Monday, June 28, 2004
Cyberspeak
Kelly writes:
Here is one of my first articles in Grand Island Senior High's The Islander:
Cyberspeak: Language of Internet Navigators Web Surfers, E-mail Junkies, Neophytes Have To Know The Code To Move Successfully Through Today's Maze of High Technology
by Kelly Romanski
The English language is forever expanding. Thirty years ago, people didn't speak like we do today. People said words like "groovy", "far out", and "bitchin'." But now, everyone is familiar with the terms "generation X", "coolness", and "cyber" anything. The language of the computer is a perplexing phenomenon, one that is ever-changing. Pop quiz, hotshot. What follows is a conversation between two netters (Internet users) in TCZ, The Chatting Zone, a chat room on the Internet. Give yourself one point for every word you do understand.
Fiachra: "OTOH, I'm usually very PC IRL. How about you?"
Lord Garneth: " My POV is that being PIC is very convenient. *:)"
Fiachra: "ROTFL!
Garneth: "Have you seen all the cybertising in DELPHI lately?"
Fiachra: "No, is it bad?"
Garneth: "It's just like going to the cinema and getting Coke commercials thrown in your face. Talk about bad cybermanners."
Fiachra: "You want bad netiquette, did you see that fella in Canada who's been overdoing his crossposting? A major cybernono.
Garneth: "He must be a newbie. Or else he just likes jamming the netwaves. He's really asking for a flame war."
* BONUS QUESTION
Here are the answers:
OTOH: On The Other Hand.
PC: Politically Correct
IRL: In real Life
POV: Point of View
PIC: Politically Incorrect
ROTFL: Rolling On The Floor, Laughing
Cybertising: advertising via cyberspace
DELPHI: commercial online service
Cybermanners: manners that relate to cyberspace, the computer equivalent of not putting your elbows on the dinner table and other such parental advice. Netiquette: identical in meaning to "cybermanners."
Crossposting: sending the same message to multiple bulletin boards.
Cybernono: breaking the netiquette
Newbie: new user to cyberspace
Jamming the netwaves: refers to the elevated noise level over a part of the Internet. Computerized version of noise interference on radio waves.
Flame War: a flame is a personal attack on another person's article, such as "I disagree with your moronic statement, and the fact that you would say such a thing proves you are a complete idiot." A flame war is when flame start firing back and forth between two or more netters.
Did you get the bonus question? A colon followed by a close-parenthesis is a Smiley, or sideways happy face.
Out of the 15 possible points:
11-15: you know most of the "ultrakewl" abbreviations and phrases in cyberspace.
6-10: you've got plenty of room for improvement.
1-5: you must have been thinking about Sam's column, right?
In most of the talkers and chat rooms, graphics are either unavailable or they take too much time to load, so most netters make their own. In addition to the Smiley, there are many creative "emoticons," or keyboard icons that convey emotions. (Cleverly combining standard words is popular cyberspeak.) To read these emoticons, turn your head to the left. A ":-O," or a colon followed by a dash and capital O constitute a surprised expression. A ":P," colon then capital P is sticking your tongue out at the reader. To put a devilish tone on your statement, type a semi-colon and then a close parenthesis for a winking Smiley, ";)." Those netters who want to show their romantic side sometimes send a rose which looks like "@>,-'-." The abbreviations and acronyms, or cyberese, will be very useful to know. They're likely to find their way into everyday conversations and e-mails between netters. Some popular ones are:
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions.
BTW: By The Way.
IMHO: In My Humble Opinion.
TIC: Tongue In Cheek.
WTH: What The Heck.
What follows is a selection of acronyms which, like the rose, is recommended by the "soc.singles" newsgroup on USENET, an online service.
LAFS: Love At First Sight.
LJBF: Let's Just Be Friends.
NG: Nice Guy/Gal.
PDA: Public Display of Affection.
SNAG: Sensitive New-Age Guy.
TL&EH: True Love & Eternal Happiness.
