Hi, Larry. One aspect of textspeak that is clear to me is that there do appear to be several varieties (we could call them dialects!) that seem to be based on age or other group memberships of the writer/speaker. The example with you and your wife is a good example. When does 'y' mean 'yes', and when does it mean 'why'. I imagine that some users would say 'y' means 'yes' and 'y?' means 'why?' The take away is that unless you really know your reader/listener, you need to be sure that you are clear! You probably cannot make as many assumptions as you think. Linda ________________________________________ Linda Di Desidero, Ph.D. Director, Communication Studies & Professional Writing University of Maryland University College School of Undergraduate Studies 3501 University Boulevard East Adelphi, MD 20783-8083 College English Association-Middle Atlantic Group http://cea.stevensonuniversity.org/ Maryland Communication Association http://www.marylandcomm.org/ (240) 684-2830 (Department) (240) 684-2928 (Office) (240) 684-2995 (Fax) -----Original Message----- From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Larry Beason Sent: Monday, December 19, 2011 1:20 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: "textspeak" and grammar rules Dear Colleagues: My co-author and I were asked to develop a 2nd edition of our usage book aimed at a general audience (McGraw-Hill Guide to Grammar & Usage). I'd like to pick your brains about the content of a particular section. One brief chapter we'll add is tentatively titled "textspeak," and our goal is to offer guidance regarding grammar and usage regarding e-communication in diverse contexts (email, text messages, social networking, etc.). This includes what should be common sense (e.g., avoid textspeak when writing formal hardcopy or formal e-texts. For the most part, there are few 'rules' that apply all these diverse situations, so our guidance will be broad and flexible for the most part. However, are there specific grammar or usage issues that you think are worth discussing with a broad range of readers in terms of e-texts? Are there common errors, for instance, that you see that involve 'textspeak' or e-communication? It's hard to develop rules or conventions in such a quickly-changing mode of communication, but do you see particular grammar, punctuation, or perhaps even stylistic problems that commonly occur in e-texts (or because of e-texts)? For instance, even in informal e-communication, I often see certain distracting or confusing language or punctuation choices--such as using acronyms that aren't commonly known (I responded to my wife's text the other day by answering "y" to a question. She saw this as challenging her question, while I thought it was clear I meant "yes". She won.) Another problematic choice even in informal e-texts is, I think, not using sentence-ending punctuation in any sentence except the last in a text message. If anyone has time for discussing 'particularly annoying or confusing' usage choices involving e-communication, I would appreciate your thoughts. Larry Beason ____________________________ Larry Beason, Associate Professor Director of Composition University of South Alabama Mobile, AL 36688-0002 Office: 251-460-7861 FAX: 251-461-1517 To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/ To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/