Keith Houston

@[email protected]
129 Followers
42 Following
153 Posts
Blogs at @shadychars. Author of SHADY CHARACTERS, THE BOOK, EMPIRE OF THE SUM and FACE WITH TEARS OF JOY: A NATURAL HISTORY OF EMOJI (https://shadycharacters.co.uk/books/).
Twitterhttps://twitter.com/OrkneyDullard
Writinghttps://shadycharacters.co.uk
Cyclinghttps://grupetto.cc
Blueskyhttps://bsky.app/profile/keithhouston.bsky.social
Keith Houston3d ago
Jeremy Burge3d ago

It's something that most people don't consider - and shouldn't have to, really. How does a new currency symbol end up supported by every computer and phone in the world?

The process to ensure our text communications interchange consistently now and for decades (and centuries?) to come isn't taken lightly by anyone at Unicode.

And the fact that it is so human-dependant, is what also makes it interesting. https://blog.unicode.org/2026/02/from-central-bank-to-code-point-roadmap.html

From Central Bank to Code Point: A Roadmap for Currency Symbol Implementation

I n the past year, several new currency symbols have been proposed for encoding in the Unicode Standard: February 2025: The Saudi Central Ba...

Keith HoustonFeb 4
Shady CharactersFeb 4
On @99percentinvisible again! This time round I spoke to Will Aspinall about the history of the storied em dash (‘—′, that is, rather than ‘–′ or ‘-′, but you knew that). Listen at https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/658-the-em-dash/, or read my own earlier piece on AI and the em dash at https://shadycharacters.co.uk/2025/08/the-dash-for-ai/.
The Em Dash - 99% Invisible

Last summer, Bryan Vance found himself in an argument with a stranger on Reddit. Vance, a Portland-based journalist who runs Stumptown Savings, a newsletter covering local grocery deals, had been accused of using ChatGPT to write his content. The evidence? His use of em dashes. “A Reddit user accused me of using AI, pointing to

99% Invisible
Keith HoustonDec 22
Show threadShady CharactersDec 22
💻 Ebooks are at bookshop.org (https://uk.bookshop.org/beta-search?keywords=Keith+Houston) and Amazon (https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/Keith-Houston/author/B00CCS4UQI). "Shady Characters" is just £1.99 at the moment! Again, though, you'll need to navigate to the appropriate Audiobooks or Audible domain for your country.
Keith HoustonDec 22
Show threadShady CharactersDec 22
👂 You'll find audio editions at audiobooks.com (https://www.audiobooks.co.uk/browse/author/206829/keith-houston) and audible.com (https://www.audible.co.uk/author/Keith-Houston/B00CCS4UQI). You'll need to be careful to navigate to the appropriate Audiobooks or Audible domain for your country.
Browse Audiobooks Keith Houston - Sort by Bestselling this Month - Page 1 | Audiobooks.com

Listen to thousands of best sellers and new releases on your iPhone, iPad, or Android. Get any audiobook FREE during your Free Trial.

Keith HoustonDec 22
Shady CharactersDec 22
🎄 If, like me, you still need to find a few more Christmas gifts to give, may I humbly propose the ebook and audio editions of my books? They're perfect as last-minute gifts! Follow the thread for links.
Keith HoustonDec 22
Shady CharactersDec 21

Day 9! Home stretch, and you would be forgiven for being a little tired of the Christmas rush by now. A good time, then, to examine FACE WITH BAGS UNDER EYES (🫩): https://shadycharacters.co.uk/2025/12/advent-calendar-2025-face-with-bags-under-eyes/.

Check out https://shadycharacters.co.uk/series/2025-advent-calendar/ to see previous entries, including '😂', '👍', '✨' and '🕴️'!

Keith HoustonDec 19
Shady CharactersDec 19

Day 8 of the Shady Characters advent calendar! Some lucky kids might expect Santa to bring them a water pistol (🔫), but the corresponding emoji is anything but playful: https://shadycharacters.co.uk/2025/12/advent-calendar-2025-pistol/.

Check out https://shadycharacters.co.uk/series/2025-advent-calendar/ to see previous entries, including '🍔', '✨', '🏳️‍🌈' and '🕴️'!

Keith HoustonDec 15
Shady CharactersDec 15

Day 6 of the Shady Characters advent calendar! Time is flying. Today's entry looks at RAINBOW FLAG (🏳️‍🌈) - an emoji so potent it once left crashed iPhones in its wake: https://shadycharacters.co.uk/2025/12/advent-calendar-2025-rainbow-flag/

Check out https://shadycharacters.co.uk/series/2025-advent-calendar/ to see previous entries, including '😂', '♨️', '🍔', '👍' and ''✨!

Shady Char­ac­ters advent calendar 2025: RAINBOW FLAG – Shady Characters

Keith HoustonDec 13
Shady CharactersDec 13

It's day 5 of the ✨Shady Characters✨ advent calendar! And what better way to mark the occasion than to take a look at the SPARKLES emoji's controversial new job? Read more at https://shadycharacters.co.uk/2025/12/advent-calendar-2025-sparkles/.

Check out https://shadycharacters.co.uk/series/2025-advent-calendar/ to see previous entries, including '😂', '♨️', '🍔' and '👍'!

Keith HoustonDec 11
Shady CharactersDec 11

We're at day 4 of the Shady Characters advent calendar! Fun, right? Whether you mentally replied with a '👍' or recoiled at the idea of doing so, you'll want to read today's entry: https://shadycharacters.co.uk/2025/12/advent-calendar-2025-thumbs-up/.

Check out https://shadycharacters.co.uk/series/2025-advent-calendar/ to see previous entries, including '😂', '♨️' and '🍔'!