The Otacode

Do you remember the Geek Code? In the early days of the internet, it was a codified message that told you a little bit about the author of a particular message and was used as a signature for emails, forums, and in the usenet. I sure as hell am not old enough to remember them, but when I found out about it, I thought it was pretty neat and that it would be a cool idea to make some kind of 'Otaku Version' for it. So, I'd like to introduce you to...

The Code of the Otaku - The Otacode v1.1

Navigation

Indicators

There are a few tone indicators to use with the code, that are supposed to express your opinions on the ideas presented in the most simple way possible. The original code has its own symbol (?) for concepts you are unsure about or don't know about; however, I feel like you should just omit the corresponding letter fully instead of adding a character onto it (i.e., if you don't know what cosplay is, just omit 'c' from the code entirely). The symbol for refusal to participate in a category (!) is, in my opinion, also unneeded, as it has almost the same meaning as the highest amount of - for a given category.
+ - > or < Other Special Characters

General Info

Favorite Era

These are very rough outlines of specific eras of manga and anime. The timelines are a bit opinionated and might be slighty readjusted in the future. The names are just descriptive of the general tone these eras permeated, you don't have to specifically like whatever was popular at the time.
OE0 OE1 OE2 OE3 OE4 OE5 OE6 OE7 OE8

Other Otaku Types

OT OM OG

History and Terminology

H+++ H++ H+ H H- H--

Dubs

D++ D+ D D- D-- D---

Fansubs

F+++ F++ F+ F F- F--

The Otacode

O++++ O+++ O++ O+ O O- O--

Apparel & Items

Cosplay

cos+++ cos++ cos+ cos cos- cos% cos~

Buyfagging

b+++ b++ b+ b b- b--

Decoration

d++ d+ d d-

Music

Denpa-song/Akiba-kei

da++ da+ da da- da-

Vocaloid & UTAU

vo++ vo+ vo vo-

Idols

I+++++ I++++ I+++ I++ I+ I I-

Social

Conventions

con++++ con+++ con++ con+ con con- con--

Online Community

oco++++ oco+++ oco++ oco+ oco oco- oco--

Relationships

r+++ r++ r+ r r- r--

Genres & Categories

Visual Novels

vn+++ vn++ vn+ vn vn- vn*

Light Novels

ln+++ ln++ ln+ ln ln-

Shounen (here: Classical Shounen, such as Naruto, One Piece or Hunter × Hunter)

s++++ s+++ s++ s+ s s- s--

CGDCT

cu++++ cu+++ cu++ cu+ cu cu- cu-- cu---

Mahou Shoujo

m+++ m++ m+ m m- m-- m% m*

Mecha

M+++ M++ M+ M M-

Isekai

i++++ i+++ i++ i+ i i- i--

Gekiga

G+++ G++ G+ G G-

Haruhiism

H+++ H++ H+ H H-

Serial Experiments Lain

SEL++++ SEL+++ SEL++ SEL+ SEL SEL-

Touhou

2++++++ 2+++++ 2++++ 2+++ 2++ 2+ 2 2- 2--

Hentai

h++ h+ h h- h--

Ecchi

e++ e+ e e- e-- e---

Nations & Cultures

Countries

CJ CC CK C*

Opinion on Japan

J+++ J++ J+ J J- J--

Language

L+++++ L++++ L+++ L++ L+ L L- L--

Extra

Example (My Personal Code)

Here I am using my personal Otacode as a reference for how to do it. Check the code if you want to use it on a website.
~~~BEGIN OTACODE BLOCK~~~ Version: 1.1 OE6 H+++ D-- F++ O++++ cos> b++ d+> da+ vo I con- oco+ r++ vn> ln> s- cu+++ m*+> M+ i++ G+> H++ SEL++++ 2++> h+ e CJ J+++ L+> ~~~END OTACODE BLOCK~~~

Additional Info

The original 'Geek Code' was developed and published by Robert A. Hayden. This 'Otacode,' however, is only very loosely based on it, with the only thing in common between the two being the rough original idea and structure. As it does not directly contain any part of the original 'Geek Code' or any text or code of the website it was hosted on, the 'Otacode' is fully free of copyright (as stated in my website's license). You are very much welcome to create your own signatures with the code or even your own spin-offs of it if you want to (even though this kind of defeats the purpose of having a standardized code in the first place) with no attribution required. It is also important to note, that the 'Otacode' is meant for entertainment purposes only; you are not required to use it if you don't want to.

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