Take a look at your image in the Internet mirror; Google Search your name, FR screen name

The Dallas Morning News ^ | April 16, 2004 | By TOM MAURSTAD / The Dallas Morning News

[MeekOneGOP]

Take a look at your image in the Internet mirror

07:42 PM CDT on Friday, April 16, 2004

By TOM MAURSTAD / The Dallas Morning News

Have you ever googled yourself, maybe late at night, when nobody else was around? It's OK, you can admit it – everybody does it.

It's called "self-googling" – entering your name into the popular search engine to see what hits come up. And thanks to a communications professor at the University of Buffalo who researches online behavior and relationships, self-googling has become the latest mini-craze to sweep through the media and over the Internet.

It all started with an article in the university's student newspaper on April 8 in which Alexander Halavais, the aforementioned communications professor, asserted that "self-googling" wasn't merely an act of vanity or boredom but really an increasingly important act of image maintenance in our Internet age.

In the days since, follow-up articles and accounts have been pinging around the electronic universe. See for yourself: Google the phrase "self-googling."

"It's been a strange kind of fun to be at the center of this," says Mr. Halavais. "One, because this behavior is nothing new; it's known on the Web as 'ego surfing.' And, two, because this is not really the focus of my research."

Whatever you want to call it, checking out who you are and what's being said about you on the Internet is rapidly becoming a common-sense practice in a wired world. Think of it as the digital equivalent of looking at your reflection as you pass by a mirror, checking to make sure your hair is unmussed and there's nothing stuck between your teeth.

"It's truer for some than others, but more and more you need to be aware of and manage your online image and reputation. I talk to a lot of students who are applying for jobs, and they take for granted that a Web search is part of the process."

So, go ahead. Google yourself. Who knows what you'll find out?

Of course, Alexander Halavais knows exactly what he's going to find next time he gets the urge to self-google.

"That's it, I'm branded. From now on, I'm the self-google guy."

E-mail tmaurstad@dallasnews.com

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Online at: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/041704dnartselfgoogle.310f4.html

[Glenn]

with a former Georgia congressman.

I'd bet that gets you a few remarks whenever you introduce yourself in a barr.

[redheadtoo]

The search of my real name lead me to a couple of web pages about a voice actress who had the same name. She apparently does English language voice overs for Japanese Anime. I even got to see her wedding pictures. It is funny, I have thought about trying voice acting myself but have never done it.

However my search of my web identity was more interesting. Who would have guessed that my Free Republic posts would be listed on Google.

[MeekOneGOP]

LOL !

[solo gringo]

I searched my posting name Sure a lot of thin skinned Hispanic,
I have a friend name Felix that gave me my posting name.A man with a service co ask Felix where i lived.Felix said you want the solo gringo no one knows how to pronounce his name. So he being the only lite skin and only speaking English here we call him Solo Gringo.Go about 25 miles that way and ask for solo gringo and they will tell you where he lives.So now you have the rest of the story.

[SkyPilot]

Your post reminded me of a Calvin and Hobbes strip where Calvin wrote an imaginary story about his mom being a wonder woman super hero.

He read it to his parents:

"And then she slipped into the phone book, and emerged as Wonder Mom--dressed in her super heroine outfit! Yellow cape, red leather body suit, and black high heeled boots to kick the bad guys! She picked up her golden whip and flew into the air!"

And the dad looks devilish and says: "Hey, can I see you in that?"

[redhead]

LOL! I googled myself and found three pages of my stuff out there (only a fraction of it, unfortunately), but it was fun. I had no idea there were so many Paveks in the world...

[Hillary's Lovely Legs]

You need to tuck your label tag bag in your thong.

[cyborg]

LOL!

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

I put in my name, but there're no results with my name. I know that there is one, so I added my name plus the place name. It shows up.
For example ( names changed ), typing in Alfred Smeg ( my "alias" ) gave other results but not me. But if I type in Alfred Smeg Italy, I find one result that is me.

[HairOfTheDog]

That's a cool graphic....

I get a couple of my images off my profile page on the top row in image search.... is everyone's result in Google the same?

[The Mayor]

I forgot all about that page.. Thanks

[hellinahandcart]

"bag in your thong". ROFL

[k2blader]

One webpage (which I'd seen before) but no images resulted from a Google search of my real name. Several things popped up after a search of my FR name. :-)

[The Mayor]

I don't exist!

[lowbridge]

Okay, according to my real name...I'm a Golf pro and teacher (who was twice named "Top 10 Instructor in America"), - A third generation citrus producer in South Africa, "legislative director for the Freedom to Marry Coalition of Massachusetts" (cripes!), an unemployed person seeking a 57 thousand a year position in IT Consulting, a swimming coach in Cape Cod, a restaurant owner in New York....

Doing a search on both my screen name and real name, comes up with this:

Your search did not match any documents.

And, just out of curiosity, doing a name search on one of my childhood friends, whom I havent seen in well over 23 years, I find that he is now a piano teacher.

Thanks. This thread has made me feel SO inadequate.

[lentulusgracchus]

This was posted in a vanity a little while ago, maybe last week? I searched my FReepname and got 33 hits, some of which were keyed to the same username, as used (by me) at another site and some of which were posts of old movie and online product reviews I did (on radar detectors). I noticed that one site reproduced a number of FReepers' posts about the DC sniper.

Metasearching my RW name gets a few directory listings from professional directories, that's all. I don't like to be in databases -- that's power for the user, and I'm the usee.

On the vanity last week, people were bragging about how many hits Google returned on their FR usernames......I think it returns all hits on one thread as "1 hit", so that the palm goes to those who post widely, rather than persistently. So if you stick with a few subjects and run a thread to 2800 posts with your friends, that's one hit.

BTW, I prefer metasearching with Dogpile or Moonmist (whenever they get back up) to Google; I heard that Google likes to store your searches and sell them out.

[Hillary's Lovely Legs]

I knew that image googling my screen name would be brutal, but what's up with this?

[k2blader]

Googling my email address resulted in no matches. Woohoo!!

[onyx]

Well, why didn't you post the pic?
LOL-LOL-LOL
Yes, I looked.
Had to.

[Hillary's Lovely Legs]

Oops, I meant ' tuck your label BACK in your thong'.

Gosh, the other way sounds almost dirty or something.