The Internetcronym - Writers Forum

moonty · 10-31-2004, 06:05 AM

A short piece I put together today. Thoughts are definitely appreciated.

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The Internetcronym

When FOX TV dubbed its Sunday Prime-Time lineup (which included such hit shows as The Simpsons and Malcolm in the Middle) "LOL Sunday," the Internetcronym became an inseperable part of our everyday lives. LOL, as you likely know, simply means "laughing out loud" and is used -- sometimes overused -- in casual Internet conversation to indicate that something said is humorous.

LOL, in and of itself, is a hotly disputed item. There is a very vocal group that argues that LOL, due to immense overuse in "AOL-style chat," is meaningless and trite. Others continue to use it on the ground that it best portrays the emotional response to humor, while others prefer to use "Hehe" and similar quips because they are easily vocalized.

The rise of the Internetcronym has created an atmosphere completely unique to online conversation. Never, while speaking to an associate, would you hear "LOL. OMG, did you hear about John's promotion? pwn'D! LOL so funny! He's his own boss now. ROFLMAO! <G> Well, BBIAB, B/C baby is crying. BRB" This would be largely unintelligible to the average non-internet-savvy fellow.

There are advantages to this, though. The speed of conversations has improved greatly, if just because typing a measly three letter acronym is much, much more efficient than typing fifteen letters of text. With this increased efficiency, we are more free to explore all the internet offers, be it good, bad, or ugly.

Matthew Montgomery

mammamaia · 10-31-2004, 12:15 PM

a nifty piece of writing, imnaaho!

ttfn, maia

Spudley · 10-31-2004, 01:31 PM

I never liked LOL, because it also means 'lots of love'. It wouldn't be a good thing to be misinterpreted on that one!

"Hehe" may be a whole extra character longer, and it isn't an acronym, but at least it can't cause that sort of confusion.

(oh, the irony - the laughing smiley there is coded as : lol :. Looks like I've been using it all along after all)

Pendulum · 10-31-2004, 02:25 PM

Very interesting, but very short. You could definately expand on this. But if it's short for a purpose, or just because this was all you wanted to write about then keep it the way it is, well written!

Capulet · 10-31-2004, 02:31 PM

I did a write up on h@kz0r for a communications class... I wonder if I could find it somewhere. This would definately flesh out into a much larger piece quite easily, and quite nicely.

Cheers!

Ralizah · 10-31-2004, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by moonty

A short piece I put together today. Thoughts are definitely appreciated.

--

The Internetcronym

When FOX TV dubbed its Sunday Prime-Time lineup (which included such hit shows as The Simpsons and Malcolm in the Middle) "LOL Sunday," the Internetcronym became an inseperable part of our everyday lives. LOL, as you likely know, simply means "laughing out loud" and is used -- sometimes overused -- in casual Internet conversation to indicate that something said is humorous.

LOL, in and of itself, is a hotly disputed item. There is a very vocal group that argues that LOL, due to immense overuse in "AOL-style chat," is meaningless and trite. Others continue to use it on the ground that it best portrays the emotional response to humor, while others prefer to use "Hehe" and similar quips because they are easily vocalized.

The rise of the Internetcronym has created an atmosphere completely unique to online conversation. Never, while speaking to an associate, would you hear "LOL. OMG, did you hear about John's promotion? pwn'D! LOL so funny! He's his own boss now. ROFLMAO! <G> Well, BBIAB, B/C baby is crying. BRB" This would be largely unintelligible to the average non-internet-savvy fellow.

There are advantages to this, though. The speed of conversations has improved greatly, if just because typing a measly three letter acronym is much, much more efficient than typing fifteen letters of text. With this increased efficiency, we are more free to explore all the internet offers, be it good, bad, or ugly.

Matthew Montgomery

I hate chat speak. It's annoying. I'm seriously going to shoot the next person who says: "ROTFLMFAO." Seriously, if I didn't know what that meant, I'd think I'd intercepted a secret military code.

moonty · 10-31-2004, 07:27 PM

Thanks for the suggestions and comments -- I'll try my hand at composing a longer version later today.

belagio · 10-31-2004, 07:30 PM

Moonty,

I like your analogy, and it is well taken. I guess with the speed of online technology, it's expected that short-cuts and abbreviations would certainly come along in an effort to allow a certain amount of brevity in our retorts.

By the way, I am belagio, and I am pleased to make your acquaintance.

belagio

Write, for the night is coming.