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timepiececlockHello, hello folks! I have Linguistics field project that I need you guys to help me with. You see, I was collecting data IRL, but I lost some of the documents and I need new data from people. Can you help me in my time of emergency? I need to get at least 18 people to fill this out, the more the better. Men are especially welcome since there's so few on my friends list. Er... that I know about, anyway. ;P
If you guys could answer these 8 survey questions, that would be great.
If you could then create a link in your journal to this entry to spread the word about my survey, that would be even better. But that's not part of the survey, so you don't have to and you could just answer the questions.
Thank you so so much.
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SURVEY
Gender:
Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech:
Age:
If you are 29 years or younger, do not fill out any more questions. You may leave now with my thanks.
If you are 30 years or older, please answer the following opinion questions to the best of your ability, and feel free to elaborate as much as you like:
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
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Thank you for participating. NOTE: The age question is very important so please be honest about it... my project involves the perspective of people over 30 because that's an age wherein I judged that people would have lived long enough to accurately measure some changes in the language over longer periods of time. Of course, if you want to fill it out for fun, you're welcome to do so. Just make sure you tell me so on the age question. :)
EDIT: I've got enough now, thank you!
If you guys could answer these 8 survey questions, that would be great.
If you could then create a link in your journal to this entry to spread the word about my survey, that would be even better. But that's not part of the survey, so you don't have to and you could just answer the questions.
Thank you so so much.
----------------------------------------
SURVEY
Gender:
Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech:
Age:
If you are 29 years or younger, do not fill out any more questions. You may leave now with my thanks.
If you are 30 years or older, please answer the following opinion questions to the best of your ability, and feel free to elaborate as much as you like:
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
----------------------------------------
Thank you for participating. NOTE: The age question is very important so please be honest about it... my project involves the perspective of people over 30 because that's an age wherein I judged that people would have lived long enough to accurately measure some changes in the language over longer periods of time. Of course, if you want to fill it out for fun, you're welcome to do so. Just make sure you tell me so on the age question. :)
EDIT: I've got enough now, thank you!
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 08:15 pm (UTC)Gender: Female
Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: United States
Age: 19
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 08:22 pm (UTC)Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: USA
Age: 33
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Of course. Language is always changing.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant affect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Certainly. People now talk about their DSL lines, their cable TV, their TiVo's, their websites, HTML, URLs, email, disk space, downloading music, surfing the web, etc.
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
Since 1990, casual access to the Internet has become widespread. Before then, I don't remember people talking about websites or email very often. It was mostly confined to computer geeks. But pretty much everyone knows about email (and about computer viruses, and email attachments, and digital photos, etc.). So I guess I would say that a huge number of new words and concepts have entered the language.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
URL, website, email (I used email before 1990, but I was definitely among a small number of people I knew in that regard), computer virus, DSL, upload, download, HTML, disk space, surfing the web, going online, checking email, hotlinking, bandwidth (and bandwidth theft), high-speed connection, frames (on websites), etc. -- These mostly relate to some meetingplace between technology and regular life.
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
I'm rather fond of the influences of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on idiom, which have also spread beyond fans of the television show and have invaded speech on a wider scale.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
I'm not fond of the increasing useage of acronyms (DSL, USB, HTML, URL, etc.), because they make language more difficult for outsiders to interpret. I'm also not fond of the increasing useage of "netspeak" by the younger generation. It's difficult for me to even describe it to you, because it makes so little sense to me. It seems to be derived primarily from the ultra-abbreviated text messaging systems they use to communicate with each other on their pagers and such.
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
Hmmm. That's a difficult one. But I guess I would have to go with Homer Simpson's "Doh!" It's just so expressive of something no other single word really captures.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 08:28 pm (UTC)Gender: Female
Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: US (Pacific Northwest, Canadian Parents)
Age: 29 (though, if you run short on data, I'm far closer to 30 than I am to 29, and almost everyone from my high school class would now be 30, and I'm filling the rest out for you just in case.)
If you are 29 years or younger, do not fill out any more questions. You may leave now with my thanks.
If you are 30 years or older, please answer the following opinion questions to the best of your ability, and feel free to elaborate as much as you like:
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Yes.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant affect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Fairly significant (PS, this should be "effect")
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
TLAs and netspeak are far more common, and the dropping of articles and pronouns (a habit seen mostly in email communication) seems to be spreading.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
Google (as a verb, technological), IM (as a verb, technological), Hellmouth (other), RAS/RAS in (as a verb, technological--the TLA stands for Remote Access Server. To RAS in is to connect to the RAS for the sake of doing work. "I had a cold, so I just RASed in."), Nilly (verb, sort of technological, as it's a verb formed on an internet community.)
