Internet Gender Issues [Archive]

Arcade Man D

09-19-2009, 11:14 PM

I won't post my other names on here because this is my same name as CS and this is a name I keep wholly seperate from my other online names for the reason of it being a CS/Fratching account, but I'm a guy and I've never been called "she".

My girlfriend, on the other hand, uses her name, which is a woman's name that is not ever given to a guy (Not even as rarely in this hemisphere as, say, Sasha), and some people still call her "he" on forums.

MaggieTheCat

09-20-2009, 01:17 AM

I'm a girl. "Maggie" is a pretty feminine name so I don't think I've ever been mistaken for a guy, except maybe on the GameFAQs forums. I don't post there very often because it's mostly populated by 13 year olds, but apparently they're all under the impression that girls either don't play video games or don't post on message boards, or both, because despite the fact that my username there is the same is it is here, I've still been called a guy.

My old username, however, would usually make people think I was a guy at first. I used to go by Tiamat in a lot of chat rooms, which is, in fact, a female name. A lot of people just don't know it (or have read incorrect things about it being male.)

Wingates_Hellsing

09-20-2009, 02:52 AM

Despite the fact that my user name has always derived from the character Sir Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing, I have never been mistaken for female :D

guywithashovel

09-20-2009, 03:04 AM

This is the only forum on which I've ever used this screenname. I honestly can't even remember how I came up with this name. Sometimes, I wish I had picked something else, because I know it probably makes me sound like some seedy psychopath who lurks around in graveyards, but oh well. No one has ever mistaken me for a female with this name, since this name makes my gender pretty obvious.

Years ago, I used to frequent this chat site called Chatalyst. On that site, I usually used the name Illusion. A few times, I got mistaken for a girl. After a while, I got to using the name Vincent, and everyone knew I was a guy then. But at the same time, some people suspected me of being involved in vampirism and occultic stuff.

I8DaCookie

09-20-2009, 04:52 AM

With my current SN, I figure everyone assumes I'm female and probably a little girl. It is a little cutesy and sounds like what a child would say.

The SN I used before this one came from Mr. Peabody and the only mistake anyone got from that one is they thought I called myself that because I went to the Peabody Conservatory. :rolleyes:

Gravekeeper

09-20-2009, 06:59 AM

Unless I'm actually on a female avatar of some sort, I'm not typically mistaken for a girl, no. I've been suspect of one a couple of times, as some of my handles are ambiguous in online games, but hitting voice chat typically erases that notion.

I have both male and female avatars in games though. I default to male of course but if its an alt or the art style for males is hideous ( WoW ;p ) I may be on a mangina.

I'm easy to spot though. As I'll be the woman that actually has pants on, isn't dressed like a Thai dock whore and isn't spamming /dance at every opportunity in an attempt to whore favours out of male players. Ironically that's why I get mistaken for a Real Girl(tm) by other players above the age of 12.

Boozy

09-20-2009, 01:01 PM

What I am about to say might be controversial, but what is Fratching for, right?

I think that being mistaken for a man or a woman has less to do with our screen names than we think. There are some good examples from this thread; HYHYBT has a non-descript screen name, but is also rightfully assumed to be a man. Arcade Man's girlfriend uses her real, feminine name, and is often presumed to be male.

I think it's probably because of the content of their posts. I've found that women's posts tend to have more emotional content (things like "hugs!" and "OMG I feel so bad for you!). Men's posts tend to be more facts and figures oriented. A poster's reaction to an SC is a typical giveaway. Do they describe how they feel about it? Probably a woman. Do they focus more on the sheer injustice? Probably a man. I can guess the gender of a poster correctly more times than not based on tone.

There are some obvious exceptions -- me, for example. I am often assumed to be male. Part of that may be my screen name, but part of it might be my tone.

I've noticed that angry posts are often assumed to be made by men, even if they aren't. If I'm ranting and raving about a bad customer at CS, the responses in that thread assume me to be male. I haven't found more angry posts by men than by women, but I've noticed a definite trend in assumptions of masculinity.

The internet has provided a fascinating glimpse into the concept of gender that we rarely see in real-life.

Lace Neil Singer

09-20-2009, 01:38 PM

I used to go by Tiamat in a lot of chat rooms, which is, in fact, a female name. A lot of people just don't know it (or have read incorrect things about it being male.)
Tiamat is, to me anyway, the many headed female dragon in the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon so I know it's s a female name. XD My Gaia name is Lace Gaara; I've been mistaken for male a couple of times, tho only if my avatar was masked. Particularly if wearing the Anubis mask. XD

I think it's probably because of the content of their posts. I've found that women's posts tend to have more emotional content (things like "hugs!" and "OMG I feel so bad for you!). Men's posts tend to be more facts and figures oriented. A poster's reaction to an SC is a typical giveaway. Do they describe how they feel about it? Probably a woman. Do they focus more on the sheer injustice? Probably a man. I can guess the gender of a poster correctly more times than not based on tone.
That's probably why I get mistaken for a guy; I tend not to give out emotion in that way online and focus on injustice and facts. XD Maybe it's cuz of my Aspergers, I don't know. All I know is that I could call myself "Girly Girl McGirl" and I'd still be suspected of having a penis. :rolleyes:

Arcade Man D

09-20-2009, 03:14 PM

I think it's probably because of the content of their posts. I've found that women's posts tend to have more emotional content (things like "hugs!" and "OMG I feel so bad for you!). Men's posts tend to be more facts and figures oriented.

