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johnslat

I just found out about this. Has anyone else heard about it?

Leet, also known as eleet or leetspeak, is an alternative alphabet for the English language that is used primarily on the Internet. It uses various combinations of ASCII characters to replace Latinate letters. For example, leet spellings of the word leet include 1337 and l33t; eleet may be spelled 31337 or 3l33t.

The term leet is derived from the word elite. The leet alphabet is a specialized form of symbolic writing. Leet may also be considered a substitution cipher, although many dialects or linguistic varieties exist in different online communities.

VOCABULARY

Many words originally derived from Leet slang have now become part of the modern Internet slang, such as "pwned".[1] The original driving force of new vocabulary in Leet were common misspellings and typing errors such as "teh" (generally considered lolspeak), and intentional misspellings,[10] especially the "z" at the end of words ("skillz").[1] Another prominent example of a surviving Leet expression is w00t, an exclamation of joy.[2]

New words (or corruptions thereof) may arise from a need to make one's username unique. As any given Internet service reaches more people, the number of names available to a given user is drastically reduced. While many users may wish to have the username "CatLover," for example, in many cases it is only possible for one user to have the moniker. As such, degradations of the name may evolve, such as "C@7L0vr." As the Leet cipher is highly dynamic, there is a wider possibility for multiple users to share the "same" name, through combinations of spelling and transliterations.

Additionally, leet�the word itself�can be found in the screennames and gamertags of many Internet and video games. Use of the term in such a manner announces a high level of skill, though such an announcement may be seen as baseless hubris."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leet

Sashadroogie · Posted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 9:01 pm Post subject:

So there is a new name for not spelling things properly. Computerized illiteracy.

I don't know. Things took a turn for the worst when we gave up quills and papyrus...

Guy Courchesne · Joined: 10 Mar 2003 Posts: 9650 Location: Mexico City

I used to write 55378008 on my Casio calculator watch and turn it upside down. It was funny when I was 11.

gaijinalways · Joined: 29 Nov 2005 Posts: 2279

Guy, isn't that supposed to be 55318008? I knew someone who used to refer to his girlfriend that way (really).

Goes with the shirt I was wearing today 'Nice pear' ('pear' as a picture).

John, this website uses a lot of leetspeak.

http://icanhascheezburger.com/

Sashadroogie · Posted: Sat Jul 24, 2010 6:34 am Post subject:

No dress code at your place of employment then?

johntpartee · Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258

gaijinalways · Joined: 29 Nov 2005 Posts: 2279

You're right Sasha, I seem to have picked up an extra 5 for my version (5318008).

johnpartee posted

Sashadroogie · Posted: Sat Jul 24, 2010 10:00 am Post subject:

Ah, so your uni does impose a dress code. Some standards at least, eh?

Chancellor · Posted: Sat Jul 24, 2010 2:53 pm Post subject:

BenE · Joined: 11 Oct 2008 Posts: 321

I've heard of l33t.

I think hackers in the 90's used it though my memory is hazy and the people I spoke to have long gone.
Now it's just another internet fad.

Sashadroogie · Posted: Sat Jul 24, 2010 7:57 pm Post subject:

gaijinalways · Joined: 29 Nov 2005 Posts: 2279

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cool_Biz_campaign

Thought a link might help.

Sashadroogie · Posted: Sun Jul 25, 2010 5:06 am Post subject:

Very thoughtful, really. That helps so much. Always good to know what the latest excuse for falling standards is - in spelling or attire.

MrTPitysu · Joined: 02 Jun 2010 Posts: 5

Psh... you conservative and elderly n00bs.

Der_Bomber · Joined: 03 Oct 2010 Posts: 17

Whilst those two given reasons for its popularity are valid, it should probably be added that the originiation of these terms is often deliberate misspellings to avoid unwanted attention from internet bots and search engines, and to get around word filters. 'hax0r' is Hacker for this reason, for example.

As well of this there is a lot of mimicry - 'teh' and !!111 for example came about as a result of experienced computer users taking the p15s out of the massive numbers of inexperienced computer users who only really started to type regularly when the internet gained popularity in the late 90s. 'Teh' of course means 'the' and !!111 is from an overexcited !!!! without holding the shift key long enough.