Smiley Battle

[wei yau]

In a world gone mad, where communication is possible only through pixels on a screen. At a time, when words are no longer sufficient to convey emotions.

There came a people ready to save us all.

There came...the Smileys

Through the power of their adorable facial expressions, gestures and actions...these smileys can say things that we would otherwise be unable to say. They give voice to the mute; courage to the timid; power to the week and laughter to the saddened.

The time has come for a hero to rise. For a single champion to be proclaimed as the one, true smiley. And so begins a contest of champions. A battle to determine which smiley is the best of the best. Battles will take place within each category to determine a category champion. Then the battle for best of the best will take place, category champions fighting for supremacy.

There can be only one...

Each battle will begin a group of similar smiles from the same category. The grouping will be at my discretion, though I swear to be fair and equitable. I will not "sandbag" by grouping my favorite smiley with a bunch of obvious losers. I will also cast my vote, I've no interest in being impartial in this thread.

The first smiley to get 5 votes from posters will be declared the winner. Duplicate votes will not be counted.

So, let's get ready to rumble! Battle One follows soon!



yes, I'm shamelessly lifting this idea from Xorply's Battle Thread over at IIDB. Don't worry, no actual smileys will be harmed in this battle

[wei yau]

Although "The Basics" is the first category, it is being skipped as it contains a cross-section of other categories.

Battle Greetings: Round One

In our first battle, the Welcomers will have at it. These smileys offer a warm and joyous welcome to anyone who enters this board. Often, they may be the very smileys a new member will see. They are veteran frontline troops who have seen the elephant.

And without further introduction (which would be kinda redundant anyways), I give you our first match. May the best smiley win!

:welcome: (welcome)

versus

:welcome2: (welcome2)

[livius drusus]

:welcome2:, hands down, no contest.

[viscousmemories]

Gotta go with tradition:

:welcome:

[ceptimus]

I like :welcome:

The guys on either end of :welcome2: look a bit sinister to me - like they're plotting some nasty surprise for the poor newbie.

[livius drusus]

It's the weight of the banner making them grimace like that, I swear! They're taking one for the team! They're the Atlases holding up the smiley world! Hate the game not the player!

Vote :welcome2:!

[wei yau]

Current status:

:welcome: (welcome) - 2 votes

versus

:welcome2: (welcome2) - 1 vote

[wei yau]

I vote for :welcome2:

Not because I'm some kind of livius suck-up, but precisely for the objection made by cep. I like the sinister aspect of those side-smileys. Of course the ones the newbie really have to worry about are the ones behind him. The side ones are just distractions....smileys hunt like raptors.

[beyelzu]

I vote for :welcome2: because I am a liv suck up.


no really

or maybe I just think the banner is cool and more inviting, hopefully no one will think to highlight this and read the invisible sensitive bullshit :tmgrin:

[wei yau]

Current status:

:welcome: (welcome) - 2 votes

versus

:welcome2: (welcome2) - 3 votes

NOTE: Changing victory conditions to 5 votes, smaller population here at FF than IIDB

[maddog]

I vote for :welcome: because I'm an ol' fuddy-duddy and can't see. I can read this one.

I can't read the banner on :welcome2: this one. Who knows? It might be a mob attack.
#241

[livius drusus]

It's a dead heat, durn it all. Just in case there was any doubt about it, I am currently accepting suck up votes.

[wei yau]

...I am currently accepting suck up votes.

I guess it would be too extreme to count your vote as two votes (yours and bey) automatically from now on, right?

[Skep]

I vote for :welcome: because the smilie looks sincerely happy to see the newbie and because I'm rather partial to animated smilies. :yup:

[wei yau]

One more puts :welcome: in the Winner's Circle.

[livius drusus]

:shakefist:

[Crumb]

As my first act as a poster on FF, I will decide the first smiley battle by voting for :welcome:

Yay!

(sorry liv ;))

[viscousmemories]

:praying:

OMG!! My prayer was answered in crosspost! Hallelujiah!!

[beyelzu]

As my first act as a poster on FF, I will decide the first smiley battle by voting for :welcome:

Yay!

(sorry liv ;))

:welcome2: to ff, crumb.

[viscousmemories]

Oh yeah, :welcome: to the FF Crumb. :blush:

[wei yau]

What a wonderful debut, Crumb! Kudos to your panache!

Now, onto the second contest in this battle:

:welcome3: (welcome3)

versus

:welcome4: (welcome4)

just realized I should have included these guys in the previous battle, just group similar smileys together into a single contest. Oh well, it's not like we're deciding the fate of the world here.

[viscousmemories]

I hate that green guy. I vote :welcome4:

[ceptimus]

Yay! Well done Crumb, and :welcome:

[wei yau]

It's them big-ass hands that freak me out, I also vote for :welcome4:

[ceptimus]

The green guy is disgusting. How he ever made it here is beyond me. :chin:

I don't care for :welcome4: much, but because of the appalling opposition, it naturally gets my vote.

