Does one's avatar impact how you receive that person's tone?

Yes! I always think that petethepothead is giggling or being irreverent based on his funny and cute avatar.

Also, augustlan’s imposing A makes me think that she means business.

I think it depends on whether the avatar draws any emotions from me. If it has a neutral effect on me, then probably not. If it has a negative effect, yes. A positive, I’d say the same.

Edit: heh, I answered as if you asked if it had “any impact” not “no impact,” btw.

It doesn’t affect me much at all. But I do enjoy looking at some of the fun ones. It always throws me for a while when people I know change their avies, so I have learned to pay attention to the user names when I read posts.

for instance, I don’t think I’d recognize tonedef without some type of titmouse.

I can’t say that they have any real impact on my thoughts about them, but some of the pictures I can’t even make out what they’re supposed to be. These thumbnails are so small that you can’t see them. Like yours, Random, is so dark. Some are so distorted that you can’t make them out.

Yes, but especially so for users who I don’t know all that well. For example, I’ve gotten to know tonedef fairly well from reading his answers, so his avatar doesn’t have a big impact on me. I can be influenced quite a bit in the way I read someone’s answers by that person’s avatar if I don’t know them as well (like jamspoon, for example.)

Everything we see will affect us in some small way, it’s that damn book-cover thing. If someone’s avatar is for some reason somewhat displeasing or just not appealing to me, in the long run it won’t affect my opinion because as I get to know the person through their writing the avatar becomes irrelevant.

Infact it would seem I agree with pete.

Avatars do give me a sense if people’s personalities. For instance, Gail’s flowers are a lot more friendly then say, a skull and crossbones. So, given that, I guess they do impact how I perceive peoples answers. I just hope mine doesn’t scare people off!!!

I am amused when I get into arguments of any level with my smiling, calm icon.

People say they can’t take intellectual arguments seriously coming from a gleeful sheep.

I often don’t take into account avatars, though

Is my ‘A’ really so imposing? Not my intent at all :)

As has been said, it gives an initial glimpse of personality when a user is new. Over time, their answers prove much more useful.

Is it coincidence that I agree with the other jellyfish avatars in this thread? Hrmmm…

@loser It would be awesome if Gail changed her avatar to a skull and crossbones.
Yes, I realize how much she loves the word awesome.

@laureth That makes me chuckle too.

I find that the icon takes on the attitude of the person. There are people on fluther who have imprinted certain attitudes on their icon/picture that I would never have connected to it before.

Hm…looking back, Mr. Dan, I do find your avatar kinda intrusive, like the I’m-going-to-suck-your-soul-out-of-you-with-my-avatar’s-eyes intrusive, haha. But funny, I don’t think that really influenced my take on your tone because it seemed pretty neutral, probably because I didn’t really look at your avatar before, lol. Except your use of ellipses, maybe. That seems to go pretty well with the avatar somehow.

So I guess I lied about the avatar having an effect on how I percieve a person’s question/answer, then! :O

There is one avatar that really caught my attention from the jump, that was Daloon’s tattooed backside. I found it very impressive. Another that makes me smile is Bri L’s naked Homer. Other than that, I don’t pay much attention unless it is a newly registered user who has taken the time to upload their own picture.

YES! Like, seriously yes. There once was an icon that had a bird, I seriously thought it was talking in a cartoon-bird voice. Scary, actually.

My previous avatar was Darth Vader in “I am your faaaather” mode; several folks told me that it looked ominous and foreboding, and that impression colored the way they perceived my answers. So…you have a valid point.
There was an actual underlying rationale for the vader image, so I settled on the more innocuous (and infinitely more huggable) Darth Woofer there <, and all is well. :^)

Well in case anyone is wondering, in real life, my ears are not as big as the ones on my dog in my avatar.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh.

No I am kidding, rooey :).

Does anyone here perceive me as being an ankle biter???

no, but I can see your nuts.

