"Commonly Used Acronyms"
(By: The "Hawaiian WebMaster")

There are different acronyms that have been developed and are now used in the online world. These acronyms are time saving short cut phrases and are used just like smileys. They are usually typed in capital letters and are used to represent phrases. Using acronyms help cut down on typing and they are also employed to indicate emphasis.

These abbreviations are somethimes referred to as the "spiritual descendants" of the Morse Code conventions used by ham radio operators since the 1920s. Acronyms are commonly used in different manners of Internet discourse such as within Usenet articles, in e-mail messages, and when using the IRC or in TALK sessions.

Although not every possible acronym that you will ever encounter is listed here, it should be adequate enough to get you through. Do not hesitate to ask another person the meaning of an acronym if it is something that is new to you.

Following are some of the most commonly used acronyms:

AFAIK - as far as I know KISS - keep it simple, stupid AYST - are you still there? KWIM - know what I mean? BBL - be back later LOL - laughing out loud BRB - be right back LTNS - long time no see BTW - by the way MORF - male or female CMH - cross my heart MOTOS - member of the opposite sex CUL - see you later MOTSS - member of the same sex F2F - face-to-face MUVM - missed you very much FAQ - frequently asked questions NRN - no reply necessary FOAF - friend of a friend OIC - oh I see FWIW - for what it's worth OTOH - on the other hand FYI - for your information PITA - pain in the ass GA - go ahead ROTFL - rolling on the floor laughing HHOJ - ha ha only joking RTFM - read the fucking manual IDBI - I don't believe it

SOB - son of a bitch IDC - I don't care TCS - take care sweetheart IDTS - I don't think so TGIF - thank God it's Friday ILY - I love you TIA - thanks in advance IMHO - in my humble opinion TOJ - tears of joy IMI - I mean it TOY - thinking of you IOW - in other words TTFN - ta-ta for now IRAS - I really am sorry TTT - that's the truth IRL - in real life TTYL - talk to you later ISBT - it's strange but true TWIU - that's what I understand ITI - is that it? TY - thank you IUTY - it's up to you WHAK - with hugs and kisses JAM - just a minute WMRS - write me real soon JIC - just in case WRT - with regard/respect to JJ - just joking WYSIWYG - what you see is what you get

The following ten selected sentences show how some of these acronyms are used:

1. BTW, do you remember if the person was MORF?
2. TIA and I will have to TTYL when I'm done with my work.
3. FWIW, that movie was not such a good one.
4. WRT the food served, IMHO it was not really that good.
5. OTOH, he was not really a PITA.
6. FYI, if you only RTFM, you will learn how to use that modem.
7. The joke made some really LOL and others practically ROTFL.
8. IMHO it is different when you are F2F with a MOTOS than with a MOTSS.
9. AFAIK he will BRB with good answers to FAQ about Web Browsers.
10. HHOJ about it ... she is just really a FOAF.

You will also encounter the sign occasionally which is a short form for a grin. Another common convention is to lightly emphasize a word or phrase by placing it between asterisks - to indicate a level of emphasis between normal text and shouting, such as "I *think* that ..."