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Like countries, every chat environment has its own conventions. And certain regulations, plus a large dollop of conversation shortcuts, are common to all sites. Always observe the following guidelines.

play by the rules
Microsoft Network and America Online have guidelines banning profanity, racist remarks, threats, and harassment; those who indulge in these can be banned from the chat area. IRC channels also have ground rules. Follow them.

don't hog the conversation
Unless you're familiar with the channel, it's best to hang out and listen to the conversation for a while before jumping in. (Start with a hello.) If you have a long thought to express, don't type in the whole paragraph; cut it up with elipses (Yesterday I heard a funny joke...It was about an old lady and a dog...).

don't ignore people
Remember that chat is a social arena, so just as in real life, talk with your fellow chatters. If someone asks how you're doing, give an answer.

learn the lingo
Aside from smileys (expressions made by using characters on the keyboard : ) for smile, : ( for frown, ; ) for wink, {{ }} for hug, and so on), chatters use all sorts of abbreviations. Below are some of the most frequently used chattisms:

symbol Y U C BRB <g> <bg> <vbg> BTW CWYL FWIW GIWIST HHOK HTH HTHBE IMHO IMNSHO IOW IRL ITRW LOL OTP OTF OIC OTOH POV RL ROTFL RTFM TTFN TTYL WRT

translation why you see be right back grin big grin very big grin by the way chat with you later for what it's worth gee I wish I'd said that ha ha only kidding hope this helps hope this has been enlightening in my humble opinion in my not-so-humble opinion in other words in real life in the real world laughing out loud on the phone on the floor oh, I see on the other hand point of view real life rolling on the floor laughing read the f-ing manual ta ta for now talk to you later with regard to