The Web smiley's motto: Grin and bear it
For 25 years, the emoticon has been a mainstay of Internet culture. But are there frowns in its future?
Photos: Emoticons for every mood
Photos: Emoticons for every mood
Published: March 13, 2007, 4:00 AM PDT
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Digg thisAuthor Vladimir Nabokov said in a 1969 New York Times interview that "there should exist a special typographical sign for a smile--some sort of concave mark, a supine round bracket."
Now, nearly four decades later, there is just such a typographical symbol-- :-), or :) for the minimalists, and it'd be tough to find a tech-savvy person who hasn't leaned on it. There's also a special typographical symbol for a frown-- :-( -- and one for a cool dude in sunglasses -- B-) -- and one for a wink -- ;-). There's even a typographical sign for wearing a baseball cap-- d=D.
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