ROTFLMAO
August 11, 2015 3:18 AM Subscribe
ROFLMAO
posted by ardgedee at 3:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by ardgedee at 3:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
But how will we know if the other person is laughing out loud, hmm?
posted by teponaztli at 3:34 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by teponaztli at 3:34 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
topkek
posted by adrianhon at 3:51 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by adrianhon at 3:51 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
I love the detail that a red-blooded "haha" is male biased while an epicene "hehe" is androgynous.
posted by rongorongo at 3:56 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by rongorongo at 3:56 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
Back when Facebook was still newish for a lot of people, a friend posted about the death of her husband, and another friend commented, "I'm so sorry for your loss. LOL"
It took a minute for the shock to wear off and realize she meant "lots of love."
posted by Short Attention Sp at 3:56 AM on August 11, 2015 [55 favorites]
It took a minute for the shock to wear off and realize she meant "lots of love."
posted by Short Attention Sp at 3:56 AM on August 11, 2015 [55 favorites]
kekeke
posted by gideonswann at 4:03 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by gideonswann at 4:03 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
I'm a "haha" and "lol" kind of guy (never "hehe"), but they both have their flaws: "haha" feels a little too serious, and "lol" often feels lazy and dismissive.
I sometimes wish the English-speaking Internet would adopt some Brazilian-style laughs (e.g. "huehe"). Somehow they feel much more spontaneous and heartfelt.
posted by maskd at 4:05 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
I sometimes wish the English-speaking Internet would adopt some Brazilian-style laughs (e.g. "huehe"). Somehow they feel much more spontaneous and heartfelt.
posted by maskd at 4:05 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
yeah my parents now sign their emails to me LOL, sometimes gives you pause!
posted by runincircles at 4:07 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by runincircles at 4:07 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
My daughter and her peers used "lol" in speech for a while (she's 11). Always sounded very odd to me, but its use apparently conveyed nuances I didn't quite get.
posted by Harald74 at 4:08 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by Harald74 at 4:08 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
Pretty much the only time I ever laugh on the Internet is when I type "BWAHAHA!" in order to indicate that I am laughing at you.
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:09 AM on August 11, 2015 [10 favorites]
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:09 AM on August 11, 2015 [10 favorites]
It took a minute for the shock to wear off and realize she meant "lots of love."
She could have had little cards printed to explain her presence:
Observing Mournful Grievances
With The Family.
Hope And Happiness Always.
(signed) Alice Cronym.
posted by Joe in Australia at 4:10 AM on August 11, 2015 [27 favorites]
She could have had little cards printed to explain her presence:
Observing Mournful Grievances
With The Family.
Hope And Happiness Always.
(signed) Alice Cronym.
posted by Joe in Australia at 4:10 AM on August 11, 2015 [27 favorites]
Feh. …loud laughter is a sure sign of a weak mind.
posted by bouvin at 4:13 AM on August 11, 2015 [9 favorites]
posted by bouvin at 4:13 AM on August 11, 2015 [9 favorites]
My daughter and her peers used "lol" in speech for a while (she's 11). Always sounded very odd to me, but its use apparently conveyed nuances I didn't quite get.
I do this. I've heard other people do it too. But it's not something I'd say to other people much; it's the phonemic equivalent of a dryly amused snort.
posted by solarion at 4:16 AM on August 11, 2015 [14 favorites]
I do this. I've heard other people do it too. But it's not something I'd say to other people much; it's the phonemic equivalent of a dryly amused snort.
posted by solarion at 4:16 AM on August 11, 2015 [14 favorites]
when I type "BWAHAHA!" in order to indicate that I am laughing at you.
Wait, that's totally confusing. Most people use this just as they unveil their master plan. I think you should be prepared for unexpected reactions (e.g. "heroes" busting through the skylight of your submarine lair) to your misuse of this commonly understood phrase.
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:20 AM on August 11, 2015 [10 favorites]
Wait, that's totally confusing. Most people use this just as they unveil their master plan. I think you should be prepared for unexpected reactions (e.g. "heroes" busting through the skylight of your submarine lair) to your misuse of this commonly understood phrase.
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:20 AM on August 11, 2015 [10 favorites]
I'm waiting for "kljasd" (see: KYM) to catch on. Now that's innovation! ;-)
posted by KMB at 4:29 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by KMB at 4:29 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
Wait, that's totally confusing. Most people use this just as they unveil their master plan.
That's "MUAHAHA!" Totally different.
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:29 AM on August 11, 2015 [15 favorites]
That's "MUAHAHA!" Totally different.
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:29 AM on August 11, 2015 [15 favorites]
Here are about 70 alternative ways of indicating laughter in writing.
hyuk hyuk!
(and kudos to the French you can use "boff" to indicate hitting, screwing or laughing - what other words are required really?)
posted by rongorongo at 4:34 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
hyuk hyuk!
(and kudos to the French you can use "boff" to indicate hitting, screwing or laughing - what other words are required really?)
posted by rongorongo at 4:34 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
That's "MUAHAHA!" Totally different.
