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23 June 2010

#174 Create an online alter ego

The Internet is fantastic. It's a playground. Just when it got big, in the early nineties, people tried to explain to businesses and politicians how it works. And to be as educational as possible, they compared it with brochures. They said that the Internet was like an electronic brochure shelf and that a website was a digital brochure. That is why they initially only communicated in one direction. Some politicians (read Ines Uusmann) said it was the flavor of the week. No companies were curious or interested in a dialogue. It's only in recent years with all the communities, twittering and blogging that so many have discovered another dimension of the net. The social one. 

But who says you have to be honest? There are a thousand ways to play and have fun online. One of them is to create a net character. A person who only exists on the internet. A digital alter ego. You start simply by creating a mail account for the person in question and then you can become a member of Facebook or any other community. E-date, be provocative in different forums and make up stories to tell other people in different communities. 

Use your imagination and practice. Creating a net character is not about hurting or fucking with someone, but rather just to test people. It is a social experiment by which you can cut lose and forget things like politeness, social codes, and kindness. If you think it sounds like too much trouble, I understand. But I've tried it myself and it is incredibly interesting. You'll discover sides of yourself and thoughts and theories that you didn't know were there. Things like hiding under layers of politeness and all the barriers that have been built up by civilized society. But who said that that is a good thing? 

Required time: 
Ten minutes a day is usually enough for a start.
Cost: 
Zero. You can get internet access at the library.
Cons: 
People might get angry with you. You may find it difficult to differentiate yourself from the net character. But try to think of it as you playing a video game with a lot more freedom.
Pros: 
You learn a lot about yourself and about other people. You practice imaginative and creative spontaneity. Also, if you write fiction of some form you get to find out what it is like to live as one of your characters.
Taggar: net, alter ego

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