[beyelzu]

The green guy is disgusting. How he ever made it here is beyond me. :chin:

I don't care for :welcome4: much, but because of the appalling opposition, it naturally gets my vote.
similarly, :welcome4: is the john kerry of this election for me as well.

[wei yau]

:welcome4: is out to an early 4-0 lead. Though further progression in ths contest does not appear to be in the cards for this smiley.

[livius drusus]

You've got moxie, Crumb, no doubt about it. I like the cut of your gib. So my loss put me in a Jimmy Cagney mood. Nothing wrong with that. :welcome2: to FF.

As for the next battle, it's not even a battle, really. I daily regret ever having uploaded that monstrosity of a green guy, so :welcome4: it is.

[wei yau]

A decisive victory!

Ever onwards...a three-way battle!

:hisign:

versus

:bhello:

versus

:hia:

[wei yau]

This is a side battle to resolve the "welcome" smileys...I'm pretty sure who the winner will be, but it needs to be legit.

I'm only doing this because I should have grouped all the "welcome" smileys in a single battle. And though this isn't the most profound thread in the world, I am incredibly anal.

So.....

:welcome:

versus

:welcome4:

[livius drusus]

Hmm... More challenging this time. I do love the gentle movement and perfect shadowing of :bhello:, but :hisign: is so humble and cheery and :hia: has that adorable roll.

Choices, choices...

I'm going to go with :hisign:. He's got classic smiley roundness (I have issues with attempts to give smilies jointed limbs) and I like blue.

[wei yau]

Though I prefer smiley smileys over text smileys, I'm gonna have to go with

:bhello:

The sign the blue guy is holding is too dark, I don't like smileys that make me squint. And I was gonna vote for the rolling guy, but got immediately squicked out when liv pointed out the fact that he has elbows.

eew.

[livius drusus]

And though this isn't the most profound thread in the world, I am incredibly anal.

Wow... :eek: I thought I had a problem.

Okey dokey, my (protest) vote goes to :welcome4:.

[Crumb]

Oops, didn't mean to change this into a "welcome crumb" thread.

But thanks for the :welcome:'s ... and the :welcome2:'s :rolleye1:

I agree with liv this time. :hisign: is my vote. Though it would be better if he was a little lighter so I could see his face and his sign better.

And I will vote again for :welcome:

[wei yau]

Oh crap.

Now I have to vote for :welcome4: , that's TWO text smileys and I don't even like text smileys.

But, the other little bugger also has elbows.

Thanks a lot, liv. That shit's gonna be in my nightmares now.

[ceptimus]

Naturally I select :welcome: in the welcome run off vote.

In the hello group I grudgingly pick the butterfly thing. I agree that the sign is too dark on the round smiley. I dislike the 'here I am' smiley, though I'm not really sure why.

[viscousmemories]

I'm gonna be Randy Jackson and stick with :welcome: on the side vote.

As for the new one:

:hisign: is too dark.

:bhello: is too flowery.

:hia: has round hands, a cute roll, and traditional smilie goodness.

My vote goes to: :hia:

[viscousmemories]

I dislike the 'here I am' smiley, though I'm not really sure why.
Could it be his narcissism? I admit I find that a little off-putting m'self.

[wei yau]

Current Status: The Main Event

:hisign: (2 votes)

versus

:bhello: (2 votes)

versus

:hia: (1 vote)

Current Status: Side Battle

:welcome: (3 votes)

versus

:welcome4: (2 votes)

[livius drusus]

And we have a ringer! :hisign2:


/me giggles

[Ex-zombie]

:hisign2: has my vote.


I also vote for :welcome:

[wei yau]

And we have a ringer! :hisign2:


* livius drusus giggles

Did I miscount?

[livius drusus]

Oh no, no... It's just a lightened version is all, hence the ringer comment. :hisign: :hisign2: See?

IOW, I used my admin powers to cheat. :pleased:

[Skep]

Once again, I vote for :welcome:

I'd vote for the blue smilie with the "Hi" sign if the sign had a light (white or gray) background.

[wei yau]

Oh no, no... It's just a lightened version is all, hence the ringer comment. :hisign: :hisign2: See?

IOW, I used my admin powers to cheat. :pleased:

Well, you're gonna have to use your admin powers to change the smileys in the original post for this particular battle. Because as it stands now, the lighter guy is not in the running.

Also, once a vote is cast, it cannot be changed. So, feel free to ignore Skeptoid's request.

You are eeeeevil.

[livius drusus]

You are eeeeevil.

Even more than you thought possible. :muahaha:

[JoeP]

Yow. I join the thread at this point and already I am :confused2: :pardon?: :eh?: :rubeyes: :micro: confused. We seem to have heat 2 (or 3?) of round 1 of the first category going on at the same time as round 2. Eldar, you've already spoken about not going pair by pair in future but sticking all the smilies in the category up at once. This would help my :headache: ...

I would'a voted for :welcome: and :welcome4: in the early heats, and they justifiably won. Between these two, :welcome: gets my round 2 vote.

