Is This Annoying Or Is It Just Me?

[LiveLifeGoJump]

Does anyone else on this forum find TXT writing annoying?

I am ok with spelling mistakes (we can all make them from time to time) & abreviations (lol etc.) are ok but when I see something like 'me m8 sez thx 4 the hlp, will let u no wot e did when e cums round 2nite' I just give up reading.

While I'm on about annoying thing, SHOUTING comes a close second.

Perhaps I just showing my age

 

[Qays]

Its annoying but you dont need to make a whole post about it. :\

 

[Silverlady]

Yes it's annoying. Perhaps I'm to old to understand it. I just skip reading the post at all.

 

[demonmagus]

y3h 1 f1nd 17 4nn0y1ng

even though I am in the age bracket of people who are known to use txt language

 

[Callum]

i tend not to write like this but i know i have been guilty of this before purely due to my lasyness but i will clampdown on it

 

[ImperfectFaerie]

Yeah, I'll agree 100%.... I feel like this is an information forum, so it's easier to communicate using more clear writing styles, and TXT doesn't really do it. I'm with you!

 

[SPLiSH]

You're not showing your age, I am 14 and I find it annoying. I use TXT speak when I talk to my friends on MSN and in text messages, but on TFF I try to use proper grammar. Good practice for school, anyway!

 

[Nevergone815]

i'm in the same boat as splish. on aim and yahoo and other messengers i talk TXT speak. but on here i try to keep it all proper with my spellign and grammer. most of my "edited" posts are because of my common typos (for some reason no matter what i do i make the same typos its sad lol) and my TXT speach. i am 19 and i use it all the time. age has nothing ot do with it because i am annoyed at it too. i dont mind it too much as i understand it, but this is supposed ot be an informative site and if people dont understand what you wrote how can htey inform you? or how can you give them info that they need if they cant understand you? i would be mad if i couldnt understand what someone typed as a response to a post of mine and it was important.

but i am ending this here. i can rant forever but its not that important, helpng people and being helped is why i'm here i jsut wanted to give my
2 pennies

 

[Griz]

I don't find it annoying because I ignore it. I'm too old to learn a new language and if I wanted to, I'd learn Spanish.

 

[campbellmay]

Not only is netspeak difficult for other users to read, it makes the writer look childish and uneducated. Most times, this is not at all the case! It's not necessarily an age issue either, because I'm 20 and I can't stand having to decipher some of the garbled spelling used online these days.

Like SPLiSH said, netspeak is perfectly acceptable for instant messaging and texting, where you are trying to get your meaning across with the least amount of typing possible. But on a forum, where the response time is much more delayed, clarity is much more important, and there's no reason not to employ a little basic grammar. It's not rocket science to sprinkle in a few periods, commas, and capital letters where they belong. Personally, I find I find it harder to take people seriously when they use netspeak, especially if they're offering advice. Based solely on wording, which of the following users sounds like they know what they're talking about:


xxfishiesarekewlxx says: "fish shud eat lots of diff foods cuz u cant realy get all teh vits and mins u need just from falkes so if u care about ur fish giv them wroms flakes veggies frzn blodworms brine shirmp freez-dri worms all that stuf if u want healthy fish but make sure u dont feed 2 much lesser is alwas better"

OR

MarineBiologist says: "Flakes are specially formulated by the manufacturer to fulfill all of your fish's dietary needs. Therefore, wasting your money on additional products to feed your fish is not only unnecessary, but it can cause constipation and other nutritional issues. It is best to remain consistent with a single type of food, and give your fish the nutrition they need. I recommend feeding a hefty handful of flakes once a day, until your fish are completely sated."


xxfishiesarekewlxx, the person giving the correct advice, looks like a complete spaz. To someone who doesn't know any better, MarineBiologist comes across as educated and knowledgeable, and as a result his advice sounds much more reliable. The point is that making a simple effort to write correctly will get you much more respect, and people are more likely to listen to what you have to say.

It's really a matter of forum etiquette. Much like you shouldn't post in all caps, post spam topics, or add off-topic comments, you shouldn't use netspeak. That's my opinion, anyway.

 

[QuotheRaven]

I am 16 and don't even own a mobile so I'd say thats why I type as correct as I can it does annoy me when people type m8 and things like that.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

u gyz r 2 old n neda lrn sme stf b4 u gt kidz

 

[campbellmay]

u gyz r 2 old n neda lrn sme stf b4 u gt kidz

It has nothing to do with age, and all to do with common courtesy.

 

[Nevergone815]

u gyz r 2 old n neda lrn sme stf b4 u gt kidz

It has nothing to do with age, and all to do with common courtesy.

i agree, i am 19 going on 20 and yes admit i use netspeak but like i said i try to limit it to instant messaging. i apologize for my lack of grammer as i have ALWAYS been horrible at it even in school. heck, i'm a second year college student and still dont know all the perfect grammer. i do admit i get lazy with capital letters and there are tiems i just dont bother with apostrophes in contraction words like don't and wasn't. i also admit that that i have loads of typos. i always have to correct just to the corrct spelling as i always do "jsut" for some reason, to goes to "ot" along with gonna gets spelt "gonan" for some reason (i know, i'm trying to break that habit and use going to) but like i said, i'm not even perfect far from it to be exact, but the better typing you can do, the better the advice will be received on this forum. just remember that people.

like it's been said it's not an age issue. i know people in their 40s that picked up on netspeak and 14 year olds that have NEVER used it. it is from person to person and not directly age related.

a little extra time to type things out won't hurt anyone, we need to respect each other. if we can't understand what you are saying than how can we help? and if we can't understand you when you try to help us, are you really helping? jsut think about that one for anyone who refuses to take the netspeak out fo their posts...

 

[Bignose]

I think it is even an issue beyond courtesy. It is all about communicating effectively. Especially with the topic of this forum, communicating exactly what you mean is critical since animals' lives are going to be affected by what is said.

Here is a famous example, I got from Lynn Truss' Eats, Shoots & Leaves, though I am pretty sure she got it from sources before her.

Look at how simple punctuation changes the following sentences.

1) A woman, without her man, is nothing.
2) A woman: without her, man is nothing.

These sentences are pretty much completely opposite in meaning, all due to punctuation. A really big issue is that the written word does not carry the tone that spoken word would. That is why ! and ? were invented, to partially full that void. Punctuation and proper spelling fill that to a certain degree as well, this is why it is critical to punctuate and spell to the absolute best of our ability.

There are several more great examples from the excerpt of her book here: http/eatsshootsandleaves.com/eslex.html

Look, I know people make mistakes, I've made my fair share of them, but when I see a post full of 'net speak' or 'leet-speak' or txting or whatever it is called, I usually just skip it because I can rarely be sure I know what the person is talking about. And effective communication is the whole reason the rules of grammar and punctuation were put into place, and only by following them, can you give yourself the best chances of being understood exactly how you meant.