How to Use Smilies
Smilies are used to get your message across with style. Whether you visit online forums, read blogs or receive emails, you can't miss the ubiquitous happy face icons. Smilies have been adopted by various groups since the 1970s, according to BBC News. Since then, they have exploded in popularity with the advent of the computer age.
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Instructions
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How to Use Smilies
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Type your message on an online forum, blog or email program. Determine which emotion you would like to convey that would emphasize your message. Smilies are designed to add a human touch to online communication, which can sometimes be perceived as impersonal.
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Click on the smilie icon, typically located at the top of the form. Some message boards feature the smilie icon on the sidebar instead. A pop-up window will appear listing all the available smilies.
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Review the available smilies. Standard smilies include happy faces, sad faces, confused faces, angry faces and shocked faces. Other icons may not involve faces but can also be used to accentuate a message, such as birthday cakes, balloons and flowers.
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Consider choosing an animated smilie. Animated icons include a smilie icon bouncing up and down to represent joy, a waving smilie used to welcome someone, a smilie banging its head against a wall to represent frustration and a smilie sticking its tongue out to tease a person.
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Select the smilie that best represents your feelings. Click on the smilie to insert it into your message. Complete writing your message.
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Tips & Warnings
Don't overdo it. Too many smilies can distract from the message you're conveying. Smilies are alternately known as smileys or emoticons.
References
- Photo Credit Jay/sxc.hu
