computer input and communications

During my research, I discovered that learning to use handwriting is a part of the process students need to be able to read. I was unaware of this as I am a high school teacher and we don't usually teach beginning reading. A comment someone made lead me to realize that students who communicate alot via IM and chatrooms tend to use a shorthand that may spill over into other parts of their lives. For instance, I belong to a forum which has threaded discussions. There was a person who wrote her posts using computer speak shorthand and alot of folks let her know that it was not appreciated nor appropriate to the venue because it made communication more difficult. I beleive that we need to be careful when shifting from one venue to another and remember the expected methods of communicating.