Use of abbreviations

I spent nearly 20 years writing technical procedure and one of the first rules I learned is not everyone knows the definitions of abbreviations used (myself included). When you write a question in the forum and/or answer a question please define your abbreviations (XCP etc.). The general rule is you that you define the abbreviation the first time it is used, then use the abbreviation later. Thank you

2 Likes

In case that is the term in question today it means X-Carve Pro

I think Acronyms would be the proper term, but hey, Iā€™m no 20 year experienced technical writer now am I.

.
Seemingly Relevant Side Note: I would guess that about 20 maybe 25 people will read this thread. I would bet that even less actually read the actual rules (and ToS for that matter) of the forum to begin with, so with that in mind, I really doubt that the majority of the users of this forum will comply with the aforementioned suggestion, just keeping it real with ya :man_shrugging:

.
And for further clarification since the only acronym specifically referenced was ā€œXCPā€ . . . I canā€™t speak for everyone, but I know that as for me personally, Iā€™m most definitely probably not going to write out ā€œX-Carve Proā€ when the topic of the post is already ā€œX-Carve Proā€ and the OP (that means Original Poster BTW (that means By The Way BTW)) can more than likely deduce that XCP=X-Carve Pro considering they already own that particular machine since they are posting into that topic and can usually determine the meaning based on context clues.

Anyway, just my unsolicited 2 cents.
It is what it is. Hopefully no hard feelings, just sticking to the facts tonight.
GL

2 Likes

I agree with Neil.
When you use acronyms, you only assume that everyone else knows what it means.

BTW IA
BTICBW
:smiley:

1 Like

I rest my caseā€¦

1 Like

:rofl:

I think that there is a blurred line between what is acceptable and what is notā€¦

B.T.W. - ā€˜By the wayā€™ - Common parlance, known by all much like W.T.F. and O.M.G.

I.A. - ā€˜I Agreeā€™ - Not so widely used but still considered common.

B.T.I.C.B.W. - ā€˜But Then I Could Be Wrongā€™ - Not commonly used at all. More of a colloquialism depending on what parts of the internet you frequent. A bit like X.C.P. here.

All of these are expressions used in common parlance, so they do not require a glossary or have to follow S.N. (Standard Nomenclature). This is one of the ā€˜learning curvesā€™ of using the internet. No one gets bashed for asking what O.M.G. means.

Similarly forums are not technical documentation, nor are their participants technical document writers. There is no requirement therefore to follow S.N. especially for acronyms that are already widely accepted within the community.

In reality it is actually a double edged sword: The expectation that people use proper nomenclature for the benefit of those who do not know proper nomenclature. There is of course a certain irony in this.

Iā€™m not sure that asking that all abbreviations and acronyms follow S.N. for every post that they are used within is actually a workable and realistic solution. It is akin to asking that everyone uses proper spelling, grammar and punctuation, and that people do not confuse the correct context of ā€˜thereā€™, ā€˜theyā€™reā€™ and ā€˜theirā€™. Reality is: Itā€™s simply not going to happen.

So, I think that rather than expecting a glossary to be added to each and every post (inline or otherwise), it is much easier to add one global glossary that can be accessed by all, either officially in the knowledge-base or unofficially as a forum post. Both areas can be easily searched.

In fact given its title, this very post serves this purpose well. Much more efficient to manage one single glossary than getting everyone else on the internet to change their ways.

Iā€™ll start it offā€¦

XCP = ā€˜X-Carve Proā€™

Neale. I think that given your direct and relevant experience in such matters, along with your vested interest in this, I vote that you should be the one to collate and manage the data.

:wink: :smiley:

2 Likes

This topic was automatically closed 90 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.