TXT - THE GR8 DB8 (lesson on Shorthand)

As part of a request I have decided to do a post on the use of Shorthand or as the ‘Y’ generation sees it, txt speak, SMS language or Textese. (also known as txtese, chatspeak, txt, txtspk, txtk, txto, texting language, txt lingo, or txt talk)

There has always been a major debate on whether or not abbreviations should be used and if the use of it causes an inability to spell. Truth is, it’s not all as bad as the older generations perceive it to be. I’ll state a few of the obvious facts below;

• Typically, less than 10% of the words are abbreviated in text messages.
• Abbreviating is not a new language; instead, it has been present for many decades.
• Children and adults both use SMS language, the latter being more likely to do so.
• Students do not habitually use abbreviations in their homework or examinations.
• Sending text messages is not a cause of bad spelling because people need to know how to spell before they can send a text message.
• Sending text messages improves people's literacy, as it provides more opportunity for people to engage with the language through reading and writing.
• Abbreviations have been seen to date back as far as the 1800’s.

Shorthand is actually rather easy to read if you already know how to spell. The trick is learning to understand the use of the word in a particular sentence.

For example;

“omg, cnt tlk, PAW, ttyl. Lol <3 u.”

Translates to;

“Oh my god, can’t talk, parents are watching, talk to you later. *Laughing out loud*, love (heart) you.”

After a bit of research on this topic I’ve found a few decent sites to assist in the understanding of Shorthand. (Links are below)

This one being the most helpful. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS_language (list of words)

And for assistance in translating something written to you: http://www.lingo2word.com/

Most common words used among the kids today are as follows: 

LOL – Laugh out loud	TTYL – Talk to you later
ATM – At the moment	TY – Thank you
OMG – Oh my god	YW – Your Welcome
ROFL – Rolls on floor laughing	HWRU? – How are you?
LMAO – Laughing my ass off	BCUZ - Because
ORLY? – Oh really?	WT? – What?
SRS? – Serious?	BTW – By the way
I <3 U – I lesser than three you/ I love you	IDC/IDK – I don’t care/know
GTG – Good to go / Got to go	CBB/CBF – Can’t be bothered / fucked
SRY - Sorry	JK – Just Kidding

A comic poem printed in 1867 with lines like "I wrote 2 U B 4" ("I wrote to you before").

So, that concludes my lesson/post on understanding Shorthand, hopefully this assists our fellow oldies. ^_-  (by the way, that's a smiley winking)