Joined: Dec 2009 Posts: 880 Location: Somewhere over the rainbow...
Greetings,
Today I asked a guy on a different forum why he posts an emoticon after every single sentence. Then in like 5 seconds I got attacked by like 5 other users. Everyone told me that they are so cool and expresses the way you feel and it's such a common behavior on the internet.
Spoiler!
For those of you who have no idea what they are:
Quote:
An emoticon is a facial expression pictorially represented by punctuation and letters, usually to express a writer’s mood. Emoticons are often used to alert a responder to the tenor or temper of a statement, and can change and improve interpretation of plain text.
I find it the most annoying thing ever. There are people who cannot finish a sentence without adding one. If the statement is true and it expresses a writer's mood then in most cases the writer has a different mood after every single sentence. Don't take me wrong I have no problem with people who use them once in a while but let's see what exactly I'm talking about:
Quote:
LOOOL! now that u mentioned it, i just noticed that XD we're gonna get wiped
anyways-.- society as someone just said, is pretty much the same. high playerbase. graphics is okay and gameplay is awesome. you dont get many MMOs where u can multiclass:)
Who on Earth would use them in this way?
Anyway I think people should not use them like that especially not on forums because I do not think that's the place where you should practise all the emoticons you know. Adding one or two after a wall of text is okay but 5 in two sentences?
So what do you think about them? Do you like them, hate them? I hope I'm not the only who feels in this way because I'd feel mentally deranged.
Seriously Emoticons is the best thing ever happened They do let us express our feelings easier on the internet I dont know what I would do with out them
It really depends on the nature of the discussion. In formal conversation, it wouldn't be proper to keep expressing your emotions by means of confused punctuation. However, in informal settings (such as most online forums), it's usually inevitable that someone will use an emoticon to express their feelings in a more personal way. There are also other legitimate situations in which using emotes would be useful, although not required, such as when denoting sarcasm. I'm not really a fan of using more than one or two emotes per forum post because I feel it reduces the quality of the message, but that sentiment isn't really grounded in any real objective truth. That being said, I don't think lesser of people who use emotes in their own comments, but when they get in the way of the message, then it becomes an annoyance.
Joined: Jun 2006 Posts: 8238 Location: twitch.tv/AFKidsGaming
Emoticons are both a way of employing emphasis, and emotion to text. I think when writing, they are a staple because the help expand on the blandness of text.
Silliness, sadness, sarcasm, happiness these can all be better expressed by the use of emoticons.
IMO a sentence such as:
"You know it"
is very different to
"You know it "
It's true that people who overuse emoticons in single sentences, are most likely being stupid or don't fully understand the use of an emoticon.
"So happy we went for a walk with the dog, but then suddenly i was all wtf ... the dog decided to hump my leg and i was like NO! bad dog... but then we had ice cream and it was a cool day "
That kind of sentence is obviously written by someone attempting to use emoticons, or just an immature person who has passed "1337 speek" but still doesn't understand complete sentences and syntax.
So personally, i see a great need for emoticons, especially for the medium we use to communicate with each-other electronically. Sure, one could try to personify emotions by the use of literary devices, but honestly in this setting and purpose that is just a waste of time that we see not fit.
Also, i do miss some of my old MSN emoticons, i remember i had one set up so that it showed a little emoticon shooting himself in the head, much like and that was the best way for me to portray a FML moment. Just saying "FML" was fine, but this gave it so much more class.
Edit: Even this board only allows 5 emoticons at a time. Lol.
It really depends on the nature of the discussion. In formal conversation, it wouldn't be proper to keep expressing your emotions by means of confused punctuation. However, in informal settings (such as most online forums), it's usually inevitable that someone will use an emoticon to express their feelings in a more personal way. There are also other legitimate situations in which using emotes would be useful, although not required, such as when denoting sarcasm. I'm not really a fan of using more than one or two emotes per forum post because I feel it reduces the quality of the message, but that sentiment isn't really grounded in any real objective truth. That being said, I don't think lesser of people who use emotes in their own comments, but when they get in the way of the message, then it becomes an annoyance.
Personally said, A wall of text like this annoys me more than emoticons, even though they can bother me too sometimes.
That's mainly the reason why I tend to post in this format...
Anyways, That being said, to express some feelings an emote can be quite handy~ Or when someone is too lazy to post something in text and wants to express him/herself with a smile.
Although, the power of sarcasm doesn't come clear as well in a post when you end it in a smiley. Even if the sentence reeks of sarcasm, ending it with a smiley can **** it up... And I love smiling when I'm being sarcastic.
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>>
"
... the dog decided to hump my leg and i was like NO! 
bad dog... but then we had ice cream and it was a cool day 
"
and that was the best way for me to portray a FML moment. Just saying "FML" was fine, but this gave it so much more class.
