[Python-Dev] Names matter. (original) (raw)

Guido van Rossum guido at python.org
Mon Jan 16 16:45:55 CET 2006

On 1/16/06, Steve Holden <steve at holdenweb.com> wrote:

Jim Fulton wrote: > In general though, for adults, truthfulness and non-anonymity do > matter. At least they matter to me, a lot. I don't think members > of the PSF should be allowed to hide their identity and certainly, > it should not be acceptable to contribute to Python under a false name.

Agreed. Also, I find it difficult to exchange emails with someone who is known by an alias only.

In principle I think you are correct.

In practice it's difficult to see how to nsure this without insistence on some digital certificate from an acceptable CA - by which I mean one that actually checks a driving license or passport before asserting a user's identity. Both CACert and Thawte have web-of-trust-like schemes to support this. In the meantine what do we do? Ask for a signed statement that contributors are contributing under their own identities?

I think that's unnecessary, and not any more effective than what we already do -- ask for a signed contributor form. Someone who signs that form "Tim Peters" won't be stopped by a clause asking them to use their real name, really.

-- --Guido van Rossum (home page: http://www.python.org/~guido/)

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