That's probably why she's often assumed to be a guy by some posters, then, since she's a math geek and tends to post (and think) more logically than "touchy-feely".

As for my alternate forum handles, my main one is completely neutral toward gender, and I tend to not use character avatars on forums, rather I use symbols or pictures of foxes. But my post content tends to make people realize I'm male, following your logic.

gremcint

09-20-2009, 10:34 PM

What gender do people think I am?

smileyeagle1021

09-21-2009, 07:28 AM

What gender do people think I am?

I'm going with male... ?

I can kind of understand how people would be confused with mine... smiley isn't exactly the type of thing many guys would put in their screen name, yet eagle is typically associated with masculinity. That and post style... being gay probably puts me as a kind of hybrid between the masculine and feminine styles of posting...
That said... it is kind of rare for people to confuse me on forums... oddly just on the phone.

TehShush

09-21-2009, 10:46 AM

Most people default towards male, not just online but in general. I do know that in most games that I play, a girl has to tell people she is female (unless she has a very obvious female username) for others to call her such. A lot of online games are male-oriented, as girls tend to stick with messaging and such, at least as the stereotypes go.

I use this screen name almost everywhere; when under another psuedonym, I generally pretend to be a guy (such as on Gaia, where girls tend to get a lot of unwanted attention).

Lace Neil Singer

09-21-2009, 11:07 AM

Gravekeeper

09-21-2009, 01:52 PM

I don't find that; neither myself or my mule account get unwanted attention, tho my main gets a few weird ranty PMs and annoyances from beggars in Towns. There are also a lot of Gaians who have opposite gender avatars; must be funny if you're really a guy and some noob is asking you to cyber. XD

Depends on the game I think. I've never been bothered on female characters in DaoC, CoH/CoV, LOTRO or WAR.

But I couldn't so much as swap armour on my she-Draenai in WoW without a comment from the desperately rubbing my peanuts gallery.

MystyGlyttyr

09-22-2009, 04:39 PM

I'm a girl, everyone knows I'm a girl right off the bat.

This ties in to a little experiment I'm currently toying with. A few years ago, I was part of a wrestling forum that was rather...unkind to anyone who wasn't all about "being cool" by hating the popular people and ranting about how the indies had all the good people and we're-the-smart-ones blah blah blah. I was a girl, with girly opinions, and got freaking crucified for daring to tell the truth about my earlier life.

Stumbled across it not long ago and on a whim, rejoined using a more masculine user name, yet I'm still writing, posting, and opining in the exact same way I ever did. So far nothing but occasional commentary on how "neat" an idea of mine is or how they hadn't thought of that or whatever.

Like I told Cath, it's so blatant as to almost be cute. "Awww, wookit the widdle mens thweatened by the ovawies, they so adowable!" :D

Nyoibo

09-22-2009, 05:22 PM

Pfft, ovaries aren't scary, what they do to women though, that shit is scary.

smileyeagle1021

09-23-2009, 07:51 AM

Pfft, ovaries aren't scary, what they do to women though, that shit is scary.

no... the really scary part of women is a little bit further down on their body... I do believe it may even have teeth ;)

violetyoshi

09-23-2009, 10:03 AM

Post here and say what gender you are, plus what other usernames you've used online and whether you've ever been mistaken for the opposite sex. XD

Well, I'm female. I also go by The Anti-Crisst and SS Lt Frehley; yup, I do get mistaken for a guy lots of times. XD I admit my usernames are a bit ambiguous, but I've posted with a girly signature, title and avatar and STILL had someone assuming I'm male. o_O

I'm female, most of the time on the net people will assume I'm male. I think it may be the combination, of the sexist notion that women don't play video games, so if I have a screen name related to video games I MUST be male. Also I don't talk like a woman whatever that means.

Apparently I wasn't in class on the day, they talked about saying "OMG" and "like" adnauseum, and that women only talk about cooking, shopping, and sex. Cause you know, silly internet, why would people there believe a woman can have a life not revolving around a man?

BroomJockey

09-23-2009, 01:25 PM

I do believe it may even have teeth ;)

Only in bad horror movies.

Gravekeeper

09-23-2009, 03:26 PM

I'm female, most of the time on the net people will assume I'm male. I think it may be the combination, of the sexist notion that women don't play video games, so if I have a screen name related to video games I MUST be male.

Objection!

Its not sexiest, it's stereotypical. Like or not the video game industry has been male dominated for the longest time. It's not been until more recent years that the gender ratio has started to even out with the popularity of more accessible games and newer game types such as mmos.

The stereotype tends to persist because

A) You still don't see a lot of female players in "mainstream" games ( Read: Action games ), because these are typically marketed to young males and predominately played by young males. A realm female players don't tread as often or don't admit that they do for obvious reasons. ( 13 year old horny males ).

For the record actual adult male gamers such as myself don't tend to play said games much either. Their twitch fix games filled with screeching little e-peen wankers.

