There is a keyboard right there in front of you, you have the time and patience to turn on your computer, wait for it to boot up, open up your browser, log on, get to the sheffield forum website, browse through the array of threads open to discussion and then....... the possibility of producing a coherent and appreciated comment is blown away by
Originally posted by ?
'It was ded gud. my m8 sed we shd try it, n we luvd it'

or something similar.

Is one key too far from the other to bother writing the full word?

Has apathetic text speak become such an integral part of written language that it now is the norm?

Am I already a grouchy old man at the age of just 25?

Turn down that stereo and fetch my horlicks!!!

I am in full agreement, because I don't understand half of it

Couldn't agree with you more. It's bloomin' awful trying to decifer what the person is trying to say.

Ban it NOW! :thumbsup:

The chances are though that if some of these people tried to type words of more than eight characters they'd get the speling wrong.
One good thing about 'txt' speech is that you can't distinguish the dim-wits from the intelligent which means you can't get any pre-concieved idea's about some-one's IQ

In sme cases we have pulled the posting and asked the user to translate the gibberish in to English.

Other times we let it ride - I have personally noticed a correlation between excessive text speak and general rudeness of the poster, but that could be just my biases showing.

Joe

I think any posts in text speak should be removed...it looks cheap and is certainly not easy on the eye....personally I don't bother reading them...they don't deserve a reply if the poster can't be bothered to type correctly.

I cannot understand why text speak is still used at all since most mobiles now have predictive text etc!

I don't mind the IMO and LOL etc but every written word is dire!

My 21 year old cousin is in New Zealand at present and he sent me this email last week....we will be having words!!

good evenin!
got back from rd trip!
needed to sort my stay ova ere out asap!
clocked up 5000k in the car! got all the way to the bottto ov the south
island!
drove thru the place where they filmd lord ov the rings!
theres jus so much to see n do! spent al ov 1 day jus chillin in a thermal
pool
on the side ov a volcano! there al ova the place! avin trouble sendin the
photos but soon
as i work it out illl send them!
settlin rite in jus waitin for paperwk to get sortd n get a national
insurance no
il b fine! k would love it ova ere! tell him to hurry up n turn 18!!!
hope everythin ok!
bye for now!!

:P

Originally posted by JoePritchard
Other times we let it ride - I have personally noticed a correlation between excessive text speak and general rudeness of the poster, but that could be just my biases showing.

Joe

I am in complete agreement with you here Joe; rudeness and text speak seem to go hand in hand on here generally!

Originally posted by Kristian
I am in complete agreement with you here Joe; rudeness and text speak seem to go hand in hand on here generally!

You and Joe seem to be hand in hand quite a lot lately....Anything to tell us (he asked innocently)

Now back on the subject;)

Perhaps Geoff could add to his "read this before posting" that text speak is not welcome on the forum :)

Originally posted by Kristian
I am in complete agreement with you here Joe; rudeness and text speak seem to go hand in hand on here generally!

Yes i agree too, some one posted a whole post in it last week, didn't understand a word of it, don't see the point in it realy, looks like a "show off" thing to me, so why show off if no-one gets it ?

i shorten some words in texts but i do not understand half of this rubbish they type! i was actually talking about this with another forummer today and we both agreed!
BAN IT:D

I always end up explaining to my mother in txt's what it means. I should really learn just to spend the extra 10p and write it in two, it always ends up taking 3/4 to get her to understand what I'm trying to say :loopy:

So yes, let's ban it!

Aye, irradicate it, it takes me a week to read what they are saying, thats if I bother, I tend to just skip posts with text speak in.

Joel

Being a touch-typist/secretary, I find it impossible to use textspeak, either when typing or when texting, apart from "lol", "btw", "IMO" etc.

I also can't read it. HottyMcBuff is right ~ the keyboard is there, and has 26 letter keys and loads of other keys on it that are supposed to be used....that includes a, e, i, o, & u, which vowels are quite often omitted in textspeak.

The textspeak posters on SF take umbrage (and some of them are very rude) when told that their posts are unreadable, and would they please translate. I don't think most of them would know how to spell any words with more than four letters. As a lot of these textspeak posters are still at school, I wonder how they manage with their school work, and ultimately GCSEs and A levels.

Textspeak in its extreme forms should be banned. Obviously, the odd word here and there in a posting can be accepted, because at least most of us would be able to make sense of the rest of the posting:wink:

Originally posted by Hook
I always end up explaining to my mother in txt's what it means. I should really learn just to spend the extra 10p and write it in two, it always ends up taking 3/4 to get her to understand what I'm trying to say :loopy:

I sometimes try to make them out, but the flow is severely disrupted and it is far more difficult to read than real words. I also notice that people who can spell perfectly well when writing resort to such terrible spellings as 'ov' and 'rite', as well as generic indecipherable nonsense as demonstrated by Shiesh earlier in the thread.