In the next heat ... hmm ... I'm going against my trend and voting :bhello:. - The trend, btw, was for simpler actual-smilie smilies.



Now, let's talk about how this is going to develop. The :onering: smilie to rule them all is an undecidable propostion. Even in this first 0.4% (get that, 0.4%) of the collection, I already have to accept for myself that smilies are for a purpose and the purpose depends on the context (the conversation). :welcome: is the most useful of the 7-or-so smilies we've had up on the catwalk so far, but there are situations (extra loving friendship called for) where :bhello: would beat in hands down in a one-on-one contest. So are we looking, and voting, for the One Smilie that would beat most others in most situations? A simple knockout contest won't reliably find that smilie - we'll need a round-robin.



Even ignoring this consideration, I confidently predict this battle will end up in a savage fight. An IIDB-scale bloodbath. Somebody will resign from the board. :jerry: Bring it on!

[livius drusus]

Wow... 0.4%... That's soooo cool.

[LadyShea]

I refuse to participate as I feel sorry for the losers. This seems terribly discriminatory.

Well, okay I'll offer a protest vote.

:jd: <--- this is one seriously fucked up smiley right here. But I love the ugly little thing now just because. So I vote for her as the supreme smiley.

[Petra]

I feel I must defend the green man welcome smiley. The cheesy cabaret grin; the open armed enthusiasm; the green, green love of home....


Y'all trashing him the way you did is cruel. He just wants to share his green joy and toothy glee at welcoming n00bs, and y'all are talking smack about him. Poor l'il feller.

[Ex-zombie]

Even ignoring this consideration, I confidently predict this battle will end up in a savage fight. An IIDB-scale bloodbath. Somebody will resign from the board. :jerry: Bring it on!

Bloodsport, eh? :popcorn:

[wei yau]

Current Status: The Main Event

:hisign: (3 votes)

versus

:bhello: (3 votes)

versus

:hia: (1 vote)

Current Status: Side Battle

:welcome: (5 votes) WINNER!

versus

:welcome4: (2 votes)

[wei yau]

To recap:

The winner of the first group of "Welcomers" in Battle Greetings is :welcome:

The only open battle right now is this Battle:

:hisign: (3 votes)

versus

:bhello: (3 votes)

versus

:hia: (1 vote)

Pairing them up is gonna take way too long. Grouping is probably the best way to do this, as some categories are HUGE. It's easier for me to pick the best within a similar sub-group and then having them battle it out for category championship.

Once the battle for this category has been settled and a single Greetings Champion emerges, I might consider changing the format of this battle.

Perhaps polls? I've got to learn how to do one. It'll have to be one poll for each sub-group within a category, of course.

Am I making this overly complicated? Probably. Am I having fun? Definitely. As for purpose...it's really pretty simple. The criteria for which selection is based is up to the poster. I don't care. All I want is that through the process of elimination we are choosing the Overall Champion. This does not mean that this smiley is better than all others in all ways. It simply means that this smiley has survived through the voting process to emerge victorious.

Hell, even if we never get that far, at the very least I'll be adding to my post count and might end up with one of those overbar thingies.

[Crumb]

Overbar thingies? whassat?

[livius drusus]

It's a roman numeral multiplied by a thousand, so a V with a bar over it is 5000, for instance.

/me points to her sick postcount

[Crumb]

/me points to his sick post count

[wei yau]

* eldar points to the tied vote count in the current battle

Is anyone gonna move this one along?

[Petra]

* eldar points to the tied vote count in the current battle

Is anyone gonna move this one along?

Not me. Not unless you apologise to the green man first.

[wei yau]

* eldar points to the tied vote count in the current battle

Is anyone gonna move this one along?

Not me. Not unless you apologise to the green man first.

I'll apologize after you tell me how do that lilac coloured action text thingie with the asterisk.

[Petra]

/me shows eldar how it's done...


type / then me then whatever you want to write.

eg:

/ me shows eldar how it's done, but without the space between / and me


Now say you're sorry, beeyatch! :SM:


:welcome3:

[Ex-zombie]

/me is so glad Eldar asked how it's done.

Been wondering that myself.

[wei yau]

/me tries this

Dear :welcome3:

I am sorry that you are so freakish looking. I am sorry that your pallor reminds me of long dead corpses. I am sorry that your toothsome grin unsettles me on a primal level. I am sorry that your hands are goonish and not at all welcoming. I am sorry that the font in your "Welcome" is inappropriately large and entirely out of place.

But, most of all, I am sorry that lunachick made me write this.

Sincerely,

:mrfreeze:

[Petra]

Humpf! Some apology! Talk about backhanded.

:loser:

[wei yau]

Dear :welcome3:,

I am sorry for denigrating your obviously warm and welcoming nature. I realize that I was a cold-hearted fool for putting you down when clearly all you want is for us to share in your hospitality.

I am especially sorry for my earlier "apology". Too often I play the role of villain, when I should be otherwise.

