I voted you back up. HN has been suffering from a flight of noobs that downmod as a sign of disagreement but without voicing an opinion.

I agree with the animation bit, it's a little distracting. I disagree about the size of the box because users that need the most help likely won't notice a 16x16 box. Ideally both items are customizable.

My first reaction was "oh, the paperclip is back". But I do think this could be useful as long as it isn't annoying, and can be turned off easily for pro users.