And then there's the infamous WFYITBWNBLJO, which translates into Waiting For You In The Bathtub Wearing Nothing But Lime Jell-O. New words and phrases are being invented daily, so understanding them all is impossible. posted by Kelly at 2:46 PM :: |
Cyberspeak: Language of Internet Navigators Web Surfers, E-mail Junkies, Neophytes Have To Know The Code To Move Successfully Through Today's Maze of High Technology
by Kelly Romanski
The English language is forever expanding. Thirty years ago, people didn't speak like we do today. People said words like "groovy", "far out", and "bitchin'." But now, everyone is familiar with the terms "generation X", "coolness", and "cyber" anything. The language of the computer is a perplexing phenomenon, one that is ever-changing. Pop quiz, hotshot. What follows is a conversation between two netters (Internet users) in TCZ, The Chatting Zone, a chat room on the Internet. Give yourself one point for every word you do understand.
Fiachra: "OTOH, I'm usually very PC IRL. How about you?"
Lord Garneth: " My POV is that being PIC is very convenient. *:)"
Fiachra: "ROTFL!
Garneth: "Have you seen all the cybertising in DELPHI lately?"
Fiachra: "No, is it bad?"
Garneth: "It's just like going to the cinema and getting Coke commercials thrown in your face. Talk about bad cybermanners."
Fiachra: "You want bad netiquette, did you see that fella in Canada who's been overdoing his crossposting? A major cybernono.
Garneth: "He must be a newbie. Or else he just likes jamming the netwaves. He's really asking for a flame war."
* BONUS QUESTION
Here are the answers:
OTOH: On The Other Hand.
PC: Politically Correct
IRL: In real Life
POV: Point of View
PIC: Politically Incorrect
ROTFL: Rolling On The Floor, Laughing
Cybertising: advertising via cyberspace
DELPHI: commercial online service
Cybermanners: manners that relate to cyberspace, the computer equivalent of not putting your elbows on the dinner table and other such parental advice. Netiquette: identical in meaning to "cybermanners."
Crossposting: sending the same message to multiple bulletin boards.
Cybernono: breaking the netiquette
Newbie: new user to cyberspace
Jamming the netwaves: refers to the elevated noise level over a part of the Internet. Computerized version of noise interference on radio waves.
Flame War: a flame is a personal attack on another person's article, such as "I disagree with your moronic statement, and the fact that you would say such a thing proves you are a complete idiot." A flame war is when flame start firing back and forth between two or more netters.
Did you get the bonus question? A colon followed by a close-parenthesis is a Smiley, or sideways happy face.
Out of the 15 possible points:
11-15: you know most of the "ultrakewl" abbreviations and phrases in cyberspace.
6-10: you've got plenty of room for improvement.
1-5: you must have been thinking about Sam's column, right?
In most of the talkers and chat rooms, graphics are either unavailable or they take too much time to load, so most netters make their own. In addition to the Smiley, there are many creative "emoticons," or keyboard icons that convey emotions. (Cleverly combining standard words is popular cyberspeak.) To read these emoticons, turn your head to the left. A ":-O," or a colon followed by a dash and capital O constitute a surprised expression. A ":P," colon then capital P is sticking your tongue out at the reader. To put a devilish tone on your statement, type a semi-colon and then a close parenthesis for a winking Smiley, ";)." Those netters who want to show their romantic side sometimes send a rose which looks like "@>,-'-." The abbreviations and acronyms, or cyberese, will be very useful to know. They're likely to find their way into everyday conversations and e-mails between netters. Some popular ones are:
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions.
BTW: By The Way.
IMHO: In My Humble Opinion.
TIC: Tongue In Cheek.
WTH: What The Heck.
What follows is a selection of acronyms which, like the rose, is recommended by the "soc.singles" newsgroup on USENET, an online service.
LAFS: Love At First Sight.
LJBF: Let's Just Be Friends.
NG: Nice Guy/Gal.
PDA: Public Display of Affection.
SNAG: Sensitive New-Age Guy.
TL&EH: True Love & Eternal Happiness.
And then there's the infamous WFYITBWNBLJO, which translates into Waiting For You In The Bathtub Wearing Nothing But Lime Jell-O. New words and phrases are being invented daily, so understanding them all is impossible. posted by Kelly at 2:46 PM :: |
