Why can't we change our usernames??

FireProphet said:
Jester-NL said:
So... because you have never written a journal on this site, others should not worry about broken links?As someone else pointed out, that's faulty. You're assuming that an option to change a username means absolutely every single person's last.fm address must be changed. Other sites let you do it without causing any conflicts with the links of others. There's no need for your assumption.I am not assuming that, I deduct that from the url's last.fm gives to journals: last.fm/user/username/yyyy/mm/dd/title-used-for-the-journal
Every link (whether on- or offsite) to your profile uses your usename.
And saying that 'other sites' allow something is not a real valid argument. You are wanting to have your 'uniqueID' changed... how many sites allow you to do that? Please name one...
Because THAT is what your username is used for on this site. (And yes, in the database you are just a semi-random hash... with countless links to it.)
Besides, in my first reply I also stated what might happen to links that are not changed (of course, changes that that will lead to journals are pretty slim, but to a profile?)
I'm not sure where I complained about the available social options of the site or used my profile experiences to state anything. This is about one single option that doesn't exist, which is usernames. Besides, if I could change mine I'd probably use more of the "social options" and invite more people who are outside of the community in which I use this nick to last.fm. Ironically, you're the one who tried to write off the community aspect of last.fm. So that wasn't very effective.I stated that I was very blunt.

Yeah, because this is a really critical issue that prevents people from using the site. Let it go.

Besides, it's been commented upon plenty of times. That's why there's a freaking great "Previously Suggested Ideas" topic, which clearly states:

Ideas which may be added in future

• Changing usernames

I joined Suicide Girls a couple of years ago. It's basically just like this site but there's naked girls except musicians. Well there is too but they're naked.

Anywho they allowed you to change your user name. The thing is user names get boring and you get tired of it. I was really surprised Last.FM doesn't allow you to do so.

HankMulder: once again... what does SG asks you to use when you log-in... what is the link to your (or any) profile?
I do know that on a random other site, that DOES allow namechanges, the URL of my (public) profile is sitename/gallery/number of my profile in the database. That makes changing a name easy. Last.fm doesn't work that way. And I can not see (andwon't pay to test) how SG handles names...

Jester-NL said:
panda4king said:
The last.fm users are asking, will last.fm listen?

I can not recall the times the last.fm users asked for artists like the Beatles, Led Zeppelin or Metallica. They are not here yet...
And I do think that some people mistake websites for democracies. Completely forgetting (or ignoring) business-models, cost and benefit coming with any change or any other (more obscure) reason that a website and its owners can come up with.

That's right, this is a business.
And what does this business need to survive? Users. Don't take care of your users, and you'll soon see a dark end.
Like you have stated, Last.FM doesn't really seem to listen to all of the users requests. Some may be hard to address...involving third partys, like licencing issues. Others, like feature requests only depend on LastFM itself and it's ability to respond to the way the users needs evolve.

In the future, they will inevitably have to start deleting old user accounts and/or allow username changes.
Otherwise new users will all have usernames like jonhdoe22524. No one likes that. Even if they do start that way, once they become faithful users they will want to change that to something else more personal. And I assume LastFM wants faithful users.
That first username was probably the first thing that came to mind at registration time, and they will want to change it.
This is something that drives users away, and users are this business biggest asset.

If it is really a matter of profit, just make it a subscriber feature and be done with it. It is clear that many users want it, make them PAY for it.Simple.
Good business takes every opportunity to grab a client and make profit.

Jester-NL said:
I think most people wanting to change their username do not look any further than their own username, and see no (big) problems. How many of you realise that ALL people who want to change their name will put an tremendous amount of work on the two or three people that have user-interaction (including e-mail and forums) as their job?

Do you honestly think everyone here wants a system to change their username on a request-based system? That's impossible and it has been discussed to exaustion that there must be a way to do this without putting a burden on LastFM's support.

Jester-NL said:
CrybKeeper says it nicely: How often do (the often mentioned) Facebooks and MySpaces allow for changing of your uniqueURL?


