
You know the string of symbols that come out of a cartoon character’s mouth every time they swear?
Apparently it’s called a Grawlix.
Mort Walker (the Beetle Bailey cartoonist) coined the term around 1964, and though the Oxford English Dictionary doesn’t officially recognize it as a word, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t start using it every chance you get.
#@&%?$!
[Via: Hoefler & Frere-Jones]

Who knew typography could be so sexy? UK design company Taylor Lane created a pin-up girl style calendar using only the symbols you can find on a keyboard. I’ll never type the same way again.
[Via: Twenty Four]

Sony has taken up viral marketing with their new website for the yet to be released Playstation 3. Using what appear to be random symbols, you can decipher the related letters and then click out words that give you access to videos, wallpapers and soundtracks for a few of their upcoming games. Thankfully, if you don’t want to crack the code yourself, there’s a site that shows the cracked code along with a list of what you should spell with the given letters, and a site that is hosting the videos that are unlocked when you “win”. It’s definitely a cool (though very difficult) way of spreading the word about upcoming games.
[PLAYB3YOND]
[Cracked Code]
[Videos]
[Via: Kotaku]