Keep asking why, because repeated questioning will eventually get to the truth; but again, keep that voltmeter handy.
Here, you will find curious things I've discovered and curated over the years, mostly by "Warsurfing." I define that phrase to cover:
Enjoy!
There were found by wartyping, which is the keyboard analogue of wardialing: typing combinations of domain names, staring with "a.org" (e.g.) and working up in the alphabet.
Skipped combinations either yield nothing, a parking page, a weird religious site that buys up lots of empty domains, or a "buy this domain" page. Here's my list so far:
| nym | expansion |
|---|---|
| <3 | i like that comment |
| grin | |
| 3bs | three beers short |
| aamof | as a matter of fact |
| adn | any day now |
| afaiac | as far as i am concerned |
| afaict | as far as i can tell |
| afaik | as far as i know |
| afair | as far as i remember |
| afk | away from the keyboard |
| afpsoagf | a few punches short of a good fight |
| afssoap | a few sandwiches short of a picnic |
| aopc | reciting local national motto |
| asap | as soon as possible |
| asl pls | age sex location please |
| athyrio | and the horse you rode in on |
| atm | at the moment |
| atp | at this point |
| aybabtu | all your base are belong to us |
| b4n | bye for now |
| bak | back at (my) keyboard |
| bbfn | bye bye for now |
| bbiab | be back in a bit |
| bbiaf | be back in a few |
| bbl | be back later |
| bbs | be back shortly |
| bbs | be back soon |
| beg | big evil grin |
| brb | be right back/bathroom break |
| bta | but then again |
| btw | by the way |
| cp | coder pig |
| cq… | looking for… |
| ctc | care to chat? |
| cya | see ya |
| d/c | disconnected |
| djiad | darnit jim, i’m a doctor |
| djiad | not my area of expertise |
| e.g. | exempli gratia |
| faq | frequently asked questions |
| fb | fine business |
| focl | falling off chair laughing |
| ftw | for the win |
| fwiw | for what it’s worth |
| fyi | for your information |
| ga | good afternoon |
| gm | good morning |
| gmta | great minds think alike |
| gmtaasdo | great minds think alike, and so do ours |
| goybwaroc | get on your big wheel and ride on, cowboy |
| gtg | got to go |
| hdj | irretrievably broken (he’s dead, jim) |
| hth | hope that helps |
| hybs | christian greeting |
| hyfj | another christian greeting |
| iaadbnyd | i am a doctor, but not your doctor |
| iaalbnyl | i am a lawyer, but not your lawyer |
| ianad | i am not a doctor |
| ianaitp | i am not an IT person |
| ianal | i am not a lawyer |
| ianyg | i am not your guru (don’t ask me) |
| iapnad | i’m a programmer, not a doctor |
| inyitp | i’m not your IT person |
| ic | i see |
| ifypfy | i fixed your post for you |
| iha | i hate acronyms |
| iirc | if i recall correctly |
| imho | in my humble opinion |
| imnsho | in my not so humble opinion |
| imo | in my opinion |
| iow | in other words |
| irl | in real life |
| isagn | i see a great need |
| istr | i seem to recall |
| ito | in terms of of |
| itt | i think that |
| j/k | just kidding |
| jk | just kidding |
| jsia | just say it already |
| kbn | gimme a minute to break it |
| kbn | klaatu barada nikto |
| kbn | stand down, cowboy ^^ |
| kwh | kilroy was here |
| l8r | later |
| lahith | (i need that) like a hole in the head |
| le | later edit |
| llap | live long and prosper |
| lmao | laughing my * off |
| lol | laughing out loud |
| ltns | long time no see |
| lts | laughing to self |
| ly | love you |
| mil | mother-in-law |
| motd | message of the day |
| n/a | no attachment |
| n/m | nevermind |
| n/p | no problem - np also used |
| n/t | no text |
| nhdbof | observing a religious holiday/ritual |
| nmcnmm | not my circus, not my monkeys |
| np | no problem |
| oic | oh, I see |
| omg | oh, my god |
| op | original poster |
| opiahh | op is a hose head |
| otoh | on the other hand |
| pal2 | peace and long life |
| ppl | people |
| re | re hi or re hello |
