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area51newmexico
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 Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 6:04 pm Post subject: acronyms |
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You're having a conversation with someone and they start talking in some strange code. They assume, incorrectly, that you are following them! They are talking in bloody acronyms!
I can kinda understand them when used in the written form, as it saved time, but in spoken language?! It takes the same amount of time! Possibly less as you don't have to explain what each means.
Is it just me that hates them with a passion? Or are you an acronym junkie?
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aalpha
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| Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 6:07 pm Post subject: |
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Most of the people I cross paths with, admittedly it is few since I'm not working, but they would get lost trying to explain what "acronym" means.
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Lamiaceae
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| Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 6:29 pm Post subject: |
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| Welly wrote: |
I can kinda understand them when used in the written form, as it saved time, but in spoken language?! It takes the same amount of time! Possibly less as you don't have to explain what each means.
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From now on Helen, you are forbidden from using the following words in speech, lest you be a hypocrite.
Laser
Radar
Sonar
Scuba
You must now ( forever ) say
Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation
Radio Detection And Ranging
Sound Navigation And Ranging
Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus
LOL !
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area51newmexico
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| Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 6:54 pm Post subject: |
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minty - fine I don't mind:)
Nah, I don't mind those acronyms as they make 'proper' words - with vowels and everything!
If you can tell me what DVAP and PODAS stands for, I'll give you a cookie.
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aalpha
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| Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 7:34 pm Post subject: |
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PODAS
1 Purex Operating Data Acquisition System
2 Power of Dial-A-Song (They Might Be Giants album)
3 Phase One Digital Artist Series (educational photography program)
DVAP
1 Domestic Violence Assistance Program
2 Domestic Violence Awareness Project
I like oatmeal and or chocolate chip. 
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area51newmexico
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| Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 12:32 pm Post subject: |
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You're very close with the 'DVAP' answers but no cookie!
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Lamiaceae
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| Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 2:22 pm Post subject: |
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Domestic Violence Accomodation Project
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pickle
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| Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 7:54 pm Post subject: |
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Means you can't use CD or DVD either...
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area51newmexico
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| Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:23 pm Post subject: |
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| Minty wrote: | | Domestic Violence Accomodation Project |
Minty gets a cookie.
But competitions aside, if you required the services of this, you might not know what 'DVAP' stood for and therefore might miss out. You perhaps might not read the leaflet on it. Hence being, not-well-known acronyms might fail in their purpose.
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Lamiaceae
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| Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2009 6:56 pm Post subject: |
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| area51newmexico wrote: |
But competitions aside, if you required the services of this, you might not know what 'DVAP' stood for and therefore might miss out. You perhaps might not read the leaflet on it. Hence being, not-well-known acronyms might fail in their purpose.
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Understood.
In a sort of 'over engineering' way then I take it  ?
Where you try to make something bigger and more complex than what it needed to be.
As a guess, they've tried to market something by trying to create a marketing buzz word, unfortunately the only people who know what the buzz words mean are the people who coined them in the first place because they meaning hasn't passed into common parlance?
In the examples I gave, a acronym was used to make a bit of a mouthful ( LASER being the most indicative ) shorter and easier to say.
As this word became more well known and synonymous with what a laser was, everyone would now recognise what this word was, even if they didn't understand what the initials stood for or even how it got this name in the first place.
I imagine that at the time of the conception for the laser acronym it was mentioned only among people people who were connected with the idea.
Literature was released explaining the meaning of the word, and eventually it association was formed.
If in Helen's DVAP example then, using the full name, especially the 'domestic violence' bit would be good at least at the beginning, but whenever you do mention it's name perhaps follow on with 'or DVAP for short'
This association needs to form first before you can start using acronyms exclusively. This is perhaps a failing on the marketing or advertising department who's job it is to drive this project home as a guess?
I believe then that they've jumped to the acronym stage far too quickly without getting the meaning out enough first?
Pamphlets, posters etc with the full description across the top with DVAP featuring nearby and so on. Raising visible awareness of the project to the public being the main aim.
Marketing on just the acronym to start with may make a lot of people wondering what the advert is trying to push unless there are other more powerful images to link 'DVAP' with domestic violence.
EDIT
Ok, so my curiosity got the better of me. I wanted to know 'how domestic violence could be defined' and I found this short quiz
http://www.womensaid.org.uk/domestic-violence-survivors-handbook.asp?section=000100010008000100310004
Good grief! - some of those are quite insidious!
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