What is LOL?

**Chet** · 12-02-2006, 05:18 PM

Oh, I know what it stands for, and I'm sure most of you do, too. However, it has been mistakened for something else, and has been wrongly used sometimes. It has irked me to see it ending what is supposedly a serious post.

So for those who don't know what it means, and who have been using it to mean something else, this is what LOL stands for ...

Laughing Out Loud

**david uk** · 12-02-2006, 05:20 PM

good point Chet, a couple of people seem to think it means "lots of love" or something like that.....

it can sound very strange at the end of a serious post

**sal** · 12-03-2006, 01:51 AM

Thanks for clearing that up Chet, I also have been wondering about LOL on some of the more serious posts.

BTW what does roflmao and similar mean? I know I know i sheepishly admit i dont know, but it seems like a great time to ask!

Sal

**Dee** · 12-03-2006, 02:05 AM

Originally Posted by Chet

It has irked me to see it ending what is supposedly a serious post.

You and me both Chet. Laughing Out Loud is its common usage. However, to be fair, NetLingo dot com states:

LOL

Laughing Out Loud - or - Lots of Luck (or Love)

Still, it is irritating to see so much of it in seemingly the most inappropriate places. What doesn't kill us only makes us stronger.

PS: Sal,

ROTFLMAO
Rolling On The Floor Laughing My Ass Off

**sal** · 12-03-2006, 02:47 AM

Thanks for that Dee Ive just had a look at net lingo dot com as well, a really useful site for me.

Sal

**Dee** · 12-03-2006, 03:18 AM

You're welcome, Sal.

I have been online since the mid 1990s and there is still much I have to learn about proper Netiquette and terminology. Like some living creature, it keeps growing and changing on a daily basis. I give you the NetLingo Internet Dictionary for example. The newest additions there are:

high dome
vomit comet
paintmonkey
critical mess
waitbuster
value-subtracted reseller
in the plastic closet
gutter tribes
cyber noir
batmobiling
bambi
it's a feature
irritainment
permalancer
shopper-lifting
pomosexual

Now tell me, who can keep up? Certainly not me.

The Core Rules of Netiquette are excerpted from the book Netiquette by Virginia Shea.

Rule 1: Remember the Human
Rule 2: Adhere to the same standards of behavior online that you follow in real life
Rule 3: Know where you are in cyberspace
Rule 4: Respect other people's time and bandwidth
Rule 5: Make yourself look good online
Rule 6: Share expert knowledge
Rule 7: Help keep flame wars under control
Rule 8: Respect other people's privacy
Rule 9: Don't abuse your power
Rule 10: Be forgiving of other people's mistakes

Yah right. LOL