How many site allow to change username/URL? Let's look at some (big) examples:

Facebook allows ONE change and the "vanity link" wasn't something available at registration for most people. It has been implemented recently and it was CLEARLY stated that it would not be changeable more than once so that users would choose wisely. Most people having been registed for a long time knew they would have to choose something nice. Innactive accounts were't squatting good usernames. Active users chose theirs. Inactive users ...did nothing.


Twitter allows you to change username freely.
No restrictions.

Flickr allows it AFAIK, and maintins a log of your previous ones.

Digg allows it on request, I believe.

Netlog (a social network popular in some European countries) allows it freely, I believe. Lots of inactive accounts squatting usernames, but at least to you have a choice.

These are jsut a few at the top of my mind. I'm sure there are other that don't allow it like Last.FM (DeviantART is one) but there will be plenty of other who do. And many of those who don't, make such warning to choose wisely. LastFM if I remeber correctly, does not.


FireProphet said:
Who cares about broken links.So... because you have never written a journal on this site, others should not worry about broken links?
As a matter of fact, you have used so little of the more social options of this site that you might just as well delete your profile and start again. Or, a bit less blunt... using (only) your own profile/ideas is hardly a good basis for getting your point across ;)

Regarding the 'competitive market'... I have checked the competition a bit, but I haven't found a better site (and that is regarding the basis of this site... scrobbling)
I never found anything good enough to stay and want (or need) a namechange... but that can be because I have been using this nick since 2001 (or so) and am very content with it.

You are right. Competition is inexistant for proper scrobbling.
Libre.fm is still at birth and there is no way to know if it will turn out something worth moving to.

But let me tell you that if scrobbling is the basis of LastFM, right now it doesn't look like that's the case to me. Scrobbling is free for all. Streaming is where they get their revenue.
Scrobbling hasn't evolved IMO. It is still based on a very limited system of Artist - Title, has poor handling of artist of the same name, poor detection of small variations of the same title and this auto-correction feature may turn out to be a good thing but needs a lot of work.
Try listening to classical music and to scrobble it properly.




Jester-NL said:

I'm not sure where I complained about the available social options of the site or used my profile experiences to state anything. This is about one single option that doesn't exist, which is usernames. Besides, if I could change mine I'd probably use more of the "social options" and invite more people who are outside of the community in which I use this nick to last.fm. Ironically, you're the one who tried to write off the community aspect of last.fm. So that wasn't very effective.I stated that I was very blunt.


You brought up the social features, but that's the big question.

You identity is a big part of being part of a community. The way people recognize you, the way they address you.
Some people do no care about their username, others do. Just respect other peoples opinion and needs.

Let's face it, LastFM still fails at social networking.

Want to import contacts from your email? Google account? Facebook?
Wait a few years and maybe it will happen.

This is THE basic feature of every social network for a new user.
It's fine if you want to add random people you do not know from anywhere that happen to have similar tastes in music, but finding your REAL friends? People you go to concerts with? People that borrow your CDs?
Impossible, unless you go about asking everyone if they are already registered. And it they are, how do you find them? They send you their VANITY LINK or USERNAME.
So, how Is this not important? Is LastFM really a social website?

DarkAngelPT said:
Is LastFM really a social website?

No (at least so far and hopefully for the foreseeable future).

-G.

Babs_05 said:
Should have picked a good name to begin with. It's not that hard.

I bet every single site you register on, you know for sure how important it will be in the future for you.
And have you thought that maybe there wasn't any better choice available at the time?

Let me lay out a few choices for you if I were to register again today or open a new account:
My name is Sérgio Miranda. Choices for a nice username?

sergio
No plays since 29 Jul 2003
sergiom
445 plays since 26 Jan 2006 (Last seen: February 2006)
sergio_m
28597 plays since 31 Jul 2008
sergiomir
No plays since 2 Feb 2010
sergiomiranda
1 play since 9 Jul 2009
sergio_miranda
5 plays since 26 May 2009

I register on a lot of sites as darkangel. Best choices?

darkangel
No plays since 24 Apr 2003
dark_angel
No plays since 26 Sep 2004

Notice how most choices are already taken and by barely used and inactive accounts?
Do I REEEEEAAAAAALLY have to change my current username? No, of course not.
But I do think that it is utterly ridiculous that LastFM does nothing about this.



