# My Idea for Disabling Smilies...

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-idea-for-disabling-smilies/251602>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [June 22, 2004, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-idea-for-disabling-smilies/251602 "2004-06-22T10:17:59Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-idea-for-disabling-smilies/251602/1 "2004-06-22T10:17:59Z")

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Well, the boards have already been redesigned. So it is probably too late to add anything now. But just recently I thought of an idea for disabling the smilies.

As you probably know, sometimes a person might want to disable the smilies. This is often to avoid confusion, like when there is some punctuational reason to add a “:” to a “)”, and so forth. But I was just thinking, instead of disabling the smilies for the **whole** post (and thus depriving the poster of possibly needed emoticons), why not disable them thus:

[DISABLE SMILIES]Now is the time for all good men to come to the service of their country.[/DISABLE SMILIES]

It’s just an idea I thought I’d throw out 🙂 .

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**Author:** ![j\_sum1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@j\_sum1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j_sum1)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-idea-for-disabling-smilies/251602/2 "2004-06-22T11:57:59Z")

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[disable smilies]

Hey! it works!! 😃

[/disable smilies]

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**Author:** ![j\_sum1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@j\_sum1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j_sum1)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-idea-for-disabling-smilies/251602/3 "2004-06-22T11:59:23Z")

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😛😃

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**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-idea-for-disabling-smilies/251602/4 "2004-06-23T01:04:05Z")

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How often is 😛 used to convey sticking one’s tongue out as opposed to laughing (which is what it looks like)

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**Author:** ![Algernon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a183cd/32.png) [@Algernon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algernon)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-idea-for-disabling-smilies/251602/5 "2004-06-23T13:01:59Z")

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> [@Lobsang](#):
>
> How often is 😛 used to convey sticking one’s tongue out as opposed to laughing (which is what it looks like)

Until just recently, when some Doper pointed out that this smilie was actually sticking its tongue out, I always interpreted it as laughing. And most of the time when I see it, a laughing smilie seems more apropos than a taunting tongue.

I interpret 🙂 as simply a warm, pleasureable smile.  
I interpret 😃 as a “gotcha” grin; or “that rude comment was meant to be funny”.  
I interpret 😛 as a “that was really funny” expression.

Irrespective of its name, 😛 just doesn’t look like someone sticking out their tongue.