diff --git a/help.php b/help.php
index e170c6ec61973..7a89337ae0a1d 100644
--- a/help.php
+++ b/help.php
@@ -142,7 +142,7 @@
 
 // use ##emoticons_html## to replace the emoticons documentation
 if(preg_match('~(##emoticons_html##)~', $output, $matches)) {
-    $output = preg_replace('~(##emoticons_html##)~', get_emoticons_html(), $output);
+    $output = preg_replace('~(##emoticons_html##)~', get_emoticons_list_for_help_file(), $output);
 }
 
 // Do the main output.
@@ -163,29 +163,6 @@
 $CFG->docroot = '';   // We don't want a doc link here
 print_footer('none');
 
-// Utility function =================================================================
-
-function get_emoticons_html(){
-    global $CFG;
-    $output = '';
-    $emoticonstring = $CFG->emoticons;
-    $output .= '<ul>';
-    if ($emoticonstring) {
-        $items = explode('{;}', $CFG->emoticons);
-        foreach ($items as $item) {
-            $item = explode('{:}', $item);
-            $emoticons[$item[0]] = $item[1];
-            $output .= '<li><a href="javascript:inserttext(\''.$item[0].'\')"><img src="'.
-                $CFG->pixpath.'/s/'.$item[1].'.gif" alt="'.$item[0].'" /></a>'.' <code>'.$item[0].
-                '</code></li>';
-        }
-
-    }
-    $output .= '</ul>';
-    return $output;
-
-}
-
 function file_exists_and_readable($filepath) {
     return file_exists($filepath) and is_file($filepath) and is_readable($filepath);
 }
diff --git a/lang/en_utf8/help/emoticons.html b/lang/en_utf8/help/emoticons.html
index db97c4f238854..99ee6b78ec23c 100644
--- a/lang/en_utf8/help/emoticons.html
+++ b/lang/en_utf8/help/emoticons.html
@@ -1,5 +1,10 @@
 <h1>Using Smilies (emoticons)</h1>
 
+<!-- Note, this file is no loger used in HEAD, it has been replaced by emoticons2.html
+which uses a dynamically buils list of smilies. The purpose of this note is to
+point out that it is not a problem that none fo the href="javascript:inserttext('...')"
+links work any more in HEAD. See MDL-16654. -->
+
 <table align="center" border="1">
   <tbody><tr valign="top">
     <td>
diff --git a/lib/javascript-static.js b/lib/javascript-static.js
index 5670f0da48549..8959784abd4fc 100644
--- a/lib/javascript-static.js
+++ b/lib/javascript-static.js
@@ -514,7 +514,7 @@ function getElementsByClassName(oElm, strTagName, oClassNames){
 }
 
 function openpopup(url, name, options, fullscreen) {
-    var fullurl = moodle_config.wwwroot + url;
+    var fullurl = moodle_cfg.wwwroot + url;
     var windowobj = window.open(fullurl,name,options);
     if (fullscreen) {
         windowobj.moveTo(0,0);
@@ -523,3 +523,34 @@ function openpopup(url, name, options, fullscreen) {
     windowobj.focus();
     return false;
 }
+
+/* This is only used on a few help pages. */
+emoticons_help = {
+    inputarea: null,
+
+    init: function(formname, fieldname, listid) {
+        if (!opener || !opener.document.forms[formname]) {
+            return;
+        }
+        emoticons_help.inputarea = opener.document.forms[formname][fieldname];
+        if (!emoticons_help.inputarea) {
+            return;
+        }
+        var emoticons = document.getElementById(listid).getElementsByTagName('li');
+        for (var i = 0; i < emoticons.length; i++) {
+            var text = emoticons[i].getElementsByTagName('img')[0].alt;
+            YAHOO.util.Event.addListener(emoticons[i], 'click', emoticons_help.inserttext, text);
+        }
+    },
+
+    inserttext: function(e, text) {
+        text = ' ' + text + ' ';
+        if (emoticons_help.inputarea.createTextRange && emoticons_help.inputarea.caretPos) {
+            var caretPos = emoticons_help.inputarea.caretPos;
+            caretPos.text = caretPos.text.charAt(caretPos.text.length - 1) == ' ' ? text + ' ' : text;
+        } else {
+            emoticons_help.inputarea.value  += text;
+        }
+        emoticons_help.inputarea.focus();
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/javascript.php b/lib/javascript.php
index 69a273cbb4727..a691468e363a9 100644
--- a/lib/javascript.php
+++ b/lib/javascript.php
@@ -1,17 +1,15 @@
 <?php  /// $Id$
+/// Load up any required Javascript libraries
 
-       /// Load up any required Javascript libraries
+if (!defined('MOODLE_INTERNAL')) {
+    die('Direct access to this script is forbidden.');    ///  It must be included from a Moodle page
+}
 
-    if (!defined('MOODLE_INTERNAL')) {
-        die('Direct access to this script is forbidden.');    ///  It must be included from a Moodle page
+if (can_use_html_editor() && !empty($CFG->editorsrc)) {
+    foreach ( $CFG->editorsrc as $scriptsource ) {
+        echo '<script type="text/javascript" src="'. $scriptsource .'"></script>'."\n";
     }
-
-    if (can_use_html_editor() && !empty($CFG->editorsrc)) {
-        foreach ( $CFG->editorsrc as $scriptsource ) {
-            echo '<script type="text/javascript" src="'. $scriptsource .'"></script>'."\n";
-        }
-    }
-
+}
 ?>
 <!--<style type="text/css">/*<![CDATA[*/ body{behavior:url(<?php echo $CFG->httpswwwroot ?>/lib/csshover.htc);} /*]]>*/</style>-->
 