Jester-NL said:
Flickr: yahoo-account/email
Twitter: email address
Youtube: email address
Facebook: email address
Last.fm: user name...
And that is for logging in...
Now, looking at my own profile: I see over 4000 different artists, 11k+ forum posts, 250 pages of wiki-edits, numerous image uploads. I am pretty sure that these are linked to a random hash that identifies me in the database, hell I know that for a fact. But each and every link created (whether by me, or the system) has been created as clear language... you know, containing 'Jester-NL in the url. And I am generously ignoring all the forum posts where I am quoted ;)

Think about that. If namechanges will become an option, there is a lot of links and database-entries that have to be changed. I guess the guys behind Libre.fm can explain that very clear. They were so sure that writing a site like this would take weeks... and that was over a year ago ;)

Oh.. and about the 'social' part of the site: I think that that might be linked to how you use the site ;) I know more people (virtual and real life) on this site than on sites like MySpace and Facebook combined... and I use this site thus more in a social way than the other two.

You're mixing up different things.

You register on those sites with an email or you use a email you already have for access, just like you register on Last.FM with an email. And you can change that email on every site.

But you cannot relate the emails you register on other sites with the username you use on LastFM. They are unrelated.
It's comparing apples and oranges.

On Facebook you register with an email. You choose a username. That username is the link to your profile and it's used in a lot of places. Can you change that? Yes.

On LastFM you register with an email. You choose a username. That username is the link to your profile and it's used in a lot of places. Can you change that? No.

Same thing for Youtube, Flickr, everything.
The email that you register an account with in any web service is not the same thing as the username you use in LastFM.
It can be related to the email you register with on LastFM, just like in every single place around the web.

And you're right, different people use the site in different ways.
Yours is a perfectly fine one, of course...but is there a correct one?
I rather start with people I know and then as I use the site more and more, star discovering other people with similar taste to mine and my friends (looking at friends of your friends...)

Babs_05 said:
Should have picked a good name to begin with. It's not that hard.

simple and the truth. you lot are only moaning because of your own short sightedness.

Totally agree. It should be technically possible to change usernames. Perhaps for a small fee, just like in Livejournal system. People's preferences change and Last.fm could benefit from that.

The ability to change username would be nice to have but is hardly essential. Last.fm should deal with important stuff like seperating artists with the same name before they even think about this.

Babs_05 said:
Should have picked a good name to begin with. It's not that hard.

That's a bullshit answer.

People go through 'phases'. They might sign up with a name that once meant something to them or a band they were really into at the time. A lot of people's music tastes change over time. Had last.fm existed in the mid-late 90's, I probably would have picked a Korn related name because I was big on them at the time. They've been total shit for a while now (imo) and I obviously didn't bother making a Korn related name once I found last.fm since it was after my Korn phase.

Just making a point that people change over time. Usernames are either whatever you can think of at the time or something that means something to you at the time.

I reckon people should have at least some sort of option to change their name. Small fee, upon request or whatever. Just because Jester doesn't want to have bad links everywhere, then he doesn't have to change his name. Simple.

Others may want to change it despite leaving a few broken links here and there.

Jester-NL said:
I have been on this site for a few years. In these years I have posted links to my profile or journals on quite a few locations on the web. The moment I would be able to change my username on this site, I would render all these links useless.
Hell, it would be even more fun if someone else would sign up, using my former name, because all these links would re-direct to a profile that is not mine ;)
Don't you perfectly describe the actual system? We are told (or implicitly told) to create a new profile (with the possibility to use not so well known tools to partially transfer our data) if we're note pleased anymore with our actual username.

If I do so, after that, I will delete my old profile -> dead links -> username will be free (right?) -> some random dude may take it...