Slasher Ascii Code v. 1.0

Release date April 11, 2004. Questions? Comments:

The code answers five questions:

  1. Are you seeking a sexual/romantic connection or something platonic?
  2. How intimate a level of touch are you comfortable with?
  3. 1How serious a relationship are you looking for?
  4. 1What's the preferred gender of potential partners?
  5. 1What is your current relationship status?

1This information is optional for people only interested in platonic relationships. Some people, although remaining sexually 'off the market,' may wish to indicate their current relationship status.

(-)- The code's base elements are a varying number of plus, greater than, and less than signs next to a pair of parentheses with something in them. Through the number of +, >, and <, whether they come before or after the parentheses, and what's in the parentheses, the questions above can be answered at a glance.

  1. Platonic vs. Sexual

    Platonic is indicated by putting a square brackets around the entire code. Unenclosed codes indicate seeking a sexual relationship.
    Relationship Type Platonic Sexual/Romantic
    Symbol [(-)-] (-)-

  2. Physical Intimacy

    The hanky code is primarily designed to facilitate interaction between people who don't know each other very well. Use this symbolism to indicate the intimacy you'd feel comfortable with for someone you've just met at a convention or a party. This is not a contract, but it is a suggestion as to how intimate you are willing to get with people who, though part of the slash community, are not yet your personal friends. You cannot specify the kinds of naked touching to which you are open, nor any intermediate steps between kissing and hugging, on the theory that anyone who wishes to engage in activities of that nature should be mature enough to negotiate them.
    Level of Intimacy No Touch Hug Kiss Naked Touching
    Symbol (x) (v) (vv) (*)

  3. Seriousness

    Duration of Interaction One Night Stand Long Term Flexible
    Symbol -(-) (-)- -(-)-2

    2 Use the same gender preference/relationship status code on both sides to indicate flexibility.

  4. Gender Preference

    This is a broad announcement of the gender you sexually prefer. The code isn't designed for nuances.
    Gender Female Male Either
    Symbol + > +>

  5. Current Relationship Status

    This symbolism announces whether you are involved in a romantic relationship already, and the extent to which any new romantic relationships can become public. You cannot indicate the number of partners you may already have or the specific relationship agreements you have in place. People involved in multi-person relationships should be responsible enough to talk about that sort of information.
    Relationship Status
    Single Open3 Closed4
    Gender
    Preference    		 Female + ++ +{+}
    Male > >> >{>}
    Either +> +>>5 +>{>}

    3Denotes that your current romantic partner is aware of and in agreement with you seeking additional partners.

    4Denotes that your current romantic partner is unaware of or disagrees with you seeking additional romantic partners. If you and your partner have not discussed the issue of additional romantic partners, choose Closed.

    5Bisexuals should use only one additional symbol ( + for female or > for male) to denote a pre-existing relationship. Choose the gender of your primary partner. If you have multiple primary partners of different genders, choose your own gender.

Example

My slasher ascii code ++(*)++ should be interpreted like so:

  1. The lack of square brackets indicates my interest in romantic relationships.
  2. The asterisk in the parentheses indicates I am open to romantic naked touching from relative strangers. It is assumed that since I am interested in naked touching, I would also be happy to receive hugs and kisses, but this may or may not be true for all. Once we get to the naked touching stage, some discussion is still necessary!
  3. The code on both sides of the parentheses means that I am open to long term or short term romantic naked touching relationships.
  4. plus sign indicates that I am open to romantic naked touching relationships of indeterminate length, but only with women.
  5. The second plus sign, not in curly brackets shows that I have a girlfriend who wants me to get laid.
The ascii code is a little complicated to explain, but it's really not too difficult to understand. Feel free to put it in your e-mail code, or on a profile where images aren't available, or start doing hanky code checks in chat rooms or something. The more people use the slasher ascii code, the more useful it is!

Please ask questions of