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
Change in language is neither positive nor negative. It just is.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
See above, though I hate it when people say URL as "Earl" rather than as "U-R-L" and wish they'd stop.
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
At the moment, probably google.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
Yes, and it completely affects my answers. I've been known to describe damned near everything in tech terms without meaning to do so.
Survey
Date: 2004-03-15 08:38 pm (UTC)1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Yes. It changes with every generation.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant affect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Definitely.
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
You don't have to explain what "the net" is to kids anymore, for example. They generally are much more computer savvy than many adults -- their grandparents' generation, in particular.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
playa(M), rad(M), dotcom(T), spam(T), fanfic(F), hip-hop(M), hook up(M), da bomb(M), slash(F), vid/vidder(F), slashdot(T), hacker(T)
Source: T=technology; F=fandom; M=music/TV
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
It seems more fluid and alive -- innovation helps to keep a language fresh. Lots of new words pop up every minute and spread really quickly. I think because people are much more connected now (the net, MTV), changes in language happen much more quickly and spread more widely than they did in say the 60s or 70s.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
Language is cruder now. Lots of slang is sexist or racist, but fewer people are offended these days.
7. What's your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
Spike! Joking ... Probably bling bling. It just sounds perfect for what it describes.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
Yes, I do, but I don't think that fact had an impact on my answers above. I hear new terms everyday at work that will only become widespread 2-3 years down the road but I didn't list them here.
Re: Survey
Date: 2004-03-15 08:51 pm (UTC)Gender: F
The country of residence which most affected your speech: USA
Age: 38
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 08:51 pm (UTC)Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: USA
Age: 52
If you are 29 years or younger, do not fill out any more questions. You may leave now with my thanks.
If you are 30 years or older, please answer the following opinion questions to the best of your ability, and feel free to elaborate as much as you like:
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Yes, somewhat. Language is "slangier" and less traditionally grammatical, and some of the slang is completely new. Oh, and cursing is a LOT more commonly accepted.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant affect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Significant, but not enormous. I use a fair amount of computer metaphors: fatal error, memory overload, hard reset, core dump. (FYI, if conventional grammar matters to you, that's "effect," not "affect" that you want there.)
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
The internet makes my personal vocabulary larger, because I interact with a wider variety of people, in more specialty fields. I don't have children. I think the people I know also use more computer metaphors.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
These are always hard to think of on cue. Lots more acronyms: TMI comes immediately to mind. "Hosed"; "24-7" "dotcom"; "kewl" (though "cool" is much older); "no-brainer"; "Gen X"; "I'm down with that" is just coming into my vocabulary now. The newer "-ist" words: classist, ageist.
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
I kind of like it that cursing is more acceptable, though I do wish a lot of people (including me) would reserve "fuck" as a compliment, rather than an insult. I like the richness of some computer metaphors and I almost always like Black slang and new teenage slang when it comes along.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
Since I don't watch much TV, I get lost when there's new TV slang that enters the language (it was years before I knew "yadada yadada" was from Seinfeld for example. I tend to like slang, and like watching language evolve. I don't care for the way advertising slogans get used as core language, but that's more than 15 years old.
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
No single favorite comes immediately to mind. I'll let you know.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
No, but lots of my friends do, and I'm sure that does affect the way I use language.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 08:52 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 08:53 pm (UTC)Fairly significant (PS, this should be "effect")
::blinks:: ::rereads:: oh, hey, you're right! I'll change that. :)
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 08:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 09:04 pm (UTC)I also am not fond of acronyms. There's precious few that I use regularly on LJ and even less IRL (<--- that being one of the few.)
"Doh!"
:grin: wonderful answer.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 09:24 pm (UTC)Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: U.S.A.
Age: 31
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Yes.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
No. (With that no being due to the word "significant".)
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
I think there have been minor but multiple words that have been introduced to the English language due to the popularization of computers and the Internet. I wouldn't consider it particularly monumental, but rather the constant evolution of language that occurs as various trends and/or new technologies rise to the forefront.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
Network (the verb), significant other, telecommute, fax, vox, cell phone, worms, viruses, geek, nerd, spam (UCE), hacker, cracker, email, designer games (meaning well-designed, usually German, board games), autopay (of bills), banner ads, civil union, Internet, online, ecommerce, fanfic, slash (as a type of fanfic), google (as a verb), low carb diet, DVD, nurse practicioner, foobar.
The majority are related to technology, but others have to do with other societal changes.
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
I'd say, "none". Language changes, and it rarely is to create clarity or deeper understanding, but rather to fly with the newest trend.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
People online who spell phonetically, particularly using just letters rather than full words, e.g., "KEWL DUDEZ, U R ROKKINGG!!!!" It's often incomprehensible, and is so unstandardized that it's different for every person.
