It was 20 years ago (September 19th actually) that IBM's Scott Fahlman taught the internet how to smile.
The researcher typed :) in an online message. His "smiley face" has since allowed everyone from 12-year-olds to corporate lawyers to punctuate their e-mail with a quick symbol saying "hey, I'm only
joking."
Meet the smileys:
Basic smiley :-)
