12480

Omniglot has a lot of cool things, but one of my favorites is it's page on the 12480 script. There are several different scrips all along this concept, and you can write anything with it that can be expressed with a numeric value. In this way the scripts survive so long as numbers survive.

My favorite is the color script. I've often thought of making a conlang involving colors. Perhaps for a sentient group of alien octopus. The colors correspond to symbols within several of the other scripts, as well as IPA sounds, roughly a consonant and a vowel for each color.

12480 is inspiring for me, and if nothing else you should at least scroll down to the bottom and look at the sample scrips. They are gorgeous.

The linguistsics of texting

What do you think about txt speak? I am personally not a fan. The shortening makes me think the writer is either stupid, or an annoying child for the most part. I know I'm not alone in thinking this. I think majority of those that make up "the internets" would agree. Grammar and spelling nazis occupy most internet spaces.

So then how do I defend things such as lol, orly?, and others that I do use. Well, those seem ok to me, but what criteria I am using to determine this I don't know. This conundrum is what makes articles like this one interesting to me.

So does it help, does it hinder? Is it annoying, useful, what? I still haven't decided.