There are different dialects for Mad Scientists, Mad Engineers, Mad Industrialists, Supervillains (Mad, Scientific, or Otherwise), Evil Masterminds, and Crazed Occultists (non-crazed Occultists are very restrained), so I think you are excessively reductionist here.
Also, protip: do not put a skylight in your submarine lair. It rarely works out well. Or... so a friend told me.
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
There are different dialects for Mad Scientists, Mad Engineers, Mad Industrialists, Supervillains (Mad, Scientific, or Otherwise), Evil Masterminds, and Crazed Occultists (non-crazed Occultists are very restrained), so I think you are excessively reductionist here.
Also, protip: do not put a skylight in your submarine lair. It rarely works out well. Or... so a friend told me.
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
David Cameron actually thought LOL meant Lots of Love as recently as 2010. No wonder Obama and Hilary referred to him as a clueless lightweight.
posted by colie at 4:50 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by colie at 4:50 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
I think ha, haha, hehe, and lol are different. "Haha" is for jokes. "Ha!" is for unexpected outcomes. "Hehe" is for things that are funny and cute. "Lol" is usually a bit sarcastic, except sometimes it is more like "ha!".
posted by Nothing at 4:55 AM on August 11, 2015 [11 favorites]
posted by Nothing at 4:55 AM on August 11, 2015 [11 favorites]
I never liked LOL, but I'm sure I've used it because it is a very short way to say "I find your post/text amusing." In fact, I think I've used it mostly on work IM's because the person I am talking to uses it themselves.
In real life, you gotta be pretty damn funny to move me from "polite chuckle" to "laughing out loud."
Or get me drunk first, that works too.
posted by emjaybee at 5:02 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
In real life, you gotta be pretty damn funny to move me from "polite chuckle" to "laughing out loud."
Or get me drunk first, that works too.
posted by emjaybee at 5:02 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
I've never used "lol" seriously, it has always felt cheap to me. I don't care if other people use it, but I can't bring myself to do it.
Instead I use variations of "hahaha":
- hahaha
- hehe
- haaaaaaaaahahahahaha
- haha
- ha!
posted by numaner at 5:06 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
Instead I use variations of "hahaha":
- hahaha
- hehe
- haaaaaaaaahahahahaha
- haha
- ha!
posted by numaner at 5:06 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
David Cameron actually thought LOL meant Lots of Love as recently as 2010. No wonder Obama and Hilary referred to him as a clueless lightweight.
The Eton and Oxbridge-educated Prime Minister also claimed not to know what "Magna Carta" meant.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 5:13 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
The Eton and Oxbridge-educated Prime Minister also claimed not to know what "Magna Carta" meant.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 5:13 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
I had a high school acquaintance in Facebook that would use LOL all the time, in really jarring ways - "Time to go to work LOL", "work sux but what can you do LOL", etc.. I unfriended him for several reasons but that was one, LOL.
posted by Asbestos McPinto at 5:19 AM on August 11, 2015 [16 favorites]
posted by Asbestos McPinto at 5:19 AM on August 11, 2015 [16 favorites]
jejeje
posted by Ice Cream Socialist at 5:26 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Ice Cream Socialist at 5:26 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
Lulz?
posted by colie at 5:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by colie at 5:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
The number of has I use in different situations is now partly determined by which of my previous examples of text laughter my phone's dictionary has decided to save. If I type "haha" I am offered "hahahaha" as an option. So I guess the technology is maybe feeding into preference in a number of ways.
I don't know when I gave up LOL...I know I used to use it as a teenager but I don't know when it actually ceased.
posted by howfar at 5:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I don't know when I gave up LOL...I know I used to use it as a teenager but I don't know when it actually ceased.
posted by howfar at 5:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I've tried to get HTD for How Terribly Droll off the ground, but it's just not taking.
posted by sobarel at 5:33 AM on August 11, 2015 [35 favorites]
posted by sobarel at 5:33 AM on August 11, 2015 [35 favorites]
Har.
posted by Cookiebastard at 5:36 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Cookiebastard at 5:36 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I've never actually laughed out loud in my life (ok, maybe when I was a baby - I don't remember). Is that weird?
posted by pipeski at 5:38 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by pipeski at 5:38 AM on August 11, 2015
Well, har-de-har-har.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 5:45 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by ricochet biscuit at 5:45 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I hope they invite uncle Albert to the funeral.
When things strike me as funny
I can't hide it inside
And squeak - as the squeakelers do
I've got to let go with a ho-ho-ho...
And a ha-ha-ha...too!
Some people laugh through their noses
Sounding something like this, mmm
Some people laugh through their teeth goodness sake
Hissing and fizzing like snakes
Some laugh too fast
Some only blast - ha!
Others, they twitter like birds
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 5:45 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
When things strike me as funny
I can't hide it inside
And squeak - as the squeakelers do
I've got to let go with a ho-ho-ho...
And a ha-ha-ha...too!
Some people laugh through their noses
Sounding something like this, mmm
Some people laugh through their teeth goodness sake
Hissing and fizzing like snakes
Some laugh too fast
Some only blast - ha!
