Talk:noob

The Difference Between 'Newb' and 'Noob'
There is no difference. However, on online internet games, such as WOW (World of Warcraft), gamers' made up a an informal 'language' called 1337, meaning leet (elite). They describe people who are new to games as 'noobs' or 'newbs' etc, these words are shortened versions for the word 'newbie' or alternatives to words such as rookie, novice or even beginner. a newbie is someone who is new to the game at hand and is not familiar with the fundamentals and posessing little competence to the activity, so therefore will end up making bad decisions and losing. These words aren't only used in online games, they can be used to describe any rookie in any such activity. Usually these words are used in a derogatory sense, but are sometimes just used to justify the rookie's position, with no derisive intent.

There may be no difference between the words 'noob' and 'newb' but there is usually a preferability, which is that some people may prefer the latter of the two, some may not - there is no difference or justification.


 * There is a difference. The connotation of newb is positive/neutral, and the connotation of noob is negative.


 * A newb is someone who is learning, a noob is someone who refuses to learn. --174.71.78.253 00:31, 15 July 2011 (UTC)


 * Noob used to mean the same thing as newb, but not any more

http://www.planetcalypsoforum.com/gallery/files/5/6/8/3/noob.jpg http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=noob http://geekdictionary.computing.net/define/noob

Please add to Translations section
ヌーブ and 新参 is Japanese term of noob. Thanks.--Elfmd 19:21, 25 December 2009 (UTC)

Another definition?
I have seen, and live by, a definition of 'noob' that I do not see in this article. This definition is: One who is not new, but perpetually acts new, refusing to learn any 'lessons', hard-earned or otherwise, with regards to a concept, idea, or game.

noob
I've spent a great deal of time looking for scholarly sources on this word. The fact is, scholars of words simply don't seem to have the correct definition down here. In the world of academe, it seems accepted that "noob" is synonymous with newb. However, spend a few weeks online in a chat community of any sort, or in an MMORPG, and you'll discover there are two very different definitions for "noob" that seem to be more widely accepted among non-scholars (you'll find evidence for this by looking at talk:noob, too.
 * 1) noob (often "n00b", from the 1337 spelling) - This is the definition most popular in chat rooms: An Internet troll disguised as a newbie. The origin of this word is very easy to guess-- Internet trolls often type in what is known as 1337, and "noob" or "n00b" is "1337" for "newb". A troll would be especially likely (prior to the recognized trend) to say "xxxZOMGxxx b naice 2 ME 1mma n00b!!!!", which translates to "be nice to me, I'm a newb". Eventually, folks caught on that if a newbie spelled it as "noob" or "n00b", they probably were a troll. The term "noob" has thus been applied for years to trolls, especially those who pretend to be newbies.
 * 2) noob - This is the definition most popular in MMORPG: An insulting name to call someone else. Spend an hour playing WoW or Runescape, and count how many times someone randomly walks up to you and screams "NOOB!" They're not doing it because you're new...they do this to old-timers as well. They're doing it simply to make you mad.

As I stated above, I've searched several times for extended hours for journal articles about this, but scholars all point to the "synonym of newbie", a definition that's tragically mistaken and widely popularized in academe.


 * Can you provide three citations of the word in actual use clearly illustrating the use you suggest? A good source would probably be Usenet, searchable via Google Groups. DCDuring TALK 03:13, 30 March 2011 (UTC)

Just because anti social geeks us the "word" in a certain context, doesn't mean that the term would have to have this meaning in all contexts. Noob was used as a term long before any online games existed, and it was always a smartass (and retarded) young persons version of newbie, but it also showed that the person who used that word was a newbie himself who tried to sound smart, IE like a person who uses ebonics and the like, to sound hip.