While I realize that my actions may test even the limits of your kindness, I do hope that we can move beyond this and remain poster and smiley. There may be a time when I will have need of your services and I find comfort in knowing that you will always be there with a smile, open arms and kind words.

Truly sincerely,

:batman2:

[Petra]

Very good. All is forgiven.



Now then....mmmmmm......I cast my vote to the pink hello. It's so candy-sweet I want to lick it.


:lolly:

[livius drusus]

I think you should have held out for :batman3:, luna, but I'm glad this damn chapter is over so we can all move on.

Now, eldar, Mr. Smartypants, enjoy sifting through Good Times for the next batch. :hahaha:

[wei yau]

Now, eldar, Mr. Smartypants, enjoy sifting through Good Times for the next batch. :hahaha:

Unfortunately, lunachick's vote is only the 4th vote for the "butterfly hello". No clear winner, yet.

And then there's still others waiting in the Greetings category.

But, you're right, thanks to a certain someone's obession over smileys, the Good Times category is gonna be a doozy.

/me sighs

I might have taken on more than I can handle with this thread

[Crumb]

That just means it will bring you many hou...eh da...hmm...y...uh.. centuries of enjoyment. :smugnod:

[Petra]

I think you should have held out for :batman3:, luna...


Not quite so candy-sweet looking, yet for some reason I still want to lick it. :giggle:

[livius drusus]

Um, eldar, honey, I really think one round per category is the way to go.

[Petra]

Um, eldar, honey, I really think one round per category is the way to go.

:rofl:



Yup.

[xorbie]

Is it too late to vote for blue smiley with sign? That one r0x my s0x.

[Blake]

I cast my vote for the butterfly "Hello." She's just too pretty.

However, I object to the one-round pitting of all smilies in a category against one another, unless instant run-off voting is included in the implementation. :D

(Now that would be a poll hack to end all poll hacks ... we'd be the coolest pollstering board on the web.)

[wei yau]

Battle Results:

:hisign: (4 votes)

versus

:bhello: (5 votes) WINNER!

versus

:hia: (1 vote)

Well, thanks to lunachick and Blake, we have ended this battle.

Next battles are coming up to close-out the Greetings category.

Afterwards, I'll probably have to come up with a new way to do this...there are so many smileys. An all-out open battle in a single category seems like a good idea, but it can quickly become unwieldy.

I might just do a poll, so I don't have to count. And I might get more voters, too.

[wei yau]

"Greetings" Winners Circle:

:welcome:

:bhello:

Current Battle: The Wavers

:hiya:

versus

:happywave:

versus

:wave:

[wei yau]

My vote goes to: :hiya:

How can it not? I mean look at him. He's so damned cute.

I'd like to ask a favor of voters. When you cast your vote, just use the smiley you are voting for or describe it. Multiple smileys in vote makes it hard for me to count.

I'm feeling particularly slow, fat and stupid today. Bear with me.

[Ex-zombie]

I vote for :wave:

The other two are just a bit freaky.

[livius drusus]

Gotta go with :hiya:. Don't like the legs and arms on bluey and although I like number three, he just doesn't have number one's expressiveness.

[livius drusus]

The thing is, eldar, if Greetings results in 3 battles, how many are we going to get out of Bothered & Bewildered? It just gets a little repetitious and boring, I think, to pit so many thematically related ones against each other.

I can see a couple of three or four way contests per category, but any more than that and I think the pace of the thread will really start to drag.

[viscousmemories]

I'm sticking with the classic :wave:

The first guy's mouth stretching to clown mouth shape freaks me out.

The second is a little too cute, if ya know what I mean.

[Skep]

I vote for :hiya: It's one of Fool's smilies. I love his style. :)

[livius drusus]

Me too, Skep. He's a smiley pioneer. :yup:

[wei yau]

The thing is, eldar, if Greetings results in 3 battles, how many are we going to get out of Bothered & Bewildered? It just gets a little repetitious and boring, I think, to pit so many thematically related ones against each other.

I can see a couple of three or four way contests per category, but any more than that and I think the pace of the thread will really start to drag.


I hear ya and I agree. But, my OCD tendencies won't allow me to do it any other way. Blame it on my childhood hobby of matching up every single Avenger against every single Justice Leaguer.

Nonetheless, I need to figure out a better way. AFTER, we close out this category. I might be able to overcome my OCD, but I'll feel hollow and empty if I don't finish this one this way.

Are you suggesting that categories can still be subdivided, but the divisions need to encompass more smileys? In other words, I should broaden the criteria for each sub-group?

[Crumb]

Another vote for :wave:

[xorbie]

My vote is for :hiya:

The other guy is a close second though. But Hiya man is just too cool.

[wei yau]

Current Battle: The Wavers

:hiya: (4 votes)

versus

:happywave: (0 votes)

versus

:wave: (3 votes)

[ceptimus]

I can't really decide between them. I'll vote for :hiya: That way I will have voted for only winning smilies so far.