It's the text speak without punctuation that does me!
When there's no full stops, capital letters or paragraphs I get a headache trying to read it.

Maybe I need my eyes testing :heyhey:

Originally posted by MysTique
It's the text speak without punctuation that does me!
When there's no full stops, capital letters or paragraphs I get a headache trying to read it.

Maybe I need my eyes testing :heyhey:

One big long mashed up line of letter and number based gibberish, I agree with you there. Punctuation for the masses.

Joel

On second thought, Banning is a bit pickie, after all how often does it happen, not much !

"txt" speak is just so, to keep what the texter is trying to say down to 1 message.


Here on the "Internet" we are not governed by character restrictions. Wonderful isn't it!

Although, if the "txt"speaker had an O2 sim, even on payg, you get 300 free text messages. So whats the point then of keeping it down to 1 message?


BAN IT!!!

Originally posted by spiffymonkey
I sometimes try to make them out, but the flow is severely disrupted and it is far more difficult to read than real words. I also notice that people who can spell perfectly well when writing resort to such terrible spellings as 'ov' and 'rite', as well as generic indecipherable nonsense as demonstrated by Shiesh earlier in the thread.

I think it's when I send texts along the lines of:

'mum, hm 2m, train @ 2.45, cn u b @ stn 4 5 wrk @ 7, luv me xxx' that confuse her! If I text them to anybody my age, they'd understand, sometimes I forget with my mother though! But I'd argue that there's a place for that sort of language, but that place certainly isn't a forum!

I have no problem understanding/ reading it.
I feel it is inappropriate to use on here though.

TTFN :D

Originally posted by WallBuilder
One good thing about 'txt' speech is that you can't distinguish the dim-wits from the intelligent which means you can't get any pre-concieved idea's about some-one's IQ


Oh, but you can still tell the "dim-wits" from the intelligent posters on here.


The "dim-wits" still insist on using "txt spk" on here;).




Originally posted by JoePritchard
I have personally noticed a correlation between excessive text speak and general rudeness of the poster, but that could be just my biases showing.

Joe



I don't think it's just you:thumbsup:



Originally posted by Nathen
Here on the "Internet" we are not governed by character restrictions. Wonderful isn't it!


We do have restrictions (even on here we're limited to 15500 characters per post):).




I've sent, in total, probably 10 (at the most) text messages in my entire life, and even then would not use obscure accronyms (this was many years ago).

signed..

i particularly hate it when people use "a" to replace "er", and "y" to replace "i":

i neva ryt lyk dis coz its fkin stupid

on another note, Hotty McBuff: best username ever :lol:

Oh please can we 'ban' text speak on the forum. I can't understand it.

I'm not some old crinkley and I use my mobile phone lots to text and will use some basic text speak because you can't write masses on the text.

But entire subjects discussed using text speak??? No - I can't be fussed to read it as it takes me ages to crack the code.


And I too think Hotty McBuff is a great username... Makes me smile.

I resent being referred to as a dimwit!

Fair enough, I don't type posts in txt style type but when I'm in the chat room I do because it is more convenient.

I can't understand how you can't understand it, it seems so logical in my head!!

Fair enough, I have a problem with the fact that because of this txt speak some of the younger generations find proper English more difficult as they get into the habit of typing/texting and sometimes speaking like that, which is so wrong!

So would I still be allowed to use it in the chat room??
Although maybe I should stop doing it, due to whoever it was in the chat room the other day who decided that because I typed like that I must be a 16 year old chav just escaped from juvenile detention....which displeased me slightly.

Originally posted by CherryNicole
snip....which displeased me slightly.

Slightly? :wow: I'm surprised they are still about to tell their tale... ;)

K x

There seems to be yet another increase in the number of postings using 'text speak', mainly from the newer (& younger?) members of the Forum.

Please please please use proper English - text speak is so lazy and irritating!

An article showing just how bad it's getting. If the kids are using it in their exams then what hope is there for the English language?

Telegraph Article (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/09/17/nspel17.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/09/17/ixhome.html)

/signed.

"txt" speak is useful for texting as you are very limited by the number of characters you can send (although I still tend to write mine in English - just can't bring myself to do it).

However on the forum you're not so limited (yes there's a limit, but it's much larger and I doubt many people have had to cut down their posts to get under it) so it is pointless, lazy, ignorant and rude in my mind.

Using it in the chatroom is ok in moderation I think - things like LOL, BRB, WB are ok, as are messages like:

"BRB everyone - phone."

Much more than that and it starts to annoy me again though.

You can't ban text speak! I don't have anyone to easily riducle then! You me making me work much harder to retain my superiority complex. Thats too terrible to imagine.

