Lord Beowulf is an online pseudonym used in many online fora and user accounts. The history of the name began in 1985 with the development of Wunderland BBS, where the system administrator went by the handle of Beowulf Schaeffer. This was a mis-spelling of the name of a main character in Larry Niven's Known Space series of novels and short stories. In addition to paying tribute to a favorite author, the handle had the unique benefit that the standard signature initials of "B.S." used on all posts often served as apropos commentary as to the content of the admin's posts or those to which he was responding.
With the advent of the World Wide Web, the moniker of Beowulf Schaeffer was often too long for the user name requirements of many websites, and sadly, the masses of uninitiated on the internet rarely recognized the reference. In the search for shorter names, Beowulf was often taken, and occasionally first and last names are required. Lord Beowulf evolved from the need to satisfy these requirements and find a unique handle, although unfortunately at the loss of all the B.S.
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