Screen name (computing)

A screenname is a name or string of characters chosen to uniquely identify a user within an online system, including dial-up bulletin board systems, platform videogame servers, and Internet-based environments. It is frequently limited in length and character composition by the technical restrictions of the applications for which it is used (e-mail, instant messaging, file sharing, etc.): for instance, Prodigy online service originally assigned non-word alphanumeric strings as screennames, and Compuserve online service originally assigned only numeric strings. Screennames are often pseudonyms or first names, many times complemented by extra numbers, letters, or other characters to disambiguate them from users with similar screennames on the same system; this practice is increasingly common as the popularity of online environments grows and the availability of unique identifiers dwindles.

The term 'screenname' was originally coined by the America On-Line service, and, strictly speaking, does not apply in cases other than usernames for the AOL and (purchased) CompuServe services. Outside the AOL milieu, it is much more common to use the synonyms 'handle' or 'nickname' (shortened to 'nick' in the IRC environment) -- the use of 'screenname' is often used as a reverse shibboleth by old timers to identify those who are newer to the online world.

How much a screenname means in reference to its owner usually depends on number of accounts, and length of use. When one has a single identity for each [or all] their programs, then it will mean something--a nickname they had before, a running joke, something. Mutiple accounts are changed over time, resulting in an infinite number of tags like 'sUprlver98' and 'sexy_style665'.

See also: nickname, stage name, handle.