OK, I guess I’m too old to be in on this lingo. I assume it’s some sort of text messaging shorthand or something like that, but can someone explain it to me? Why that specific misspelling, and where does it come from?
thx gtgb
teh is a common typo which is ironically typed incorrectly on purpose. Similar examples of this are using “1” for “!” and the whole “og” thing which despite belief to the contrary was a common joke in the days of USENET.
Hack became hax
Hacker, then, became haxxor, then haxx0r, then h4xx0r and so on.
At some point, the same convention got applied to suck, crack, rock, etc. suxxor, craxxor, roxxor, etc.
It’s like any subculture jargon. It makes sense to those that use it, and looks stupid to everyone else.
“bling, bling, homie!”
“Me and my droogs”
and so on.
[Use of x0r and “z0r”
Note that the construction “-xor” or any variation thereof can be pronounced variously as “-ker”, “-zor”, or “-ksor” (the latter two being the way the majority of English speakers would pronounce it).
Originally in the phrase “r0x0r j00r b0x0rz”, “b0x0rz” refers not to “boxers” (i.e. underwear) but actually to “boxes” (in computer slang: computers, though boxen or b0x3n may be more commonly used in this context). The more naïve interpretation “rocks your boxers” is still meaningful, however, as the sentiment is much the same and is often used to carry a connotation that one was ‘rocked’ so hard they felt it in their boxer shorts.
The term “r0x0r j00r b0x0r” itself probably relates to hacking itself, with a person being able to gain access to and, from there, “rock their box”. It is also possible that it is a derivative from “r0x0r j00r s0x0r”, “rocks your socks”. (The phrase “rocks your socks” could be derived from the saying, “It’ll knock your socks off.”) It should be noted that although the spelling of leet is fairly standardized, pronunciation differs widely, as does the actual alphabet used. Much depends on which forum, newsgroup, or chat room the Leetspeak is being spoken in.
An increasingly common use of the “-xor” is changing its grammatical usage to be deliberately incorrect. Instead of using “Bob r0x0r”, “Bob am teh r0x0r” or “Bob are teh r0x0r” is deliberately used to increase the level of irony and to separate it from less ironic, true leetspeak. -xor is also sometimes used in user nicknames (e.g: “Luxxor”).
Due to the phonetic sound of “xor” (ksor), 1337 speakers quickly began using “zor” and “zorz” as well and in similar context. “zorz” however is often used on the end of every major word in a sentence for comedic effect such as “H0ly sh1tzorz j00 0wnzorzed himzorz upz!1”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leet)
Ain’t it fun getting old :eek: !
Wow, the question I was afraid to ask! Thanks to fellow oldster John Mace for asking, and to all for the great answers.
Given the “teh” in the phrase, I guess the answer is that it’s a jab at dim witted chat room types for which everything either is the roxxor or the suxxor.
Is “droogs” back in vogue??? Everything old is new again!
Good god, I don’t think so. I was just using a subculture referece that old farts like me would get.
Also note that the opposite of “teh suck” is “teh win.”
Teh winnar!!!11!!one!
It just means “Bush sucks.”
Hazel-rah - I always use “teh rawk”, myself.
I can personally attest that as of six years ago (when I was in high school), “droogs” was being used. It was actually rather common and spanned across cliques; it was just confined to countercultural types.
The phrase “teh suxxor” always puts the image in my mind of a small Egyptian building inside a very large room, surrounded by some small obelisks and possibly a shallow pool: the Tehmple of Suxxor.
What? no reference to Cecil’s own column on the subject?
I don’t think the literal meaning was in question, but the cultural milieu surronding its use. And even that was pretty clear, in a general sort of way, but I wanted to get at the specifics-- which I think was done pretty well here.