Well I've been wondering for some time about this, so I said, heck why not make a thread about it and see.
I want to know if in-RP, people really see each other's IDs?
I mean.. I can't count how many times I saw a smuggler get hassled while hauling perfectly legit goods, in a perfectly legit ship.
That is just one example, could think of more perhaps, but I think it's clear. So?
<span style="font-familyalatino Linotype">
<span style="color:#000000">All morons hate it when you call them a moron.
it depends what the id looks like. If its a little card in your wallet, then i guess people wouldn't know. If it fits in your tractor beam, then it would be noticeable.
*shrugs*
remember - when trent goes into a bar.... all NPCs are always either neutral or friendly ( if they know him )
new contacts are neutral - and ask him for his ID... only THEN they decide if they act friendly or unfriendly... ( thats how hacking works... they rely on the ID card information much - cause they are supposedly not hackable )
so - yes, the ID exists in RP... can you scan them from space? - its only a small step from quickly scanning your personal ID when in a bar and scanning your ID that you need to start your ship. - so yes, i think other players / NPCs can and do scan your ID in RP.
In my mind I think of it like this: ID's are not identification papers that a person carries with them like a drivers license on their person, but a signal frequency that your individual ships are broadcasting out to others.
A pilot simply needs to scan a person to 'tune into' that player's transponder signal chirps.
::edit- & since everyone is on the neural network, your ID follows you everywhere::
I thought that was what IFF was for and ID's were more tools for admins. Otherwise no player would be able to disguise themselves, be smugglers for instance. I think this should be possible.
Edit: To clarify a little more I always thought ID's could be scanned at close range, a little card you keep in you're wallet that has a magnetic strip or the futuristic equivalent. This is the connection to the neural net. I dont think a ship has a connection to the neural net just because someone is flying it.
Well in RP, I consider that people would carry false IDs, and who knows how many on their ships.
I mean, not game-engine-wise, that's against the rules.
But I don't believe a smuggler would go around smuggling whilst broadcasting a Smuggler ID.
Same goes for low level pirates I'd say.
And yet another example, the Wilde. I feel that if a Wilde pilot did nothing hostile, and didn't say anything hostile, the people that meet him can't act like he is Wilde, they can only lecture him about his "dangerous loadout".
Or let's say, that hypothetically, there was a terrorist character, a liner for example. Let's not get into the how's and why's, let's just say there's some liner filled with people that for some reason hunt others.
And they'd sneak up on them, under the false impression of a harmless liner filled with normal people.
Now, if people can see IDs, that's just.. well.. an RP killer in this kind of a case.
<span style="font-familyalatino Linotype">
<span style="color:#000000">All morons hate it when you call them a moron.