W.A.I.S.T? 17 January at 6:07PM in Site feedback 4 replies 135 views

serpico100

If you’re wondering what I’m talking about then you know how I feel sometimes. Confused! WAIST stands for “why abbreviations in subject title” I like to browse these boards on a regular basis but sometimes I have no idea what people are talking about. I spend half the time on google trying to figure out what some of the abbreviations are. It’s not a problem if the abbreviations are in the subject title, but are written in full in the thread, but if abbreviations  are in both I sometimes get lost and confused. 

For example, today there is one with the title “Had a WCA for UC” So I found out WCA is work capability assessment, but when I looked up UC it came up with University Of California, unanimous consent, under construction, upper Canada and upper case before it finally came up with Universal Credit. That’s 20 seconds of my life that I’ll never get back lol. 

At the other end of the scale there is a thread titled Lifetime Allowance (LTA) which is absolutely perfect.

I’m not trying to change the forum, I’m not having a rant, and I’m not saying it’s wrong. I’m merely pointing out that not everybody knows every abbreviation being used. Or maybe they do and it’s just me...

MSE_James

Hi @serpico100 - you raise a very fair point. We'll have a look at what we can do by way of a glossary, particularly for boards covering subject areas with lots of specialist jargon

serpico100

Hi @MSE_James - like I said, I’m not trying to change the boards. However, if a glossary is something that is possible in the future, that would be perfect. Thank you

Spoonie_Turtle

The answer to your question 'why?' is most likely because regulars on each board will know what those acronyms stand for, and it's a heck of a lot quicker to type and read

I do like the idea of a glossary for each boatd, it would certainly help people new to any of the boards that have a lot of jargon/acronyms around the subject.

EssexHebridean

I'm sure we used to have a glossary - at least for DFW?