In this case specifically, David Crystal is arguing against folks who bemoan the effect of text messages on English. An example of what they might complain about: “I H8 U jk LOL. B @ my plc @ 9”. Haters think that this will destroy the English language and civilization as we know it, while Crystal points out that these sorts of conventions are not new, children do not try to use this sort of language on school papers for the most part, and texting seems to aid in literacy.
Well, he might not want to point to such a text message in his defense, because it would work against his claim that less than 10% of the words are abbreviated!
It sounds plausible to me, depending on what’s being communicated. There aren’t really a lot of words with convenient shorthand. Though you can usually get away with leaving out vowels.
In this case specifically, David Crystal is arguing against folks who bemoan the effect of text messages on English. An example of what they might complain about: “I H8 U jk LOL. B @ my plc @ 9”. Haters think that this will destroy the English language and civilization as we know it, while Crystal points out that these sorts of conventions are not new, children do not try to use this sort of language on school papers for the most part, and texting seems to aid in literacy.
Well, he might not want to point to such a text message in his defense, because it would work against his claim that less than 10% of the words are abbreviated!
Seriously, only 10%?
It sounds plausible to me, depending on what’s being communicated. There aren’t really a lot of words with convenient shorthand. Though you can usually get away with leaving out vowels.