IB4TL

IB4TL is an acronym meaning "In Before The Lock." It's a 'game', of sorts, that people play in Internet discussion groups. You will see this acronym used on web boards, blogs, forums, et cetera. Using it sparingly is a good strategy for boosting your post count. When you KNOW a discussion is about to be locked, you can throw a quick 'IB4TL' reply in there, and get credited as if it were a normal post, even though it is basically a useless, one-word observation. While this is a dishonest tactic, it is generally acceptable to most moderators and admins, and the message is left to stand, as-is, towards your overall post count. High post counts are a status symbol on many sites. The gamble is, if the thread isn't locked, it makes YOU look like a fool - a poor judge of character. Sometimes a moderator or admin will leave a discussion open, that would otherwise be locked, just to make YOU look silly. As I said, it's a 'game'...