On a coin collecting forum I am a member of...
- there is a constant name dropper
- there is someone who always gets the most outrageously good deals when buying.
- there is someone who is always discovering rare valuable error coins in their change.

In a previous forum I was on a member was constantly trying to impress everyone with how perfect and flawless her daughters were due to how well she brought them up.

On this forum there are members who boast about how well off they are or how they only date blonde haired blue eyed girls.

So my question is. On an anonymous internet forum, why do people feel the need to make stuff up to try and impress other anonymous members?

Maybe low self esteem, fear, insecurity.......I've tried to figure it out too, but one thing for sure, braggarts are liars, not to be taken seriously.

On the other hand, maybe it's just an overactive imagination. It's the Walter Mitty persona. I suppose as long as they think one person believes them, they go away happy, no real damage done, it is only the internet after all and much of it doesn't imitate real life.

some could of course be telling the truth..LOL..I do question some on here though, one on when delivering a pizza was met by a girl stripping her clothes off, by all accounts a well known act as she was supposedly schizophrenic.... and guess what his boss forgot to mention it???.. like they do...I of course said in your dreams...it sounded phony and like he had read it somewhere and was turning it into his own experience...which of course people do...dont worry about it nothing wrong with making idiot things up on a forum like this..I always think one day they will be telling a true story and no one will care...I would love to do a bit of bragging on here but I dont think you will believe me now..LOL..

I catch deadly snakes.

KJT1981 wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 7:43am:

I catch deadly snakes.

I snatch deadly cakes.

The Heartless Felon wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 7:51am:

KJT1981 wrote on May 22nd, 2013 at 7:43am: I catch deadly snakes. I snatch deadly cakes.

;D ;D

I’m a Pakistini Bastard.

This thread quesion is right up there with the great mysteries of life such as "why do people breath" or "why do people eat".

;D

Karnal wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 9:40am:

I’m a Pakistini Bastard.

I'm not impressed...

cods wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 7:22am:

some could of course be telling the truth..LOL..I do question some on here though, one on when delivering a pizza was met by a girl stripping her clothes off, by all accounts a well known act as she was supposedly schizophrenic.... and guess what his boss forgot to mention it???.. like they do...I of course said in your dreams...it sounded phony and like he had read it somewhere and was turning it into his own experience...which of course people do...dont worry about it nothing wrong with making idiot things up on a forum like this..I always think one day they will be telling a true story and no one will care...I would love to do a bit of bragging on here but I dont think you will believe me now..LOL..

bugger your an idiot ... i didn't say she was stripping her clothes off, i said she was in her negligee (it actually happens quite often when you delivering up to 5am... but lets not let facts destroy your fantasies cod) ...., I didn't say her schizophrenia was well known I said it was known by others, and yes, my boss didn't mention it until after the fact, maybe because he didn't feel the need to check every address i had to deliver too, he was busy cooking the pizza's . ... you are to stupid for your own good.

His return will be thunderous.

There is a very good reason not to lie about your real life here.

There may come a time when someone here will ask you to meet them in real life, so we should be careful not to make up any outlandish, unbelievable, too-incredible-to-be-true stories. :D Just be yourself.

Who knows? Someone might suggest an interesting project. You're curious and you're enthusiastic about it, but there's one problem. You wouldn't want to get involved because you don't want anyone to meet you in real life. By not lying, you keep that option open.

Remember your Miranda rights. You have a right to remain silent, a right to a lawyer. Anything you say or do can be used against you in real life. There is no need for false confessions.

I am pretty sure Andrei Hicks is who he says he is. For someone who has a net income of $150k per year and had a private education, I don't find it hard to believe he would be so conceited. I have known people like that in real life, so I am not surprised.

