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wsieber's question about the difference between disease, illness, sickness reminded me of something I've been wondering about: could someone please explain to me the difference between avatar and icon, and between icon and emoticon? I think I have something of a grasp on the last two, but between the first two I am lost. For some reason, I am thinking that an avatar should be "human": not necessarily a photo of a real person, but a drawing or painting of one, or even some kind of creature--as long as it has some human-like quality (facial expression, speech, etc.) about it.
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could someone please explain to me the difference between avatar and icon, and between icon and emoticon?
Sure, an icon is a religious picture and an avatar is an incarnation of a Hindu god or goddess. And emoticon is a neologism.
But seriously, an icon is a graphical representation of something (e.g., a file, application) in an operating system. An avatar is a graphical representation of a person (or something that can pass a turing test) online. An emoticon (aka smiley) is a graphemic representation (see ASCII art) of an emotion.
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Or, put another way, that I'd understand.
An icon is a picture that represents a computer program you use - like the blue W inside the squre that represents the Microsoft Word program.
An Avatar is a picture that represents a person. It is usually a human form but I'm hearing it more and more to represent any picture that represents a person on a board. For example, on another board, mine is a small green dragon.
An emoticon is a picture that represents an emotion. They are often a play on that 1970's smily face. Now the face smiles, frowns, cries, throws up and all the other emotions we go through. When you see it, you know exactly what the person is feeling. There are also new types of emoticons, like alien faces and such. Some though, are not as evident when seen by themselves, but make perfect sense when following to a sentence.
EDIT: Ooops, sorry jheem, I hope I didn't insult you with my first sentence. I know what icon, avatar and emoticon mean, but I have to admit that if I didn't know I'd be a little confused by your sentence. Which is why I wrote it in the way above.
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An icon is a picture that represents a computer program you useNot just programs (i.e., executable files) but data files also. If you save a letter to your mom, it shows up with a little icon of a dog-eared page with a little W in it. I hope I didn't insult you with my first sentence.Seemed benign enough to me, belMarduk. Ne vous inquiétez pas. 
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Ne vous inquiétez pas.Well I'm glad you weren't. A kiss on both cheeks for you x( )x !! 
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x( )x
Now, there's an emoticon! I picked up a thick book at the local recycling center the other day which is a memoir written by Eisenhower's naval aide during WW2, and there's a great picture of Ike standing stiffly at attention being kissed on both cheeks by French General Henri Giraud who awarded him the Grand Cordon of the Légion d'Honneur. The photo was censored at the time by Eisenhower.
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x( )x
Now, there's an emoticon!
I really like it. It was invented by RhubarbCommando - that closet Frenchy. I thought it was a brilliant invention and he said I could use it. Bec-bec to him too!
The photo was censored at the time by Eisenhower.
That's quite funny. I'm wondering if it's because he was embarrassed or if he just thought the American public wouldn't like it back then.
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That's quite funny. I'm wondering if it's because he was embarrassed or if he just thought the American public wouldn't like it back then.
Not sure. I haven't gotten that far in the book yet, but the caption reads: "After fighting was finished in Tunisia, General Giraud expressed the gratitude of the French people by giving General Ike his own Grand Cordon of the Legion of Honor, which he had refused to wear until he again could march down the streets of Metz. General Ike accepted the honor and said he, too, would not wear the decoration until Metz was liberated, hoping they could parade down the streets together. He didn't like being photographed as he was kissed, consequently the picture was withheld at that time." He looks stoic in the picture ...
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Here's an interesting side note on the devlopment of avtars: http://snipurl.com/93hl-mq42 It's a PDF link.
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Heyyyyy!!! We are NOT clustered around the fringes of an inhospitable hinterland!!! Our hinters are very hospitable, thank you very much. There's just not enough of us to habitate them.
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a great picture of Ike standing stiffly at attention being kissed on both cheekshow is that possible? 
formerly known as etaoin...
