Overuse of lol.

[Jason Tandro]

Is it just me, or are we becoming paranoid in our web conversations. It seems that some people who constantly joke around (like me for one), always have to qualify everything we say with "lol". It's basically become a period.


Is this a reasonable justification of the fact that we can't express our feelings with body language online... or a bad habit?

[Dark_Gaia]

yep u got it. im a prime candidate. i lol even when its not necessary just from habbit. and i rarely actually laugh out loud =p its similar to the word 'like' which has found its way into my 'most common said words' list. kind of sad really. i dont like it but i do it accidently alot!

[EverPhoenix]

i use 'lol' a lot as well. although i mainly use it as a placeholder for a meaningful response i cant be bothered thinking of. either that or 'hmm', depending on the seriousness of the conversation. it isnt always the case, sometimes i do actually use those 2 as they were intended.

[chicken]

once you hear people say it in REALITY, you know its too late. no joking here, i know a lot of people who do it. nerdness 2.0

[EverPhoenix]

once you hear people say it in REALITY, you know its too late. no joking here, i know a lot of people who do it. nerdness 2.0

hah i do that sometimes. only to people who are similar though

[Dark_Gaia]

ive said lol in rl a bit haha ppl laugh when i say it but

[Blade]

I say what the fuck quite often in rl, and lol only when it's an uber-nerdy situation.

[eFlare]

"lol" has been overused for many years already. I don't think it's anything recent.

I usually filter it out in my head, I don't read it at all, because I think it's indeed the equivalent of "like" when used mid-sentence. It's just there, and the sentence retains the same value without the word in place. In fact, the sentence would increases in value without it.

[Mantaray]

i say lol just out of habbit on the internet. or in real life i say it aloud just to distract myself from a thought that would later ruin my day. it annoys people though

to me it's not equal to "like" since i only use that word now to take a modest approach. either that or speak in the most formal way possible (and make it funny)

[Freedan]

It's just become a habit for people to end a sentence with it.

If someone uses it at the end of their own joke, story or sentence, they're saying that they think what they said is funny, and so should everyone else.

If they're using it as a reply... well, that's just a generic stock reply. It has no real meaning any more because of how often it's used.

"I overslept today and missed my bus." - "lol."

"Some guy called me a noob, then I pwned him." - "lol."

"My uncle is in the hospital." - "lol."

Really, people just use it when they have nothing else to say. How often have you typed up a 5-line post or IM, only to have the person you're talking to reply with "lol"? In all likelihood, they aren't paying attention to you.

[Jason Tandro]

My stock reply for a situation like that is: 'yeah well, you know."

I'm also a fan of the Zapp Braningan line: "That's whatever it is you were talking about for you."

[inferiare]

LOL.


....ok, sorry, had to. IT WAS CALLING ME. If I figure I'm the only one laughing at something, it changes to just a "haha" at the end of a sentence. Just the way I am, I suppose. But I try not to overuse it because... uh well yeah.

[Metall Ark (XD®)]

I also say lol sometimes. BUt i sai it only if something is strange or making an question sound lol?

[psychokind]

as long as you don't say it in front of girls, it's ok I think.

[Miss Prime Blue]

I prefer "lolololo".

And sometimes I say LOL outloud.

Sometimes.