Others, they twitter like birds
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 5:45 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
Good riddance. Perhaps now people will stop using it as punctuation.
posted by MsVader at 5:52 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by MsVader at 5:52 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
"haha" is not mirth for me. It is how I acknowledge the bitter recognition that life can often be fucking awful and there is naught to be done about it than laugh at the great cosmic joke. LOL on the other hand is when something is actually funny in a good way. So given the distribution of good and evil in the world 2% seems about right.
posted by srboisvert at 5:53 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by srboisvert at 5:53 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
I use it occasionally in texts but not otherwise. I don't particularly like it but haven't seen a better option.
posted by Dip Flash at 5:54 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by Dip Flash at 5:54 AM on August 11, 2015
I've tried to get HTD for How Terribly Droll off the ground, but it's just not taking.
Don't you mean "How Terribly Drawl"?
[Rolls up sleeves. Clears some brush. ]
posted by srboisvert at 5:55 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
Don't you mean "How Terribly Drawl"?
[Rolls up sleeves. Clears some brush. ]
posted by srboisvert at 5:55 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
The once-mighty "lol" only appeared in 1.9 percent of the text sampled by Facebook — a pretty staggering fall for an expression that was once synonymous with online txt speak.
lolwut
although I am glad to see the demise of ROFLPIMP, because I just really don't want to know about your urinary incontinence, ok?
Finally, the Brazilian-style kkkkkk confuses me. That is not how onomatopoeia works, caras!
posted by drlith at 5:58 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
lolwut
although I am glad to see the demise of ROFLPIMP, because I just really don't want to know about your urinary incontinence, ok?
Finally, the Brazilian-style kkkkkk confuses me. That is not how onomatopoeia works, caras!
posted by drlith at 5:58 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
I still get stuff from my dad where there's a "LOL!" between every other sentence. This is still an improvement over the all-caps email I was getting as recently as 2013 though.
posted by Foosnark at 6:00 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Foosnark at 6:00 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline blacksquareoutline
(I rarely use LOL these days. If anything, I use either :| or ^^ as punctuation marks, to the point a friend of mine calls me "blankface" these days)
posted by lmfsilva at 6:03 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
(I rarely use LOL these days. If anything, I use either :| or ^^ as punctuation marks, to the point a friend of mine calls me "blankface" these days)
posted by lmfsilva at 6:03 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
MDR
posted by gimonca at 6:06 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by gimonca at 6:06 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
I always find it annoying when people use it like punctuation lol
posted by Fleebnork at 6:11 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Fleebnork at 6:11 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I am not sure I trust a study from the same bunch of baboons that can't make animated gifs work when all you have to do is take the aforementioned animated gif and shove it at the damn browser already.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 6:17 AM on August 11, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 6:17 AM on August 11, 2015 [5 favorites]
God help me, I've been saying "lol" out loud for years now in certain company, to mean "an ironic/self-deprecating/wry/funny only insofar as it is unfortunate statement to follow."
I do that too. Do you say "ell-oh-ell" or pronounce it as a single syllable? I prefer the latter.
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:22 AM on August 11, 2015 [5 favorites]
I do that too. Do you say "ell-oh-ell" or pronounce it as a single syllable? I prefer the latter.
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:22 AM on August 11, 2015 [5 favorites]
I feel like lol was always kind of media creation more than a real life thing, deployed ironically most of the time. I remember (starting in the late 90s) people mostly saying hehe or haha if they really wanted to show how much they were laughing.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 6:34 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 6:34 AM on August 11, 2015
ROFLCOPTER
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 6:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 6:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
lol has evolved to become a way for horrible people to say "I'm saying something really shitty to you, but I'll say lol so I can say I was joking if you call me on it."
A giant hand should come out of the computer and slap people who use it.
posted by Lyn Never at 6:49 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
A giant hand should come out of the computer and slap people who use it.
posted by Lyn Never at 6:49 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
OMG WTF BBQ
posted by happyroach at 6:51 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
posted by happyroach at 6:51 AM on August 11, 2015 [8 favorites]
I've tried to get HTD for How Terribly Droll off the ground, but it's just not taking.
Have you tried TAYRUIDMM? (Tittered at Your Ribaldry until I Dropped My Monocle) SPBMF (Smiling Politely Behind My Fan) might do for the ladies.
posted by GenjiandProust at 6:57 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
Have you tried TAYRUIDMM? (Tittered at Your Ribaldry until I Dropped My Monocle) SPBMF (Smiling Politely Behind My Fan) might do for the ladies.
posted by GenjiandProust at 6:57 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
Obligatory: Facebook, LOL.
posted by seraphine at 7:02 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by seraphine at 7:02 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
I did some research on the use of LOL in IM conversations a few years ago. In the dataset I was working with, LOL definitely seemed to function less a a literal laugh token and much more as a pragmatic marker, for punctuation (as noted by a few commenters above) and as an intensifier. The data I was studying were collected in 2011, so I don't know if LOL usage in general has dropped off since then, or if this is more of a Facebook thing. I do feel like I see it on Twitter, but I also see other laugh tokens, too.
