Emoji are works of modern art
The headline is not a personal opinion -- it's the view of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Just around the corner from Trump Tower, MoMA is home to works by the likes of Dali, Lichtenstein and Warhol. Now they have been joined by the original emoji designs from the 1990s.
The 176 emoji are the handiwork of Shigetaka Kurita, and the "12 x 12 pixel humble masterpieces" are now on display alongside the works of other great artists. Emoji changed the landscape of communication, and their addition to MoMA recognizes this.
Monitor emoji usage in real-time
Emoji are used for everything from basic communication, to diversity promotion, and even as a means of learning to code. While dismissed by some as the language of the millennial or the hard-of-thinking, emoji have their place in the modern lexicon, and an Australian company has launched a tool to show how they are being used.
Ad agency The Works has created a real-time emoji tracker that reveals how the handy little icons are being used right now. The company says of the recent additions to our language, "this is not a bastardisation but the next evolution of how we communicate". So what's the most popular emoji at the moment?
Apple's water gun vs. Microsoft's realistic pistol -- which emoji is right? Vote now!
Regardless of your stance on guns, I think everyone can agree that firearms deserve to be treated with respect. Even staunch 2nd amendment proponents will tell you that the weapons are not toys. Proper training and understanding of their potential danger are key for safety.
Understandably, however, some parents don't want their children -- or themselves -- to have guns in their lives at all. Thanks to emoji, guns are sort of unavoidable nowadays. While parents can refuse to buy toy guns for their children, pistol symbols in communications are now a thing. Well, except on iOS 10 beta, that is. Apple has chosen to go against the tech world and Unicode consortium by using a water gun to represent the pistol emoji. Are Tim Cook and company right or wrong in this decision?
Facebook celebrates 1 billion monthly Messenger users
The battle between messaging apps has been going on for a number of years now, but the same names keep floating to the top.
WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger regularly feature in the top chat apps, and today Facebook announces that it has hit a key milestone -- one billion users every month. To celebrate, the social network has a little gift to say thanks... but don’t get too excited.
Google's gender equality emoji are formally adopted
Concerned as ever with diversity and equality, Google recently proposed a new set of emoji including a wider range of images of women in different professions. Today the company makes good on its promise and delivers the goods... with a little help from the powers-that-be.
Launched because "there aren't a lot [of emoji] that highlight the diversity of women's careers", the new emoji portray women in roles that have previously been the domain of man -- at least in pixel form. In all, the Unicode Emoji Subcommittee is adopting more than 100 new emoji after Google's suggestions.
Mozilla uses emoji game Codemoji to teach about encryption
The world of technology relies on encryption. Everything from private messages to online payments are secured in this way -- but how does it all work? Mozilla has come up with a way to teach people about encryption, combining gaming and emoji into a useful learning tool.
Codemoji is described as "a fun way to learn about ciphers", and while you might think that it's aimed solely at children, there's something here for all ages. The idea is very simple: letters and words are translated into emoji so they can only be read by those who understand the decryption technique.
Unicode Standard 9.0 is official with 72 new emoji like shrug, avocado, gorilla, and more!
Emoji are the future of communication -- according to some folks, at least. Quite frankly, I find that they aren't so Earth-shattering. The written word is merely the use of letters as visual representations of things, right? Well, emoji are visual representations of things too. The word "APPLE" and "?" are arguably the same. Emoji that represent facial expressions ? can even enhance things, better expressing emotion.
Today, Unicode Version 9.0 becomes official, with a ton of new characters. What many folks will be excited about, however, is new emoji! There are 72 new emoji to be exact, and there are some great ones. Like what, you ask? How about shrug, avocado, gorilla, eagle, and more!
Protests from Apple and Microsoft mean there won't be a rifle emoji
With the unstoppable growth of chat apps such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and the like, emoji have become an incredible phenomenon. The Unicode Consortium is due to publish the Unicode 9.0 spec tomorrow, and it seems that objections from Apple and Microsoft means we're not going to see a rifle emoji included.
The intervention is slightly surprising, yet not entirely unexpected. With the large number of high-profile mass-shootings such as in Orlando, debate about guns has come to the fore once again and the censorship of emoji is perhaps not completely unexpected. But at the same time, there is already a pistol emoji and there are not -- yet -- calls for it to be removed.
Twitter monetizes emoji with targeted ads
I don't consider myself a millennial, but according to some sources, my year of birth makes me one. Other sources list me as a "Gen Xer". No matter the box in which you put me, I love emojis -- something often associated with millennials. Why do I love them? As someone who recognizes the value of body language in communication, the written word can often lack sentiment, leading to misunderstandings. Emojis can enhance your emails, texts, and tweets, helping the reader to better understand your intention. In other words, they aren't inconsequential.
As emojis become more popular, companies will undoubtedly try to somehow monetize their use. Today, Twitter announces just that. The social network will offer targeted advertising based on a user's emoji use. This is significant, as according to Twitter, more than 110 million emojis have been used in tweets in the last couple years. Whoa.
Text an emoji, get free porn
Want to watch some pornography on your phone but can’t be bothered to actually search for it? From today you can receive links to free adult content just by texting an emoji.
Pornhub’s new "Emoji 4 Porn" service offers a selection of 30 public emoji (plus an unspecified number of secret unlisted ones to find) that you can use to request whatever sort of pornography you’re into. Send them a taco emoji, for example, and you’ll receive Latina videos. A camcorder emoji will give you links to amateur content. You can probably work out what sort of videos you’ll get if you send them a melon.
Emojis can ruin your life and make you a criminal ? ? ?
Millennials love using emojis, so the smiley faces and symbols must be childish and silly, right? Nah, there is nothing wrong with these young folks or their fancy emoji -- each generation likes to have its own identity. Smartphones, emojis, and apps like Snapchat are totally cool and arguably uniquely theirs.
But what if I told you that emojis could 100 percent ruin your life and cause all sorts of problems? What if I told you that using certain emoji will turn you into a drug addict or even worse, a hipster? Well, don't believe any of that because it isn't true. What is a true story, however, is that emojis are becoming a contributing factor when some people are accused of crimes. Holy cow! One person is only 12 years old and being charged with what is essentially a terrorist act. Is the charge valid, or ridiculous?
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