B) Female gamers rarely identify themselves since depending on the game community the reaction or unwanted attention can be problematic. This is typically problematic in the aforementioned action games dominated by younger male players.

Whereas there is a higher percentage of openly female gamers in teamwork/social building game's. MMOs for example tend to have more even gender ratios and far less creepy horny 13 year old attention for anyone that happens to have a uterus.

Fashion Lad!

09-23-2009, 06:40 PM

I generally assume everyone is a he until they say otherwise.

In my class we were speaking about internet and gender.

One of my classmates said that any girl you talk to online is actually a man. And for some reason, we managed to figure out scenarios that would point to the person being a man in real-life.

We have no life.

No one has every mistaken me for a female. I've only been using two names. Fashion Lad! and variations of pushing_pixels.

Lace Neil Singer

09-23-2009, 07:56 PM

Note to add: My mule account on Gaia has a male name; whether it's masculine enough is a matter of opinion. :D I named my mule after my avatar, in case you're wondering. And yup; people are assuming my mule to be male. Even tho my mule is female and currently wearing a dress. XD

Fire_on_High

09-28-2009, 09:50 PM

I get constantly mistaken for a male on IRC since I don't use girly nicks. I think there's also an inherent assumption anyone on IRC must be a guy, since it's a geekier medium to this day.

Pretty amusing, I'm pretty butchy IRL as well so...

BroomJockey

09-28-2009, 09:57 PM

I'm a girl!

Okay, no, but funnily enough, the only time I've been mistaken for a girl online is on CS.

Flyndaran

09-29-2009, 06:39 PM

I've always gone by Flyndaran or KBantar, yet I don't think anyone has ever mistaken me for female.

It might be partly due to my poor social skills and how it affects my writing. But since I've met women with just as poor social skills as mine, it can't be that stereotypical.

smileyeagle1021

09-30-2009, 01:31 AM

I've always gone by Flyndaran or KBantar, yet I don't think anyone has ever mistaken me for female.

:o
umm... I thought you were a female :(

Flyndaran

09-30-2009, 07:36 AM

:o
umm... I thought you were a female :(

Really? What gave that impression?

kamn

10-12-2009, 01:25 PM

<snip> Also I don't talk like a woman whatever that means. <snip>

My friend has the opposite. Very male name, but get mistaken for a female, most of the time by females. Supposedly, males don't use emoticons in a conversation and if they do, they will be the standard ones. Was fun to hear the reactions of everyone in the guild when he got on Vent though :D

unholypet

10-12-2009, 09:52 PM

Female! Often mistaken for a male because of my, quoted," brashness, bluntness, spelling and grammar (??), and the attitude."

Peppergirl

10-13-2009, 03:28 AM

I use Peppergirl, which is obviously female - but I never meant it in a cutesy way, it's actually from the name "Pepper" who is my parents dog. I call her peppergirl sometimes, and it just stuck. So yeah, I guess it is a little cutesy to name myself after a dog I love. Or disturbing. :D

I also use Firebrat, and I've never been mistaken for a male with that, either. But, I do find some validity to Boozy's comment about writing in a sterotypical 'female' or 'male' way. I know I am very 'female' in my writing, so even if I used a male-ish name, I think it would be obvious I am female.

Nyoibo

10-13-2009, 03:48 AM

I don't usually have a problem with people picking my gender online, it's usually in real life that I have the problem. :(

BroomJockey

10-13-2009, 04:31 PM

So yeah, I guess it is a little cutesy to name myself after a dog I love. Or disturbing. :D

"This Junior, what does it mean?"

"Henry, Jones, Junior."

"Dad, I prefer 'Indiana.'"

"We called the dog Indiana."

"You are named after the dog?"

Peppergirl

10-13-2009, 04:43 PM

"This Junior, what does it mean?"

"Henry, Jones, Junior."

"Dad, I prefer 'Indiana.'"

"We called the dog Indiana."

"You are named after the dog?"

Heh. Love that movie.

Now you've done it....gonna call myself 'Peppergirl Jr.' now. ;)

Greenday

10-13-2009, 05:00 PM

I use Peppergirl, which is obviously female

It is? Crap...

Just kidding. Haven't really messed up too many people on here, but every now and then I do.

Kalli

10-14-2009, 01:46 AM

Interestingly, I'm mistaken for male quite a lot, despite having a feminine username. I think this is because of what Boozy said - you hit the nail smack on the head there.

Also, males who say that they create female wow characters because "people give you stuff and hit on you when you're a female!" Are full of shit. I've been playing a female character with a feminine name on the most dickhead-soaked server since release day, and I'm very rarely taken for a female.

That's purely a gaming thing though, on forums it's different, usually people guess I'm a female from the name, although like Boozy my tone is often masculine.

It was a lot worse even 5 years ago in regards to games, I used to play a lot of RTS and FPS fairly seriously, and never once did someone assume I was female, despite Kali being my name for the last 10 years. In WoW, a few people assume im female, and a few more actually ask.

B) Female gamers rarely identify themselves since depending on the game community the reaction or unwanted attention can be problematic. This is typically problematic in the aforementioned action games dominated by younger male players.

This.

