The “O” in the OGS logo on the top left has been blue and yellow for quite a long time. How is that for freedom of expression?
1 Like
I think usernames should be persistent. Renaming should be an exception with very good reason for it.
1 Like
I think the OGS staff makes the rules here.
The username is not the place for the freedom of expression. Users have enough freedom in yourself block.
By the way OGS doesn’t offer hosting services. They offer Online GO services.
The owner of the site is entitled to express their views however they like.
That’s not a precedent that anywhere text images can be supplied by users it’s an invitation for freedom of expression.
1 Like
I just kinda worry about the implication that the same logic applies to css as to username selection.
Personally, I agree the css should be limited as you propose. But I would be pretty bummed out if we were no longer able to have expressive usernames like “GreenAsJade”
FWIW my own idea about usernames is “If it sounds like an opinion or statement and not a name or label and someone finds it objectionable, then it should be changed”.
A username is the handle we know someone by.
I would expect DancesWithWolves and GreenAsJade to pass this test, and not have to be changed, and I would expect FreePaletstine to have to be changed.
However, the same logic applies to profile page css and usernames at the moment: go for it, you are free to express what you want, as long as it is not outright offensive (and doesn’t break functionality).
The moderator team of course will always have to deal with a grey zone in any definition we come up with, it’s only a question of what the judgement is about.
In my site, the judgement would be about “does it pass the sniff test for a name or handle that the person goes by”.
At OGS, the deliberation is “is it outright offensive”.
4 Likes
I quite agree, typos offend me. 
Offence is in the eye of the offendee: someone once thought my username implied I was a neo nazi.
2 Likes
Yes that’s why no matter what the rule is there’s a question of judgement.
1 Like
The owner can express but individual users are not allowed to express?
1 Like
Of course they make the rules. But if the rule is that they can do whatever they want but the normal users can’t then it’s a bit of a double standard IMO.
2 Likes
Mods are normal users too!
The rules are same for the mod team than everyone else: tinkering and customisation is fine, as long as its not offensive and does not break the functionality of the site.
By offensive, this is generally determined based by reports. If its something offensive, people will report it, and the mods can then remove custom css or other unwanted content.
Some customisation, like emojis in usernames, was found to break certain features around the site. So now nobody is allowed to change their username into something that contains emojis… Sorry about that!
But that applies to everyone, not even mods are able to change usernames if the new name contains emojis :<
2 Likes
That’s silly. There are plenty of places individual user can express, and there are plenty of places the owner doesn’t.
What’s more the owner of the site has rule that you can express in usernames and on your profile.
What I said was that if it were my site this would be more limited, because it is silly and disruptive to use features that are functional for a specific purpose as vehicles of general expression.
After I said that I clarified what the rules here actually are.
3 Likes
It does feel like the second half of that is doing most of the work there. The “objectionable” piece I see, and I imagine it does get moderated to some extent today. But I just don’t see very much difference between “NoPineappleOnPizza” (statement) and “PineapplePizzaLover” (label)
It seems like a rule against “expression in the form of opinions or statements” would expand gray area in a way that isn’t really helpful. If expression is to be prohibited in usernames, it would probably be better to go the way of Facebook (real names) or Kids Go Server (auto-generated names).
Anyway, as you mentioned, this isn’t a direction OGS is going. So 
To tie this back to the original convo, I think the rule to remove emojis from usernames is much more similar to the css on user profiles: it breaks stuff, therefore it would be better not to have it.
3 Likes
There was not any rule like this per se ^^
Instead the devs just tweaked the system so that if someone tries to set an username that contains emojis, system just returns “invalid username” error. So the tweak only affected new usernames, not the ones which were already in use ^^
The lucky few who had emojis were allowed to keep our names 
2 Likes
It is a rule. It’s implemented in code, not by mod team, but one could imagine doing that for CSS as well.
2 Likes
This is different things. They maintain the website. The users don’t.
You can’t go to the shop and rename it or redecorate. But the owner can.
What’s wrong with these 2 names? They a persistent I think and not event driven. GAS even doesn’t contain an action.