Mnemonic wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 10:00pm:

There is a very good reason not to lie about your real life here. There may come a time when someone here will ask you to meet them in real life, so we should be careful not to make up any outlandish, unbelievable, too-incredible-to-be-true stories. :D Just be yourself. Who knows? Someone might suggest an interesting project. You're curious and you're enthusiastic about it, but there's one problem. You wouldn't want to get involved because you don't want anyone to meet you in real life. By not lying, you keep that option open. Remember your Miranda rights. You have a right to remain silent, a right to a lawyer. Anything you say or do can be used against you in real life. There is no need for false confessions. I am pretty sure Andrei Hicks is who he says he is. For someone who has a net income of $150k per year and had a private education, I don't find it hard to believe he would be so conceited. I have known people like that in real life, so I am not surprised.

there is no reason to lie about your life regardless ... can you be that insecure you have to make up things to a bunch of anonymous internet posters?  Who gives a bugger what anyone thinks

the ones who usually call everyone else liars do so because because thats what they do. It's human nature to judge everyone by your own standards.

I agree that most people judge by their own standards. From that you can tell a lot about a person.

It's one of the fun things about posting I reckon, that we can learn a lot about people, and ourselves, just by reading and typing words on a screen.

Sometimes anonymity can be a crucial ingredient because there's things you might sometimes say that would come across badly to close friends or relatives if they happened to be posting on the same board.

When I  posted on "Cracker", I pretty easily worked out that my uncle also posted there.
He has passed now, and I was careful to not let him know that I was his nephew, mainly because he was very religious and I posted a lot of opinions on my beliefs about Christianity which might have been hurtful to him ...considering the crap he used to give me about wanting to see me baptised before he passes  ::)
I didn't get baptised 'again' as he wanted. Screw that crap.

KJT1981 wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 7:43am:

I catch deadly snakes.

Keep at it, you'll catch the right one eventually....  :P

Karnal wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 8:05pm:

His return will be thunderous.

His return will be either ignored, scorned, or mocked.

Kat wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 10:56pm:

Karnal wrote on May 22nd, 2013 at 8:05pm: His return will be thunderous. His return will be either ignored, scorned, or mocked.

..you left out non-existent.

Anyway, back on topic, I've never felt the need to 'big-note' myself on forums.

I'm pretty comfortable in my skin, and am well aware of my abilities, strong
points and limitations. I have, in the vernacular, 'been there, done that' in
many ways, but don't feel the need to wear the T-shirt to prove it. I don't
need to 'prove' anything to myself' (and I certainly don't have to do so to half
a page of anonymous abuse on an internet forum), and I certainly have
nothing to be ashamed of.

Possibly this reluctance to blow my own trumpet and get into people's faces
has something to do with the way some feel that they can abuse me with
impunity over my stand on raising the dole and other welfare issues, I don't
know.

No, boys and girls, the Kat you get on the forum is pretty-much the Kat
you'd see in RL should we ever meet.

Amadd wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 11:10pm:

Kat wrote on May 22nd, 2013 at 10:56pm: Karnal wrote on May 22nd, 2013 at 8:05pm: His return will be thunderous. His return will be either ignored, scorned, or mocked. ..you left out non-existent.

Snap!   ;)

Quote:

No, boys and girls, the Kat you get on the forum is pretty-much the Kat you'd see in RL should we ever meet.

You left out the 'S'  ;)

Amadd wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 10:51pm:

He has passed now, and I was careful to not let him know that I was his nephew, mainly because he was very religious and I posted a lot of opinions on my beliefs about Christianity which might have been hurtful to him ...considering the crap he used to give me about wanting to see me baptised before he passes  ::) I didn't get baptised 'again' as he wanted. Screw that crap.

I've had similar experiences with saying things about Christianity that I wouldn't say in real life (I don't mean here, however -- those experiences took place somewhere else), and I don't mean being completely disparaging about Christianity. I just don't agree with the "orthodoxy" and "conventional" ways of thinking. I also think a lot of Christians haven't looked deep enough into the roots of Christianity and its relationship with Rabbinical Judaism. There's too much of a Greek and Roman influence on Christianity today. Well, that's an understatement. The Greek and Roman influence has been around for the whole 2,000 years. It began in Christianity's infancy. It's right there in the "New Testament." What really set Christianity on a Greek/Roman path however, was Tertullian saying, "what has Jerusalem to do with Athens?" and later, Emperor Constantine. "Christianity" just isn't what it's cracked up to be. I've probably said too much already.

The username I had for the message board where I posted frequently about religion was very similar to an email address I used (and still use today). The trouble was, I'd been giving out that email address to people for 1.5 decades. The username was based on a nickname I used to like, but I'm now looking for new nicknames to identify myself on the Internet.