Aaaw man that was a good one knotmyday. lurve
HAHA! No, I actually think of you as a squirrel that talks in a human’s tone.

LOLLLLLLLL…....You’re not seeing any nuts on ME, Knot. I’m a girl squirrel, but I DO know how to collect them. ;-)

Thanks, Alex. I try.

Yeah but squirrels are cute ;D

No really Knot, you’re my hero.

<blush>

Knot that was damn funny!!!!!

There are quite a few animal avatars on Fluther. I never noticed that before.

<———- What does this say about me?

It says that uberbatman is sheer genius. Duh.

Or that you wish to be tamed by some gentle maiden (if you haven’t already been), along Medieval lines. Unless you’re a girl, then that would just add a whole different element.

…that is a unicorn, right? >_>

Wow, I was going to do this whole thing about people who wanted my ass, but Supermouse went and blew it all for me.

However, I am considering bringing that avatar back. It is an ironic image in many ways, although I don’t know how many, if any, people get that. Certainly, on other sites, the people were quite humorless, and they banned that avatar.

The current one plays homage to my instrument of choice, so it’s an artsy way of saying I’m a musician (and, presumably, a creative person), but as the squirrel says, the avatars here are too small for anyone to tell what’s going on.

Anyway, should I bring my ass back?

sorry, couldn’t resist…. ok, I’m not really sorry

@daloon, yes please bring back the ass. I loved that ass!

I don’t judge avatars as much as I judge usernames, lurve scores, and spelling/grammar, of questions and answers. I really hate it when I see someone with your typical 8th grade username (ie sexygal1991, or whatever) with 16 lurve post a question that looks like it should be on yahoo answers, both because of it’s content and the amount of “u kno what i mean?” type spelling and grammar… but I digress. I definitely pass less judgment on avatars, but I am always a fan of a unique one, especially those that are instantly recognizable when scrolling through threads. Makes things so much easier!

haha thanks everyone for the responses…mine by the way is the newest captain kirk to replace Shatner. I’m not as dark, and serious as my avatar may suggest. =)

I was just making sure I wasn’t the only one who got some sort of incite to a person from their avatar. though, those incites might be wrong in some cases.

@daloon Avatars are not always too small! ;)

@daloon: ...is that a map tatoo you’re forcing us to wince at?

edit: >>clicked on link<< I wish my eyes really were playing tricks on me.

I don’t read things into avatars unless someone’s changing theirs a lot with their mood. But then for them that seems to be the intent.

@loser: I like your new picture. Why would that scare anyone off? It’s looks like a friendly face.

@daloon: Holy mole! I always thought that was a couple of vases leaning next to each other to make it look like an ass. Looking at the blow-up link, I think there’s a zit on Brazil. :^>

@Bri_L: I don’t so much think of Homer when I read what you write, but I think of your joking around when I see an ad for the Simpsons.

After Supermouse’s comment, I was totally going to pout
about being a nubie and missing out on all the good stuff.
But, eureka! There it is in all of its gloriousness.

Except now I’m having a hard time taking Daloon’s comments on art and depression very seriously. Ha! So I should probably amend my answer to say that someone’s avatar doesn’t usually affect me much. Unless it’s off their arse. In which case, it makes me giggle. I know. So mature.

Oh dear. You see, my name used to be either plok, or zhop. Plok is a shortened version of “bad” in russian, and zhop is a shortened version of “ass,” again, in russian. So you put them together, and you get “badass,” which, if you know me, I am anything but. Oh dear, accidental pun there,I swear. I am a wannabe badass, because badasses get all the girls. I suppose it doesn’t hurt that I am also an ass man. (Ok, not really, but it makes a kind of poetic justice doesn’t it?)

Anyway, in searching for an appropriate avatar, I came across this image, which seemed appropriate on another level. You can look at it as an ass, and a lot of people don’t seem to be able to get beyond that, but it is also a map of the world, which is a major concern of mine.