I used to get extremely pissed when I used to play CoD and a clan member would call me "she" in chat, because I'd spend the rest of the skrim copping "HEY BABE DON'T GET ANGRY LOL PMS" and/or "OMG! <Insert Teammate Here> got killed by a GIRL! HAHAHAHA!" from the opposing team.

Even to the point of when i'd accidentally say something like "my boyfriend", people would automatically assume I was a gay dude, because that was more likely than being a chick playing AOE or COD. Being a girl gamer was a huge thing even 5 years ago.

That kind of shit doesn't normally go down anymore, especially since I play MMO's now, although if you're in an argument (especially of the typical internet variety), you still don't want people knowing you're female.

I was having this epic argument with a fuckbat during a pug just the other day actually, when a guildy piped up "Careful dude, her husband is in this raid". GG, argument over, I lose no matter what.

Not that I'm having a whinge about it, it's simply amusing and really quite sociologically interesting.

Nyoibo

10-14-2009, 03:36 AM

Also, males who say that they create female wow characters because "people give you stuff and hit on you when you're a female!" Are full of shit. I've been playing a female character with a feminine name on the most dickhead-soaked server since release day, and I'm very rarely taken for a female.

The best answer I've heard for a guy playing a female character was something along the lines of "If I have to stare at an ass for hours on end them it's damn well going to be a nice shapely ass" I agree.

Rapscallion

10-14-2009, 06:35 AM

The best answer I've heard for a guy playing a female character was something along the lines of "If I have to stare at an ass for hours on end them it's damn well going to be a nice shapely ass" I agree.

I was about to say something along those lines. Mates of mine always play male characters and wonder why I play female characters. It's simple - I'm heterosexual and don't really want to stare at a male from behind for ages.

They've yet to come up with an answer to that one.

Rapscallion

Mytical

10-14-2009, 07:06 AM

Wow...how long are these posts allowed to be? Sooo many games, sooo many forums...sooo many names. Would be here for quite some time. I have played female avatars, been mistaken for female. Even made female avatars on MMO (cause I agree that if I am going to stare at something, it is not going to be some guys hairy behind). Its also a little more complicated then that for me, but not something that I am going to discuss online :p.

Anyhow, just remember the internet is : Where guys are guys, females are guys, and teens are FBI agents. As long as you avoid cybering (which I have never really understood or gotten into), you should be ok :D

smileyeagle1021

10-14-2009, 04:24 PM

Really? What gave that impression?

I honestly don't know...

I use Peppergirl, which is obviously female

Holy Crap, you're a woman :eek: :p

Kalli

10-14-2009, 10:18 PM

The best answer I've heard for a guy playing a female character was something along the lines of "If I have to stare at an ass for hours on end them it's damn well going to be a nice shapely ass" I agree.

Precisely, that makes perfect sense, and it's obviously why they play female characters. What I don't get is why they don't just say that.

BroomJockey

10-14-2009, 10:27 PM

Precisely, that makes perfect sense, and it's obviously why they play female characters. What I don't get is why they don't just say that.

Actually, some studies found that male players have a tendency to imbue female video game characters with human traits, and will even look at it more like a team of "her and I" than "I control this avatar." So it might not always just be "I like to look at something cute."

Nyoibo

10-15-2009, 12:31 AM

Holy Crap, you're a woman :eek: :p

Of course not, women don't exist on the internet.

Kalli

10-15-2009, 03:30 AM

Actually, some studies found that male players have a tendency to imbue female video game characters with human traits, and will even look at it more like a team of "her and I" than "I control this avatar." So it might not always just be "I like to look at something cute."

Sounds like one of those studies with about 50 variables they don't consider. Does it not make more sense that a male character would feel like an extension of self, and that's why they call female characters "her and I"?

BroomJockey

10-15-2009, 04:29 AM

Sounds like one of those studies with about 50 variables they don't consider. Does it not make more sense that a male character would feel like an extension of self, and that's why they call female characters "her and I"?

They had people play almost the exact same game, with only the variable of gender of avatar altered, so it doesn't really matter what they do and don't consider, it doesn't alter the speech used by the player.

But speaking as a gamer, no, a male avatar does absolutely not feel like an extension of me, and my frequent swearing at that damned bastard for not doing what I told him will attest to that.

Bloodsoul

10-16-2009, 12:48 AM

I remember being mistaken for a female on several occasions; once was on a Lord of the Rings roleplay forum because my male character was so polite to the opposite sex that posters thought I couldn't possibly be male myself. Second time was just recently playing Mortal Kombat Armageddon online; then again, my PS2 handle is "Lilium" and my created character is female (albeit a scantilly clad devil <.<).

"Bloodsoul" is the username I tend to use the most in recent times; if not available, then I go with the French varient, "Amesang" (such as with YouTube and Xbox LIVE; lastname for a female character I draw as well, but most just mispronounce it). My GameFAQs account is "MK Sonic" and a few other places I use "Schadenfreude" or "Schadenfreude Studios." (with regards to that LotR forum, due to a typological glitch, my username is completely blank)

I was about to say something along those lines. Mates of mine always play male characters and wonder why I play female characters. It's simple - I'm heterosexual and don't really want to stare at a male from behind for ages.

They've yet to come up with an answer to that one.

Rapscallion
Or as a variation to that note, the reason I have more female characters in Dungeons & Dragons than I do male is because I like to draw my characters... and I enjoy drawing girls more than I do guys.