[wei yau]

"Greetings" Winners Circle:

:welcome:

:bhello:

:hiya:

Current Battle: The Hat-Tippers

:tiphat:

versus

:tiphat2:

[wei yau]

I vote for: :tiphat:

[ceptimus]

I vote for: :tiphat:
Me too. The witchy one is certainly memorable, but that hair is just too wild.

[livius drusus]

I vote for: :tiphat:

Me three.

[Skep]

I vote for: :tiphat:

Me three.
Me four.

[Crumb]

:tiphat: Me five

[wei yau]

Moving right along, thanks for the quick responses. I see it as an intervention to help me get over my OCD tendencies. I really appreciate it, I was getting tired of washing my hands over and over again.


"Greetings" Winners Circle:

:welcome:

:bhello:

:hiya:

:tiphat:

Current Battle: The Glad-Handers

:handshake:

versus

:shake:

[livius drusus]

Then wash your hands of this one too, because clearly the victor is :handshake:.

[wei yau]

Then wash your hands of this one too, because clearly the victor is :handshake:.

Agreed, shall we shake on it?

That's two votes.

Hee. This is why I love this place, from handshaking smileys to compulsive handwashing to figurative speech...the hand theme gets carried through effortlessly and seamlessly.

[Skep]

Then wash your hands of this one too, because clearly the victor is :handshake:.
I gotta hand it to you, liv, you're right. :)

[ceptimus]

Obviously :handshake: is the handier of those two. Why would the artist of the other one have made the hands so detached? I can't grasp it.

[livius drusus]

Thanks, Skep. One hand washes the other, as they say. :D

[Crumb]

Well I like to be able to cast the winning vote. I get creeped out by smilies that have no arms. Since these guys :handshake: have the least noticeable missing arms, I will go with them.

[godfry n. glad]

I don't like either one of the hand-shakers. :glare:

I'm sure glad that :hiya: got picked outta the wavers, 'cause it's one of my favorites. I jus love the expressive eyes and the stick arms with stick fingers. That wave is heartfelt and vigorous.

Puffball hands don't do it for me, but some, like :bliss: and :slide: are just too good.

Now I'm here and I know this is ongoing, I can get my :twocents: in.

godfry

[livius drusus]

Well I like to be able to cast the winning vote. I get creeped out by smilies that have no arms. Since these guys :handshake: have the least noticeable missing arms, I will go with them.

Give the man a hand, folks! :appl:

[Crumb]

eek! :runaway:

[wei yau]

"Greetings" Winners Circle:

:welcome:

:bhello:

:hiya:

:tiphat:

:handshake:

Current Battle: The Departing

:flyaway:

versus

:goodbye:

[ceptimus]

I have to go with :goodbye: A winged smiley I can deal with, but one that has both hands and wings is creepy.

[wei yau]

I'm going with :flyaway: , it's the hobo luggage that does it for me.

[livius drusus]

Definitely :goodbye:. The use of perspective to make a shrinking circle look like a guy hauling ass is just too cool for school.

[godfry n. glad]

I'm going with :goodbye: , too, 'cause the wing thing kinda bothers me as well.

I do like the bindlestiff (hobo luggage), though.

godfry

[Ex-zombie]

I vote for :flyaway: .

[Skep]

I like :flyaway: best.

[xorbie]

Definetely :goodbye:

[beyelzu]

im going with the mutant hobo smiley myself.

nothing says good like mutant hobo smiley action.


:flyaway:

[livius drusus]

Y'all are freaks.

[ceptimus]

Damn! That's four votes each. Who's going to cast the decider?

[beyelzu]

Y'all are freaks.
you know, if you really loved the smilies here like the children that they are you shouldnt pick one over the others, how do you think it makes the rejected smilies feel. Furthermore, the mutant hobo smilie is poor, homeless, and a fucking mutant, how can you not vote for the poor dumb bastard.

:tmtongue:

[viscousmemories]

It's all about the :goodbye: No freaky wings for me, thank you.

[beyelzu]

It's all about the :goodbye: No freaky wings for me, thank you.
did you not read my post abuot how the freak hobo smiley needs love?






where is your humanity


:tmgrin:

[viscousmemories]

Nobody loves a hobo.

[ceptimus]

Ha! That means I have successfully picked the winning smiley in every election so far. If you wish to save time on this contest, you may as well accept my ruling that the eventual winner will be :bliss:

But the contest is kinda fun, even though the final outcome is clearly inevitable...


So, carry on please. :P

[Crumb]

/me resolves to vote against ceptimus from here on out. :protest:

[godfry n. glad]

:whup: Yeah? Well, we'll just have to see about that little prancing stoner.

[wei yau]

"Greetings" Winners Circle:

:welcome:

:bhello:

:hiya:

:tiphat:

:handshake:

:goodbye:

Current Battle: The Postals

:sendmail:

versus

:mail:

versus

:gotmail:

[wei yau]

My vote goes to :mail:

I like how the little guy is so excited that he needs to hump the mailbox.

