RealName
The RealName module allows the administrator to choose fields from the user profile that will be used to add a "real name" element (method) to a user object. Hook_user is used to automatically add this to any user object that is loaded. It will also optionally set all nodes and comments to show this name.
The 6.x version of this module supports both the core Profile module and the contributed Content Profile module, and can be extended to other profile providers. Check the documentation page for more information.
As of November 7, 2008, this module now supports the privacy settings from the contributed Profile Privacy module.
There is a move to try to put something like this in core, but it is meeting stiff resistance; see #102679: Add a Display Name field to core in addition to Username and #394282: Add a standardized full name field to the users table. Everyone should also watch #192056: User's raw login name should not be output directly.
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Other Modules
Almost all other contributed modules can properly display the Real Name if they change their code to use theme('username', ...) rather than just grabbing the user name from some object. We simply cannot be adding specialized support for thousands of contributed modules, especially when the solution is so simple (and Drupal-correct).
If you want to have Faceted Search support RealName, apply the Faceted Search patch over at #390030: Grabbing author name from user object instead of DB.
New maintainer wanted
This module started as a "scratch your own itch" solution. It is now turning into a bigger burden than I can handle alone. Multiple maintainers also helps keep the module fresh.
Translation
I run the translation extractor when I update the module, so if someone wants to provide translations, the template is available. Please open a feature request with the translation (.po) file attached.
PHP 4 and MySql 4
Due to end-of-life on PHP4 and MySql4, we no longer actively support either of those products. If a problem arises, we will make an effort to work around it, but will not make a guarantee. Drupal 7 will require PHP 5.2.5 or higher and MySql 5 (or Postgres 8); if your host is not at these levels yet, please encourage them to get there ASAP.
Development version status
The development versions (-dev, which rolls up at Noon and Midnight GMT) are where the newest stuff is, including any bug fixes and new features. We try to make sure it is tested before we commit anything, but occasionally a bug will get by us. Your help on testing this code is greatly appreciated. When we are satisfied that the -dev version has been tested adequately, we will publish it. The translation templates may not always be up-to-date in the dev releases.
Current Features being tested in Development
Update.php required: No
- Change test for homepage. #351648: Working with Views module
- Fix static cache problem. #518862: Static cache in realname_make_name() broken in dev
- Fix homepage missing #449364: Latest dev removes homepage for registered users from [realname-link], instead it links to the profile
- Fix form title corruption. #606364: Author name instead of subject/title in forum topic list
- Fix double encoding. #616134: Special Characters
- Tokens for comment author, node author. #629792: Author realname tokens
- Add class if user level doesn't have a picture. #803708: Reaname Levels: Add a class for theming?
- Fix typo in update statement. #805526: Typo in the Update Statement?
- Fix PHP 5.3 issue. #626350: Real Name problem with php 5.3
Still pending on 5.x:
- Change "Override username theme" default to true; remove changing $user->name. #321608: Username Overridden in Comments But ...