I also think that, at least on Twitter, LOL often has more of a sarcastic tone. That is certainly how I use it.
posted by DiscourseMarker at 7:07 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
I also think that, at least on Twitter, LOL often has more of a sarcastic tone. That is certainly how I use it.
posted by DiscourseMarker at 7:07 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
I wonder how much of this trend can be credited to Larry David.
posted by The Gooch at 7:14 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by The Gooch at 7:14 AM on August 11, 2015
I'd like to see the use of "lol" and other written laughs compared to the use of the Like feature (or retweet/favorite, for Twitter). There's really no reason to attempt to type out laughter when you can click a button that has approximately the same effect.
posted by Metroid Baby at 7:16 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Metroid Baby at 7:16 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
Well, finally. Because seriously, nobody actually SAYS or does that.
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:17 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:17 AM on August 11, 2015
I'm not sure where I fit in to all this, as my most common written out laughter is where I start an email with "Hah!", which is suppose to sound like Edna Krabappel.
posted by benito.strauss at 7:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by benito.strauss at 7:32 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I do not like 'hehehe" because I think the "hes" should be spelled correctly. It's "hee." I use "har." If I laughed I write "Har!" If I want to indicate that I understand that someone has tried to be funny, I write "har." I don't say "ell oh ell" or "lole," but sometimes I like to say "rawfulmow."
posted by Don Pepino at 7:36 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Don Pepino at 7:36 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
Seriouly, nobody uses "heh"?
Guess I'm just too low key for my own good.
posted by SteveInMaine at 7:47 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
Guess I'm just too low key for my own good.
posted by SteveInMaine at 7:47 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
I love this discussion.
I don't use lol THAT much (although more than some here seem to) - except on gchat with one particular friend, where I use it as punctuation. I don't know if this is because we've known each other since the late 90s and AOL/AIM, or because we tend toward exaggeration in our conversations and "lol" is a way to soften it ("i'm beside myself with grief, lol").
I just searched my gchat logs for "not lol," yielding these gems, which suggest I am confused about three-letter acronyms:
lol
omg
not lol
not lol cause it's funny, lol because wtf
not lol cause it's funny, lol cause i'm laughing at her lack of having a clue
wtf?
wtf? what brand was this?
omg lol
not lol
just omg... wow
posted by sunset in snow country at 7:52 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
I don't use lol THAT much (although more than some here seem to) - except on gchat with one particular friend, where I use it as punctuation. I don't know if this is because we've known each other since the late 90s and AOL/AIM, or because we tend toward exaggeration in our conversations and "lol" is a way to soften it ("i'm beside myself with grief, lol").
I just searched my gchat logs for "not lol," yielding these gems, which suggest I am confused about three-letter acronyms:
lol
omg
not lol
not lol cause it's funny, lol because wtf
not lol cause it's funny, lol cause i'm laughing at her lack of having a clue
wtf?
wtf? what brand was this?
omg lol
not lol
just omg... wow
posted by sunset in snow country at 7:52 AM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
I guess it's like, the equivalent of an uncomfortable laugh of disbelief.
Also, I too have the "well off to work. LOL" Facebook friend. lol, i mean, not lol, wtf?
posted by sunset in snow country at 7:53 AM on August 11, 2015
Also, I too have the "well off to work. LOL" Facebook friend. lol, i mean, not lol, wtf?
posted by sunset in snow country at 7:53 AM on August 11, 2015
LOL still has a legitimate use for which it is perfectly suited: expressing willful ignorance in an infuriatingly dismissive manner. Example: "oops i think i left grandma at the store yesterday i hope she's okay lol".
posted by dephlogisticated at 8:05 AM on August 11, 2015 [20 favorites]
posted by dephlogisticated at 8:05 AM on August 11, 2015 [20 favorites]
Facebook is where i am a doge.
posted by srboisvert at 8:08 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by srboisvert at 8:08 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
My Spanish speaking friends very often use jajaja with hehehe mixed in. I'm not sure my sample size is big enough, but amongst Spanish speakers, I get the impression that hehehe is strongly gendered with my feed containing exclusively female speakers using hehehe.
posted by Lame_username at 8:26 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by Lame_username at 8:26 AM on August 11, 2015
I started using the Internet in earnest in the late 1980s, just as The Simpsons was getting started. As a result, I always imagine "LOL" pronounced as laaaaghhkhggglhllkhhhllllggglllll. I still think of it as a senseless drooling noise rather than any indication of laughter.
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 8:28 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 8:28 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
Skip to 21:55 in this episode of QI for a Bill Bailey curated example of just how weird "lol" sounds when uttered en masse.
posted by Paul Slade at 8:30 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by Paul Slade at 8:30 AM on August 11, 2015
It's not quite LOL-abuse, but I have an old friend who almost invariably adds a smiley emoticon to the ends of purely factual statements when he texts me: "Car broke down, had to cancel lessons today :)" It bugs me, but he's a friend and there's no need to sweat the small stuff, so I do my best to ignore it.
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:38 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:38 AM on August 11, 2015 [3 favorites]
I probably haven't used "lol" online since sometime in the nineties. But my wife and I both use it in spoken conversation (pronounced "lawl") as a sort of groaning acknowledgement of an unfunny joke.
posted by 256 at 8:52 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by 256 at 8:52 AM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
Ha. Not to get overly pedantic about laughter, I find the way I express amusement or sarcasm, as well as other emotions, quite different in synchronous and asynchronous textual environments, actually.