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
Just as I don't think they generally improve (or hurt) the language, I don't have a favorite. There's usually something that's a bit funny at the moment, but that's it. Weapons of Mass Destruction would be the current phrase that makes me laugh because of its patheticness.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
Yes, and I'm sure it's gives me a better understanding and immersion into tech words than the average person in Boise.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 09:29 pm (UTC)SURVEY
Gender: Female
Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: American southwest
Age: 22
Thank Kimberly_a for pointing me here :)
Date: 2004-03-15 09:34 pm (UTC)Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: USA
Age: 30
If you are 29 years or younger, do not fill out any more questions. You may leave now with my thanks.
If you are 30 years or older, please answer the following opinion questions to the best of your ability, and feel free to elaborate as much as you like:
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Absolutely
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Again, absolutely
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
I think my vocabulary has changed in many ways: 1) There is so much technical and computer related "lingo" in our language now and it's almost impossible to communicate with others without using these terms. (e-mail, URL, World Wide Web, Yahoo, Google, IM, text message, bytes, windows, desktops, DSL, ISP, POP, dot-com) 2) With so much information available in one place, I come across many words that are "new to me" and motivate me to look them up (also much easier with online dictionaries). Language that I should/could have learned through schooling is expanded now by the new exposure to words and the easy access to learning them. 3) Communities, chatrooms, online games... these settings and more encourage you to interact with people from other countries whose own language begins to get incorporated into your own. I personally find myself incorporating subconsciously a lot of terms I learn from friends in England, such as numpty, whinged, ring you, full stop, hoover. 4) Communication seems to be much more informal these days through online interaction and therefor I find more euphonisms as well as acronyms are incorporated into my speech.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
As listed above, computer related lingo as well as words and phrases picked up from others in different regions of my own country as well as other countries. TV, music, and movies have also had a continual impact upon my language.
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
I think the ability to broaden your vocabulary (not even with new words or slang, but existing ones that perhaps with out the internet one might not have been exposed to it) is a wonderful positive aspect. Also, when I was younger and did much more traveling, I found that much of the slang that was used was centralized to particular areas. Now that individuals are able to communicate regularly with people from all over, slang is more generalized over larger areas.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
I am personally not fond of the laziness that the internet has seemed to spawn within individuals. The increasing use of acronyms for just about everything. Poor grammar being accepted more and more. The use of net-speak (U R 2 QT!)
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
I think the words I've used more regularly now are numpty and wassup.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
No, I do not work in the computer/tech industry.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 10:58 pm (UTC)Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: USA
Age: 31
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Yes.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Definitely.
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
In speech, it involves the application of highly useless, but cool-sounding buzzwords and catch phrases. In meetings and client visits, terms like IPO, tech bandwidth, verticals, e-whateversneatlatthemoment, b2b are tossed around to prove how cool and up-to-date we are.
I believe, however, the most drastic changes have taken place in the form of digital text emphasized over personal (including telephone) communication. The proliferation of e-mail, chat, newsgroups and boards combined with immediate gratification makes it easy to change from what used to be a more formal and laboriously edited process into a simple click of the "send" button. As a result, partly because of ease as well as expediency, my written communication has a much more casual flow to it.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
See buzzwords and Seinfeld.
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
Unicode. Globalization of not only tech termonilogy, but of slang - take the rapid proliferation of (often annoying) anime pseudo-cutespeak for example. Would have happened much more slowly without the technology of immediate text transfer.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
IFHA (I fucking hate acronyms). I also loathe 'neatspeak' and 733+. Buzzwords suck as well, but I use them so much, I forget they're there.
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
Douchebag. Heh. I'm twelve.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
Yes. I work in the localization industry and have to deal with linguistic and technological issues on a regular basis.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-15 11:05 pm (UTC)8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
Nope, I don't have such a job, but my husband does. I hear him talk a lot about computers and online gaming and blah-di-blah, and so that may affect me slightly, but I think my own online practices (including fandom) have a much greater effect.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 12:25 am (UTC)Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: Australian, which was traditionally largely Uk-English, but my speech is heavily influenced by US TV. I deny it not ;)
Age: 27
no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 01:24 am (UTC)Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: United States
Age: 42
If you are 30 years or older, please answer the following opinion questions to the best of your ability, and feel free to elaborate as much as you like:
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990? Yes
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years? Yes
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet? More Internet, computer, and high tech terms in common use.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life? I'm most aware of technology related terms: Web, Usenet, Internet, google (v.), tivo (pvr), dish (satellite dish), ringtones, dot-com, brick-and-mortar, dot-boom, dot-bomb, e-tail, blog
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond? I don't feel positive or negative about the changes in language since 1990.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike? I don't like "corporate double-speak," and it seems to have become somewhat more prevalent, but it's been around for a lot longer than 15 years.
