Internet Tips & Tricks
By MARK DAVIS
General Manager, CommSpeed Internet Service
Vice
President, Prescott Computer Society
Visit the Computer Society Website
www.prescottcomputersociety.org
Instant Messaging
Instant Messaging (IM)
allows for instant text communication between online
users. IM programs also include features that let you:
-
create lists of
friends with alerts when they come online
-
participate in chat
and game rooms
-
exchange files
-
search for and meet
people with similar interests
-
video message with
your friends and relatives
Some IM programs even
let you send short messaging service (SMS) text messages
from your computer to a SMS-enabled cellular phone or
pager.
The most-popular IM
programs come free of charge from AOL, Yahoo!, and
Microsof - and one smaller company, ICQ Inc.
A word about security -
remember that any profiles you create can be accessed by
other IM users, friendly or not. Like any other
online activity, it's important to use common sense.
Armed with this
knowledge, head out into the IM world. After all,
to use another cliché, 200 million users can't be wrong.
Because instant messaging moves fast, so does the
typing. Here are some common abbreviations. They are
also used in e-mail, in addition to instant messaging.
AFK
-- Away from keyboard
B -- I'm back
BBFN -- Bye bye for now
BBL -- I'll be back later
BFN -- Bye for now
BG -- Big grin
BO -- Brain overload
BRB -- I'll be right back
CMIIW -- Correct me if I'm wrong
CU -- See you
CUL8R -- See you later
EG -- Evil grin
FIIOOH -- Forget it. I'm out of here
FITB -- Fill in the blank
G -- Grin
G2G -- I've got to go
IMHO -- In my humble opinion
JK -- Just kidding
L8R -- Later
LOL -- I'm laughing out loud
NE1 -- Anyone
OMG -- Oh my gosh
ROFL -- Rolling on the floor laughing
TIC -- Tongue in cheek
TTYL -- I'll talk to ya later
WB -- Welcome back
NEXT: Email Etiquette
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