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What do all the acronyms mean?

ec1warc1

By ec1warc1
in General geocaching topics

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ec1warc1

+ec1warc1

Posted
Posted

The only acronym that I understand thus far is FTF (first to find). I know there are MANY others, like TFTC, but I really don't understand what that one is or any of the others. Please provide me with a list or at least let me know what your favorites are here. Thanks! :anicute:

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Kochibu

+Kochibu

Posted
Posted (edited)

AWP = Additional Waypoint

BYOB = Bring Your Own Pen

CITO = Cache In Trash Out

DNF = Did not find

FTF = First to Find

GZ = Ground Zero

HZ = Homezone

LP = Lost Place

LPC = Lamp Post Cache

NM = Needs Maintenance

PMO = Premium Member Only

PQ = Pocket Query

SBA = Should be archived

STF = Second to Find

SWAG = Stuff we all get

TB = Travel Bug

TFTC = Thanks for the Cache

TNLN = Took Nothing Left Nothing

TTF = Third to Find

 

If there's any other you'd like to know go ahead and ask :anitongue:

There are also some that are only used in special countries. In Germany we often use DFDC (Danke für den Cache) instead of TFTC. In France it's MPLC (Merci pour la cache), etc.

Edited by Kochibu
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Clan Riffster

Clan Riffster

Posted
Posted

ec1warc1, the meaning of a couple acronyms change depending on how they are used.

For instance, the acronym "TFTC" translate literally to "Thanx For The Cache".

If used as spice to a well written log, the translation is accurate.

But if that acronym is the entire log, the translation changes to "Your Cache Really Sucks".

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Totem Clan

+Totem Clan

Posted
Posted

ec1warc1, the meaning of a couple acronyms change depending on how they are used.

For instance, the acronym "TFTC" translate literally to "Thanx For The Cache".

If used as spice to a well written log, the translation is accurate.

But if that acronym is the entire log, the translation changes to "Your Cache Really Sucks".

I don't even use it in my long logs anymore. I type out something like, Thanks for bringing me here, or Thanks you for placing this cache.

 

I figure if I likeed the cache enough to say thanks then I can say thanks correctly.

 

[but that's just me]

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The Jester

+The Jester

Posted
Posted

ec1warc1, the meaning of a couple acronyms change depending on how they are used.

For instance, the acronym "TFTC" translate literally to "Thanx For The Cache".

If used as spice to a well written log, the translation is accurate.

But if that acronym is the entire log, the translation changes to "Your Cache Really Sucks".

This may be true in some areas, in our area we have a few cachers who do that for any and all caches, no matter what it is - 1/1 or 5/5.

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J the Goat

+J the Goat

Posted
Posted

ec1warc1, the meaning of a couple acronyms change depending on how they are used.

For instance, the acronym "TFTC" translate literally to "Thanx For The Cache".

If used as spice to a well written log, the translation is accurate.

But if that acronym is the entire log, the translation changes to "Your Cache Really Sucks".

This may be true in some areas, in our area we have a few cachers who do that for any and all caches, no matter what it is - 1/1 or 5/5.

 

Those folks are everywhere, some people just aren't all that wordy in their logs. I tend to over-write sometimes, but I figure CO's will appreciate that more than a few letters.

 

As far as the list goes, some of the ones listed are probably region specific as I've not heard them. There are probably some that others will add to the list that others haven't heard of. Nature of the beast I suppose.

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JL_HSTRE

+JL_HSTRE

Posted
Posted

Besides TFTC, I sometimes see TFTH ("Thanks For The Hide" or "Thanks For The Hike").

 

I wouldn't be surprised if some caches, especially Power Trails (PTs), also get TFTN ("Thanks For The Numbers").

 

LPCs (Lamp Post Caches) are fairly widespread, but some areas also have GRIMs ("GuardRail Madness" or "GuardRail Magnetic").

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Mr.Benchmark

+Mr.Benchmark

Posted
Posted

A couple more that weren't obvious to me at first:

UPS = Unnatural Pile of Sticks - a very common way to hide an ammo can in the woods...

PAF = Phone A Friend - the practice of telephoning someone who's already found the cache when you can't find it to provide hints or an outright solution.

 

Pretty soon you'll be able to create terse, unreadable logs with the pro's:

 

LPC MKH. TNLNSL TFTC. Wet - NM.

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Clan Riffster

Clan Riffster

Posted
Posted
In our area we have a few cachers who do that for any and all caches.

I would say that is probably a learned behavior, picked up from watching others log with acronyms.

Often, a politly worded e-mail can change such behavior. Sometimes, it won't.

I'm reminded of the Broken Windows theory.

