Should multi-name characters get coalesced into single tags?

1. Multi-name characters could be reassigned compound name tags, like vinyl scratch/dj pon-3, and have each name’s tag (vinyl scratch and dj pon-3) aliased into it. This ought to be enough to keep normal searches and filters working exactly the same as before. The only sticking point would be to decide what order to write the names within the compound name tags…
2. Or, there could be a new tag category made, something like “extra_names” - which would have the same color and still be grouped with “character” tags - and all but one of the names in each group of names would get reassigned to this different category. They’d still mutually imply each other, but only one would contribute to the number of “character” tags. Because tag categories are currently hard-coded, this would require a site software update to implement, whereas #1 could be done right now with moderators’ abilities.

• Especially if one name is used by 99% of people over the other
• Especially especially if both tags are fan-names
• Especially especially especially if there are 3 tags daisy-chained together
  There are (very few) circumstances I would say the mutually-implying tags are necessary, but for the most part I’d like them to be aliased away. (Though iirc in regards to the old poll-tie winners it was decided that those be aliased into one winner, so if there are any remaining of those they should probably be aliased anyway)

Now that Derpibooru recently implemented the ability to search by the number of tags of a type present on a post - such as, “this post has 2 character name tags” - the inter-implied multiple names interfere with using that number precisely. For example, to find a picture of Octavia and Vinyl Scratch and no other ponies, you’d need to search for character_tag_count:3 because Vinyl Scratch is always also tagged DJ Pon-3 and both tags are counted.

I’m not really that strongly for getting rid of them for the sake of legacy, history, and the fact that some official names are godawful.

If y’all kill my namesake before killing sexy tag variations I’d
Well I’d be very upset.

Also some older gen ponies have multiple names too, some of them overlapping. Some G1 ponies share names with other G1 ponies in the same region! Go look up UK G1 MLP and you’ll see a lot of changed names, often on otherwise duplicate names, often better than the American names, and sometimes worse. :)

I see no true merit to triple name implications, I will say, double names I can easily see most being all fair and logical, but no one needs liza doolots I don’t care that Gameloft used it, no one calls her that.

Plus still the idea of ‘which name do we pick’ as for some, both names are equally ‘canon’. Sweetie Drops? Bonbon? Guess what, both names are canon in various ways. Sweetie Drops is MORE used in canon, and Bonbon is MORE used in fanon, but both are used in canon material. So which one is preferred to take prescience? Neither. Both are on equal level.

I guess this is just a difference in priority, but I don’t consider the legacy the outweigh the disadvantages of keeping them. Also, the only reason they even have that “legacy” is because we’ve kept a lot them around longer than they probably should’ve; Aside from length of time, is there an actual “legacy” behind Cinder Glow having an alternative name no one refers to her by?

Does every tag discussion have to be cut off at the knees if it’s not about the “sexy” tags

I’m fairly sure all of the G1 alternate territory names (and perhaps double-names for all Gens except G4) all aliased into one tag over the other rather than mutually implying.

We have many, many tags with both canon and fanon options that have already been aliased into one tag; We would have an insane amount of double-tags by now if we hadn’t. And many times we don’t choose the canon as the base if fanon is far more popular. Of the top of my head, a lot of the crystal ponies and dragons have their “canon” names aliased into their fan-names. Hasbro doesn’t run this site, we aren’t forced to use “Liza Doolots” if we don’t want to.

Most characters with specific aliases for specific presented versions aren’t mutually implied anyway: a.k. yearling is only used on Daring Do’s normal identity (And by extension on far fewer images) and fizzlepop berrytwist is explicitly only for non-evil Tempest and implies her tag. And that’s despite the fact that “A.K. Yearling” and “Fizzlepop Berrytwist” are probably their birth-names. Honestly it makes just as much sense to make the sweetie drops and special agent sweetie drops one tag with the same purpose, use on Bon Bon’s secret agent persona.

Legacy has been a reason for some other tags, so. Plus there’s always the chance/case of users getting mad or upset, and I weigh that in as much as ‘practicality’ from a tagger’s perspective. Not making waves is always the best course of action, regardless of how you feel, how I feel, how any of us feel, it’s not JUST about us. And it’s probably obvious, but I want that to also come into mind too.

I never said otherwise?

The thing fans forget about…

For one, the other tags that get by on legacy are pretty much all un-categorized tags. Not that those are unimportant, but I do put more stock in tags keeping tags we actively categorize organized than the generically categorized tags.

Secondly, legacy isn’t just length. I would not recommend keeping a system that could be improved solely because it’s been that way for a while. I know you aren’t arguing for that either, but I would say “legacy” isn’t even really an argument for at least 60% of the characters in the above chart.

You brought up the idea that we’d have to start using the canon names no one uses a couple times, I assumed it was as an argument against aliasing. If I misinterpreted it, I apologize.

?

Legacy is more for ones like Vinyl Scratch or Tootsie Flute, and not ones like Larry or Hoss, correct. If the idea was to trim down the number of these down to just the ones that make the most sense then it would probably have little to no pushback. Unless there’s a diehard Larry truther out there, please show yourself.

Oh, no, I’m saying that it’s important to weigh both canon and fanon together, and sometimes we go one way or the other depending on what it is.

Another category, I’ve been trying to get one for years and I would see much point to a category meant for just one specific thing, if only as I am always told how making categories is a pain and I can’t get one made for a very general thing so I couldn’t see one happening for a niche thing. From a practicality sense, It would be hell. From a personal sense, it would be preferred.

I’d LOVE if making categories wasn’t a chore and years long fight that I keep giving up on as no one else seems to care enough about it to bring it up at all so you probably don’t even know my idea.

Said idea being a category for all non MLP characters, along with people’s names, which I suppose logically could also count for a secondary character tag category? idk.

Most characters with specific aliases for specific presented versions aren’t mutually implied anyway: a.k. yearling is only used on Daring Do’s normal identity (And by extension on far fewer images) and fizzlepop berrytwist is explicitly only for non-evil Tempest and implies her tag.

Where did I cut off a discussion?

Oh yeah, no, I know about it; I’ve posted in those threads, too. Have also feature-requested that categories and other things get re-implemented as data, not hard-coded, and have also posted to request the extra non-mlp-character-and-people category.

Do you really want someone to trawl through your posts to point it out? Even when it’s not specifically “cutting off”, you tend to bring up your pet peeves in tagging conversations, sometimes saying or implying that there are issues worse or more important than whatever’s being discussed (and therefore not important to think about at the time), or otherwise sometimes hijacking the conversation’s topic.

Oh yeah! I forgot about the one-way implications. Or maybe I didn’t forget about them and was only looking into the purely redundant tags. It was a month ago - I forget if I forgot.