In a recent post Mahmood suggested to start a new thread on this and I agree with him. In the same post he also said some things that I do not agree with and which I shall address here.

:::requests Andy to lend him the flame-proof suit:::

"this is a technical site and not english literature forum."
Agreed, there is no Booker prize to win here. That does not mean you can be sloppy with the language, though. An important part of being an engineer, in my opinion, is the ability to unequivocally describe the subject matter in hand. The tool we use for this purpose is called 'language'.

"As long as I can pass the message so that others understand it and reply to it goal acheived."
In order for others to understand you, especially on an international forum, it is vital that you agree on a single, common language. On this forum that's English, not 'SMSish'.

"...internet forums and chatting programs are wide spread and used by users all over the world..."
A forum is not the same as a chat session. Certainly not a professional forum like this one.

"...we modified the english language to make typing easier and quicker weather u like it or not!"
But it is not a matter of quick and easy typing, is it? It is being correctly understood that is the important issue here. This requires some effort on the part of the poster, but for the 30 extra seconds spent in typing whole words, (s)he will have the benefit of actually being understood (and not being grilled of course :-) ).
By the way: what's the weather got to do with it? ;-)

"The world is changing if we like it or not, people usually oppose the change."
I for one do not oppose any change that would benefit mutual understanding. As far as SMS-isms are concerned, however, I believe they do just the opposite.


Well, that's my 2 eurocents worth, anyway.

Have a great weekend,
Rob.

Mahmood, please don't take this as a personal thing! I very much value your contributions to this forum.