Wilf

Originally posted by BrainThrust
You can't ban text speak! I don't have anyone to easily riducle then! You me making me work much harder to retain my superiority complex. Thats too terrible to imagine.

Wilf

You really have the best superiority complex of all don't you? Tsch :)

Personallly i dont see what the problem is?

I dont use text speak in either mobile texts or on the web, but if someone else does, so what? Yeah its annoying.....but so is the fact that certain people here will put others down at the slightest mis-spelling? that annoys me just as much!!

Granted if someones post is totally un-readable then the Mods should ask them to alter it, but if its just a few shortened words then either dont read it or keep up with modern society!?!

There is an email i will try to find that has every word in it mis-spelt......yet it is entirely understanderble; this is due to the theory that as long as the first and last letters in each word (including correct letters in each word but not in correct order..e.g Hlleo, inst the waehter awufll toady) then the human brain can easily decipher what is meant ...............therefore, while it is lazy to use text speak, is it also lazy of you to not understand it????

Originally posted by Ollie
.... Hlleo, inst the waehter awufll toady) then the human brain can easily decipher what is meant ...............therefore, while it is lazy to use text speak, is it also lazy of you to not understand it????
that isn't text speak, and I think you'll find that the research you are describing that was carried out in Oxford doesn't cover the substitution of numeric characters into the English language :roll:

Text speak prevents the forum searches from working, and is much harder to read.

We have enough trouble deciphering unpunctuated rants on here without reading everything out loud to force it to make sense :P

Originally posted by Strix
We have enough trouble deciphering unpunctuated rants on here without reading everything out loud to force it to make sense :P


Spk 4 urslf Str6!!!!!

(I'm a fully paid up, card carrying user of the Queen's English -as long as she doesn't mind me using it!)

I know that isn't text speak, it is mearly an example that incorrect spellings aren't actually as hard to read as generally thought. My point is more directed at "is text speak really that hard to read, or do non-text speakers just whinge about it too much because they don't/are to stubborn to use it?"

Like I said in my original post, I personally dont use it and do find it a bit of an embuggerance but at the end of the day this is the type of writing which will take preference in the future as its what the current "young" generation are growing up with so we may as well start getting used to it now rather than being a bit stuck up/fuddy duddy and banning it??

Really, I suppose if you've got nothing to say, you don't really need a concise format to project your non-opinion :D

But on the other hand I have read some really interesting and opinionated posts from younger members who use text speak!?! *if i knew(aka could be bothered to learn) smilies, i'd put the one with the thumbs up here!*

Ah, now smilies..... if you go into your 'options' and switch them on, they're on a clickable menu ;) - nothing to 'learn'

Originally posted by Ollie
But on the other hand I have read some really interesting and opinionated posts from younger members who use text speak!?!...

My dad has now resorted to communicating with me by text using text speak... so it's not always the young'uns!

He actually sent me a text the other day that went:

(Let me just get it on my phone...)

r u gwn 2 c mny stdnts nxt wk? hrd cty wl b bsy on rdio

...perhaps this is a bastardisation of text speach adopted by the older generation: leave out the vowels!:D

Originally posted by Deavon
...perhaps this is a bastardisation of text speach adopted by the older generation: leave out the vowels!:D
Or they haven't figured out how to make the phone do numbers ;)

Haha, you see.......we'll all be at it in a few years!! Your Dad is obviously up to speed, this is why i question what the big deal about it is.?

PS - Cheers for the smilies tip Strix.....although technically there WAS something to learn as I didn't know that .....:thumbsup:

Originally posted by Strix
Or they haven't figured out how to make the phone do numbers ;)

:hihi:

Maybe he just sat on it by mistake and that's what was sent!!!

Made sense to me! (...in the end:suspect: )

Originally posted by Ollie
PS - Cheers for the smilies tip Strix.....although technically there WAS something to learn as I didn't know that .....:thumbsup:
If you need to know where they are.... it's 'vbcodes' you need to switch on :thumbsup:

Originally posted by Ollie
technically there WAS something to learn as I didn't know that .....:thumbsup:

Bg rspct 2 t te nw ... oh I can't do it!

Big respect to the new found smileys!:clap: :clap: :clap:

We love them!!!:D :D :clap: :clap: :D :D

(and never over-use them)

Cheers, now have lots of smilies on the left of my screen and im sure they're staring at me!! :D

I actually read something in one of the papers yesterday (Observer? Telegraph?) about text speak turning up in a rising number of GCSE papers this year, things like "m8" instead of mate, "shoulda", "aint", "gonna".... shocking.

Yes it does appear to turn up on here quite alot and you can normally guess the age of the author according to their style. I don't mind it in text messages, but what a shame not to show your articulate side on here, especially if it means people skip over your post because they don't have time to try and decipher it.

I say bn txt spk frm shef frm asap innit!

