I get incensed when I see incenting used this way.

It's a perfectly normal word, if you talk like this:

"Once you incent knowledge workers to leverage their core competencies, you empower them to impact the bottom line."

It's not really a word, but it basically is. Just like irregardless.

Language moves on, no matter how much it annoys us.

Given that the more established alternative is incentivize, which is at least 50% more awful, I welcome this newly abbreviated word.

You mean it could be as much as 60% more awful?

incenting is a word? i always thought it was incentivizing. in any case, both are ugly words.

I guess "motivating" would be too obvious.

Maybe it's a pun. Pissing users off with their profile pic to make them want to change it.

Republicans use social networks too. The challenge would be to come up with some universally disliked person to use. I nominate Mr. Bean and Peewee Herman.

I like Mr. Bean...and Herman was okay in the Cheech and Chong movie, at least. I think they should use Emperor Palpatine...oh, wait, they're using Cheney? Nevermind.

There aren't very many Republicans that still like Bush and Cheney...

We used to use a picture of a monkey.

Worked great as well.

A site I was on a while back used pictures of baboons. From behind.

But I would like the monkey!

Perhaps there was many creationists on his website, they hate the monkeys.

Someone may still like a monkey, but no one would like Cheney.

Inciting the user to check for words that do not exist.

I have a better rule.

People with pictures can see other profiles pictures otherwise they get a message explaining the rule.

i understand the problem, but shouldn't the incentive be a service users _want_ to use and share with their friends?

This is not a great idea. There are many people out there googling your name, and they will think that you choose that avatar.

Thus the incentive to change it. I like it!

Or if your typical user is a MySpace retard, your site will become known as that weird place where everyone has a boner for Dick Cheney.