From the archivist
It started with a game that needed a few authentic AIM icons. Then I had 1,000. Then 10,000. At some point, I had a buddy icon problem.
Read how this happenedYou made it this far
You have scrolled past 1,024 buddy icons, so I have some suspicions. My blog is where the other shiny digressions end up.
Subscribe to Shedletsky.comA language of tiny pictures
A picture barely 50 pixels wide, sitting beside an AIM screen name, could announce a mood, a fandom, an inside joke, or who someone wanted to be that day.
Read the short historyRecovered from the early web
Buddy icons survive in old directories, fan sites, downloadable packs, and web archives. The archive preserves the original files, groups known copies, and records where each one was found.
How the archive worksBoombox identifies portable stereo-themed buddy icons focused on cassette-era players with twin speakers, button clusters, and playback cues. Character faces, dancing silhouettes, and text lines like BOOGIE DOWN often surround the device to reinforce the music context at tiny resolution.
![Two circular icons display 'I [heart] [boombox]' with 'ily' text below; left icon has green heart and pink 'ily', right icon has pink heart and green 'ily'.](/image/efd65db0624ea6ab70835adb06f2626b957125e9666c79ac00ea52bfb7761a8f)
