Internet Lingo

<3 -- This is supposed to be a heart and people use it to stand for love, as in "I <3 NY".

AFAIK -- As Far As I Know.

AFK -- Away From Keyboard. Sometimes people write "AFK" if they want you to know they won't be able to respond to you soon, or if they are apologizing for not responding sooner.

Asshat, Asshatery -- Asshat is a slang word for "Asshole". See Fark for more details.

BIL -- Brother in law.

BTW -- By The Way.

DBF -- Abbreviated version of "boy friend".

DD -- Parents use this term to mean "daughter". See DS for more information and variations on this theme.

DGF -- Abbreviated version of "girl friend".

DH -- Abbreviated version of "husband". Don't ask me about the "D" – it's lame and serves no real purpose.

DIAF -- Die In A Fire. It's used if you are really offended by someone and think they should die a horrible death.

DS -- Parents use this term to mean "son". Sometimes you'll see it as DS1 or DS2 or DS#1 or DS#2. In other words, they are talking about their older son or their younger son, depending on the number.

DSD -- Sometimes people use this term to mean "Step Daughter". See DS for more information and variations on this theme.

DSO -- See SO.

DSS -- Sometimes people use this term to mean "Step Son". See DS for more information and variations on this theme.

DW -- Abbreviated version of "wife".

EOM -- End Of Message. This is used sometimes in a subject line so you don't open up the message, because the entire message was in the subject line.

Fark -- Fark is a slang word for "Fuck". Since some workplaces will filter out websites with swear words, people use alternative words so that they can continue to browse from work. Also, some websites will automatically filter the word "fuck" to change it to "fark" to keep that site viewable to people at work. Fark is also the name of a website.

FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions.

FIL -- Father in Law.

FOAD -- Fuck OfF And Die. It's used if you are really offended by someone and think they should die.

Fundie -- Used to describe fundamentalist Christians, or any Christian who gets all in your face about religion.

FWIW -- For What It's Worth.

IIRC -- If I Recall Correctly

IM -- Instant Message. Messages people send through Yahoo, Google talk, or other messaging services.

IMHO -- In My Honest Opinion

IMNSHO -- Means pretty much the same thing as "IMO" but stands for "In My Not So Humble Opinion". Just a longer version to confuse more people.

IMO -- In My Opinion

IOW -- In Other Words.

ITA -- I Totally Agree.

ITAWTC -- Means the same thing as ITA. Stands for: I Totally Agree With This Comment. Just a longer version to confuse more people.

IYKWIM -- Means the same as KWIM but this stands for If You Know What I Mean. Just a longer version to confuse more people.

J/K -- Just Kidding.

KWIM -- Know What I Mean.

LMAO -- Laughing My Ass Off. Sometimes seen as "LMBO" for people afraid to use the word "ass".

LOL -- stands for Laughing Out Loud, but often used to show humor (not that something was really funny enough to laugh out loud). Sometimes people use it to show when they are joking and not to be taken seriously.

MIL -- Mother in Law.

Newbie -- Someone new to the board or the website in question.

Noob or N00b -- Someone new to the board or the website in question.

NSFW or NWS -- Not Work Safe or Not Safe For Work. Warns people not to click a link or thread if they are at work.

OMG -- Oh My God.

PM -- Private Message. Some message boards have capability for you to send private messages to other users.

RL or R/L --Real Life. Someone might use this phrase to explain that the person they are talking about is a friend from "real life" or whatever.

ROFL -- Rolling On (the) Floor Laughing. In other words, they found something to be quite funny.

ROFLMAO -- Rolling On (the) Floor, Laughing My Ass Off. In other words, they found something to be quite funny.

Shite -- Shite is a slang word for "Shit". See Fark for more details.

SIL -- Sister in Law.

SO (or S.O.) -- Significant Other. Someone you are in a serious relationship with but to whom you are not married.

STFU -- Shut The Fuck Up

TPTB -- The Powers That Be. In other words, whomever is in charge.

Wank -- Apparently this is a British term that means, among other things, "lame," "stupid" or "whiney" or something along those lines. People from certain silly networking sites think it's "cool" to pretend they are British, so they have co-opted British terms just like Madonna did. I think pretending to be British when you aren't is lame, but what do I know?

Whinging -- British term meaning "whining" or "to whine".

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot -- It means What The Fuck. Some people think it makes them cool to use the military alphabet.

WS -- Work Safe. Tells people they can click this link or thread from work.

WTF -- What The Fuck

Xtian -- Used to in place of the word "Christian", usually meaning the idiot Christians, but sometimes it means all Christians.

YKWIM -- You Know What I Mean.

YMMV -- Your Mileage May Vary. This term basically means that you might have a different perspective on this.

You owe me a new keyboard/monitor -- People who eat non-stop at their computers say this when they claim they laughed so hard they spit whatever they were eating or drinking all over their keyboard or monitor. Lame.