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Subject: 
Re: About the term "AFOL"
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.general, lugnet.faq
Date: 
Wed, 25 May 2005 20:06:45 GMT
Viewed: 
10668 times
  
This is a good question -- as a relative newbie to the community, I've often
regretted that this is the standard acronym.

It's pronunciation is unclear; I've heard old AFOLs say anything from "A.F.O.L."
(i.e. just spelling it) to "A-full" (long "a"), but other reasonable
pronunciations would be "afull" (short "a") or even "awful", which is how
non-AFOLs I've shown it too usually say it.  Certainly not a very complementary
acronym if you see it that way.  And even with the long "A", it's vaguely
reminiscent of slang word that starts with "A" and ends with "hole" (especially
if you pronounce the "FOL" part as "fole").

Much better would be Adult Lego Enthusiast (ALE), which not only makes a nice
clear acronym, but also is a better description -- we're not just fans of the
LEGO company, we're enthusiasts of the LEGO hobby.  Someone who's into trains
isn't a train fan, they're a train enthusiast (or hobbyist).

But I don't suppose there's a snowball's chance of the term ALE catching on now,
is there?  Or some other more carefully-considered acronym?

Best,
- Joe



Message has 1 Reply:
  Re: About the term "AFOL"
 
(...) I'm in agreement with you on this, I'm not so much a fan, as an enthusiast. And I describe myself to others as such. (...) Sure, if enough of the community recognized that one particular acronym was better. Shifting gears isn't easy but can be (...) (19 years ago, 26-May-05, to lugnet.general, lugnet.faq, FTX)

Message is in Reply To:
  About the term "AFOL"
 
Hi, Yes, of course I know _what_ an AFOL is. But: Who created this term? When? And where? The r.t.l. FAQ does not mention the term (and I never read it "back then", IIRC), so it could be newer. Other FAQs only give "AFOL=Adult Fan Of LEGO". Any (...) (19 years ago, 25-May-05, to lugnet.general, lugnet.faq)

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