[viscousmemories]

The mailbox humping is cute, but the teeth are just wrong. And the last one is just a little too bland for my taste.

Gotta go with :sendmail: even though I have no idea what he's doing.

[Ex-zombie]

I vote for :mail: .

[Ensign Steve]

I think this contest is apples and oranges. The first guy is saying, "hey, check your mail, I sent you something." The second guy says, "I got it! Yay!" I don't know what the third one is about? Spam? Dunno.

Anyway, I thought smileys were going to be actually battling in this thread. As in: Who would win in a fight between :whup: and :livcrop: ?

[livius drusus]

I have to vote for :mail: too, although vm is right that the teeth are weird. I just love it when they run off towards the horizon.

[wei yau]

I think this contest is apples and oranges.

Well, eventually we'll have all different kinds of vegetables battling it out...

Anyway, I thought smileys were going to be actually battling in this thread. As in: Who would win in a fight between :whup: and :livcrop: ?

If that were the case, then :livcrop: would be automatically declared winner, given her fearsome admin powers.

[Crumb]

Another vote for :mail:

BTW I think he is KISSING the mailbox...

[Skep]

I vote for :mail: weird teeth and all. The smilie is just so damn happy... it would be heartbroken if it lost this contest.

[wei yau]

Current Battle: "Greetings" Winners Circle:

:welcome:

versus

:bhello:

versus

:hiya:

versus

:tiphat:

versus

:handshake:

versus

:goodbye:

versus

:mail:

Which one will be Category Champion? The first one with seven votes is the winner!

[ceptimus]

Edit: Oops. I was too late with my 'mail' vote. I'll have to consider a while before voting for the category champion. Such decisions are not to be taken lightly.

Further Edit: Didn't you just post the wrong 'mail' winner in the last post? :mail: won, I think. Not :sendmail:

[Crumb]

Further Edit: Didn't you just post the wrong 'mail' winner in the last post? :mail: won, I think. Not :sendmail:

:eek: The fix is in!! It's all a sham!! we've been duped!! :cryhome:

[wei yau]

Further Edit: Didn't you just post the wrong 'mail' winner in the last post? :mail: won, I think. Not :sendmail:

You are correct. Thanks for the catch.

Perhaps this is why I need to create a poll for these things.

[JoeP]

I refuse to participate as I feel sorry for the losers. This seems terribly discriminatory.

Well, okay I'll offer a protest vote.

:jd: <--- this is one seriously fucked up smiley right here. But I love the ugly little thing now just because. So I vote for her as the supreme smiley.
The word is special, Brandi. That's a special smilie. And she deserves all the encouragement we can give her, and a helping hand in life, like moving to a special forum a very long way from here.

[livius drusus]

After due consideration, :goodbye: is my final answer.

[JoeP]

* eldar points to the tied vote count in the current battle

Is anyone gonna move this one along?

Not me. Not unless you apologise to the green man first.
I wasn't aware anyone had offended Brimshack. In this thread. Yet.

[Crumb]

Well, this is a tough decision. These smilies are the cream of the greetings crop and they all are very good in their own way. (well excpet for the moronic one with the butterflies. :rolleye1: ) But due to the sheer joy and excitement exhibited by the esteemed yellow guy receiving the letter, I find I can't take my eyes off this one: :mail:

And so after serious deliberation and second guessing, my vote for the champion greetings smilie will go to that lucky and cheerful little yellow letter opener. Good luck, little Fella'! :happycry:

[JoeP]

My vote goes to: :hiya:

How can it not? I mean look at him. He's so damned cute.

I'd like to ask a favor of voters. When you cast your vote, just use the smiley you are voting for or describe it. Multiple smileys in vote makes it hard for me to count.

I'm feeling particularly slow, fat and stupid today. Bear with me.
Uh-oh. Eldar himself is going to be the one spoken of in the prophecy (Somebody will resign from the board.).

Look after yourself, Eldar. But stay with the OC thing and nominating all smilies in a controlled flow. Sacrificing your principles isn't going to help anything.

[JoeP]

The thing is, eldar, if Greetings results in 3 battles, how many are we going to get out of Bothered & Bewildered? It just gets a little repetitious and boring, I think, to pit so many thematically related ones against each other.

I can see a couple of three or four way contests per category, but any more than that and I think the pace of the thread will really start to drag.
You say that as if it's a problem. And as if it's somehow avoidable. Eldar created this thread, but like the Tragedies, we are all involved and cannot escape. :gandalf: The Doom of all members is bound to this thread.

[godfry n. glad]

Excuse me, eldar....

If I may?

I noticed that you've now expanded the voting to seven votes, an expansion of 2 votes from how we began.

I respectfully suggest that rather than use a specific number of votes needed, why don't you set up polls for each challenge and let folks vote over a specified period of time? I was thinking 24 hours, but maybe a bit more. This last selection occurred while I was sleeping. I didn't even get to express an opinion.

We've got smiley recognition without representation! This is a travesty.

So, I'd like to see timed polling periods, rather than specific number of required voters.

