For those of you that hide your identity online...

"Do you just hate how you look and afraid of being judged?" You said. Yes.

it sucks when you want to know what someone looks like after years of talking on a forum. i just got here and dont have a computer to put some pics of me up

I dont have a problem posting pics, I use too though because I didnt like my expressions an was always teased about it. This group of jerks called me into a group chat saying I was satan and needed an exorcism and started singing bible hymns, azzholes XD but I love them. After that point I was just like screw it, it didnt matter what pics I posted. However I did have a problem with stalkers irl so I would avoid pictures because most of the time they lived in my area and knew the background of my pics. I cant really see that happening here, half of these people live across the world and most are in different states so its not a concern. I think judgement is a big factor of why most dont post pics.

I'm not so full of myself that I think anyone would want to bother stalking me, which is why I've stopped worrying as much as I used to about some types of information I share. In another place I hang out at I've mentioned a few times what town I live in and have shared photos of it for example. But even there with people I've known for years I haven't shared stuff like images of myself or my real name, and neither have they. It's just how we are there. I think a lot of it comes from hanging out on websites in the past that were notorious for bulling people who shared their info, along with knowing a number of people first hand who have been harassed and had their info against them. Even if no one cares about you know, you never know what the future might hold and you might end up regretting stuff you shared in your past. One girl I know shared some pics online, which a guy stalking her was able to use to track her down and get her number/address. She had to move and regrets ever uploading those photos. Myself I've got no facebook or twitter account and often times use fake emails when joining websites. If someone managed to dig up some real info on me I'd be nothing short of impressed. Guess you could say I'm a bit on the paranoid side. I don't particularly like taking photos of myself in general. It's not that I'm ugly or anything like that, it's just not something I'm a fan of. In thinking about it more I'm just more comfortable this way. The anonymity creates a bit of a barrier and allows one to be themselves. When people message me by name on the other hand it makes me feel a bit uneasy, like it's too personal almost. I rather just keep some distance till I can trust someone enough with that stuff. Oh and there's the fact that I'm a homicidal maniac drug lord involved in human trafficking and on the run from the police of 15 countries.

"Before you ask someone your name, you have to give your name first." One of the anime quote I like. Tell me is there a point putting a picture in here? Unless you trust someone then you can ask them for picture. Besides, can you tell if the people put the picture here be the exact same as their picture? I personally don't mind how they look unless I plan to meet them in real life then I care about what they look like. I only post my picture unless I trust them (boy/girl) or a girl I want to date in here.

Do people who don't know you need to know about you? Are you so important that all must know who you are? If they wish to know, a simple "Hi, how are you?" is a good start. Also, quite a few (Myself included ) aren't here for a relationship and even question the platonic side of things here.

you'd be surprised how much someone can pull up with just a picture of your face. in the sense of trying to meet people, some feel looks are the most important thing in a person but people seem to forget looks fade and the girl you might of thought was cute online didn't live up to your expectations. if i want to meet someone online, i think just their personality and maturity make the biggest impact on me being attracted to you.

Well I haven't experienced stalkers and stuff ^.^' The reason why I don't show RL informations and a pic is because local friends and acquaintances who know me shall not notice me for some reason. :D But if I talked to new people a bit I would add them in FB, skype, steam and so on which means they will get their informations, or they could simply ask me xD One thing what is cool about anime avatar pics (well just not his own pic), you don't judge people immedentallly, maybe even subconscious, nah I don't want to chat with him/her right now. And then after you might became friends it isn't a big deal anymore if the apperance actually doesn't fit your expectation. Did you get what I meant? xD For me that's an advantage!