Ignoring bad behavior will generally lead to an increase in such behavior.

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Mr.Benchmark

+Mr.Benchmark

Posted
Posted (edited)

I would say that is probably a learned behavior, picked up from watching others log with acronyms.

 

I wonder if the tendency of people to send very short, highly abbreviated, text messages these days isn't a part of this, as opposed to rudeness or laziness? (Although I don't disagree with you that it is rude.) I think a lot of written communication is turning into txt - C U L8R.

 

How well has sending emails about this worked out for you? (Just curious.)

 

edit: Also, it occurs to me that technical people, for whom this game had an appeal at least early on, often like to communicate in TLAs, to be concise, that probably feeds into TNLNSL type logs.

Edited by Mr.Benchmark
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StarBrand

+StarBrand

Posted
Posted

What do all the acronyms mean?

 

They mean we are a bunch of really lazy typists. :rolleyes:

 

That and the product of (over)using a 10 key pad for sending short bursts of alphabet at each other with thumbs. Too bad they can't invent some technology to actually speak to another person over long distances.

 

Maybe the site needs to allow "voice" logs and "video" logs??

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GOF and Bacall

GOF and Bacall

Posted
Posted

What do all the acronyms mean?

 

They mean we are a bunch of really lazy typists. :rolleyes:

 

That and the product of (over)using a 10 key pad for sending short bursts of alphabet at each other with thumbs. Too bad they can't invent some technology to actually speak to another person over long distances.

 

Maybe the site needs to allow "voice" logs and "video" logs??

 

I know it's a bit OT for here, but...When I was pressured into joining the texting craze I had to get a phone with a full keyboard. I couldn't even keep up with my mother when trying to type on a phone pad. I always thought it was easier to actually phone, but when half the family stopped answering their phones I felt I didn't have much choice. Funny part is that now that they have more or less forced my hand they'll answer the phone so I no longer have to text 'em. I love 'em all. But sometimes I hate 'em. :laughing:

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Clan Riffster

Clan Riffster

Posted
Posted

I would say that is probably a learned behavior, picked up from watching others log with acronyms.

 

I wonder if the tendency of people to send very short, highly abbreviated, text messages these days isn't a part of this, as opposed to rudeness or laziness?

Many decades ago, an English teacher pointed out that we, as a nation, are fundamentally lazy where communications are involved. He went on an extended diatribe about nicknames and local dialect adjustments, (slang), that has infected our speech patterns throughout the last hundred years. I think this acronymic trend is just the geocaching extension of that same principle.

 

Though it does beg the follow up question; 'why is abbreviation such a big word?' :ph34r:

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Pocileh

+Pocileh

Posted
Posted (edited)

I hate those short logs consisting of just a few characters. Most of all I hate the logs like: TFTC logging from my.... using .....

If it's too much effort to comment on a cache, being positive or negative, stop Geocaching.

It tells me more about the attitude of that particular Cacher than it tells me about the quality of the cache.

I've seen beautifull located caches with many TFTC logs. How disrespectfull towards the owner.

Even if you don't like a cache because of .....(whatever), tell it and the owner can take advantage of your comment and adapt the cache if possible/needed.

Edited by Pocileh
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dprovan

+dprovan

Posted
Posted
Many decades ago, an English teacher pointed out that we, as a nation, are fundamentally lazy where communications are involved. He went on an extended diatribe about nicknames and local dialect adjustments, (slang), that has infected our speech patterns throughout the last hundred years. I think this acronymic trend is just the geocaching extension of that same principle.
I know this is a popular way to look at it, but it really makes no sense. Blaming acronyms or nicknames on laziness is like saying we're lazy for having a word "cheeseburger" when "ground beef patty placed between two parts of a roll cut in half with a flattened square of milk curd on it" works just as well. When a common concept is widely used, it's not laziness to have a short way of expressing it, it's just what happens in a living language.

 

I write the most verbose logs in my area, yet I almost always end my logs with "TFTC", and quite frequently end them with "TNLNSL, TFTC". Everyone understands them, so why do anything else? The only thing "Thanks for the cache" does for me is wonder why they bothered to write it out. There are so many important things to say about a cache, why waste space writing out something that you can say in just a few characters? To me, that's not being polite, it's just trying to fill up space.

 

One abbreviation I learned about when I started was "APIDKA" for "another park I didn't know about". I often feel like that when I'm caching, but I've never actually used the acronym or seen anyone else use it.

 

One of my caching buddies sometimes uses "TFBUH" even though he's pretty sure no one knows it means, "thanks for bringing us here."

