ACRONYMS (and things that look like them)
(part 1 of 3)

(last updated November 14, 1995)
This is getting too long again, and I don't see enough of the echo these
days to know what can be culled.  Please send me netmail nominating things
to remove from the monthly list (worry not, everything stays in the full
list).  Thanks.

This is the edited list; for the full list (including more detailed
definitions and things not particularly current) file request ACRONYMS.ZIP
from StormGate Aerie (1:102/524).  A couple of notes:

The purpose of this list is to provide folks with a place where they can
find out what all of those strange acronyms they see in here mean without
having to write a lot of "What is that?" messages (goodness knows we've
enough traffic in here already.)  Please don't deluge me with obscure
acronyms unless they're actively in use...)  Also please tell me if you see
something not currently in use so I can delete it.

I post this on BOTH SFFAN and in SF - not everything in here is on topic in
the latter echo!

: Grin, : Great Big Grin), : Grin, Duck and Run
APA: Amateur Press Association.  Sort of like this bulletin board only each
member prints up his/her own comments and passes them to the Official
Collator (or Official Editor) to fasten together and distribute copies to
members.  Most, but not all, appear monthly or bimonthly.
Authors abbreviated: Agberg = Silverberg, AnneMc = Anne McCaffrey, DeJohn =
John DeChancie, JRRT = J.R.R. Tolkien, KMac = Michael P. Kube-McDowell, LWE
= Lawrence Watt-Evans, PTerry = Terry Pratchett, RAH = Robert A. Heinlein,
Xanthony = Piers Anthony
AWGTHTGTTA?: Are We Going To Have To Go Through This Again?  Alternative
form is AWGTHTGTATA (...Through ALL This Again?).
BIP: Books In Print
BLORF: The sound generated by a very large number of EchoMessages arriving
in a very short period of time.
BNF: Big Name Fan
BOOF: A typo for "book" which appears to have caught on.  It means "book".
"Bif", "bhooves" and "bhoven" have been suggested as the plural of "boof",
possibly rotten "bif" are "barf", "bif in a series are "biffies" and so on.
Really LARGE bif may be called "beef".
BOZON:  Described in the Wunderment echo as: A particle which causes large
problems which can often be looked at in a humourous light; most often
applied to computer hardware and/or software, but not exclusively so.  See
the full list for the delightfully silly details.
BTIC:  But then, I'm crazy.  (Sam Tuirel)
BTW: By The Way
CBIP: Current Book In Progress.  Used when you want to talk about the book
you're reading now but don't need an OOTC because your message is already
on-topic.  (Travis Butler)
CHVC: Columbia House Video Club (Mainly tapes)
CHLC: Columbia House Laserdisc Club (Self-explanatory)
DUFF and TAFF: Respectively the Down Under Fan Fund and the Trans Atlantic
Fan Fund (funds to import fen from same for Worldcons.)  A Mid Atlantic Fan
Fund for well known fuggheads is occasionally suggested...
DUOE: Dried-Up Old Eunuch. To quote Jo Peshek "DUOE was formed in reaction
to the claim of one infamous poster who asserted that an adult novel, or
short story, could NOT be believable or realistic unless it had sex in it.
Not just hand holding, not flirtation, not simple attraction, but
full-blown (oops! 8* ) explicit, juicy sex scenes. The poster said anyone
who disagreed had to be a dried-up old eunich...several of us disagreed. We
do not object to sexual content, merely disagree that it MUST appear. Thus
was born the DUOE and Pruney...Pruney usually shows up when a member wants
to convey shock (or mock shock). [This :* is a pruney. KS]
ETOL:  Evil Twin On Line.  For those occasions when you couldn't _possibly_
be saying the things you really want to say... (Sam Tuirel)
FASA: A game company that made a Star Trek role playing game, before
Paramount (or someone) decided it was a mistake and pulled the rights.  AKA
F**A by someone who agrees with Paramount.  I've never seen it, myself, so
couldn't say.
FBT: Frigging Blue Turtleoid.  Refers to the gigantic blue six legged
turtle like critter with several people tied to its back which appears on
the cover of John DeChancie's novel, CASTLE KIDNAPPED.  It does not appear
anywhere INSIDE the book.


