> >There is a small group of long established phrase abbreviations for email use: > >afaik - as far as I know >afaict - as far as I can tell >iirc - if I recall correctly (weasel phrase) >imo - in my opinion >imho - in my humble opinion (usually means their opinion is anything but >humble!) Rodger, I've been an internet user for many years now, and I have rarely seen half of these used in emails. Both afaik and imho I recognise, but the others I wouldn't without having to really think about it. I guess that just makes me lazy? >As it happens, the two-letter abbreviations for American states and Canadian >provinces are also best avoided, as they can be confused with the two letter >country codes used as top level domains on the internet. Does CA mean >California or Canada? Or that those two letter abbreviations may mean absolutely nothing to a large proportion of non-americans. I do not use NSW or ACT without first linking them in some way to New South Wales (a state of Australia) and Australian Capital Territory (a territory of Australia) as I assume that anyone overseas wouldn't understand.... I wish that those routinely using the US state codes would do the same courtesy to the rest of the world. <sigh> I tend to be lazy and just not look them up, because I guess that if I am expected to already know the US codes by heart, then the message is I assume only intended for US members. I know that this is the Pacific Bulb Society list, but I also know that this is intended for a far larger audience than just those living in that area!! >If you are going to use email, learn to use it right. That includes details >like having a signature block preceded by a line with two hyphens and a space >following them (recognized by the better email software so .sigs can be auto- >deleted when quoting). Make sure your .sig block >says where you are, both city >(spelled out!), state or province, (spelled out!), and country (spelled out!) You're assuming also here that everyone using these lists is tech-savvy enough to actually set up a signature block. If you were to require everyone to have the level of knowledge you're saying should be enforced here, you'd certainly cut down the membership of the forum..... which I think should be inclusive of all ages, rather than those who are computer technically minded. I'm and ex-tech, previously computer qualified, and I still struggle to understand some of the things you're suggesting everyone who isn't lazy should know, which means that the average person on this list most likely has zero chance of doing so. >If in doubt, spell it out! Many of us are in doubt re your acronyms....... so that means? <big grin> This forum is open and welcome to anyone who is interested in the plants we're talking about. I rarely post to forums much at present as my wife has been ill and is undergoing chemotherapy, so there have been other priorities. I still read pretty much everything though. There are a miriad of people who read this list who never post, and they should be encouraged to do so, regardless of their technical knowledge I think, because without new input this would become a rather boring set of pontifications I would imagine. <grin> Now I hope everyone understands <grin>, <big grin> and <sigh>? Maybe I should include a <wink> at various places in here as well. LOL Keep smiling all, and thank you for all your wonderfully entertaining emails. Take care all, and have a great 2012, somewhat belatedly wished in my case. Cheers. Paul T. Canberra, Australia - USDA Zone Equivalent approx. 8/9 Min winter temp -8 or -9°C. Max summer temp 40°C. Thankfully, maybe once or twice a year only. Growing an eclectic collection of plants from all over the world including Aroids, Crocus, Cyclamen, Erythroniums, Fritillarias, Galanthus, Irises, Liliums, Trilliums (to name but a few) and just about anything else that doesn't move!!