Reddit is driven by user submitted content. Uses for this unique appendage range from emphasizing an argument (e.g., calling someone a homosexual, followed by the Phallus, finally followed by “you eat it!” or some similar phrase), or to just remind Slashdot readers that, yes, there are penises everywhere, even in Slashdot's forums.Ī Phallus about to enter a wide-open vulva Simple, unassuming, and to the point, the Phallus is the basis of many ASCII phallic variants, which appear below. This ASCII representation of the male penis is a standard not only on Slashdot but throughout the Internet at large. Think of the Penis Bird as a final punch in a boxing match. Usually posted mindlessly, which in itself is fine and funny, the Penis Bird can be used to accent arguments, or as a finishing stroke in a well-formed (or poorly formed, for the matter) troll post. A few, in fact, have become standard or popular on Slashdot.īased on this picture, and usually accompanied by that URL, the Penis Bird is a well-known troll on Slashdot. There are several options for graphics a little more complex than emoticons but less complex than full-blown masterpieces of textual art. A useful resource should one need smilies in their troll posts. The Emoticon Database houses thousands of these smilies and their (sometimes) obscure meanings. The use of emoticons is typically relegated to inter-troll communiques and complex trolling effects in posts (i.e., adding an extra layer of ingenuity to the post in hopes of responses). The variety of emoticons is virtually limitless one can construct many obscure or weird 'faces' with imagination being the only limit however, most true trolls would rather leave the tone and mood of their posts a little vague. Some common examples and their generally accepted meanings follow… :) happy joking silly :P playfully teasing sarcasm =:o being Chinese freshly-soiled pants a surprise stick up the ass (all associated with Signal 11)

One of the most common, and simple, forms of ASCII art is the emoticon (emotion + icon), often used to reveal the mood or tone of a comment, and also known as 'smilies' or 'faces'. Since Slashdot (unfortunately for trolls) does not allow the embedding of objects, such as images and sounds, in HTML-coded comments, graphics must be constructed using textual characters: ASCII art. One of the most creative ways to express ones self in Slashdot's forums is with graphical, artistic representations art.

Tank ascii art text