Txt spk xplnd

19/11/2009

Contrary to first impressions, TXT SPK is not a different language. Get back down with the kids as we help decipher some of the most cryptic abbreviations used on phones and the Internet.

As life speeds up to new frantic levels, abbreviations are absolutely necessary, but although grammar may have bitten the dust there are some etiquette rules to remember, the most important being caps lock is rude. By writing in capitals you are shouting and NOBODY LIKES THAT! The other rule is to think phonetically and all will be clear.

Try these: 4eva – forever; 182 – I hate you; 2nite – tonight; b4 – before; bcoz – because; cul8r – See you later;  ez – easy; gr8 – great; qt – cutie.

As well as phonetics, acronyms rule and you’re allowed to get creative. Here are some essential suggestions.

Aml – all my love; bbl – be back later; bf – boyfriend; bbf – best friend forever; btw – by the way; gtg – got to go; omg – oh my god; pcm – please call me; prw – parents are watching; lol – lots of love, laugh out loud or lots of laughs; brb – be right back.

Got the idea? Try some of these more unusual offerings.

*$ – starbucks; acorn – a completely obsessive nutty person; mtfbwy – may the force be with you; ne14kfc? – anyone for KFC?; runts? – are you nuts?

A couple from our TV-loving editor: jbph and hignfy make web searches for “Jack Bauer’s Power Hour” aka 24, and Have I Got News For You, that little bit easier.

Maybe you’re still sceptical. Was that a cwot (complete waste of time)? Maybe uha (you hate acronyms)? Why not complain to the AAAAA (the American association against acronym abuse). There are hundreds more at netlingo.com.

And now, to make your life that little bit more complicated, there are now Twitter-isms, because communicating in under 140 characters (a tweet) is not complex enough! The key to Twitter-isms is to take a normal word and inset ‘tw’ or ‘twits’ where possible.

Don’t be illtwitterate, consult our twitionary. Fatal attwaction – someone stalking other twitter users; flitter – tweeting on the go; DeTweet – to delete a tweet; intwesting – interesting; intwelectual – an intellectual tweet; naked twits – unprotected tweet that anyone can read; nitweet – a stupid tweet; PT – post tweet; RT – re-tweet by tweeting content already posted by another user and spitter – a twitter spammer.

Not all Twitterature is for abbreviation. Prefix a Twitter user’s name with the ‘@’ symbol to indicate that you’re talking to them. Pop a ‘#’ before a word to create a hash tag – a way of generalising what you’re talking about and one of the ways Twitter works out what the hottest discussion topics are.

A word of warming though… now that you know the lingo, don’t become a twendy twaddict. If you fancy flexing your newfound skills, however, give them a go by getting in touch with us on Twitter: @remembrkingston;