In Real Life

Why Trust Techopedia

What Does In Real Life Mean?

In real life (IRL) is a tech slang term used to talk about the real world, in contrast to the world of the Internet, or some other virtual or cyber world.

Advertisements

In real life (IRL) is also known as the meatspace.

Techopedia Explains In Real Life

Internet users often use the term or the acronym IRL on message boards and in other venues to talk about things that that happen in the physical world. Tech professionals and others also use the term “real time” to talk about IT systems that update data according to timelines in the physical world, or in other words, in real life.

Although it may seem like a simple slang term, “in real life” could take on added meaning in the future, where distinctions between physical and cyber worlds continue to blur and blend together. This kind of language is used to try to describe changes in the ways that people interact with technology, as individuals and as societies. These interactions change as new interfaces develop and become popular as consumer purchases.

Advertisements

Related Terms

Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert
Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert

Margaret é uma premiada redatora e professora conhecida por sua habilidade de explicar assuntos técnicos complexos para um público empresarial não técnico. Nos últimos vinte anos, suas definições de TI foram publicadas pela Que em uma enciclopédia de termos tecnológicos e citadas em artigos do New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine e Discovery Magazine. Ela ingressou na Techopedia em 2011. A ideia de Margaret de um dia divertido é ajudar os profissionais de TI e de negócios a aprenderem a falar os idiomas altamente especializados uns dos outros.