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how is that possible?
Say what? He's standing at attention, not saluting. Or do you mean how could a single photo capture him being kissed on both cheeks? It doesn't. He's being kissed on the right cheek so you can see his face, and General Giraud is bending at the knees to reach down to him. How tall was Ike?
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a single photo capture him being kissed on both cheeksyeah, I was just being cheeky... not sure how tall Ike was. must be a site somewhere...
formerly known as etaoin...
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How tall was Ike?
wwh found Ike's height online: 5' 10 1/2".
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>Our hinters are very hospitable, thank you very much.
So, you'll be relocating to Norman Wells soon, then, Bel?
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Me, personally, no. Too much nature. I mean really, once you've seen a majestic fir tree, you've seen them all. And what does majestic mean but "really tall" anyway.
There is a town there - 800 people who are very nice - so it is hospitable, they just don't populate enough to fill up the whole part full of fir trees.
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In reply to:
hey just don't populate enough to fill up the whole part full of fir trees.
Well for me, unless they were fur trees, it would still be inhospitable.
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A little sensitive to the cold, are we? Somehow the cold doesn't bother me at all. A good pair of boots, a hat, some mitts and a floofy scarf, and the trick is played.
Ooooo, now you've done it. Now, I'm looking forward to winter. It's so far away. *sigh*
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I'm looking forward to winter. It's so far away. *sigh* Bless you, bel--you are indeed a girl after my own heart!
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a girl after my own heart
I tell ya, Jackie. Come spend February with us. Or better, go spend it with belM.
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I have to admit I miss real winter. In Vancouver the snow is so soggy you can hear the "plop" when it lands. You don't need a toque when it's snowing hard - you need an umbrella. Sigh!
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So--if I were able to put a picture of, say, a snowflake beside my name, I couldn't say it's my icon--I'd have to say it's my avatar? Where'd the word avatar come from, anyway?
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Etymology:Sanskrit avatAra descent, from avatarati he descends, from ava- away + tarati he crosses over—
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Not so much,really. It refers to the descent of a deity. Each time a god descended to this world, that god might take a new form. If you're interested, here's how the word looks in Hindi: http://maxqnz.com/avatar.jpg
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OddNot much odder than its translation in English incarnation < Latin incarno 'to become flesh' < caro, carnis 'flesh' whence carnal, carnival, sharp, scabbard, score. http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE467.html
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Incarnation--that, I can relate to. Thanks, jheem. I had thought maybe avatar was yet another English word I'd never heard of.
Now I'm wondering how a carnival--the event, not the word itself--came from 'flesh'.
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Now I'm wondering how a carnival--the event, not the word itself--came from 'flesh'.
It's the traditional blow-out of excess in meat and drink before Lent starts and with it the fasting ...
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There was a practical reason to eat up all the meat in the house on Shrove Tuesday: without refrigeration, it would not keep until Easter.
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That doesn't seem to make sense to me Father Steve. It's not like if lent sneaks up on you all unawares.
If you know you'll be out of the house for a week, you don't go do a grocery so I doubt that anybody would have been taken by surpise and said, "oh no, lent is coming we have to finish off all this meat we bought/cought." It was a planned pigging-out.
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It was a planned pigging-out.
It's also thought that carnival captured and syncretized some earlier pagan end of winter fesitvals. Karneval in Cologne is a thing to behold. Alaaf!
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There was a practical reason to eat up all the meat in the house on Shrove Tuesday: without refrigeration, it would not keep until Easter.
In cold climes wouldn't the Goodwife quickly learn that meat kept well if left outside in God' "freezer?"
And didn't it have something to do with the dietary prohibitions of Lent set down by the Church(es)?
Just tryin' to stir the pot!
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Yah, yah. And they had to eat up all of the animal fats (e.g. bacon grease, butter) and all of the eggs (also prohibited during Lent). And there were no grocery stores in the days when such customs arose.
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