Following Kage’s post from the SGC User Blogs on Wednesday, I got to thinking about how to create a really good username. After a bit of though, I came up with 5 simple steps that will secure you an entry to username heaven.
Username Nirvana, after the jump.
Step 1 - Keep it short
No one likes a long username - they’re hard to remember, take a long time to type in and are often hard to read. I’m not suggesting that you have a username that’s shorter than 4 characters, but for usernames, shorter is always better. I would say 10 characters is an absolute maximum, but 6 or 7 is where you should be aiming for. If you can think of something shorter, then go with that.
Step 2 - Make it abstract
A common mistake people make when picking a username is trying to name it after someone or something else. I don’t care if you’re Just Cause’s biggest fan, and I doubt anyone else does. ‘Eoco’ means nothing, well not intentionally anyway (The Essential Oil Company annoy me), and neither should your username. Don’t call yourself David Beckham, Masterchief, IKEA, Fuji FinePix S9100 9.0 MP Digital Camera or any other proper noun that you can think of. Wanna know how I came up with ‘Eoco’? I saw an anagram and amongst the jumbled up letters was the word ‘Eoco’. It was short and totally abstract. Your username must mean nothing.
Step 3 - Only use the alphabet
Do not use a single number or piece of punctuation in your name. ‘3oco’ or ‘£0c0′ are nowhere near as effective as ‘Eoco’. Numbers and punctuation merely show that the username you actually wanted was unavailable. If it’s unavailable, think of a new one - don’t try and get around it.
Step 4 - It must be one word
You username must not contain a single space. Not even one. If it’s two words, then it isn’t short enough and you’ve broken the first rule. By having more than one word you are reducing the impact it has as a memorable name. This doesn’t mean you can just skip the space and have two words as one word. ‘HaloFan’ is just as useless as ‘Halo Fan’, likewise ‘IAmAwesome’ is just as rubbish as ‘I Am Awesome’.
Step 5 - Make it easy to spell
This is simple enough, your username must be easy to spell. Calling your self ‘Cappuccino’ is not going to help anyone, you included. If someone wants to PM you, or add you to a friends list it only takes one typo to add the wrong person, or presume you don’t exist. Of course if you want a good username you shouldn’t try to make a pattern using letters. ‘XxEocoxX’ or ‘0oEoco0′ looks ridiculous and just makes it harder to remember and spell.
There we go, 5 steps to getting the perfect username. Obey all these and you should be well on your way to username heaven.
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33 responses so far ↓
1 Jarrett // Aug 6, 2008 at 9:35 am
Heh, that was pretty good.
2 Infneon // Aug 6, 2008 at 9:45 am
I like names that if they are at the upper acceptable limit, you can shorten it down and it still makes sence. Like mine, I use the name as my WoW charecter, never ever seen anyone refer to me as Infneon, always as Inf
3 stupidpower // Aug 6, 2008 at 9:51 am
“Eoco”……”Lono”…..
Too fishy……
4 Lucifers Jello // Aug 6, 2008 at 9:58 am
Good list but i disagree with the first and fourth. Wouldn’t the name Sir Stallsworth have more of a impact then just Stallsworth. As for the numbers I sort of agree. Before microsoft idioticly lost my Gamertag I was Zulu638. That name was apperantly taken of some random character in a radio show. I know it conflicts with rule 2 also which I once again I only sort of agree with. I never even looked for just Zulu I went straight for 638. Now that I think of it I only agree with rule 5, but I’m more then sure someone will find a good reason that contradicts it.
5 stupidpower // Aug 6, 2008 at 9:59 am
oh! Just noticed raynmaykr is inside the list. Do I get a prize?
6 Ghu55 // Aug 6, 2008 at 11:01 am
My name is a joke with my friends that also means nothing, but it wouldn’t be the same without the 55, so i disagree with rule 3
7 Monkeyboo2 // Aug 6, 2008 at 11:09 am
Good Advice in general, but the Number rule can broken.
Look at my name. the 2 rhymes with boo. I chose the 2 even though plain ‘Monkeyboo’ was available.
I wouldn’t be the same without the 2.
8 blades144 // Aug 6, 2008 at 11:22 am
I have to disagree with the number deal. I have rarely had to try a different name since I stuck with the 144. The 144 means nothing but keeps it simple to register for any site or gamertag. One click, hit, done.
9 Kiltman67 // Aug 6, 2008 at 11:27 am
Always bugs me when I see someone on Xbox Live with a nick relating to a game (more often than not Halo but I’ve seen others). Beyond the fact it makes you look ever so slightly retarded, you’re going to either be stuck with an outdated name in a year or two (or when your tastes change) or you’re going to b the guy who changes his nick every few weeks and nobody is going to know who you are.
Basic rule: What seems like a good idea now, may not appear quite so smart in a years time.