In an asynchronous setting like here or on FB, where my comments are read at leisure, I write in a more formal and restrained manner, and generally limit myself to a sarcastic "ha" or an amused "heh." I almost never use an emoticon. It's more like I'm writing an informal essay, and I'll even say, "I have to laugh at Whatsisface's statement."
But in sychronous chats like texting or in a group conversation in a virtual world (I socialize a lot in Second Life), the context is different, not just because it's an informal setting, but because it's more important to clarify the emotional nuance of a statement in a flowing conversation. So I use a really wide variety of laughter-variants: not just longer or shorter variations on "hehehe," but "*snort*" and "*chuckle*" and "bwahahah" and "lulz" and "ha. ha." and others. And I use emoticons at the end of statements frequently, especially when needed to show I'm being sarcastic and not serious-- ;) or :P . It's not that I suddenly become 20 years younger. It's the different communicative demands of the situation.
I do still occasionally emit an LOL. But if in the context of Facebook, it would never be in a post, but only in a FB Messenger chat.
posted by DrMew at 9:08 AM on August 11, 2015
In an asynchronous setting like here or on FB, where my comments are read at leisure, I write in a more formal and restrained manner, and generally limit myself to a sarcastic "ha" or an amused "heh." I almost never use an emoticon. It's more like I'm writing an informal essay, and I'll even say, "I have to laugh at Whatsisface's statement."
But in sychronous chats like texting or in a group conversation in a virtual world (I socialize a lot in Second Life), the context is different, not just because it's an informal setting, but because it's more important to clarify the emotional nuance of a statement in a flowing conversation. So I use a really wide variety of laughter-variants: not just longer or shorter variations on "hehehe," but "*snort*" and "*chuckle*" and "bwahahah" and "lulz" and "ha. ha." and others. And I use emoticons at the end of statements frequently, especially when needed to show I'm being sarcastic and not serious-- ;) or :P . It's not that I suddenly become 20 years younger. It's the different communicative demands of the situation.
I do still occasionally emit an LOL. But if in the context of Facebook, it would never be in a post, but only in a FB Messenger chat.
posted by DrMew at 9:08 AM on August 11, 2015
.-- .... .- - / .... .- - .... / --. --- -.. / .-- .-. --- ..- --. .... - / .-.. --- .-..
posted by Salvor Hardin at 9:10 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by Salvor Hardin at 9:10 AM on August 11, 2015
I have recently taken up "wocka wocka."
posted by the_blizz at 9:10 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by the_blizz at 9:10 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
> The Eton and Oxbridge-educated Prime Minister also claimed not to know what "Magna Carta" meant.
My guess was "Lava Charter," but maybe I need reading glasses.
> I have recently taken up "wocka wocka ."
That's 'wakka wakka.' This is wocka wocka.
posted by Sunburnt at 9:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
My guess was "Lava Charter," but maybe I need reading glasses.
> I have recently taken up "wocka wocka ."
That's 'wakka wakka.' This is wocka wocka.
posted by Sunburnt at 9:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
You kids today and your abbreviations. I usually go with, "I'm laughing at the superior intellect".
posted by The Tensor at 9:44 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by The Tensor at 9:44 AM on August 11, 2015
I use lol, mostly as insurance to let the person know I'm joking or making light of something rather than being actually serious. "Saw the doctor, he says it's probably not contagious. Lol."
For some reason I can't explain, however, I use ellipses in weird ways on text. Usually at the end of a message that is open ended (in my mind), sort of a prompt for further discussion.
E.g. "Them: Do you want to go see a movie tonight?" "Me: Yes..."
Meaning, yes, but let's talk about what, when, and where.
Most people think it's a sarcastic reply, and I have unintentionally offended some who aren't in the know. I can't really figure out why I do it, and it's almost unconcious in my use... lol.
posted by Debaser626 at 9:48 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
For some reason I can't explain, however, I use ellipses in weird ways on text. Usually at the end of a message that is open ended (in my mind), sort of a prompt for further discussion.
E.g. "Them: Do you want to go see a movie tonight?" "Me: Yes..."
Meaning, yes, but let's talk about what, when, and where.
Most people think it's a sarcastic reply, and I have unintentionally offended some who aren't in the know. I can't really figure out why I do it, and it's almost unconcious in my use... lol.
posted by Debaser626 at 9:48 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I started using the Internet in earnest in the late 1980s, just as The Simpsons was getting started. As a result, I always imagine "LOL" pronounced as laaaaghhkhggglhllkhhhllllggglllll yt . I still think of it as a senseless drooling noise rather than any indication of laughter.
Derail, but that is the very very late eighties:
And I too have a facebook friend who employs lol, often as the entire comment when he posts a Bloom County 2015 strip, or after he makes a lame-ass pun. To be fair, he does consistently laugh at his own jokes no matter how unfunny they might be or how many times he has told them before, so I guess he is keeping consistent.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 9:57 AM on August 11, 2015
Derail, but that is the very very late eighties:
Since its debut on December 17, 1989, the series has broadcast 574 episodes, and the 26th season began on September 28, 2014.Or to underail it: omg that is the realy late eightoes lol
And I too have a facebook friend who employs lol, often as the entire comment when he posts a Bloom County 2015 strip, or after he makes a lame-ass pun. To be fair, he does consistently laugh at his own jokes no matter how unfunny they might be or how many times he has told them before, so I guess he is keeping consistent.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 9:57 AM on August 11, 2015
Have you tried TAYRUIDMM?
