06-06-2003, 10:43 PM
Hi,
Many of those expressions predate d00ds by a fair bit. Some were common on irc and in newsgroups as far back as I remember. Typically those that are abbreviations (LOL, AFAIK, IMO, IMHO, IIRC, BRB, AFK and a few dozen others) are those that date back to before the September That Never Ended. Like any abbreviation, they were not meant to replace the words for the concepts that they convey. Just as "Dr." does not replace "doctor", etc.
The leetspeak crappola came from the local bulletin boards, many of which were hangouts for kids who thought they were cool because their folks bought them a Trash 80 or an Apple ][. When they got Internet access, they brought their stupidity with them, lowering the average intelligence on the net by at least 30 IQ points.
Unfortunately, stupidity is easier to mimic than intelligence (look at any stand up comic), so the leet d00ds have gotten a greater following than have those trying to stem the barbarian (original meaning) horde. People, like water, usually seek the lowest level.
Oh, and BTW, when a Shakespeare "misuses" the word "marriage" to give it a new meaning, that is language evolution. When some d00d repeats the word "like" until it has no meaning left, that is language devolution. Language changes. It started with grunts, it seems to be returning, like art and music, to its roots.
--Pete
Many of those expressions predate d00ds by a fair bit. Some were common on irc and in newsgroups as far back as I remember. Typically those that are abbreviations (LOL, AFAIK, IMO, IMHO, IIRC, BRB, AFK and a few dozen others) are those that date back to before the September That Never Ended. Like any abbreviation, they were not meant to replace the words for the concepts that they convey. Just as "Dr." does not replace "doctor", etc.
The leetspeak crappola came from the local bulletin boards, many of which were hangouts for kids who thought they were cool because their folks bought them a Trash 80 or an Apple ][. When they got Internet access, they brought their stupidity with them, lowering the average intelligence on the net by at least 30 IQ points.
Unfortunately, stupidity is easier to mimic than intelligence (look at any stand up comic), so the leet d00ds have gotten a greater following than have those trying to stem the barbarian (original meaning) horde. People, like water, usually seek the lowest level.
Oh, and BTW, when a Shakespeare "misuses" the word "marriage" to give it a new meaning, that is language evolution. When some d00d repeats the word "like" until it has no meaning left, that is language devolution. Language changes. It started with grunts, it seems to be returning, like art and music, to its roots.
--Pete
How big was the aquarium in Noah's ark?