Is there any way to swap aliases with another account?

Question

Hello,
Is there any way to swap an alias from a dot mac account to a regular Apple ID?
The Discussion alias that I would like is currently on an expired dot mac account which I have no intention of resubscribing to, and on the Apple ID I use for everything else (iTunes, Apple.ca Store) the discussion alias is somehow my mother's name (I guess it is because it is her credit card on iTunes). I can access to both accounts, is there any way I can delete the alias from the old dot mac account and then change my current Apple ID to said alias.
Many Thanks,
JJ MacLean

Answer 1

Hi JJ!
Although you can't change the Alias of the account you are using, you can create a new Discussions Account, with an Alias that you prefer.
You cannot delete your present account. Just stop using it, after you have created a new one.
You can use all of the same info in the new account, Email address, User name, etc, just be sure to insert a new Alias of your choosing. At this point you could try entering the expired .Mac Alias name.
But your Level(0), Points(0), Total Posts(3), Total Posts Online(3) and Registered Date(9/7/05), will not be transferred.
In the new account, your Post Counts, Points, & Level Status will all start at 0. Your Registered Date will be the date you create the new account.
Your old account, with your previous counts & level, will still be viewable, under the old Alias.
After you quit using the old account, those posts, will be archived. What that means is, that if there are no additional responses in the Threads they reside in, the Topics will get continually pushed down on the Topics list. After a certain amount of time, maybe 1 to 3 months, the Threads will be locked, so no responses can be entered. But the Threads will not disappear.
The Topics that you started using the old account, will show your Old Alias, in the Author field of a main forum page, but eventually, readers will have to keep going to the succeeding pages to view them.
If someone were to do a DiscussionsSearch, using these parameters:
Restrict by Category or Forum: All Categories
Restrict by Date Range: All
Restrict by Username: Your Old Alias
all of your posts, created since about 11/13/05, would be found.
To create a new account,
Log out of Discussions. You also may have to delete the Apple Cookies in your browser preferences, but I'm not sure this is necessary. Then follow either of these instructions.
-How Do I Create My Account?
If you haven't signed up for an Apple ID for the Apple Store or AppleCare Support website (or forgot your old one), you can create a new account on the My Info webpage. Just click the "create one" link on the right side of the My Info page. Choose your country location and preferred language from the appropriate pop-up menus, then click Create Account. In the resulting page, enter a unique name (such as your email address) in the Apple ID field and fill in your other relevant information accordingly (fields marked with * are required). Click Continue to complete the process.
-To register, click Login in the sidebar on the right side of the Discussions page. In the resulting page, click the "create one" link at the bottom of the page, then click "create one" in the subsequent page and follow the instructions to create an Apple ID. For more information, see the Apple ID FAQ page.
Those instructions, and more info, can also be viewed by clicking on
?Help & Terms of Use, in the right column of Discussions pages.
ali b