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 * Origin: StormGate Aerie/West LA Netmail Hub/HST (1:102/524)
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     Date: 01-02-96    Time: 12:46p     Number: 4742   
     From: Kay Shapero                   Refer:         
       To: All                        Board ID: FIX             Reply: 
  Subject: (2/3) Acronym List              231: fido.en.sf     Status: Public 
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ACRONYMS (and things that look like them)
(part 2 of 3)

FIAWOL: Fandom Is A Way Of Life
FIJAGH: Fandom Is Just A Ghoddam Hobby (or possibly "Ghu-dam hobby" if
you're into invoking fannish ghods [personally I like The Great Spider or
The Church of Herbangelism - "Praise Herbie and Pass the Buck"], note also
the fannish insertion of silent "h"s into things, such as "bheer".)
FILK: Is not an acronym.  It started out life as a typo of "fannish folk
songs" and was adopted by the perpetrators of same.  So Filksongs are
fannish folksongs.  (for more information ask me via e-mail, or see the
FILK echo if you have it available...)
FITB: Fill In The Blank....
F.U.B.S. (fubs) n. [ F(ido) U(sed) B(ook) S(quad)] 1. A pack of hounds
ravaging the countryside in search of a copy of _A Spell for Chameleon_. 2.
A gallant band of FidoNet readers roaming Used Book Stores (UBS) around the
world for books to trade with others (hopefully that the "others" want, in
trade for another book, money, or gratitude). (definition by Will Purvine)
Some notables include Zane Melder & Travis Butler, but a message to All
with FUBS in the title will probably get you the attention you need. (Term
credited to Glenn Chambers)  And special blessings on Travis, Keith Stokes,
and Lisa Reeves for the FUBS t-shirt they came up with.
FUGGHEAD: Fannish term meaning roughly airhead, someone whose head is
thoroughly fogged.  One can also consider the "fugg" to be a substitute for
the more famous four letter word beginning with "f".
FYI: For Your Information
GAFIATE:  Get Away From It All (as in drop out of Fandom)
GIWIST: Gee I Wish I'd Said That
ICOCBW: I Could, Of Course, Be Wrong
IIRC: If I Remember Correctly. "The obligatory statement of modesty before
making a sweeping generalization about something read five years ago."
(credited to Travis Butler)
IITYWIMWYBMAD: If I tell you what it means, will you buy me a drink?
IMHO: In My Humble (or Honest) Opinion. Also IMNSHO: In My Not-So Humble
Opinion and IMOBO: In My Own Biased Opinion.
INPO: In No Particular Order
LASFS: The Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, which is the oldest
continuously meeting science fantasy society in this world (since Oct 17,
1934).  Every Thursday at 11513 Burbank Blvd., N. Hollywood, CA  91601
telephone (818) 760-9234.
LLTA: Lots and Lots of Thunderous (or Thundering) Applause
LOL: Laughing Out Loud
MLAS: Mind (or Memory) Like A Sieve (variant introduced by Joshua
Kronengold, MLASBWABHII [Mind Like A Steel Bucket With A Bloody Hole In
It])
NASFiC:  North American Science Fiction Convention (aka North AmeriCon)
NECROHIPPOSADISM: Not an acronym, and probably self evident, but anyway a
reference to beating a dead horse.
NESFA: The New England Science Fiction Association home of NESFA Press
among other things.  P.O. Box 809, Framingham, MA  01701-0203
OOK!: This is not an acronym - it's the abbreviated form of Ook ook slobber
drool!"  This started out as "Ook ook!" which Ed Buchman introduced to the
LASFS claiming a strange lady told him it meant "your pleasure centers had
been diddled."  He soon modified it to the longer form.
OOP, OP: Out Of Print
OOTC: Obligatory On Topic Comment
OOTQ: Obligatory On Topic Quote
OYDB:  Over _your_ dead body. (Sam Tuirel)
PJF: Pre Joycean Fellowship.  Steven Brust, Pamela Dean, Emma Bull,  Will
Shetterly, Jane Yolen, and Neil Gaiman and various others who consider that
James Joyce did the literary world a disservice by deemphasizing plot.  To
quote Pamela; " We're a bunch of writers who worry about the divorce of
so-called popular and so-called literary values, and hope to reconcile
them.  Some of us don't really blame Joyce for the breakup, and some of us
do."
POV: Point Of View
RAH: Robert A. Heinlein
ROFLASTC! (or ROFLASC!): Rolling On The Floor Laughing And Scaring The Cat.
Originated, I'm told by Pamela Dean, who types with a cat on her lap.
Variants include ROFL!, ROTFLH and SITCLH("ROFL Hysterically", and "Sitting
in the chair LH").  Also ROFLWMCSOIA (While My Cat Stared On In Amazement),
ROFLSHIFOMCASMC (So Hard I Fell Off My Chair And Scared My Cat), and any
number of other things along that line.
ROTBA: Reality On The Blink Again (scientific inaccuracy or just plain
nonsense).
RSN: Real Soon Now
RTFM: Read The Fershlugginer Manual


