i think that, perhaps, the disagreement (if there is one) between us is on this point. or, rather, my reason for getting "bent out of shape" about incorrect usage is that i still tend to consider (or, maybe, prefer) message boards and other written internet communication to be more on the side of writing than speech. even if semi-realtime, the person writing has enough of an abstraction from the other person to be able to construct her statements more precisely and attentive to the grammatical rules and semantic particularities than if she were talking face-to-face. it is notable that AIM chat and such are where you see the most reduction and change -- i'm thinking "u" for "you," an increased use of abbreviations and initialisms, etc. if i had to make a hierarchy of internet communication it would have office e-mail at the top (most formal. most like writing), and AIM banter at the bottom. message boards like this fall somewhere in between, and it is purely a judgment call (or a matter of the particular climate on whatever forum) as to what standard of writing should be maintained.