Overuse Of Acronyms Can Frustrate Newbies

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Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,348
I have posted this before, and the wave of new members prompts me to do it again. We can all help the new members by spelling out our references. Opinions?
Sticky thread with list of common abbreviations would be nice.
 

edger

Lifer
Dec 9, 2016
2,988
22,299
74
Mayer AZ
Yeah, but even as an experienced pipe smoker, I can’t always remember them. Just spell it out, aerobic training for your digits!
 
1. It’s an well established rule of good communications- When using abbreviations for the first time, define it. Or avoid using altogether.

2. Also an well established rule of good communication- It is the responsibility of the communicator to make himself understood

3. Exceptions are granted to literary figures like Shakespeare, TS Elliott, James Joyce, etc...

Having said that ... the author of a post is free to do whatever he wants. It’s his prerogative

I prefer not to use abbreviations at all. It takes time to learn to spell Giubileo, Chonowitsch etc, but I try
 

BarrelProof

Lifer
Mar 29, 2020
2,701
10,577
39
The Last Frontier

Had no idea this was on here already. Thanks for sharing!
 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
Agree. Also, when mentioning blends, other than about twenty old standards, but especially if you are mentioning a fairly rare premium tobacco, give one line to telling what base tobacco and what constituent tobaccos, and what flavorings are used. Otherwise, everyone has to Google it or comb through retailer's tobacco sites, or simply skip the discussion.
 

olkofri

Lifer
Sep 9, 2017
8,033
14,644
The Arm of Orion
Yes, it frustrates more than just newbies. The non-assholic way of using acronyms is to first introduce the term by spelling it out in full followed by the acronym in parenthesis, then you can use only the acronym in the rest of the post, thread, or document; just like @cshubhra laid out.

Of course, once you try using it in another post, thread, or document you must repeat the practice: they don't carry over to everything else you write afterwards.
 
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