Avvies, identity and change - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Nogrod · 08-03-2009, 09:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alatar

And note that I can't change my avatar as I use it as a bookmark within threads to see where I last left off. If I changed it, I wouldn't be able to find me.

But of all possibilities it is Billy Idol?

alatar · 08-03-2009, 09:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nogrod

But of all possibilities it is Billy Idol?

I'm not exactly sure what you mean. And yes, Billy Idol, stylized in blue, is my avatar. Says a lot about me, if you know how to read it.

Nogrod · 08-03-2009, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alatar

Says a lot about me, if you know how to read it.

"Rebell Yell"? "White Wedding"?, "Dancing With Myself"? "Flesh For Fantasy"? "Cradle of Love"? "Eyes Without a Face"? ... His lifestyle, his education, his image as a sex-object / idol, motorcycles, punk, heavy-rock, disco,...? Now what to pic from there?

But yes, you indeed raise one more subject I think we haven't discussed a lot here - even if I think I pointed at this thing in my first post.

So how will others read what we use as our avvies? Is there any reason for you to believe that what you think your avvie tries to say or what you think of it conveys will be interpreted that same way by others as well?

alatar · 08-03-2009, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nogrod

"Rebell Yell"? "White Wedding"?, "Dancing With Myself"? "Flesh For Fantasy"? "Cradle of Love"? "Eyes Without a Face"? ... His lifestyle, his education, his image as a sex-object / idol, motorcycles, punk, heavy-rock, disco,...? Now what to pic from there?

He and I have *so* much in common, I thought the choice only obvious...

Quote:

So how will others read what we use as our avvies? Is there any reason for you to believe that what you think your avvie tries to say or what you think of it conveys will be interpreted that same way by others as well?

Take it from me, no one *ever* misinterprets anything that you as the writer intends. It's as if what's in your mind, when you pick a sig, upload an avvie or craft a post, gets right into the reader's mind without any degeneration, transmutation or propagation.

Nogrod · 08-03-2009, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alatar

Take it from me, no one *ever* misinterprets anything that you as the writer intends. It's as if what's in your mind, when you pick a sig, upload an avvie or craft a post, gets right into the reader's mind without any degeneration, transmutation or propagation.

Exactly!

Bêthberry · 08-03-2009, 10:54 AM

*raises an eyebrow* "Canonicity and the Avatar" rears its head.

Mnemosyne · 08-03-2009, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

*raises an eyebrow* "Canonicity and the Avatar" rears its head.

Ai! Ai! *runs and scampers into a corner*

Eönwë · 08-03-2009, 04:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

*raises an eyebrow* "Canonicity and the Avatar" rears its head.

I quickly turned my tail and fled, bravely taking to my feet, I beat a very brave retreat....

Anyway, yes I agree that each name avatar is viewed differently by each person, and that is what makes it more interesting (though can sometimes lead to embarrassing moments, for example when I though TheGreatElvenWarrior was male

. But then she did have a picture of Sam).

What does my avatar tell others about me, I wonder. And also, after being on the Downs for a while I think that the name Eönwë might be just a little too much.

Mnemosyne · 08-03-2009, 09:50 AM

As someone who spent a lot of time lurking I can say that I choose my avatar, sig, location, etc., with the fact that to some people this is my whole identity in mind.

My "default" avvie is homebrewed; a picture I took of Pauline Baynes' illustration of "The Last Ship," focusing on Firiel as she looks out. The somewhat blurriness of the lines attests to my less-than-competent photography skills. I wanted it for two reasons: 1). it reinforces my femininity (since not everyone will recognize my that my screenname is female), and 2). I really like the character, and the theme of loss, and even the slight questions that the story raises, which goes into my secondary identity as a fanfic writer. Also, it looks simply gorgeous on the Downs' skin.

The default sig is not only one of my most favorite quotes from LotR; it also has a deep personal meaning which does not detract from its general philosophical brilliance. I load a couple of links in there, too: to my livejournal and to my main fanfic opus, in a vain attempt to expose some of my work to the well-read Downers, who I still think would find it interesting if they read it [/shameless self-plug].

My default location just sounded randomly deep and cool; it's mostly intended to sound deep and cool although one could read into it a comment that setting refers not only to place but also to time. For a little while this summer it changed to "The Shire," which is wholly an inside joke.

The current one I have up is for the WW game that I recently ran; it's a pic that I found almost entirely by accident and is meant to represent my art deco Measse as she first appears to the village. The location and sig that match came from Bradbury's short story "Usher II" in which a man gets back on the people who burned his library by having robots simulate a fantastic setting right out of Poe, up to the gruesome deaths he gives them. I'll change them back to the default in a few weeks; I don't have the avatar file on this computer so it'll have to wait, plus I'm still not entirely done with the game itself.

Aside from that I don't have any plan on changing things around in the near future; I like the stability of a static avatar (I wholly approve of the way wilwarin changes hers, keeping a theme so it's still easy to see who she is). Depending on how the MEFAs run I may explode into a few weeks' short-lived arrogance, but we'll just wait and see on that.

08-03-2009, 10:54 AM	#6
Bêthberry Cryptic Aura Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 6,003	raises an eyebrow "Canonicity and the Avatar" rears its head. __________________ I’ll sing his roots off. I’ll sing a wind up and blow leaf and branch away.

08-03-2009, 09:50 AM	#9
Mnemosyne Ghost Prince of Cardolan Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Between the past and the future Posts: 1,159	As someone who spent a lot of time lurking I can say that I choose my avatar, sig, location, etc., with the fact that to some people this is my whole identity in mind. My "default" avvie is homebrewed; a picture I took of Pauline Baynes' illustration of "The Last Ship," focusing on Firiel as she looks out. The somewhat blurriness of the lines attests to my less-than-competent photography skills. I wanted it for two reasons: 1). it reinforces my femininity (since not everyone will recognize my that my screenname is female), and 2). I really like the character, and the theme of loss, and even the slight questions that the story raises, which goes into my secondary identity as a fanfic writer. Also, it looks simply gorgeous on the Downs' skin. The default sig is not only one of my most favorite quotes from LotR; it also has a deep personal meaning which does not detract from its general philosophical brilliance. I load a couple of links in there, too: to my livejournal and to my main fanfic opus, in a vain attempt to expose some of my work to the well-read Downers, who I still think would find it interesting if they read it [/shameless self-plug]. My default location just sounded randomly deep and cool; it's mostly intended to sound deep and cool although one could read into it a comment that setting refers not only to place but also to time. For a little while this summer it changed to "The Shire," which is wholly an inside joke. The current one I have up is for the WW game that I recently ran; it's a pic that I found almost entirely by accident and is meant to represent my art deco Measse as she first appears to the village. The location and sig that match came from Bradbury's short story "Usher II" in which a man gets back on the people who burned his library by having robots simulate a fantastic setting right out of Poe, up to the gruesome deaths he gives them. I'll change them back to the default in a few weeks; I don't have the avatar file on this computer so it'll have to wait, plus I'm still not entirely done with the game itself. Aside from that I don't have any plan on changing things around in the near future; I like the stability of a static avatar (I wholly approve of the way wilwarin changes hers, keeping a theme so it's still easy to see who she is). Depending on how the MEFAs run I may explode into a few weeks' short-lived arrogance, but we'll just wait and see on that. __________________ Got corsets?