Please type in English!

[Mike]

Please, please, please make your posts in readable English. Making posts in "text speak" or any other abbreviated text type languages just doesn't work on forums where information gathering can be vital to the process of getting answers or help to your questions.

Most of the time when a member makes a post that is hard to read it just gets passed up. I know it's faster to type that way but it is only good for the writer of the message, not the readers! It takes way too long to decipher what you're trying to say and most of the time people won't take the time to decipher your message. If English is not your primary language, state so at the beginning of the message and folks will be more willing to read the post and work with you.

The bottom line is that you'll get more help if you type in readable English in your posts. Use proper spelling, paragraph breaks, provide as much info as possible, etc when making posts.

Don't forget to use a descriptive TITLE for your threads that you create. Having a descriptive title will increase your chances of getting it read.

Also check out CWC's article on forum etiquette.

Thanks for your help,
Mike

[MagpieTear]

Thank you, thank you, thank you! It drives my crazy(er) when I run across a post that is full of jibberish text speak. Even worse when I interview a talented young candidate for a job, but I am not able hire them because he or she is functionally illiterate.

Another thing to think about is how such a post will effect your perception by others. Many will say "It's only an internet forum, not a professional boardroom" True enough, an occasional misspelling won't hurt. However; clear communication, good spelling and grammar help you get your point across quickly and accurately. It also gives the impression that you are intelligent. Posts full of slaughtered words, obtuse acronyms and abbreviations aren't answered because you sound like a dolt or the reader simply has no clue what you're talking about. Do you want to other forum members to simply pass over all your future posts because they think you are dumb? And with many browsers and forum software packages having a built in spell-checker, there simply is no excuse for common misspellings. (You're on your own for grammar though!)

Perception becomes reality. By accepting misspellings and poor grammar on the internet, we're breeding a whole generation of barely employable workers. Accepting this means that we don't care about our society going down the toilet. How do you want to be perceived?

[Chief_waterchanger]

I totally agree.

[MedicBiker]

AMEN! Text speak, capitalization, and punctuation usually make the difference between whether I read a post or skip over it. Thanks for mentioning this!

[Tom]

And don't forget the spaces. lol IagreewithMikeonthisone.(I agree) lol
Tom

[≈ D ≈]

Well put and definitely needed!

[Cody]

i had this problem a few days ago. i felt like i was talking to someone from "the hood" if you know what i mean

[paswed]

As someone who grow up in the hood I can write in proper english when need be and so can my kids. At a time when all kids talk in slang I do not know how you can tell by talking to someone on the phone or in person for that matter cause every one hood or not is trying to be hood


If you are a parnet this should make you went to make sure that your kids understand their is a time and place to talk slang I always tell my kids not to talk or says words no one understand

[Cody]

sorry if i offended you in anyway. i really should of said slang. im 15 years old and i can understand most of it but somtimes i get really confused. i hope i didnt offend you

[paswed]

you did not offend me at all I know all kids sound like they are from the hood these days I have four boys and I am always geting on them about that casue thier is a time and place for it .my oldest boy is 20 and the youngest is 15. they have never been in the hood grow up in the sub.

[sirdarksol]

Bump.

Pleasepleaseplease pay attention to this. More and more people are using text speak or just a lot of shorthand. Not everyone here is a big texter, and writing in text speak makes it difficult for them to read.
Further, doing this makes it more likely to accidentally post something offensive. Writing a string of letters that stands for a phrase that contains an offensive word is the same as writing the offensive word, and that's not allowed here.
I've had to remove a few inappropriate phrases of this sort recently.

Like people said above, we don't ask that you have perfect spelling at all times (though, with Firefox, you can come pretty close, as it has an integrated spell-check that will underline anything you've written that it thinks is wrong), but at least make an effort.

I also want to reiterate that we are not talking about people for whom English is a second language, or the younger folks who are still learning the ins and outs of the English language, and if we get periodic reminders that you English is a second language, or that you are still learning the rules of grammar and whatnot, we'll be much more likely to put up with some difficult spots in order to read your posts.

[Lucy]

Well said SDS, thanks for bumping this up.

[Devon]

Thanks for this! I agree, it doesn't have to look like a college English finals essay, but really, there have been some posts lately where I could tell there was a problem, but the words were so garbled, I couldn't understand what the problem was, and I had to pass over where I didn't want to.

'Net shorthand is not very coherent to a lot of posters here -- and the older (and often wiser or with more experience and possible insight/helpful advice!) amongst us usually aren't nearly as familiar with it as us young whippersnappers... So you may be "shooting yourself in the foot" so to speak if you write a post in text-speak about a serious or urgent issue!

[pinkfloydpuffer]

Oh my gosh, no kidding. I'm like a grammar-nazi, and it just drives me nuts when people type stuff like "u must go wit prpl cuz it rox" or something like that...

[MousePotato]

Wow, a whole group of people as uptight about this as I am! Poorly written posts make my hair stand on end!

About that censoring thing... In one of my early posts I used a word that is a synonym for "snickering" and I got censored! It came out as s******ing and I was rather embarassed that my post looked like I used a naughty word. I'm sorry there was a racist epithet in the middle of my word, but I swear it's a legitimate gerund!

[Butterfly]

I know our system has a strange sense of humor sometimes
Carol

[Shawnie]

I type "u" more than "you" all the time LOL im lazy not a bad speller

hope we wont be graded on the past!!!

[Butterfly]

Originally Posted by Shawnie

I type "u" more than "you" all the time LOL im lazy not a bad speller

hope we wont be graded on the past!!!

hadn't noticed that. the posts that bother me and make it hard to read are the ones that go "u r g8" type of things.
Carol