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years? I don't think I have a favorite.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey? Yes, I'm a technical writer/editor. I guess I might be more knowledgeable about terminology changes than some, and so more jaded.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 01:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 01:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 04:03 am (UTC)SURVEY
Gender: Female
Nationality/ the country of residence which most affected your speech: Australia (& England)
Age: 33
1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Yes.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Yes
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
IT related terminology more widely used. Increased use of profanity and (particularly sexually specific) slang in every day conversations or in public.
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
Mainly technological - modem, laptop, iMac, DVD, pay TV, etc.
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
The internet has allowed subcultures to define themselves and their own terminology (in some cases to form), and for others to be exposed to that, in a way that was not possible prior to the populisation of the internet.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
I wonder if the impersonal nature of internet communication (you're looking at a screen, not another person) encourages people to be less disriminating in their use of language. If, in chat rooms, emails, message boards, you are consequently exposed to swearing is there an influence there for you to 'pick up on it' (in the same way that you pick up on terminology?) and, if you start to *use it* online (as opposed to passively receiving via TV and movies) will you be more inclined to *use it*, verbally, in real life?
7. What’s your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
Doh!
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
No. Librarian. But we have internet PCs that we assist or supervise the public in using.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 05:46 am (UTC)1. Do you think language and vocabulary in common daily use has changed since 1990?
Oh boy. Yes.
2. Do you think widespread computer technology has had a significant effect on the vocabulary you use and understand in the last 10-15 years?
Yes, especially since I'm in the computer profession. We've tended to humanize computers, take on their aspects. We interface. My boss continuously says, "We'll talk about that off-line" during phone conferences, meaning he wants somewhere private to yell at me. We talk in inputs and outputs.
3. How would you say the vocabulary of you, your children, or the people you know has changed since 1990 with the popularization of the internet?
Well, there's the technical aspects - we talk about the Internet a lot more because it's a lot more popular. It's exposed me to different points of view, which has influenced me. I've noticed writing styles have become more "web-friendly." Technical manuals pre-Internet are long, 200 page books. Everything now is bulletpoints, short and to the point (no pun intended).
4. What are some new words, phrases, idioms, or other bits of figurative language you might use now that you did not use 10-15 years ago? Do these relate to technology or to other things in life?
See question two for some examples. In writing, I've seen people use <tags> and </tags> to denote a change in tone, like "<sarcasm>oh, that's real smart</sarcasm>". Cntrl-Alt-Delete to kill a process (or pre-Windows domination, Cntrl-C) expanded to just killing a line of thought; just mentioning control keys in real speech is kind of geeky.
5. What are some positive aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. that have occurred since or resulting from the 90s and beyond?
Language seems to have become more inclusive. New terms have come about (like the below-mentioned metrosexual) that didn't exist in the old times. Once we've given a term to something, we can discuss it, and we can acknowledge it. I'm not talking political correctness, but that has something to do with it - it's a combination of realizing that words can hurt, coupled with the self-actualization of a group taking over the language, or the terminology that describes itself.
6. What aspects of changes in slang, terminology, idioms, etc. frustrate you or do you dislike?
Leet speak, and the general degradation of the written word. I guess I'm of the school that writing, even informal writing, should be of a higher class than speaking. Even writing that is not permanent (IRC, for example).
7. What's your favorite word, phrase, term or idiom introduced in the last 10-15 years?
Hella. Or metrosexual.
8. Do you have a job in the computer/tech industry, and if so how might that affect your answers on this survey?
Yes - programmer and web developer, and before that, technical writer. The slang I am exposed to is computer-influenced. "I grep that," for example, using the grep UNIX command as slang for understand. Or using the ! for not in writing.
On a side note, there's a chapter on The Victorian Internet on how the telegraph influenced language. Very interesting.
Good luck.
thanks for filling it out!
Date: 2004-03-16 11:19 am (UTC)thanks for the answers
Date: 2004-03-16 11:21 am (UTC)Word. So with you there.
Is that David Duchovny on yur icon? ::drool::
no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 11:38 am (UTC)My community pride means I have to point out though that "hella" is not a new word. As a San Jose resident I can testify that hella has been a commonly used slang word in Northern California for a long time. I've thought about it before and I would guess the entymology orginially came from the expression "a hell of a."
It has three uses: 1) a synonym for "very" as in "this is hella cool." 2) a synonym for "really" as in "this hella sucks." 3) a synyonym for "a lot" or meaning a great amount of something, as in "there are hella people here today."
Damn that Gwen Stefani! She marries the man I wanted to marry and offers our slang up to the word in a bad pop song. Curses.
no subject
Date: 2004-03-16 12:45 pm (UTC)I figured I was just out of the zeitgeist.