It's for those moments too casual to unleash a full GLIJLAMGBFITÆ,FRR.
posted by FatherDagon at 10:03 AM on August 11, 2015
It's for those moments too casual to unleash a full GLIJLAMGBFITÆ,FRR.
posted by FatherDagon at 10:03 AM on August 11, 2015
Seriouly, nobody uses "heh"?
Walder Frey ruined that one.
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 10:16 AM on August 11, 2015
Walder Frey ruined that one.
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 10:16 AM on August 11, 2015
NDXOXCHWDRGHDXORVI
posted by Jon Mitchell at 10:35 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by Jon Mitchell at 10:35 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]
snnkt (hi Spinnwebe!)
posted by en forme de poire at 11:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by en forme de poire at 11:37 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
Sokka shot first, you are among friends. I too am an "ironically-saying-lawl-out-loud" apologist.
posted by en forme de poire at 11:39 AM on August 11, 2015
posted by en forme de poire at 11:39 AM on August 11, 2015
My friends and I *do* still use LOL, but its meaning has changed. It is not longer a laugh, now it's more 'I would be laughing if what you said was actually funny/feasible. It's not' or 'my situation is so hopeless I'm pretending to laugh about it to keep from screaming'.
You see 'lolno' as well sometimes, which is the equivalent of the bit in the movie where someone laughs and then stops suddenly and goes 'no'. But LOL has kind of come to mean the same thing, sometimes.
posted by HypotheticalWoman at 11:53 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
You see 'lolno' as well sometimes, which is the equivalent of the bit in the movie where someone laughs and then stops suddenly and goes 'no'. But LOL has kind of come to mean the same thing, sometimes.
posted by HypotheticalWoman at 11:53 AM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
My guess was "Lava Charter," but maybe I need reading glasses
Perhaps you are thinking of the Magma Carta, which Dear King John signed at Runnymead in 1215-and-a-half, promising never to establish a secret lair in a hollowed-out Volcano? 'Twas the foundation of all our English liberties, and is the reason Her Majesty today reigns from under the seas in her weaponized bathysphere.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 12:01 PM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
Perhaps you are thinking of the Magma Carta, which Dear King John signed at Runnymead in 1215-and-a-half, promising never to establish a secret lair in a hollowed-out Volcano? 'Twas the foundation of all our English liberties, and is the reason Her Majesty today reigns from under the seas in her weaponized bathysphere.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 12:01 PM on August 11, 2015 [4 favorites]
When I first went on line I hated, hated, HATED LOL, ROTFL, yr, BRB, and all of the other shortcuts. I never used abbreviations or any form of text speak and as a result probably came across a bit stilted in chat rooms.
Then when my daughter was a around 13 or 14 she started using lol in her speech and I kind of fell in love with it. It has a wry undertone that appeals to me: "I'm not actually laughing but this situation is absurd. I think I only use it when speaking or texting her though.
She also gave me meh. I adore meh. Meh to me means something so uninteresting that you cannot even summon up the energy to pronounce an entire word. Meh is like half a word.
I probably use wut the most in writing. Wut means I am so baffled, so stunned, that I have lost the power to enunciate. The jaw drops and stays there.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 12:23 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
Then when my daughter was a around 13 or 14 she started using lol in her speech and I kind of fell in love with it. It has a wry undertone that appeals to me: "I'm not actually laughing but this situation is absurd. I think I only use it when speaking or texting her though.
She also gave me meh. I adore meh. Meh to me means something so uninteresting that you cannot even summon up the energy to pronounce an entire word. Meh is like half a word.
I probably use wut the most in writing. Wut means I am so baffled, so stunned, that I have lost the power to enunciate. The jaw drops and stays there.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 12:23 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
hahaha -- baseline laugh
haha -- it was a little funny
hahahaha -- very funny (add more ha's if necessary. banging your fingers on the h and a keys is the new physical act of laughter)
bahaha -- surprising and funny, # of ha's as needed. Often indicates actual out-loud laughter
heh -- smirk
hah -- a smirk that is louder or comes with insight i.e. Aha!
har -- your pun has been recognized
heehee -- cute laugh, giggle
teehee -- moreso. often connotes mischievousness
hehe -- anomalous, misspelled
haw haw -- fuck your joke
posted by rifflesby at 12:31 PM on August 11, 2015 [5 favorites]
haha -- it was a little funny
hahahaha -- very funny (add more ha's if necessary. banging your fingers on the h and a keys is the new physical act of laughter)
bahaha -- surprising and funny, # of ha's as needed. Often indicates actual out-loud laughter
heh -- smirk
hah -- a smirk that is louder or comes with insight i.e. Aha!
har -- your pun has been recognized
heehee -- cute laugh, giggle
teehee -- moreso. often connotes mischievousness
hehe -- anomalous, misspelled
haw haw -- fuck your joke
posted by rifflesby at 12:31 PM on August 11, 2015 [5 favorites]
Related: 42 ways of indicating laughter on the internet.