Respectfully,

godfry n. glad

ps - a larger number of smilies could be run on a challenge using a timed poll. Run-offs could be required under certain conditions.

[JoeP]

Ha! That means I have successfully picked the winning smiley in every election so far. If you wish to save time on this contest, you may as well accept my ruling that the eventual winner will be :bliss:

But the contest is kinda fun, even though the final outcome is clearly inevitable...


So, carry on please. :P
Shh cep! The public will suspect a fix if the result is preannounced

[JoeP]

Anyway, I thought smileys were going to be actually battling in this thread. As in: Who would win in a fight between :whup: and :livcrop: ?

If that were the case, then :livcrop: would be automatically declared winner, given her fearsome admin powers.
But there are rules. This isn't Fight Club, Eldar's in charge. Smilies would be forbidden from using hidden or super powers.

[wei yau]

Excuse me, eldar....

If I may?

Absolutely, in fact, I was hoping to query the members for a better way of doing this...but I needed to finish off this category first.

I noticed that you've now expanded the voting to seven votes, an expansion of 2 votes from how we began.

I figured that a category champion needed more votes to establish victory.

I respectfully suggest that rather than use a specific number of votes needed, why don't you set up polls for each challenge and let folks vote over a specified period of time? I was thinking 24 hours, but maybe a bit more. This last selection occurred while I was sleeping. I didn't even get to express an opinion.

We've got smiley recognition without representation! This is a travesty.

So, I'd like to see timed polling periods, rather than specific number of required voters.


That is a great idea! I like it, a lot. I am definitely planning on using polls for the other categories. The timed approach will definitely keep the contest moving, regardless of the number of votes.

[godfry n. glad]

Edit: Oops. I was too late with my 'mail' vote. I'll have to consider a while before voting for the category champion. Such decisions are not to be taken lightly.

Further Edit: Didn't you just post the wrong 'mail' winner in the last post? :mail: won, I think. Not :sendmail:

Ahem... :glare:

It better have. I didn't get to vote. :glare:

It all happened while I slept. I would have voted for :mail: ...Positive.

godfry n. disenfranchised

[JoeP]

Which one will be Category Champion? The first one with seven votes is the winner!It's got to be :goodbye:. This young chap has everything: definite usefulness, clear meaning, cuteness plus attitude, vanishing into the distance, and is an actual smilie. Plus liv already voted for him. :control:Though that wasn't my reason.

[ceptimus]

A tricky decision indeed.

I like :mail: (my theory is that the letter he receives is from his insurance company, agreeing to pay, at last, for his much needed dental work.)

I wondered about the utility of a smiley - should I take that into account? After all, the classic 'hello' smiley will be more useful to me than a handshake or a mail smiley. After due consideration, I decided that this would be discrimination against minorities: some of the smilies like joust, are clearly going to be used much less often than something vital to the normal running of the board, such as the dancing vegetable family. Therefore I must judge each smiley on its own merits, and usefulness mustn't enter into it.

So I will go with the mail guy. Good luck my friend!

[godfry n. glad]

Excuse me, eldar....

If I may?

Absolutely, in fact, I was hoping to query the members for a better way of doing this...but I needed to finish off this category first.

I noticed that you've now expanded the voting to seven votes, an expansion of 2 votes from how we began.

I figured that a category champion needed more votes to establish victory.

I respectfully suggest that rather than use a specific number of votes needed, why don't you set up polls for each challenge and let folks vote over a specified period of time? I was thinking 24 hours, but maybe a bit more. This last selection occurred while I was sleeping. I didn't even get to express an opinion.

We've got smiley recognition without representation! This is a travesty.

So, I'd like to see timed polling periods, rather than specific number of required voters.


That is a great idea! I like it, a lot. I am definitely planning on using polls for the other categories. The timed approach will definitely keep the contest moving, regardless of the number of votes.

Sure.

I don't know how the polls work, but if possible, you might want to make a wider selection than just two...say 10, or 20. Then give each voter a certain number of votes to cast. (i.e. Select your five favorite....)

Electioneering, brow-beating, haggling, discussion, pimping, rationalization and haranguing can go on in the attached thread during the voting.

That just leaves tracking the results and making up each new poll.

I suggest you stay with the current selections....and clear up that thing about the mail box smiley....k?

Votes counted by Diebold.

...heh...


godfry

[wei yau]

Thank you all for participating, but after much consideration, I've decided to go with a poll option.

Therefore, if you've voted already for "Greetings" Category Champion, please go to the poll (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1670) and recast your vote.

[xorbie]

I'm actually going with :handshake::

I really like that one.

[JoeP]

I think this contest is apples and oranges. The first guy is saying, "hey, check your mail, I sent you something." The second guy says, "I got it! Yay!" I don't know what the third one is about? Spam? Dunno.Well, exactly. But this is one of those debates. Logic does not play a part. It is not welcome at the table. Emotions rule.

