Have you ever had something like this happen to you?
You correspond with someone online for weeks, maybe months. Then finally it turns out that the two of you will be in the same place at the same time, e.g. an industry conference. You happen to notice a familiar name on a conference badge among the dozens passing by in the hallway and it's your online buddy.
But you didn't recognize him/her because...they look nothing like their avatar picture.
Well. I've decided on an appropriate term to describe this phenomenon: the headfake.
Definition: Headfake, noun. A situation in which you are familiar with a person's avatar picture, which gives you an inaccurate idea of how that person appears in real life.
I know I've headfaked people myself; at SXSW this year, someone told me I look a lot older in my picture than I really am. Another said that I'm a lot taller in real life than my picture would indicate. (I think these might indicate that I need a better avatar picture.)
So...ever been headfaked? Let us know in the comments, anonymity will be honored!