The great thing about anonymity was that it allowed me to explore ideas in ways not possible in my non-cyberspace life. The freedom I had led to a better and easier learning experience.

ah the paradox,  always play down any achievements and drive a rust bucket. wear old board shorts and look like youre down to your last 10 cents.  then when people find out youre a millionaire, they are intrigued, you are a 'man of mystery" 

try-hards just crash and burn with the public and with the ladies.  i usually tell people i meet i'm a party clown or a fettler in the railways.  ;) ;) ;)

... wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 9:42am:

This thread quesion is right up there with the great mysteries of life such as "why do people breath" or "why do people eat".

In real life I understand why people do it. They want to create a good impression of themselves (although they usually just end up looking foolish).

It makes no sense to me to do it on an anonymous internet forum however.
Unless they are so insecure that they need to big note their forum nicname.

Kat wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 11:10pm:

Anyway, back on topic, I've never felt the need to 'big-note' myself on forums.

And then you proceeded to do exactly that!!!

vvvvvvvvv



Quote:

I'm pretty comfortable in my skin, and am well aware of my abilities, strong points and limitations. I have, in the vernacular, 'been there, done that' in many ways, but don't feel the need to wear the T-shirt to prove it. I don't need to 'prove' anything to myself' (and I certainly don't have to do so to half a page of anonymous abuse on an internet forum), and I certainly have nothing to be ashamed of. Possibly this reluctance to blow my own trumpet and get into people's faces has something to do with the way some feel that they can abuse me with impunity over my stand on raising the dole and other welfare issues, I don't know. No, boys and girls, the Kat you get on the forum is pretty-much the Kat you'd see in RL should we ever meet.

:D

Aussie wrote on May 25^th, 2013 at 8:05pm:

Kat wrote on May 22nd, 2013 at 11:10pm: Anyway, back on topic, I've never felt the need to 'big-note' myself on forums. And then you proceeded to do exactly that!!! vvvvvvvvv Quote: I'm pretty comfortable in my skin, and am well aware of my abilities, strong points and limitations. I have, in the vernacular, 'been there, done that' in many ways, but don't feel the need to wear the T-shirt to prove it. I don't need to 'prove' anything to myself' (and I certainly don't have to do so to half a page of anonymous abuse on an internet forum), and I certainly have nothing to be ashamed of. Possibly this reluctance to blow my own trumpet and get into people's faces has something to do with the way some feel that they can abuse me with impunity over my stand on raising the dole and other welfare issues, I don't know. No, boys and girls, the Kat you get on the forum is pretty-much the Kat you'd see in RL should we ever meet. :D

given the topic of this thread, I wouldn't say she was big-noting herself ....

The_Barnacle wrote on May 21^st, 2013 at 10:05pm:

On a coin collecting forum I am a member of... - there is a constant name dropper - there is someone who always gets the most outrageously good deals when buying. - there is someone who is always discovering rare valuable error coins in their change. In a previous forum I was on a member was constantly trying to impress everyone with how perfect and flawless her daughters were due to how well she brought them up. On this forum there are members who boast about how well off they are or how they only date blonde haired blue eyed girls. So my question is. On an anonymous internet forum, why do people feel the need to make stuff up to try and impress other anonymous members?

interesting.
perhaps they have little of a real life ?

What threads are you talking about here Oh Yeah?  I haven't seen the ones you are quoting.

Aussie wrote on May 25^th, 2013 at 8:05pm:

Kat wrote on May 22nd, 2013 at 11:10pm: Anyway, back on topic, I've never felt the need to 'big-note' myself on forums. And then you proceeded to do exactly that!!! vvvvvvvvv Quote: I'm pretty comfortable in my skin, and am well aware of my abilities, strong points and limitations. I have, in the vernacular, 'been there, done that' in many ways, but don't feel the need to wear the T-shirt to prove it. I don't need to 'prove' anything to myself' (and I certainly don't have to do so to half a page of anonymous abuse on an internet forum), and I certainly have nothing to be ashamed of. Possibly this reluctance to blow my own trumpet and get into people's faces has something to do with the way some feel that they can abuse me with impunity over my stand on raising the dole and other welfare issues, I don't know. No, boys and girls, the Kat you get on the forum is pretty-much the Kat you'd see in RL should we ever meet. :D

Actually, I did the exact opposite.

