On Fri, 11 Jul 2014, at 23:34, Gilles Dubuc wrote:
IP addresses are closely guarded for registered users, why wouldn't anonymous users be identified by a hash of their IP address in order to protect their privacy as well?
While I don't horribly mind some changes in the direction you're writing, I think that:
1) Privacy is defined as "The state of being free from unsanctioned intrusion". An IP, as a fundamental identifier, has as much to do with privacy as a car number you see on a street. (Anyone can look up a name by car number, in my area, which I expect to be common.)
Firefox folks are, iirc, considering providing IP-based links in the new tab with one of the next releases. These links would include local shops and restaurants. I've seen some argue that such decision goes against "privacy", but I think it's the wrong term.
2) There are other nicer things to enable for anonymous readers that would make their editing experience more efficient. Such things include enabling some preferences and features for these contributors, which may be useful to a group of people editing from one IP:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Musings_about_unregistered_contributors#Exam...
Gryllida.