Said by 
KoBa . 
I don’t see anything wrong with special Unicode characters in the username as long as there is no intention to harm other users by this and the username itself is persistent.
By the way I remember you name just because of your hearts in the name.
2 Likes
I know this is almost a settled topic…But I have my own thoughts that are dying to be typed out…
It’s all well and good to say that OGS users already have spaces to express themselves, and largely that is, of course, true. But, I would argue, that if some people want to express themselves in other spaces, then they should be allowed, where it doesn’t break the server or its functionality.
To me, the idea that banning certain names, as an example mentioned above, is so far beyond ridiculous as to be seen, and I apologise if I offend, but it is juvenile.
Names are transient things… handles even more so. People choose online names and they fit themselves for a few months, or a few years, or indeed their whole lives… but who really has the right to dictate what is an acceptable name, beyond any choice of name that is overtly offensive or bigoted in any way?
And moving back to the profiles’ appearance, and its functionality… by having a space dedicated to self-expression, there is already an argument in place that an OGS profile IS, functionally, a space for self-expression. I don’t see the issue of allowing people to functionally change the appearance of a profile page, again, if it doesn’t harm the website or impede the use of the profile by other users. This is why I suggested we make it like we do with the go boards, so that only the users can see their own customisations.
I see many of the arguments in the above comments are rooted in “what ifs” and “I woulds”, and functionally, such arguments are redundant, and worse, they cause nothing but misunderstanding, and bad feelings to proliferate unnessisarily. Seeing a moderator say “But if it were up to me, it would be”, in the restriction of usernames as a form of self-expression… is something I find personally deeply unsettling. It’s not that I don’t believe that you should share this opinion; it’s that I worry about any time anyone suggests the limitation of self-expression and creativity, and seemingly does so with such little regard, especially when that person is in a position of some authority on the website.
That said, it was a comment made in passing, and I think a lot of people, like myself, found that remark more unsettling and or debatable than it really should have been… as such, the debate, discussion, has been somewhat derailed since. I would humbly suggest we return to the topic at hand. The customisation of profiles, not the arbitrary comment made in passing about names.
5 Likes
Precisely. That is how it is, and how it ought to be if that’s what the owner desires.
You have certain rights to self expression, always limited to some extent based on the laws of your respective country.
But your right to free expression doesn’t include your right to access someone else’s (private property) platform to do it.
If we didn’t like the rules of OGS we are free to refrain from using it. Or start our own.
At least in the USA, it is the government that is barred from restricting your free speech (still, within certain limitations). Private citizens and businesses are not required to provide their property for others to spout off.
Personally, I find OGS to be outstanding enough as it is that even if my ability to pick my user name and/or doll up my user page were severely restricted, I’d still participate here. That’s where my freedom of choice comes to bear. 
(P.s. - I still think the OP made a good hearted gesture to share what he learned. If it violates OGS rules, ask that if be undone.)
EDIT: Note to @Sadaharu. Sorry if my time sounded harsh above. You asked a perfectly good question. I attempted to offer a straightforward reply.
2 Likes
No it is not I think. A user profile page is an ordinal OGS page like a game board. It contains information about player behavior including but not limited to rating, game history, active games etc.
1 Like
It is exactly as you said…it does do those things, but it also shows you a profile picture if the person chooses to have one, their country, which people can set to fictional things such as Klingon, House Stark, or Starfleet. You can also set it to LGBT+ pride…
So, in what context exactly is the profile page not a place where some level of self-expression already exists? I’ve seen in other profiles, text boxes that people use to self-promote, share poetry and or a quote. All of which stil fall under the idea that a profile is a place for information to be shared and gathered… which is functionally what you are saing. All I am saying is that allowing people to share more of themselves if they want to, is functionally a good thing. And even if self-expression is done in a way where only they themselvs can see it, isnt making OGS feel more like a home, a comfortable space online, a good idea…and potentially good for user retention in the long run too?
Let people take some ownership of their space, and generally, people will keep coming back and actually will want to share that space with other people, too.
2 Likes