(I'm pretty sure this originated as some forum comment but I don't know the real source)
posted by picklenickle at 1:34 PM on August 11, 2015
(I'm pretty sure this originated as some forum comment but I don't know the real source)
posted by picklenickle at 1:34 PM on August 11, 2015
So is LOL finally uncool? Can I add it to my daily lexicon of outdated slang?! Groovy Daddy-o! Can't wait to razz the share crops' berries with that cherry, LOL.
posted by The Power Nap at 1:40 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by The Power Nap at 1:40 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
The ultimate in sarcasm for me, has always been "HARdeeHARHAR!"
posted by howfar at 2:01 PM on August 11, 2015
posted by howfar at 2:01 PM on August 11, 2015
My stepson is a haha-er. He usually uses it to walk back statements he just made, like he's immediately taking back what he just said. J/k fulfills the same purpose. It's very insincere.
posted by Biblio at 2:31 PM on August 11, 2015
posted by Biblio at 2:31 PM on August 11, 2015
I hate LOL except my mom signs emails to me "lolgom" for "lots of love good old mom."
posted by bendy at 2:45 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by bendy at 2:45 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
I have to concur with the use of "lol" to mean the ironic "gosh, that was so funny I forgot to laugh".
Among my friends about 10 years ago it was common for us to affect overblown abbreviations but keep to traditional punctuation rules. It was sort of an ultra-deadpan bit of verbal sparring over IRC:
I don't know why, but the capitals and full stops just highlighted the absurdity of these conventions in a way we found dryly amusing.
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 3:06 PM on August 11, 2015
Among my friends about 10 years ago it was common for us to affect overblown abbreviations but keep to traditional punctuation rules. It was sort of an ultra-deadpan bit of verbal sparring over IRC:
PersonA: Hi, asl. PersonB: Lol, hi. PersonA: K, I'm blokin u nao....etc.
I don't know why, but the capitals and full stops just highlighted the absurdity of these conventions in a way we found dryly amusing.
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 3:06 PM on August 11, 2015
Derail, but that is the very very late eighties: Since its debut on December 17, 1989, the series...
to derail your derail, The Simpsons existed before the series as short features on The Tracey Ullman Show, premiering on April 19, 1987. As Tracy would say to her studio audience to close each show, "GO HOME!"
polecat's PLOP is one comic artist's SFX accompanying the 'falls over backwards' visual that was an iconic reaction to a really bad joke in old comic strips. It's fallen into disuse (thankfully), replaced partly by Pearls Before Swines' trope of having Rat physically attack a cartoon version of Stephen Patsis after a particularly bad pun. The old Jay Ward/Bill Scott cartoons would use a "BOING" sound effect to punctuate a bad pun when it was the last joke at the end of a cartoon (most often for Mr. Peabody and George of the Jungle). I consider BOING to be an appropriate reaction to a pun and as a frequent perpetrator of puns, I am happy to get that reaction (less than I would be to get attacked by Rat).
There are certain laugh variations that send specific messages to me:
HARDEHARHAR is a very sarcastic laugh.
NYUKNYUKNYUK is reminiscent of Curly of the Three Stooges, therefore a very dumb laugh.
Disney's Goofy also has a very distinctive laugh, but there is no standard spelling of the combination of HAWs and KYUKs (KYUCK?) that is commonly recognized. Too bad.
Fozzie's WOCKAWOCKA I consider a way for an attempted funnyperson to say "that's the joke!"
And '60s TV addicts remember HEEHEEHEEHAWHAW as a standard 'country' laugh, as part of the theme song of "Hee Haw", the show that mixed country music with groaner jokes and white rural stereotypes.
I suspect the decline of LOL is far less extreme in other parts of the Internet than in the Semi-Walled Garden of Facebook, which I have long thought of as "the Internet where you don't have to TRY to be cool". But its decline is probably partially due its similarity to LULZ, the term used by Evil Hackers to describe the fun they have breaking things, and which few others want to emulate.
And speaking of Evil Laughs, I'm old enough to remember BWAHAHAHA coming first as an evil laugh in comics (but more often from kids comics, Silver Age Scrooge McDuck rather than Batman). I don't know how MUAHAHAHA arose to replace BWAHAHAHA, but it must therefore be MORE evil. So I'm going to keep using BWA as an indicator for "evil, but not SERIOUSLY evil". You know, JK. (And remember, there are people on Facebook who confuse JK LOL with J.K. Rowling)
posted by oneswellfoop at 3:26 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
to derail your derail, The Simpsons existed before the series as short features on The Tracey Ullman Show, premiering on April 19, 1987. As Tracy would say to her studio audience to close each show, "GO HOME!"
polecat's PLOP is one comic artist's SFX accompanying the 'falls over backwards' visual that was an iconic reaction to a really bad joke in old comic strips. It's fallen into disuse (thankfully), replaced partly by Pearls Before Swines' trope of having Rat physically attack a cartoon version of Stephen Patsis after a particularly bad pun. The old Jay Ward/Bill Scott cartoons would use a "BOING" sound effect to punctuate a bad pun when it was the last joke at the end of a cartoon (most often for Mr. Peabody and George of the Jungle). I consider BOING to be an appropriate reaction to a pun and as a frequent perpetrator of puns, I am happy to get that reaction (less than I would be to get attacked by Rat).