Always wish I’d gone for the straight Kiltman. I’ve been using the nick around for almost 10 years now and long forgotten who it was that imposed the 67 on me (I find it hard to believe there’s another 66 “Kiltmen” out there ;)), but unfortunately it snowballed to the point where I felt uncomfortable about dropping it. In retrospect I probably never would have used the nick at all.
10 Havok Saunders // Aug 6, 2008 at 11:48 am
Sad face…
My name fails on many levels. It is the combination of my name plus “Havok” from X-Men. Plus there is that unacceptable space in the middle. If only I had known sooner.
11 iBrick // Aug 6, 2008 at 12:17 pm
So do I get a cookie?
12 Live4Him // Aug 6, 2008 at 12:47 pm
I think my name is pretty good, but then again it is MY name, so I dunno. I like that it stands for something, but it only has 1 number, and that’s in the middle of it. People just know me as this and have for a long time, so it would be pretty hard to switch, and besides, I’m not very creative, so I’ll end up with some crappy username that nobody will remember me as.
13 PrinceNicy // Aug 6, 2008 at 2:01 pm
You should have rule #6 saying that there are always exceptions to the first 5.
14 JameZDeadman // Aug 6, 2008 at 2:19 pm
damn !!! My user name sucks ?? ….i like it
15 Lord Butters I // Aug 6, 2008 at 2:53 pm
What’s wrong with my name? Sure it’s multiple words (and a roman numeral) but I chalenge anyone to find an instance of Lord Butters the First that isn’t me!
16 jim membership // Aug 6, 2008 at 3:07 pm
hey
17 jim membership // Aug 6, 2008 at 3:09 pm
how about no rules at all. your username could be whatever the hell you want it to be
18 thisSitekblows // Aug 6, 2008 at 3:39 pm
actually you’re totally wrong, no one types user names - you just go find them on a list.
next, it being short may make it easier to type but it also makes it boring.
also, you should maybe change the name of your crap website to one word, cause that is something that probably does get typed from time to time.
the key to a cool username is being original, and putting some thought into it. in the end its your own f*cking name so whatever makes you happy is all that matters.
19 Eoco // Aug 6, 2008 at 3:46 pm
@ thisSitekblows
Thanks, that was a great comment!
20 Obey // Aug 6, 2008 at 7:10 pm
you said Obey
21 Laland // Aug 6, 2008 at 7:14 pm
What about “Laland”? Short’n’sweet, and I don’t think it has any kind of relevance to anything other than a farm here in Norway.. :p
22 Wolf26pack // Aug 6, 2008 at 7:52 pm
I like my user name. Ya it may break step 3 in your suggestions and it may be true that somebody else had my user name but I am still happy with it. It may not be that abstract but I like wolves and that is why I chose it. In the end it is pretty simple for people because all they have to call me is Wolf.
23 Schuey19 // Aug 6, 2008 at 10:25 pm
Step 1. agree
Step 2. sort of agree. just needs to mean something to you personally i think.
Step 3. agree to an extent. don’t like numbers replacing letters, but numbers themselves are fine - didn’t even look for “Schuey” because the “19″ means something to me.
Step 4. disagree
Step 5. disagree. if you can’t copy the words in front of you, that’s not my problem
24 centric dk // Aug 7, 2008 at 3:12 am
I the name insn’t easy to pronounce its useless in multiplayer games.
25 centric dk // Aug 7, 2008 at 3:13 am
Just like when you miss some letters
If the name insn’t easy to pronounce its useless in multiplayer games.
26 FinalWhiteDove // Aug 7, 2008 at 3:28 am
Oh I’m very sad now, it’s a shame that I can’t have a name as long as mine because it’s breaks the 10 letter rule.
My Username personally means alot to me, it used to be WhiteDove, but too many people took that up on multiple sites so I thought of FinalWhiteDove and it’s been my user name ever since, sure I also have MC Newline (MC /N) or Jimmy S but they don’t mean as much to me.
Of course it shouldn’t be like 1000 characters/letters long but it shouldn’t have to be SO short.
-FWD.
27 holocaust22 // Aug 7, 2008 at 4:48 am
If mine as 11 digits then it`s a awful user name isn`t it?
oh and a number, damn what have i done!!!
sarcastic…….
28 Chu An // Aug 7, 2008 at 6:01 am
hey, check my nick name
Rufiokato
It’s easier to remember than panasonic, ight
29 no one // Aug 8, 2008 at 12:39 am
What about me?
30 iBrick // Aug 9, 2008 at 1:17 pm
Wow, I can’t believe how seriously offended some people are.
31 Apex // Sep 15, 2008 at 7:43 pm
my name fits the bill seemingly perfectly however i have a dark secret….. on Xbox Live my gamertag is Apex8! dun-duh Dun-duh
(and that was my crappy horror movie music extract)
32 VladH // Sep 16, 2008 at 6:48 am
Mine is the best. Guess what it is.
MY NAME :O
33 Samosael // Sep 16, 2008 at 12:26 pm
I approve of this topic.
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