Abbreviations aren't user friendly on this site.. need a FAQ or sticky..
 

I see so many abbreviatons EOC, SG, DWL, P&G, ect..
That I'm certain there are alot of people that are new here scratching their heads.

Its borderline annoying/irritating.. maybe if you break it down like this..
that would help..

Its not like abbreviating words is going to net you better wpm :D
It would definatly make the site more user friendly..
For now, its killing this sites user friendly ability..

I second the motion.

We should definitely do it....I have a small one somewhere...If anyone feels like working on it/making a post you can build on this: http://crxmpg.com/feglossary.html

Just make a post and we'll work on it a bit then I'll sticky it for other users to find.

Id think it would also be usefull to explain what each
one does and how people use it for Fuel Efficiency (FE)

P&G?

I'm getting alot of questions from members of CustomTacos that joined ecomodder and their asking me what this or that means..

heres a quote from customtacos.. lol

I schooled him on why the scan guage is good, so thats all set there..

Are there other sites like ecomodder that mite be a little more user friendly?
I'm not getting any explanations of abbreviations and thats really killing the experience of getting any useable information on this site.

Do I need to make seperate posts just to ask what every abbreviation means?

This sort of slight irritation is definatly not swaying me towards paying for a membership, thats for sure..

It's coming.

I'm debating declaring EM an "abbreviation free zone" because, the truth is I hate abbreviations too. I agree they're a barrier to access. But once you pick them up, laziness seems to rule in the quest to save precious keystrokes. Know what I mean? ROTFL etc.

Why not automatically link TLAs (and other acronyms) with a brief hover text definition? Sure there should be a glossary, but this would solve readers' immediate confusion factor, no?

P&G is pulse and glide if your asking what that means.

I'm used to abbreviations. In fact I almost abbreviated abbreviate :D" It comes with texting a whole lot on your phone cause your too lazy to dial the number and wait for it to dial, then wait for them to pick up the phone... Just to ask what that food was called.

Abbreviating stuff just seems easier once you get to know it. when you gotta check 3 or more pages of eco-posts it seems a lot easier on the fingers.

I personally detest the hover widget, but it's probably a necessary evil. (We can probably get one that can be turned on/off in user preferences.)

Anyway, for now, see: Glossary of abbreviations, acronyms & initialisms

Also "Glossary" is now a main navigation item. As with much else in life, it's a work in progress; consider it a start. Feel free to add more / make requests in that thread.

Theres internet speak LOL, WTF, ROTF, ect.. thata basically a norm, but when your dealing with hypermiling/green techniques.. Its new to alot of people.. I'm not trying to be a whiny dickhead.. But everyone I refur to this site that I have gung ho on hypermiling gets discouraged because there are too many abbreviations..

why not do a setup where if the abbreviation pops up in a post, it automatically hyperlinks it so you can click and read what it stands for and what its all about?

I see that on other forums all the time.. :thumbup:

that way no glossery needed.. :thumbup:

I think hover text has gotten a bad rap because too many marketeers think it's a great way to hawk all kinds of crap at us with big splashy flash ads that pop just by waving your cursor past them and won't go away unless you click on them. Yeech...so don't do that.

I was thinking of something a smidge more tasteful like the tooltips you already have on your "EcoModder home" (headerL.jpg) logo as well as other icons: ;) (reference the alt attribute in anchor and image tags). They don't involve any kind of widget in the rendered page and don't activate unless you actually hover over the item for a couple seconds, unlike the aggressive popup ads you may be thinking of. It would, however, suggest some server-side scripting on your side to detect say 3, 4, and 5 letter all caps strings found in an acronym list. Isn't there already a profanity filter that modifies strings found in the nasty-word list?

In your prefs, you could turn on/off "EcoModder tips" to momentarily show the words on which known acronyms are based. It would simply be meant as an optional click saver in looking them up.

Alternatively, you could make acronyms links to their definitions, but may be harder to distinguish between these and links entered by a posting's author. I'm no IA (Info Architecture) or usability expert, just a thought.

YMMV :cool:

you know what? I think I'm gonna put that glossary link in my sig.

Maybe the glossary can be a part of your user CP to turn on/off in your sig or name/info or something for quick reference anytime. I'm gonna put it in my signature so if I do abbreviate something they don't know the source is right there in my post.

Good thinkin!

wow... I abbreviated signature... I really am lazy.