I seriously doubt requiring someone to create a throwaway email account in order to sign up for Wikipedia would change anything. By this, I mean I doubt it'd stop any vandals, and I doubt it'd drive away any users (although it might discourage casual users from creating an account, which could be argued as a good or a bad thing).
On 10/20/05, Ben Yates bluephonic@gmail.com wrote:
It's not a hard and fast thing -- sure, someone determined to vandalize could still do it, but how many vandals are that determined. Putting a small additional hurdle will help.
On 10/19/05, Ben E. bratsche1@gmail.com wrote:
I think that a system that uses email addresses as validation is too
easy
to game. Look at the popularity of sites such as Spaminator and Bugmenot. I also think that a system that forces one to provide an email address
will
drive away many potential good users. If someone is so determined to vandalize Wikipedia, they'll find a way around any system. A potential good user isn't as persistent. I know that I probably wouldn't have started editing under an account if I was forced to provide an email address.
Most
likely, that would have been the end of my Wikipedia use.
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