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DragonsWest

+DragonsWest

Posted
Posted

Years ago I adopted the practice of actually spelling out 'Thanks for the cache', sometimes wording it alternately 'Thanks for a fun cache' as appropriate. As a cache owner I'm nonplussed :mellow: by all the TFTC entries I get for my hides and decided the very least I could do to show appreciation for someone's effort, even for a cache which doesn't stand out, is to use the words and dump the acronyms. That's my tuppence on log entries.

 

In the forums I'm all about using acronyms, but try to remember good form and spell out the phrase and follow it with the acronym in parenthesis, following with the acronym in subsequent text, as I was taught in Technical Writing. Nothing irks me more when reading a news or magazine article and having to go look for the acronym somewhere because an journalist is too lazy (and has an editor who doesn't care) to follow good form. I.e. Cromulent Reader Embiggening (CRE)

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Clan Riffster

Clan Riffster

Posted
Posted
I write the most verbose logs in my area, yet I almost always end my logs with "TFTC"

There's a world of difference betwixt using nothing but an acronym for a log and tacking on an acronym at the end of an otherwise excellent log. As a cache owner who creates hides geared toward lengthy logs, I offer my "Thanx!" to you for your verbosity.

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briansnat

+briansnat

Posted
Posted

AWP = Additional Waypoint

BYOB = Bring Your Own Pen

CITO = Cache In Trash Out

DNF = Did not find

FTF = First to Find

GZ = Ground Zero

HZ = Homezone

LP = Lost Place

LPC = Lamp Post Cache

NM = Needs Maintenance

PMO = Premium Member Only

PQ = Pocket Query

SBA = Should be archived

STF = Second to Find

SWAG = Stuff we all get

TB = Travel Bug

TFTC = Thanks for the Cache

TNLN = Took Nothing Left Nothing

TTF = Third to Find

 

If there's any other you'd like to know go ahead and ask :anitongue:

There are also some that are only used in special countries. In Germany we often use DFDC (Danke für den Cache) instead of TFTC. In France it's MPLC (Merci pour la cache), etc.

 

Swag really isn't an acronym, its an actual word.

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GrateBear

+GrateBear

Posted
Posted (edited)

What a surprise! I thought this would be a series of posts, all saying the same thing, but was I ever wrong! Very amusing. I have a couple I use myself. First is QF for "quick find". The second is a bit more non-PC: HKF, which stands for Helen Keller Find, ie, even she could have found it. I know, very poor taste, but it really applies to some of those LPCs........I have my asbestos suit on.

Edited by GrateBear
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StarBrand

+StarBrand

Posted
Posted

AWP = Additional Waypoint

BYOB = Bring Your Own Pen

CITO = Cache In Trash Out

DNF = Did not find

FTF = First to Find

GZ = Ground Zero

HZ = Homezone

LP = Lost Place

LPC = Lamp Post Cache

NM = Needs Maintenance

PMO = Premium Member Only

PQ = Pocket Query

SBA = Should be archived

STF = Second to Find

SWAG = Stuff we all get

TB = Travel Bug

TFTC = Thanks for the Cache

TNLN = Took Nothing Left Nothing

TTF = Third to Find

 

If there's any other you'd like to know go ahead and ask :anitongue:

There are also some that are only used in special countries. In Germany we often use DFDC (Danke für den Cache) instead of TFTC. In France it's MPLC (Merci pour la cache), etc.

 

Swag really isn't an acronym, its an actual word.

 

Yup - see: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/swag

 

swag2    [swag] noun, verb, swagged, swag·ging.

noun

1. Slang .

a. plunder; booty.

b. money; valuables.

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Kochibu

+Kochibu

Posted
Posted

AWP = Additional Waypoint

BYOB = Bring Your Own Pen

CITO = Cache In Trash Out

DNF = Did not find

FTF = First to Find

GZ = Ground Zero

HZ = Homezone

LP = Lost Place

LPC = Lamp Post Cache

NM = Needs Maintenance

PMO = Premium Member Only

PQ = Pocket Query

SBA = Should be archived

STF = Second to Find

SWAG = Stuff we all get

TB = Travel Bug

TFTC = Thanks for the Cache

TNLN = Took Nothing Left Nothing

TTF = Third to Find

 

If there's any other you'd like to know go ahead and ask :anitongue:

There are also some that are only used in special countries. In Germany we often use DFDC (Danke für den Cache) instead of TFTC. In France it's MPLC (Merci pour la cache), etc.

 

Swag really isn't an acronym, its an actual word.

 

Yup - see: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/swag

 

swag2    [swag] noun, verb, swagged, swag·ging.

noun

1. Slang .

a. plunder; booty.

b. money; valuables.

 

Had no idea. Never heard the word before geocaching and found it listed as an acronym on the german geocaching-wiki :yikes:

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