Kalli

10-16-2009, 05:56 AM

my frequent swearing at that damned bastard for not doing what I told him will attest to that.

I always used to put shit on people who did that, until I started playing arena :D

Lace Neil Singer

10-16-2009, 11:53 AM

That's an interesting spin on things. I RP frequently, and nearly all of my characters are male. It's weird, I never really thought about it til this thread. XD

gremcint

10-16-2009, 01:02 PM

Seeing as how only one person is ever going to guess, I'll just say it.

I am male, there I know it was burning in the back of your mind.

XCashier

10-16-2009, 05:30 PM

Post here and say what gender you are, plus what other usernames you've used online and whether you've ever been mistaken for the opposite sex. XD
I'm female. I use XCashier both here and on CS; on most other forums I go by Sue DeNym or Sue_DeNym. I never get mistaken for male with that pseudonym, though I think I was once with XCashier.

blas87

10-16-2009, 05:58 PM

In older versions of CS, I was blasphemy87. I dropped the 87 off of blas87 on CS, because after a while, everyone just knew me as blas.

I do get mistaken for a guy sometimes on CS, because my avatar was Ville Valo for the longest time, and now it's the butthead couple from Wisconsin from South Park.

It's not a big deal....and it doesn't take long to find out I'm a girl. But I figure the less people know, the less we can pinpoint who I am, the better.

Eggmont

10-17-2009, 12:59 PM

Never been mistaken for a girl on any forums, my wow character is a different matter. I play a human female warlock by the name of Averdria, in the early days of playing the character I was mistaken for a girl quite a few times. Now that ive been playing for a while and am rather well known that mistake is only ever made by newer players, which can be rather amusing if they do so in front of 24 over people who do know of me.

Stormraven

10-17-2009, 07:15 PM

Slytovhand

12-12-2009, 09:54 AM

I played a Pally in WoW, thus I feel I can resurrect this thread.. :p

My name her has caused people to question my gender.. I think by a few ppl here. It's fairly gender neutral, and I tend to be more 'balanced' in the way I discuss things (though, not with a lot of emotion).

My RL name also goes either way (unless you know where it comes from). After I left Pizza-slut as a driver, they kept my nametag.. was apparently very handy for either guys or girls!

I usually prefer to use female avatars on games.. partly cos I think they look better, partly cos I don't want to be looking at a guy all the time, but I think mostly because I'm more of a dex-based, agility type character - not a strength-based one. A slimmer form seems part of that idea.

I recall 2 specific incidents in WoW when I got hit on cos of my female avatar... loved it when someone wanted to give me this 'great' item they just collected (too bad it was BoP - quest reward!!), and the other was a guildy who didn't know of my alt :p That was funny, and I ribbed him about it for ages :p

What I have noticed on such games, if you're 'female' (either as alt or RL), then it's also assumed you're a noob, and don't really know how to play! Try telling that to a lvl 60...!! (must have been lucky, or had the guys all show you through!)

RecoveringKinkoid

12-16-2009, 03:50 AM

That's an interesting spin on things. I RP frequently, and nearly all of my characters are male. It's weird, I never really thought about it til this thread. XD

This is something that fascinates me, mainly because I do it myself. I don't always play a male...in fact, with me it's probably closer to fifty fifty male female ration with characters I create. It seems to depend on the game.

The reason it fascinates me is that I have no idea what makes me want to play a male character when I actually DO do it. it seems to depend randomly on my whim at the moment. So when other women do it, I want to know why THEY do it.

I'm just curious, really.

Not sure if I've ever been confused by anyone on the other end in a game where they didn't know me or couldn't see me, though (I have played on line games before, but I much prefer table top rpgs.)

As for net forums, well, anyone here suprised to find out I'm a woman? Far as I know, nobody's confused me anywhere, even when I wasn't using my pic as an avatar. But then, I wouldn't really know unless they said so.

KabeRinnaul

12-16-2009, 08:52 AM

I'm a guy, and I'm either KabeRinnaul or ZemTheManiac just about everywhere, though a few of my older logins are instead under Sahandrian. The first two are original characters from my stories, and the third is a fairly obscure D&D/Greyhawk reference.

I don't think I've ever been mistaken for a girl outside of online roleplays where I was playing one.

I was about to say something along those lines. Mates of mine always play male characters and wonder why I play female characters. It's simple - I'm heterosexual and don't really want to stare at a male from behind for ages.

They've yet to come up with an answer to that one.

Rapscallion

One reason I play Terra in Dissidia. The other reasons are that FF6 is the best Final Fantasy, she has a well-balanced move set and stats, and one of her HP attacks utterly destroys the AI on a small stage unless you badly screw up the timing.

Lace Neil Singer

12-16-2009, 02:08 PM

This is something that fascinates me, mainly because I do it myself. I don't always play a male...in fact, with me it's probably closer to fifty fifty male female ration with characters I create. It seems to depend on the game.

The reason it fascinates me is that I have no idea what makes me want to play a male character when I actually DO do it. it seems to depend randomly on my whim at the moment. So when other women do it, I want to know why THEY do it.

