Internet vocabulary essay

Internet vocabulary or Internet slang (also known as ‘netspeak’) refers to a couple of words, phrases, and acronyms used primarily in casual communication over the Internet. Its elements were created and made well-liked by Internet users themselves. Feature of netspeak are acronyms for key phrases, like “LOL (laughing out loud), “ROFL (rolling on the ground laughing), and “OMG (oh my goodness. Netspeak features expanded to include full words and phrases as well”words like “blog, “flame, “online, and “haxor are only a number of the many terms that the Internet has given birth to.

A special set of Internet lingo, called “emoticons, or “emotion icons, also exists. These are the familiar “smileys like “:) or “=), wherein the colon or the equals sign stand for the eyes, and the parenthesis symbol the mouth.

The exact date of the first usage of Internet slang is somewhat difficult to determine, but its beginnings can be traced back to the 1980s, during the days of Usenet (Anderson 1996). They were perhaps meant to ease the load on users to type so much so they could say more in a smaller amount of time and effort, and was also perhaps a means to signify their statuses as Internet users.

From there, it spread all across to what the Internet is today”from message boards, to chatrooms, to instant messaging”it has become a ubiquitous language in the World Wide Web, understood by any Internet user.

One of the original purposes of Internet lingo (which it still serves well even today) it to save the user a few keystrokes. The reason why a large part of Netspeak consists of cryptic acronyms is exactly this. For instance, an Internet user in the middle of a chat, needs to leave abruptly, but is not disrespectful as to leave his friends without so much as saying a word.

He would like to say that he will talk to them some other time, but “talk to you later is such a long phrase that may take even longer to type if said user is not very good at typing. Instead, he will type “ttyl, which stands for the original message in his mind, and saves himself a few more seconds. His friends, able to decipher his message, acknowledge, perhaps with a “k (“okay) or “cu (“see you). Most of Netspeak functions this way, and there are a great many acronyms which stand for equally numerous messages, all serving to save the user some time and effort.

Emoticons were invented to enable Net users to express emotions and feelings over the Internet. Since the users most likely do not see each other while communicating online, emoticons are important when words are no longer enough to express a feeling. The regular smiling face, “:), is the most popular, and usually means that the other person is pleased or feels happy. It is difficult to list all of the existing emoticons as there are simply too many, at least one for almost every expression, and even for non-expressions.

They, too, can also serve to save some time and a few keystrokes. For example, instead of saying “I am sad, the user can simply use “:(“. Or, he can use them at the end of a sentence to more effectively convey what he feels: “I am mad at you! >: (” Nevertheless , the latter goal seems to have fragile nowadays”if an individual sees the sentence in the last example, he would not believe that the person is definitely angry or perhaps displeased; rather, he would feel that the person on the other end is definitely using the strichgesicht to achieve a comical effect.

Like in any kind of group or perhaps subculture, a method to indicate that you understands or one is supposed to be is necessary to ensure one to end up being truly element of that group. This is another purpose of Internet slang: that lets people identify themselves as part of the Internet culture.

Just like a secret handshake, knowledge of this kind of language is far more or less required for that you be a authentic “Netizen”an Internet denizen. In fact , one can notice that some teams in the Internet may even go as much as mocking those who has small knowledge about the text or phrases, or in the event he misuses them. In instances such as, the misinformed user will probably be referred to as a “n00b, a derogatory term derived from the phrase “newbie, meaning a beginner (Wikipedia 2007).

With the growing availability, cost, and popularity of computers and Internet access, Netspeak has found itself a wider user base than in the past. Indeed, this kind of language has become so popular that it has begun to creep in people’s off-line lives”popular acronyms like “LOL and “WTF (both of which can be typed in lowercase, along with most other Internet acronyms), as well as many of the terms can be found in cellular text messages, in television and films, and even in the spoken vocabulary. However , teachers and other academics personnel and proponents are certainly not too attracted to this new terminology.

Many people seem to view this distributed of Netspeak as simply harmful and degrading to intelligence, in particular those of learners. Jodi Schenck (Arditti ; 3), a higher school educator at the Rothberg Comprehensive High school graduation in Judio, recounts her students applying Netspeak in academic writing: making use of the symbol “4 instead of “for, using the page “u rather than spelling away “you, and acronyms like “LOL. Additionally it is difficult, according to Schenck, to prevent the scholars from accomplishing this (Arditti ; 3).

To numerous teachers, just like Schenck, Netspeak is corrupting the British language and is detrimental to a student’s intelligence. The problem is that it can be so popular, and often people might not be aware of the fact that they are previously using them outside the Internet, or perhaps that they are not acceptable on paper. Internet slang, much like regular slang, are only intended for use during casual interactions (or when it comes to Netspeak, chatrooms and casual emails and messages).

However , some people will certainly disagree. As it resembles a brand new language itself, linguists gives it due treatment, and defend that. Professor David Crystal, a linguist, the truth is thinks that it can be not a file corruption error but an enlargement to the The english language language (NPR 2007).

He believes it adds more variety and a wider choice to get speakers and non-speakers equally of British by stretching the range, expressiveness, and richness of the language. This is another purpose of Net lingo. It may be necessary, however , to limit its value to casual interactions only. College students should still be necessary to differentiate among formal and informal presentation, and when either should be applied. Since Netspeak is considered a sort of informal talk, it should steer clear of formal and academic papers.

The usage of keyword phrases and terms used in the net as a form of language is a fairly new move. Because of many purposes”as a time-saver, as a way to communicate feelings and emotions exactly where it was in any other case impossible, as a symbol of belonging, as an richness to the language”Internet slang, Netspeak, or Net lingo warrants its place in the English language language.

This serves their purposes very well, and are in fact quite helpful to know, especially now once almost everyone can be using the Internet and this form of speech. It may still be confusing to many people, and may be misused at some locations, but through proper education, the pervasiveness of Internet slang should not create a danger to corrupt the English dialect.

Works Mentioned:

Anderson, Toby. “Usenet Record.  The Network Administrator’s Guide. 1996. twenty seven June 2007. .

Arditti, Avi. “When Netspeak Enters Formal Writing, Professors are Anything but LOL.  u>NewsVOA. com. 2007. 25 06 2007. http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/archive/2007-05/2007-05-08-voa2.cfm>.

Ulaby, Neda. “OMG: IM Slang is Invading Everyday English.  Nationwide Public Car radio. 2006. 25 Summer 2007.

Wikipedia. “List of sites Slang Keyword phrases.  3 years ago. 27 06 2007. .

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