Where do we draw the line?

We were just in class talking about the betrayl of misrepresenting one's gender or race... but where do we really draw the line about what we need to know in order to know a person?

From most chats that I've observed it seems commonly acceptable to not mention where one lives - I've seen people type on an IRC chat what time it is in their time zone, and have some other people respond by saying that they are in the same time zone, but there are generally no further attempts to find out where the person lives.

But how about Nationality? Age?

There's a certain bias against being an American in some international venues - and just as some people pass as being Canadians while abroad I sometimes omit my nationality online.

For example - when I'm contacting French bloggers I tell them my name and that I am a student at an American university, but I never clearly state my nationality. With a French first name and an English last name there's the possibility that there might some confusion.

When I think of online identity I think about introductions. When you meet someone for the first time or make a slef introduction in front of a class - wouldn't it seem stupid to say ... Hello my name is ___ I am female, white, from California, American and enjoy skydiving? Most of that would seem obvious or irrelevant wouldn't it. However if you can't see me or hear my voice it would still be weird I think say.