Reading comments in different communities, I noticed that users hardly leave smilies. Why is that?
༼ つ ◕_◕ ༽つ
I find them obnoxius, just like inserting animated gifs and meme responses. If used in serious context it makes the whole post look cringe, using them to replace words is fit only for smartphone troglodytes sending character-limited posts/SMS.
I use them as a complement in my messages where I want to convey an emotion which isn’t obvious from the text itself. Like if I’m being self-deprecating in a joking manner, e.g. Not very easy to convey in text. But if I add some kind of smiling-ish emoji or something, it’s clearer that I’m not serious.
Overuse is cringe however.
If something isn’t obvious from the text, why not change the /style/ of writing instead of appending dissonant graphics? Make it obviously sarcastic or humorous, instead of leaving the users guessing if its satire or sincere expression.
