Taxi Driver Online

Someone recently said on another thread words to the effect that people acting anonymously on this site were not accountable.

What exactly do they mean by "accountable"?

Perhaps more precisely, who do people think that they have to know someone's real identity before they become accountable?

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

People only question the ID of a poster when they have lost the argument, and/or are desperately trying to defend a weak opinion/position.

Been like that since this internet lark started, and will still be like that when we are all long gone.

Maybe we should have a name for them, or perhaps in 'nosey bas****s' we already have.

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IDFIMH

If we are only talking about people voicing an opinion or debating an issue then the need for accountability is immeterial ............... however when a person or group intends to use either the forum based website or any posts contained within it to produce further material or gather information to produce further material then the people need to be accountable either to the people who contribute the information or the owners of the webspace and information held within it.

B. Lucky

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"Here's a simple solution. If you don't want to pay more for a premium service then wait in the queue, problem solved".
Skull on TDO

TF pi$$ed on his chips.

So what you're saying is that someone says something in public and then when someone else uses that information then it suddenly becomes private?

And what exactly do you mean by accountable in the post above GA, which was after all the question I asked - not when people should be accountable, merely the nature of that accountability.

And could you provide an example of the kind of information you refer to?

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

Sounds like double talk. Or am I missing something?

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

The owners of this site collect information.

The question regarding accountability depends on what they do with that information ...................... or what they do under the name of the site and therefore in the name of the membership.

How are the owners of this site accountable to hold information when they are unknown.

If they make claims using your name gusmac and you felt as though they were mis-representing your views or opinions by offering your name in support of their claim .............. would you not want to know who these people are ............... should they not be accountable.

What would you do .................... or how would you feel ................. if you found out (for example) that TDO was actually working the same ranks as you but was publically claiming that you supported his calls for deregulation as you were a member of his website under the TDO alias.

Thats why I ask questions .................... and I would suggest that more do the same.


B. Lucky

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"Here's a simple solution. If you don't want to pay more for a premium service then wait in the queue, problem solved".
Skull on TDO

TF pi$$ed on his chips.

So could you provide a few real life examples rather than hypotheticals?

And you still haven't outlined the nature of this accountability - the site is subject to the law of the land, innit?

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

Hypothetical situations are used to stop actual activities.

If in a hypothetic situation an actual situation can be avoided that caused harm to either side, with regard the question raised, would that not be more beneficial than trying to sort out a situation which could have been addressed under a hypothetical argument.

In another thread I pointed out how Mr Alan Foster realised that a hypothetical situation could have a massive effect on forum based websites ................... he didn't wait until it happened he did something about it when he realised it could become a reality, but more imprtantly when he could do something about it.

B. Lucky

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"Here's a simple solution. If you don't want to pay more for a premium service then wait in the queue, problem solved".
Skull on TDO

TF pi$$ed on his chips.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

But that's getting away from the accountability issue, innit?

Thus can someone explain the precise nature of the accountability issue raised by anonymity, and could this be explained in the context of a real example from this forum - if it's such an issue there must be plenty of examples.

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

The owners of this site hold only the information I choose to give them, except for my IP which is recorded on most forums when someone chooses to post. Other forums do the same. My Identity is my business.
In the unlikely case of your hypothetical situation, I have a good lawyer.
Claiming I write under an alias which is not mine would be a case of defamation under scots' law and slander in England.
Oh and I do support his calls for deregulation, so no problem there

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

As I see it if you don't want the information that you need to supply to join the forum, to be kept or used in any normal activity , then don't join the forum.

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Grandad,

On another forum I am on there was a thread running in which one of the more prolific posters attacked the anonymity of members these arguments spread over onto other threads with the result that at least 2 dozen members left the forum including one of the forum sponsors

people do seem to get hung up on the issue of anonymity but the thing is that it is a characteristic of the virtual world of the internet that you do not have to be yourself and i think it is a positive thing

We don't always agree but we do on this. Spot on

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

[quote="TDO"]So what you're saying is that someone says something in public and then when someone else uses that information then it suddenly becomes private?


quote]

As a famous person once said, "if you steal one piece of work, it's plagiarism, if you steal many pieces of work you may call it research"