So, I am honoring my more universal or political concerns at the same time as making a visual pun about my personal concerns. At the time I first used this avatar, I was also in a manic phase of my disorder. Since I only get hypomania, it was a mild mania, but it allowed me to use this, because I don’t think I would have used it, otherwise, and you can see that although I used it for a few days here, I soon replaced with something more sober.

So there, Nimis! You see, it is very much related to art (and the interpretation thereof) and depression, or, in my case, the other side of depression: mania.

I want to say one other thing. I really hope people will take this in the spirit of fun. I got in trouble on Askville (or should I say, Assville, although it is anything butt), because, apparantly, a number of people complained about it. I think people over there are kind of humorless, in general, with a few notable exceptions. For me, it is not an insult to anyone but myself, for both being who I am, and for not being who I wish I could be.

Hah! How many other people put that much thought into their avatars? Aren’t I deep?~

I don’t wanna talk about “deep” and your butt in the same discussion. Kidding! I’m kidding.

I was just wondering how you say “Anything but” in Russian.

Cheers!

well, I can say “everything but” (vsyo nau)
I can say “nothing but” (nichevo nau)
but I can’t say “anything but.”

My avatar, if you look very, very closely, says “Do Not Be Afraid.”

It’s so reassuring :)

@daloon: Is it that you don’t know the word or that it’s somehow not exactly say-able that way?

@Tits: Mine is a picture of me and my friends.

Many people are constantly changing their avatars. I agree with Tits. It’s so much easier to instantly recognize one & know who they are. It’s especially nice to come here from Askville & see familiar avatars & screen names. Blue’s regal eagle, Cyndyh’s oranges, Judi’s picture & name, & I’ve always been the squirrel, professing my love for Murder She Wrote.

Daloon, you know how I feel about your choice of screen names from AV.

@cyndyh: I really don’t know the word. I’m sure I could find a way to transliterate it if I did know it.

@jb: I’m sure I don’t know what you mean!

Uh-huh. ;-)

I am sure like all things the apperance you present either in person of via avatar influnces someones opinion of you. If I had a swaztika instead of a monkey in a suit wielding a pistol, I probably wouldn’t get any lurve. Even less than I get now :(

< < lurves the pistol-totin’, suit-wearing chimpanzee

Thanks its pretty slick, someone once thought he was holding a banana and I was like, why would a monkey go through the hassle of wearing a suit just to belittle himself by holding a banana, come on.

@LKidKyle1985: See now, I thought that was Samuel L Jackson in Pulp Fiction, but with a monkey’s head superimposed on it. You learn new things everyday. Or I just watch WAY too many movies…

@TitsMcGhee i thought the same thing actually lol

@uberbatman: We are too alike for our own good :)

Awww…

@cyndyh – I am truly honored to have my humor thought of when you see the simpson’s ads.

@ TitsMcGhee – I will admit to trying to distract from my spelling with my icon.

@Bri_L : Haha, your spelling errors are forgiven.

@TitsMcGhee : hehe I thank you.

You’re welcome, Bri_L. Cheers!

sometimes, but i just changed mine and i’m not too sure what a man with a wild beard and native american headdress devendra banhart says about my tone haha (:

@tiffyandthewall: A Devendra Banhart avatar says you have Chinese children.

oh good, i just knew when i set that as my icon that i was summarizing my perspective right this time. :D

@Introverted_Leo I agree lurve
@daloon ...

I think I am influenced by some avatars (and names) more than I intend to be, especially those that suggest a caustic or mocking manner. To me the way a person chooses to represent himself or herself is a clue to an attitude, and the attitude affects my reception just as much as if someone gave me a sneering shrug and a pop of the chewing gum on first meeting, instead of a smile and a handshake.

I also have a little trouble taking seriously those that are excessively giddy and cute. I know it’s just a personal bias, though, and it is generally overridden when I see sincere, rational comments.

Sometimes it does positively and sometimes it is negative. Usually it is jut the way it is. Neutral.