I'm just curious, really.
Male characters are often easier to play in some respects; I understand the male mind a bit better than the female mind (And I'm a female! XD) so I can actually get into the character a bit better. xD I do have some female characters, tho; and of course, all are flawed.

Skunkle

12-29-2009, 07:26 PM

My names on various sites: Zephyr, ZephyrSkunk, Skunkle (ZephyrSkunk on FurAffinity - don't bother checking it, I'm not a fur artist, just a watcher) or Jake Scwarz (another of my furry alts, but mainly an unusual name to use). I use my real name on some forums. I'm TorchGuy over at the Tiki Central forums, since I collect old tiki torches, and my real name is on MouseInfo and MiceChat, mainly on the threads about DCA and the new "World of Color" show (shouldn't be hard to find me, I'm one of the guys obsessing over fountains and my handle is my odd first and ordinary last names).

Online, my first name may be odd but it's male. "Zephyr" has never been mistaken for a female. But me...? When I was a teenager, and just as avid a collector as I am now, I'd regularly call local shops looking for what I wanted...and people on the other end, as well as telemarketers, would frequently call me "ma'am". And I have a voice that often drops into deep tones, and did then too, so I have no clue - I was often told at that age by other kids that I sounded like "a businessman" and my voice wasn't high at all. These days, I often use Zephyr Skunk's (not the common furry species-as-surname designation, he IS a skunk but his surname really IS "Skunk") voice, which is VERY low and rough...because I like it and it's not a far reach from my normal voice. And NO ONE mistakes that sound for female.

XiaoTortuga

01-03-2010, 05:34 PM

I usually prefer not to say, mostly so I can see what people think. I don't think my handle gives it away. It's the same everywhere I go, or almost. I've been some variant of Stormraven on just about every forum I've joined, unless the name was already taken. My alt is Aalinoor, after a character I played once.

With that name I would assume female, but I am often wrong. And since I am not looking for sex or anything, generally makes no difference what a person's gender is online.

I go by this name elsewhere and others along the same lines. People always assume I'm male. I generally don't try to mask my gender, but until I get to know the people in the game or whatever, they don't know anything about my personal life.

I find that it is nice to be considered to be male seeing how 1) many chicks act and 2) they are treated. I would rather be seen as a human being rather than tits and a vag, and many places that means being seen as a dude.

What's funny is I think of this as a feminine name, but I guess it's just me or the fact that many people don't understand it.

What amuses me is when somebody in IRC pegged me for being at least 35 years old (not far off the mark). He said it is because I double space between sentences. :) Ah well.

Kheldarson

01-13-2010, 04:26 AM

I don't know if I've ever been mistaken for a guy. Online at least. I've been mistaken for a guy a number of times irl. Recently had a kid ask if I was a "confused guy". I don't think mom could've been more embarassed...

But RK, for your question, I've recently tried picking up playing male characters to help balance my writing. Don't think it's been working, but, hey, I can hope?

NateSean

01-23-2010, 12:22 AM

Usually NateSean, or some similar varation of my name and initials.
I was Dragon Rider or DragonWriter a few times in high school, once on my fanfiction.net account and on a Paltalk account, but nothing varying.

Of course my first name is actually Nathanielle and so if the gender option isn't available in a forum I do often get confused for being a lady when my full name is out.

Actually I've used Nate more often than my full name and people have asked, "Is that short for Natalie?" Mind you this was before I knew about avatars and therefor did not have a pic of anything looking remotely femanine.

It's as if I was exuding a femanine quality through the screen.

jackfaire

01-23-2010, 01:02 AM

\
It's as if I was exuding a femanine quality through the screen.

Chandler: What is it about me?

Co-Worker: It's I dunno a quality

NodmiTheSellout

05-10-2010, 06:55 AM

I make it fairly obvious I'm female in most forums I'm on. But, what I do most of the time I'm online is role play, and my character's a man. Which leads to people assuming I'M a man, often. Which, really, considering online chats and such, I can deal with. I distinctly remember using a feminine pronoun for the first time (that day) in a room for some out of character action, and promptly getting a PM from a guy asking, "Hey, so you're a girl, right? . . .if I said girls have said "it's too big", would you look at my webcam?" Because, you know, being under a male SN, with no indication that I'm at all interested in sex. . .that let him know that I totally want to look at his cock. Yeah. Fuck, am I glad I have no interest in playing female characters. Daring to exist as a woman in a group of nerdy guys can be pretty taxing.

Racket_Man

05-10-2010, 08:09 AM

I am a male and my Nic says it all. been using the same one for like 25 years or so since the days of 300BPS modems and one-user-at-a-time BBS's

Never have I been mistaken for a Female

Lace Neil Singer

05-10-2010, 11:14 AM

Happened again; on youtube. XXD Same name and avatar as I have here, tho since I was commenting on a video, the avatar didn't show up. I said that a character was hot; someone replied with, "Are you gay?" I replied with, "No, I'm a straight female". XXD

Green_Fairy

05-11-2010, 05:34 AM

all my handles usually have the word "fairy" in it somewhere...(hey don't judge. i like pretty pretty fairies :p), so i don't usually have the issue of being confused as a guy. except for that one time in a chat room where someone asked if i was a gay guy. that was odd.

but i have noticed that there's usually two choices for filling out forms online. "male" and "female." what about the genderqueer? there's never a space that says "other."
there was an episode of dr. who not too long ago where a lady addressed the passengers on a thingy as "ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in between" or something like that. i think that's a grand idea and it should be put into effect.