--- msged 2.06
 * Origin: StormGate Aerie/West LA Netmail Hub/HST (1:102/524)
===============================================================================
     Date: 01-02-96    Time: 12:46p     Number: 4743   
     From: Kay Shapero                   Refer:         
       To: All                        Board ID: FIX             Reply: 
  Subject: (3/3) Acronym List              231: fido.en.sf     Status: Public 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ACRONYMS (and things that look like them)
(part 3 of 3)

The Salmon Of Correction:  A useful creature for whapping those who annoy
you.
SFBC: Science Fiction Book Club
SFWA:  Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America.  Sometimes abbreviated
SFFWA.  Pronounced "sif-wa".
SIASL: Stranger In A Strange Land
SMOF:  Secret Masters of Fandom
ST:TOS, ST:TNG, ST:TAS, ST:TMP, ST:DSN: Respectively Star Trek: The
Original Series, The Next Generation, The Animated Series, The Motion
Picture (the first one), and Deep Space Nine.
TANJ: There Ain't No Justice
TANSTAAFL: There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch
TITLE, NUMBER/BIGGER NUMBER: Not an acronym, but a method of indicating
where you are in a book.  Write the title first, followed by a parenthesis,
followed by the page number you are on, followed by the total number of
pages in the book.  For example, if you were on page 12 of Mort, it would
be MORT, 12/285.  Who came up with this is unclear.
TPTB: The Powers That Be
TRQ: To Read Queue.  Also VTRQ "Virtual To Read Queue".
TSTMATS: The Sun, The Moon and the Stars by Stephen Brust.  Good book.
TTBOMK: To The Best Of My Knowledge
TTFN: Ta Ta For Now.
TTYL: Type (or Talk) To You Later
UBS: Used Book Store
WAMKSAM:  Why Are My Kids (or Kitties) Staring At Me?
WIP: Work In Progress
WYLABOCTGWTR, WYLASOMWTC: Would You Like A Bowl Of Cream To Go With That
Remark?, Would You Like A Saucer Of Milk With That Comment?  Created by
Steven Brust (& common in Minneapa)
YAHI, YAMI, YATI: Yet Another (Highlander, Mets, or Trek) Inconsistency
YAWA:  You and what army?   (Sam Tuirel)
YMMV: Your mileage may vary.

----
point of information - a message line preceeded by a > is a quote from a
previous message and not a comment by the current message poster.
another point of information - the moderator of SFFAN is Nicolai Shapero
(1:102/524).  The moderator of SF is David Dyer-Bennet (1:282/341).  The
moderator of FILK is Kay Shapero (1:102/524) (note shameless plug... :->)


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 * Origin: StormGate Aerie/West LA Netmail Hub/HST (1:102/524)
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