Disagree. I do see the point, but it creates a distance for new members.
There's certain members that are brilliant from their first posting and immediately fit in on a personal level. I think they wouldn't be able to be as great if all the personal stuff was kept away from them.
And this is a google-friendly forum. I don't think the admins would want to hide stuff from the outside world. My own forum is only readable when you subscribe. Google can't find a thing
