Smileys

[H.W.Fluks@telecom.tno.nl]

Sigvald, in spite of earlier mails about this, I still have the impression that you don't understand the function of the smiley in an e-mail. On Wednesday, you replied to Olaf:

> > (by the way, I can't wait to see the seriously
> > matter of war or peace in the Scandinavian
> > question during the summer of 2005 :-)
> 
> I meant 1905!

Of course you meant 1905. We all know you meant 1905. Olaf also knows that and is making a JOKE about it. Therefore the smiley.


Then there's this conversation:

> > Really?? In your mail, you said that Swedes
> > "should clean their own house before taking
> > care of other people's business"
> 
> Oh, please - that was just some kind of a stupid joke in 
> order to get the reader's attention.

Now *that* was a place to add a smiley, in your own original mail. Then it would have been clear from the beginning that it was meant as "a stupid joke".


And finally, you often write:

> Sigvald :-)

And this is *not* the place where people usually put a smiley.
To most people it means "this mail is a joke" or "Sigvald is a joke".
It has a very weird (and often irritating) effect in the mails where nothing seems to be funny.

--Harry.