstalker]

This thread will not change something that's been in effect for years, so it would be rather pointless even to reply.

Hmmm to provide with an answer as to whether or not you can change your username?

I have my answer now but thanks for your input everyone.

 

[Ralle]

OK. I am going to post something I recently posted in Admin Contact:

We initially don't allow users to create new accounts for these reasons:
- creating new accounts to rep each other and raise rep / raise opinion about a matter / vote on polls/competitions.
- creating new accounts to troll / flame / spam.
- get around bans or other punishments.

We initially had a rule that said that you are not allowed to change your username. But then we allowed people to change their username either if their account is very new or if they donate a sum. Simply because of these reasons:
- when you are an older member people will know you by your username. If you change it, it will NEVER be the same again. People get a sort of feeling about your name and there will just be a lot of confusion about it.
- it would be a way for people to get away from punishments. People will be hard to get to if they constantly change their name.
- users trading names would get completely confusing.

In many cases I have allowed people to create new accounts for the following reasons:
- sharing an account because of a shared resource.
- getting a secret new start after convincing me of changed behaviour.

In many cases I have given a free username change even though the initial time period has passed and without having donated simply because of excellent behaviour while still a quite unknown person (this is quite important).

 

[leebingate]

Having name changes causes complication and confusion you know? If everyone could change their name to whatever when they wanted to, thats ...just stupid right?

Even with limits on name changes for free, what do you expect Ralle to do? Do it for free because some people simply "changed their mind"? Becuase these people are desperate to make a name for themselves on hive yet dont support the cost/funds of the server? yeah..you know, Ralle loses money from this site, he doesn't gain it...

IF you want a privilege given by Ralle, and he sees that you pay money, then pay money. Dont like it, then stick with your name or dont go to his site he pays for so people can make a person of themselves here.

> Having name changes causes complication and confusion you know

Not really. About 6 or so months ago, I changed my name on various forums to Lyerae. Never had problems. Even on the bigger boards.

> Do it for free because some people simply "changed their mind"

People change their minds. They always have, and always will. It's what makes us who we are.

> yet dont support the cost/funds of the server? yeah..you know, Ralle loses money from this site, he doesn't gain it...

Bullshit. Why should the users be expected to pay for the server?
If Ralle can't pay for the server on his own (including Advertisements, since members aren't really donating/paying), then he should shut THW down until he can.

> then stick with your name

 

[Anachron]

- getting a secret new start after convincing me of changed behaviour.

Which would say my way here.

 

[Mr. Bob]

I love how it is called "donating". Haha that's just hilarious.

"Donating" money for a new name is retarded. So is "donating" for colored names, custom icons, and paypal rewards. It would all be fine if ralle would just call what it is. It's not donating at all. It's a transaction. Your paying for something. Regardless of the fact that it is being used to maintain the site, ralle is selling a product.

I like this site. (sometimes...) But, I don't like it enough to give ralle money. Regardless of what is being used for. Heck, even if he was giving it to little orphans in Africa. I wouldn't give a penny. What it should be is based on a time. You can only change your name every 30 days. But, clearly there wouldn't be as many 'donations'.

And, I'm not trying to get on ralle for asking for money. I realize that the site needs to be run. Just don't call it donating. It's stupid. And, if you don't want people changing names, just don't let them. Charge money for whatever. But, remember, it's a fee not a donation. If was a nice guy, then I would donate ONLY if I get nothing in return. I'd never donate for something.

Heck, if I had a site this huge, I'd start charging for everything. Not even to keep it running. I'd just want the cash. But, ralle is better than that. Either way, I wouldn't call it donating.

 

[Bloodbane7]

I don't understand why we are still posting? Ralle has showed the rules, Ralle owns the site, so its his call. If you owned a site, wouldn't you want to be in control of your own site? I'd think so. So take in the rules and accept it. Unless you have some amazingly great point to make, all I see are the same points being brought up over and over and being re-discussed.

 

[WherewolfTherewolf]

If anything will come out of this thread, could someone solidify the rules regarding name changing? This argument won't go away until you have a page of rules to slap in the persons face, which up to this moment you don't - you say you do, but then of course IF your this, or IF your liked this much or IF etc. etc.

The point is no one will take the rule seriously if you yourself don't take the rule seriously.
If your going to let people get simple simplifications of their names then have that in the rules, don't constantly have flux law.

 

[Bloodbane7]

I can understand why people would complain about the cost, but it is his site, and if he wants to change the rules he will, but if you keep complaining after he shows the rules I mean, its not going to change after he makes his decision. I don't know if Ralle is considering at all changing the rules, and from MY view of this post, it doesn't look like it to me.

 

[WherewolfTherewolf]

He hasn't shown the rules, what he posted was something he posted in response to a request.

In many cases

Right here is the problem - the rules aren't clear enough. No one knows if they could be one of "many cases." It is in Ralle's own interest to make the rules clearer as to prevent future arguments like this - you can't shot someone done with no or theoretical ammo.