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Ian Benjamin Douglas gives more variety in name length, which can be a good thing. But when you were considering Howard, it seemed that you'd be using it as the name of use, with nn Howie. So, would Ian Benjamin Douglas be known as Ben? Would Ian Michael Douglas be known as Mike? In which case, it's a three-way contest between Howie, Ben and Mike, or Howie, Benji and Mick.

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I don't like Howard much, but I positively dislike Howie. Benjamin and all its attendant nns have been very popular and while this is irrelevant usually, if you're going to use one of the nns on a daily basis, it's worth considering. And if that is the case, then I'd rather go for Michael, which is underused now following its great surge in mid-20th century. I don't think that anyone would find Michael Douglas a celeb reference - he's been out of it for long enough.

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So, I like Ian Michael Douglas and would use it. But, I'd use Ian every day, and I would have if I'd had a second son.