@@ -30,40 +28,19 @@
 </script>
 <script type="text/javascript">
 //<![CDATA[
+var id2suffix = {};
 <?php
-    echo "function inserttext(text) {\n";
-    if (!empty($SESSION->inserttextform)) {
-        $insertfield = "opener.document.forms['$SESSION->inserttextform'].$SESSION->inserttextfield";
-        echo "  if(!opener.document.forms['$SESSION->inserttextform']){";
+if (!empty($focus)) {
+    if(($pos = strpos($focus, '.')) !== false) {
+        //old style focus using form name - no allowed inXHTML Strict
+        $topelement = substr($focus, 0, $pos);
+        echo "addonload(function() { if(document.$topelement) document.$focus.focus(); });\n";
     } else {
-        $insertfield = "opener.document.forms['theform'].message";
-        echo "  if(!opener.document.forms['theform']){";
-    }
-    echo "    return;";
-    echo "  }";
-    echo "  text = ' ' + text + ' ';\n";
-    echo "  if ( $insertfield.createTextRange && $insertfield.caretPos) {\n";
-    echo "    var caretPos = $insertfield.caretPos;\n";
-    echo "    caretPos.text = caretPos.text.charAt(caretPos.text.length - 1) == ' ' ? text + ' ' : text;\n";
-    echo "  } else {\n";
-    echo "    $insertfield.value  += text;\n";
-    echo "  }\n";
-    echo "  $insertfield.focus();\n";
-    echo "}\n";
-
-    if (!empty($focus)) {
-        if(($pos = strpos($focus, '.')) !== false) {
-            //old style focus using form name - no allowed inXHTML Strict
-            $topelement = substr($focus, 0, $pos);
-            echo "addonload(function() { if(document.$topelement) document.$focus.focus(); });\n";
-        } else {
-            //focus element with given id
-            echo "addonload(function() { if(el = document.getElementById('$focus')) el.focus(); });\n";
-        }
-        $focus=false; // Prevent themes from adding it to body tag which breaks addonload(), MDL-10249
+        //focus element with given id
+        echo "addonload(function() { if(el = document.getElementById('$focus')) el.focus(); });\n";
     }
-
-    echo "var id2suffix = {};\n";
-    echo "//]]>\n";
-    echo "</script>\n";
+    $focus = false; // Prevent themes from adding it to body tag which breaks addonload(), MDL-10249
+}
 ?>
+//]]>
+</script>
diff --git a/lib/weblib.php b/lib/weblib.php
index d9917b4dc1453..0bf3b5f40b0ce 100644
--- a/lib/weblib.php
+++ b/lib/weblib.php
@@ -2040,6 +2040,40 @@ function replace_smilies(&$text) {
     }
 }
 
+/**
+ * This code is called from help.php to inject a list of smilies into the
+ * emoticons help file.
+ *
+ * @return string HTML for a list of smilies.
+ */
+function get_emoticons_list_for_help_file(){
+    global $CFG, $SESSION;
+    if (empty($CFG->emoticons)) {
+        return '';
+    }
+
+    require_js(array('yui_yahoo', 'yui_event'));
+    $items = explode('{;}', $CFG->emoticons);
+    $output = '<ul id="emoticonlist">';
+    foreach ($items as $item) {
+        $item = explode('{:}', $item);
+        $output .= '<li><img src="' . $CFG->pixpath.'/s/' . $item[1] . '.gif" alt="' .
+                $item[0] . '" /><code>' . $item[0] . '</code></li>';
+    }
+    $output .= '</ul>';
+    if (!empty($SESSION->inserttextform)) {
+        $formname = $SESSION->inserttextform;
+        $fieldname = $SESSION->inserttextfield;
+    } else {
+        $formname = 'theform';
+        $fieldname = 'message';
+    }
+    
+    $output .= print_js_call('emoticons_help.init', array($formname, $fieldname, 'emoticonlist'), true);
+    return $output;
+
+}
+
 /**
  * Given plain text, makes it into HTML as nicely as possible.
  * May contain HTML tags already
@@ -2716,12 +2750,12 @@ function print_js_config($settings = array(), $prefix='', $return = false) {
     // Have to treat the prefix and no prefix cases separately.
     if ($prefix) {
         // Recommended way, only one thing in global scope.
-        $html .= 'var $name = ' . json_encode($settings) . "\n";
+        $html .= "var $prefix = " . json_encode($settings) . "\n";
 
     } else {
         // Old fashioned way.
         foreach ($settings as $name => $value) {
-            $html .= "var " . $name . " = '" . addslashes_js($value) . "'\n";
+            $html .= "var $name = '" . addslashes_js($value) . "'\n";
         }
     }
 
@@ -5797,9 +5831,9 @@ function editorhelpbutton(){
                 $urlparams[] = "module$i=".urlencode($item[2]);
             }
             $titles[] = trim($item[1], ". \t");
-        }elseif (is_string($item)){
+        } else if (is_string($item)) {
             $urlparams[] = "button$i=".urlencode($item);
-            switch ($item){
+            switch ($item) {
                 case 'reading' :
                     $titles[] = get_string("helpreading");
                     break;
@@ -5809,13 +5843,13 @@ function editorhelpbutton(){
                 case 'questions' :
                     $titles[] = get_string("helpquestions");
                     break;
-                case 'emoticons' :
+                case 'emoticons2' :
                     $titles[] = get_string("helpemoticons");
                     break;
-                case 'richtext' :
+                case 'richtext2' :
                     $titles[] = get_string('helprichtext');
                     break;
-                case 'text' :
+                case 'text2' :
                     $titles[] = get_string('helptext');
                     break;
                 default :