Rebel

05-11-2010, 06:37 AM

I go by Rebel here and SansDoute pretty much everywhere else. They're both kinda gender neural and with my writing style and opinions I often get mistaken for being male.
I'm kinda used to this now.
In RL I have a gender neutral name. I remember having to get my mum ring up one of my school friends mums when I was 7. There was a sleepover - no boys allowed. The woman didn't believe I was a girl until my mum swore to her I was. Even then, she greeted us at the door with a suspicious look. Developed a bit of a complex from that.

Lace Neil Singer

05-11-2010, 02:14 PM

LexiaFira

05-19-2010, 08:31 PM

Rikastashia
LexiaFira or Lexia_Fira
and on occasion Zanitek

apparently the mix of letters used in these names makes it androgynous or enough that people have to ask what I am. Which is female. That and in some cultures Rika can be a girls name or Riku a guys name, depending on that one specific vowel difference. The X and R in Lexia may be a bit confusing but Zanitek is my favorite as it can go either way hehe

and yes Lace I thought for ages you were a guy mostly because of the brotherly love avie on your CS account hehe.

jackfaire

05-19-2010, 08:33 PM

You all have genders *gasp* I thought you were all androgynous robots.

Wingates_Hellsing

05-19-2010, 09:08 PM

You all have genders *gasp* I thought you were all androgynous robots.

[krshh]We have a turd in the punch bowl, I repeat, a turd in the punch bowl.[krshh]

Hobbs

05-19-2010, 10:07 PM

Lace Neil Singer

05-20-2010, 07:20 PM

and yes Lace I thought for ages you were a guy mostly because of the brotherly love avie on your CS account hehe.

Lols. XD That's really funny, cuz I've had people say that they thought I was male for that very reason.; ie cuz of my choice in avatars. XXD

jackfaire

05-20-2010, 07:35 PM

If I was going to make any judgement call I would base it on if your a guy wouldn't you rather see a female picture all the time, if your straight that is.

jedimaster91

05-20-2010, 09:43 PM

I use this screen name pretty much everywhere. There is one forum that allows name changes and I do change every so often to reflect whatever I'm into at the moment. I'm female and get mistaken for a guy pretty regularly. Apparently, girls aren't allowed to be Star Wars fans.

jackfaire

05-20-2010, 09:54 PM

Apparently, girls aren't allowed to be Star Wars fans.

BAKA!!! Me and my friends geek reqs are gender neutral.

HYHYBT

05-21-2010, 03:06 AM

Wouldn't that make you "Jedimistress?"

Lace Neil Singer

05-21-2010, 10:13 AM

Cuz that makes it sound a bit like she's shagging Obi Wan. XXD

jedimaster91

05-21-2010, 02:04 PM

He is pretty hot. ;) *bad thoughts*

I kinda like the ambiguity especially for CS. Sure, most people I know are aware I'm a fan, but so are a lot of other people. It's another of a dozen puzzle pieces to figure out if that's me or not, which lowers my chances of being found out and fired.

LexiaFira

05-27-2010, 12:14 AM

Lols. XD That's really funny, cuz I've had people say that they thought I was male for that very reason.; ie cuz of my choice in avatars. XXD

i cannot help it, the androgyny throws me off yet I love it at the same time...heh

Lace Neil Singer

05-27-2010, 12:24 PM

I've got female avvies on two forums; The Black Cat (Marvel) on one, and X23 on another. On both forums, I'm seen as female, even tho one username is gender neutral. Always is the assumption that girls have female avvies; the fact that a girl might want to look at a pretty man doesn't seem to register with a lot of people. :D

Wingates_Hellsing

05-27-2010, 03:23 PM

Maybe it's because people still look at avatars as, well, avatars. That is to say, a representation of the person who's profile it is.

jackfaire

05-27-2010, 06:27 PM

To me Avatars have never been a representation of the physicality of the person as much as a psychological representation.

Rebel

05-27-2010, 06:47 PM

Lols. XD That's really funny, cuz I've had people say that they thought I was male for that very reason.; ie cuz of my choice in avatars. XXD

I always just figured you were female because of your chosen avatar on CS. I don't know many guys that would openly show their love for the brotherly love of the Winchesters.

Lace Neil Singer

05-27-2010, 07:18 PM

I always just figured you were female because of your chosen avatar on CS. I don't know many guys that would openly show their love for the brotherly love of the Winchesters.

Maybe smiley? XD I don't know if the Winchesters are his type or not. :p

Maybe it's because people still look at avatars as, well, avatars. That is to say, a representation of the person who's profile it is.

A male avatar can be a representation of a woman just as easily; for example, if a girl had a picture of Axl Rose, it could mean that she was a huge GnR fan. Or, possibly, a tantrum throwing pain in the arse. :p

Wingates_Hellsing

05-27-2010, 07:24 PM

True, but that sort of connection isn't usually what springs to mind.

jackfaire

05-27-2010, 09:11 PM

True, but that sort of connection isn't usually what springs to mind.

Thank you I pride myself on being unusual.