There are certain laugh variations that send specific messages to me:
HARDEHARHAR is a very sarcastic laugh.
NYUKNYUKNYUK is reminiscent of Curly of the Three Stooges, therefore a very dumb laugh.
Disney's Goofy also has a very distinctive laugh, but there is no standard spelling of the combination of HAWs and KYUKs (KYUCK?) that is commonly recognized. Too bad.
Fozzie's WOCKAWOCKA I consider a way for an attempted funnyperson to say "that's the joke!"
And '60s TV addicts remember HEEHEEHEEHAWHAW as a standard 'country' laugh, as part of the theme song of "Hee Haw", the show that mixed country music with groaner jokes and white rural stereotypes.
I suspect the decline of LOL is far less extreme in other parts of the Internet than in the Semi-Walled Garden of Facebook, which I have long thought of as "the Internet where you don't have to TRY to be cool". But its decline is probably partially due its similarity to LULZ, the term used by Evil Hackers to describe the fun they have breaking things, and which few others want to emulate.
And speaking of Evil Laughs, I'm old enough to remember BWAHAHAHA coming first as an evil laugh in comics (but more often from kids comics, Silver Age Scrooge McDuck rather than Batman). I don't know how MUAHAHAHA arose to replace BWAHAHAHA, but it must therefore be MORE evil. So I'm going to keep using BWA as an indicator for "evil, but not SERIOUSLY evil". You know, JK. (And remember, there are people on Facebook who confuse JK LOL with J.K. Rowling)
posted by oneswellfoop at 3:26 PM on August 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
The tricky thing about being bilingual is switching back and forth between hahaha and jajaja.
posted by saul wright at 3:44 PM on August 11, 2015
posted by saul wright at 3:44 PM on August 11, 2015
typing lol had recently started to make me feel like a dad, and i couldn't really put a finger on why. i guess the declining average use i postulated was real.
posted by emptythought at 4:03 PM on August 11, 2015
posted by emptythought at 4:03 PM on August 11, 2015
I use heh to convey light amusement, and mwhahahahah to convey that I'm preparing to hold the world ransom for one Million dollars.
posted by dejah420 at 4:14 PM on August 11, 2015
posted by dejah420 at 4:14 PM on August 11, 2015
the Semi-Walled Garden of Facebook, which I have long thought of as "the Internet where you don't have to TRY to be cool".
That's interesting because to me this whole discussion of what the current favored way of saying what seems to me to be nothing is Facebook users trying way too hard to be cool. There are many variations on the word ha that I'm supposed to understand along with lol and jk and acronyms I can't begin to guess and get tired of looking up? That's trying to be cool to me and most people I see on Facebook are certainly trying to be cool.
On the other hand I like MeFi because I don't try to be cool. I don't TRY to be anything really except civil and honest which is how I am in real life so it works much better for me.
I don't miss Facebook now that I'm really not on it very much lol. I mean HaHa
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 4:36 PM on August 11, 2015
That's interesting because to me this whole discussion of what the current favored way of saying what seems to me to be nothing is Facebook users trying way too hard to be cool. There are many variations on the word ha that I'm supposed to understand along with lol and jk and acronyms I can't begin to guess and get tired of looking up? That's trying to be cool to me and most people I see on Facebook are certainly trying to be cool.
On the other hand I like MeFi because I don't try to be cool. I don't TRY to be anything really except civil and honest which is how I am in real life so it works much better for me.
I don't miss Facebook now that I'm really not on it very much lol. I mean HaHa
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 4:36 PM on August 11, 2015
*rimshot*
posted by brundlefly at 5:33 PM on August 11, 2015
posted by brundlefly at 5:33 PM on August 11, 2015
I don't know why, but I've found the rise of "SMH" to be really obnoxious. Maybe because it's often used when looking down on someone? For whatever reason it's like nails on chalkboard for me.
posted by brundlefly at 5:34 PM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by brundlefly at 5:34 PM on August 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
The late eighties DC comic Justice League International made quite a thing out of "Bwah ha ha ha".
posted by Paul Slade at 1:35 AM on August 12, 2015
posted by Paul Slade at 1:35 AM on August 12, 2015
Forget LOL. We should all be expressing amusement the way Channing Tatum did in his leaked email.
posted by Ziggy500 at 3:45 AM on August 12, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Ziggy500 at 3:45 AM on August 12, 2015 [1 favorite]
I've rarely used "lol" in a literal manner, but always felt it signified a way of saying "that's funny". I don't always laugh at humorous things but I still find them humorous and enjoyable.
posted by gucci mane at 9:22 PM on August 12, 2015
posted by gucci mane at 9:22 PM on August 12, 2015
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posted by HuronBob at 3:20 AM on August 11, 2015 [6 favorites]