Avatar Shared on Other Sites!

I don't use my email for a2k on many other sites, by a fluke at the time I last gave an email to a2k. But, I'm wondering, eoe, is your avatar designed by you? If it's available online as an avatar, there may be a whole mass of people who have that avatar, thus it wouldn't be pointing to you specifically (if I understand this).

yes, my avatars were original art. but even if they weren't, I use my actual name on many blogs and professional sites. To have the same avatar show up next to my real name would at least compromise my anonymity here, which I do depend upon.

Ok, then, I see your point.

I'm trying to think of a workaround. I'm not the best bet on that, huh. If you changed your a2k email to some ordinary thing, say yahoo or hotmail or gmail, and put an entirely new avatar there via gravatar, would those others still somehow connect to you? I don't know. I'm thinking they would not.

I did get it when I signed up for gravatar, however one spells it, that it could be shared with other sites, and was mostly not worried, even though I still don't belong to facebook for security concerns, however dumb or smart of me.. One of my avatars on a2k is a photo of me by Mame, bless her heart, and I wouldn't like to suddenly see that at the la times or san francisco chronicle blogs. I might grow into that, but not yet. But it won't happen, as I'm at those places with another email.

actually I am more concerned with the default avatar, because I heard that it is generated from our IP address. So if someone knows the equation that Gravatar uses presumably they can decode the avatar and get our address.

Ideally Gravatar would not release an avatar to any site that the user had no pre approved. I was shocked no long ago to see my eagle pop up on a blog comment.

You would probably have more reason for concern than most.

Plus people make avatars out of photos. I did that from scholarly photo place re etruscan horses, giving credit at the time in my profile. G'knows, someone might want to copy the Pacc, present avatar. He'd probably have liked it.

I don't know answers, listening.

I was on a childhood sexual abuse survivors site for many years which was badly damaged by one person using IP addresses to track down people contacting them by phone or email. . It can be a serious problem. Given your thought process maybe you are the type of person who would do that. Or maybe you show up at my door and kick my ass....is that what you want to do?

Interesting topic. Some observations as a very web-integrated millenial.

I think some of the concerns listed here are more expressions of generational anxiety, and less a failure of the management to protect privacy. Universal avatars are an appealing feature for future web applications. A2K must have felt (and I agree) that this feature could be an attractive feature for new users who already have a gravatar from using other sites and web-services.

Internet anonominty is an interesting topic. I'm pretty transparent with my identity. I use a screenname because it's fun, nothing more than that. I do not think that my relationship to this web identity (failures art) or any other handle I use (Deist TKO, Tagami TKO, Failures_Art, Chikeo, etc) is so shocking or rare. I think most (certainly younger people) have a relationship with their web personas much like mine. It's not about hiding who I am. I gaurd my information by deciding what I wish and do not wish to share. I assume zero privacy, and 100 responsibility for what I put online (under any name).

I often but not always use a real photo of myself for my avatar, but I have used other amusing images for fun (again, not to disguise myself).

I am certainly understanding of people who do not wish to have this kind of exposure/transparency, but I don't think that this site, nor any other forum I've ever posted on (and that is a lot, this just happens to be my favorite of all time), has ever assumed such a position of promoting anonimity.

Alias
R
Tagami

Well I guess we will find out since I just set up a gmail account.

That is one step down, now to find a picture

Hey it worked! Feels strange talking to myself

Hey! You talkin' to me?

Ideally Gravatar would not release an avatar to any site that the user had no pre approved. I was shocked no long ago to see my eagle pop up on a blog comment.