The @ Sign

[DisGirlAllie]

So, as I've been reading the boards more and more lately I've noticed that people have been abbreviating about as @. Since when? I've always thought @ meant at, not about.

 

[FINFAN]

while I havn't noticed it being used a lot, I thught it meant *at* aslo.

 

[jp24]

It's a twitter thing. You will also see the increase of the # sign to mean what they're actually talking about. As in @DisGirlAllie #twitterabbreviation.

You only get a certain number of characters when you tweet, so they figured out a way to not need spaces.

 

[darlak]

It does mean "at". I've also noticed the misuse a time or two.

 

[sunnyday123]

It's a twitter thing. You will also see the increase of the # sign to mean what they're actually talking about. As in @DisGirlAllie #twitterabbreviation.

You only get a certain number of characters when you tweet, so they figured out a way to not need spaces.

But doesn't "twitterabbreviation" tell me what they're talking about? What does the # tell me?

 

[ohiomom28]

my old boss used to use it for both! I always wanted to say something! LOL But I did see it used once somewhere online here recently...

 

[MiniGirl]

I was always told growing up that @ means "about." Does it not? I know once e-mail came into the picture it also started means "at." However, I knew it as about before at.

 

[Imzadi]

It's a twitter thing. You will also see the increase of the # sign to mean what they're actually talking about. As in @DisGirlAllie #twitterabbreviation.

You only get a certain number of characters when you tweet, so they figured out a way to not need spaces.

Yes, it's a new Twitter thing. Every member name has the @ before their member name. People are inappropriately putting it in non Twitter places and onto screennames OFF Twitter. Not everyone is @(screenname) when it isn't even about Twitter.

Like here, instead of responding to the OP by quoting her or simply calling her by name, some people would say:

"@DisGirlAllie, the use of that symbol means. . ."

But THIS place isn't Twitter, it's the DIS. And the other places you've seen it used aren't Twitter, but they will use the @.

 

[laurie31]

Yes, it's a new Twitter thing. Every member name has the @ before their member name. People are inappropriately putting it in non Twitter places and onto screennames OFF Twitter. Not everyone is @(screenname) when it isn't even about Twitter.

Like here, instead of responding to the OP by quoting her or simply calling her by name, some people would say:

"@DisGirlAllie, the use of that symbol means. . ."

But THIS place isn't Twitter, it's the DIS. And the other places you've seen it used aren't Twitter, but they will use the @.

Thank you for explaining this! Now I get it! I had no idea why my niece (freshman in college) had taken to calling everyone "@Name" on Facebook. I think of myself as fairly internet-savvy, but I don't twitter. Not yet, anyway.

 

[KristaTX]

I've read this whole thread, and I still don't understand what you all are saying @ and # are being used to mean. I am not reading "at" or "about" with the any examples of the @.

What is it you are saying # means besides pound or number or tic-tac-toe?

As a symbol, I've never heard of @ meaning anything but "at". I guess it has some official name, but isn't it known as the "at symbol" in typing class?

On Facebook I have seen people type things like @KristaTX and it still confuses me. I finally figured out that it means a comment is directed at KristaTX, but when I type a comment directed at a specific individual, I just type "KristaTX - blah blah blah" like I would in a note to someone .

 

[Imzadi]

Thank you for explaining this! Now I get it! I had no idea why my niece (freshman in college) had taken to calling everyone "@Name" on Facebook. I think of myself as fairly internet-savvy, but I don't twitter. Not yet, anyway.

Yep, perfect example.

The problem with that is you aren't on Twitter yet. When you go to join Twitter, there may already be an @Laurie31, or you may decide on a totally new name, like @Laurie3100 or DisGirlAllie may want to be called @TwitterGirlAllie. So when your niece is improperly using it, she might be accidentally using someone else's Twitter name or referring to you by a name that you don't/won't have.


I don't know a lot about Twitter, but as far as I know, an appropriate use of the @(screenname) on another site or correspondence is when quoting someone from Twitter. Like when we post a news or web article, we include the corresponding link. To refer to a Twitter Tweet, one would say, "@(screenname) just Tweeted this joke or picture. . ." Then people would know to go to Twitter and enter @(screenname) to find that person's corresponding Twitter page. The @(screenname) IS the link to their Twitter page.

