I have added a user field so that new registering users need to write their first and last names. I’ve added that in, but there is already an existing field (that came with the set up) that asks for their name. I would like to delete that one and keep my custom one. Or - be able to edit that previous field for name to specify that I have to have their first and last name.
AI-generated summary
In a discussion about requiring users to sign up with first and last names, cristina.threlkeld explains she added a custom user field for full names but wants to remove or edit the default “name” field. supermathie suggests enabling the full name required site setting and points to a helpful article on naming complexities. They also note that custom text can be edited via /admin/customize/site_texts. Mark_Schmucker reports that enabling full_name_required overwrote their custom text and doesn’t enforce two-word names — they can still set their name to just “Mark”. supermathie clarifies that Discourse can’t verify if “Mark” is a full legal name, and that enforcing real names can’t be done purely through software. Instead, they recommend adding a checkbox for users to confirm they’ve entered their legal name — a policy-based solution rather than a technical one. The thread highlights the limitations of software in enforcing naming conventions and the importance of user policy over technical enforcement.
We already handle this case - you may find it sufficient to enable the full name required sitesetting.
I would also suggest reading https://www.kalzumeus.com/2010/06/17/falsehoods-programmers-believe-about-names/.
You can also search for your full name in /admin/customize/site_texts to find the text to change for the existing prompt.
We had previously customized the text in /admin/customize/site_texts, but I was not familiar with the full_name_required setting. So I set full_name_required to true, and I can’t tell what good it did, except to overwrite our customized text. What is it supposed to do? I thought it might at least require two words in the profile > Name, but I can still edit my Name to just “Mark”.
It’s possible that your full name is “Mark” (with no last name), there’s no way for Discourse to verify whether or not that’s true.
If your forum has a policy that requires users to use their full legal name (or at least a part of it) that can’t be enforced by software. Perhaps instead of adding “First Name” and “Last Name” you add a checkbox to confirm that the user has “entered my legal name into the full name field”.