harshal360

I use them in person a lot with my friends. I guess it's just the new generation. The thing that I do not like is that a lot of slang terms are being added to the dictionary. That basically ruins the purpose of a "slang" word as it is now an English word and therefore no different than another. Also when they add abbreviations to the dictionary it is one of my pet peeves. LOL is not a word, people need to get that right.

Generally, when I talk to my friends it is through Skype or in person. So most of the time I just laugh.  However, when I instant message or use Facebook I will use it on the occasion. However with emoticons now I don't have to. I think it is better to just compliment the funny joke or expression by responding with "that was hilarious" or by simply laughing and not pointing out your laughter as it is not necessary.

It is grammatically correct to start a sentence with "but". When I was learning English a lot of people told me it wasn't allowed in the early stages because, it was not common too. But if you use it properly like I just did then there is nothing wrong. You want to use it for emphasis or in replacement for however. Good luck in learning English!