About Adult Emoticons

Adult emoticons are a group of racy smiley faces and provocative graphics meant only for adult eyes in Internet chat programs. There are different types, and these can be identified by the way they convey an adult message. Because there are no restrictions on these icons in personal chatting, some adults might use them around children or nonconsenting adults, which could create an uncomfortable situation.

Identification

Adult emoticons are small computer graphics that can be downloaded for use in an online chat program, usually in the form of a smiling face that sometimes has a body. Each has a message that is primarily portrayed in the drawing but will occasionally have words next to the face. Because they're meant for adults, these icons are usually graphic, obscene or profane in nature. Typical emoticons are meant to express feelings, such as a sad face, angry face or crying face. Adult icons are more elaborate and racy, and some have moving graphics.

Types

There are two main types of adult emoticons. One includes all the emoticons and smileys that are made by a computer. Sometimes these are animated, but most are nonmoving graphics. All the ones in this category are drawn by somebody on a computer and usually depict a simple-looking person, with adult features added. The other type is emoticons that are photographs or videos of real people. These are more uncommon, but they do exist, and web sites have real animations that people can download to use on chat programs.

Function

Adult emoticons are used in chat rooms and chat programs to convey messages that otherwise can't be worded well online. The message in these adult versions is usually sexual in nature. Often a person will send emoticons to others she is talking to, along with words to get her point across. The emoticons can even be used to flirt, depending on the icon. These graphics can be sent among participants in adult chat rooms when discussing sexual activities.

Effects

When shared between two consenting adults, these emoticons can be another way to communicate online and flirt with partners. However, when shared with someone who isn't an adult or is a nonconsenting adult, the icons can create uncomfortable situations on the Internet and can bother many. The icons may be offensive to others and are sometimes used inappropriately around teenagers and younger children. Online predators may use these around younger people.

Considerations

The limitations of these adult emoticons are that they must be downloaded from particular web sites. Trusting an unfamiliar web site can compromise computer safety. A virus can be uploaded to anyone's computer when he downloads from an infected web site. Additionally, there are limits on which programs the icons can be used on. Some can be used on most chat programs, but others are limited to only one or a few programs.