more on smileys

[Mark A. Mandel]

More from my son. I've added spacing to make them a bit easier for the
uninitiated (like me) to "read". If you aren't already seeing this post in
a monospaced font, like Courier or Monaco, you may benefit from setting
your options to do so.

>>>>>
To provide clarification (at least regarding usage
among anime fandom):

 ^^
is a variation on any other face, but is
apparently cuter because it has no mouth.

 ^.^
is likewise a variant mouth, and I've seen it
used quite often, especially among those with fangirl
or 'kitty' personae.

 ^-^
is super-deformed.[*] Used to indicate a child or
somebody in 'SD' mode.

 =^_^=
is a modification performed to any other smiley
(including variant mouths) to add kitty whiskers.

=^.^=
is an alarmingly common 'base smiley' among
14-year-old fangirls and people who act like them.

 ^_^)
is a hand at the back of the head. Imagine
somebody scratching the back of his head and grinning
nervously when asked a difficult question.

 d ^_^
         b ^_^
Either of these can mean either thumbs-up or an
"OK!" sign. Since the two mean about the same thing,
it doesn't much matter. I don't see them often, but
they're common enough to have a known meaning.

 ^_^ v
Victory sign. Since 'flashing V' is much more
common in anime than in regular American use (or, for
all I know, normal Japanese), this is proportionately
more common among anime fandom.

 ^_^;
is indeed a sweatdrop. Imagine an American
comic-strip character being confronted by his boss
while little 'teardrops' of sweat fly off his head for
meaning.

 I haven't seen `_^ much as a wink; ^_- or ^_~ seems
more common

 o_o is low-key stunned surprise.

 O_O is absolute shock and/or horror.

 @_@ is shock to the point of fainting.

[I have also seen variations of these three ranging up
to (  .  )_(  .  ), but those are so rare as to be
insignificant; besides which, 'shock to the point of
fainting' is rather a tough act to follow.]

 >_< is a wince.

 >_>
     <_< are shifty eyes.

There are countless other variations, but this
addresses those mentioned in the original post as well
as those that you will run across frequently as you
make your way through the web pages, newsgroups, and
bulletin boards of the anime community.
<<<<<

* A "deformed" character is shown with childlike body proportions;
"super-deformed" is an extreme exaggeration (IIRC). (MAM)

   Mark A. Mandel : Dragon Systems, a Lernout & Hauspie company
          Mark_Mandel at dragonsys.com : Senior Linguist
 320 Nevada St., Newton, MA 02460, USA : http://www.dragonsys.com