On 08/03/07, William Pietri william@scissor.com wrote:
Is there possible compromise between your position and Eric's? There are plenty of companies in the credential validation business. Most of them are set up for slightly different uses, but I'm sure there are some creative ones we could work with.
As I said, I'm not sure even this is needed - given the reaction to Essjay's false claims, I do think just being honest is enough.
For a comparison, look at User:172 - he claims expertise, but he wants to stay completely anonymous. But that's fine, because he *shows* expertise. (And only an academic could reference the way he does ...) He has a certain impatience with idiots, but a saintly disposition in the face of blithering stupidity is probably the very hardest thing to achieve in the zen of Wiki, and quite forgivable ...
I do think just letting people claim what credentials they want to is enough for now, because the community oppobrium at any respected user's credentials turning out fake is *exceedingly* harsh, and probably worse the more trusted they are. (Which is why the Essjay thing sucks so much.)
- d.