What do the dots mean?

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Ellipsis

(plural ellipses; from the Ancient Greek: ἔλλειψις, élleipsis, "omission" or "falling short&quot is a series of marks that usually indicate an intentional omission of a word, sentence or whole section from the original text being quoted. An ellipsis can also be used to indicate an unfinished thought or, at the end of a sentence, a trailing off into silence, (aposiopesis), example: "But I thought he was..." When placed at the beginning or end of a sentence, the ellipsis can also inspire a feeling of melancholy or longing. The ellipsis calls for a slight pause in speech or any other form of text, but it is incorrect to use ellipses solely to indicate a pause in speech.

The most common form of an ellipsis is a row of three periods or full stops (...) or a pre-composed triple-dot glyph (…). The usage of the em dash (—) can overlap the usage of the ellipsis.

The triple-dot punctuation mark is also called a suspension point, points of ellipsis, periods of ellipsis, or colloquially, dot-dot-dot.

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On the Internet and in text messaging

The ellipsis is one of the favorite constructions of Internet chat rooms, and it has evolved over the past ten years into a staple of text-messaging. Although an ellipsis is technically complete with three periods (...), its rise in popularity as a "trailing-off" or "silence" indicator, particularly in mid-20th century comic strip and comic book prose writing, has led to expanded uses online. It has been used in new ways online, sometimes at the end of a message "to signal that the rest of the message is forthcoming."[5]

Today, extended ellipsis of two, seven, ten, or even dozens of periods have become common, but incorrect, constructions in Internet chat rooms and text messages.[6] Often, the extended ellipses indicate an awkward silence or a "no comment" response to the previous statement made by the other party. They are sometimes used jokingly or for emphatic confusion about what the other person has said.[citation needed]

The incorrect use of "elliptical commas", or commas used in plurality for the effect of an ellipsis or multiple ellipses, has also grown in popularity online—although no style journal or manual has yet embraced them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellipsis