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[qwertyuiopas]

Just a random idea, but could the internet be improved by the creation of a customized language?

The idea would be to make a purely written language that conveys all of the important details better and faster than languages based off of speech. It would use most of the keys on the keyboard, but would refrain from the use of [] and <>, to make it BBcode and HTML compatible.



This topic is for discussing and, just maybe, the creation of such a language.


The only idea that I have that I know would work out would be to prefix "words" with \, |, and/or / to show tense, so \(something) would be past-tense, |(something) would be present, and /(something) would be future, and they could be combined such as /\(something) as the english equivalent of I will have.


Criticism? Comments? Contributions?

[bjlong]

Might work as a shorthand for English at the beginning, but I doubt a full language would work out.

[Derakon]

Constructed languages (conlangs) can be a lot of fun to make, but I've yet to see one catch on outside of a niche (e.g. Esperanto, Klingon). So y'know, go ahead and make it, but don't expect it to go anywhere. I personally tend to have more fun inventing glyphs for languages, which obviously wouldn't work well in this context since you're presumably sticking to the English character set.

Gauging "better" or "faster" in language is also tricky, since much of language is not objective. Clarity battles with artfulness, tact with directness.

[G-Flex]

The only idea that I have that I know would work out would be to prefix "words" with \, |, and/or / to show tense, so \(something) would be past-tense, |(something) would be present, and /(something) would be future, and they could be combined such as /\(something) as the english equivalent of I will have.

That's not much better than prefixing using letters.

Also, your idea of "tense" is extremely limited and seems to be derived solely from English. There are more than three or four. A hell of a lot more. It really depends on the language how they're represented.

[qwertyuiopas]

I would say I and U, should be used, but with i being self, I being the equivalent to us or we, but possibly not you(to be discussed), u being you the person, U being you the people.

A good future goal would simply be shorthand english, BUT, it could also create workarounds to some of the flaws in english. It should have a more clear structure, something that can be easier for a machine to read, and by being created, it would have a stronger, singular, simpler structure and be better designed for rapid communication.

And G-Flex, I meant time-tense, not the total collection. Unless there is scientific breakthrough in time travel, there will only ever be past, present, and future. And in the case of such breakthrough, a new language is needed anyway. And allowing multiple time-prefixes per word and only requiring them when it is not obvious would make it better suited to time-travel then standard english anyway.

[JoshuaFH]

I don't know, it probably wouldn't be that good of an idea, if only because it would raise the bar for understanding things on the internet to an unprecedented new high. I mean, we ALREADY have something of a language of our own, what with our abbreviations, and acronyms, and shortening of a lot of words and ideas, this sets a wall that new people have to learn first before fully understanding what alot of people are trying to say. Now imagine that wall, and now picture how high and insurmountable it would be to new internet users when they find they have to learn an entire new language to be able to understand what people are saying. For that purpose, I have to agree that it wouldn't see much use outside of the niche that may like it personally.

EDIT: Relevant!

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[G-Flex]

And G-Flex, I meant time-tense, not the total collection. Unless there is scientific breakthrough in time travel, there will only ever be past, present, and future.

Not really. For instance: "I will have been dating John for three years." It's referring to a state regarding the past and the present that will be true in the future. Linguistics is goddamn complicated.

[qwertyuiopas]

Covered.

That would use /\ as a prefix (future-past, the past of the future).

So, "I /\date Jhon for 3 years".

Much shorter, and a computer would have less of a problem working it out as a side effect.

[G-Flex]

Except that doesn't distinguish between a state that's ongoing and a state that's not. The same difference between "I dated John for two years" and "I have dated John for two years".

[bjlong]

If I understand what he's going with, here, your statement might be translated as "I /\|date John for three years." Perhaps another mark to show ongoing actions would be appropriate? "I /\:date John for three years."

For other languages, if you have a "far past" sort of tense, you could use \\date. This says nothing about languages that have tenses that indicate sources of information, though.

For the record, using capital and lowercase letters to mean different things is a very bad idea. You have to remember that this will be used by YouTube commenters who can't find the shift key.

Also, beware of quick-speak. Look it up on Wikipedia.

[qwertyuiopas]

The time-prefix would be independant of such state variations.
It would be specified either in the word itself or as a distinct part of the prefix, defined at a later date.


Besides, if you can come up with a more effective system, go ahead!

This is not my idea/project, I just happened to be the first to create this topic.
This is the idea/project of everybody interested.

The point of sharing it is that people like you can find flaws or areas that need development, and maybe fill them yourself.

Interupted-By-Other-Poster-Before-Post-Edit:
This could be considered open source, but without all that stuff like a lisence.
At the moment, it is musings and somewhat entertainment that everyone is invited to join.

[Virex]

Covered.

That would use /\ as a prefix (future-past, the past of the future).

So, "I /\date Jhon for 3 years".

Much shorter, and a computer would have less of a problem working it out as a side effect.

It also lookjs backflipping ugly...

It might not seem relevant, but language is something that you'll be using a lot. And if something is forced or feels out of place you're going to notice it. Therefor, using a form of modified English will only work if the modifications feel right, irregardless of their objective merrits.

[qwertyuiopas]

English?

It shouldn't result in a modified english.


Best case it becomes a good language, possibly to the point that it can express anything.

Better if it is in a more computer-friendly format.


If it evolved into more of a raw language that was detailed enough, most or all tranlators would work by translating to it and then to the output language.

[G-Flex]

English?

It shouldn't result in a modified english.

Except that's exactly what you're doing, whether you know it or not, because English is your only frame of reference.

[qwertyuiopas]

Wrong.

I know a bit of french.


And, a massive ammount of C, java, C++, basic, and others...




AND
I do not plan to do all of this myself! This is the most important part.