A few thoughts on modern communications

[gothwalk]

I've been reading boards dedicated to MMORPGs, like Freddy's House, and boards dedicated to Tabletop RPGs, like ENWorld. The difference in communication skills is stunning, all the more so when you realise that some of these are the same people. The MMO boards are all "Like OMG, WTF! W@nker!" and the ENWorld site has discussions on the thematic and genre differences between science fiction, fantasy, and horror.

I need some way to communicate laughing out loud that is not "LOL!". Because "LOL!" no longer really means "laughing out loud", it means "You said something funny, and this is my acknowledgement." This can be seen when people, for emphasis, use "LOLOLOLOLOL!", which means "You said something very funny, and this is my acknowledgement." The related acronym "ROTFL" still holds its meaning, but when was the last time you actually did that?

At a DART station recently, I overheard a teenage girl say, aloud, as a response to someone else's comment, "Loll." It took me quite a while to work out what it was, and if I didn't know someone else who says "grin", rather than grinning, I'd probably still be wondering. Her friends seemed to know what she meant, and nobody said anything that would have indicated it was out of the ordinary.

Comments

[cartographer.livejournal.com]

some way to communicate laughing out loud that is not "LOL!"

I've use *genuinely laughing out loud*, or *glol* to people I talk to frequently.

if I didn't know someone else who says "grin", rather than grinning

We are a dystopian future.

[ailbhe]

I only use LOL when I'm laughing aloud. But I think "*snort*" or "*grin*" when I feel like doing either but need to suppress it for some reason.

lol

[sshi.livejournal.com]

We are living through the downfall of Western civilisation, I'm telling you...

Re: lol

[cliph.livejournal.com]

Do you know how difficult it is to get a decent cup of tea?

[ezrael.livejournal.com]

is there a reason you need to be communicating that you are laughing out loud in a manner that only takes three keystrokes? Because if not, you could actually say "That was really funny" or "I'm laughing out loud at that."

We don't *have* to use the acronyms.

[malinaldarose.livejournal.com]

not "LOL!"

This is why I *snork*. If it's something funnier than a *snork*, I generally say something along the lines of "good thing I wasn't drinking."

[lumen.livejournal.com]

I think the whole issue of netspeak has evolved into a joke. When the people I know use "leetspeak" online, they use it in an underlining way, not as a substitute to words or feelings. That is the only way I would ever use it, even though I still think that the whole netspeak has a tremendous humoristic side to someone whose native language is different from English. None of the people I know use netspeak offline, but then they are Finnish. Netspeak doesn't translate all that well. :)

Come to think of it, I'm actually seeing fewer people using netspeak even on games such as Ragnarok Online, which does not bother to encourage role playing or proper use of the English language. People generally scold players who communicate in a "can U giv me sum z plz", and ask them to repeat the sentence in a polite, understandable way. To me, however, the person and personality behind the communication skills (or lack of skills) matters the most.

This (http://www.bokochoco.com/ragnarok/gallery/displayimage.php?pos=-330) is a good example of how I use netspeak as a joke on my website and in my gaming / MMORPG entries. It's hard to explain. Its purpose is to point out that I'm aware how this kind of "leetspeak" is connected to mindless MMORPGs, that I think RO is indeed a fairly mindless game, and that while I think RO can be very entertaining and amusing, I'm still not overly appreciative of netspeak being a part of it, and that I find the whole concept of netspeak quite amusing.

Then again, my sense of humor is a little twisted, and I'm probably expecting far too much of my visitors. :/