Ok, so I feel kind of violated. I didn't know that all of my posts to lapbandtalk .com would be easily accessible by doing a screen name search. Maybe I'm freaking out a little and I'll feel better about it, but that google spider thing really dug around.

Megan

Mr. Alex, board owner, is going to post this issue in the forums and see what all users have to say about this.

Please respond to his thread when it is posted so he can get your feed back.

almost any site that you join as a message board this will happen with.

obesity help's website is the same way...i am 'southern bandgirl' on their site and if you type that in it pulls up posts...i have 'some dark hollow' TN as my city and state...

if you come up with a screen name no one will ever associate with you then you are safe.

michelle

Hi Guys and Gals,

Please click here to visit the post I just created about this important issue.

Please vote and I'm going to base my final decision on your votes and feedback.

Speaking of violation, I recieved an email about googling your home phone number and it giving a map to your home. Here's the email I received, I havent done it yet b/c I have no idea how to 'google', so maybe someone else would like to try it and let us know.

I don't know that this is a violation, this is nothing more than a reverse phone book, which have been around as long as phone books have been around. These tools have been on the web as long as I've been using it, which goes back to when you needed to know such tools as gopher, Veronica and Archie, Pine and Elm. (yes, thank you, but I am that old.)

And "to google" is a new verb.. Google is the name of a search engine, so "to google" is to simply use the google.com website to to a search.

Crystal,

Phone books are local. Not a problem for me.

BUT... if a telemarketer calls & I get ugly with them - they can find (internet) my number and hunt me down!!!! I DO have a problem with that.

Actually, if you got to a public library, you can generally get phone books for an entire regeon, (like the entire west coast) depending on the size of the library. If they don't have them, you can request them.

As for telemarketers, put your name on the do not call list, and then if they still call, you can get money, ka-ching!

I just googled a couple of screen names I use on different forums. Yep I was there. Kinda weird. But I guess it is the nature of the beast. Just kinda shocked me a bit to see so many places it shows I have used the names.

I probably found this site the same way.

And I am sure thankful for all of you.

But we should be careful about personal info, like last names ect...

Hugs and Happy Saturday to all

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Luckily, when I googled my screen name, I had to go to page 14 before finding me and none of the previous posts were in English. Still, I don't like it. I, too, would vote for the option of allowing people to find the forum by googling "lapband" for example, but not to find my posts unless they register with the site. I never did post a photo and that is part of the reason why. I have taken all info out of my profile (I thought I didn't have much in there anyway, but I found I did have my occupation, city, and state, which was way too much).

I have told a few people at work about the lapband - people who are MO and who have asked me how I lost the weight. That doesn't mean I want them to be able to identify me and read my innermost thoughts if they come to the site.

I'm a pretty private person and try to balance being able to enhance my life by using the internet, with maintaining as much privacy as possible.

Nancy