Can we have a [star] emoticon, pretty please?

emoticons are for posts, not for posters, aren't they.

i think this is a great idea *

I think it should be a secret star and I'd actually quite love to see sarcastic stars handed out to the bloody MRA trolls

(good example knotty!)

What knottylocks wants is just a simple emoticon to recognize people who have done wonderful things, a visual thank you well done you're amazing. Just an emoticon you can post, no earning system you wouldn't get them for getting so many posts etc.

Equally, any other poster on other threads could say

"I have the wine and crisps ready for the Friday night drunk thread and also left my husband as advised by MNrs!"

And someone can say

Yay!

Twinkle twinkle little
How I wonder where you are
Up above the world so high
Like a diamond in the sky
Twinkle twinkle little
We want you here, not afar.

Please MNQH, can we have a and yes, I agree that it should be earnt, not just free to be used as a sarcastic smiley.

So it would be an emoticon for saying "Have a star"? Like have a ?

I don't see that it would be a bad thing....it wouldn't be particularly connected to the crafty Mums though....and the stars would not seem to mean anything much special after a while....but if you want em I can't see why not!

"The posters who do this work don't need gold stars. They have satisfaction instead"

I agree with Lemon. I made a couple of squares for Edgar's quilt and have never felt I needed a star to show that. I certainly wouldn't want one on my profile or next to my name.

It would be good to be able to say to someone 'You're a ' - bit like clicking 'thanks' on a post in MSE or Liking something on facebook.

I can't express my complete disapointment that we don't have a shiny evil star, it would have dual uses too! One for the amazingly wonderful supportive people of Mumsnet who amaze me on a nearly daily basis and second as a ninja star to throw at complete twunts.

Perhaps I am misunderstanding what you mean then, KnottyLocks. But I don't feel very comfortable with it all the same...I started the thread which got the ball rolling to do something nice for Edgar's family, for example, and have obviously messaged posters off-board to express condolence etc, but where's my star, goddammit! Do you see what I mean? It could start a fight in a paper bag, and it's all a bit unedifying. I think Lemon and other poster's points are valid: being kind is its own reward.

I think a star emoticon would be a very useful symbol of thanks and recognition in general, it doesn't have to be seen as a badge or medal given for a specific purpose.

There may be occasional sarcastic use but I agree it's a shame not to have one just for that reason.

Unlisted, like , seems an excellent idea to me, that may appeal to those who fear we are slip-sliding towards Nethuns. Which we aren't, imo.

But if it's just an emoticon, no one will be a starred poster. It will just be something you put on one post, as a message of thanks to another poster.

The skull and crossbones ball of wool wouldn't include the contributions from the sewers.

Maybe BOF's point is why it shouldn't be an unlisted emoticon, given out to a priveledged few. I think it would be better to have it as just a simple way of saying thanks, when you want to show someone your appreciation, but nothing more complex than that. Certainly not a "formal recognition system". Then no one has to be concerned about being left out, as it is only a small gesture.

And can you imagine the uproar if somebody was offhand to a starred poster? Or how trolls and busy-bodies would be trying to inch in on the taste of starry goodness to create a virtuous force-field? No, I think it's more dignified to thank MNers on a thread or something when it seems appropriate, but to leave any visual ongoing record of that as purely that.