Is this the evolution of the [written] english language?

Question

a lot of people on the internet use PC Slang (i.e.- lol, np, ty, gm, wtf, gi-go, etc.)
20 years ago SHORTHAND was an elective in High School.....
I agree that using auto-correct is imperative, but what do you think of PC Slang?
like it, love it or hate it?

Answer 1

in my personal opinion, abbreviations (like the ones you named; lol, gj, brb, etc.) are perfectly fine. they save time.

but what i absolutely cannot stand (and once again, this is just my opinion) is when people use "u" for "you", "r" for "are", "y" for "why", "2" for "two", "4" for "for", etc. it bothers me for the same reason that "your" in place "you're" bothers me. it's because it neglects the grammatical function of the word and focuses rather on the phonetics. and this is what causes ambiguity in languages.

it wouldn't be so bad actually, if they systematically always used "2" for 'to", "to" for "too", and then "too" for "two" or something like that. it would be confusing for the rest of us, but at least that person will have kept the pathways to the different meanings separate. and ultimately, that's what's really important.

Answer 2

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/dict.asp?Word=jargon

I think it's jargon. These things cropped up because people had to use a keyboard and most people were never trained to type, which once was a specialist thing, for secretaries in business mostly, but also newspaper people and writers. Computers put the typing situation in front of everybody, and so they came up with easy things to type to cut down on the hunt and peck time.

Now it is out of hand. People, mostly kids, think it is sooo kewl to misspell and use "in" signs and symbols....and it also is a handy way to disguise their lack of education.

Answer 3

I'm no fan of it at all. In my opinion it's just a way of avoiding the correct spelling of the words being used....just look at the horrific spelling and grammar used here in Yahoo Answers. We in the US are turning out a generation of illiterates. Sorry, off my soapbox now.

Answer 4

Any language is in a state of flux and evolution. 1000 years from now , English will be quite different.

Answer 5

I dont care much about it, hardly ever use it

Answer 6

Love it!

Answer 7

i wouldn't say that i like it, when it is used all the time, it gets irritating.

Answer 8

helps when typing.