| rofl | rolling on floor laughing |
| roflmao | rolling on floor laughing my arse off |
| rotfl | rolling on the floor laughing |
| rtfm | read the ***** manual |
| rtfm | read the full manual |
| sahm | stay at home mom |
| sio | spit it out |
| shlm | jewish greeting |
| slm | muslim greeting |
| smmas | sudo make me a sandwich |
| st | spell that |
| ta | thanks/again |
| tafn | that’s all for now |
| tam | thanks a million |
| tmi | too much information |
| tsta | try spelling that again |
| ttyl | talk (type) to you later |
| ttys | talk (type) to you soon |
| ty | thank you thx thanks |
| w8 | wait |
| wb | welcome back |
| wc | are you hungry? (want chinese?) |
| wfm | works for me |
| wsof | way short of fudge (to give) |
| wtf | what, the fudge? |
| wtf | why the face? |
| wtg | way to go |
| ww | wire weenie (hardware person) |
| wx | weather |
| wysineutwyg | what you see is not entirely unrelated to what you get |
| wysiwyg | what you see is what you get |
| ygbkm | you gotta be kidding me |
| ymmv | your milage may vary |
| yold | year of our lady of discord |
These phone numbers all call a recording of some kind. Some of them are leftover Bell System intercept (error) messages. They go in and out of service, so your mileage may vary.
| number | description |
|---|---|
| (202) 762-1401 | USNO master clock! |
| (202) 965-9970 | you have just deactivated this feature. |
| (203) 777-4647 | Pat Fleet time & temp in New Haven, CT |
| (204) 867-5309 | The Jenny Song! |
| (205) 867-5309 | Jenny is not in service in Birmingham. |
| (206) 343-0011 | this call requires a coin deposit. no, really. |
| (213) 621-0001 | the good, old-fashioned, “We’re sorry…” recording (not Jane Barbe, sadly) |
| (213) 621-0002 | 1000Hz @ 0dB (this only makes sense if you’re a phone person) |
| (216) 931-1212 | WKYC Time and Weather |
| (270) 301-5797 | a maze of twisty little touch tones, all different. |
| (303) 337-2500 | Denver Post Weather |
| (313) 849-9906 | calling is too heavy to answer this number. |
| (401) 560-5293 | genuine Jane Barbe intercept message |
| (406) 442-1730 | Helena, MT, time & temp |
| (409) 724-3137 | The call you have made requires an initial deposit. please hang up momentarily… |
| (412) 885-0075 | “All test positions are unmanned at this time, please try your call again later.” |
| (415) 767-2676 | “Popcorn” time & temp, preceded by a religious message |
| (505) 503-4455 | Better Call Saul |
| (509) 457-0044 | This call requires a coin deposit… |
| (509) 457-0051 | All circuits are busy now… |
| (540) 829-9910 | genuine Pat Fleet intercept message |
| (570) 387-0000 | “due to an emergency condition….” |
| (573) 996-000x | Doniphan, MO, CO intercept lines (autoforwards) |
| (573) 996-0002 | they still have party lines? |
| (573) 996-0003 | “your call cannot be completed as dialed” (remote intercept) |
| (573) 996-0005 | “your call did not go through…” (remote intercept) |
| (573) 996-0006 | “the number you have reached…is not in service” |
| … | … |
| (601) 867-5309 | Jenny’s answering machine |
| (609) 729-9928 | …the long distance company you have selected is unable to complete your call… |
| (610) 797-0014 | Excuse me, please deposit five cents for the next 3 minutes … |
| (618) 625-8313 | Stranger Things |
| (718) 816-9901 | North Staten Island DMS-100 ident message & area code list |
| (719) 266-2837 | hall and oates emergency song line |
| (800) 444-4444 | automated number announcement circuit |
| (800) 437-9606 | “your international call can not be completed as dialled” |
| (817) 844-6611 | possibly the oldest time & temp number around (since 1951) |
| (845) 354-9912 | callcannotbecompletedasdialed…..” |
| (877) 763-2435 | odd squad HQ |
| (888) 447-5594 | congratulations, you found your way here |
| (914) 232-9901 | pleasant hills DMS 100 |
| (914) 737-9938 | somebody said put an outgoing message here |
| (916) 440-0031 | “due to facility trouble….” |
Enjoy.