Lace Neil Singer

05-27-2010, 11:29 PM

True, but that sort of connection isn't usually what springs to mind.

In which case... put the gun down!!! XXD

Wingates_Hellsing

05-27-2010, 11:31 PM

in which case... Put the gun down!!! Xxd

Nevah!! HK 4 LIFE!

AtDIelement

05-29-2010, 06:24 PM

Always used AtDIelement... Except in my younger angsty days but those were a long time ago. Then it was DarkElement, always liked that skate company. :p

But never been confused with a female.

wraiths_crono

07-02-2010, 04:43 PM

I am a guy, almost everything (cept work IM) has me as Wraiths Crono tho I will admit the only time I have been mis-gendered (is that a word?) is in online games as I prefer to make female toons.

Lace Neil Singer

07-02-2010, 06:45 PM

I'm mis-gendered all the time on Cracked on the rare occasions that I post, cuz I had a male avatar. I've since changed it to that of a female; wonder if that'll solve it? Probably not. XD

firecat88

03-25-2011, 02:07 PM

I'm female. Not sure if I've ever been confused for male before, though I try to avoid it anyway by having pretty avatars of my RP characters.

Speaking of, since most of the forums I'm at are RP forums, my username is usually my character name, and I never use the same name twice.

Greenday

03-25-2011, 02:14 PM

Somehow I knew you were a female before this post.

firecat88

03-25-2011, 02:22 PM

Somehow I knew you were a female before this post.

It's the avatar, isn't it? :lol:

Greenday

03-25-2011, 02:29 PM

It's the avatar, isn't it? :lol:

Nope. The name just read "female" to me.

Salted Grump

03-25-2011, 04:15 PM

Salted Grump, FreakOfTheUnivers, FreakOTU, and Sel Nar

90% don't care, 9 of the 10% that do think female, leaving the remaining 1% that care correct.

I usually end up chuckling to myself.

Rageaholic

03-25-2011, 06:25 PM

I had someone mistake me for a female once on here (I had a good laugh). I've been surprised to discover that some posters here were either male or female.

telecom_goddess

03-25-2011, 06:40 PM

I had someone mistake me for a female once on here (I had a good laugh). I've been surprised to discover that some posters here were either male or female.

I was surprised to find out you were a male ...I thought you were female for a long time :rolleyes:

HYHYBT

03-26-2011, 01:28 AM

I've been surprised to discover that some posters here were either male or female.I'd be more surprised by any who weren't!

Mytical

03-26-2011, 05:07 AM

I actually am pleased when I get confused for a female, which is quite often...that or gay male. In some of my weirder moods I complain about it, but most of the time it really doesn't bother me. Although I am a straight male..sometimes I do think I should have been born female. Which is something hard to explain. There are a few forums I never say one way or another, and the majority of them think me female. Think it is the name and the writing style. Since its not like I am looking to 'hook up' or anything, don't see any reason to correct the misconception.

Hyena Dandy

03-26-2011, 07:38 AM

Oh, let's see.

Full list of any name you may have seen me under ever

Format is

Username:Place/situation:Active or defunct:reason

_Coat_Hanger_:Neopets RP boards:Defunct:Banned for trolling.
League_of_OF_Admins:Neopets RP boards:Defunct:Leader of League of OF died of cancer.
MafiaKirby and variations thereof:Neopets and New Kirbish Rebellion:Defunct (banned for trollinG) and Defunct (left group of trolls)
Otal Nimrodi and variations thereof:Fanfiction.net and Chefelf.com:Defunct (no longer use site) and Defunct, but can still be reached.
Hyena Dandy and variations thereof:Customers Suck, Fratching, Aeclectic.net, MMORPGs: Active, Active, Defunct (no longer visit site) Defunct (don't play anymore)
Andre LeFarr and variations thereof:Furry Fandom afiliated sites:Active
LeFarr:Steam, Skype, XBox Live:Active, Active, Active
Moonshoe Mafia:Fictionpress.com:Defunct (was joint account for a single story)
Saint_Otal:Yahoo.com:Active for e-mails.
BanzaiShenziEd:Msn name (BanzaiShenziEd @ Hotmail.com):Active for IMs.

That I believe is every account name I've used, and where I used it.

As for have I been mistaken for female.

Yes. Frequently, I'm told I 'act female' online. In the League of OF, there was a running gag about my gender being ambiguous (_Coat_Hanger_ had been female, but was later changed to male, my proper gender). In fact, I recently reconnected with the last League member I have any way of contacting, Ashley.

It was news to her that I'm a guy.

Lachrymose

03-26-2011, 04:14 PM

I'd be more surprised by any who weren't!

Beat me to it. :lol:

Cazzi

03-26-2011, 05:42 PM

I'm a girl. "Maggie" is a pretty feminine name so I don't think I've ever been mistaken for a guy, except maybe on the GameFAQs forums. I don't post there very often because it's mostly populated by 13 year olds, but apparently they're all under the impression that girls either don't play video games or don't post on message boards, or both,

I got the same in the mid/late 90s playing online games, with a handle of isxcazz, no one believed I was a very early 30s female & not a teenage boy ;)

I've more or less used that nick or Cazzi or variations ever since and still occasionally get mistaken for a male!