I downplayed my good points, and didn't exaggerate the bad.

And I've never purported to be what I am not (unlike some
members), or acted superior with no justification (again unlike
some other members).

In other words, all I did was to give an honest answer to the
OP's question, no more.

Kat wrote on May 27^th, 2013 at 12:05am:

Actually, I did the exact opposite. I downplayed my good points, and didn't exaggerate the bad. And I've never purported to be what I am not (unlike some members), or acted superior with no justification (again unlike some other members). In other words, all I did was to give an honest answer to the OP's question, no more.

I just say what I say. Is that big-noting myself? Why do people have to over-analyse what we do here? :D

Who cares? :D

Mnemonic wrote on May 27^th, 2013 at 12:23am:

Kat wrote on May 27th, 2013 at 12:05am: Actually, I did the exact opposite. I downplayed my good points, and didn't exaggerate the bad. And I've never purported to be what I am not (unlike some members), or acted superior with no justification (again unlike some other members). In other words, all I did was to give an honest answer to the OP's question, no more. I just say what I say. Fair enough. Is that big-noting myself? No. Why do people have to over-analyse what we do here? :D No idea. Who cares? :D Probably no-one who matters.

John Smith wrote on May 25^th, 2013 at 9:18pm:

Aussie wrote on May 25th, 2013 at 8:05pm: Kat wrote on May 22nd, 2013 at 11:10pm: Anyway, back on topic, I've never felt the need to 'big-note' myself on forums. And then you proceeded to do exactly that!!! vvvvvvvvv Quote: I'm pretty comfortable in my skin, and am well aware of my abilities, strong points and limitations. I have, in the vernacular, 'been there, done that' in many ways, but don't feel the need to wear the T-shirt to prove it. I don't need to 'prove' anything to myself' (and I certainly don't have to do so to half a page of anonymous abuse on an internet forum), and I certainly have nothing to be ashamed of. Possibly this reluctance to blow my own trumpet and get into people's faces has something to do with the way some feel that they can abuse me with impunity over my stand on raising the dole and other welfare issues, I don't know. No, boys and girls, the Kat you get on the forum is pretty-much the Kat you'd see in RL should we ever meet. :D given the topic of this thread, I wouldn't say she was big-noting herself ....

For those in the pursuit of money above all else - they think anyone that is happy without being like them is "big noting" to say it.

SOB

Why do people try and impress?

To get something they want! Simple!

Want a change in circumstances, a better job, a younger girl friend?

Bullshite is one option, honesty is another.

Honesty means you'll never have to remember what you've said. The least you'll ever have to do is answer the same questions.

Lionel Edriess wrote on May 27^th, 2013 at 9:55pm:

Honesty means you'll never have to remember what you've said. The least you'll ever have to do is answer the same questions.

Another benefit of honesty is you at least know that the people being nice to you accept you as you are. Being put on a pedestal is the worst thing.

Kat wrote on May 22^nd, 2013 at 11:10pm:

Anyway, back on topic, I've never felt the need to 'big-note' myself on forums. I'm pretty comfortable in my skin, and am well aware of my abilities, strong points and limitations. I have, in the vernacular, 'been there, done that' in many ways, but don't feel the need to wear the T-shirt to prove it. I don't need to 'prove' anything to myself' (and I certainly don't have to do so to half a page of anonymous abuse on an internet forum), and I certainly have nothing to be ashamed of. Possibly this reluctance to blow my own trumpet and get into people's faces has something to do with the way some feel that they can abuse me with impunity over my stand on raising the dole and other welfare issues, I don't know. No, boys and girls, the Kat you get on the forum is pretty-much the Kat you'd see in RL should we ever meet.

Well said. Nothing to prove, nothing to hide.

The_Barnacle wrote on May 21^st, 2013 at 10:05pm:

On an anonymous internet forum, why do people feel the need to make stuff up to try and impress other anonymous members?

Not sure. I'm impressed by Freediver's posts on goats though.