Would it kill ya...

Roger Tulk

Member
Messages
3,018
Location
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
...to type out complete words? RAS, ROS, BTC, DNA, TS, TBC, CBA, WOP, PSI, LV, DP, RT, CNC, C&C, CBC, AGH! These 3LAs will be the death of me. Over the year or two I've been here, I've picked up most of these, but to somebody new to the forum, or even new to a particular section of the forum it looks as though we are speaking in code. Could we spell out the terms at least the first time we use them in a post, to give our neophytes and people like me with short memories a break!

Just sayin'
 
That was easy Ken, only 232 to commit to memory. Should have it all locked in by 2050.

Frankly I think Roger has a good point. We all know quite a few, but certainly not enough to avoid wondering what is being said on occasion. I frequently have to guess what the acronym means by context of the post.
 
I write instruction manuals for a living, so I'm required to spell out all acronyms the first time they're used in a document. With that in mind, I agree with Roger in general. There are a lot of acronyms used here that I think should at least be spelled out the first time they're used in a post, in my opinion. I mean seriously, how much faster is it to type WOP instead of wipe-on poly? (Although granted, WOP has become pretty common woodworking vernacular, but still, to a newbie, it can be confusing. Same with a lot of other common woodworking acronyms like ROS and RAS.) Spelling it out the first time can be immensely helpful to people who are new to the hobby.

There are others items, though, where the acronym has become the de facto name of the item. Radar and laser are two that instantly come to mind. Another one (at least for me) is CNC. Even when people have no idea that it stands for Computer Numeric Control, they generally have a pretty good idea what a CNC machine is and does. MPH and PSI are also pretty commonly understood, but if someone is talking about Penn State Industries, they should at least say "Penn State" the first time they refer to the company. ;)
 
One acronym I've had issue with, but use it in most cases because of its "universal" application, is DNA. These days, if one uses the term "DNA" it generally applies to genetic material. Woodworkers, of course, use it to signify denatured alcohol. Therein lies the problem: Denatured Alcohol is two words; one beginning with D, the other with A, so why shouldn't it be simply DA for denatured alcohol? While most of us probably have denatured alcohol in our shops I hope we don't have an issue that brings the other "DA" to us! :eek:

OK, time for another JB on the rocks! :thumb:
 
...to type out complete words? RAS, ROS, BTC, DNA, TS, TBC, CBA, WOP, PSI, LV, DP, RT, CNC, C&C, CBC, AGH! These 3LAs will be the death of me. Over the year or two I've been here, I've picked up most of these, but to somebody new to the forum, or even new to a particular section of the forum it looks as though we are speaking in code. Could we spell out the terms at least the first time we use them in a post, to give our neophytes and people like me with short memories a break!

Just sayin'

You think that's bad!!?? Work in medicine for a week!! I have more residents written up for ordering a BAL (Blood alcohol Level) rather than a MBAL (Mini-bronchial alveolar lavage). All the while working for HHS/NDMS/DMAT CA-6 being an RRT/RCP III O-4 FA/USN CVN-72...some one stop me!!! I'm with Bill...where's my Zinfandel!
 
You think that's bad!!?? Work in medicine for a week!! I have more residents written up for ordering a BAL (Blood alcohol Level) rather than a MBAL (Mini-bronchial alveolar lavage). All the while working for HHS/NDMS/DMAT CA-6 being an RRT/RCP III O-4 FA/USN CVN-72...some one stop me!!! I'm with Bill...where's my Zinfandel!

I can relate, writing manuals for medical record software. To make matters worse, some of the acronyms have no bearing on the software package they describe. I'm currently working on a suite of products used as a Record and Patient Management System. The acronym for this suite? BMW. The legacy Patient Registration program? Why, it's called AG, of course. The list goes on and on. Go figure. :rolleyes:
 
I take it Mr. Tulk likes texting as much as I do! He is correct about all the letters.. I was always taught the first time you spell it out than you can is the initials in the rest of the message. If I don't do that someone please bonk me over the head. I know I get lazy sometimes.
 
The question is less "would it kill me" but "might it kill me". Its possible it just might! Is it really worth taking the chance? I dunno, mama always said to not play in the street but YMMV.
 
I've spent so much of my career typing that it's actually harder for me to type acronyms than to just type out the word... 'course in the course of my professional work, we used acronyms for airports.... PHX - PHONEIX, ABQ - ALBUQUERQUE (ABQ is actually easier than the word), TYS - KNOXVILLE, LGA - NEW YORK, EWR - NEWARK, JFK - NEW YORK, IAH - HOUSTON, IAD - WASHINGTON, DCA - WASHINGTON, CVG - CINCINNATI, ORD - CHICAGO OHARE, YIP - DETROIT....
 
C'mon, everyone knows they are called TLAs, not 3LAs

Not sure you can say that Charlie...check the COC.
Rennie...No idea but Stat just means in a hurry and the brain cell that had that info died at BW 2013
Ted...I was hoping to leave that out...I swear Stacey and I only talk in 3-4 letter acronyms anymore!! Wow...I made a sentence with words!!
 
One that has always kept me up at night, does a Roman doctor say, "get me a saline 4, STAT"?

:rofl: That's funny IV sure.

...ABQ - ALBUQUERQUE (ABQ is actually easier than the word)...

I use ABQ a lot, especially places like on Facebook when talking to other Albuquerqueans. But then again, I worked at the airport for about 3 years, so I actually worked at ABQ. (Good job on spelling Albuquerque correctly, by the way.) :)
 
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