straight-on smileys

a.k.a. ASCII art, emoticons, text icons

Small images made on a screen by typing a series of symbols on your keyboard on one line. They are meant to convey expressions or just to show fun little pictures.

Straight-on smileys are similar to traditional smileys, but you don't have to tilt your head to see them. These icons are a form of ASCII art.

Here are a few simple examples:

} | {  a butterfly

{=^;^=}  a cat

<><  a fish

@(*0*)@  a koala

@>--;----  a rose

•∆•   a vampire
V-V

See also : ASCII art  Japanese smileys  
NetLingo Classification: Online Jargon

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