In my old job, my employers dubbed me the “tech guru” from my interview forward. This undeserved reputation began at my interview in 1991 when I was the only person in the room who could explain that the three plastic computers sitting on the floor didn’t work because they were LaserJet printers. I enhanced my tech reputation over the years by deploying my secret weapon for fixing 90% of all computer glitches: unplug the computer, then plug it back in.
It’s odd how consistently that remedy works. When I first started doing it, our “state-of-the-art” computers came with monitors as big as a small moving box, screens of about 12 inches in diameter, no color or pictures, no email, and a whopping half megabyte of RAM. My cell phone today, let alone my laptop or my desk computer, has 2000 times more RAM than those early models. Massive quantities of RAM create computers that are smarter than me. Everyday appliances, such as the television, the refrigerator and the microwave, which contain computer chips, are also smarter than me. Even so, when those devices get a bug in their computing system, at least 90% of the time restarting the computer or device straightens it out. (Unless your bug has already taken you to the blue, green, or black screen of death—a blank monitor with a single blinking cursor in the corner. If that happens, don’t bother unplugging; your electronic device needs professional help ASAP.)
My mantle was undeserved because I don’t know enough to be a tech guru for a kindergarten, let alone a business. I’m just stubborn enough to force any vendor to explain every acronym and concept until I can explain them to someone else. This tenacity has stood me well in my new job in state government. We deal with various federal agencies regularly, and they love acronyms. Drawing on my earlier technological experience (or more precisely, the lack of it), I ask the person in the meeting or the person sending the email to explain the acronym if I can’t find the explanation on Google.
Writing is not immune to acronyms, especially if you communicate about your writing online or by email. Common acronyms include WIP (work-in-progress), MS (manuscript), POV (point of view), and MC (main character). What writing acronyms have you come across that struck you as useful?
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