Originally posted by HottyMcBuff
There is a keyboard right there in front of you, you have the time and patience to turn on your computer, wait for it to boot up, open up your browser, log on, get to the sheffield forum website, browse through the array of threads open to discussion and then....... the possibility of producing a coherent and appreciated comment is blown away by


or something similar.

Is one key too far from the other to bother writing the full word?

Has apathetic text speak become such an integral part of written language that it now is the norm?

Am I already a grouchy old man at the age of just 25?

Turn down that stereo and fetch my horlicks!!!


A snob? on the sheffield forum? i am shocked and stunned! i never thought id see the day! :D

Originally posted by Ditz
A snob? on the sheffield forum? i am shocked and stunned! i never thought id see the day! :D

In a previous discussion (can't remember if it was on SF or not) that links nicely to the way people insist on spelling badly, as if to make a point. They counter any argument with 'yeh bt ur a snob' or however it would be written. It seems like some kind of pride in being worse at something (the English language) than other people?!

From what I can see, there is a culture in Britain of being 'proud to be lower class', a kind of inverted snobbery, that is growing and spilling over into other areas. I know of middle-class kids who think it snobbery to insist of proper spelling. The funniest (to me) description I've heard for it is a 'prolier than thou' attitude, which seems to just about sum it up :)

(Yes, I'm sure I'll be accused of being a snob, but I don't care. The people likely to accuse me are the ones exhibiting the afformentioned attitude anyway!)

edit: found the discussion here (http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=48014&highlight=prolier+than+thou). It was on inverted snobbery in general.

how come I got jumped on the last time I complained about text speak, eh?

Anyway, I agree, ban it.

Oh, and contractions such as lol or IMHO are not text speak, they were used online before texting existed.

Love it or hate it,text talk is here to stay.Although i think it has a place..do you think that its used all to common now.Maybe getting to the point where people especially young kids can't spell correctly..
Also..on forum chat it gets used for too much..i personally would like to see text talk banned from the forum chat room..But i suppose i do use it now and then by saying ..lol..

What do you think...

john t (jt)

From the title I thought you meant something else - a service provided for speech impaired people but if you'd done a little search I think you would have found the issues you wish to discuss have been well and truly aired.

http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=45071&highlight=text+speech


By the way if you search under "text speech" you'll find there are quite a few more.

I'm not a fan of text talk, it's bad enough on text messages, when my teenage daughter sends me a text it takes me a while to work out what on earth she's on about.:)

Definately don't like it on forums where there IS enough room to write what you want.

Mod: Threads Merged.

Cheers mate..i thought my thread had been pulled..

john t (jt)

Originally posted by Englishlady
I'm not a fan of text talk, it's bad enough on text messages, when my teenage daughter sends me a text it takes me a while to work out what on earth she's on about.:)



Are you kidding? Even my Nan texts me in "txt spk" haha.

Unrelated (sort of..) but phrases like "lol" and "lmao" do my head in. As do words like "huggles" and "muchly".

Part of original post by GazB
Unrelated (sort of..)-but phrases like "lol" and "lmao" do my head in.-
Acronyms such as LOL and LMAO are 'Internet Shorthand' for frequently used phrases and still have their place (in moderation), in posts to forums etc., in addition to having been in common usage long before texting via a mobile was even possible! IYSWIM? ;)


(Edited for speling misteak that was bugging me!)

Originally posted by Bic0
Acronyms such as LOL and LMAO are 'Internet Shorthand' for frequently used phrases and still have their place (in moderation), in posts to forums etc., in addition to having been in common useage long before texting via a mobile was even possible! IYSWIM? ;)

I do see what you're saying and I used to use them myself.. But they just annoy me. Especially the "ROFL".. Does anybody ever find anything so funny, that they are reduced to rolling around on the floor laughing? :)

not been funny,

but who really has enough time to give a hoot?

I don't type in txt speak but for such a discussion forum i'm quite suprised you haven't heard of the term "freedom of speech", which, in this modern day and age covers speech txt email or whatever.

Originally posted by breeza
not been funny,

but who really has enough time to give a hoot?

I don't type in txt speak but for such a discussion forum i'm quite suprised you haven't heard of the term "freedom of speech", which, in this modern day and age covers speech txt email or whatever.

Freedom of speech is about being allowed to say what you like, not being allowed to butcher the english language in the process.
And as this isn't a public service bulletin board freedom of speech is limited to whatever the owner/admins wish.

Originally posted by GazB
I do see what you're saying and I used to use them myself.. But they just annoy me. Especially the "ROFL".. Does anybody ever find anything so funny, that they are reduced to rolling around on the floor laughing? :)
There may be one or two that could answer "Yes" to your question if you were to replace "ROFL" with "PML"... But that would be imparting way too much information AFAIC! ;)