Originally Posted by
Punki
Having personal ID photos will go a long way toward helping us know, remember and understand one another better.
So how will seeing my "personal ID photo" help you understand me better?
Would you prefer to judge me on my photo or my posts?
Originally Posted by NickB
It could equally be argued that it might distort comprehension by distracting attention from what is being said to what the person looks like, and let the reader be affected by their own, conscious or unconscious, prejudices and assumptions (you know the same kind that lead queue combers to challenge "unsuitable" persons from the First class queue...). Visual appearance provide very little information on the person's background and where they come from and might be equally misleading.
Bingo! ^
Originally Posted by NickB
I am not convinced that the advantages that you expect from allowing avatars, which can moreover be secured differently, outweigh the extra duty that you want to impose on moderators and the loss of enjoyment of FT that would result for those of them who like their FT avatar-free.
There is a cost to enforcement, and that cost has to be figure in the balance sheet of whether or not to go for it or not.
I would be very sad to lose somebody with the talent and dedication of, eg, Jenbel as moderator for very little gain, if any, in return.
^ ^