All the abbreviations on here

[ItDoesMyHeadIn]

Am I the only one who gets completely fucked off with all the stupid abbreviations on here?! DS DD DH STBXH DN DGF fucking hell can't people just write it normally? Sometimes you get seven abbreviations in one paragraph it's so annoying trying to remember what mean what!

If you find them hard to remember you just aren’t spending enough time on mumsnet (not a problem I’ll ever have)

I think I spend too much time on mumsnet. When writing emails and texts I have to translate mumsnet abbreviations back into English for the 'other' people

I have this ^ problem too. I often need to write the word 'children' at work, and frequently think "Why can't everyone just but 'dc' instead"

No you are definitely not being unreasonable :) (translation 'no YANBU')

I hate all the stupid abbreviations and how people adapt them such as 'NSDS' for 'Not so dear/darling son'.

The only abbreviation I don't mind is 'OP' for original poster/thread starter because sometimes it's annoying to have to type out a long username!

Yes.

HTH

I love the dfish, dhamster, dlizard type ones, the posters are being totally genuine but all they've done is add the letter "d" and it looks so funny!

I've even started to think in MN terms now, I recall thinking of my mother in law as "mil" in my head.

That's what too much time on MN does to you

I had a message saying that a thread had been deleted as it was a PBP. What does that stand for?

PBP = Previously Banned Poster

I'm more annoyed about the lack of continuity in the number which follows DD, DS etc. Is your DD17 aged 17 or do you have 17 children? Who knows!

PBP was Previously Banned Pervert on at least one occasion.

The acronyms are part of the language and identity of the site (the idiolect for fellow linguists). They matter.

People who really don't like them do not have to post here, or try to force themselves into a community that they aren't happy with at such an important, fundamental issue. It's not as if here aren't plenty of other chat sites! Trying to change the core language, in jokes and all thee other things that bind a community, is a hiding to nowhere.

"I'm more annoyed about the lack of continuity in the number which follows DD, DS etc. Is your DD17 aged 17 or do you have 17 children? Who knows!"

Well, everyone who has been around here a bit, and who cares about accuracy

DD2 is your second daughter
DD(2) is a daughter who is two

This used to be nicely pointed out (or queried, when the numbers were such that it wasn't clear), until everyone started shouting at those who did so. So I'm not surprised that people become and remain confused,

Not everyone follows your nice little system of putting the numbers in brackets.

Thank you AuntieStella for putting into words what I've been trying to work out how to say! I agree completely.

I would assume DS17 was a 17 year old DS rather than the 17th son TBF.

"Not everyone follows your nice little system of putting the numbers in brackets."

It's not 'my' system, it's the MN system!

And you're right, lots of people cause confusion by not following the MN system. But it's those who point it out who got shouted at (often by newbies who found it 'unwelcoming') so I'm not surprised that there are posters who never learned the conventions.

AuntieStella arguably people starting threads moaning about the abbreviations happens frequently enough such that it might be considered a core part of MN ;)

WTA?

"I would assume DS17 was a 17 year old DS rather than the 17th son TBF"

Unless it was a quiverful thread, then that sort of number would mean only one thing.

But when the number is 1, 2, 3 or 4 it can get really confusing. I think the old MN distinction is damned useful.

"AuntieStella arguably people starting threads moaning about the abbreviations happens frequently enough such that it might be considered a core part of MN ;)"

Agree!

Some threads are hardy perennials (including threads about which threads they are)

Not everyone follows your nice little system of putting the numbers in brackets*

Well they should. It just screams to me they are amateurs and not taking MN seriously enough.

No problem with it here. Been here donkeys years and often try to put DH and DC ect in day to day writing too.

Fiancé friend and father can get slightly confused but not for long when you read the whole post.

The only one that confuses me is GPs. Especially on a medical matter concerning elderly members of the family

Maybe it depends a bit how you tend to read? I scan read and something like STBXBIL (as mentioned upthread) reads easily and goes in much faster than the written words would. My DH is a very ... whatever the opposite of scan reader is ... and hates abbreviations.

For many many years I thought STBXH was 'shoot the bastard ex husband' which I thought was going a bit far ....

Catherine - GPS also means guinea pigs, on the right thread!

I always find threads where everyone is Dx something or other confusing, and much prefer/find easier when each person is given a name.

So instead of "DH said to DD14 and DS9 about DGM and her STBXSIL"
It would be "Bob said to Julie and James about nanny's sister in law..."

(I also find is highly suspicious that people are calling everyone "dear", when the content of the threads clearly makes them out to be anything but!)