Over the years, the AirCoaster community has developed a unique vocabulary for describing their roller coasters. This guest post by long-time user NN explains what all these words mean. Thank you NN for the awesome writeup!
COASTER TYPES
Realistics
A type of coaster made to be realistic. Realistics usually try to replicate styles of tracks made by real life manufacturers and designers, such as B&M, Intamin, or PTC. They also commonly have scenery made out of track, but this is not a required feature in a realistic and is not found on all of them. Realistics have been around since the earliest days of AirCoaster.
Technicals
Technicals, or "techs" for short, are the least realistic type of track commonly found on AirCoaster. They feature track tunnels and fake outs, as well as other, more abstract, elements. They first came to popularity in 2011.
Scenics
Scenics were first created in 2010. They are generally unrealistic, and usually have slow-paced layouts that interact with lots of scenery. They could be described as sort of the dark rides of AirCoaster.
Threaders
Threaders came to popularity around 2010. They have tight, compact layouts where the track weaves around itself and features countless choppers. The best threaders tend to resemble a messy ball of yarn.
Simulators
Simulators have been around since the early days of AirCoaster. They try to simulate an action, activity, or other act of motion, like making riders the tennis ball in a tennis match or the marble in a marble run. They almost always feature scenery.
Slims
One of the more obscure track types, slims came about in 2011. They feature layouts that are long, thin, and unrealistic. Hybrid slim-threaders are common.
Fantasy Realistics
Fantasy realistics are made to resemble realistic coasters, but are unrealistic themselves, either due to speed or element choice. Despite having the word "realistic" in their name, they are generally categorized as unrealistics.
Support Runners
An unrealistic track type that came around in 2011. They feature invisible track and instead run along a line of track supports.
Unrealistics
An unrealistic is any track that could not be made or found in real life. All of the above types, aside from realistics, are unrealistics. Any track that does not fall into any of the above types is also called an unrealistic.
ACRONYMS
NPP - "New Profile Pic", used when announcing a new picture on their profile. Commonly used to show a track before release.
UOR - "Up On Reply", used when a user means to send a track to a specific user and that specific user only, usually for them to test and give feedback on. The coaster is uploaded as soon as a reply is given, and is taken down as soon as the tester/reviewer has downloaded the coaster.
CC - "Chain Coaster", a coaster that was made by two or more people.
AC - "AirCoaster"
MPL - "Most Popular List"
MRL - "Most Recent List"
Z - "Ziconic", the app's creator
ELEMENTS
Fake Outs
Used commonly in techs, fake outs trick riders into thinking they will follow along on a normal track path but instead jump off the track onto another path.
Track Tunnels
Tunnels made out of track.
Teleportation
A point in the ride when riders are teleported from one point in the track to entirely different point.
OTHER TERMS
Updates
An upload made to give small announcements to one's followers. They can be about anything, although they are usually about current projects.
Projects
A term used for a large or ambitious track that is still under construction.
Keycodes
Keycodes are commonly found at the bottom of a track description. They are used to make the track easily searchable. Keycodes can be searched for in the app's search bar and the track will come up in the search results.
Short Segs
Segments that are 5 units in length.
Micro Segs
Segments that are less than 5 units in length.
E Segs
Segments that are less than 10 units in length and have 8 to 10 spiral.
Partial Loop Segments
Segments that are only a small portion of a loop segment.
0 Segments
Segments that have 0 length, and are used entirely for vertical distances only.
Zim
When a track reaches the first page of the Most Popular List in less than 24 hours.
First Pager
A track that reached the first page of the Most Popular List.
Stuck
When a track stays on the first page of the Most Popular List for more than 24 hours.
Chat Track
An upload made for users to simply have a chat in the comments section.
Topic Track
An upload made for users to chat about a certain topic in the comments section.
