The Handy Guide to Abbreviations and Acronyms for the Automated Office

Dean Tudor is a journalism professor at the Ryerson Polytechnical
Institute and founding editor of the CBRA.

There are 1500 entries here, from over 100 sources. Most of these are noted in the bibliography of materials published between 1967 and 1985. However, only about 3000 of these terms are in use in data processing; the remainder include 1300 standard medical and legal terms, 1000 “scientific” terms, and some miscellaneous materials dealing with streets and addresses, and the like. Most of these 4500 other terms can be located in assorted dictionaries and office almanacs. The real core terms are the data processing ones.

The arrangement is by subject area, which is poor because then users have to pick an area before they can use the dictionary arrangement. The easiest and most convenient way of arranging the material (for both the author and the user) would have been in one alphabetical sequence, as the big-time dictionaries are arranged. Nevertheless, the book does have its uses. The emphasis, of course, is on North American terminology.