TL;DG
Stupid things I do March 12th, 2013
No doubt some of you know what the acronym TL;DR stands for. If you don’t, it’s “too long; didn’t read.”
TL;DR is often used in response to a very long post somewhere on the Internet that people feel was too long to read and just skipped it.
Sometimes a writer will add TL;DR to the end of their post and give a short summary for their long-windedness for the benefit of lazy people.
I’m one of those lazy people. And my acronym lately is TL;DG (too lazy; didn’t Google), for today I posted a comment on a friend’s Facebook status that I was surprised I hadn’t heard about a streaming webcam fixed on the pipe from where smoke will bellow after a pope is either decided or not.
I ask, exactly how lazy do you have to be to not Google something? I mean, in the time it took for me to tell my friend that I didn’t think there was a pope smoke cam, I could have actually Googled whether or not there was one.
Think back to pre-Internet days. To learn anything at all about the pope election process, I’d have had to walk to a library. We were encyclopedia-free in my house, so finding facts meant actually putting a coat on and walking two blocks to Mary Meuser Memorial Library, where I did all my school work that involved research.
Now we have Google at our fingertips and somehow I think it’s still too much work to move my cursor all the way up to the search box, type “pope streaming cam,” tap Enter and get an answer instantly.
I mean, really. Lazy is as lazy whines about doing.
Now if you’ll excuse me, typing this post nearly killed me. I have to go lie down.
Oh, and if you’re curious, yes, there is a streaming pope pipe cam here. Get it while it’s hot!
Stumble it!
March 12th, 2013 at 5:37 pm
I was to lazy to really read your post. I just glanced over it quickly. I didn’t know that the Pope smoked a Pipe.
March 12th, 2013 at 5:48 pm
That is a new abbreviation for me. I often skip long posts so that’s why I try to make mine short. I hate it when bloggers don’t even make paragraphs–will not spend time reading a page without paragraphs.
Karen and Gerard´s last blog post ..Your Attention Please!
March 12th, 2013 at 6:01 pm
If you WOULD have Google Searched it you would have seen this comment:
“Unless they are smoking brisket, I don’t care.”
And a page without paragraphs is like a day without coffee breaks.
Goinglikesixty´s last blog post ..Geeky Animated Gif Monday – Barack the Gunslinger
March 12th, 2013 at 6:32 pm
I hate long posts too. Some I will read, but it has to be a by a blogger that I know I will enjoy reading.
I’m old enough to remember only getting information from older siblings and my parents. If they didn’t know the answer, I generally went without the knowledge. Thankfully they were an intelligent bunch. Why am I telling you this? Because it’s only recently that I grasped the concept of using Google for information! Now I Google everything.
Babs´s last blog post ..Please ignore me!
March 12th, 2013 at 7:22 pm
Smoking Pope Pipes, Batman! Who knew?
Boom Boom Larew´s last blog post ..When Worlds Collide
March 12th, 2013 at 8:38 pm
And if you think YOU’RE lazy….how about the darn pope who retired because he’s too “tired” to be the pope anymore.
Criminy. What’s the world coming to?
March 13th, 2013 at 5:25 am
Dave — Har.
Karen — I’m wary of long posts, too, unless they are engrossing. I’ve also always broken up my paragraphs more than I normally would, so that it’s easier on the eyes to read.
Goinglikesixty — Hee. I’m sure there are millions who don’t. I’m a paragraph/white space fiend!
Babs — Isn’t it crazy to think that the only place we got information from was people and books? I really can’t imagine life without the Internet. Water, yes. Electricity, yes. Internet, no.
Boom Boom — Has a nice ring, doesn’t it?
Lin — I smelled a scandal. There’s no way he’s retiring because he thinks he can’t do the job well enough because he’s “old.” Popes are always old, no?
March 13th, 2013 at 6:19 am
I just read about a link you can send someone when you’re asked information that could have easily been looked up online.
lmgtfy.com
March 13th, 2013 at 4:48 pm
NTL;RI;TIWF: Not too long; Read it; Thought it was funny =)
Michael J. Kannengieser´s last blog post ..Book Signing at The Book Revue in Huntington, February 23rd, 7:00 p.m.
March 16th, 2013 at 11:19 am
Mike — TD;YMMD (Thanks, dude. You made my day!)
March 16th, 2013 at 8:57 pm
Well, apparently I’m a luddite because I had no idea there was a TL;DR acronym. And if it’s too long for someone too read, what good does it do to add a summary AT THE END if someone is too lazy to read through your post to find it? And must we enable these people? These lazy bozos? And do these lazy bozos actually LOOK for their special “mini-post” at the end? I’m so behind the times – I swear.
So anyway, did they elect a new pope yet?
Margaret´s last blog post ..What is the Capital of California?
March 17th, 2013 at 9:48 am
I am a little bit sad about the internet because I always wanted my very own library card.
Daisy the Curly Cat´s last blog post ..My St. Patrick’s Day Suit
March 17th, 2013 at 12:58 pm
Oh, Kathy! You crack me up, woman! I am also too lazy to google things as well. I’ve even updated my facebook status asking OTHER people to google things for me, which probably took MORE TIME than googling it myself.
meleah rebeccah´s last blog post ..I Can Haz The Flu
March 18th, 2013 at 4:50 am
Margaret — I’ve often thought if these people didn’t type out one long wall of text, I might actually read the whole thing. But I do use the TL;DR summary at the end from time to time. Then if it sounds interesting enough, I’ll to back and read the wall. Yes, there’s a new pope. He rocks the white vestments.
Daisy the Curly Cat — I love when you make me envision these sort of things. You hopping up on the counter with your liberry card to check out books. Would you like to read Cat in the Hat?
meleah rebeccah — I’ve done it too. I’m not proud of it.
March 18th, 2013 at 4:48 pm
No question people are reading less and less. They’re watching “Duck Dynasty.” I don’t know how to write a short short. I think they should be about 500 to 750 words but a lot of times mine are over 1200 words. People do not read. Many people cannot read. My real question is: Why do you take even more of your precious time to put acronyms on a story you didn’t feel like you had the time to read? Surely you did not put TL;DR on something you had no intention of reading and if you did it for the sake of the poor person who wrote it, they probably don’t give a damn! I am confused but I totally agree with you and I love Google. I have become a serious news junkie.
Ben Swilley´s last blog post ..Memory – What Happened to Henery Hawk?
March 26th, 2013 at 5:53 pm
I’ve never heard of TL;DR. I try to use short paragraphs so posts won’t look like a wall of text but I’d like to think a reader will stick around till the end.
I like to hold off Googling things sometimes. I want to look up trolling vs. trawling. I know I’ll find an answer, maybe even an old William Safire piece. But I get nostalgic pleasure from delaying gratification. Or maybe I’m just lazy.
kathcom´s last blog post ..Sandwich Fixins #9