Your niece is referring to you as @Laurie31, when you don't even have a page.

 

[Imzadi]

I've read this whole thread, and I still don't understand what you all are saying @ and # are being used to mean. I am not reading "at" or "about" with the any examples of the @.

What is it you are saying # means besides pound or number or tic-tac-toe?

As a symbol, I've never heard of @ meaning anything but "at". I guess it has some official name, but isn't it known as the "at symbol" in typing class?

On Facebook I have seen people type things like @KristaTX and it still confuses me. I finally figured out that it means a comment is directed at KristaTX, but when I type a comment directed at a specific individual, I just type "KristaTX - blah blah blah" like I would in a note to someone .

It's like this, when we see @ before a .com address we usually know it's referring to someone email address: KristaTX@madeupemail.com

When the @ is in front of a person's name it's SUPPOSED to denote the link for a person's Twitter address:

Click on these links for examples:
@AshtonKutcher
@charliesheen

People are inappropriately putting it in front of people's names on FACEBOOK - not Twitter, when some people don't even have a Twitter page. Plus Twitter is Twitter and Facebook is Facebook.

If people went to the link for @KristaTX <- - that is what they would get, because you don't have a page, but your friend is referring to you like you have a Twitter page.

 

[KristaTX]

So how are people using to mean "about"? I guess @AshtonKutcher means about Ashton Kutcher? As in his Twitter site is about him.

But. . .are people using @ to mean "about" in sentences? As in, "What you talkin' @, Willis?"

What is it people are using # for besides the traditional meanings?

I'm old timey I suppose. I still don't even like it when people use asterisks around words in place of quotation marks or for emphasis or whatever it is they use asterisks for. And I still put two spaces after periods, and I also use a comma before "and" and "or" in a series .

 

[laurie31]

Yep, perfect example.

The problem with that is you aren't on Twitter yet. When you go to join Twitter, there may already be an @Laurie31, or you may decide on a totally new name, like @Laurie3100 or DisGirlAllie may want to be called @TwitterGirlAllie. So when your niece is improperly using it, she might be accidentally using someone else's Twitter name or referring to you by a name that you don't/won't have.


I don't know a lot about Twitter, but as far as I know, an appropriate use of the @(screenname) on another site or correspondence is when quoting someone from Twitter. Like when we post a news or web article, we include the corresponding link. To refer to a Twitter Tweet, one would say, "@(screenname) just Tweeted this joke or picture. . ." Then people would know to go to Twitter and enter @(screenname) to find that person's corresponding Twitter page. The @(screenname) IS the link to their Twitter page.

Your niece is referring to you as @Laurie31, when you don't even have a page.

ROTFL at the bolded. I know what you meant, but I've been told that before...but so far I am resisting the urge to tweet. lol

And my niece refers to EVERYONE like that it seems. As in she will post on Facebook something like "@Roommate and I went and got ice cream tonight after class with @JaneDoe, @SusanSmith, and @JoanJones. We saw @BrianBrown and @WillWilliams while we were out."

I'm thinking, @HUH???

But yes, now I get it!

 

[s____!]

I thought ~ meant about or approximately.

 

[Conservative Hippie]

On Facebook though, you can "tag" people in your posts. If I type "@Husband Name" Facebook auto-formats it to appear as just "Husband Name" with a link to his profile. If I want to do this but I'm sloppy about it, I might type "@Hubby" instead of his full name, and then Facebook doesn't know who I am talking about and does not auto-format, so it appears in the post as "@Hubby."

 

[HappyGilmore]

It can also be a longstem rose:

@--->------>-----

 

[DisGirlAllie]

I'm a teenager and I don't even understand Twitter xD

It can also be a longstem rose:

@--->------>-----

Thank you for the gorgeous rose.

 

[marlynnp]

People are inappropriately putting it in front of people's names on FACEBOOK - not Twitter, when some people don't even have a Twitter page. Plus Twitter is Twitter and Facebook is Facebook.

If people went to the link for @KristaTX <- - that is what they would get, because you don't have a page, but your friend is referring to you like you have a Twitter page.

Are they? Or do they have their tweets automatically posting to their facebook feed?

 

[marlynnp]

I thought ~ meant about or approximately.

Yes, in mathematics the tilde means approximately.