Anyway, I thought smileys were going to be actually battling in this thread. As in: Who would win in a fight between :whup: and :livcrop: ?
Who would win in a fight between :bouquet: and :sml: ? or :pansy: and :nosegay: or :rose3: and :bloom: ? Can you imagine :huggle: and :hug: actually fighting?

Some smilies aren't natural fighters, they're natural let's-all-get-alongers and therefore unsufferably boring in such a contest.

[wei yau]

I suggest you stay with the current selections....and clear up that thing about the mail box smiley....k?


This should be correct in the new poll (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1670)

I'm just figuring out how to do polls now, but I think I have figured out a way to reduce the number of heats for each category. Stay tuned for the first battle in "Good Times, Good Times" category.

(damn, that's a huge category)

[ceptimus]

By the way eldar, I'm also in favour of the timed poll option.

Another reason for changing from the present format, is that there is a danger of no smiley ever passing the finishing line. Consider the current seven-way battle, with seven votes required for the winner. If the voting is evenly split, then 43 votes might be needed before a winner can be declared. What if that many posters don't subscribe to the thread?

Of course that won't happen this time when the smilies are so clearly mismatched, but you see the potential problem.

[wei yau]

Oh sure, everyone has an opinion now, eh? But, where were you when the Westfold fell?

Hunh?

Seriously, thanks to everyone for the suggestions. Believe me when I tell you the poll method is definitely the best one. I'm still struggling with how to wade through the smileys in large categories. There are so many of them. It's like someone is obsessed with them or something.

So, we're definitely going with the polling option. But, I still need to figure out how to divide large categories into groups without having just way too many battles in a single category.

Suggestions are welcome.

[godfry n. glad]

I think this contest is apples and oranges. The first guy is saying, "hey, check your mail, I sent you something." The second guy says, "I got it! Yay!" I don't know what the third one is about? Spam? Dunno.Well, exactly. But this is one of those debates. Logic does not play a part. It is not welcome at the table. Emotions rule.

Anyway, I thought smileys were going to be actually battling in this thread. As in: Who would win in a fight between :whup: and :livcrop: ?
Who would win in a fight between :bouquet: and :sml: ? or :pansy: and :nosegay: or :rose3: and :bloom: ? Can you imagine :huggle: and :hug: actually fighting?

Let's see... :bouquet:, :pansy: and :rose3: But, of course!

Some smilies aren't natural fighters, they're natural let's-all-get-alongers and therefore unsufferably boring in such a contest.

Oh, much agreed, much agree. Send them to the guillotine! Immediately. :behead:

[godfry n. glad]

I rillyrilly like :bouquet:

It is the ultimate in "Here's some plant pudenda just for you! They're making love, why don't we, too?" That smooch in there is precious, too.

[JoeP]

"Welcome" has 19 smilies so we just tipped 1.1% of the collection. The thread's been running for around 78 hours. So I predict we'll have a champion from each category somewhere around 19 November (293 days). Then it gets interesting.

Of course, liv could mess it up at any point by introducing new killer smilies in categories already voted for. Just to make it more fun.

Correction. The poll will finish on Jan 31, so we get the category champions by 15 Feb 2006. Unless we speed things up.

[JoeP]

I think this contest is apples and oranges. The first guy is saying, "hey, check your mail, I sent you something." The second guy says, "I got it! Yay!" I don't know what the third one is about? Spam? Dunno.Well, exactly. But this is one of those debates. Logic does not play a part. It is not welcome at the table. Emotions rule.

Anyway, I thought smileys were going to be actually battling in this thread. As in: Who would win in a fight between :whup: and :livcrop: ?
Who would win in a fight between :bouquet: and :sml: ? or :pansy: and :nosegay: or :rose3: and :bloom: ? Can you imagine :huggle: and :hug: actually fighting?

Let's see... :bouquet:, :pansy: and :rose3: But, of course!

Are you crazy? :pansy:s never win. And :bloom: has that whole movement and bigger bloom thing going on. But basically they are flowers.

[godfry n. glad]

I think this contest is apples and oranges. Emotions rule.

[QUOTE=Ensign Steve]Anyway, I thought smileys were going to be actually battling in this thread. As in: Who would win in a fight between :whup: and :livcrop: ?
Who would win in a fight between :bouquet: and :sml: ? or :pansy: and :nosegay: or :rose3: and :bloom: ? Can you imagine :huggle: and :hug: actually fighting?

Let's see... :bouquet:, :pansy: and :rose3: But, of course!

Are you crazy? :pansy:s never win. And :bloom: has that whole movement and bigger bloom thing going on. But basically they are flowers.

See?

People have opinions about this crap. Who's arguing about flower smilies now?

I personally think the match-ups were clear. Pansy was better than "What the hell is that wretched display of color on a dirty hanky?" And I have never in my life seen a rose that snaps back into a bud. That's beyond my ability to suspend disbelief. It's weird. The simple rose is classy.

So...You don't think they can manage stand downs? They might be interesting in their own classes, but once the challenge for all time best comes rolling around, they are bound to lose.

And that's an opinion!

godfry