User blog:JustSomeDude.../The Problem With Emoticons

Now as many of you have noticed, a couple admins and I made the decision earlier this week to remove all emoticons from chat.

Problems started a couple weeks ago when certain new emoticons were overused by certain users. They spammed the chat with them, causing all sorts of problems, and it even led to some bans.

I removed the offending emotes because of the problems that they caused. However, in coming days it became clear that the other emotes were causing problems as well. So it was decided by the admins to remove all emoticons.

The response to this action has shown even more of the immaturity this community has regarding issues like this. When this community shows that it can be more responsible, perhaps we can consider adding some of the emoticons back.

To help you guys works towards maturing, here are some important pieces of advice:

Play the long con.

What does that mean, exactly?

Well, it means that if there is an upcoming event, you need to plan for it weeks in advance. Take something small with potential to grow, and latch on to it. Use it to your advantage, take its momentum and help it grow. Plan things for the future in order to continue making that smaller thing even bigger and bigger, until eventually, you get the result you want.

Another piece of advice:

Defy conventions

If someone tells you're supposed to have your event on one day, defy them! Things have a much greater impact when they've had days to build up.

One final piece of advice:

Trust no one.

The only person who can pull off your plans correctly is yourself. You might need some help along the way, but ultimately you need to retain control of your plans. People may help you along the way, but you need to keep them in the dark about your true plans if you want to impact everyone.

So what does this all mean?

It means that JSD plays the long con.

Enjoy your emoticons, and your disco frogs. I never meant to take them away in the first place.